vegan – Cheeky Attitude

Roasted Cauliflower with Curry and Lemon

Hubby’s groan was intentionally loud when he saw me unpack the beige blob of cauliflower. He’s not a fan. I think of cauliflower as a vehicle for other flavors and I I remembered a recipe that fit his palate – tangy and spicy (but not hot).

Based on a roasted cauliflower salad that Chef Susan makes at work.

Preheat oven to 450F
Spray a jelly roll pan with olive oil spray

2 lbs cauliflower florets
1 lb small fingerling potatoes
1 tsp salt (divided)
1 Tbs chopped garlic
1 tsp sweet paperika
1 tsp sweet curry powder
freshly ground black pepper (about 4 cranks of the grinder)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Place cauliflower florets into a large bowl. Cut potatoes into chunks no bigger than the larger florets. Add 1/2 tsp salt, garlic, paprika, and curry then stir. Pour in the olive oil, toss, then spread on the jelly roll pan sprayed with olive oil spray. Roast for 20 minutes at 450F, then furn with a spatula. Return pan to oven and roast for 10 more minutes. Cauliflower and potatoes will begin to brown and soften. Cool to room temperature.

While the vegetables are cooling whisk lemon juice with 1/2 tsp salt until salt dissolves (I just put it in a glass jar and shake it).

When ready to serve toss cauliflower and potatoes in a bowl with the lemon juice.

Enjoy! Hubby sure did!

Speedy Southwestern Salad – Easy picnic salad recipe

The credit for this “recipe” goes to @snbLeslie who brought a version of it as a dip to one of our knitting weekends.

The hero of the 3 ingredients is the TJs Corn and Chile salsa which adds the spice and lovely southwestern flavor.

If you keep a can of black beans on hand and this salsa you can squee a little bit like I did when I got avocados in my CSA.

After cubing the avocado, rinse and drain a can of black beans, and add the salsa.

And you’re done. Serve it in a bowl as a dip with tortilla chips.

Or schmancy it up a bit and assemble a plate to pass it in little tortilla “cups”.

I kept the mix in the fridge during the week and just tossed it with a bowl of greens for a quick “Big Salad” meal.

As a vegan dish you can’t go wrong bringing it along on a picnic or to a pot luck.

Looking for another picnic salad? Try the 4-ingredient “Perfect picnic potluck salad recipe”

Perfect Picnic / Potluck Salad Recipe

The Summer is upon us and I’m hoping for sunshine-y days with friends and family sharing food. Choosing a potluck or picnic dish can be tricky, you want something that won’t fade in flavor or possibly go bad in transit or while sitting around. And a salad can be the trickiest dish of all. This salad not only travels well, it actually gets better with time. I learned the basics from our chef at work who really knows the limitations of a salad bar.

The basics are:
Red bell pepper
white mushrooms, sliced
zucchini (the small young ones are best)
canned or bottled ( I use canned) artichoke hearts, quartered

good quality basic italian dressing (you can make your own if you have a favorite recipe, or buy the one you like – I have been using Newman’s and always get raves)

Just slice up the veggies into bite-sized pieces, toss with the dressing and you’re done.
For this particular batch I used two small zucchini, one red pepper, about 1/2 lb of mushrooms and one can of artichoke hearts. I tossed it with about 1/3 cup dressing. The result was one quart of salad.

Want to add a little protein? – garbanzo beans work especially well.

It goes just as well beside burgers as it does a roast chicken or homemade ravioli. When I know a heat wave is coming, I’ll make a batch so there’s something healthy and refreshing in the fridge.