You are going to L-O-V-E these delicious bites of fluffy sweetness. They are a simple and mouth watering dish that you will definitely want more of. In fact, the first attempt at taking a picture (for this blog) was thwarted by Derek eating them so quickly. The bites were made again for lunch - this time with camera in hand after taking out of the oven!
Derek's nightmare food is cauliflower, so my mission has been to find and create recipes that trick his taste buds. We are on to winners when he can't wait to have them on his plate. A real treat! We have many recipes now, all of which are part of our regular meal planning.
Make these the star of the show and have a simple salad or extra veggies on the side with them. Don't be fooled though, as these bites are very filling.
I know cauliflower has been somewhat expensive, especially after storms and out of season, but I'd like to ask you this... how much do you spend on meat? Would you worry about buying a $5 cauliflower (that's how much they are in the supermarket today) if you knew it would make two good nutrient-rich dinners that everyone will eat?
We have one dinner of this recipe with some salad or other veggies, and the other is usually cauliflower rice or a pizza base, usually cutting up the cauliflower for this recipe and put half of it into the freezer for the next one. They freeze well. I don't blanche the cauliflower. I save that effort for the softer leaf veggies that have vibrant colour. Put the florets into a jar and then in the freezer. These easily stores for six months.
It's always a good idea to have everything you need ready and for the area you're preparing to be clear and uncluttered. Mostly because when these delicious treats come out of the oven, you're ready to eat immediately! Honestly, it's going to feel like you're cheating on a diet because these bites are sweet, tender and more-ish!!!
I found cooking in large oven tray was the best. I cooked them in an air fryer, and while they cooked well, the cauliflower didn't have the same sweet stickiness.
Give them a go this week. I promise, you won't be disappointed.
Are you ready for the recipe? Here it is...
Cauliflower and mixture
2/3 cup chickpea flour*
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup water
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 head of good size cauliflower (chop into bite-size pieces)
Sticky Sauce
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp fresh grated ginger
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup maple syrup (you can replace with 1/4 cup honey - this will change the flavour)
2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (not essential, but gives it a nice heat)
Mix the following into a slurry (to thicken the sauce)
1 tsp chickpea flour* mixed into a small amount of water (this is to thicken the sticky sauce)
Topping
2 Tbs Sesame seeds (set aside)
chopped spring onion
Preheat the oven to 220 C.
Line a baking dish with baking paper.
for the Cauliflower:
Add the dry ingredients for the batter in a large bowl and whisk well.
Add the wet ingredients and whisk together until smooth.
Add the cauliflower florets, coat thoroughly, transfer to the baking dish and put in the oven to bake for 30 minutes.
Now, it's time to start preparing the sticky sauce.
In a saucepan, heat the oil and lightly cook the ginger and garlic.
Add all the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil to reduce to half.
Mix the water and chickpea flour together and into the pot. Bring to a boil to thicken. Take off the heat.
Once the cauliflower has finished baking, pour the thickened maple syrup mixture over the cauliflower, sprinkle sesame seeds and spring onion on top and bake for an additional 10 minutes. (longer if you want them more crisp, but watch they don't burn!)
* you can replace the chickpea flour with rice flour or cornflour.
We have some nutrient dense food workshops on our website. The link is HERE if you'd like to take a look.
Many blessings
Julie xx
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