Roasted Cauliflower Hummus Spread
It's not a secret that I love cauliflower. I really haven't jumped into the "cauliflower" as a substitute for rice or cream world yet, mostly because nothing can really replace cream or potatoes. It's sort of like my philosophy on meat, unless it's supposed to be tofu, it probably shouldn't be replacing meat in a recipe.
This recipe sort of crosses those boarders in a grayish kind of way. By no means is this a replacement for chickpeas, just a wonderful enhancement and variety to the possibilities that "hummus" could be.
I love the nuttiness of roasted cauliflower, and the low cal version of a lovely spread with tahini, lemon and garlic, I knew this was going to be my new "go-to" for cauliflower recipe.
A few things to note. Don't just replicate your hummus recipe and replace the chickpeas because the cauliflower doesn't sop up the garlic and tahini as much. Try ONE garlic clove as the recipe says, and then let it sit, if you want to scoop it back into your blender or food processor the next day and add more garlic, by all means go ahead, but you will be smelling like garlic, since it seeps through the cauli more than the peas.
ROASTED CAULIFLOWER HUMMUS
makes about a cup
INGREDIENTS
- 1 head cauliflower
- 2 tbs olive oil
- pinch salt and pepper
- 2 tbs tahini
- juice of 1 1/2 lemons
- 1 garlic clove
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat your oven to 375F. Cut your cauliflower head into florets even sized. Place in a baking pan/on a sheet. Not too much stalk in the pan, since it doesn't puree super well. Spray with olive oil and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Add 1-2 tablespoons of water to the pan and cover with tin foil.
Roast the cauliflower until tender about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool a bit. Add to blender with the rest of the ingredients and blend. You might need to "prod" the hummus with a spoon to get it to blend if you are using a blender instead of a food processor. It's just one of those blender things. Spread on EVERYTHING and enjoy.
If serving to a crowd, sprinkle with chopped parsley and a teaspoon or two of your best olive oil (like a dipping oil). Alternatively use pomegranate molasses and some fresh pomegranate seeds.