I've recently discovered roast cauliflower. Seriously where has it been all my life!? By sprinkling with a little moroccan seasoning and roasting until it's golden this once boring, fairly tasteless vegetable I always left on my plate becomes an incredible smoky, flavour bomb in this salad. It goes perfectly with the crispy sweetness of the sweet potato and the mild acidity of the marinated baby beets and when drizzled with the creamy Tahini dressing....... OMG!
This salad has become a regular family staple in our home. Best of all the roast veggies and quinoa keep for up to 5 days, all you need to do is add your fresh leaves when serving, making it a meal-prep winner for days when you can't be stuffed cooking (most days for me) but want something delicious.
Makes approx 6 servings:
Ingredients:
Salad:
1 large head of cauliflower, washed and broken into florets
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
2 packs of marinated baby beets (the balsamic ones work beautifully), cubed
1 cup quinoa
3 cups boiling water
1Tbs salt reduced powdered stock of your choice
Large bag washed baby spinach leaves
Large cucumber, cubed
Feta to crumble over when serving (approx 50g per serve)
Dressing:
approx 2 Tbsp Tahini
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
juice of a large lemon
2tsp moroccan seasoning
2 tsp organic maple syrup, rice malt syrup or honey
Method:
Place cubed sweet potato in a large microwave safe bowl and steam for approx 10-12 minutes on high until cooked but not soft
Cook quinoa by placing quinoa, boiling water and stock powder into a med sized saucepan, bring to boil then reduce to a low simmer, cover, and cook until all the liquid has been absorbed. This should take around 10-12mins
Fluff quinoa with a fork and leave aside covered for a further 10 minutes.
Place cooked sweet potato on a greased baking tray and cook on a high heat (approx 200 degrees celcius) for 15mins
Place cauliflower on a greased baking tray, sprinkle with moroccan seasoning and a little extra cumin if desired, add the cauliflower to the oven, turn heat down to 180 and bake for a further 1/2hr
Turn veggies once or twice and remove from the oven when they are golden
Whilst veggies are cooking, cube the beets and cucumber and set aside in seperate bowls (the beetroot will leach colour into everything so it's best to add this last unless you want everything to be pink!)
Make the dressing by combining all ingredients in a bowl and whisk until creamy. Adjust sweetness and saltiness to taste
Once the veggies have cooled a little, combine veggies, quinoa, beets and cucumber in a large bowl, add the salad leaves if you're serving immediately or portion out the veggie mix and store in airtight containers.
Arrange beautifully on a plate, drizzle with dressing, crumble a little feta on top and prepare to be floored by the flavour!
This article was written by Kate Hickey for Empower360 Fitness. If you'd like more information on our online or teen bootcamp programs, head to our website www.empower360fitness.com.au or for info on 1:1 virtual health coaching contact Kate: kate@empower360fitness.com.au