Cauliflower Tabbouleh

Morning!

So I’ve been trying to eat a bit more grain free lately – due to tummy issues!  So I’ve done a ton of research and checked out tons and tons of recipes and cauliflower is basically a grain and dairy free person’s perfect food!    It really meld into anything you want it to be from super creamy alfredo type sauce, to a low carb stand in for mashed potatoes to chicken wings to a grain in salads!    Over the past few months we’ve eaten a lot of cauliflower recipes (and enjoyed them too!)

The other day I wanted a yummy salad but was bored of plain old greens.   I used to make a super yummy bulgur wheat tabbouleh & was totally craving that recipe so I got to thinking and this was created!  You can serve it with any protein you like – I did some leftover grilled salmon but chicken, tofu, tempeh would all be great as well!  Get that protein in to keep your belly full!

This salad is FRESH, bright and crisp and would be an awesome addition to a potatoes salad heavy BBQ!   The longer you let the flavours marinate the better – so make ahead of time if you can!

 

Cauliflower Tabbouleh

1 head cauliflower – chopped into small pieces – ideally rice sized but totally up to you!

1 bunch fresh parsley – washed, de-stemmed and chopped

1 handful of cherry tomatoes- cut in half

1/4 purple onion – diced

1-2 TBSP sunflower seeds or pepitas (pumpkin seeds) ~ for crunch!

Dressing

Juice of 1 lemon

2 TBSP olive oil

No-salt added seasoning (I used Epicure sundried tomato) (optional)

Dash of stevia or 1/4-1/2 tsp honey, agave or maple syrup (optional)

Salt & pepper to taste

 

Toss chopped cauliflower, chopped parsley, tomatoes, onion & sunflower seeds into a bowl! 

Mix dressing together (my favourite way to mix dressings  is in a mason jar and shake shake shaken) pour dressing over salad and mix together!   Let the salad sit for a bit to let the flavours marinate together – overnight is best but work with what time you have!

NOTES

If you don’t like cauliflower you could easily sub bulgur wheat, quinoa or any grain in this recipe!

Cucumber is a great addition to this salad!

A few pieces of mint can be added for some extra freshness!

Enjoy and please let me know if you give it a try!

xo Jessica

Lentil & Brown Rice Loaf

Hola!!  

So as you know – I often crave Savoury Goodies!   I wanted to make my hippie loaf – but I didn’t have all the ingredients – plus I was craving lentils.  Which I’m assuming means I’m low in iron right now – check out the stats of lentils.  High in Iron and Folate!

Anyways, this is an easy recipe to add flavours too – especially since there are no eggs – you can keep testing until the moment it goes into the oven!

PS.  This ISN’T pretty but it tastes awesome!

Lentil & Brown Rice Loaf

1 cup dry lentils

1 cup brown rice (I used basmati)

4 shitake dried mushrooms

(no) chicken stock

1 yellow onion – chopped.

1 tsp Herb de Providence

2 TBSP Savoury

1 TBSP nutritional yeast

1 tsp garlic powder (or fresh garlic)

1 tsp sugar

BBQ Sauce, Ketchup or Salsa for topping

salt and pepper to taste

Cook brown rice according to package.

Cook lentils on the stove top – adding water (or stock) and stirring until lentils are cooked (about 35 mins).  Add mushrooms in at the beginning of cooking to soften them up and to add flavour to the lentils.  Remove mushrooms once softened.

Add savoury, nutritional yeast, savoury, garlic powder, sugar salt and pepper to the lentils.  Taste test to see if you need to add extra.

Once lentils taste is up to par – add lentils to a mixing bowl.

Preheat oven to 350.

Cook onions with a little bit of oil – adding water to soften.  Cook until they start to caramelize.

Chop mushrooms into small chunks.

Add everything into lentils.

Mash ingredients with a potatoes masher.   The lentils should mash up well and make the dish creamy and sticky!

Add mixture into a greased loaf pan and flatten until smooth.

Add BBQ sauce, ketchup or salsa to the top of the mixture to add extra flavour.

Bake in oven for 20 – 30 minutes – until it starts to brown and the sauce dries up a bit.

I had a bit extra (and was hungry) so I made it into 2 small burgers – and cooked it up in a pan.

It was awesome served over salad greens with a tiny bit of dressing.

The topping (I used BBQ sauce) added an awesome sweetness.

LOVE this recipe!  I found myself dipping into it with some taco chips! 

You could sub the spices for taco seasoning too and use this as a taco or burrito filling!

Hope you enjoy this and test it out!!  It’s easy peasy!

If anyone uses canned lentils, let me know how it works!