Spiced Cauliflower and Chickpea Salad with Crushed Olives

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Author: Lauren McDuffie
Yield: Serves 2 (easily multiplied) 1x

Ingredients

Scale

1 head cauliflower, broken into individual florets (trimmed as needed; you might have leftovers – score!)
14.5-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1.5 to 2 cups pitted olives, lightly crushed/smashed with your palm (pick your favorite! I use buttery, mild green)
2 tsp Ras el Hanout seasoning (see note for other suggestions)
2 tsp salt, cracked pepper to taste
1 romaine heart, roughly chopped
½ shallot, thinly sliced (see note for how to mellow out the heat/intensity)
¼ lb. halloumi cheese (give or take) sliced into about ¼-inch pieces, feel free to omit and just used crumbled feta over the finished salad
Olive oil, for roasting the veggies and toasting the halloumi

For the Tahini Lemon Dressing

1/4 cup TBSP tahini
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ garlic clove
Salt and pepper, to taste

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Adjust the rack to the top third position of the oven.
Put the cauliflower, olives, and chickpeas onto a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil to coat, a couple of tablespoons should be enough. Season with the Ras el Hanout and the salt and pepper. Toss well to coat everything as best you can. Roast until the cauliflower is browned and tender; about 25 minutes. Crank the heat up to broil (high) and broil for about 1 minute or so, just to get a little char on the cauliflower.
Meanwhile, in a smallish skillet over medium heat, toast the halloumi slices in a small amount of olive oil (like, a teaspoon or two) until they’re golden brown on one side. Remove from the heat (I like to leave the other side un-toasted and soft).
To assemble, add the romaine to a large bowl or platter (or you can do individual servings). Pile the roasted cauliflower, olives, and chickpeas on top, and scatter the (drained) shallots all around, along with the toasted halloumi. Serve with the Garlicky Tahini Lemon Dressing.

To make the Tahini Lemon Dressing, combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and process/blend until smooth. Taste, and adjust any ingredients to suit your liking.

Notes

NOTE 1: If you can’t find Ras el Hanout or don’t care to buy it. You can substitute a blend of cardamom, S&P, cloves, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, and turmeric. See the deets in the post to learn about what a simple Ras el Hanout consists of, and play around with what you’ve got hiding in your spice drawer! This is a GREAT recipe to use up some spices. Or, just use cumin and call it good (I find it adds the perfect warmth to so many things).

NOTE 2: To mellow out the (often intense) heat and flavor of the fresh shallots, you can put the sliced shallots in some ice water for about 10 to 15 minutes, while you assemble the rest of the salad, and the water will draw out some of the intensity.

Find it online: https://mykitchenlittle.com/2021/01/17/spiced-cauliflower-and-chickpea-salad-with-crushed-olives/