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Last month I went to Tawla, a Jordanian restaurant that opened recently. I never had Jordanian food so I wasn’t sure what to expect. It ended up being one of the best meals I’ve ever had! There were so many different textures and flavors, and a strong balance between tartness and creaminess. This week I decided to take those new flavors and make it mine. There were this gorgeous mini cauliflowers at the farmer’s market, so I made that the base of my meal.
The green cauliflower was the size of my palm – so freaking cute! Since they were so small, roasting them whole for a personal sized meal sounded like a great idea. I would honestly make this for a dinner party in the future. The result is so impressive and totally Instagram worthy!
This dish is full of different flavors and textures. The cauliflower with the thick sesame yogurt dressing really feels super rich – but without all the guilt.
To make the yogurt sauce, I used Simply Sesame Roasted Sesame Paste. I’m actually using this recipe as an entry into their Blogger Recipe Challenge. I signed up a few months ago and received three sesame pastes – pure sesame paste, cardamom and pistachio (the reason I signed up) and vanilla with almond bits. I never really thought of sesame paste as a sweet ingredient, but my thoughts have changed! I made some shortbread cookies with the pistachio cardamom paste (recipe to come soon), but this recipe is by far my favorite! The sesame paste adds a wonderful nutty flavor to the yogurt which compliments the cauliflower and pomegranate seeds so perfectly! Check out their Instagram and Twitter page for more info and other entries!
The recipe looks complicated, but a lot of it is just mixing things. Also if you can’t find a mini cauliflower, just use a regular cauliflower and roast the florets. You can also just roast the whole head and cut it into thick slices and serve with a dollop of the yogurt and drizzle on the oil.
This is a healthy dinner, perfect for a meatless Monday or a fancy dinner party. Give it a try!
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Za’atar Roasted Cauliflower with Garlic Sesame Oil and Yogurt
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
Ingredients
Roasted Cauliflower
- 2 small cauliflowers
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp za’atar spice
Yogurt Sauce
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp Simple Sesame Pure Roasted Sesame Paste
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Garlic Sesame Oil
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
- 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tbsp sesame seeds
- 1 tsp Za’atar
- 1 tbsp cilantro, finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp red chili flakes, or to taste
Toppings
- pomegranate seeds
- 1 tbsp roasted pine nuts
Instructions
Roasted Cauliflower
- Pre-heat oven to 360 F.
- Wash and trim base of cauliflower so it lays flat on a surface. Dry with a paper towel.
- In a small bowl, mix together olive oil, za’atar, salt and pepper to taste. Brush the oil onto the cauliflower making sure the entire cauliflower is coated.
- Wrap the cauliflower in foil, place on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes or until cauliflower is fork tender.
Yogurt Sauce
- In a small bowl, mix together greek yogurt, Simple Sesame Pure Roasted Sesame Paste, lemon juice and salt to taste. Mix well and set aside.
Garlic Sesame Oil
- Add vegetable oil to a small pan over medium heat. When oil is hot, add garlic. Stir continuously over low heat. When the garlic just starts to turn golden, add in the sesame seeds and saute for another minute, making sure the garlic doesn’t burn.
- Pour the hot garlic sesame oil into a small bowl. Add olive oil, za’atar, cilantro, red chili flakes, salt and pepper to taste. Mix together.
Assemble
- Spread half of the yogurt onto the middle of a plate. Top with the roasted cauliflower and drizzle the garlic sesame oil on top. Sprinkle some pomegranate seeds and pine nuts on top. Enjoy while hot!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
