Lately when I sit outside to enjoy the beautiful Michigan weather I have been going through my cookbooks. I discovered this recipe from two brothers, Max and Eli Sussman who wrote “This is a Cookbook – Recipes for Real Life” first printed in 2012. A fun read as I always enjoy learning about the authors. Such as Max using tahini instead of cheese when he was a vegan. He still loves it to this day… He also worked at Eva’s in Ann Arbor, Michigan (my home town for many years). As far as I know they are still working as a duo in the foodie world.
A different, but tasty way of making cauliflower…
Caramelized onions and lemon tahini sauce made this cauliflower dish special…
Roasted Cauliflower with Caramelized Onions and Tahini Sauce
- 4 tbsp. EVOO, divided
- 2 yellow onions, thinly sliced
- 1-2 tsp. (kosher) salt, divided and to taste
- 1/2 cup tahini
- 3/4 cup water (way too much – add 1 tbsp. at a time to get the right drizzling consistency)
- 3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 head cauliflower cut into 1-inch florets
- 1 cup fresh Italian parsley (again, way too much – add to taste)
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. In a saute pan over medium heat, heat 2 tbsp. of the olive oil. Add the onions and stir to coat with the oil; stir in the salt. Cook, stirring constantly and reducing the heat if necessary to prevent burning, until the onions are softened and a deep golden brown, 30-45 minutes. I like to place the onions on paper towels to soak up any excess oil before assembling.
In a small bowl, whisk together the tahini, 3/4 cup water (way too much – add enough gradually to make a nice sauce for drizzling), 1 tsp. salt, the lemon juice and garlic; set aside.
Put the cauliflower florets in a bowl and toss to coat; layer on the baking sheet. Space them evenly and season with salt. Roast until nicely browned about 15 minutes. Turn the cauliflower and continue to roast until tender, about 10 minutes longer. I would cook it less as I prefer my cauliflower to be firmer.
Arrange the cauliflower on a platter. Garnish with the caramelized onions and parsley; drizzle with the tahini sauce.
Recipe by cookingwithauntjuju.com
The ingredients and Max and Eli’s cookbook…
Tasty looking combination!
I agree about adding less water to tahini. Adding too much ruins the texture.
I would also suggest blending the parsley with the tahini, creating a greenish and more flavorful sauce. 🙂
His proportions were way off in terms of the water. Great idea – make a green goddess sort of dressing by blending the parsley (to taste) with the tahini mixture. The author used it as a garnish. 🙂
Very tasty!
It’s the caramelized onions that made this cauliflower dish special 🙂
I can imagine! Or much better than caramelised onions 🥰
this sounds so good! I like to caramelise onions in the oven rather than the stovetop as you can just shove them in and forget ’em!
Never caramelized onions in the oven – I would be interested in how you do it. This recipe is delicious – I would make more onions 🙂
the recipe is on my blog post of june 9 for Pumpkin lentils and caramelised onions. It’s so much easier!