Another super easy and hearty salad for you today!
I love this salad for lunch with some spicy rocket leaves and a dollop of hummus, as a side-dish or all on its own. It’s an array of textures and flavours so really doesn’t need any adornment.
Who’s on team roasted cauliflower?! I absolutely adore it and am (almost) certain that even self-proclaimed cauliflower haters will love it too. I’m not particularly keen on plain ole steamed cauliflower, even less so when it’s steamed to death and sulphur smelling…raw or roasted is the way to go.
I could eat a whole head of it roasted in olive oil with salt and pepper and call it lunch but this salad is more of a balanced meal and even more delicious.
I paired the roasted cauli with beautifully sweet roasted red pepper - Another vegetable that benefits from a stint in the oven, it gets ultra sweet and takes on a slightly smoky taste if you leave it in long enough to pick up a bit of a char.
You might remember the Buckwheat Risotto with Mushrooms & Hazelnut Cream I shared last year? One of my favourite recipes on the blog to date.
Buckwheat works magically there in place of rice with its lovely toothsome texture and nutty flavour. It’s a (pseudo) grain I use a lot in both sweet and savoury recipes and it’s just as good in this salad.
All you need to finish things off are a handful of toasted walnuts for some crunch and parsley, lemon & shallots/red onion for a bit of freshness and zing.
Ingredients
- 1 Small cauliflower, broken into florets
- 1 Red pepper
- 2 Tbsp Olive oil (divided)
- 1/2 C Buckwheat
- 1/4 C Roughly chopped walnuts
- 1/3 C Roughly chopped parsley
- 1/2 Shallot OR 1/4 Red onion, finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp Lemon juice
- Salt & pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 190C/400F. Toss the cauliflower florets with 1 Tbsp of the olive oil, salt and pepper and spread on a baking sheet. Add the whole red pepper to the baking sheet. Roast the vegetables for 20-30 minutes until the cauliflower is brown and crisp at the edges and the pepper is charred and soft (You may need to remove the cauliflower from the baking sheet and cook the pepper an extra 5 or so minutes).
- Chop the red pepper into pieces, removing most of the papery skin. It should come off easily.
- Meanwhile, cook the buckwheat. Rinse well then place in a saucepan with 1C water. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat and leave to simmer, covered for approx 15 minutes. Once all the water is absorbed, turn off the heat and leave to sit, covered, while you prepare the rest of the salad.
- Toast the walnuts in a small pan over medium-high heat or on a small baking tray in the oven for approx 5 minutes.
- Stir together all the ingredients, including the remaining Tbsp of olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper.
It’s a “Bank Holiday” weekend here in the UK so an extra day of free time for playing in the kitchen! Especially as it’s supposed to be rainy…
What are you planning on making? Long weekend or not.
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You know that a recipe is good when it makes you want to go out and buy cauliflower RIGHT NOW!!! (and I’m from England- land of really badly cooked cauliflower!)
Aaaw, thanks Ana! Hope you enjoy it when you get to make it. And yep, I’m from England too and had to suffer through far too many school lunches with stinky boiled cauliflower!
This sounds delicious. I’ve never thought of roasting cauliflower before but I’m definitely going to give this a try
Have pinned!
You really must try it! Life changing!
I’m new to your blog, love it
great recipe!
So glad you found me Michelle! Hope to see you here again
Lovely!
Thanks Elaine
honestly I could eat either steamed or roast cauliflower - though I know what you mean about roasting making everything taste better! cauliflowers have suddenly shot up in price here - waiting for them to go down -sounds like a great salad
I haven’t noticed any fluctuations in price for cauliflower here. They do tend to be a little more expensive than broccoli crowns but I can still get them for about £1 a piece which is pretty cheap 😀
What a beautiful and so simple salad Emma! I love that you added roasted pepper, I absolutely love roasted bell peppers on pretty much everything. I must admit, I’m not a fan of cauliflower at all, but I may need to try it roasted. I have had a pureed cauliflower soup before though that was outstanding. It just depends on the preparation I guess and the other flavors added to it!
You must try it roasted Brandi! You don’t use oil though, do you? I’m not sure if it would be good oil-free….
And YES to roasted red peppers!
Great idea! I need more buckwheat inspiration since I cook about three meals from it over and over again. This is perfect, I love the combination with cauliflower
Glad I could be of assistance! Will have to check out your buckwheat recipes too.
Aw man, you had me at roasted cauliflower! This looks phenomenal.
Glad you’re on team roasted cauli!
Oh yum!!! I love roasted cauliflower - did you see my recipe with paprika? I’m always looking for ways to use buckwheat - my favourite grain - and I love all the combinations here!
I hadn’t but have just popped over to see it. On the must-make list
Buckwheat is so wonderful isn’t it?! I love it in salads, risotto, porridge, savoury scrambles, stir-fries, veggie burgers..and more!
Yum! This sounds amazing. I rarely cook with buckwheat (always eat it raw), but when I see in recipes like this, it reminds me that I need to cook with it more often!
I love raw buckwheat too. I like to soak it and then dehydrate it into crispies! Sometimes with raw cacao and maple syrup to make cocoa pops 😀
omg this looks so heavenly!! can’t wait to try it at home
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Thanks Anna! I love hearty grain/bean salads like this one.