By Becky at limeandbarley.com
This is a sort of warm autumnal salad, with a hearty base of rice, a spiking of beautiful middle Eastern za’atar, fresh thyme and a tahini-yoghurt dressing- plus toasted hazelnuts and pumpkin seeds. It is utterly delicious and a great way to use this more unusual variety of cauliflower – it’s so pretty isn’t it!
Ingredients
1 large romanesco cauliflower, cut into small florets
150 g white basmati rice, washed
1 heaped tsp za’atar
Small handful of hazelnuts, toasted
Small handful of pumpkin seeds, toasted
Around 10 sprigs of thyme
1 tbsp tahini
3-4 tbsp natural yoghurt
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 small clove of garlic, crushed
Salt, pepper
Olive oil
Method
Preheat your oven to 190 degrees C.
Put your cauliflower in a roasting tin and toss in most of the thyme sprigs, the za’atar, some olive oil and seasoning; roast for 30 minutes until tender and crisp.
Meanwhile make your rice in a small saucepan by just covering it with water and leaving to gently simmer/steam with a lid on until cooked; leave to cool slightly.
Now make your dressing by mixing the tahini, yoghurt, lemon juice and seasoning with a little water to loosen.
Once the cauliflower is ready, discard the thyme stalks and tip in the rice, nuts and seeds; mix well and add seasoning and olive oil to taste; dish up with the extra thyme leaves and the tahini sauce drizzled on top.