Raw Cauliflower and Kale Tabbouleh with Creamy Roasted Garlic Cashew Dressing
Raw Cauliflower and Kale Tabbouleh with Creamy Roasted Garlic Cashew Dressing is a refreshing and healthy raw salad that is deliciously addicting!
Ingredients
Creamy Roasted Garlic Cashew Dressing
- 1 head garlic
- drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons raw cashew butter
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon Morton Kosher Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon mustard powder
- 1/4 teaspoon nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon capers
Raw Cauliflower and Kale Tabbouleh
- 1 bunch kale, torn into bite-sized pieces about 11 to 12 cups
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon Morton Kosher Salt, or to taste
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar*
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets about 6 to 7 cups
- 1 and 1/2 cups pomegranates
- 1 and 1/2 cups tangerine, cutie, clementine, or orange sections, cut into bite-sized pieces
Instructions
Creamy Roasted Garlic Cashew Dressing
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Peel and discard the outer papery layers of the head of garlic. Cut off a 1/2 inch from the top, exposing the tops of the garlic cloves.
- Place the garlic head on a piece of foil. Drizzle extra-virgin olive oil over it, rubbing the oil into the exposed garlic cloves. Wrap the foil around the garlic, making sure it’s completely covered.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the garlic cloves feel soft to the touch. While the garlic is roasting, prepare the kale (see steps 1 and 2 of the Raw Cauliflower and Kale Tabouli section).
- Allow the garlic to cool inside the foil for 10 minutes or until it’s cool enough to touch.
- Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves out of their skins and into the bowl of a food processor.
- Add the cashew butter, water, and lemon juice and pulse until it’s completely smooth.
- Add the salt, mustard powder, and nutritional yeast. Pulse until smooth and incorporated.
- Toss in the capers and pulse until they are finely chopped. Set aside.
Raw Cauliflower and Kale Tabbouleh
- Add the torn kale to a large bowl. Drizzle the olive oil and salt over the leaves. Massage the oil and salt into the leaves until they start to look a little glossy.
- Mix together the maple syrup, sherry vinegar, and lemon juice. Pour over the kale leaves and massage the dressing into the leaves until evenly distributed. Set aside while you prepare and roast the garlic for the dressing.
- After you’ve made the dressing, give the food processor bowl a quick rinse and pat it dry. Add a handful of cauliflower and kale and pulse until it’s the texture of couscous. Transfer it to a big mixing bowl. Repeat until all the cauliflower and kale is processed.
- If there is any dressing leftover in the bowl the kale marinated in, pour it into the big mixing bowl with the processed cauliflower and kale.
- Add the pomegranates and citrus sections and mix well.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and mix until incorporated. Add salt to taste if needed and serve.
Notes
I like to eat this salad by itself, in wraps, or on top of toasted whole grain bread. I'll also sprinkle a little raw shelled hemp seeds on top.
*Sherry vinegar is a Spanish gourmet wine vinegar made from Sherry and it can sometimes be hard to find. It's not as sharp and acidic as red wine or white vinegar but it's not as sweet as balsamic vinegar. It has a lot of nutty notes and is more complex than the other kinds of vinegar. There really is no good substitute but I'd say to use rice vinegar if you can't find any. Read this Serious Eats article on it if you want to know more.
This makes a large salad. It’s really easy to scale down this recipe to half or even single portions and then add the amount of dressing you want. Use the extra dressing as a sandwich spread, in rice bowls, or in other salads.