Roasted Cauliflower and Romaine Salad with Seeds, Raisins and Nuts

Most days I work from home. The great and not so great thing about this is having to come up with lunch every day. Sometimes it may be cheese and crackers, a salad, or even a cup of soup. But most of the time it is leftovers from the night before. Today there were not a lot of options. I was thinking salad, and on hand I had a half a head of cauliflower and some romaine. I turned to the pantry for the chickpeas, the freezer for the nuts and the fridge for the dried fruit and pomegranate seeds.

I had such great success with roasting cauliflower back in October, recipe here that I decided that I would go that route. This time I added curry, hot smoked paprika, grated orange peel and juice to the cauliflower as that is what was available. Roasted mixture for 25 minutes at 400°. The cauliflower was added to the romaine right out of the oven with the tiny bits of oil; then mixed together with a pair of tongs. The toppings were then added. There was no need for a dressing, as the roasting of the cauliflower and addition of curry and paprika bring plenty of flavor. I will definitely make this again, but being that it is so versatile it might be a little different each time.

Ingredients:

1/2 head cauliflower (cleaned and cut into small pieces)
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil (depends on size of cauliflower)
1/2 to 1 teaspoon curry powder (depends on size of cauliflower)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon hot smoked paprika (depends on size of cauliflower)
1 cup canned garbanzo beans
4 large leaves romaine (cleaned and cut into 1/2 inch wide ribbons)
1/2 cup parsley (chopped)
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pomegranate seeds

To prepare:

Preheat oven to 400°. In a medium sized bowl combine cauliflower with olive oil, curry powder and smoked paprika. Place mixture on a baking sheet and bake about 25 to 30 minutes until lightly browned.

In a large salad bowl add romaine, parsley and hot cauliflower right out of the oven, mix together using a pair of tongs. Add raisins, sunflower and pomegranate seeds. Ready to serve.