This recipe has taken over my life! My dinners have been built around this buffalo cauliflower most nights of the week the last few months and, after the first time I made it, I could think of little else food-wise. Yeah I’m obsessed but it’s very deserved. A serving of it is slightly over 300 calories yet covers 40% of your nutrient targets for the day, including boatloads of fiber, iron, folate, vitamin C and potassium. This recipe loves you back as much as you will love it!

I like to use rice flour here instead of regular ol’ all purpose for diversity’s sake. There are plenty of recipes that gluten makes or break, but this isn’t one of those and it is just as enjoyable without, so feel free to swap for rice flour if you have it. I also tested this with chickpea flour and it was fine but not *obsession worthy* like this recipe can be! My favorite way to serve this is alongside rice, kale, tofu and chickpea croutons, then drizzled with super bright tahini sauce. This is in no way trying to replicate a chicken wing and there are millions of vegan recipes, mostly seitan based, that do that perfectly if that’s what you’re looking for. This is just one of the million ways to enjoy the ever-versatile cauliflower, without hiding it or forcing it to be something it’s not (like rice or pizza crust lol).

Buffalo Cauliflower (oil free!)

serves 2 really happy people, or 4 as a smaller side

ingredients

1 head of cauliflower, cut into medium sized florets

1/2 cup white rice flour (or all purpose)

1/2 tsp old bay

1 tbsp smoked paprika

pinch of black pepper

pinch of salt

1/8 cup tapioca starch (or omit by adding more flour but I’m a tapioca starch stan)

slightly more than 1/2 cup plant based milk of choice (I almost always prefer soy)

1 tbsp tahini

1/2 cup hot sauce of choice

Preheat oven to 450

In a large bowl, mix together the flours and spices, then stir in the plant based milk. Add the cauliflower florets to the bowl and coat with sauce (I like to use my hands so I can efficiently get it into all the cracks). Bake on a parchment lined baking sheet for 15 minutes, then flip and roast 15 minutes more.

In a large bowl, stir together the tahini and hot sauce, then add in the roasted cauliflower, stirring well to coat. Bake for another 10 minutes.

*avoid hot spots in your oven. The lower left of my oven is hotter than the rest so I put it completely to the right side to avoid excess browning.