Can you Say Yum? You'll Love this Amazing Vegetarian Dinner!

I Used to Think Vegetarian Meals were Boring. Not Anymore Thanks to this Sweet and Sour Cauliflower Recipe!

Cauliflower recipes seem to be taking over the internet right now, and before any of you say, “I didn’t know she was a vegetarian,” I’m not. I’m not planning on becoming one. BUT, sometimes, I just don’t want meat.

So let’s get to it. I am a HUGE fan of sweet and sour chicken. I absolutely love it. The crispy fried chicken, the veggies, the sauce…it’s deliciousness in a bowl for sure. And I’ve been seeing so many cauliflower recipes on Pinterest lately, all with rave reviews, but until this, hadn’t tried any because, welllll, sometimes the Pinterest recipes I find don’t live up to the hype. I tend to proceed with caution. That said, I did see cauliflower sweet and sour the piqued my interest. I tried it and, it was definitely decent.

BUT, you know, I’m a princess. I wanted something better than decent. There were zero vegetables, and the sweet and sour sauce was way to sweet and a little too tangy. I liked my own recipe much better. So I took the Pinterest recipe and made it my own.

Sweet and Sour Cauliflower

Vegetarian, tasty and lots of fresh vegetables!

Serves: 4

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Ingredients:

• Cauliflower (1 Head)
• 2 TB Corn Starch
• 3 TB Olive Oil
• Minute Rice (cooked according to instructions)
Sauce:
• 2 TB Brown Sugar
• 1 TB Ketchup
• 1 TB Soy Sauce
• 1/2 TB Rice Vinegar
• 1/4 C Water
• 1 ½ tsp. Corn Starch
• 1/8 tsp. Ginger

Optional Produce:

• 1/2 C Pineapple Chunks (Halved)
• 1 C Broccoli Florets
• 1 Red or Yellow Pepper (Cut Bite-Sized)
• 1/2 Yellow Onion (Cut Bit Sized)
• 1/2 C Cherry Tomatoes (Halved)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees and grease a baking sheet. Cut cauliflower into bite-sized pieces and place into a large mixing bowl. Add 2 TB corn starch and olive oil. Stir until coated. Transfer to baking sheet and bake 20 minutes or until cauliflower bottoms have started to brown. Switch to broil and cook for another 5-6 minutes until desired crispness has been reached.
2. While cauliflower is cooking, combine sauce ingredients and stir.
3. Sautee broccoli, peppers and onions over medium heat until cooked through, but still crisp (7-10 minutes). Stir in sauce, pineapple and tomatoes. Stir occasionally until sauce thickens (around 5 minutes).
4. Top cooked rice with cauliflower and sauce/veggie mix.
5. **Chicken can be substituted for cauliflower. Cook times may vary.

Some tips for cooking: 1) watch the cook time. The original recipe gave me times that my cauliflower should be “browned” and it totally wasn’t. I don’t think it’s my oven as I haven’t had any other problems with cook times. And 2) while this is super filling - it lacks a lot of protein, so I do get hungry more quickly. An apple with peanut butter for dessert helps keep my hunger at bay.

So you might be wondering, is cauliflower healthy or what is the breakdown of cauliflower nutrition. Well, according to this Medical News Today article, cauliflower is high in antioxidants and phytonutrients that help fight cancer. It also contains Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Vitamin B6 and Folate. Additionally, it even has calcium and magnesium.

I think next on my list of cauliflower recipes will be some sort of buffalo cauliflower. I don’t think I’ll be trying the cauliflower cake recipe I saw but you never know:)

Hope you have a great week!