Driving my daughter, Brydie, back to college in Minnesota, we spent a night in Salt Lake City. We got mocktails at Swig (very Mormon), and I had a DIZZLE—pineapple, coconut, peach and Sprite, all over crushed ice—very important. And instead of French fries, which used to be my road trip food of choice, we got the vegetable-forward Fried Cauliflower from Laziz Kitchen, recommended by my buddies at JBF and on Triple D! A double win. I have considered making cauliflower cool a lifelong mission of mine. This was delicious road trip food that was also good room temp in the car. NO BATTER NECESSARY! GF all the way people.
| Level: | Advanced |
| Total: | 9 hr 5 min |
| Active: | 35 min |
| Yield: | 4 to 6 servings |
| Level: | Advanced |
| Total: | 9 hr 5 min |
| Active: | 35 min |
| Yield: | 4 to 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 2 cups Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons quality extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon chiffonade flat leaf parsley
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon ground sumac
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 lemon, zested
- Rice or GMO-free canola oil, for frying
- 1/3 cup tahini
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted and ground
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
- Kosher salt
- 2 globe eggplants (about 3 pounds total), skin slit a few times with the tip of a knife
- 1/2 cup tahini
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
- 2 teaspoons ground sumac
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- Kosher salt
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 1/2 teaspoon ras el hanout
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2 tablespoon chiffonade flat leaf parsley
- Kosher salt
- Pita chips, homemade or store-bought, for serving
Instructions
- For the labneh: Place the yogurt in a couple layers of cheesecloth and tie with butcher’s twine, creating a ball. Tie the cheesecloth to a spoon or utensil over a bowl to let any excess liquid drain. Let sit in the refrigerator overnight.
- For the tahini dipper: Preheat the oil in a deep-fryer to 375 degrees F. Preheat your oven to 475 degrees F.
- Combine the tahini, lemon juice, coriander and cumin with 1/3 cup water in a food processor and blend. Season to taste with salt.
- For the labneh: In a small bowl, combine the oil, parsley, sesame seeds, sumac, thyme and lemon zest, creating your homemade “zaatar” oil.
- Place the labneh in a pretty bowl, then create a divot in the middle. Spoon the zaatar oil in the divot and over the top.
- For the baba ghanoush: Place the eggplants on a baking sheet and roast, turning every 5 minutes, until the skin is blackened and all sides are soft, about 15 minutes. Place in a bowl until cool enough to handle. Cut off the tops and cut the eggplants in half. Spoon out the flesh, separating it from the burnt skin.
- In a food processor, combine the eggplant, tahini, olive oil, pomegranate molasses, sumac and lemon juice until smooth (reserve the zest for the cauliflower). Season to taste with salt.
- For the cauliflower: Fry the cauliflower until brown and crispy, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Toss in a bowl with the ras el hanout, turmeric, parsley, lemon zest and salt.
- Serve with the tahini dipper, baba ghanoush, labneh and pita chips.
Reviews
I love to eat this way, lots of choices, textures & temps.. this was fantastic!
Can this be made in advance and stored?
Need more instructions on frying the cauliflower. There are none!!!
I made this a month ago and it was fantastic!