This post contains affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy.
I’d like to thank whoever came up with the concept of cooked salads. Raw salads are fantastic, but in the dead of winter I crave something warm but healthy like roasted vegetables tossed in a tasty dressing with whole grains and beans and fresh raw herbs. Every bite is full of complex flavors, exquisite textures, and satisfaction. This Roasted Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Salad is my favorite at the moment. Favorite meaning I want to eat it every single day!! I think you’re going to enjoy it too 🙂
I created this recipe and video in collaboration with Karolina Sobanska. Like me, she’s a vegan Youtuber, and we each created a recipe using cauliflower. It was Karolina’s idea to use cauliflower as our ingredient, and I couldn’t have been more excited. I LOVE cauliflower so much. Raw, sautéed, pureed, roasted, grilled, broiled, I don’t discriminate. The video is below. Check it out, and don’t miss the video Karolina made for her vegan cauliflower alfredo.
What I like most about this salad is the balance of roasted cauliflower and potatoes with raw fresh mint and parsley along with the incredibly delicious pomegranate molasses vinaigrette. Hey, it’s also got toasted cumin seeds in it. Next level, yo! You’re going to want to add this roast cauliflower salad to your weekly meal planning repertoire.
Roasted Cauliflower & Sweet Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower, chopped
- 1 large sweet potato, cubed
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup fingerling potatoes, halved or 2 cubed Yukon potatoes
- salt
- ½ cup raw quick-cooking farro
- 1 ½ cups garbanzo beans aka chickpeas
- ¼ red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 cups parsley, roughly chopped
- 1 cup fresh mint leaves
- ½ cup pomegranate vinaigrette, recipe below
- ¼ cup toasted pumpkin seeds
Pomegranate Vinaigrette
- 1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon toasted cumin seeds or ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red chili flakes
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Toss the chopped cauliflower with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil, and a sprinkling of salt. Spread evenly on one baking sheet and roast 30 minutes.
- Do the same with the sweet potatoes and fingerlings: toss with oil, spread on baking sheet, and roast 30 minutes or until tender.
- Bring 1 cup of water and 1/2 cup of farro to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook until tender, about 10 minutes for quick-cooking farro.
- While the vegetables and farro cook, make the dressing.
- Place the dressing ingredients into a jar with a lid. Tighten the lid and shake until dressing is emulsified and creamy. If you don’t have a jar with a lid, whisk the ingredients together in a bowl until creamy.
- Place the cooked cauliflower, potatoes, cooked farro, beans, sliced red onion, parsley, mint, and dressing into a large salad bowl.
- Stir well to combine. Season to taste with more salt, and finish off with black pepper, red chili flakes, and toasted pumpkin seeds.
I love, love this salad! I always make it at the beginning of Fall to celebrate the end of hot weather. I recently brought it to a get-together and got several compliments. My family likes the salad but feels that the dressing is a little strong with the dijon mustard. Any suggestions for a different dressing that would go well with this salad?
Thanks again for this scrumptious recipe!
We had some vegan friends over for dinner and served this salad. I added some cranberries to it. It is absolutely delish! We’re trying to eat with more plant based protein, etc, This recipe makes it easy to feel like the change will be must easier than we thought! Thanks so much, Jenne.
Yummy, yummy, yummy. I used Marzetti’s pomegranate vinaigrette as a substitute for the homemade.
Nice!
I made this tonight and I love it! I didn’t have pomegranate molasses and couldn’t get it, so I used a blackberry balsamic vinegar and it turned out great! I’m really glad I’ve found your site and your YouTube channel. 🙂
Sounds so delicious!! Thanks so much!!
I had never heard of pomegranate molasses but this sounded so good! I found some at whole foods and can’t wait to make this for dinner tomorrow…thanks for the inspiration to try new ingredients : )
I hope you enjoyed it!! Pomegranate molasses is one of my favorite ingredients 🙂