Meatless Monday - Charred Broccoli Salad

When I first moved out on my own I did not know how to cook. The joke was that I knew dinner was ready when the smoke detector started screaming. Things have improved drastically since those days, now when something is blackened or charred it’s because I want them that way. A little char ads a nice flavor to many dishes. This salad is a great example.

Ingredients:

1 medium sweet potato, washed and cubed
4 Cups Broccoli florets
5 tsp olive Oil + 1 Tbsp. Coconut Oil
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
1/8 Chili Flakes
Handful Cilantro, chopped
2 Tbsp Toasted Sunflower seeds
1/2 Hot Pepper, seeded and minced
2 Tbsp. Capers
Sunflower Seed Dressing (recipe below)
Lemon Wedges, for garish

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 400 F. Combine the chopped broccoli with 3 tsp. Coconut oil, 1/4 tsp. sea salt, and chili. Roast, stirring often until nice and crispy, about 25- 30 minutes.

2. Use the remaining 2 tsp. Coconut oil on the yam slices. Sprinkle them with 1/4 tsp. sea salt and pop them in the oven once the broccoli has been roasting for about 10 minutes. Roast them for about 20 minutes, or until soft, stirring once throughout.

3. Once the veggies are nice and crispy, toss to combine them. Arrange in a bowl along with a generous helping of dressing, the chopped cilantro, chili, and sunflower seeds, as well as a slice of lemon.

4. Just prior to serving, heat the last 1 Tbsp. of oil in a small pan until hot. Gently pat the capers dry with a tea towel, and carefully place them into the hot oil, stirring to coat. Once the capers become white and crisp (about 1 minute), remove the pan from the heat and scoop out the capers (place them on a towel to drain). Sprinkle the salad with the hot capers and serve, season with salt and pepper as needed.

Sunflower Seed Dressing

Recipe:

1/4 Cup Olive Oil
Juice from 1 lemon
2 Tbsp. Sunflower Butter or Tahini
2 Tbsp. Liquid Sweetener of Choice (such as honey or agave)
2 Cloves Garlic
2 cm / 1 inch (or about 1 thumb sized piece of ginger)
Zest of 1 Lemon
1/8 tsp. Sea Salt
2 Tbsp. Toasted Sunflower Seeds

1. Combine the oil, lemon juice, sunflower butter, garlic, salt, and ginger in a blender and puree until smooth. Add water a tbsp. at a time to reach desired consistency. I like mine to be nice and thick, so I only added about 1 Tbsp.

2.Add the zest and the sunflower seeds and pulse to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.  This dressing is supposed to be very thick but you can thin it with some more olive oil if you desire.
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