Cauliflower “Wings”

One of my favourite appetizers and side dish are these tasty buffalo cauliflower “wings”. A much healthier version of the deep fried chicken wings we all love! They are easy to make, and even easier to eat!

Health benefits

Cauliflower is a super healthy cruciferous vegetable that’s loaded with good nutritional value. It is high in fibre, has many different nutrients and contain lots of water. Just one cup of chopped cauliflower provides 2 grams of protein, 0 grams of fat, 5g of carbohydrates and 2g of fibre. It has many essential nutrients like calcium, magnesium, potassium, Vitamin C, Vitamin K and more.

With all of the health benefits it provides it’s no wonder cauliflower has become a popular veggie used to make a ton of different meals, side dishes, and appetizers. More to come on that.

Batter Mixture

To make these yummy wings you will use flour, and a spice mixture called Emeril’s Essence by celebrity chef Emiril Lagasse. You can make this with a combination of a few common cajun inspired spices that are listed in the recipe below. I like to make a jar full of “Emeril’s Essence” as it’s super good to add to a bunch of different recipes for a punch of flavour.

Recipe here

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Cauliflower “Wing” Recipe

Serves: 4-6 appetizers or side dish Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 15-20 minutes Total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

• One medium-large head of Cauliflower cut into small chicken wing size florets
• 1 1/2 C chickpea flour*
• 1 1/4 C unsweetened almond milk**
• 1 1/2 tbsp essence spice*** OR 1/2 tbsp garlic power, 1/2 tbsp paprika, 1/2 tbsp oregano, 1 tsp each salt and pepper.
• 3 tbsp olive oil

Notes

*Chickpea flour is what I’ve always used for this recipe. It has a really nice flavour and make these gluten free; however all purpose flour works just as well.

**I’ve used unsweetened almond milk for this recipe however you can substitute regular milk or another milk alternative.

***I’ve linked the recipe for Emeril’s Essence mixture or you can make a quicker version of the mixture in the recipe above.

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400℉
2. start by washing your head of cauliflower and cutting into small bite size florets.
3. Take a medium size bowl and mix chickpea flour and essence spice mix.
4. Add almond milk and olive oil and mix together. This should create a runny batter with a similar consistency to a pancake mix.
5. Drop cauliflower bites into the batter and toss to fully coat.
6. Prepare baking sheet with parchment paper and place cauliflower wings onto the sheet. Make sure they aren’t on top of each other and they have enough space to get crispy on the outside.
7. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove from oven and flip the wings to evenly cook both sides. Then return to oven. They should be cooked enough that when you flip them the batter doesn’t fall off.
8. Bake for another 5 minutes.
9. Make sure they are to your desired crispiness. Don’t leave them in for too long or they could get mushy.
10. Remove from oven and serve with Franks Redhot Sauce or your hot sauce of choice.

Nutrition

For 1 of 6 servings.

Calories: 186 Total fat: 8g Saturated fat: 1g sodium: 419 mg Carbohydrates: 24g Fiber: 7g Sugar: 3g Protein: 6g