Romanesco is a peculiar yet glorious thing. If you’ve never seen it before, you’re probably thinking this is some sort of sci-fi shit. You might even be expecting me to claim that I hail from one of those seven planets that were recently discovered, and that this is the broccoli of my people — but no. I’m not that interesting. The good news is that these edible fractals are from planet earth.
It’s a shame I had to destroy it.
With a ravishing veg like this, you want to be able to put it to good use and make somewhat of a statement with it; you want a recipe to revolve around it. Sadly, there’s nothing too fancy about it when it comes to cooking. Much like broccoli and cauliflower, you can eat it raw, steam it, fry it or roast it.
So I made a super lush and springy salad out of it.
Roasted Romanesco Salad With Molasses Vinaigrette
The great thing about salad is that the options are seemingly endless; I almost feel safe saying that you can throw just about anything into a salad and the flavors will somehow work themselves out. (Almost.) I learned this by frequenting the Whole Foods salad bar. Every time I’m perusing that salad bar, I get over-excited and forage anything that looks good. As I walk away, I look down at my mess and think, what have I done. Luckily I’ve yet to disappoint myself.
I felt like a bit of a dink making a SALAD out of something so beautiful, but it seemed better than simply cutting it up and roasting it. Plus, I had some gorgeous kiwi berries, edamame, avocado to make it the greenest salad ever.
Adaptations
Here are some suggestions in case you can’t find some of these ingredients or in case you want to play around:
- Pomegranate seeds — craisins, raisins or any small dried fruit
- Kiwi berry — grapes
- Edamame — sweet peas or chickpeas
- Sunflower seeds — walnuts, slivered almonds or pepitas
I didn’t add cheese, but if you want to, you could easily crumble some feta or goat cheese over this bad boy.
As far as the dressing goes, if you love molasses as much as I do, you need this vinaigrette in your life. If you’re not a huge fan of molasses, any kind of oil + balsamic type of dressing would work here.
If you make this recipe, I’d love to know! Snap a pic and tag me on Instagram: @Killing__Thyme /#killingthyme
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Roasted Romanesco Spring Salad With Molasses Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 3 cups baby spinach or spring mix
- 4 oz romanesco florets
- 1/2 tsp olive oil
- salt and pepper, for taste you can spice the romanesco further, if you'd like. I added some za'atar to the mix!
- 1/4 cup edamame
- 1/4 cup microgreens
- 1 TBSP sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup kiwi berries halved
- 1 TBSP pomegranate seeds
- 1 TBSP crumbled feta or goat cheese optional
- 1/2 avocado, sliced or chopped
- soft-boiled egg, sliced optional
Molasses Vinaigrette
- 1/2 cup minced shallots
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup dark molasses
- 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp ground coriander optional
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
Instructions
Molasses Vinaigrette
- Place all ingredients in a blender.
- Blend until thoroughly mixed; ideally you don't want it pureed since having some texture from the minced shallots is good, but it's up to you.
- Set aside.
Roasted Romanesco
- Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place florets in a large bowl and drizzle with 1/2 tsp of olive oil. Season with s + p, and a pinch of whatever other seasoning you'd like. Cover, and toss to coat.
- Spread the florets out on a baking sheet and bake for approx. 10 minutes, or until florets are tender and slightly golden. Remove and set aside.
Salad Assembly
- Place greens in a large bowl.
- Drizzle greens with a few TBSP of dressing and toss to coat.
- Place dressed greens into a bowl and garnish with toppings.
- Drizzle some extra vinaigrette over the salad if desired.
Notes
- Molasses Vinaigrette recipe adapted from Food.com.
Romanesco really is gorgeous, and you did it justice in this beautiful salad, which I wish could be transported through the galaxies and onto my plate right now! I love the vinaigrette, too. I’ve never use molasses in a vinaigrette, such a great addition. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Colleen!
This was my first time using molasses in a vinaigrette also, and it won’t be my last. It was super tasty!
You continue to demonstrate your mastery of all things salad. And you used not one, but TWO awesomely underappreciated ingredients in this recipe! I think it goes without saying that I whole-heartedly approve. Weird produce high-five. The romanesco looks absolutely spectacular, and you’ve done it real justice here. I’m so glad you roasted it too, as I think that really brings a lot more dimension to the dish (and a cool look to the florets). Well done my friend.
Haha, well shucks. Thank you!
The roasted romanesco was super tender and delish. Whole Foods still had some kicking around last week, so hopefully people are as excited about it as I am and are making great use of it. The Whole Foods produce section can be such a wonderland sometimes :)