A simple veggie side dish that packs a ton of flavor. Just a few simple ingredients that will have your whole family going back for seconds and thirds.

One day my amazing friend Denise brought me lunch from one of my favorite restaurants. She brought the salad I requested, but also got me a side of their caramelized cauliflower. It was…life changing. Smothered in tahini sauce and sprinkled with toasted pine nuts, it was kinda the stuff dreams are made of.

Of course, now I’m addicted to said cauliflower dish, and I can’t help but order it all.the.time. Then one day I find out its deep fried, and all of the sudden my dreams are crushed. So sad.

I was desperate to recreate the dish at home, so I did a little research, got my onions caramelizing, put the cauliflower in the oven on very high heat to get them dark and caramelized, and got to work whipping up my own tahini sauce. I’ve never made tahini sauce before, so I followed a recipe. It was…disgusting. I tried adding and changing things, but it was just hopeless. I pouted a little, tossed my cooked veggies together and grudgingly served them to our company. Ya know that rule about not trying anything knew when you have company? I break it every single time.

But wait!!! It gets better!! The dish ended up being totally awesome without the tahini sauce! Just basically simple roasted cauliflower and caramelized onions thrown together–who knew it would be like magic? By roasting the cauliflower at such a high temperature, it gives it a bold flavor, and great crispy texture while maintaining a soft (but not mushy) inside.

I know it can be tough to plan to get all of our veggies, and I totally get into a rut and just throw a bag of kale from TJ’s in the oven most nights because I don’t feel like being creative, but it doesn’t take long to put something a little nicer together, and it really makes a big difference when it comes to loading up your plate with the good stuff!