Recipe: Vegan Buffalo Cauliflower

I have a secret addition to Buffalo wing sauce. Ironic for a vegetarian, no? 

The first time I tried anything "Buffalo" flavored was at a neat little vegan place in Pittsburgh called Quiet Storm a few years back. They have some amazing tofu tenders slathered in a Buffalo sauce. They come with a vegan blue cheese dressing that tastes nearly like the real thing. After one tiny bite, I was hooked on Buffalo sauce. Since then I've had the super tasty tofu wings at Melt (they're so good that meat eaters even like them), and in my travels for work, I've tried some really interesting tofu/tempeh/seitan Buffalo wings here, there, and everywhere. They seem to be pretty popular outside of Cleveland...and I can only hope that restaurants in CLE start serving them up sometime soon.

I stumbled upon a recipe for Buffalo cauliflower last week while looking for vegan grub to make for the 4th of July. This was another facebook photo recipe and it turned out SO well! My only regret about making this recipe is that I didn't make a bigger batch! (and that I skimped on the sauce - never skimp on the hot sauce!)

Ingredients:

• 1-2 Heads of fresh cauliflower
• Grape seed, coconut or other favorite oil
• ¾ cup Favorite low sodium, gluten free Hot Sauce (I used a vegan sauce I found in the refrigerated section at Whole Foods)

Method:

1. Preheat Oven to 400* F
2. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper
3. Wash and separate your cauliflower into individual florets
4. Either toss your florets in a large mixing bowl with just enough oil to coat each floret OR lay your florets on the cookie sheet and use your spray oil to coat them.
5. Cook the florets in the oven until they start to brown, 25-40 minutes, the time variant will all depend on your individual oven temperature. So just keep an eye on them and remove them when they are at your desired tenderness/color
6. Place cauliflower into a large mixing bowl and toss with the hot sauce.
7. Serve on a tray with celery and carrot sticks and ENJOY !!

If you're a Buffalo fan like I am, you will LOVE this recipe. And it's obviously a healthy alternative to deep fried anything slathered in hot sauce. Quick, easy, healthy, and tasty!