Two more days of work before the long weekend! I got up early to blog because 1) working out wasn’t happening – my quads need a rest day and 2) I was way under-motivated to sit at a computer last night. It was 80 and sunny! I wanted to play outside and try to rush a slab of ribs on the grill.
For the record, the taste was good but the texture was chewy and tough. Yum, I know. I didn’t think through the recipe beyond the dry rub and I ran out of time. The troops got hangry. Oops. They definitely could have been worse, though!
I also got up early to blog because today is my 10th wedding anniversary and we won’t be home tonight. How is this even possible?
I’m 33 and yep, married at 23 just seems way too young now that I’m no longer 23. But…I am still crazy about my hubby and it has been a wonderful 10 years – there were 3 moves (Chicago to Tulsa, Tulsa to Ohio, Ohio to Michigan) in less than 3 ½ years and we’ve been in Michigan ever since. I think of it as my home. It’s where we made our house into a home, where our children were born and raised, where we’ve made memories and friends…yep. Life is good! To celebrate I’m stepping out of the kitchen – we have no concrete plans. He sent a text yesterday alerting me that he has a Groupon for a brewery so in true Mark fashion, we will probably follow the savings and check that out before heading out for a nice dinner 😉
I tell you – the romance is ALMOST too much to handle! We’re both very simple people and he doesn’t complain too much about my lack of organization or use of the credit card. So we’ll hopefully live to see many more anniversaries celebrated (with cost savings and coupons)!
In completely unrelated news, I bring to you a dish that screams summer to me. Because honestly, if the holiday weekend forecast doesn’t change, I’m going to need all the most summer-y things to pull me out of the funk.
If you’re a lover of cauliflower, I bring to you this dish. I swapped tahini for sunbutter as both a taste preference and cost savings. It worked great. I also simplified by using the sheet pan to roast the chickpeas versus dirtying another skillet. Short cuts and big flavors. I ate this for lunch for a week – yum!
- 1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets
- ½ red onion, sliced
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp salt and black pepper, to taste
- ½ bunch parsley, finely chopped
- 15 oz can chickpeas, drained
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- ⅛ tsp cayenne
- black pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup sunbutter or tahini
- ¼ cup water
- scant ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (~1 lemon
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ tsp cumin
- ¼ tsp cayenne
- ¼ tsp salt
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the cauliflower florets and onion on the parchment; drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with the salt and pepper; toss to coat. Roast for 20 minutes and remove from oven, toss.
- While cauliflower roasts, drizzle the olive oil over the can of drained chickpeas in a small bowl. Sprinkle with the seasonings, paprika through pepper; toss to coat.
- Add chickpeas to the baking sheet, sprinkling to spread them out. Return sheet pan to the oven and roast for 10-20 minutes more, until tops of cauliflower begin to brown.
- Meanwhile, whisk together all dressing ingredients in a small bowl; set aside until ready to serve. dressing.
- To serve, drizzle the creamy lemon dressing over top, and toss to combine. Sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve warm or at room temperature.
2 Comments