This is delicious hot or cold – useful when you need to prepare something in advance. I did save a little of the tahini dressing to drizzle at the end but this is optional.

Prep: 35 mins
Cook: 50 mins
Serves: 4-5

Ingredients:
1 large cauliflower, leaves removed

Tahini sauce:
100g tahini
35g vegetable / light olive oil
1 lemon, zest and juice
1 clove garlic, peeled and grated
2cm fresh ginger, peeled and grated
Pinch chilli flakes
Pomegranate rice:
200g basmati rice
2 tbsp olive oil
2 large red onions, peeled, halved and finely sliced
1 bay leaf
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
20g pistachio nuts, roughly chopped
1 pomegranate, seeds removed
10g fresh parsley, finely chopped

Method

• Preheat oven to 180°C. Bring a large saucepan (with a tight-fitting lid) of salted water to the boil.
• Meanwhile, rinse the basmati rice thoroughly with cold water until the water runs clear. Set aside.
• Mix all the tahini sauce ingredients until smooth, season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Lower the whole cauliflower into the boiling water and simmer for 5 minutes. Lift out and transfer to a baking dish in which the cauliflower will fit snugly. Retain 500ml of the cauliflower water.
• Pierce a few holes into the cauliflower, then spread the tahini sauce over it.
• Bake for 45-50 minutes or until tender throughout.
• In the same saucepan used to cook the cauliflower, add the olive oil. Fry the onions until soft. Add the bay leaf, cumin and fennel seeds, then stir in the rice. Fry for 2 minutes.
• Pour in the reserved 500ml cauliflower water, bring to the boil, cover with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off and leave for a further 10 minutes to finish cooking. Season the rice with salt and pepper.
• Transfer to a platter, scatter over the pistachio nuts. Make a well in the centre and sit the roasted cauliflower in the middle.
• Decorate with pomegranate seeds and parsley.
  
  Jewishcookery