The week after I gave birth to my son, my dear friend Becky brought us dinner for when we came home from the hospital. One of the components was a delicious orzo based pasta salad from Epicurious.com called Orzo with Everything.
Since she introduced me to it almost five years ago (Thanks Becky!), I’ve made it many times and it’s always a hit.
I’ve been thinking about trying a version using lightly cooked “al dente” cauliflower to stand in for the orzo for awhile now. The flavors of the salad are Mediterranean based (Balsamic vinegar, fresh basil, parmesan cheese, sundried tomatoes, kalamata olives, etc…), and I hoped that they would be robust enough to mask any cauliflower flavor.
The original recipe calls for radicchio, which has a nice bite to it, but I subbed in red cabbage for mine because I couldn’t find any in my local grocery store. The cabbage worked, but if you can find the radicchio I recommend it!
The original recipe also calls for toasted pine nuts which are a really tasty addition. I omitted them from my version simply because they are expensive and hard to find depending on where you live, and I wanted to see if it would still taste good without them. It does, but if you have them, toast some up and toss them in because they are awesome.
Lastly, I added chopped artichoke hearts, which added a nice flavor and texture. I can’t say it’s as good as the original – only because it’s hard to beat the chewiness and comfort food feel of the pasta, but the cauliflower worked really well as a substitute.
This is a truly delicious, flavor-packed side dish – and it’s hearty enough (especially with the pine nuts) to eat on it’s own for a light lunch. Hope you guys like it!
Keto “Anti” Pasta Cauliflower Salad
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: (8) 1/2 cup servings
- Diet: Diabetic
Description
This Keto “Anti” Pasta Salad is a truly delicious, flavor-packed dish! Perfect as a side or hearty enough to eat on it’s own for a light lunch. Gluten Free, Keto, Low Carb
Ingredients
- 2 cups of raw cauliflower, chopped
- 1/2 cup radicchio, chopped
- 1/2 cup artichoke hearts, chopped
- 1/3 cup fresh basil, chopped
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan
- 3 Tbsp sundried tomatoes, chopped
- 3 Tbsp kalamata olives, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- First, cook your finely chopped cauliflower in the microwave for five minutes. Don’t add any liquid or seasoning to it, just spread it on a microwave safe dish and zap it. Let the cauliflower cool while you prep the other ingredients.
- Combine the radicchio, artichoke hearts, basil, parmesan, sundried tomatoes, olives, and garlic in a medium bowl.
- In a smaller bowl, whisk together the olive oil and vinegar, then pour it over the salad.
- Toss to combine, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Can be served room temperature or chilled.
Notes
Use a good quality extra virgin olive oil to get the best results. The artichoke hearts should be packed in water, not marinated in oil and seasonings.
Also, the sundried tomatoes I used were packed in oil so they were nice and soft – if you use the dehydrated ones, reconstitute in some warm water for 20 minutes before using them.
Finally, use a shredded parmesan or asiago, not the granular grated stuff you get in the can.
If you use the best quality ingredients you can get for this salad it will make a huge difference in the flavor.
Approximate Net Carbs=4g
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Microwave
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1.5 cups
- Calories: 127
- Fat: 10g
- Carbohydrates: 6g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 4g
Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients – I promise it’s worth it!
Nicole says
Have you ever made this with Shirataki noodles? I’m wondering if the flavour would be too strong.
Mellissa Sevigny says
I haven’t tried it Nicole, but theoretically it could work. Not sure that the texture would be good though – let us know if you try it!
Ana says
I made this and OMG! It was amazing. It certainly does not lack in flavor.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks Ana, still one of my favorite salads!
Harriet says
Your anti-pasta salad is one of the most delicious things I’ve eaten. Certainly the most delicious way I’ve had cauliflower!!! I served it last night to a group of people (I’m the only low-carber) and it was a serious hit. Thank you.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Right?!?! I love this one too and I’m so glad you and your guests did as well! It’s one of those recipes that will probably never go viral, but it should because the flavors and textures are just so good! Thanks for letting me know that it was a hit!
Candace says
I have been banned from making anything with cauliflower at home ( probably went a little crazy with it the first year or 2 of low-carb). What about miracle rice or cooked radishes riced? Has anyone tried any other alternatives?
Linda @ The says
Even I haven’t tried some of these ingredients like Radicchio! I’m excited to make this, I’ll just omit the parmesan. :)
Patti says
Saw this come across my facebook feed yesterday, and made it last night — delicious! Thank you for sharing this, I loved it, and it will become a regular in our house. In fact, left overs for lunch today!
Mellissa Sevigny says
This is one of my favorites from way back – so glad you liked it too!!!!
Frodosdojo says
This was DELICIOUS !! A lot of my fav ingredients: cauliflower, parmesan, olives and artichokes! I was thinking of adding pepperoni to make it a meal – I can’t really eat on 1/2 cup – lol !
Wendy says
Thank you for the recipe. It looks great. I’m not a big fan of cooking foods in the microwave. I love grating and roasting my cauliflower in the oven, steaming it and using the water in my smoothie or even a quick saute on stove with ghee or olive oil really brings out the flavor without loosing the nutrients.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Sounds like a great alternative to the microwave Wendy, thanks for sharing your method!
Lindsay S says
Hi Mellissa,
This salad was AMAZING! I didn’t have the raddichio – I didn’t know what it was at the store so just didn’t get anything. Then when I got home was worried my salad wouldn’t taste good and be missing something. I ended up adding chopped walnuts. This was the perfect add! It gave a crunch!
I was very very worried making this salad but it was definitely worth it. Thank you so much for posting and including in your 7 day keto menu!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks for letting me know Lindsay and I’m so glad it turned out to be worth it for you! This salad has more ingredients than some of my other recipes and definitely stronger flavors, but I LOVE it and I’m so happy that you did too! I can imagine the chopped walnuts would be delicious in it as well – might try it next time I make this if I don’t have the pine nuts on hand! Thanks for taking the time to comment and let me know that you liked it!
Leslie says
What Pine Nuts!!!
Melissa Cooney says
Hi! I just made this – tasted great, but mine was brown due to adding the balsamic. Is there also a white balsamic and I used the wrong kind? I’d love to be able to make this again but it just looked a lot worse than it tasted! Ha ha!
Mellissa Sevigny says
It’s true that the cauliflower absorbs the vinegar so it looks kind of brownish – Trader Joe’s sells a white balsamic vinegar and that would definitely work well!