It is OFFICIALLY football season- which means Monday night football in this house. I like these nights for what they connote: the general white noise, the relaxing environment that naturally ensues around a football game being broadcast from the TV on a chilly day, and the excuse to bake a million pumpkin-based desserts. To DJ it takes on a totally different meaning, but to us both it’s a wonderful time! Last year I made him hotdogs/chicken-wings/fries/burgers every single football Monday until he noticed that scale budging up a bit 😉 I told him I would health it up, so now I make a few substitutions that he loves! They certainly have a strangely addictive quality about them.
Without further adieu, here are Buffalo Cauliflower “Wings”
Grocery List:
- 1/2 Head of Cauliflower
- 1/4 cup Fage yogurt (or any plain nonfat greek)
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1.5 TBSP of light butter of choice (Earth balance for vegans or olive oil based butter)
- Hot sauce of choice (Frank’s is best!)
- Ranch seasoning of choice (or a small mixture of dill, parsley, onion powder, and garlic powder)
- Red chili flakes (optional)
Directions:
- Line a baking pan with foil
- Preheat oven to 425 F
- Wash and cut cauliflower florets into hearty lengthwise slices
- Sprinkle Ranch seasoning over cauliflower florets
- Mince garlic
- In a sauce pan, add 1/2 TBSP of butter over medium-high heat
- Add garlic and sautee until it is fragrant and translucent
- Lower to medium heat, Add cauliflower and 1 TBSP of butter (add more if needed)
- Stir until butter is distributed evenly
- Add about 1 TBSP hot sauce among the cauliflower (or sprinkle until cauliflower has a nice light-red color)
- Stir until hot sauce is evenly distributed
- Add to foil-lined pan
- Sprinkle chili flakes lightly over the cauliflower if desired
- Put in the oven for about 20-35 minutes, turning once, until cauliflower is tender and crispy. I like to leave them in until a few florets have a very slight burnt appearance on the edges. **All ovens cook differently
For Dip:
- Put 1/3 cup of Fage or plain greek yogurt of choice in a bowl
- Add 1/2 TBSP of hot sauce
- Add a sprinkle of ranch seasoning (I like adding the dill, parsley, garlic and onion powder mixture to taste).
- Stir together until a nice light red color (add more hot sauce to taste)
*For a teensy bit less healthy version: Some may opt to dip the florets in flour and milk before baking and adding the butter/hot sauce mixture after. DJ likes using plain ranch dressing sometimes too. I prefer the hot sauce dip!
Nutrition for the batch (including dip!): *using Smart Balance Olive oil butter
Calories: 234
Protein: 15g
Carbs: 24g
Fiber: 10g
Sugar: 13g
Fat: 11g (all the good kinds 😜)
Enjoy!
Wishing you a winning season (unless you cheer for someone besides the Browns!)
xo <3
Mack