Lemon ‘Honey’ & Soy Cauliflower Bites

GUYS. Stop what you are doing. And go make these.
Seriously, I think I’ve found my favourite kind of cauliflower wing.
This takes me way, way back to my days of eating those really dirty, greasy, lemon honey chicken wings at the mall food-court. And fried rice. And wontons. And the list would go on.

They are SO EASY to make, and so damn delicious and a lot healthier than it’s chicken counterpart.
But the texture – goddam! Think crispy edge – soft, melt in your mouth centre.
And, of course, these are vegan so there is no real ‘honey’ in here – maple syrup is the substitute but you could use any liquid sweeter of your choice (coconut nectar would work well!)

Here’s a picture of them naked and after their first bake in the oven, not so pretty -right?

But then.. you coat em, and bake ’em again.. and.. BAM!

So sexy.

So, if you make ’em! Let me know! I love hearing back from you and seeing your pictures.

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1 medium sized head of cauliflower, broken into small florets

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Batter:

1 cup gluten free all-purpose flour

1 – 1.5 cups almond milk (more if needed)

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp sea salt

*1 cup rice crumbs, set aside in a bowl for coating

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‘Honey’ Lemon Glaze:

1 tbsp vegan butter

1/2 cup maple syrup or coconut nectar

3 tbsp soy sauce

juice of 1 large lemon

2 tsp toasted sesame oil

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

2 tbsp mirin (sweet rice seasoning)

1/2 cup water whisked with 2 1/2 tsp cornflour

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1. Preheat your oven to 230C/450F
2. Whisk together the gluten free flour, spices and 1 cup of the almond milk until smooth. Gradually add the last 1/2 cup and whisk until it becomes a smooth, thick ‘pancake’ like batter. Add more liquid if needed (or more flour if too thin) as gluten free flours can vary in absorbency.
3. Dip the florets in the batter, drip off any excess, then coat in rice crumbs. Lay them on a lined baking tray and bake in the oven for 25 minutes, flipping halfway until they are crispy.
4. Whilst they are baking, prepare the glaze by melting the butter, maple syrup, soy sauce, lemon juice, sesame oil, mirin and spices over a medium-high heat. Simmer for 5 minutes, then add the cornflour mix. Keep over the heat and whisk for a few more minutes until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat. (It will continue to thicken as it cools)
5. Once the wings have browned, remove from the oven and begin coating each wing in glaze. I like to coat them all evenly first, then simply spoon any remaining glaze over each one on the baking tray (So approximately two coats on each wing)
6. Place back in the oven and bake for a further 15-20 minutes, flipping halfway until they are golden and slightly crisp.
7. Serve immediately with sesame seeds, sliced green onion and sticky rice.

** SIDE NOTE: After discussion, my partner thinks these would be delicious with some vegan mayo – so – there ya go!

** DOUBLE SIDE NOTE: Depending on the size of your cauliflower you /may/ run out of batter (EG if it’s mega huge) – If this is the case, simply make an extra 1/2 batch of batter or as much as you need. It’s literally just whisking flour and liquid, so no rocket science required!