These vegan crispy cauliflower wings with creamy ranch dip are bound to light up your taste buds! I try to eat healthily, but I often get junk food cravings too. I love pub grub, usually in the form of something fried and crispy. Those yummy fried foods are fabulous for the taste buds but often leave you feeling bloated or heavy. Fortunately, this oven-baked cauliflower recipe is all that crisp without being fried. Panko flakes create the perfect crispy coating without the frying, and the batter adds breading and heat. I also included a cashew-based ranch dip to balances the spicy cauliflower. You can prepare this dip or use store-bought dressing or barbeque sauce too. Bon Appétit!
I recommend this dish for a party, watching the game, or an afternoon snack. It’s easy to prepare and great for kids or picky “non-vegan” eaters.
Crispylicious vegan cauliflower wings
Ingredients
Cauliflower wings:
- 1 head cauliflower washed leaves and stem removed
- 1 cup spelt flour
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2/3 tsp salt
- 5 - 7 tbsp hot sauce of your choice **Add according to your ability to handle the heat. Sriracha and Franks Red Hot work great.
- 1 tbsp melted coconut oil
- 1.5 cups panko flakes
Ranch dip:
- 1/2 cup raw cashews soaked for at least 2 hours
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp capers
- 1/2 tsp agave syrup or maple syrup
- 1 clove garlic
- 2/3 tsp salt
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
Cauliflower wings:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF(175ºC). Line a standard sized baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside.
- Cut along the cauliflower floret stems of the to make bite sized pieces about 1 - 1.5 inches long. By cutting along the little stem formations, you prevent the cauliflower from crumbling into tiny pieces that cannot be used.
- Add panko flakes into a shallow bowl, set aside.
- Prepare batter by mixing together dry ingredients: Spelt flour, paprika, chilli powder, garlic powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Add hot sauce, melted coconut oil and water, whisking together until you get a fairly consistent batter. It should be about the consistency of pancake batter, if it seems too thick, add a little more water.
- Dip cauliflower florets into batter, one at a time, or in small batches, submerge well to ensure they are well coated. Slowly remove florets, one at a time, allowing excess batter to drip off before dipping them in the panko flakes. Once again, ensure florets are well coated with panko flakes. Shake off excess flakes before laying them down on a greased or lined baking sheet.
- Place in the oven and bake for 20 - 25 minutes.
Ranch dip:
- Drain soaked cashews, discard water. Add cashews and all other dip ingredients into a blender, and blend on high until the dip becomes velvety smooth. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
