Tabbouleh is one of my favorite side dishes.  I love the crunchiness of the fresh vegetables, paired with the acidity of lemon and olive oil.  I came across a Cooking Light recipe card with tabbouleh in a recipe notebook I received at my bridal shower.  It is originally paired with bulgur wheat, but I wanted to recreate the flavors using cauliflower rice to make it Paleo.  This is my favorite use of cauliflower rice yet!  I couldn’t have been happier with the result.  The textures were spot on, and the brightness of the lemon tied everything together nicely.

The main difference between my recipe and the Cooking Light one was the exchanging of cauliflower rice for the bulgur wheat, but I also adjusted the amount of veggies and added a lot more lemon juice.  The recipe also said that the tabbouleh should sit 24 hours before serving.  NOT THE CASE with my recipe.  The extra lemon juice helps marry the flavors immediately.  The acidity will also help maintain the freshness and color of the veggies the next day.

This is a perfect side dish for other Mediterranean flavors.  I paired this with my Paleo Greek Lamb Chops, and it was a perfect meal!

Make sure to go to my recipe for Cauliflower Rice if you’ve never made it before.

Ingredients

• 1 head of cauliflower (riced)
• Juice of one lemon, divided
• 2 tbs organic olive oil, divided
• 1 tbs minced garlic
• 3-4 stems green onions, finely chopped
• 1 container cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 4 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 1 cup cucumber, seeded and finely chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
• sea salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes, to taste

Instructions

• 1. Rinse cauliflower, pat dry, and chop into florets
• 2. Using Vitamix (on level 3), food processor, or blender on low speed, chop cauliflower until it is the consistency of couscous
• 3. Pour cauliflower into large bowl, drizzle with 1-2 tbs of water or chicken broth, and sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste
• 4. Microwave for 3 minutes on HIGH, remove immediately, and set aside to cool to room temperature
• 5. In a medium bowl, add celery, tomato halves, cucumber, parsley, green onion, garlic, tossing veggies gently with a large spoon
• 6. Add the juice of half a lemon, 1 tbs olive oil, and incorporate evenly into veggies
• 7. Add the other tbs of olive oil and the juice of the second half of the lemon to the “tabbouleh” cauliflower, and stir well
• 8. Add veggie mixture to cauliflower and stir until ingredients are evenly distributed
• 9. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, to taste
• 10. Enjoy!