One of the benefits of traveling for my “day” job is being forced to search out and try new places to eat. However, since I need to avoid gluten, dairy, soy, and a couple of other seemingly random ingredients, conducting copious amounts of research becomes a pre-travel requirement.

Before each trip I consult the Google search lords with terms such as gluten free, vegan, vegetarian, organic, and farm to table. In some cases I don’t turn up many results (see Anniston, Alabama and in others (see Portland, Oregon) I get so many that I don’t even have time to visit them all. Sometimes I even find a gem of a spot with dishes that, upon my return home, I try to recreate.

On one fine visit to San Francisco, in my new-to-gluten-free days (and pre-soy-free as well), I was invited to a birthday party at Betelnut. I called ahead and was enthusiastically informed that they had a gluten free menu and could easily accommodate my needs. So we went, ate lots of delicious food, and I immediately came home and worked to re-create the crispy cauliflower I had enjoyed there. After a couple years I’ve finally settled on my at home equivalent which happens to be both vegan and free of lots of common allergens.

Crispy Cauliflower

Ingredients
1 medium size head of cauliflower
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
¼ cup gluten free & vegan rice crumbs (I used OrgraN)
¼ cup olive oil

Make
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Prepare a medium baking sheet with a layer of parchment paper.
3. Wash and chop the cauliflower into pieces no larger than 1 ½ inches in size.
4. Place the cauliflower in medium bowl and toss with the olive oil. Set aside.
5. In a small blow, combine the spices and rice crumbs and whisk together.
6. Pour the spice and rice crumb mix over the cauliflower and toss with your hands until each piece of cauliflower is well coated.
7. Spread the coated cauliflower pieces across the parchment lined baking sheet.
8. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until well browned and crispy.
9. Remove from oven and serve with gluten free tamari or for a soy free option use Coconut Aminos.