Vegan warm salad with Romanesco broccoli

During these cold winter days, I love to eat warm and comforting meals. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s hard to find a balance between warm, comforting and healthy… Thankfully, we now have this warm salad recipe! The perfect balance between healthy and yummy, this vegan warm salad with Romanesco broccoli recipe won’t leave you hungry. Forget about leafy salads with fresh vegetables, this one is all about roasted vegetables! The star of the dish is, of course, the Romanesco broccoli. Unfamiliar with this vegetable? Let me tell you all about it while we dive into this recipe!

Romanesco broccoli nutrition

Nutritionally speaking, Romanesco broccoli is pretty similar to the ‘normal’ broccoli. Indeed, just like broccoli, Romanesco broccoli is rich in vitamins C and K. Moreover, Romanesco broccoli is also rich in dietary fiber. This is great, as a diet rich in fiber is associated with a lower risk of several diseases, as well as good health. Let’s develop a bit more on Romanesco broccoli though.

What is Romanesco broccoli?

You might still be wondering, well, what is Romanesco broccoli? Let me explain! Romanesco broccoli is from the same vegetable family as broccoli, cauliflower, and kale. It looks like a hybrid between cauliflower and broccoli, doesn’t it? Nevertheless, botanically, it isn’t considered as one. Romanesco broccoli is grown in temperate climates (in California and Europe, mostly) and is harvested during the cool weather months. Flavor-wise, Romanesco broccoli is similar to both broccoli and cauliflower, but it is milder, nuttier and sweeter. Romanesco broccoli recipes for the win!

How to cook Romanesco broccoli?

There are many different ways to cook Romanesco broccoli! One of them is to not cook it at all… yes, really! Like its relatives broccoli and cauliflower, Romanesco broccoli can be eaten raw, such as in fresh salads for example. It would be incredible in our Salad to go recipe – simply swap the broccoli for the Romanesco one!

Romanesco broccoli can also be blanched, steamed, boiled and sautéed. Lastly, it can be roasted in florets or whole, like we do it in this vegan warm salad recipe. As you can see, the possibilities with Romanesco broccoli recipes are plentiful!

What does warm salad mean?

You might be wondering, what exactly is a warm salad? The answer is really simple – a warm salad is a salad that contains at least one warm ingredient. There are plenty of warm ingredients in our vegan warm salad recipe! Looking for other warm salad recipes that are vegan? Check out our beautiful gluten-free Velvet Pasta Salad recipe!

Rather interested in a classic salad? Our Mason jar salad recipe could be the one for you! Looking for something fancier or more of a starter dish? We will have a delicious carpaccio recipe coming out soon, so keep your eyes peeled! You can also subscribe to our newsletter to get notified of all our new recipes.

How to make this vegan warm salad with Romanesco broccoli?

Let’s walk through this delicious and easy Romanesco broccoli recipe.

The first step is going to be preheating the oven. Preheat it to 220°C, or 420°F for our American friends. After that, you can prepare your seasoning oil, or herbal butter, as you prefer. To do this, simply mix the dried basil, salt and pepper with the oil or butter. Set it aside for later.

Time to prepare your vegetables! For your mushrooms, simply cut off the end of their stems or the parts that don’t look the freshest. No need to chop you mushrooms further, we are leaving them whole for this recipe. Just like with the mushrooms, cut the stems off your Romanesco broccolis. We will also leave them whole for this recipe. Move on to your onions: peel them and cut the sides off. Make sure to use small onions, as you will roast them whole! Lastly, take your bell pepper, cut the top off and remove all of its seeds.

Your vegetables are almost ready! Take your bell pepper and chop it up in slices, same for the potatoes. For the potatoes, cut them in your desired shape – we recommend slices or wedges.

Take a baking tray and brush it with your seasoned oil or butter mix. Next, place your mushrooms on the tray with their stems up. You can now add the rest of your vegetables on the tray: the Romanesco broccoli, the onions, unpeeled garlic cloves, bell pepper and, finally, potatoes.

Last step before putting them in the oven! Brush all of your vegetables with the rest of your seasoned oil or butter. Make sure all the vegetables are well covered, as that will ensure they are seasoned and cook evenly!

You’ve made it to the last part! Put your tray of veggies in the oven and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes. The veggies will be ready when they are a light golden brown, or have some browning on their tips. Before serving, make sure to remove the skin from the garlic cloves and to dress with your salad sauce of preference. Congratulations, you’ve made a vegan warm salad recipe with Romanesco broccoli!

Not sure what salad dressing to use? Keep your eyes peeled, as we will have multiple recipes for salad dressings coming out soon! You can also sign up to our newsletter to make sure you stay up to date with our recipes.

Interested in more recipes with roasted vegetables? Have a look at our delicious oven-roasted sweet potato recipe!