Za'atar Sheet-Pan Chickpeas and Vegetables with Tahini

Ingredients

• 2 cans Chickpeas, canned no-salt-added, drained, rinsed, patted very dry
• 1 head Cauliflower, florets
• 4 Carrots, cut on the bias
• 1 Red onion, cut into wedges
• 3 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp Za'atar
• 1 tsp Ground cumin
• ½ tsp Kosher salt
• ⅜ cup Tahini
• 3 tbsp juice Lemon
• 1 clove Garlic, grated
• ½ cup Flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 cup Whole wheat couscous (dry), dry
• 3 tbsp Pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

Method

1. Heat oven to 425°F. Dry the chickpeas thoroughly on a towel — wet chickpeas steam instead of crisping.
2. Toss cauliflower, carrots and onion with 2 tbsp oil, 1 tbsp za'atar, cumin and salt on one pan. Toss chickpeas with the remaining oil and za'atar on the second.
3. Roast both 25-30 minutes, stirring once. The chickpeas should rattle and the cauliflower should be brown at the tips.
4. Tahini sauce: whisk tahini, lemon juice, garlic and a pinch of salt. It will seize into a paste — keep whisking in cold water a tablespoon at a time until it turns pale and pourable.
5. Make the couscous: 1 cup couscous, 1.25 cups boiling water, covered, 5 minutes, fluff.
6. Pile everything over couscous, pour tahini over generously, and finish with parsley and pepitas.

Notes

✨ The restaurant touch

Pour the tahini in a wide zigzag over the whole platter rather than serving it on the side. It reads as a finished dish.

🧒 For the kids

The crispy chickpeas are the sell. Give a kid a bowl of just those plus plain couscous and tahini for dipping.

🌿 From the garden

Nothing here needs a garden, which is exactly why this is the February recipe.

🥡 Leftovers

Chickpeas soften; roast a fresh half batch if you care, or accept them soft in a wrap with the tahini.

Per serving

Computed from USDA FoodData Central values. A planning tool, not medical advice.