Buffalo Cauliflower Wings with Winder's Wing Sauce

Alright, so I know y'all think cauliflower buffalo wings have kinda peaked, but y'all ain't never had them with Winder's Wing Sauce. This stuff is kickin'! Patented under the one and only Nathan Winder, this is the best buffalo sauce I have ever tried, and I like to think of myself as a hot sauce connoisseur. He was sweet enough to give me this recipe to veganize, by way of his gorgeous girlfriend, and my sweetest friend, Kendall. Kendall is the (wo)man. She is always down to get waffles at seven in the morning, after a long night drinking red wine and jamming out to *Nsync. She knows that lunch at the best meat and three in town is the best way to cure the Monday blues. And don't even get me started on the kinda trouble a couple of girls can get into with some queso and margaritas!
These wings are exactly what us girls would love to scarf down before hitting the town for the night. Deep fried, and dipped in vegan ranch, they seem like the ultimate guilty pleasure. Plus, if you're serving them with carrots and celery you are obviously making a conscious effort to stick to that diet. Go girl!

Beer batter, mother of all things delicious. Really though, you could dip carpet lint in beer batter and you'd have guests clamoring for the recipe. For a whole head of cauliflower, I use about two cups of all purpose flour and one can of beer. I used Coors Light, cause I'm a recovering college girl, and its vegan! Really though, it's best to use a brand some might consider "water beer" because you don't want the flavor to be too overpowering, just a hint should hit the spot.

Yes, I see that grease. You didn't really think these were going to be healthy, did you? I will give 'em a little credit though, these definitely are far more nutritious than the wings at your local sports bar. I deep fry mine in my great grandmama's cast iron skillet in about an inch and a half of oil, just enough to cover them. They don't take as long as chicken would, of course, just around five minutes on medium heat, so the cauliflower is cooked, but still has a good bite left to it. I fish them out with a spider, I prefer this one from Kuhn Rikon, cause it has a really long neck so there's no danger of getting oil splatters on my sundress.

Time for the good stuff! Nathan sent me a recipe that could've made around eighty pounds of this stuff, so I had to scale down a bit. It is simply a combination of your favorite, red hot sauce, butter (I use Earth Balance, of course!), brown sugar, and a handful of spices. What sets this sauce apart from others, is the addition of a mango habanero sauce. It makes it so much spicier, but also but also gives it this fruity punch. It is so good! In my hey day I would go over to Kendall's specifically to pour this over my pizza, salad, burger, pretty much anything that entered my mouth.

Mmmm, molten lava hot sauce goodness.

Alright, so, once your sauce has come together, pour it over your cauliflower, and toss it together. I used salad tongs, after I quickly won the idiot award of the day using my hands. Don't be me, use the damn tongs.

You know how you feel when you have just eaten something, but you wish you hadn't, so you could eat it again? I want to eat these everyday, for the rest of my life.

Just some more model shots for y'all to ogle over.

Buffalo Cauliflower Wings with Winder's Wing Sauce

Author: The Porkless Peg Serves: 6 as appetizer

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE Cauliflower

• 1 head of cauliflower, cored and cut into little trees
• 1 can coors light beer
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp black pepper

FOR THE BUFFALO SAUCE

• 1 cup red hot sauce, such as Frank's
• 1 cup melted vegan butter, such as Earth Balance
• 1/2 cup mango habanero sauce
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp seasoning salt

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Whisk together the flour, paprika and black pepper, with the beer until smooth
2. Thoroughly dredge your cauliflower trees in mixture, til every nook and cranny is covered
3. Deep fry in cast iron skillet in two inches of vegetable oil, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Drain on paper bag.
4. In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, combine all sauce ingredients and slowly stir over medium low heat until melted and combined.
5. Pour sauce over fried cauliflower, and toss with tongs
6. Serve with carrots, celery, and some vegan ranch! I like the Follow Your Heart brand.