Sautéed Cauliflower: Our Unexpected Crave

Y'all, an unexpected thing happened to our family this winter.  We fell in love with cauliflower. I have always liked it, but never would I have thought that the words *cauliflower* and *crave* would be used in the same sentence.  But now, I crave it, and it shows up on the grocery list every week.

Here's how it happened: I was making the Cauliflower Soup that my friend Lindsey had been raving about.  It is a creamy (from the veggies, not milk) blended soup with bits of roasted cauliflower nestled on top as a garnish.  As I was sautéing the garnish, we tested one to check for doneness and flavor and then we started nibbling.  I swiftly went back to the refrigerator to cut up some more to add to the pan because it was clear none was going to make it to the soup. We ended up loving the garnish even more than the soup. (Though the soup is a winner.)

As we were chomping, we recalled a time we went with friends to the Tavern in midtown and got a buffalo cauliflower appetizer that was incredible.  It made me think about dipping them in some buffalo sauce.  The next time we sautéed cauliflower we tried it and it was yummy- especially to my guys.

Now sautéed cauliflower has become a main dish, a side dish, and a snack at our house. This week we made brown rice bowls layered with sautéed cauliflower and roasted kale, and rotisserie chicken with a drizzle of buffalo sauce and crumbles of blue cheese.

Herb Salted Cauliflower (Roasted or Sautéed)
You can oven roast or sauté depending on the time you have and amount of cauliflower you are making.
If you are making a bunch (a large head or more) you might rather roast on a baking sheet.
If you need it faster, you might choose sautéing in a frying pan.

Wash and chop cauliflower into small pieces.  Toss in a drizzle of olive oil.  Sprinkle with herb salt, or coarse salt and some dried rosemary and/or basil.

For sautéing- place in a pan on medium high heat and stir occasionally until tender, transparent and the edges are golden. Sprinkle with salt or herb salt.

If roasting- place on rimmed baking sheet and cook at 375˚ for 20-30 minutes, stirring a few times here and there.  Remove from oven when cauliflower is tender, transparent and the edges are golden. Sprinkle with salt or herb salt.

Let this simple, nutrient-packed, savory treat inspire your next meal! 

Quinoa Bowls...Pass it On

When I find something great, I can't wait to pass it on!
We have a new favorite meal at our house that I have been wanting to share with you for several weeks.  These early dark dinner hours have made it really hard to capture the meal in photos in order to post it.  So, this weekend I made it for Saturday lunch so that I could get photos with natural light.

This meal, Quinoa Bowls, was generously made for our family by my friend Maureen, while Dave was out of the country several weeks ago. It was so delicious, we all devoured it.  She had gotten the idea from Lane, when they and their husbands had eaten together a while back.  So, thank you Lane and thank you Maureen for passing it along!

after meal Jenga

after meal fire in a real fire place

I wondered  if it just tasted so good because I didn't make it and it was so special to have someone cook for me and my kids, or if it was the loving company.  My mom has always said, "It's the company that seasons the meal." I believe this is true.

That being said, I have since made it for my family several times and they love it.  So I think it's a great meal regardless of whether it's with special company or just everyday family members.

It's really more of a "concept" than a recipe, as you can adapt it anyway you like to make it as simple or elaborate as you want! 

There are some WARM ELEMENTS and some COLD ELEMENTS.
The point is that you make the warm ingredients and prepare/chop the cold toppings and then set it out to pile in bowls and devour.  It's build your own bowl.

For the Warm- 
Quinoa- start with this.  If you have a rice cooker, you can use it to make your quinoa, if not, just make it on a pot on the stovetop.  Just make it according to the package.  Portion-wise: I would suggest 1 cup dry for every 4 portions.  For my family of 5, who usually returns for seconds, I usually make 2 cups dry.

Black Beans- I usually open cans of black beans, rinse and drain beans.  Add a little water and season with kosher salt, cumin, garlic powder, and Cholula (or Tabasco) to taste.  Place on medium heat and stir until warm, turn heat down to low and stir occasionally. 

Kale- This is the last step of the process.  Sauté a couple of cloves of fresh garlic in a Tbsp. of olive oil in a skillet.  After a couple of minutes add roughly chopped/torn raw kale.  Stir around occasionally until kale is wilted, and soft but not mushy.  It shrinks drastically.

before

after

If you have carnivores that can't handle a meatless meal, or if you just want to add another element- We have warmed chicken sausage (sliced and browned on the skillet) to add to our bowls.  If you want to go meatless, you can forgo this! 

For the Cold-
Green Onion- thinly slice

Cilantro- wash and pluck leaves off

Feta-crumble

Limes- dice (to squeeze on top of the bowls)

Avocado-dice

Tomatoes- dice

Then just line it all up, put out a stack of deep bowls and spoons and let people pile their own creation.

The other night when we had this for dinner, we were discussing what ingredient was the "most essential" and we really couldn't decide (or agree).  We'll let you be the judge- but something about the flavor combination is just right.

(Sprinkle some salt and pepper on top- and Hot Sauce if that's your style.)

I love meals where you can make a bar and people can fix it like they wish, and I really love a meal that is comforting and nourishing and beautiful!  

Here is the line up at my house:

The Asher

The Julie

The Lainey

The Dave

The Lucy

Speaking of passing it on, and speaking of comforting, nourishing and beautiful...

Several weeks ago, I saw via Instagram that our very talented artist and designer friends, Jay and Kristi Smith, had designed and produced a spiritual/therapeutic coloring book!  I was so excited to hear about it and wanted to get a few for Christmas gifts.  I emailed Kristi to ask her the best way to purchase a few and she ended up coming by the house to bring some for me to buy.  She said she had heard about the CD, Amazing Love,  that Dave had produced for our church's 5th Anniversary and wanted to buy one.  So, they came and we made the transaction. It's beautiful and I can't wait to get my pens and pencils in it!   It is beautiful, spiritually encouraging and therapeutic!

(If you need any last minute Christmas gifts- both this album and this coloring book are lovely!)

Click here to view their blog and read about the story behind the Coloring Book.

Wishing you health, beauty and comfort this season.  

Mind Body Soul Nourishment

My mind is full of thoughts these days.  It feels like it's on overdrive sometimes.

The things I'm reading, for work and for personal growth have been rich and thought provoking. I want to underline and highlight it all and meet up to discuss every insight! It's inspiring and overwhelming! It feels like a feast.

Parenting my kids, each with unique needs and ever-changing situations, is requiring me to dig deep and get creative and think hard.  No coasting going on here, no cruise control- being fully awake is a must. It is purposeful and deep, joyous, exhausting and heart wrenching.


All the while, I'm trying to physically nourish my family and myself every day.

On busy days I am looking for fuel.  One of my go-to’s is Granola.  I try to always keep it on hand.  I love it for a power snack and it is one of my favorite breakfasts- especially with plain Greek Yogurt and fruit.  When my body feels out of whack, it’s usually because we are out of granola. 

I tried this new Granola recipe recently (though I am very loyal to my granola recipe I’ve been making for years).   I thought I would give it a go.  I got the inspiration for the recipe from My Father’s Daughter cookbook by Gwyneth Paltrow, which I checked out of the library.  She calls it "Favorite Granola" so I thought it was worth the shot.  It doesn’t have refined sugar and has substantially less oil than my regular recipe. I added and deleted a few things, but used her instructions, sweetening with real maple syrup and agave nectar.  It is really good. (After my last post of Monster Bars/Slice with gobs of sugar, chocolate chips and M & M's, it seemed like a good balance.)  Everything in moderation is a guidepost in my life. 

Here is the recipe for the Granola.

And HERE is my "standard" granola recipe.  And HERE is a Peanut butter granola recipe that I love. 

(I always double the recipe if I have enough ingredients because it freezes so well.  I leave one batch in a jar on the counter and the other in a ziplock in the freezer. ) 

Granola

2 cups whole rolled oats (Old Fashioned Oats)

½ cup whole raw almonds

¼ cup sunflower seeds

½ cup shredded coconut

¼ tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. salt

(I sprinkled a couple of tsp. Chia seed in mine too, or you can sprinkle wheat germ for some added umph!)

½ cup real Vermont maple syrup

3 Tbsp. light agave nectar

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil (or coconut oil brought to liquid temp)

½ cup Craisins and dried cherries (and/or golden raisins), roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Stir together the oats, almonds, seeds, coconut, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl.  Combine the maple syrup, agave, and vegetable oil in a small bowl and then mix with the dry ingredients.  

Spread the granola out on a baking sheet LINED WITH PARCHMENT PAPER (I learned the hard way about the importance of this). 

Bake for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until evenly browned.  Remove the pan from the oven and push the granola so it's about 1/3 inch thick, letting it cool completely and then breaking it apart into small pieces. 

Combine the cooled granola with dried fruit.  

Keeps well for several weeks in an airtight container and in a ziplock in the freezer for a few months!

And here is some mind/soul nourishment from some of my current readings:

(I highly recommend each of these books.)

From Mary Pipher’s The Shelter of Each Other about counseling with families:

 “Whatever the family is ashamed of must be discussed.  As Adreienne Rich wrote, ‘That which is unspoken becomes unspeakable.’ We are diminished by living with problems we try not to see.  Secrets keep families from dealing with reality.  They create alliances and estrangements.  They keep things from changing and make people feel ashamed.  Secrets teach people the destructive lesson that certain events cannot be handled.  For families or individuals to be healthy, they must be able to integrate all of their experiences into their lives. “

And from Brene Brown’s fabulous new book, Rising Strong about “rumbling with disappointment, expectations and resentment“, she says this:

“Here is what you need to know about disappointment: Disappointment is unmet expectation, and the more significant the expectations, the more significant the disappointment. The way to address this is to be up-front about our expectations by taking the time to reality-check what we're expecting and why.  Expectations often coast along under our radar, making themselves known only after they have bombed something we had high hopes for into rubble."

And Anne Lamott’s classic, Traveling Mercies, a section about coming to terms with her aging body.

“Over the years, my body has not gotten firmer.  Just the opposite in fact.  But when I feel fattest and flabbiest and most repulsive, I try to remember that gravity speaks; also, that no one needs that plastic-body perfection from women of age and substance.  Also, that I do not live in my thighs or in my droopy butt.  I live in joy and motion and cover-ups.  I live in the nourishment of food and the sun and the warmth of the people who love me.”

I am hoping you too can feed your body or your mind/soul on some of this, and "live in the nourishment of food and the sun and the warmth of the people who love (you)".

Energy Bites: Healthy & Delicious (For Real!)

I don't know if you have made energy bites of some sort, but I have become a fan of these yummy and healthy snacks.   A while back, my friend Connie gave me a few of these she had made to sample.  After I had one, I immediately texted her, "YUM! I tried them and I need the recipe!"  Then, a few weeks ago it was my snack-bringing week for church and I felt the need to make something a little more substantially nutritious than the biscuits and coffee cake I had made the previous months.  I looked on my Pinterest breakfast board and found this recipe that was pretty much Connie's recipe but with peanut butter instead of almond butter. I had forgotten about the recipe! 

I made a double batch- which yielded 40 something balls.  They were all gone within a few minutes of serving them.  I don't know if people were desperately hungry or they really liked them.  We have lots of kids that congregate around our snack table at church, so I think we can call these delicious when kids and adults ate them, and we can call them healthy since they are chock full of flax seed, chia and oats! 

I made them again for my family this week and we have enjoyed having them for a quick snack or for a breakfast on the go.  I even had one for dessert the other night (though my son believes that despite that fact that they are laced with chocolate chips, they do not qualify for dessert) !

I'm trying to have things on hand that are protein-rich, as my kids tend to reach for crackers, chips, and starches for snacks.  Lately, I've made Hummus and Texas Caviar to have in the refrigerator and try to always keep yogurt and smoothie-making supplies on hand.  If I get my act together to have the good stuff within reach, and prep a couple of things for the week, they have good, tasty, healthy things within reach.  

 

Energy Bites

Makes about 20

1 cup (dry) old fashioned oatmeal

2/3 cup coconut flakes

½ cup peanut butter (or almond butter- take your pick)

½ cup ground flaxseed

½ cup mini chocolate chips

1/3 cup honey

1 Tbsp. chia seeds

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Stir all ingredients together in a bowl.  Let set in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.  

Form into small balls (about golf ball size).  

Put in an air tight container and keep in refrigerator. 

If this inspires you to get into healthy oatey bar/bite making, I have two granola bar recipes I love that I wrote about HERE and HERE and my favorite go-to granola recipe HERE, oh and the lovely chewy peanut butter granola HERE.  If you are short on time, these simple but nutritionally dense bites are super easy and quick to put together.  

Chicken Chili on a Chilly January Day

I hope you are having a great start to the new year.  Choosing Happiness is the goal that we set for this new year.  On our road trip home on New Year's Day, Dave and I did some reflecting on 2014 and vision casting for 2015 and realized that last year was more of "survival" year in many respects and we want this year to be marked with more joy, happiness, play and laughter!  I have determined that my motto for this year is: "Complain Less, Hug More, Choose Happiness!"  We'll see how it goes.  So far, I already feel more hopeful.  I realize that when I extend love (via hugs and other extensions of generosity and compassion), it's hard not to be happier.

I'm glad that the bleak, cold, grey days are more than 1/2 way over. In the meantime it helps if I look for the wintery beauty in the midst of the bleak.  And I find great comfort with a piping hot bowl of soup!

 I have made this Chicken Chili several times over the past month.  During the winter, I really just want to eat soup, sliced apples and crusty bread everyday.  Healthy and Comforting!

This recipe has become a new favorite in our house.  I'm delighted to have another soup that is 5 for 5 at my table!  

This is so very easy to make.  In fact, there aren't very many photos because… there is not much to photograph, unless you want photos of me opening cans and stirring.  

Also, this soup is hard to capture in photos because the good stuff tends to sink to the bottom of the bowl and pictures don't do it justice.  

Every year our Social Work department has a chili supper and the faculty/staff provide crock pots of Chili for students to enjoy.  Patsy always makes this Chicken Chili and I always choose it.  It is delicious!  I got the recipe years ago, but was reluctant to make it for the family because my girls are sensitive to spicy (sad!), and my boy has a bean aversion (really sad!).  But Dave loves chili and wishes that I would make it more. So, I decided to make it with mild salsa and reduce the number of beans to accommodate my kids and give it a go.  It was very well received!  I was happily surprised!  It wasn't too spicy and Asher had just come from a 2 hour wrestling practice and was famished and therefore wasn't too picky with the beans!  Progress is being made in the bean situation!

It is a Weight Watchers recipe originally, so it is healthy and is simple and versatile. 

I roast chicken tenderloins in the oven while I "prepare" the rest of the soup.  (The original recipe says to boil them but I prefer the roasted flavor.)  It only takes about 25 minutes to roast and then I tear it apart and add it to the soup.  

I serve it with sour cream and shredded cheese, like the recipe recommends, but I also add some slices of lime, tortilla chips and diced avocado.  OH MY!

I have shared the recipe with a couple of friends and decided that I needed to post it to share with even more friends.  It's too great to not pass along!

Chicken Chili

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or I used about 12 tenderloins)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 jars (16 oz. each) of picante salsa
49 oz. chicken broth
48 oz. Northern white beans
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. garlic powder

Roast chicken in oven:  Preheat oven to 400˚.  Drizzle or brush chicken with olive oil.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper (and garlic powder and cumin, if you'd like).  Place on baking sheet, place it in the oven and bake until fully cooked.

Mix all other ingredients: salsa through garlic powder.  Shred cooked chicken and add to the pot.  Bring to a boil and cook 20 minutes.  Reduce heat and simmer slowly until time to serve.  (You can also put it in the crockpot in the morning and let it cook on low all day).

Garnish with sour cream, shredded cheese, slices of lime (for squeezing), tortilla chips and diced avocado.  And if you want to turn up the heat, you can splash some hot sauce in your bowl!

Another new year's goal is that I hope I will be able to blog more frequently this year.  Last year was much less often than I would choose (thus, the year of surviving). December was so full and blogging didn't happen after all of the grading and closing down of the semester, and then Christmasing and New Year's travel.  But I sure did cook a lot last month!  And I made some really yummy things, which I photographed for the time when I can post them here and share the recipes.  Some will probably have to wait until next year, as they are Christmasy, but others, I will share promptly - like this Chicken Chili.   
Enjoy! Wishing you the happiest new year!

Hummus: Cracking the Code

                                                   

We play this game in my family, when we cook something that is pretty, or yummy, or special.  We say, "How much do you think this would cost at a restaurant?" And then we speculate about how much it might cost.  Sometimes we actually look up menus online to see what a similar meal out would cost. And then we discuss how much it probably cost to make it at home, which is usually a fraction of the price of buying it out.   

Or when we are at a restaurant eating something that we think we could make at home fairly easily, we then play the game in the opposite way. "I wonder how much it would cost to make this meal at home?", we might say.  And then we try to remember the details of the plate, meal, cookie, (fill in the blank)…so that we can go home and try to recreate it. 

I saw this sticker on a light post when I was in Washington D.C. last spring. 
It inspires me on those days that I don't want to cook.  

 Hummus is one of those things that I buy in a grocery, and buy in a restaurant and make at home. Though I have been making hummus for many years, I have never felt like my homemade hummus was equally as good as bought hummus- until this summer! I had hummus that a friend from church, Christi, made that was the great texture that store-bought has.  She gave me the recipe, which came from Cook's Illustrated  The Science of Good Cooking and gave her tips to me as well.  The trick to the texture is in dealing with the chick pea skin.  It is what can mess with the texture and make it chunky and/or mealy rather than smooth.  Baking soda is the remedy and I have explained in the recipe below how to deal with the skins when using canned beans as well as dried beans.

I have always had an internal conflict with the Tahini aspect of Hummus because it is the most expensive and only fatty part of the recipe.  I have made it without it at times.  However, I do think the Tahini is important- for texture and depth of flavor, but in my recipe I reduced the tahini drastically from the Cook's Illustrated proportions.

The garlic/lemon/spices/salt proportions are purely a matter of personal taste.  So, you will want to make it and then tweak it, taking notes as you do it, so that you find the right amounts for your liking.  (I wrote here about notating recipes.)

my motley taste testers

Another great thing about Hummus made at home is that you can tweak it to your liking.   Some like it zippier, with more lemon; or more garlicky; or herb-y.  We did a taste test at my house. And, as is typical in our home, there was diversity of opinions.  So we divided the hummus and seasoned a small batch of each.

the varieties they came up with :smoky paprika party; moving cumin;
and spicy red (with cayenne pepper)

Ultimate Hummus
adapted from The Science of Good Cooking

(Makes about 2 cups)

½ cup dried chick peas, picked over and rinsed

(¼ cup chick pea cooking water reserved from cooking them)

½ tsp. baking soda

4 Tbsp. lemon juice

2 Tbsp. tahini

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 small garlic cloves, minced

½ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. ground cumin

pinch of cayenne pepper or smoked paprika (or more to your liking)

(optional- 1 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro, basil, parsley or roasted red pepper)

1. Place beans in a large bowl, cover with 1 quart water, and soak overnight.  Drain.  Bring 1 quart water, beans, and baking soda to a boil in large saucepan over high heat.  Reduce heat to low and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender, about 1 hour.  Drain, reserving ¼ cup bean cooking water, and cool.

2. Combine water & lemon juice in a small bowl or measuring cup.  Whisk together tahini &  2 Tbsp. oil in a second small bowl or measuring cup.

3. Process chickpeas, garlic, salt, cumin, and cayenne in food processor until almost fully ground, about 15 seconds.  Scrape down bowl with rubber spatula.  With processor running, add lemon juice mixture in a steady stream.  Scape down bowl and continue to process for 1 minute.  With processor running, add tahini mixture in steady stream; continue to process until hummus is smooth and creamy, about 15 seconds, scraping down bowl as needed. 

4.Taste and add more ingredients to your liking- lemon, garlic, tahini, salt, oil, or spices

5. Transfer hummus to serving bowl, top with a  sprinkle of paprika, cayenne, herbs and/or a drizzle of olive oil.  Serve. 

(Hummus can be refrigerated for up to a week.  When ready to serve, stir in 1 Tbsp. warm water if texture is too thick).

If you are making from canned chick peas:

Exchange:

1 can chick peas- drained and rinsed for the ½ cup of dried peas

¼ cup tap water to replace the “cooking water”

and 1 ½ tsp. baking soda for the ½ tsp.

And exchange step #1 with this step #1

1.     Drain can of beans.  Rinse and drain.  Place in a bowl.  Mix 1 ½ tsp. baking soda with beans and heat in microwave or in a pot on the stove until hot.  Pour into a bowl of water and rub chickpeas vigorously between your hands to get rid of most of the skins.  (They will easily come off and float to the top of the bowl of water – it’s pretty great. )

Change the water 3-4 times to remove all of the baking soda (or it will give a soapy taste).

This was the hummus dinner plate I made the other night.  A pile of greens, topped with sliced tomatoes, olives, feta, greek dressing and a portion of hummus - eaten with some crackers.  I think at Fido, a favorite eatery of ours, their Mediterranean salad, which is similar but with less veggies, is $6.99.   Which adds up when you add beverages and tip (and 5 people on the ticket).  Their veggies and hummus bowl is $5.99.  I estimate it costs about $2 to make a batch of hummus. 

P.S. A recent development: Asher, my "I hate beans" son, wrote on his student profile sheet for his new teacher- that his favorite snack was Hummus and Pita Chips.  I was astounded.  This is big y'all.