Ooey Gooey Queso cauliflower with Lime Guacamole Pork Chop!

If you’ve been following me you know I just LOVE Epicure meal solutions and seasonings! 

They make clean eating a snap! 

Plus you can think outside the box so to speak and use items anyway you want to explore! 

Tonight I used the Ooey Gooey Queso dip to make a sauce for our roasted cauliflower side! I used half the suggested amount of milk and stirred it up and poured over chopped cauliflower florets in the large steamer. Added handful of bacon bits and chives and tossed to cover the cauliflower evenly. Sprinkled 1/2 cup shredded cheese over the top and baked in oven on 400F for 45 minutes until the cauliflower was tender and the cheese browned up on the edges.

I created a marinade for our pork chops using the Guacamole seasoning, lime juice and a wee bit avocado oil. 

Popped it all in a ziplock baggie and let the pork chops sit in fridge for a couple hours before grilling them on BBQ! 

So delicious! 

What’s your favourite Epicure meal solution? 

Bon Appetite 

Margaret 

Like, Laugh, Love

Be Totallyawake4-life  

Loaded ‘Cheese, Chives & Bacon Baked Potato’ salad - low carb version

 Who loves potato salad? It is the one comfort 'grain' based food that I miss but thankfully there is always ways to adapt one's favorite recipes to a healthier low carb alternative! 

Meet the 'Faux' Loaded Cheese, Chives and Bacon Baked Potato!

Now the original recipe I found that inspired this said to 'steam' the cauliflower however I found the texture of that method less than desirable - not a fan of steamed cauliflower! 

So I roast mine! Cut them into bite size pieces. Toss with some extra virgin olive oil, sea salt and black pepper and roast for 20-30 minutes on 400F until they are tender and start to get some caramelized edges. Let cool.

While the cauliflower is cooling chop up your favorite veggies - either traditional potato salad veggies or I like a lot of colour so to mine I have added 1/4 cup each of onion, chives, celery, shredded carrots, red pepper from my garden and radish. I have also chopped up 4 slices of crispy bacon!

Now for my potato salad sauce I love the quick and easy spice blend from Epicure ...just need 2 tablespoons and add in 1/2 cup of mayo and 1/2 cup of plain Greek Yogurt! Mix well!

It looks and tastes AMAZING!!!! And swapping out the Potatoes for Cauliflower lowers the carb count and insulin reaction considerable so I can enjoy this tonight with a nice BBQ pork chop guilty free!

 

Come on over to our Facebook community for more conversations about healthy eating, living and self care!

Bon Appetite 

Margaret 

Live, Laugh, Love 

Be Totallyawake

*post contains affiliate links

Fajita Craving ✅

 Nom nom 😋 who needs tortilla shells? 

Had a craving for fajitas so served the filling over Mexican inspired “cauli-rice” topped with homemade Guacamole! 

 For my fajita seasoning I used the amazingly tasty low sodium Epicure Fajita mix. 

For the Mexican inspired cauliflower rice the tasty poco picante spice from Epicure with some fresh tomatoes from our garden!

You can make amazing homemade guacamole in a flash thanks to Epicure too - try their Guacamole seasoning with a little avacado, lime and we like it creamy so added some mayo/greek yogurt combo!

Popped all my ingredients into the Carb Manager to journal - not a bad balance and packed full of flavor and taste!

Bon Appetite

Margaret

Life, Laugh, Love

Be Totallyawake4-life

 *post contains affiliate links

Spicy Cheese and Jalapeno Bites

Had a craving for deep fried cheese sticks after being out this past weekend for dinner with a friend who ordered some so came home and opted for some grain free Epicure inspired cheese bites! All the flavor and a fraction of the calories!

What you Need:

• Head of cauliflower - washed and broken up into bite size pieces
• 1 tbsp Coconut oil melted 
• 1 tbsp Cheese and Jalapeno seasoning
• 1 tbsp black pepper

What you Do:

• Toss cauliflower in melted coconut oil 
• Sprinkle in seasoning and pepper and toss to coat. Can add more seasoning if you want extra cheesy/spicy. 
• Bake at 400 F on a parchment lined pan for 20-30 minutes until crisps up
• Serve as a side with a meal or as a snack with some marinara sauce for dipping!     

Have an amazing day!


Margaret
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much
Be Totallyawake4-life

Chipotle Honey Mustard Glazed Salmon

We are working on getting more 'fish/seafood' into the menu rotation ~ a constant work in progress for myself cause it is not one of the foods that I would 'crave' so the key is to find ways to prepare it so that it tastes like something I would crave ... so for me that means how to make it have a KICK of spice! 

Chipotle Honey Mustard Glazed Salmon
 Serves 6


What You Need

• 6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup raw honey
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 
• 2-3 teaspoons of chipotle pepper puree
• 2 small garlic cloves,minced
• 3-6 ounces of salmon per person being served. My spouse always eats twice the amount of meat serving as I do so 3 oz is plenty of salmon for me and the teenager but he'd eat 6 oz for sure. 

What You Do

Chipolte Honey Mustard Glaze

• Combine first 7 ingredients in a small bowl and stir. 
• Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary ~ if you want it spicier add more chipolte pepper puree if you want it more sweet add more honey and so forth to your personal taste ... I always sprinkle red chili peppers on my and my spouses section so that the sauce is mild for rest of family or leftovers for the daycare crew but extra kick for myself and my other half. 
• Marinate the salmon for 2-3 hours in the glaze before BBQ or baking ~ about 1 tablespoon of glaze per serving of salmon spread over the flesh side of the salmon
• BBQ on a cedar plank skin side down over medium heat or bake in the oven at 350F aim for 4 to 6 minutes per half-inch of thickness ... so typically anywhere from 8-12 minutes until it is flaky with a fork.
• Serve salmon with rice or quinoa or cauli-rice and veggie of choice ~ can use more glaze to drizzle on your side dishes to compliment the meal.
• Unused glaze can be store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and used as salad dressing, veggie dip or on a sandwich. 

Cedar Planks

Cooking Tip

If you are using a cedar plank ~ make sure to soak it for a good 6-8 hours in some water BEFORE putting it on the BBQ this will reduce the chances of it charring while you are cooking and allow you to get several uses out of a plank before having to toss it for a new one! These ones shown here have been used twice already and cleaned afterward with just water and my Enjo kitchen glove.

Nutritional Information for the glaze only

 Nutritional Info for a 3 oz serving of Salmon 

What is your favorite way to prepare Salmon?





Have an amazing day
Margaret
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much
Totallyawake4-life

Grain Free Greek Dinner

Tried a new 'twist' on my Cauliflower Mash Potato this week - added me some Greek flare and they were so tasty! 

Greek Cauliflower Mash

Serves 2

What You Need

•  2 cups of Cauliflower ~ broken into florets and steamed until soft
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon Epicure Greek Seasoning 
• 1/2 cup of Feta Cheese
• Milk or Milk Alternative (optional to get whipped consistency)

What You Do

•  Steam cauliflower either on the stove with a 1/4 cup of water or in a steamer in the microwave with no water and steam until it is soft.
• Combine steamed cauliflower florets including the bit of water from the steaming process, butter, seasoning in the blender and 'pulse' until you get the whipped consistency you like. 
• If needed add milk or a milk alternative to create creamier texture.
• Pulse in your Feta Cheese just before serving.
• Serves well with BBQ Greek Chicken and sauteed onions, peppers and zucchini ~ flavored with the same Epicure spices!

Have an amazing day!

Margaret

Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much

Totallyawake4-life

Who knew Fried 'Cauli-Rice' is FANTASTIC?

So loving how versatile 'cauliflower' is and how it has gone from being a veggie I was forced to eat and often gagged on the 'bumpy floret texture' to now being a staple in my weekly meal plan!

Ricing it is so quick and easy as shown above in the video from over at PopSugar and you can make it be the flavor of whatever you are wanting it to be. This is my recipe for a very 'basic' Chinese Food inspired fried cauli-rice option as a side or for a meal at lunch.

Fried Cauli-Rice 
Serves 4 as a 'side' or 2 as a meal

What You Need

• 1 head of cauliflower - riced
• 1 sweet onion - diced finely
• 1/4 cup of peppers - red and yellow add nice color diced finely
• 1/4 cup of white cabbage - shredded 
• 1/4 cup of red cabbage  - shredded 
• 1/4 cup of grated carrots
• 1/4 cup of green peas
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 2-4 tsp coconut aminos for grain free or a gluten free soy sauce
• 2 gloves garlic - minced
• 2 eggs
• Fresh Ground Pepper

What You Do

•  Melt coconut oil in skillet and coat pan
• Saute your onion, garlic until onion is starting to go translucent and than add your cabbage, carrots, peppers and peas and riced cauliflower and saute for another 4-5 minutes until veggies are El Dante.
• Spread veggies around the edge of the skillet and whisk in two eggs and 'scramble' and than stir into the veggies. 
• Finally add your coconut aminos or soy sauce and more ground pepper to taste ~ stir to mix into veggies / rice. 
• Serve with your favorite meat ... pairs well with chicken, beef or fish 

 Have you tried the Cauli-Rice yet? 

If so what is your favorite version for it?


Have an amazing day!

Margaret
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much
Totallyawake4-life

Cheesy Cauliflower Sticks

Bread sticks are always a staple with Italian food ~ so this weekend when the boys wanted 'lasagna' this recipe which has long been a favorite with the daycare crew was a perfect option to pair while trying a Zucchini Lasagna for myself as well as the Cheesy Cauliflower sticks for our side instead of the traditional bread ones!

My spouse and I both really enjoyed them but the teenager turned his nose up and would not even give them a try ... one day hopefully we will stretch his palette to love his veggies too but cannot fault him because at his age I only ate corn, lettuce and ketchup as my veggies of choice!

Cheesy Cauliflower Sticks

 

Cheesy Cauliflower Sticks

What You Need

• 1 large head of cauliflower
• 2 cups of shredded cheese ~ we like a mix of mozzarella and old cheddar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon Epicure Herb or 2 gloves garlic minced and 2 tsp oregano

What You Do:

• Wash and chop cauliflower and than place in a blender and pulse until it is a 'rice' consistency
• Steam in microwave for 8-10 minutes
• In a bowl beat eggs until well mixed, stir in spices, steamed cauliflower nd cheese and mix well
• Line a baking stone or pan with parchment paper and spread the mixture evenly in a square shape
• Back for 30 minutes at 425F and than sprinkle with 1 more cup of cheese and put back in until its melted
• Slice into garlic bread sticks.

Bakers Notes

• You can use this as a pizza crust base as well ~ either a square pizza or shape it 'round' when you are spreading it out evenly.
• Bake for the 30 minutes as normal than add sauce, pizza toppings and cheese and bake again for another 10-15 minutes until toppings are hot and cheese is melted.

Have an amazing day!

Margaret
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much
Totallyawake4-life

National Vodka & Taco Day? Yes Please!

Did you know that today is  National Vodka Day?

 As well as National Taco Day?

 Seems only fitting to celebrate with a couple of my favorite recipes! If you have not noticed a theme yet I LOVE spicy food so TACOS have always been a favorite of mine! Since giving up grains finding new and different ways to enjoy TACOS has been fun! 

Love the quick and easy Taco Salad which was my first go to alternative just remove the 'shell' and eat what's left at the table. It basically entails taking your favorite taco meat seasoned with Epicure Taco season and all the toppings you'd love for tacos such as hot banana peppers, onions, red peppers, salsa, Red Hots Tabasco sauce and cheese and than served over top of baby field greens! 

YUMMY~ until I found THIS Pin and had to try it!

Seriously ... Cauli-Tacos are AMAZING! They are a combination between a 'hard taco' and a 'soft taco' and they are pretty  easy to make ` just a couple ingredients and a little bit of prep work and BAM a great #GrainFree option that everyone will enjoy!

What You Need:

• 1 medium head of cauliflower
• 3 eggs or 4 egg whites

What You Do:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees
• Use a food processor, blender, or hand grater to grate the RAW cauliflower into a crumb-like texture.
• Microwave the cauliflower for 5 minutes, stirring a little halfway through OR if you don’t want to use a microwave move the grated cauliflower to a pan and add 1/4 cup of water. Cover the pan and steam over medium-high heat for about 8-10 minutes. Just make sure to stir half-way through to avoid the cauliflower from burning. Keep in mind that you will have a bit more water to squeeze out.
• Place the now-cooked cauliflower in a kitchen towel, that is on top of a sieve, on a bowl. Make sure to drain as much excess water as possible.. there is surprisingly A LOT of water in cauliflower.
• Mix the drained cauliflower and eggs until smooth.
• Place the mixture on a baking sheet into circles at about 1/4” thick.
• Bake for 10 minutes. Flip. Bake for another 5-7 minutes. This is important to dry out the tortilla
• Move the tortillas to cooling rack to cool, so the bottom does not become soggy.

Serve warm with your favorite Taco add on additions!  

For dessert follow with a tasty Chocolate Raspberry Martini ... some might argue that 'alcohol' is not really clean living but I do not know about you but I am human and like to embrace the 'everything in moderation' where I can. For advice on choosing the 'healthiest' options of grain free alcohol check here as I found this article very helpful.

 

Chocolate Raspberry Martini 

Photo courtesy of Mix That Drink

What You Need:

• 1 ounce raspberry vodka or for myself opt for plain vodka and use a raspberry extract
• 1 ounce dark creme de cacao (make your own grain free option - recipe here)
• 1 ounce cream
• 1/2 ounce Tia Maria (make your own - recipe here)

What You Do:

• Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice cubes. 
• Pour in the ingredients and shake until chilled. 
• Strain the mixture into a martini glass. 
• Garnish with raspberries and/or chocolate rim the glass.
•  

Have an amazing day!
Margaret
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much
Totallyawake4-life

Buffalo Wings Cauliflower Style

Spicy Buffalo Cauli-Wings

OK ~ so my mission as we wrap up the last quarter of 2015 is to actually tick off all the 1000's of  recipes I have 'pinned' and see how they fair. I have been eyeing all the Buffalo Cauli-Wings that show up in my feed and seeing as trying to add more veggies to my diet now that I am going grain free I thought why not?

Except all the recipes I have pinned have some sort of 'batter' on the veggies and well right now I am trying to loose weight so 'batter' is not an ideal addition to my dinner plate ~ so using their inspiration I created my own quick and easy version ... chopped the head of cauliflower to bite size and tossed it in the bowl with about a 1/4 cup of Red Hot's Original Tabasco sauce and a tablespoon of Epicure Poco Picante Salsa  layered them onto a cookie sheet covered with Parchment paper and baked for 20 minutes on 450F and than 3 minutes on broil at the end to help caramelize the sauce!

Ingredients

• 1 Head Cauliflower ~ rinse and chopped bit size
• 1/4 cup Red Hots Original Tabasco sauce
• 1 tablespoon  Poco Picante Salsa

Instructions

• Rinse and chop cauliflower to bite size
• Toss in a bowl with the Tabasco and salsa seasoning 
• Bake for 20 minutes at 450 F
• Broil for 3 minutes to caramelize the sauce
• Serve with your choice of side

These were VERY tasty and totally hit that 'chicken wing' craving for me and for those who are doing it totally #21DayFix approved recipe! 

Have an amazing day!

Margaret

Live Well, Laugh Much, Love Often

totallyawake4-life.com