Cauliflower Fried Rice?

My sweet friend Brooke introduced me to the delicious concept of Cauliflower Fried Rice. I personally hate Cauliflower. My mom used to love eating it raw with a little dipping sauce and I never understood the draw of this smelly vegetable. However, one thing I love is fried rice! I was skeptical that this cauliflower concoction would have the potential to taste as good as some traditional fried rice but man was I surprised! The consistency of the cauliflower is obviously different than a hearty rice but you get the same general flavor and it is delicious, my husband has even requested it multiple times since we discovered the recipe.

Discovering  a way to make a super veggie the main focus of any meal is always exciting around here so I'm anxious to share this recipe with you. Here are some health facts about this powerful little veggie:

• It contains good amounts of many vital B-complex groups of vitamins such as folates, pantothenic acid (vitamin B5), pyridoxine (vitamin B6) and thiamin (vitamin B1), niacin (B3) as well as vitamin K. These vitamins is essential in the sense that body requires them from external sources to replenish and required for fat, protein and carbohydrate metabolism.

• It is very low in calories. 100 g of the fresh cauliflower head provides only 26 calories. Nevertheless, it comprises of several health-benefiting antioxidants and vitamins in addition to be very low in fat and contains no cholesterol.
  
• Its florets contain about 2 g of dietary fiber per 100 g; providing about 5% of recommended value.
  
• Cauliflower contains several anti-cancer phyto-chemicals like sulforaphane and plant sterols such asindole-3-carbinol, which appears to function as an anti-estrogen agent. Together these compounds have proven benefits against prostate, breast, cervical, colon, ovarian cancers by virtue of their cancer-cell growth inhibition, cytotoxic effects on cancer cells.
  
  
  
  What you will need
  
  
  1 head of cauliflower
  
  
  2 green bell peppers
  
  
  1 8 oz package of mushrooms
  
  
  1 cube chicken bouillion
  
  
  2-3 tablespoons crushed garlic
  
  
  1/2 cup olive oil
  
  
  1/2 onion
  
  
  1/2 cup Stir fry sauce
  
  
  
  What to do
  
  
  1. Grate Cauliflower (or use a food processor if you have one)
  
  
  2. Chop bell peppers and onion
  
  
  3. Add oil and 1-1.5 tbsp of garlic to each pan
  
  
  4. Saute Mushrooms and Bell Peppers in one pan for about 5-7 minutes
  
  
  5. Saute Cauliflower and onions for about 5-7 minutes
  
  
  6. Once the onions become translucent, fry 2-3 eggs into your "Cauliflower fried rice" mixture and add 1 softened chicken bouillon.
  
  
  7. Combine all veggies into one pan
  
  
  8. Add Stir fry sauce and serve!
  
  
  
  
  It's that easy!
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  I ran out of Stir fry sauce so I made my own little concoction but Trader Joe's
   has a DELICIOUS Stir fry sauce you should try!
   Hope you enjoy this super quick and healthy meal! 
  
  
  
  

Pizza Night

This simple homemade pizza recipe is an all time favorite at our house! Since November, my husband and I have been trying to incorporate more veggies into our diet and eliminate fatty meats. As a meat lover, veggie pizza never sounded too appetizing to to me but the first time we had this pizza we were amazed by how rich in flavor it was. It's fairly simple to make as long as you don't mind a little mess in your kitchen. I usually get a little out of control throwing the dough around like an old Italian pro even though I have no idea what I'm doing. Last night we found flour on my husband's laptop ... in the living room. Ha! So try not to get too excited about the dough like me if you want to keep the clean up to a minimum. If messy cooking is your style, go big or go home! 

What you will need!

1 8 oz package of mushrooms

2 Bell Peppers

1/2 red onion

1/2 cup cilantro

1/2 cup artichoke hearts

(And any other veggies your heart desires)

1 package of trader joe's pizza dough

3/4 cup trader joe's marinara sauce

1 cup reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese

2 heads of garlic

2 tablespoons crushed garlic

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

What to do!

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2. Rinse Veggies

3. Roughly chop all Veggies

4. Cover your surface with a handfull of flour

5. Kneed dough into an oval shape until it is about 1/2 thick

6. Coat your cookie sheet with Olive Oil or Pam

7. Transfer dough to cookie sheet

8.Cover with sauce

Spread 1-2 tablespoons of crushed garlic into sauce.

 (Don't over do it! Too much sauce will make your dough gooey)

9. Dump on the cheese and toppings.

10. Top with salt and pepper

11. Cook at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes

12. Remove Pizza from oven, pour about 1/2 cup of olive oil on the surface and top

it off with some fresh grated Parmesan cheese

Garlic LOVERS (like us)

1. Take 1-2 heads of garlic and cut off the tops

2. Coat generously with olive oil and salt

3. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes

4. Remove from oven and let cool

5. Peel and eat

You can throw it on top of your pizza or mix it with some seasoning and use it on  garlic bread or just eat it plain like we do. Sweet, smooth, caramelized garlic... doesn't get much better than that!

The best thing about making this meal is that its so much fun! Perfect for a fun date night. You can even get crazy with it and have some friend over for "make your own pizza night". Hope you enjoy this recipe!