Garlic and Lemon Roasted Cauliflower (21DSD-friendly!)

January 7, 2013 in Side Dishes, Veggies

Okay, admission time:  cauliflower is not my favorite.  When I make mashed cauliflower or cauliflower rice, I have to season heavily with herbs and spices (and fat!) to make it tasty for me.  But, cauliflower is very healthy.  It’s a cruciferous veggie and it’s in season right now.   So, I challenged myself to make cauliflower so that it looks like cauliflower and so that I would like it.   I decided to try roasting it!  What a revelation!  Granted, it’s still seasoned, but something about the texture of roasted cauliflower is just awesome.  Plus, this is a very simple dish, which is always a bonus!  Serves 5-6.

To make this autoimmune protocol-friendly, simply omit the pepper.

Ingredients:

 

  1. Preheat oven to 450F.
  2. Wash cauliflower and cut into florets. You can use the stem too.  Place in a casserole dish.
  3. Melt cooking fat (either in the microwave or on the stove top).  Toss with cauliflower in the casserole dish.  Next toss with lemon zest, crushed garlic, salt and pepper to coat well.
  4. Roast for 25-35 minutes (depending on how big your florets are; mine took 30 minutes), stirring once half way.
  5. Remove from oven and toss with fresh parsley.  Serve!

Lemon Parsley Cauliflower “Rice”

October 17, 2012 in Side Dishes, Starchy Staples, Veggies

I have to admit that I’ve never really liked rice, not unless it was drenched in the sauce from several different Chinese food dishes from an authentic restaurant.  When I first started eating low carb, I often made rice as a starch for my husband because it was so easy for me to abstain and just stick with my low-carb veggies.  Now, we don’t eat rice at all except for very rare occasions when I’ll make some for my husband and kids.  If a dish calls for rice (typically a stir fry or Indian-inspired dish), I make the standard paleo substitute of cauliflower rice.  But, I have to admit that, unless it’s going to be drowned in sauce, I find this just as boring and bland as rice itself.  At least, I used to find it boring.  I started playing with flavorings for cauliflower rice to jazz it up and make it stand alone as a flavor on the plate (no sauce required!).  The inspiration for this variation comes from a recipe from my old Good Housekeeping cookbook that I used to make with fish fairly often.  Besides being delicious beside fish, it’s also pretty awesome beside pork.  Makes 4-5 servings.

Ingredients:

  • 1 small head of cauliflower (4-5 cups riced)
  • 3 Tbsp cooking fat (I like half tallow or lard and half coconut oil )
  • 2 tsp lemon zest (approximately 1 lemon)
  • 4 Tbsp chopped fresh pasley
  • 1/8 tsp Salt , to taste

  1. Trim cauliflower and place florets in a Food Processor (you may have to do this in batches).  Pulse until chopped to rice grain size.  Set aside.
  2. Heat cooking fat in a large frying pan or Wok over medium-high heat.  Add cauliflower to the oil and cook, stirring frequently until cauliflower is cooked al dente (about 6-8 minutes).
  3. Stir in lemon zest, parsley and salt.  Cook 1 minute.  Enjoy!