Obsessed- Roasted Cauliflower

Lately I've been nuts for cauliflower. 

Call me crazy, but it really is a perfect food. Low carb, high fiber, low cal kinda perfect.

It goes well with just about anything. You can cook it so many different ways. My love for cauliflower is like Bubba Gump's for shrimp. 

Mashed cauliflower, mashed cauliflower with sour cream and dill, cauliflower soup, steamed cauliflower, roasted cauliflower with salt and olive oil, curried roasted cauliflower... you get the picture.

Here's the skinny on a super simple, super delicious recipe that is sure to impress guests.

Preheat the oven (I go between 400-425 F.)

Get a head of cauliflower (or if you really like it, get two), wash and pat dry, cut it up into bite sized pieces.

Spread it out on a pan, sprinkle olive oil, salt, and pepper on it. (You can also go for other spices. Good options: curry or cumin... or truffle salt.) Bake 10 min, stir, repeat two more times. 

So that's a total of 5 minutes of prep and 30 minutes of roasting and it's nice and golden brown and perfect. Serve immediately. If you wanna get fancy, throw a little Parmesan on top.

YUM!

Recently Discovered: Extra Dessert Delights New Flavors!

Ok, remember how excited I was about Extra's strawberry shortcake flavor? Well, if you don't, you can see here.

So, they have a couple of new flavors! First, Root Beer Float. I love anything root beer, so as soon as I saw that little brown pack of glory, I couldn't resist. Sitting next to it was Rainbow Sherbet. Who doesn't love rainbow sherbet?

In all honesty, I wasn't a fan of the mint chocolate, apple pie, or key lime flavors. They really just triggered me into wanting to eat the real thing. Anyhow, I went into tasting these new flavors with a little apprehension and a whole lotta hope. (Okayyy, it's just gum, but still!)

Root Beer Float came first... Creamy, root beer-y, deliciousness. These flavors don't last a super long time, but they do the trick. I mean, this gum is like eating one of those candy sticks without the guilt of rotting your teeth or causing a sugar crash. Total win!
                                     
Rainbow Sherbet saved me from eating all of the English chocolates I brought home for friends after a recent vacation. (Hey, don't judge! I know a guy who ate all the chocolates he brought home from Switzerland and bought replacements at World Market.) The Rainbow Sherbet flavor was pretty good. Sweet like candy, it was a bit strange to have the taste of sherbet without the cold or the texture. I like it, but I'd rather have the real deal. As a fruity flavored gum, though, it's awesome... kinda like fruit stripe!

All in all, a successful buy.
Will I buy more? Yes. Definitely.
Will I use it to replace dessert on the reg? Let's be real, probably not. But it is a good option to curb cravings and prevent mindless munching.

Taking my own advice: "When you want a cookie, sometimes it's better just to have a real freaking cookie." Or in this case, a cappuccino and sticky toffee cake... I may be wayyyy too happy about it, too.
But, really, indulging in the real deal is way more satisfying and can keep a binge at bay.

Easiest Breakfast Ever!

Ok, so I am super big on breakfast. Being from the south, it's normally filled with pancakes, bacon, grits, or biscuits with various toppings. But what's one to do when they're being healthy? Turkey bacon can get boring, and there are only so many things you can do with oatmeal.

I've been eating egg beaters a lot lately, but having so many dishes can be such a drag. Perfect solution?  Make em in a mug! It's so easy, and there are endless possibilities!
I cut up peppers and onions, spray the mug with nonstick cooking spray, microwave for 30 seconds, then add the egg beaters and seasonings (sometimes some leftover meat or sliced up lunch meat) and microwave for another minute, stir, and add on an extra 30 seconds for good measure. I messed around with other cooking times, but that seems to be about the best combo.

Doing a little research, I came across this blog from Hungry Girl. See? The possibilities really are endless! How did I not hear about this breakfast miracle sooner? Well, now you know, too. Try it and get ready to totally shake up your breakfast routine.

Kale Chips: A Guilt Free Crunch?

The other day, I was waiting for the same old green juice (kale, spinach, cucumber, lemon) and wandered over to the Kale display at Earthbar.

Now, I love those crunchy seaweed snacks you can get for 99 cents, and have heard a ton about kale chips, so thought, why not?

They had all kinds of crazy flavors, including a chocolate option, but you know my stance on treats. (If you're gonna have a treat, have a freaking good treat. Chocolate kale? Kinda sounds gross and not worth the extra fat, cals, and carbs.) I ended up with two bags: Lydia's Organics Kale Krunchies Mega Green and Buffalo Bill's buffalo wing flavored Cowboy Kale Chips.

The verdict? The buffalo wing flavored chips were really gross, but I liked that the bag had a zip top for freshness. Lydia's were pretty okay. The top didn't seal, though, so you might be in for a mess... I went around a curve and green crumbs spilled across my seat. The store also didn't have any options that were just kale, so the foreign flavors may have been what I didn't like about them. And at $8 a bag, totally not worth it.

So, store bought kale chips? Not such a success, but I am totally excited to pick up some kale on my next trip to the farmers market and try making simple chips with a little salt and evoo. They can't be so popular for no reason, right? Any suggestions to make them better?

Twitter

Re-joined the twitter bandwagon this week.

Check me out : Click here for my twitter!

Low Carb Sugar Free Peanut Butter Cookies?

I found the recipe on Pinterest (which is the best time waster, ever, period.)

The original recipe called for equal parts sugar and peanut butter, mixed with a little baking soda and an egg. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Simple and low carb? Seemed like a no-brainer to me.

So I thought, "Splenda will make the cookies even less sinful!"
Then, "flax seed peanut butter will make them downright healthy!"
Well, that's what I get for thinking. I mean, they were alright.

It was my first time baking with Splenda, and I found the aftertaste off-putting. The flax wasn't so bad, but it kind of added a smokey flavor one wouldn't expect in a pb cookie. Maybe choosing one or the other modification would have been a better idea.
Don't get me wrong, they were decent (and pretty much guilt free: major bonus) and they definitely looked like regular peanut butter cookies.

Ultimately, though, if you're going to have a cookie, I think you should just go ahead and have the real deal and enjoy every last bite.