Buffalo- Style Cauliflower and Ranch!

This is one of those recipes that take a little longer than a normal  dinner (a normal dinner for me is reheat some potatoes and add some broccoli and sauce!) but is soooo worth it! I've seen this whole cauliflower "chicken" thing around for a while, starting at one of my favorite blogs, Chocolate Covered Katie. For this buffalo-style cauliflower, I used this recipe and I used the ranch (or Sanctuary Dressing) from Appetite for Reduction-- a modified version can be found here. This ranch is super good (and this from a former ranch addict), and is just the perfect hing to cool down the spicyness of the "wings". You can also use gluten free flours for the cauliflower! As always, I've modified both recipes a bit for my tastes and what I have on hand. I'm really excited to make it again when my MIL is here next week, this time with rice flour! And now for the recpies!

 

 Check out the awesome texture on these!

 Buffalo-Style Cauliflower

• 1 head of cauliflower, cut into chunks
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• pinch of black pepper
• 1 tablespoon agave

 Sauce

• 3 tablespoons margarine
• 1 cup hot wing sauce

Directions

• preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit
• mix the flour, milk, onion powder, garlic powder, and pepper in a bowl (preferrably with a lid)
• add about 1/2 of the cauliflower to the bowl, put the lid on and shake shake shake until all of the pieces are covered
• take the pieces out with a fork and place on a greased baking sheet, trying not to let the pieces touch
• repeat with the remaining pieces (I used 2 baking sheets)
• if you don't have a bowl with a lid, just use a fork and your fingers to cover each piece, let the excess drip off, and place on the baking sheet-- this just takes a little more time
• drizzle with the agave (this is my addiction and gives it a yummy caramelized flavor!)
• bake for about 15-20 minutes, flipping once
• while that's baking, melt the margarine and mix it with the wing sauce
• when the cauliflower is done and crispy, brush on the sauce and bake for another 5-10 minutes

 

Tofu Ranch (Appetite for Reduction Sanctuary Dressing)

Ingredients

• 15 oz. firm tofu (she uses silken, but my store doesn't carry it and this works!)
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 cubes vegan bouillon
• 3 tablespoons vegan mayo (I'm in love with Mindful Mayo!)
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1.5 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp sugar (or agave, I was out of that)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground back pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried dill

Directions

• put everything but the pepper and the dill into a blender and blend away, scraping the sides and pushing it around as needed until creamy
• add the dill and pepper and pulse until mixed through (this leaves you with bits and pieces instead of a murky-colored dressing!)

Eat the cauliflower with the dressing and enjoy! SO yum!

Mmm, spicy "wings" and creamy dressing

Mmm, Mocha Coconut

It is the season of the Mocha Coconut Frap at Starbucks. I don't go often (a couple of times a year probably) but ever since I tried this flavor, my plan is to try to go at least once in the summer for the Mocha Coconut. I actually hadn't tried it until I went vegan, but I was looking up Starbucks vegan options last year on veggieboards.com and found that people love it! I'm not normally a mocha or coconut fan, so I was surprised it even sounded good, but I tried it and I was hooked! Just make sure to order it with soy milk, without the whip or chocolate drizzle to make it vegan!

They have a coupe of vegan snack options too, like roasted nuts, fruit chews (yes, they're vegan!) and some crazy-good salt and pepper popcorn. So this morning I'm hanging out at Starbucks, blogging, and enjoying my Mocha Coconut Frap and popcorn!

Pureed Beet Soup

I found this recipe a long time ago on marthastewart.com and it's one that I go back to again and again. I just swapped out the chicken broth for veggie stock, lessened the onion a bit, and added more water, since I like it thinner. The result is a sweet, low-calorie soup that can be eaten hot or cold, and it's one of the only ways I'll eat beets! I'm really picky about my beets-- I really love beets in this soup and in chip form, and in green juices, but other than those, I haven't found another way for me yet-- I'd love to hear how you like your beets! This soup is especially good with simple accompaniments, like the kale and polenta in the photo-- I just cooked the kale in 1/2 tsp olive oil until it was the wilti-ness I wanted and used about 1 tsp of oil, plus salt and pepper for the polenta and just cooked that over medium high until crispy on the edges.

Here's the recipe!

Pureed Beet Soup

makes 9.5 1 cup servings

Ingredients:

•  1 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 large onion, diced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 large beets, peeled and diced (about 7.5 cups)
• 2-3 boullion cubes or 2-3 cups veggie stock
• 6-9 cups water

Directions:

• Add  the oil and onions to a soup pot and saute on medium high, adding a little salt and pepper.
• And the beets, veggie stock, and water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until beets are tender, about 20 minutes.
• Blend with an immersion or regular blender, in batches if needed, making sure to vent the lid and cover with a towel to allow the heat to escape but so that it doesn't splash you with hot soup if using a regular blender.
• Serve with salt, pepper, and lemon juice. So yummy and really healthy too!

 cals per 1 cup: 70kcal | fat: 1.93g | carbs: 11.06g | prot: 2.75g

Look at that pretty beet-pink!