The No-Guilt Silky Smooth Cauliflower Soup

Thoughts & Inspiration

This soup was a total unexpected delight!  The vegetable combination may sound bizarre (I was very skeptical myself while making it, but I had bits and pieces of some veggies that I just did not want to throw away), but trust me... you need to try this recipe!  It has the consistency of a rich, silky smooth and creamy bisque-like soup, but it has ZERO guilt and a beautiful flavor profile.  You will wish you made a huge pot!

Ingredients
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
1.5 celery sticks, diced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 zucchinis, chopped
2.5 cups cauliflower, mainly florets
2 large ripe Roma tomatoes, chopped
2 cups water
Salt/Pepper
Lemon pepper

In a deep soup pot saute carrots and celery in olive oil on medium heat for 3 minutes,  Add garlic and continue to saute for 2-3 more minutes.  Next, add zucchini and continue to saute vegetables for 3-4 minutes.  *Add cauliflower, mix and place lid onto pot to help cook vegetables for about 3-4 more minutes.  Finally, add tomatoes and water; bring everything to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer for 15 minutes.  Turn heat off and allow soup to cool for 10-15 minutes.  Transfer everything to a blender with salt and fresh pepper (to taste) and puree until completely smooth.  Serve soup to desired warmth and sprinkle with a dash of lemon pepper seasoning.**

*Note: The vegetables are added slowly to bring out the flavor of each vegetable uniquely.
**Note: I made this soup a bit thicker - the cauliflower actually makes this soup rich in creaminess.  If you want the soup a bit thinner just simply add more water or broth.

The Green Soup

All the healthiness before...

...The deliciousness after

 

Thoughts & Inspiration

This soup is green deliciousness and can be enjoyed any time of the year.  It may not be a beautiful vibrant green after being pureed, but it sure is light, healthy, satisfying and full of flavor!

Cook Time: 30 minutes   
Serves 4 

Ingredients 

1½ large zucchinis, chopped into large cubes

10 baby carrots

2 large celery stems, chopped into 5-6 pieces

3 stems of green onions, chopped into a few pieces (or 1/4 white onion, chopped)

½ bag of baby spinach

2 cloves of garlic, smashed

3 cups of water

Sea salt

Pepper

1 Tbls fresh chopped parsley

Optional: 2 Tbls light cream or 3 triangle wedges of Laughing Cow Swiss Cheese

In a deep soup pot toss in all ingredients except the parsley, sea salt and optional ingredients.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer.  Place a lid halfway on pot and simmer vegetables for 15-20 minutes.  After about 20 minutes test a baby carrot to see if your soup is ready – you should be able to slice right through the carrot without any effort.  If so, remove soup from heat and if the carrot isn’t quite ready, simmer for an additional 5 minutes.  Allow soup to cool for 10-15 minutes.  Transfer to a blender (Optional: if using Laughing Cow cheese add wedges into blender at this point) and puree all the vegetables with the fresh parsley.  Pour soup back into pot and add sea salt and pepper to taste (Optional: You may add cream at this step if desired).

Optional Garnish:  Finely slice a couple scallions and sprinkle on top of soup.  You can also serve a few garlic croutons on the side.  The picture above is garnished with fresh cracked pink, green and black peppercorns.  Enjoy!

Red Wine Grilled "Chick'n" with a Twisted Tomato Salsa & Caprese Mini

Thoughts & Inspiration

Sunday night dinner... oh what to make!  After a long weekend of bbq-ing and munching on all sorts of stuff I wanted something healthy, yet still hearty.  The is a light and fresh meal!

Ingredients for Caprese Mini

4 small Trader Joe Ciabattatini rolls (or any small baguette)

4 Tbsp pesto

4 slices roma tomato

4 mozzarella balls cut into thick slices

5-6 arugula leave per sandwich

Drizzle balsamic glaze (Trader Joe's brand or any reduced balsamic)

Salt and pepper

Ingredients for "Chick'n"

4 Quorn Naked Chicken Pieces thawed (vegan product)

1/2 cup dry red wine (any cabernet)

1 tsp olive oil

Ingredients for Spinach

1 tsp olive oil

1 clove garlic sliced thin

1 .5 cups baby spinach leaves

Salt

Ingredients for Twisted Tomato Salsa

1/2 juice of large lemon

1/4 cup good extra virgin olive oil

8 grape tomatoes (quartered and then chopped in half)

4 Tbsp fresh chopped parsley

2 Tbsp fresh chopped chives

1 tsp Montreal seasoning (McCormicks)

1 tsp smoked Spanish paprika

1 tsp red chili flakes

Salt and pepper

"Chick'n" and Spinach Preparation

Heat olive oil in a sauce pan.  Place Quorn chick'n pieces into sauce pan.  After 1 minute turn chick'n over.  Add red wine and simmer with a cover on for 5-6 minutes.  Turn chicken over and cook for an additional 2 minutes.  Remove from pan, sprinkle a little salt and set aside.

In the same pan add olive oil and garlic - cook garlic for 1 minute.  Add spinach leaves, sprinkle salt and place cover onto pan.  Turn off heat and allow spinach to wilt for 2 minutes.  Remove from stove.

Salsa

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.

Caprese Minis

Spread pesto on one side of bread, top with tomato slice and fresh mozzarella.  Place arugula leaves on top and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Drizzle balsamic on other side of bread.

Plating

Cut each chick'n into about 4-5 think slices.  Add the wilted spinach to a plate.  Place sliced chick'n on top of spinach.  Top with fresh salsa and some of the juices.  Small caprese mini on the side.  Enjoy!

Roasted Vegetable Salad

Thoughts & Inspiration

My parents came over to spend the weekend and I wanted to make something fun and light for lunch.  My dad is a diabetic so I was trying to stay away from carbs and sugar.  I wanted to make a salad of some sort, but of course I didn't want to make just something ordinary.  I took some of my favorite flavors along with a few things I knew they loved and created this amazing dish!  

It seems like a lot of ingredients and time, but it is actually quite easy if you put everything in the oven together!  Be inventive and throw in vegetables that you like.  Anything here can be substituted to make it yours!

Ingredients for Salad

1/2 head cauliflower cut into florets

6 white button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced through stem in half (creating two equal halves)

6 cremini mushrooms, same as above

1 ripe roma tomato, cut into 4 thick slices

1 red onion, cut into 4 quarters

1/2 apple, sliced thin

4 radishes, sliced thin

4 large romaine leaves

4 grape tomatoes, cut into quarters

1/4 cup pistachios (coarsely grind in food processor)

3-4 Tbsp olive oil for roasting

4 Tbsp hummus

Ingredients for Dressing

1/2 juice of large lemon

1/4 cup good extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp honey

2 Tbsp white balsamic

1 tsp stone ground dijon

Salt and pepper

Roasted Chickpeas

1 can chickpeas, washed and drained

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp olive oil

Sea salt to taste

Soup Shooter

1/2 cup broccoli florets

1/2 spinach

1 sprig green onion

1 small clove garlic

1 cup water

Salt and pepper

Additional Options

Fresh mint leaves

Any cheese - I used fresh mozzarella (goat cheese or feta cheese would probably be delicious as well)

Roasted chickpeas

Mix all ingredients and spread evenly on a baking sheet lined with foil so that the chickpeas are all in a single layer.  Roast for 40 minutes at 400F.  Remove from oven and allow to cool before eating.  To store, place roasted chickpeas in an air tight container.

Dressing

Mix all the ingredients together in a bottle and shake to combine or whisk everything together.

Roasting vegetables

Spread a little bit of olive oil on two separate baking sheets.  Place mushrooms on one sheet and brush with some oil and sprinkle salt and pepper.  Place cauliflower, roma tomato slices and onion wedges on another baking sheet and brush with some oil and sprinkle salt and pepper.  Roast vegetables for 20 minutes at 400F.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Soup

Place all ingredients into vitamix and blend on high for 5-6 minutes.  Serve immediately.  If you don't have a vitamix, you can make any soup and place into a small shooter glass on your plate, or completely leave the soup out.

Plating

Place 1 romaine leaf on a plate.  Spoon a dollop of hummus onto one side of the plate.  Arrange vegetables, fruit, cheese and chickpeas as you wish along the romaine (see picture for inspiration).  Have fun with how you decide to arrange the plate... it's your world!  Once all the ingredients are on your plate, drizzle about 2 Tbsp of the dressing over the plate.  As a final touch, sprinkle some of the ground pistachios all over!  You can add some fresh mint leaves onto the plate if you want that extra bit of yum!