Oooh! I want to see you in your Summer bikini!

The patty sounds interesting.

You might like my turnip chips. Choose a flattish turnip, more disk shaped than full and pointy. Wash, trim and slice sideways (ovals) on your finest mandoline setting. I use 0.5mm. Spread butting but not overlapping on a baking sheet (enamel, lightly oiled or parchment), Use a ribbon grater if you have one, or very lightly on a box grater, to shred aged white sharp cheddar all over them. Just wisps for flavor, not whole hunks of cheese. Bake until melty and browning. Ummmm, yummy!! They're good cold too, but very few, if any, make it longer than warm. :)

**Are you spralizing zucchini, carrots or cucumbers as a substitute for high-carb pasta? A great way to serve Marinara Sauce, Pesto, Alfredo sauce, or use in a stir-fry.

**I dehydrated thin-cut cucumber and zucchini slices until crispy dry and use them instead of chips, but I also make microwave sweet potato chips.

**Adding a little wild rice, which is high in protein, to cauliflower rice helps to make it even more convincing.

Cauliflower Rice Deluxe
(source: 500 Low-Carb Recipes - by Dana Carpender)

3 cups of Cauliflower Rice
1/4 c. wild rice
3/4 c. water

1. Cook your cauliflower rice as desired (steamed cauliflower rice works well for making this recipe), taking care not to overcook it to mushiness, but just until it is tender.

2. Put wild rice and water in a saucepan, cover it, and set it on a burner on lowest heat until all the water is gone (at least one-half hour, or more).

3. Toss together the cooked cauliflower rice and wild rice, and season as desired.

Yield: 4-cups, or 8-servings. Each 1/2-cup serving: 6 g. carbohydrates and 1 g. fiber, for a total of 5 g. of usable carbs and 2 g. of protein.

From the same cookbook:

Company Dinner "Rice"
(Uses the Cauliflower Rice Deluxe as an ingredient.)

1 small onion, chopped
1 stick butter, melted
4 c. Cauliflower Rice Deluxe (recipe above)
6 strips of bacon, cooked until crisp, and crumbled
1/4 t. salt or Vege-Sal
1/4 t. pepper
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Saute the onion in butter until it's golden and limp. Toss the Cauliflower Rice Deluxe with saugeed onion and the bacon, salt, pepper, and cheese. Serve.
Yield: 8-servings, each with 8 g. carbohydrates and 2 g. of fiber, for a total of 6 g. of usable carbs and 5 g. of protein

Forgot to add the link for this recipe:
Roasted Cauliflower Steaks with Fresh Gremolata
http://www.beachbody.com/beachbodyblog/nutrition/roasted-cauliflower-steaks-with-fresh-gremolata

How would you make cauliflower rice into a "bar"?

Most bar recipes (granola bars, etc) seem to use sugar as a binder, I assume because it melts during baking then solidifies when the bar cools to hold the bar together.

Is there a less caloric binder that will hold the bar together? Maybe this is a different topic.

I don't think so. It would work in things like casseroles, pilaf, and fried rice, as a substitute for cooked rice. You can also use it mashed, or like hash browns, instead of potatoes. I have a book with recipes for "Fake-Aroni and Cheese Casserole", "Mexican Rice-Aflower", "Rice-Aflower". You might take a look at Paleo and Low-Carb recipes on-line that use cauliflower in them. They have a lot of recipe variations using cauliflower rice, but I don't recall seeing it used in a bar-type dessert. I'll go through my books and see if I find anything.

-Grainlady

Would it not have to be freeze-dried or dehydrated.? Lots of other veg dehydrated to add, but moisture is the enemy for spoilage.

My last attempt was a bit of a disaster. I ended up with a goo. (Had to use something as the glue and used dates.) Them made small balls and rolled in coconut and cocoa nibs.

I really wanted savory and not sweet. It was best loose like a gorp. Mostly freeze dried veg and dehydrated veggie chips. Lots of water is needed with so much of that.

Cake form would work. Or a ball like Italian rice balls. Or rolls. Chia makes a nice glue. Spices have no calories. But you would want to freeze it. Grab and go but only a few hours if not kept cool.

Ah, that makes sense - spoilage would be the fate of a cauliflower bar.

I stock my son's cubby at the dance studio with bars. He and his friends go through them! Store bought bars are not terribly expensive at CostCo, but I was thinking about doing something homemade.

"Oooh! I want to see you in your Summer bikini!"

Ain't happening at this weight - I'm currently configured for the one piece with tutu.

Your son needs the calories. Us, not so much.

I tried to brainstorm a great light grain cake last fall. Something to freeze like the flavors of falafel but more veg and not needing all the wrap and toppings. Something DH could keep at work. Arepa is a good glue but may start to get heavy. Never thought to use cauliflower rice...nice and nutty roasted.

Got caught up on where i wanted the spices to go.

Then was on a hunt for a 'cup-a-soup' homemade from our garden dried veg. Getting close on that one. Just need a really good quick rice noodle. I just can't and don't want anything other than my fresh/frozen broth, not a dried version.

Do we get to see you in the tutu?

(I'm not volunteering-- I haven't worn a bikini since I was a teenager)

I like this "formula" below for bars and balls. This is the way I think about cooking, but I find looking at the picture so much easier than thinking it through for these (I haven't made a lot of them. I'm sure it becomes second nature after awhile). If it doesn't have to be vegan, and will be baked, eggwhites are another good stickum that's high in protein. The seeds that are are used for sticking in vegan loaf dishes aren't sticky enough for bars, though probably help along nut butter or dates. I've mostly made date ones, but that's a lot of sugar--not bad with some nuts and seeds for an energy bar, but maybe too much for other uses.

https://pomegranatebandit.wordpress.com/2013/09/07/formula-for-protein-bars-or-energy-ba/

Nice visual, John.

We kinda sorta went low carb for awhile. We ate a lot of (pretty decent) jicama latkes. Basically jicama grated and nuked,then made into patties.

I've made the cauliflower rice, then added a little coconut flour rolled it out, cut it up and put it in the dehydrator for 'crackers' when I was on a very restricted diet. They weren't the best cracker I ever had, but they worked for a time. I imagine with the addition of cheese, eggs, etc. you could concoct a tastier version. I used them in the place of chips for salsa too.

I've been making cauliflower pizza crust. It's a little labor intensive but I make a big batch and freeze the crusts for later use. Works darn good for me and the family tolerates it. LOL

Here's the recipe I've been more or less using:

Cauliflower Pizza Crust ( Makes one 10-12" crust)

1 small to medium sized head of cauliflower - should
yield 2 to 3 cups once processed

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1/4 cup mozzarella cheese

1 egg

Place a pizza stone in the oven, or baking sheet if you
don't have a pizza stone. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. On a cutting board,
place a large piece of parchment paper and spray it with nonstick cooking oil.

Wash and throughly dry a small head of cauliflower. Don't
get one the size of your head unless you are planning on making 2 pizzas. Cut
off the florets, you don't need much stem. Just stick with the florets. Pulse
in your food processor for about 30 seconds, until you get powdery snow like
cauliflower. You should end up with 2 to 3 cups cauliflower
"snow". Place the cauliflower in a microwave safe bowl and cover.
Microwave for 4 minutes. Dump cooked cauliflower onto a clean tea towel and
allow to cool for a bit before attempting the next step.

Once cauliflower is cool enough to handle, wrap it up in
the dish towel and wring the heck out of it. You want to squeeze out as much
water as possible. This will ensure you get a chewy pizza like crust instead of
a crumbly mess.

Dump cauliflower into a bowl. Now add 1/4 cup parmesan
cheese, 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon dried
basil (crush up the leaves even more between your fingers before adding), 1/2
teaspoon dried oregano (crush up the leaves even more between your fingers
before adding), 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder. Now add your egg
and mix away. Hands tend to work best.

Once mixed together, use your hands to form the dough
into a crust on your oiled parchment paper. Pat it down thoroughly, you want it
nice and tightly formed together. Don't make it too thick or thin either. I tend to go on the thin side.

Using a cutting board slide the parchment paper onto your
hot pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 8 - 11 minutes, until it
starts to turn golden brown. Remove from oven. Cool on a rack, wrap and freeze.

That sounds great! I will try it this weekend.

Maybe I can lose the tutu.

Moosemac, that sounds yummy. <looking around for cauliflower>

John, the cauliflower dish sounds good.

Sometimes I make cauliflower just chopped and stir fried with garlic powder or g salt and pepper. Don't overcook. Only a bit of oil. I saw a SIL do this and it was delicious; yep, even with dried spice, not "real" garlic. Curry powder stir fry is also good w cauliflower.

I've used cooked brown rice pressed into the bottom of a lightly oiled Pyrex pan for the "crust" of a tuna quiche. It was good -- best if the rice wasn't crisped to much and turned into wor ba.

Turns out that if you:

Process the raw cauliflower as fine as your Cuisinart will do; add salt; cook for a minute in boiling water; drain, strain, and press out as much water as you can; stir in some melted butter and dairy; and mash a bit, you get:

A very good approximation of mashed potatoes, that my son and SWMBO, both quite demanding as far as mashed potatoes go, loved!

One cup of boiled cauliflower is 28 calories, 5 g carbs. One cup of boiled potatoes is 134 calories, 31 g carbs. Add butter and dairy, but that applies to both.

The tutu's feeling looser!

I make cauliflower puree to sub for mashed potatoes.

Steam cauliflower and puree in food processor with 3-4 ounces reduced fat cream cheese, a handful of Parmesan and s+p.

Goat's cheese goes well with a caulie mash too - delicious with scallops.

Ran across a low-carb, gluten-free, recipe for CAULIFLOWER BROWNIES.

source: http://www.ibreatheimhungry.com/2012/05/cauliflower-brownies-low-carb-gluten.html

Makes 36 brownies



1 cup raw cauliflower puree

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

6 squares Lindt 90% chocolate

1/2 cup butter

2 oz cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup SF chocolate flavored syrup

3 eggs

1 cup ground almonds

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3 tsp stevia or splenda

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

Puree the raw cauliflower in a blender, then add your almond milk and puree together for another 30 seconds or so. Make sure its completely smooth and there are no chunks! Put the butter, chocolate squares and cream cheese into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for one minute. There may be a few small chunks of chocolate still not melted and that’s ok. Scrape the chocolate mixture into the blender with the cauli. Puree for about 20 seconds until well blended. Add the chocolate syrup and eggs and blend well. Add all of the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Pour the wet ingredients from the blender into the bowl containing the dry ingredients (scraping to get as much out as possible) and stir to combine thoroughly. The batter will be thick, almost mousse-like. Grease a 9 x 9 baking pan and spread the batter evenly into it. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 375 degrees (F) for 35 minutes. Remove and cool before cutting.