Cauliflower Salad with Gruyere & Walnuts

I LOVE roasted cauliflower so much. I try to make it as often as I can.  I can get away with a roasted cauliflower dish about once every two weeks - maybe week and a half- without anyone noticing! HA! Anyway, I was in the mood for it today......and I was thinking a cold salad would be good. The other ingredients just came together - flavors I like - a little savory, a little sweet (craisins), a little salty (capers)....it all worked! The vinaigrette is light. This was a great side salad.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
Juice from one fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 Tbl honey

1 medium head of cauliflower, trimmed, cut into small florets (about 3 cups)
2 large leaves of kale, stemmed and thinly sliced
1 large carrot, shredded
3 Tbl craisins
2 Tbl capers
1/3 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
 
Preheat oven to 400°F

Toss cauliflower florets with 2 tablespoons olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Spread on a baking sheet and roast until edges are dark and caramelized. Stir after 15 minutes. Continue roasting for about another 10 minutes.

While cauliflower is roasting, make the dressing. Combine remaining 1/4 cup olive oil, rosemary, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, pepper and honey. Whisk til combined.

Combine roasted cauliflower and all the rest of the ingredients. Toss with dressing. Enoy!

Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins

I would dare to say this is the best chocolate chip muffin recipe I have ever made - delicious! Just amazing! I found them on the blog Sugar Spun Run. I love the tip she gave about letting the batter "sit" to get a higher muffin top rise - genius! It worked! (I actually let the batter sit for her recommended 1 hour total). The muffins came out light and fluffy. The sugar on top gave them a perfect, crunchy "crust". I will be making these again!

I ended up using a 12 count muffin tin. I baked them at 425F for 7 min, then turned the oven down and baked them at 350F for another 10 minutes (total baking time was 17 minutes). 

Here is Sugar Spun Run's recipe word for word:

Ingredients

• 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted and cooled at least 5 minutes (57g)
• ¼ cup canola oil may substitute vegetable oil (60ml)
• 1 cup sugar (200g) (granulated sugar)
• 1 large egg + 1 egg white room temperature preferred
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk* room temperature preferred -- please see note for buttermilk substitute
• 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour 220g
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons corn starch
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup chocolate chips I used a mix of mini and regular sized, but you can use either or a combination (175g)
• 1/3 cup additional granulated sugar, coarse sugar preferred for topping (67g)

Instructions

1. Combine butter and canola oil in a large bowl.  Stir well.
2. Stir in sugar.
3. Add egg, egg white, and vanilla extract.  Stir very well, until all ingredients are thoroughly combined.
4. Add buttermilk and stir well.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, corn starch, and salt.
6. Fold dry ingredients into wet gently, taking care not to overmix.  Once about half of the dry ingredients have been incorporated into the batter, add in chocolate chips and continue to fold in to batter until all ingredients are just combined.
7. Cover bowl with a dry towel and allow batter to sit 15 minutes**
8. Preheat oven to 425F (218C) and line muffin tin with paper liners.  
9. Once oven has preheated, portion batter into 6-cavity large muffin tin (you may also use regular, 12 count muffin tin, you will just need to bake them for less time), filling each tin all the way to the top with batter (without overflowing).
10. Sprinkle tops generously with sugar and place muffin tin in preheated oven.
11. Bake on 425F (218C) for 8 minutes and then reduce the oven temperature to 350 (177C) (do not open the oven door or remove the muffins, just leave them in and reduce the temperature) and bake another 15 minutes, or until tops are just beginning to turn golden brown (if you are using a 12-count muffin tin rather than jumbo-sized, these will not need to bake as long.  Start checking your muffins after 7-8 minutes on 350F (177C).
12. Allow to cool, and enjoy!

Recipe Notes

*If you don't happen to have buttermilk, you can use this substitute:  pour 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice or vinegar into a measuring cup and then fill up to the 1/2 cup line with regular milk.  Stir well and allow mixture to sit for at least 5 minutes (it will thicken) before using.
**This is optional, it helps give the muffin tops a higher rise but you can certainly put them straight in the oven without waiting and they'll still taste delicious.  Ideally you would let the batter set at least one hour, but I found 15 minutes gives me a decent rise (the muffins in the photographs were allowed 15 minutes) while still not dragging out the process too much. 

Cacao Hemp Crispy Treats

I just love loVE LOVE the blog My New Roots (I own all her cookbooks, as well).  When I came across this recipe on her blog I knew I had to make it - and I KNEW it would be delicious (it really is). I love having these healthier desserts on hand.....because my sweet tooth is bad.....and these really satisfy my cravings!!  The freeze-dried strawberries make these pretty and add a tart sweetness. I also added a tablespoon of unsweetened cacao nibs for extra chocolately crunch.

Here is her recipe word for word (check out her blog because her photos are incredible):

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. virgin coconut oil, plus a little more for greasing
2/3 cup unsalted nut or seed butter of your choice <I used sunflower butter>
2/3 cup brown rice syrup <WF was out of brown rice syrup, so I used honey>
2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract
heaping ¼ tsp. fine sea salt
1/3 cup raw cacao powder (or cocoa powder)
4 cups puffed brown rice crisps
1 cup hulled hemp seeds
3 Tbsp. chia seeds
a few pinches flaky sea salt
3-4 Tbsp. freeze-dried raspberries <I used freeze-dried strawberries>

<I also added 1 Tbl unsweetened cacao nibs>

 

Directions:
1. Rub a little coconut oil in an 7″x11″ (20x30cm) baking pan.

2. Melt the coconut oil in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the nut butter, brown rice syrup, maple syrup, vanilla and fine salt, and stir to combine. Remove from heat. Stir in the cacao powder until thoroughly incorporated.

3. Add the puffed brown rice, hemp seeds, chia, and stir quickly to combine, then pour the mixture into your baking pan and press firmly (using the back of a large spoon or spatula rubbed with a little coconut oil really helps). Once smooth and even, generously sprinkle the top with the freeze-dried raspberries and flaky salt. Place in the fridge or freezer to firm up, then slice into bars or squares and enjoy. Store the bars in a tightly sealed container in the fridge or freezer.