Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

I saw a recipe recently for some spicy cauliflower bites and when I went to make them I realized I didn't have all the ingredients in my pantry.  So instead I figured I would wing it and come up with my own spin on the recipe and use what I had in my pantry.  I don't know what the original recipe tastes like, but I know this one is MIGHTY tasty.

I took it to a friend's house this past weekend for dinner and it was GONE and gone QUICKLY!  Which is why I don't have a picture because I forgot to take one when they were done and there was nothing left to take a picture of at the end of dinner.

I hope you enjoy this as much as everyone that ate it there did!

Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

Ingredients:
1 head of Cauliflower
Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Black Pepper
Paprika
Cumin
Chili Powder
Hot Sauce (I used Frank's Red Hot Original)

Sauce Ingredients:
Greek Yogurt
Blue Cheese crumbled up (OR Hidden Valley Ranch Packet Seasoning Mix)

Directions:
-  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
-  Clean and seperate the cauliflower into small floret pieces.
-  Spread the florets onto a rimmed baking sheet and sprinkle the olive oil over top.  Then sprinkle the sea salt, pepper, paprika, cumin & chili powder over to your liking.  Toss to make sure all the cauliflower pieces are coated well.
-  Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes (until the florets are tender but crispy still).
-  Once the cauliflower is roasted, remove from the oven and pour into a serving bowl.  Then top with a few shakes of the hot sauce bottle to your liking (I probably used at least a 1/2 cp. if not more).

-  While the cauliflower is cooking, in a small bowl, mix about 1 cup or more of the greek yogurt with crumbled blue cheese to your liking.  (Depending on how much you like blue cheese will depend on how much you use.  If you don't like the taste of blue cheese, you could also use a Hidden Valley Ranch packet and mix up some ranch dip or use the fresh herbs of ranch and make that as well.)

I know I will be making this again sometime soon and when I do I will be sure to take a picture!

ENJOY!!!  Thanks for stopping by!  Come back again soon for more ideas!

~Sarah Strubhar
Independent Team Beachbody Emerald Coach

Southwest Quinoa Salad

I have had this recipe on my list of "Want to Try" for what seems like forever now.  Finally decided it was time to try it out.  We were invited to a friends' house this weekend to share in some smoked beef brisket and decided to take this to share.  It's a good thing I had to share it, otherwise I would have eaten this all by myself with no troubles at all.  In fact, there was some leftover and when we got home at 10:30p.m., I decided I wanted a few more bites and it was just as delicious then as it was hours before.  Hope you enjoy this as much as I did as well as everyone who tried it at the cookout!

Southwest Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:

1 cp. Quinoa, rinsed & drained

1 tsp. Ground Cumin

2-3 ears of Corn on the Cob

15oz. can Black Beans, rinsed & drained

2 Plum Tomatoes, diced

1 med. Zucchini, diced

1/4 cp. Red Onion, finely chopped

Dressing Ingredients:

1/3 cp. Fresh Lemon Juice

1/3 cp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 1/2 - 3 tbsp. Fresh Cilantro, chopped (there is such a range in the amount to use depending on your taste preference for fresh cilantro)

Sea Salt & Fresh Ground Black Pepper, to taste

Directions:

-  In a small bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the dressing and set aside.

-  In a small saucepan, bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add the quinoa & ground cumin.  Cover and reduce heat to medium low and simmer until the liquid is absorbed (about 12-15 minutes).  Remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes.  Uncover the cooked quinoa and fluff with a fork.  Allow the quinoa to cool for at least 10 minutes.  (I left mine cool for a while and it was at room temperature when I was ready to move forward.)

-  While waiting for the quinoa to cook and cool, bring a pan of water to a boil and place in the ears of corn.  Boil for about 5-10 minutes.  Then remove from the water and place on a pre-heated grill and grill until the corn becomes tender and lightly charred.  Removev the corn from the grill and allow to cool completely.  Once cooled, cut the kernels from the cob.

-  In a large bowl, combine the quinoa, corn kernels, black beans, diced tomatoes, diced zucchini & finely chopped red onion.  Pour the dressing over top and toss to combine.

-  Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days prior to serving. 

-  ENJOY!!!

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my recipe.  Come back and comment if you try this and let me know what you think!

Have a great day!

~Sarah Strubhar

Independent Emerald Team Beachbody Coach