Cauliflower Mashed "Potatoes" with Goat Cheese and Parmesan

So last fall I went hard core no carbs, South Beach Diet phase 1, for a few months and dropped over 20 pounds. It was really hard to not eat carbs since I love sweets and bread products, but losing the weight made me feel better about myself, and it was something I just needed to do for my health.

Well, I got lazy, started chowing down on all my favorite carbby foods again, with no restraint, and I re-gained a few of those pounds. The husband's pants have been fitting a bit tighter lately as well, so we decided to give South Beach another try, but this time focus more on less carbs, rather than NO cabrs, because let's face it, carbs taste good! And no carbs gives me headaches and makes me crabby- I'm no ray of sunshine on a normal day, so doing something that puts me in a bad mood is no way to live life.

In our quest to cut the carbs, I pulled out this recipe for cauliflower mashed "potatoes", which obvs contain no potatoes. Let me tell you, I am not a fan of many vegetables, and cauliflower is definitely on that list. But, once they were pureed, then combined with goat cheese and parmesean cheese, I could.not.stop eating them! The consistency was spot on- smooth, creamy, velvety. Yummm. The two different cheeses added extra creaminess, as well as amazing flavor.

The husband, who is a veggie hater and steak lover, commented that this dish was the star of the meal and better than the steaks we had for dinner. If that's not a ringing endorsement, I don't know what is!

Cauliflower Mashed "Potatoes" with Goat Cheese and Parmesan Cheese
Source: Kayln's Kitchen
Printable Recipe

Ingredients
1 head cauliflower
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 - 1 Tablespoon half and half or cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2-3 ounces goat cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Chop up cauliflower into small chunks, discarding the stem and leaves.

Put cauliflower and minced garlic in a saucepan (or microwave safe bowl if you want to microwave it) with enough water to cover the cauliflower. Cook for 20 minutes, until cauliflower is soft.

Drain the water and let cauliflower sit in a colander for about 5 minutes to allow extra water to drain off.

Puree cauliflower in a blender or food processor (I used my immersion blender for this, with the cauliflower in a saucepan. It worked great!). Put pureed cauliflower in a saucepan over medium-low heat, and mix in the goat cheese, parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper. Stir to melt the cheese, then remove from heat. Sprinkle chopped chives over the top and serve warm.

Jalapeno Chicken Salad

This hardly qualifies as a recipe, in my opinion, since you basically just mix a few things together and then eat. :) But it's something I've been eating a lot of lately since it is South Beach-friendly, and friends have asked for the recipe, so I decided to go ahead and blog it after all.

The jalapeno and lime give a spicy-tart kick to the chicken, while the olive oil leaves a very distinct (in a good way!) taste. I like to eat this on its own or with some sliced cucumbers and red bell peppers, but I bet it would be great as a sandwich or on some whole wheat crackers.

I don't actually measure out the ingredients for this when I make it, so the following recipe is a rough guideline. You can add or subtract to suit your tastes. :)

And just in case you're keeping count, the total weight loss is now at 16 pounds! Woooooo!

Jalapeno Chicken Salad
Source: an awesome co-worker
Printable Recipe

Ingredients
one 12.5-ounce can chicken breasts, packed in water
1-2 Tablespoons reduced-fat mayo
1 teaspoon olive oil
juice from 1/2 a lime
2 green onions, diced
1 jalapeno, diced (remove the seeds and ribs if you don't like a lot of heat)
1-2 Tablespoons cilantro, minced
garlic salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and mix together with a fork.

Serve immediately, or chill until ready to eat.

Almond-Encrusted Chicken Nuggests

I recently began following the South Beach Diet, so I've been looking for recipes that fit in with those restrictions. I want to be as healthy as I can, so of course, I'm changing my eating habits. As a result, I won't be blogging many sweet treats or carb-heavy recipes anymore, since I'm not going to be eating them. I know, I know. We'll deal with this together though, ok? There might be some every now and then, but those treats will be quickly packed up for friends and co-workers to enjoy. :)

On the upside, I've lost 13 pounds in my first week of following the South Beach Diet!

So as I was searching for a tasty recipe that didn't contain carbs, sugars, or unhealthy fat, I found this homemade chicken nugget recipe. The almond meal (just grind up slivered almonds in your food processor) replaces bread crumbs to cut out the carbs and add in some healthy fats.

The husband and I both loved these nuggets and can't wait to eat them again. The few seasonings in the recipe pack quite a punch of flavor! The husband dipped his nuggets in BBQ sauce, while I ate mine plain; we both had oven-roasted broccoli and shallots on the side and felt quite satisfied when we were done eating.

Almond-Encrusted Chicken Nuggets
Source: Kalyn's Kitchen
Printable Recipe

Ingredients
4-5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or 2 breasts)
1-2 Tablespoons olive oil (enough to coat the baking sheet)
3/4 cup almond meal (ground up almonds)
1 1/2 teaspoon paprika (not smoked or hot)
3/4 teaspon poultry seasoning
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Directions

Turn on your oven to 400 degrees. Brush a baking sheet with the olive oil and place the sheet in the oven while it preheats.

Trim all visible fat and tendons from the chicken, then cut each thigh into 4 or 5 nugget pieces of about equal size. You can use a mallet to pound out any nuggets that are too thick.

Combine the almond meal, paprika, poultry seasoning, salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl, or pie pan and mix together with a fork. Dip each nugget piece into the almond meal mixture, pressing onto the chicken with your fingers so the mixture coats the chicken. Coat all the nuggets before you remove the baking sheet from the oven.

Once each nugget is coated, lay them on the hot baking sheet and cook 8-10 minutes, or until the side touching the pan is lightly browned. Remove pan from oven, turn the nuggets, and bake another 10-12 minutes on the second side, until nuggets are lightly browned and cooked through. (Don't overcook.)

Serve hot, with mustard or ranch dipping sauce if desired. If you're not following South Beach or a low glycemic diet, dip them in whatever your heart desires! Just don't tell me about it. ;)