Mashed Cauliflower

So- how do you feel about Cauliflower? I don’t love it. It is not may favorite veggie… give me some squash or spinach or something green… but cauliflower? Meh! But I am trying to give new and different veggies a try this year- and seeing what I can make yummy from what I might not already like. And cauliflower? Well it is definately an under appreciated vegetable!

Here is a great link with some info on cauliflower for your reading pleasure!

http://experiencelife.com/article/cauliflower-power-2/

Soooo- I have a friend, Alison, who asked me one day if I had ever heard about being able to “mash” cauliflower instead of potatoes and if I would try it for her! So I thought- why not? I don’t eat much cauliflower, so I don’t have much variety in the recipe book for it. (Not one of my favorite veggies, but I DO love it roasted with onions and broccoli!)

I cut up a full large head of cauliflower and boiled it in water with a teeny bit of salt. I boiled the heck out of it! (Figured if I was going to “mash” it, I needed it to be soft!)

Boiling Cauliflower

After I boiled it. I drained it and put it in a large mixing bowl.

To the cauliflower I added butter and sour cream. (Sorry I didn’t really measure- I don’t cook like that unless I am really paying attention- and I just plain forgot this night!) I took my potato masher and mashed it all up together.

For “taste” I added a little horseradish sauce, Mrs. Dash Herbs and Onion and salt and pepper. It came out fabulous! Might not be much to look at- but it tasted so good My Guy wanted seconds! We ate it with the leftover Mediterranean Spaghetti Squash and some Tilapia cooked with olive oil and lime. It was a yummy meal and one we both expect we will try again!

So, Alison, there you have it! Mashed Cauliflower at your request! And boy was it yummy! Thanks for asking!!

Have you ever made mashed cauliflower?

What is your favorite way to eat cauliflower? (I still need more recipes for the recipe box!)

 La-

Wellness is a Choice. Let me help you Choose Well.

La@lauriannamurray.com

Catching the bus at the crack of dawn!

The problem with this “impatience,” if you will;  I do not have a car.

I can’t just hop in my car, NOW, to run to the store. I cannot just hop in my car, NOW, to go to the market. I can’t just hop in my car… well you get the picture! There is very little immediacy for me and most of my activities right now but there is a lot of planning and well, waiting!

Morning schedule...

Waiting. <sigh> I am learning to look at this from a very “Zen” point of view. Really I am! I am learning that it is ok to hang out and wait. I can sit on a bench and relax while I wait for the bus. I am learning to not be all tapping feet and deep sighs when the bus is late. I am learning that I don’t need to rush OUT of an event or a place- that it is ok to linger because the bus isn’t going to come around that way for a while yet. Unforeseen opportunities can come at any time if you just sit and wait!

Waiting has been having an impact on me. I am not as impatient with others, or myself because I know now, that sometimes I just have to wait. I feel like this is going to have a good impact on other aspects of my life as I set out this year to make even more changes- bigger ones, even the smaller ones. I know now, that not only do I have no choice but to wait- but that waiting itself can have benefits and I can actually endure it. I really can!

Downtown buses...

Another side benefit of all this; I am learning to accept help from others. People offer to give me rides. (I think it freaks them out that I am really going to take the bus home!) By accepting help from others I am learning to be gracious and allow them to receive the blessing of helping me. It’s not easy- my first instinct is to say “No Thanks! I will be ok!” And of course, I WILL be ok. But it doesn’t hurt me to accept and maybe it jus helps us both to work together like this!

Looking up from a bench- while waiting...

So this year- as I look at the way I have chosen to live my life- I am finding that I am receiving so many more benefits than just the financial ones I expected. I am learning to wait… That cannot be a bad thing!

Do you know how to wait? 

What are you waiting for this year?

I guess I talked about it a few times- because come our anniversary in early January… guess what I opened up!! An Electric Pressure Cooker!! We laughed because he felt like it was not necessarily the most romantic gift! I thought it WAS! I mean he paid attention to what I wanted and got it for me! LOVE!

http://www.chefscatalog.com/product/23103-cuisinart-pressure-cooker.aspx

Since I got it (about January 10th) I have made quite a few things already:

• Black Beans
• Mushroom Barely Soup
• Organic Brown Rice
• Whole Chicken
• Chicken Stock (Sitting in there right now! Done in less than 90 minutes- stock usually takes all day simmering in the pot!)

Pressure cookers have come a long way since my grandmother used to make turnips and parsnips in hers on the stove! This is electric and has Brown, Saute, Simmer and Keep Warm settings as well as high and low pressure. EASY to use!

A pressure cooker works when steam trapped in the pot builds up pressure that creates hotter temperatures, and the pot is so tightly sealed that vitamins and minerals can’t boil away. It keeps your healthy veggies and food even healthier!

I am excited to keep trying new things in my pressure cooker- it’s a fast healthy alternative to spending lots of time waiting for food to cook in the oven or on the stove!

Do you have a pressure cooker? 

Have you ever actually used it?

What do you make? We’d love to read your recipes! 

La-

Anyway, as we start to focus on that plan or even think about which weight loss plan to choose, many of us go immediately to a super low-calorie diet. The problem with going so low cal- is that it is hard to sustain. Both when we think about eating (we want MORE!) and on our body!

Below is the link to one of the posts I wrote last year that still gets the most hits and I get the most questions about. It explains why it is important to eat enough in order to lose weight and keep it off long-term. Check it out. Get some info! You really DO have to EAT enough to LOSE weight!

http://www.thecurvylife.com/2011/02/are-you-eating-enough-to-loose-weight/

I know I need to re-read this myself and keep the focus. How about you? Do YOU eat enough to lose that weight?

La-

• Last Year’s One Little Word - Determined- http://www.thecurvylife.com/2011/01/one-little-word/-
• The year before was – Cherish

This year- My Word is CULTIVATE.  It is chock-full of meaning for my life in 2012! I have such great expectations for this year- I need to cultivate my dreams, goals, relationships etc to grow them to where they will go!

cul·ti·vate

• Break up (soil) in preparation for sowing or planting
• Raise or grow
• Grow or maintain
• Try to acquire or develop (a quality, sentiment, or skill)
  • - he cultivated an air of indifference
• Apply oneself to improving or developing
• 
  

Still working on my 2012 goals post. (Mostly because I am still trying to work through my goals… but it is a good process and one that cannot be rushed. Having my word will help give me form for my goals.)

Do you do an annual word? What is your word and why? 

This is the site where I got the idea originally for the One Little Word- http://www.bigpictureclasses.com/onelittleword.php

La-

Loose Weight and Have More Energy! Ask Me How!

Brown Rice all measured out into half cup portions for our lunches and dinners this week!

This week as part of our New Year- get back into the plan Detox/Cleanse… My Guy and I are following an elimination diet. Removing all potential allergy/inflammation type foods for a while to give our bodies a chance to recover from the abuse over the holidays (and frankly a good part of the last year- but that is another post!) and to jump start our weight loss for the year.

As part of this diet we eat about a cup of rice a day. I cannot tell you how much I am enjoying it! Seriously! A little salt and pepper- once a day a little pat of butter… this stuff is good! LOL I know, I know- you all probably already knew this. I on the other hand- had no clue! LOL

But now? You can consider me educated! YAY! (My Guy just got me a Pressure Cooker for our one year dating anniversary- I am going to pop some rice in there and make it up too! Wonder if that will be easier? Or just more fun?!!)

Do you eat Brown Rice? Do you have any favorite recipes?

Or better ways to prepare it? Tips?

La-

Loose Weight and Have More Energy… Ask me about how!

Oh Christmas Tree, 2011!!

I have the ability to make choices. I have the abundance to have choices to make. Is everything perfect? Nope. But I don’t look at perfection as the goal. I look at the journey, I look at where I came from and how I am getting to the next place. And right now, in this place. I am good. I am blessed. I am at peace.

Peaceful Christmas.

So this is just a quick note to say HI! MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!

As usual I will have my goals for the coming year and my one little word for the year coming up in a blog post soon!

Merry Christmas from me and My Guy!

If you have not been following here long- you can see past years “Year in Review”, “One Little Word” and “Goal Setting” at the links below (for your reading pleasure!)

• http://www.thecurvylife.com/2011/01/one-little-word/
• http://www.thecurvylife.com/2011/01/2010-recap-the-good-the-bad-the-reality/
• http://www.thecurvylife.com/2010/01/2010-goals/
• http://www.thecurvylife.com/2010/01/the-beginning-of-2010-stats-weekly-weigh-in-and-pictures/

http://www.cleaneatingmag.com/

Every time I open an issue I find a recipe (or five) that I just HAVE to try. This last weekend My Guy and I made Beef Jerky for the first time from one of their recipes. (I looked for the recipe on their site- but I guess since it is in the current issue- you cannot get it from the site yet! But trust me! It was GOOD!)

Hanging it in the oven...

Is it Done Yet?

The Finished Product!

We had so much fun making it. We ended up with something a little different than the recipe called for… (Imagine THAT? ME? Making a recipe NOT the way it was written!) But we had a sweet maple syrup flavored one and a hot chipotle spiced one!

I really do recommend this magazine! It doesn’t have too many ads, the articles are short and interesting but the recipe? The recipes? AWESOME!!

La-

Pretty Table all set and "snacks" ready...

Since it was only going to be the three of us- we got a Turkey Breast instead of a whole bird. Next year we might get a small whole turkey so we have more variety to choose from in the Turkey- legs, dark meat etc.

Honey! I Shrunk the Turkey!

 The turkey was brined in Honey and Thyme. It had such a great flavor! (Even if it looks a little wimpy in that first photo!)

Showing it off!

 Next on the menu- and the food everyone loved the most I think- Brussel Sprouts with Butternut Squash and Bacon with Vinaigrette. This was soooo yummy! Check out the recipe on Williams- Sonoma website- HERE

Making the bacon for the Brussels Sprouts

 Just before the holiday I finally found dishes that I just love… I was so happy to have beautiful fall/holiday dishes that I could serve the meal on! I loved the table setting!

I LOVE love these glasses!

My new dishes... I love them!

Next- what Thanksgiving meal is complete without STUFFING!? Sausage Stuffing! I made it for the first time last year at my brother’s house and it was still a big hit this year!

Yummy Stuffing

Is there anything you can say about mashed potatoes?

Buttermilk Ranch Mashed Potatoes

As you can see- the food looked great (and it actually was!) and the company was wonderful. Such a fun holiday. My Guy and I went for a run early in the day and we loved it! That is going to be one of our traditions from now on too!

Following are just a few last photos of the day! (Can you tell I am enjoying pulling out my SLR and taking photos again?)

Me and My Guy

The chef and her dinner!

Dinner is Served

Change for a Dollar

So many times- especially in the hustle and bustle of the Holidays- we forget to take that one extra moment that could change someones day- if not their entire life. We could smile at one more person- or ask how they are and mean it. We could give someone a little boost with a small token gift or some time. It doesn’t usually take much (as this film shows) but a little can go a long way.

I ride the bus and more often than not I try not to interact with the rest of “humanity” while doing so. I put my head into a book or listen to my class lessons on my iPod. But what if I looked around? Noticed what needs “doing?” Notice if a smile is needed or a hand lifting a heavy grocery sack, or just a hello?

I am going to commit to doing that more over the next few weeks. I think that it will not only make at least a small difference in other people’s lives- but that it will bring a joy and feeling of “goodness” to me too. And how can that be a bad thing?

La-

Wellness is a Choice. Let me help you Choose Well!

la@lauriannamurray.com