Mashed Cauliflower with Caramelized Onions, Black Beans, and Sauteed Spinach

Yesterday, I went to the grocery store and found that cauliflower was on sale. As much as I love it raw or steamed, I was hoping to do something fancy with this cauliflower. I had seen a few cooking shows where they mashed it, like you would do with potatoes, so I thought I'd try that out... I also had some leftover black beans and wanted to work that into the meal as well. So I steamed and mashed the cauliflower, caramelized some onions, and added the beans and spinach. DELICIOUS!

Ingredients:

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 3-4 tbsp sour cream
• garlic salt to taste
• black pepper to taste
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1/2 cup black beans
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach
• a little bit of chicken broth

Directions:

1. Cut the cauliflower into florets and place in a large pot, with enough water to cover the florets by about an inch or so.
2. Boil for 20-25 minutes, until the cauliflower is fork tender.
3. Meanwhile, heat a bit of veggie oil in a frying pan on medium-high.
4. Add onions and lower heat to medium. Cook slowly, added chicken broth as necessary to keep the onions moist.
5. While the onions are cooking, drain cauliflower.
6. Add sour cream, garlic salt, and black pepper.
7. Mash with a potato mashed or an immersion blender, depending on the texture you'd like.
8. Add the black beans and spinach to the frying pan, and cook until spinach is wilted and bright green.
9. Spoon mashed cauliflower onto plate and top with onions, beans, and spinach.

ENJOY!

Brown Lentils and Vegetables

I've always tried to cook with lentils, and somehow I always manage to mess it up! Nonetheless, I continue to try to cook them. This time, instead of purchasing canned lentils I decided to go with dried ones. It seemed to work out! I found this simple recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 C of brown lentils
• 1 C carrots, diced
• 1 C red onions, diced
• 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 C celery stalks, diced (I used bell peppers, since I didn't have celery on hand!)
• 1/4 C fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, put lentils, carrots, onions, garlic, thyme, and bay leaf. Add just enough water to cover.
2. Bring to a quick boil, and then reduce heat and cover until lentils are tender but not mushy.
3. Drain well and then put the mixture in a medium bowl.
4. Add peppers (or celery... or both!), lemon juice, olive oil, and season with salt, pepper, and parsley.

Notes:

As I mentioned, I didn't have any celery on hand so I used finely diced bell peppers instead. I also didn't have any parsely, so I added a few dashes of other spices - cayenne pepper, cumin, and turmeric - to give it some flavour.

All around, this recipe was a success! Lentil win!