Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Let me start off my saying I have wanted to try this for years!  I have put it off and put it off because it sounded like so much trouble for "fake" pizza.   Well, I was at Target a few weeks ago and found pre-crumbled cauliflower so I grabbed it and tried it out with Cauliflower Cheese Sticks.  Those were really good.  So, I stepped it up.  I got an actual head of cauliflower and decided to try out the pizza tonight.
PS  The cheese measurements below are because I was really trying to be good, I would have LOVED to double all of it! :)
PSS  Pictures at the bottom.  I hate scrolling through pictures just to get to a recipe.


Ingredients:
Crust:
1 head of fresh cauliflower
1 egg, lightly beaten
¼ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon olive oil
½ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
½ teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Toppings:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon mozzarella cheese
¼ cup diced onion (use more or less to liking)
Handful of fresh spinach leaves
4-6 sliced cherry tomatoes
Turkey Pepperoni 
2 tablespoons crumbled feta
1 tablespoon grated parmesan
1/2 tsp dried Italian herb seasoning
(that was all I had on hand but mushrooms and green bell pepper would be really good added also!)

Step 1:  Prepare your cauliflower (this can be done at any point, jsut allow time for steamed cauliflower to cool)
I used a whole head of cauliflower.  Remove the leaves, chop it up so it fits in a food processor.  Blend until it is pretty small, it is called cauliflower "rice"
Move that to a steamer, steam for 20 minutes.  Let cool.  This is super important, the first time I did this, I was prepared.  I didn't have time to let it cool.  And when I moved it to a cheese cloth to "drain" I totally burnt my hands!  When cauliflower rice is cool enough to handle, move to cheese cloth and squeeze, squeeze, squeeze.  Get as much water out as you can so you don't have soggy pizza.

Step 2:
Ready for pizza?  I know I am!
Preheat oven to 375
Mix together prepared cauliflower rice with rest of crust ingredients.
Line a round cake pan with parchment paper sprayed with olive oil.  Spread the crust mixture into bottom of cake pan.
While crust is baking warm the topping olive oil and garlic to season the oil.  Don't burn the garlic, just heat until there is a nice garlic aroma to oil.  Turn off and keep to side.
Bake for about 25 minutes then flip out onto a clean sheet of parchment.
Spread just enough of the garlic olive oil on crust to cover.
Then add toppings.  This is the order I did mine.
1.  Mozzarella
2.  Onion
3.  Spinach
4.   Pepporni
5.  Tomatoes
6.  Feta
7.  Parmasean
8.  Italian Seasoning
Put back in oven until cheese starts to brown.

Enjoy! 

Clean Eating Blueberry Pancakes!

I had pictures of these but can not find on my phone.  I will add pictures next time I cook them but they are delicious!!!!

Clean Eating Blueberry Pancakes

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 plain greek yogurt
1/2 medium ripe banana
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (I use Mexican Vanilla)
1/2 cup frozen blueberries (you can use fresh if you have)
1 tablespoon Almond Meal
1 tablespoon Flax Seed
Coconut Oil
Pure Maple Syrup or Raw Honey for serving

Pour everything into a blender and blend up.  While blending, heat enough coconut oil in a pan to cook the pancakes in.  If it won't blend in your blender, add a little bit of milk (I use almond).  One thing I found is if I add yogurt, egg, vanilla first and let it start blending then add in other ingredients. 

Cook in pan like regular pancakes and serve! 

Homemade Cajun Seasoning

No picture but wanted to add this on here so I can get to it easily later on when I need another batch but I use this seasoning on everything.  Chicken, fish, homemade fries.  I even add a tiny amount of my omelets!

I make and store in a mason jar.

Cajun Seasoning:
I use this on everything!

½ cup Paprika
¼ cup Sea salt
¼ cup Garlic Powder
2 Tablespoons Black Pepper
2 Tablespoons Onion Powder
1 teaspoon Chili Powder 
2 Tablespoons Oregano Leaf
1 Tablespoon Thyme Leaf
 
If you don't want the "texture" of the oregano and thyme, you can add to a food processor and pulse a bit.

Chicken and Veggie Soup

This soup is so simple but delicious.  Very easy to make, all real ingredients.  No soups and not even any broths to worry about!  The original recipe came from Clean 15 by Julie Day but I have modified it some for my liking and to use ingredients I pretty much always have at home.

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 boneless chicken breast
Homemade Cajun Seasoning (see recipe here)
1/2 onion chopped
2 celery stalks chopped
1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic
2 bay leaves
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 large carrot chopped
3 cups cut broccoli
3 cups water
Optional:  Cooked Brown Rice



Heat Olive Oil in a pot.  Use about 1 tablespoon of cajun seasoning  and cover chicken breast.  Add to oil and brown.  After about 5 minutes, add in onion, celery, and garlic with 3 cups of water and the bay leaves.   Let the chicken fully cook.  Remove chicken breast, cut into cubes and put back.  Add in mushrooms, carrot, and broccoli with about 1/2 tsp more cajun seasoning.  Let cook down about 20-30 minutes or until veggies are to your liking.

I eat mine as is, my daughter eats hers over rice.

Blueberry Cheesecake Smoothie!!!!!!

I try to eat fairly clean but have been getting tired of all my normal recipes plus I had a really bad sweet tooth this morning.  I decided to go ahead and attempt a smoothie to taste like dessert instead of breakfast and I had success!!!!

Ingredients:

1 medium ripe banana

1 cup frozen blueberries

4 oz greek yogurt cream cheese (I use Green Mountain Farms)

8 oz unsweet vanilla almond milk

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tablespoon raw honey

1/2 tsp mexican vanilla

1 tablespoon chia seeds

Big handful of kale (about 1 cup unpacked)

Blend up and enjoy!  Also makes amazing popsicles!

Tropical Chia Chai Smoothie

I have been experimenting with smoothies since doing a Clean 15 Diet that my gym put together.   One smoothie I became addicted too after Clean 15 was this Chai Almond smoothie.  I wanted to mix it up a bit so I put this together today.  I wasn't sure how I would like the Chai flavor combined with pineapple but it is surprisingly good!

Make this Chai Spice First and store in a airtight container.

• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 3/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp ground allspice

Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla coconut milk
1/2 frozen banana (if you don't have one frozen, just add a little ice)
1/2 cup pineapple
2 tsp Chai Spice
1/2 tsp ginger 
1 tbsp raw honey
1 large handful of greens (I use spinach/baby kale mix)
1 tbsp chia seeds

Combine all ingredients in blender, blend until smooth.  Enjoy!  And with all smoothies, you can make homemade popsicles with any extra. 

Kale, Butternut Squash, and Chicken Soup

I picked up a bag of butternut squash at Trader Joe's to try, found this recipe on pinterest and decided to try it.  Was expecting to like it but it actually came out really delicious!  Even my 4 year old daugther loved it.

Kale, Butternut Squash, and Chicken Soup

Ingredients:

Chicken:
1 boneless/skinless chicken breast
2 tablespoons white wine
1 teaspoon grape seed oil
1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence
Red Pepper Flakes
Salt, Black Pepper

Soup:
1 tablespoon grape seed oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3/4 cup peeled and chopped carrot (about 2 large)
3 stalks celery chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
4 cups low sodium broth (I used chicken)
2 cups water
12 oz chopped butternut squash (I had the bag from Trader Joes)
2 cups chopped kale leaves
13 oz garbanzo beans drained (I used the boxed ones from Whole Foods, 365 brand)
1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence
Salt and Black Pepper
1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
optional: crumbed gouda cheese for topping

Directions:

1.  Put chicken in small baking dish, mix rest of ingredients together and pour over chicken.
2.  Cover and bake at 375 for 25 minutes
3.  Take out and cube/shred then set to side.

1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot, then add the onion, celery and garlic. Cook 10 minutes on medium heat, stirring when needed.
2.  Add chicken and cook another 10 minutes.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients (minus the kale and cheese) then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes. Add the kale and simmer an additional 10 minutes.  If veggies are not soft enough for your liking, you can continue cooking on low.  Sprinkle individual servings with Gouda cheese.