Delicious Appetizer - Battered Cauliflower

Hello everybody, here I am ... working hard at being a wife, mom, choir member, church member, community member, and every single role I have... I do enjoy my "blogger" role as well! But I've had to make sure all my priorities are in order and there's so much to do that my blogging has taken a toll! I do need to keep it up though because it's my very way of expressing myself, it's a personal outlet... I just LOVE IT and love you all! (or like they say here in the South... "y'all")

Today I want to share with you a delicious, inexpensive and great way to make a delicious appetizer or side dish... in Spanish we call it "Coliflor lampreada" (which I guess the closest translation would be "battered cauliflower") ... My husband is not a big fan of cauliflower but he LOVES, LOVES, LOVES this dish! He eats the cauliflower florets like if they were chips when I make it like this... and last night (he had it for dinner) and even said: "I wish my mom could've tried this" (she passed away before I met him) so I know it's a huge compliment...

So here goes MY battered cauliflower recipe... it's very basic and you can get creative with it... adding some herbs to the batter, etc...

Here's how I make it:

Coliflor Lampreada

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cauliflower (steamed or boiled just until fork tender but not falling apart on its own)
• 2 eggs (divided)
• 1 1/2 cups of flour
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper 
• 2 tsp. salt
• About 2 cups of vegetable oil (I prefer Nutrioli soybean oil for this)

Directions:

• When the cauliflower has been cooked and cooled divide it in small florets, season them with some salt and black pepper.
• Mix flour, garlic powder, 1/2 tsp. black pepper and 2 tsp. salt together, coat the cauliflower florets with the flour mixture, set aside the "floured florets"
• In a mixer bowl, with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form, with the mixer still running on high add the egg yolks one at a time and keep mixing until you have a spongy looking yellow batter. 
• While the eggs are mixing pour the 2 cups of oil (or more if needed) in a wok or a big saucepan at medium/high heat until it's very, very hot (ready for deep frying)
• Add the cauliflower to the egg batter making sure the egg is perfectly covering all the cauliflower.
• With a  spoon carefully place the battered cauliflower florets in the oil (don't throw them or hot oil will splash) and just turn it to make sure all sides have a nicely golden color (you can do 4 or 5 florets at a time, don't do them all at once so you can handle them properly and make sure they all are evenly fried)
• Place the florets on paper towel to remove the excess of oil. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!!!

© Paloma K.

The Cake Slice and The Classic Cake

Hello everybody! Sorry I haven't been around as much... I am doing good stuff though! Being a mom and enjoying the terrible two's -OY!- but it's all a blessing, even those little things that now frustrate me... I know it's just a stage and this too shall pass and I might soon look back and feel like it passed way too quickly!

So... as many of you know I belong to a Secret Online Baking Group called The Cake Slice, we are a group of ladies who love baking and we choose a different book each year to bake from, right now we are baking from "Vintage Cakes" by Julie Richardson and it's been such a joy to bake from this book!

For January, two of the 4 cakes to choose from were tied at the end... so we had the choice to bake either of them... I chose "The Classic" and I am glad I did... I actually talked to a friend (Laurie) about it and about the fact that I can't really eat much cake anyway... and she had the great idea to use it for her hubby's birthday! They're all great friends so we made it a "date" and we all had lunch at her house yesterday with her family to enjoy her food and my cake... her husband really enjoyed it and my husband was almost like he was in heaven... he couldn't stop saying how much he loved it!

I am not sharing the recipe this time... but I am sharing with you "the process" of making it... I hope it's still fun!

My first two layers actually sunk! I was distracted and used baking soda instead of baking powder!

Chocolate ganache in the making! Semisweet chocolate + heavy whipping cream + dark brown sugar = awesomeness!

Second batch of cake layers were great! The recipe asked to make 4 layers out of the two but I used bigger round pans and preferred to have 2 thick layers than 4 thin ones.

This would've been the final product but I thought it looked too simple and dark....

So I gave it an extra touch with melting some white chocolate with butter and heavy cream to decorate the top.

Here's the birthday boy waiting for his wife to give him a slice!

Now... this is a cake slice! although it was supposed to be "yellow cake" and I found it "whiter than yellow" Delicious though!

Success!

© Paloma K.

When going to a restaurant...

We can still make healthy choices when going to a restaurant... can't we? We just need to find them and try to not look too much at the rest of the Menu! LOL!

We had company over from Wisconsin, Auntie Sally and Uncle John stopped by our house and stayed for a couple of nights and one we spent one whole day together! I baked desserts but they took us out for dinner... I was a little worried and excited at the same time... would I be able to make a good choice? Thankfully yes!

Now... I am excited to start this week... hopefully it will be a great one!

Here's me at the Restaurant (we ate seafood overlooking the Gulf of Mexico.. it was neat!)

And here's my choice:

Char-grilled salmon on a bed of white rice and garnished with steamed vegetables

Not a bad weekend at all! How are you doing with your Year's Resolutions? My weight loss is not a "New Year's Resolution" but it's a resolution after all... Resolution implies being RESOLVED to do something... and I am totally committed to a healthy lifestyle! What are your goals? Don't let any bumps on the road stop you from doing what you have to do to reach your goals! :) You can do it!

Happy week everyone!


© Paloma K.