Wednesday, October 11, 2006

You Have to Try This Recipe from Kalyn!

Oh. My. God. I just had the BEST potato replacement in the world. Thank-you Kalyn! You see, I’m borderline diabetic, and my doctor has told me to work on keeping the blood sugar down through diet and exercise so I don’t have to take medicine or do injections. I started a year ago, and have slowly, ever so slowly, brought both my weight and my blood sugar down. The hardest part of this has been avoiding potatoes. I really have not done that very well. For about six months, I did great - not a single bite of potato anything crossed my lips. But, since potatoes happen to be one of my most favorite foods in the whole world, especially fried, roasted, and baked, I started eating them again. Now I know that I can have them in moderation, but we all know how self-control works (or doesn’t).

Last week Kalyn, on her blog Kalyn’s Kitchen, posted her recipe for Twice-Baked Cauliflower. Since I love loaded baked potatoes, and this one sounded like them, I had to give it a try. You know what I discovered? I like this recipe better than REAL loaded baked potatoes. The baked cauliflower is slightly sweeter than a potato, and this dish has sour cream, cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, bacon bits, and cheddar cheese - all blending together to make this a sinfully-tasting side dish. And with ZERO CARBS! We had it tonight with bratwurst and sauerkraut. DH went back for seconds, and said I should definitely make this again and again.

Yes, it’s not really twice-baked, since the first step is boiling, but I agree with Kalyn that “Twice Baked” sounds better.

Twice-Baked Cauliflower
from Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen

1 large head cauliflower
4 oz. low fat cream cheese
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup low fat sour cream
1/2 cup minced green onions (I used a couple tablespoons of chives)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
6 slices bacon , cooked and crumbled
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350˚. Cut out stem and core from cauliflower, and cut into small pieces. Cook in large pot of boiling water until cauliflower is tender, but not overly soft. Drain well and mash with potato masher, leaving some chunks. Mix in cream cheese, butter, sour cream, green onion, Parmesan, and 3/4 of the bacon. Spread evenly in an 8 X 8 inch glass casserole dish. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and reserved bacon. Bake 30-35 minutes, or until hot and bubbly. Serves 4

9 comments:

Kalyn Denny said...

Thanks Cyndi! I'm glad to hear that you liked it. I thought it was a great recipe too. We should clarify that this is not my recipe. I got it from the Low Carb Gourmet by Karen Barnaby, and the only thing I really changed was to reduce the bacon a little and eliminate most of the butter. (Next time I might leave out all the butter.) This is a really, really good cookbook. You could probably get it on Amazon.com for pretty cheap, maybe even a used one. I recommend it very highly.

Ziz said...

Oooooooo Yum!

Sara said...

I printed this one off of Kalyn's site to try. Glad to hear you liked it, I'll have to make it soon.

PatL said...

Cyndi, if you haven't already discovered it, this Atkins recipe is also yummy and a nice substitute for mashed potatoes: cauliflower puree

Anonymous said...

Hi Cindy!
I'm sorry to hear about your diabetes. I also come from a diabetic family so I know your battle.
Anyway this recipe sounds yummy! It resembles dutch 'prei taart' (leek- taart) my bestfriend loves to make.

have a good weekend and btw thanks for visiting my page!

Cyndi said...

Kalyn - thanks for the update/clarification. I'll still consider it yours, and leave the credit for Karen Barnaby here in the comments.
Ali and Sara - yes, you have to try it!
Pat - I just saved it to my cookbook. I wonder - is it good with various gravies?
thess - I'd like to see that leek tart recipe!

PatL said...

Cyndi, I'm not sure I'd try it with gravy. It has a cauliflower taste to it. But if you try it and like it with gravy, then hey! more power to ya!

Cyndi said...

Then why would I want to eat it? : ) I like my mashed potatoes with a good cream gravy. Now, if someone could come up with a no-carb french fry, I'd be in heaven!

Anonymous said...

then i'll try to 'squeeze' my friend for the recipe (^-^)