I love being a Californian in DC. But I hate being a Californian who has to travel back and forth between DC and home. It’s a long, annoying flight and I frequently find myself stuck on a red eye with a screaming baby. This makes for a sleep-deprived and cranky Whit.
Luckily, I have LG to take care of me. When I returned to DC after a trip home last weekend, it had been an entire week (gasp!) since I had seen her. I was in dire need of three things: LG-time, food and sleep. And carb-free LG (I love rhyming) was looking to take her new-found love of cauliflower for a ride and make a cauliflower crust pizza.
Cauliflower boobies – as uneven as real boobies.
The recipe for the cauliflower crust, which LG found here, was pretty easy. You will need 2 cups of grated cauliflower, 2 tbsp of parmesan cheese, 1 cup of mozzerella cheese and 1 egg. We doubled all of the ingredients for our batch. We like leftovers.
The greatest grater.
After you break the cauliflower down into chunks, you will need to grate the florets into smaller crumbles. I was strictly an observer but LG noted that it was extremely easy to grate up. When you’re through, it will resemble chunks of feta cheese. Mmmmm, cheese.
Cheese? Not Cheese? Ahhhh, so confused!!!
LG measured out 4 cups of cauliflower, put it in some cheesecloth to help it dry out and then microwaved it for 8 minutes to soften it up. Then she added in 4 tbsp of parmesan cheese and 2 cups of mozzarella (if you’re doing one batch use 2 tbsp of parmesan and 1 cup of mozzarella). We may have eyeballed the cheese measurement. A little extra won’t hurt anything.
Egg boobies are smaller than cauliflower boobies.
Then LG stirred in 2 eggs. Finally, for her own twist on the recipe, she added in a few shakes of Italian seasoning. I was an extremely helpful taste-tester and then added a couple more shakes. Then she spread the whole mixture evenly over a pizza pan, sprayed it lightly with some cooking spray and stuck in in the oven.
Seriously, it looks just like real dough. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
While the crust cooked, LG whipped up some homemade tomato sauce. I’m not going to lie, I wasn’t totally paying attention here, but I think it involved 3 cans of crushed tomatoes thrown into a Vitamixer, then a can of tomato paste added in, and then it was all stirred together and heated up on the stove.
LG loves her (kitchen) toys.
Once the crust was done baking, we pulled it out of the oven to add on all of our toppings. It was a really nice golden brown and smelled AWESOME. We probably could have eaten it right then and there.
Get in my belly.
All that was left to do was add the toppings! We dolloped on the tomato sauce, sprinkled on a bunch of cheese, threw on some fresh basil from LG’s new plant, tossed on the turkey pepperoni that we hadn’t already eaten and finally added on some chopped mushrooms.
Clearly an artiste.
Once the pizza came out of the oven, we dove right in. This might have been our only mistake. The cauliflower crust needs a little time to cool and harden or it crumbles up a bit too easily. However, a slightly crumbled crust did not stop it from tasting AMAZING. And it was shockingly filling. I’m usually in for at least 3 pieces of pizza but I was good and full after only 2!
Might have forgotten to take a final picture in our hurry to eat it. Leftover picture will have to suffice.
It really was an amazingly easy recipe to make and it was exceptionally delicious. I’m not as carb-averse as LG but if all of her recipes taste as good as this one does, she may drag me over to the dark side. And after I got my LG-time and my food, I promptly fell asleep on the couch. Best way ever to recover from a trip home.
LG here! Now that we’ve all fallen in love with cauliflower, let’s have Round II. Cauliflower mash is such a delicious alternative to mashed potatoes. I never thought I could replace mashed potatoes, but boy was I wrong. This recipe is SO easy: a cauliflower, have a packet of cream cheese, butter, and a fork. The fork is for eating the cauliflower mash. I highly recommend using it.
First, wash your cauliflower! Always wash your veggies, and your hands.
Yes, I took a picture of washing cauliflower.
Now, boil some water. Once the water is boiling, throw in the cauliflower. Don’t be like me, though–put it in gently. I may have burned myself. After about 10 minutes take out a piece and see if it crumbles easily. If it does, throw everything back in that strainer.
That weird looking stuff is veggie “meat.” Yes, we go far and beyond just carb free. We’re straight up freaks!
Put the cauliflower back in the pot and get to mashing!
Love Big Sug, but this is def a blurry picture. Apropos?
Now, add in the cream cheese. I’d recommend adding it in slowly. It will make everything more consistent. I, however, do not have that kind of patience.
ALL THE CREAM CHEESE!!!
You are so close. Mash and mash and mash some more! Once it has a steady consistency, throw the butter in there. Mash some more while it melts.
I think this picture beautifully illustrates our height difference.
Add in whatever you like in your mashed potatoes! Garlic? Absolutely! Salt! Pepper! Graaaaaaaavy!!!
We added veggie gravy to this batch. Delicious!
Then get that fork out! It’s so delicious AND it’s a veggie.
Cauliflower is my new miracle veggie. I am not big on sitting down and just eating a vegetable (I prefer candy), so this recipe was perfect for me. I felt as if I was eating a starch, but really I was getting a HUGE serving of veggies. Trick your kids! Trick your friends! Trick yourself! Cauliflower is so versatile, so take it off that antipasto plate and cook it up real good.
Oh, hello beautiful.
Every Friday we are going to fill you in on our obsession of the week. This week’s obsession: cauliflower. This sassy little minx was once the vegetable I loved to avoid. It was the wallflower nerd vegetable that I would never dance with in high school (ugh, high school LG was the worst), and then it grew up, graduated college summa cum laude, got a great job and some experience with the ladies, and came back hotter than a pro football player. It looked at me begging to be devoured, but no! I would not have cauliflower. I just wouldn’t.
And then my life changed. I went low-carb and I needed something to replace all I had lost. What about pizza? What would I eat with lobstah tail? Vegetables are OK and all, but they were losing their allure. Even my love of green beans couldn’t replace my desire for mashed potatoes. What could fill that void? Then a friend turned me to cauliflower–that vegetable I wouldn’t even look at. I mean, come on! It full on looks like a colorless brain. No, I do not eat brain looking food.
I was desperate. I made some cauliflower mash to eat with my green beans and lobstah tail. I didn’t expect much of this brainy looking food. I was wrong. I hate being wrong, but I was wrong. Cauliflower is my taste bud’s new lover. After the first night of cooking with it, I did it again the next night. I can’t get enough. It’s so delicious, it’s a perfect replacement for starches, it’s easy, AND it is filling. Oh wait, another “and”: AND IT COUNTS AS A VEGETABLE!
Tune in next week when FlipFlopsandFreedom teaches you how to make cauliflower pizza crust and cauliflower mash ALL IN ONE POST! Eat healthier, trick your kids into eating a veggie, or just try something new. We will teach you how.
And for the love of all that is sparkly: go buy some cauliflower!
We hear all the time from the fashionistas of the world that we only need a few basic pieces, and our wardrobes will have endless possibilities. Yeah right. I collect clothes like hoarders collect free trash. I LOVE shopping, I love having a full closet I can just stare at. However, this means I always have a too-full closet, overflowing drawers, and clothes seemingly decorating my floors (but really–how do clothes end up in the kitchen?!). Maybe there is such a thing as excessive clothing, but I really hope not.
I decided to see if my favorite work dress could really be used for more than just work. This dress is just a little black sheath dress from Gap. I bought it years ago, but I found a similar version at Ann Taylor for your purchasing pleasure. I wear it all the time for work/grown-up events (engagement parties, dinners, yawnyawnyawn), so it seemed like the perfect piece to use. I took three different occasions: a museum trip with my family, a more casual day at work, and a night out with the girls for Whit’s birthday. Let’s see what I did.
Outfit #1: Museums with the Fam
Chambray Shirt (Ann Taylor Loft)
Tights (Amazon–I love Capezio tights; they last forever)
Bobble Necklace (Eastern Market)
Black Flats (Tory Birch)
Yellow Suede handbag (Hand-me-down from my boss)
Bun
I loved this outfit because it was easy, carefree, and yet I didn’t look homeless. It was also nice because I could just take off that chambray shirt and be dinner ready.
Outfit #2: A casual day at work
Gold Studded Belt (Betsy Johnson)
Black Flats (Tory Birch)
Gold Ring (Goodwill find!)
Gold bracelets (B Thrifty and Off Fifth)
Black quilted jacket (Burberry)
Cross body small black purse (Dooney and Burke)
Side Braid
Roaming the cold, hard sidewalks of DC.
This Burberry jacket is my favorite jacket ever. I love it more than I could love a child (not a joke). As you will also notice, I love to wear gold. I will always try to bling out, and this is my way of blinging at work. That studded belt is fun and edgy, but with the dress/flats/jacket combo it tones it down enough to be work appropriate. This is basically my fall/spring wardrobe.
Outfit 3: Whit’s Birthday Dinner
Gold Studded Belt (Betsy Johnson)
Gold Sparkly Pumps (Enzo Angiolini)
Gold bracelets (B Thrifty and Off Fifth)
Black A-line skirt (Ann Taylor Loft)
Pony Tail
I wear these gold shoes more than is socially acceptable.
I’d thought about pairing a dress with a skirt for awhile, but never did it (if you’re wondering what I sit around thinking about…you’re definitely in for some disappointment as I am sitting around thinking about pairing skirts with dresses). I love this outfit, because it accentuates those shoes. My grandmother bought me those shoes. I’m not joking. Best. Grandma. Ever. When I go out with the girls, I want to sparkle, and that night I sparkled (but not more than Whit, because it was her 4th birthday party…of the week…and she outshone even the smores pie).
What amazes me about these three outfits is that it’s just 4 pieces of clothing overall: the dress, the shirt, the jacket, and the skirt, but I could get 3 very different outfits out of it. This is useful when traveling, on a budget, or when you have very little closet space.
Try taking one piece and basing a few different outfits off of it. We’d love to know how you did–so tell us in the comments or shoot us a message!
Here we go! After much hype (as I’m sure you’re all hyped up!) our blog is about to launch! For our first post, here are a few things about us. Soon, you will be able to enjoy our Pinteresting (and our Pinteresting fails), the recipes that are rocking our world’s, some fashion fun, some new ‘dos, and reviews on books, movies, and events. We hope you enjoy our blog as much as much as we’ve enjoyed making it!
Hola! I’m LG. I’m a California girl in Washington, DC. I spent 11 years of my life in Fresno, including college. I came out to DC to get out of Fresno, but of course just found myself another Fresnan to cling to. I work in government affairs. I’ve got a giant boyfriend who we call Big Sug. If I’ve had a terrible day Big Sug takes me shopping. I would not call myself a fashionista, but I do an OK job of getting myself dressed in the morning. I rarely leave the house without makeup. If I’ve had a mediocre day or it’s a weekend, I’m doing crafts. I am a short sentence writer, because I was always reamed in school for my run-on sentences. I take very little seriously. I am often mistaken for Snooki.
LG
Hey! I’m Whitney. Until 3 years ago, I’d never lived anywhere other than the beautiful Golden State. And then I decided to pack up and move to the other side of the country, just because I could. I adore DC but I had to find another Californian to hang out with to make it truly amazing. I used to work for the federal government but since my boss retired, I’m searching for my next gig. I’m single and frequently tell LG and Big Sug tales of my ridiculous social life, in exchange for rides to Costco and home cooked meals. I’m a t-shirt, jeans and ponytail girl, but I love to trick LG into dressing up me and my hair and making me look fancy on occasion. I’m obsessed with make up but frequently can’t be bothered to put on anything but mascara before I run out the door – usually 15 minutes late. I clearly have no problem with my use of run-on sentences.
Whit
whitbear8
Flip-Flops & Freedom 