Cauliflower Tortillas-Gluten Free and Paleo Friendly!

I am a big fan of Flour Tortillas! I have my favorite recipe in another post. But since we are eating low-carb and working towards a goal and still wanted to enjoy Tacos, these filled the flour tortilla shaped whole in my heart. Oh and look for our daily workout at the bottom of the post.

Ingredients

1 head Cauliflower

3 eggs

1 tsp kosher salt 

fresh cracked pepper

I'm providing some detailed pictures because if you're like me and you've always used flour and butter; this is a very different process. 

Here are the steps:

Yield 8 tortillas 

Prep time 10 minutes

Bake time 15 minutes

Griddle time 3 minutes
Hmmm...I feel like Hammer-time should be in here somewhere.

Nutritional Information: 
2 tortillas per serving
Nutrition Facts
Servings 4.0
Amount Per Serving
calories 105
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 4 g 6 %
Saturated Fat 1 g 6 %
Monounsaturated Fat 0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 139 mg 46 %
Sodium 596 mg 25 %
Potassium 636 mg 18 %
Total Carbohydrate 11 g 4 %
Dietary Fiber 5 g 21 %
Sugars 5 g
Protein 9 g 17 %
Vitamin A 5 %
Vitamin C 162 %
Calcium 6 %
Iron 8 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

Place cauliflower florets into your food processor. 

A simple trick to getting the florets off the stem is to bang the head of cauliflower, stem down, onto the counter. This jars all of the florets off of the stem. Easy! You may still have to break it up a bit. But most of the hard work is done. Plus you just slammed a head of cauliflower on the counter. You're a beast! 

Next you will pulse it on high until you have small rice sized pieces like this...

You may have to do this in at least two batches depending on the size of you food processor.

Now you will need to transfer it to a microwave safe bowl. 

And cover it with plastic wrap. 

Microwave on high for two minutes. Take it out and stir, cover it up again with the plastic wrap. Microwave for two more minutes. 

Now comes the fun part! 

Pour the cauliflower onto a clean kitchen towel. 

Let it cool down just a bit. It's going to be hot. Then squeeze as much water as possible out. 

It will look like this...

Transfer it back to your bowl. Add three eggs, salt, and fresh cracked pepper and stir. 

It will be rather thin. 

Line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper and using an ice cream scoop, portion out "tortillas" and flatten out the cauliflower tortilla mix. 

Bake in oven at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Then, using a spatula, flip them over and bake another 5 minutes.

I got so carried away making them, I didn't take a picture of them on the griddle. I browned them on the griddle for 1 1/2 minutes per side at 375 degrees. 

Next, remove from griddle and keep warm in a clean tea towel. 

Just being honest, these are not

going to be as sturdy as their flour and lard counterparts. 

However, that's a small price to pay for the nutritional benefit of making the switch to these. We had them as soft, ground turkey tacos. When I went back for a second taco, I noticed that it held together just a bit better and I could eat it in true soft taco mode. So if you don't mind your taco more on the room temperature side, you can do the same. Served hot, they are a little more fragile and we needed to eat them with a fork. 

I plan to work on another recipe for tortillas to use on our next taco night. So come back often for updates!

The workout for today! A Kettlebell workout! Building muscle is the best way to change your body and burn more calories. Muscles burns fat even while you're at rest. So grab your weights and let's get started! 

This is a 30 minute Cardio Kettlebell Workout from Fitness Blender!
It got our heart rate up and left us in a pool of our own sweat...we like that!

Kettlebell Cardio Workout-Cardio and Strength Training Blend 

Chocolate Covered Cherry Protein Bars

These remind me of a candy that my Mom has always liked called Cherry Mash. Those things are little fat bombs. Mmmmm...but so good! When I was a little girl I would go to the Army Navy Store with my Dad, I remember looking to see if they had them so we could take one home to my Mom.
You probably wouldn't want to eat one of those for a pre or post workout snack.
Instead you can add these to your healthy eating routine without the guilt. I love the flavor of cherries, vanilla and chocolate together. Look for today's workout and nutrition information at the bottom of the post!

 Growing up we had a neighbor behind us that planted cherry trees and they lined the back of the chain-link fence that divided our backyards. My friend Kimberly and I would just stand on the chain-link fence and pick and eat until we couldn't eat anymore. It was hard to beat the squirrels and birds to them. But we got plenty and I think the birds and squirrels did too. My backyard neighbor, Mary Ann, never seemed to mind that we consumed tons of those cherries. Thank you Mary Ann, wherever you are now.

Maybe you can see one of the cherry trees in the background. That's me and my Dad. Best water-slide ever! 

So this is a little homage to my childhood, growing up eating from the neighbors cherry trees and a candy I remember getting for my Mom.

Here is the recipe!

The Bars:
3/4 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup pitted dates
1/2 cup raw mixed nuts, unsalted (or whatever type of nut you like)
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips, such as the Enjoy Life Foods brand
3 scoops of vanilla whey protein
2 cups Old Fashioned rolled oats
1 tbsp flax meal
2 tbsp peanut butter, natural and unsweetened
1 tsp stevia, powdered or pure maple syrup
2/3 cup water

The Topping:
1/4 cup chocolate chips, melted
1 tsp virgin coconut oil, unrefined
1 tbsp sliced almonds or unsweetened shredded coconut

Place all of the bar ingredients in your food processor.

Pulse until you have the texture you prefer. I like to have bits of nuts and cherries. So not too fine of a chop.

The mixture will be very sticky.

Pour it onto a sheet of waxed paper. You may have to get your hands a little sticky here.

Press it down with lightly oiled hands, just like making rice krispie treats!

Then place a sheet of waxed paper on top and use a square pan, or anything flat bottomed, to press the bars out evenly. 

You can use the backside of a knife or a spatula to square up the edges.

Next melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each time, until melted. Spread a thin layer of chocolate over the bars and sprinkle with sliced almonds or shredded coconut.

Refrigerate for about an hour. Using a sharp knife cut into 12 pieces. Wrap with waxed paper and store in the refrigerator. 

Then enjoy for a quick and easy snack!

Nutrition information calculated using the Recipe Builder on MyFitnessPal.com

Nutrition Facts
Servings 12.0

Amount Per Serving
Calories 241
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 10 g 16 %
Saturated Fat 4 g 18 %
Monounsaturated Fat 0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 20 mg 7 %
Sodium 33 mg 1 %
Potassium 130 mg 4 %
Total Carbohydrate 32 g 11 %
Dietary Fiber 5 g 19 %
Sugars 15 g
Protein 10 g 21 %
Vitamin A 2 %
Vitamin C 0 %
Calcium 7 %
Iron 16 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

Workout for Today! Yoga!
This comes from Fightmaster Yoga, by Lesley Fightmaster. (What a great last name!)
It's a 33 minute Total Body Yoga.
We broke a little sweat doing this one. But it's still a nice and easy active rest day!

Yoga Total Body Workout

Have a Beautiful Day!
Melody

Raw Paleo Chocolate Bites

These little babies have a coffee infused crust and are completely raw, paleo, vegan and above all else...Chocolate! 

No one in our house suffers from food allergies, nor are we strictly Paleo. However, We love eating clean and eating real food. My belief is that food should be a fuel and enjoyable. 

Long ago, in the late 90's and early 2000's I did follow a very strict eating plan. I food combined, stayed away from dairy, sugar, red meat, alcohol, and sadly...caffeine. So that meant no coffee. Have you ever tried to find a substitute for coffee? There is not one! No. There's just not. 

Funny, no matter how I have chosen to eat over the years I have always found a way to eat dessert. 

Here is another way to have your chocolate! 

Ingredients:

Yield 24 mini cupcake size bites 

Crust 

1 cup raw mixed nuts

1 cup pitted dates

1/2 cup warm coffee

1/2 cup warm water

1 tbsp pure maple syrup 

1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder 

Pinch of kosher salt 

Filling

1 cup mixed raw nuts, soaked in water overnight 

1 tbsp pure maple syrup

2 tbsp melted coconut oil

2 tbsp canned full fat coconut milk

1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

2/3 cup dark chocolate chips, (dairy free, soy free)

 *** Melt 1/3 of chocolate chips, reserve the other 1/3 to add to the filling. ***

Pinch of kosher salt 

Topping 

1/4 cup chocolate chips 

1 tsp coconut oil 

Method

To make the crust:

Soak the dates in the warm coffee and water for about 10 minutes. You can use all coffee or all water. I had a little left over coffee in the French Press this morning so I used it!  

After they have soaked discard the coffee and water.

Next add all of the crust ingredients to a food processor. Dates, nuts, maple syrup, cocoa powder and salt. Pulse until you have a coarse texture. You will need to scrape down the sides a couple of times to get an even mixture. 

Line mini muffin tins with mini muffin liners. 

Next, use a teaspoon to scoop the crust mixture into each liner.

To press into the liner, dip your finger in a bit of water and press the filling down to fill the bottom of the liner. The water will keep the mixture from sticking to your fingers. 

(I could just eat the crust mixture all by itself! Yum!) 

To make the filling:

Add all of the filling ingredients to your food processor, reserving 1/3 of the chocolate chips to add at the end. Process on high until creamy. This takes a few minutes and you will need to scrape down the sides a few times. It will be thick! Next, add the reserved 1/3 cup of chocolate chips and pulse just to chop them a bit. 

Spoon the filling on top of your crust. You will need to flatten it down. Just coat the back of a spoon with a bit of coconut oil so that it doesn't stick to the spoon and press it down. Or just use your finger. Again, with a bit of oil...it's sticky stuff! 

Then put them into the refrigerator while you make the topping. 

To make the topping:

Just melt 1/4 cup chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl with the coconut oil for 30 seconds at a time. Stirring each time until melted. 

Place a small amount on top of each chocolate bite. Refrigerate! Or just start eating. That's what we did!

Not too sweet...but oh so delicious! Plus you can feel good about the ingredients! 

Here is the workout for the day! 

It's a Fitness Blender Kettlebell workout that is only 33 minutes long. It's fast paced and it will leave you sweating! 

Non-Stop Endurance KettleBell Workout-33 Minutes Total Body

You will need a weight, a kettlebell or dumbbell will work! 

We always use our Bowflex Adjustable Dumbbells. 

Thanks for checking out my food and fitness adventures! 

I had a little dessert last night while watching Raising Arizona with my Hero! Click dessert to find the recipe! 

Melody

Creamy Cole Slaw

This is my favorite cole slaw! A super simple side dish!
It's spicy, sweet, crunchy, sour, and salty. Everything I love about food! And it's great served with Chicken and Apple Sausage on a Gluten Free bun with some avocado and blue corn chips.
This was an entirely gluten free meal. Another Faux Comfort Food meal.

Here is how the Cole Slaw is made!

I have an Aunt Gloria (Everyone should have an Aunt Gloria), and she made a cole slaw once that was just so so so delicious. I have adapted her recipe, mostly because when I asked her how she made it, she didn't really remember. My cooking heritage is from a group of insanely good Home Cooks who look at measuring as an afterthought. They just use a pinch here, a handful of this and wall-ahhhh! You have some delicious food in front of you. So asking for ingredients is always interesting. Sometimes I wonder if they leave information out of purpose!

Yield: Two 1 cup servings
Ingredients

Dressing:
1 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tbsp natural peanut butter
1 tbsp raw unfiltered honey
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
juice of one lime
1 tsp fresh grated ginger, this is optional
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
pinch of salt

Then Add:
2 heaping cups of shredded tri-color cole slaw
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup toasted chopped peanuts or pecans (I used Honey Roasted Peanuts)

Mix all the dressing ingredients together until smooth:

Then add your tri-color cole slaw mix, cranberries, and nuts. 

Mix and Taste. Always taste and adjust salt if necessary.

This is so delicious! I have a hard time not eating the entire bowl.

I have some onion haters in the house. So cole slaw without onion is a must. This is perfect!

Here are today's workout links:
Again, they are from Melissa Bender Fitness.

20 Minute BootCamp: Full Body Workout
5 Minute Energy Boosting Workout
We did one round of each.

Bender Fitness has a weeks worth of workouts posted on her homepage if you like to have an idea of what kind of workouts are available to do at home with minimal equipment.

Chocolate Chip Gluten Free Cookie with Peanut Butter Ice Cream

I absolutely love dessert! 

These cookies are gluten free and dairy free for those of you who are living the gluten free life! 

The ice cream is banana and Greek yogurt based. No refined sugars and pretty much guilt free as far as desserts go! If I eat a sugary dessert, I almost immediately feel drugged and sleepy. With this dessert...I never feel that way! 

So if you have a sweet tooth like me. You might want to give this a try! 

Granted, for all of you flour, butter and sugar lovers out there, expect a little different texture and mouth feel when you bake gluten free. But it's so worth having a little sweet treat without sacrificing your hard work of eating healthy. We try to eat healthy and clean at least 80-90% of the time. So sometimes I will revert back to my culinary expertise of classic French or southern comfort food by posting a sugary, buttery, decadent dessert. But most of the time I try to feed myself and my family with some healthier options. 

Here is how we did it! 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper 

    

1 ripe banana

2 eggs

1/4 cup almond butter, or any smooth unsweetened nut butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp Organic Unrefined Coconut Oil (it doesn't need to be melted, just soft)

1/2 cup Coconut Flour

1 cup old fashioned gluten free oats (you can use regular oats if you aren't concerned about gluten)

1/4 cup Truvia Baking Blend Sweetener

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

4 oz. dark chocolate chips, (non dairy, no soy, no refined sugar chips are available in most stores now, otherwise just use a dark chocolate chip)

1.  Mash the ripe banana in a bowl then beat in the eggs, vanilla, and coconut oil. 

2. Mix the dry ingredients together and add the liquid and mix just until all combined. 

3. Portion out cookies using a small ice cream scoop, 3/4 ounce. Or use a tablespoon.

4. Flatten the cookies slightly, they will not flatten as they bake. 

5. Bake for 10 minutes then remove and let cool before removing from baking sheet. 

For the "Ice Cream"

3 large frozen bananas, cut into chunks

1/2 cup of Greek non fat plain yogurt

2 tbsp Natural Unsweetened Peanut Butter

4 packets of Stevia Sweetener

2 scoops Vanilla Protein Powder

Blend all the ingredients in a food processor until smooth.

It will be a soft serve consistency if served immediately, or place in a freezer safe container. 

After if sets up in the freezer for a couple of hours you will have more of an Ice Cream texture. 

Easy, healthy, delicious, and you know what is in it! Feel free to add your favorite mix-ins before freezing. 

You can have a virtually guilt free sundae! I know this makes me very happy!

I hope you all have a great week and Eat to Live this week! 

This was our rest day...no workout! 

Enjoy your dessert! 

Gelatin for Your Joints!

I read about this a while back. It's nothing new. Sometimes it seems that there's so much information out that we forget the simple things. 

For instance, this week on a popular morning news program, they reminded us that chocolate milk is great post workout drink. Again...nothing new. 

Gelatin is a great supplement that aids in joint, hair, skin, and nail health. 

If you aren't going to take the time to boil some beef bones for hours and hours, this is a great shortcut. 

My husband has some knee issues. He has used and abused his physical body to protect our freedom. So when he has  been able to run or workout without his knee hurting...I feel like it's worth sharing.

It's easy and you can do this with your morning coffee or tea. It doesn't change the flavor. But you will want to follow the steps so you don't end up with lumps. 

Here's how we do it:

Measure out one tablespoon of Gelatin 

The gelatin we use has 6 g of protein per tablespoon. That's a plus! 

Add 2 ounces of cold water and stir. 

Let it sit for about 2 minutes. 

It will get thick and look like this:

Don't be scared. It will dissolve when you add your hot water or hot coffee. If you are using coffee you may want to make it just a little stronger than usual since there will be some water already in your cup. No one wants weak coffee! 

Now the final step. 

Add hot water and honey if you like for your tea.

Then add the tea bag! 

That's it! Easy! 

We did sprints today. So far no pain in the knee! That's something to be happy about! 

This is not a medical claim of any kind. But I did want to share something that seems to be working in our home. Thanks! 

Here are the workouts for the day! It's an intense workout. Make sure you warm up and cool down to avoid injury. 

We paired a 5 Minute Kettlebell routine with a 1/4 mile sprint. We did this for 3 rounds. 

The link for the kettlebell workout is from Fitness Blender

So here is what we did in order. We did just some basic warm up exercises for about 30 seconds each for a total of 5 minutes. You could also do a slow jog to get your muscles warmed up. 

5 minute Warm up 

5 Minute Metabolism Boosting Kettlebell Workout

1/4 mile Sprint

5 Minute Metabolism Boosting Kettlebell Workout

1/4 mile Sprint 

5 Minute Metabolism Boosting Kettlebell Workout

1/4 mile Sprint

5-10 minute cool down and stretch

My expertise is food. I am not at all a fitness expert. However, I am just like so many of you...working daily to improve my health and well being. Please feel free to comment below if you have been doing any of the workouts that we are doing.

Tuna and Shredded Broccoli with a Kettlebell Workout link

Some times I think too much when it comes to food. Just because it's simple doesn't mean it's not delicious. When it comes to eating a lean and clean diet things can become SUPER boring. But as summer is sneaking up on us it's time to do some simple, cold, fast and healthy meals. 

If you are training or just working on losing a bit of extra weight you may be eating 5-6 small meals a day. 

This is a perfect protein meal. 

Wasting food is a tragedy to me. So much food is thrown away everyday. Just wasted! 

Tragic! 

Here is a way to use every little bit of your fresh broccoli!

After you have cut the broccoli florets off of your fresh broccoli, you will have those thick broccoli stalks left. 

Do Not Throw Them Away! 

Instead, peel them with a vegetable peeler and then shred the stalks with your grater. This is a perfect add in for some simple Water Packed Tuna and a bit of olive oil and lemon juice. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

Here are the simplistic instructions of what we did:

4 ounces solid white albacore tuna packed in spring water, drained

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil 

1 tsp fresh lemon juice 

1 cup peeled and shredded broccoli stalk

Salt and pepper to taste 

(You can add a little nonfat Greek yogurt or a teaspoon of mayonnaise if you want it creamy. Or avocado!)

Mix it all together. That's it. 

I had a slice of whole grain organic bread on the side. 

It's not gourmet. But it's healthy, simple, and filling. 

Try it as a post workout meal. It's good fuel for muscle recovery! 

Nutritional value for this meal:

Includes the toast and tuna! 

300 calories

6 g fat

33 g carbohydrates 

34.5 g protein

9 g fiber

Here are today's workout links! 

We have done this workout before. It's a great one from Fitness Blender!

Kettlebell 'til you Drop-Total body 40 minute workout

This workout includes a warm up and cool down. You will need a kettlebell or dumbbell for this workout. We just use our adjustable BowFlex dumbbells. 

Turkey Burgers on Whole Grain Waffles!

This is another super easy, ready in under 20 minutes, healthy meal. One of my Faux Comfort Foods!

Hamburgers are one of my favorite things in the world to eat. Suffice it to say that if for some odd and ridiculous reason I were tasked to choose a final meal...It would be Hamburger and Fries! 

This is a healthier option, unlike what might be chosen for a "final meal" burger. 

This Lean Ground Turkey and the Whole Grain Waffles make this a definite eat it anytime kind of burger. 

Here is how we did it. 

1/2 lb ground lean turkey (99% lean)

1/2 lb ground turkey (93% lean)

Mix these together just until incorporated 

2 tsp of Mrs. Dash original seasoning

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Salt and Pepper 

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 

Sharp cheddar cheese slices 

1. Mix turkey, Mrs. Dash and Worcestershire sauce

2. Form into 4 hamburger patties. Season with salt and pepper on both sides. 

3.  Cook on preheated nonstick pan with 1 tbsp of olive oil, turning once. About 4 minutes per side on medium high heat. 

Add a slice of cheese if you wish.

Serve on Vans 8 grain waffles (There are Gluten Free options as well!)

Toast the waffles according to package directions. 

Serve with a green salad. 

Nutritional information for turkey burger on waffles with sharp cheddar cheese 

Per serving:

395 calories

19 g fat

25 g carbohydrates 

33.5 g protein 

*I added a spring mix and Romaine Salad on the side with a vinaigrette which is not included in the nutritional information*

Today's workout is a tough one. I suggest that if you are just beginning your workout routine watch them through once before attempting the exercises. This will help you to know what to expect.
The second workout link is a dumbbell workout.  You can do body weight only if you aren't ready to add weights.  Otherwise, use a weight according to your ability.

A warm-up and Cool-down are key to preventing injury. I have attached the warm-up and cool-down that I did today. Sun Salutations. They are great to get your body ready for a tough workout!

There will be three links today:
This is the order that I completed the workouts...It takes about 42 minutes. You will be glad you did this! I have been doing Melissa Bender workouts for a while. Paired with a healthy diet I believe you will see a difference!

Sun Salutation Warm-up
15 Minute Cardio and Sweat HIIT workout  (body weight only)
15 Minute Sculpted Body Home Workout (dumbbells)
Sun Salutation Cool-Down

We had a fun trip to San Antonio, but it is always nice to get back into a normal routine of eating well and working out. It is also nice for a certain goldendoodle to get back to his normal sleeping patterns.

This wasn't a very good position for Luke the Goldendoodle...

Melody