Cheers To A Healthy 2014: Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy
Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy: Two Ways

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy
Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy: Two Ways

Did you make a New Year’s Resolution to eat healthier in 2014? Think you have to give up pasta and creamy sauces?

Here’s a technique that produces a super-satisfying pasta dish that’s lower in calories and saturated fats, higher in fiber, and spiked with vegetables. Pureed cauliflower is the base for a thick smooth sauce where roasted garlic adds rich mellow flavor. Pair whole-wheat pasta with an equal amount of your favorite vegetables, then toss with Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy. Interested in gluten-free or low-carb? Simply leave out the pasta altogether, and try this luxurious cauliflower gravy ladled over veggies.

Say good-bye artery-clogging Fettuccine Alfredo and calorie-laden Macaroni & Cheese, and say hello to their svelte cousin…

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy Recipe

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy

  • 2 heads of garlic
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 large head cauliflower, trimmed into large florets
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 1 cup non-fat half and half
  • fresh grated nutmeg
  • salt and white pepper

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy
Cut the very top off the garlic heads to expose the cloves. Place in a small baking dish. Drizzle one tablespoon olive oil over the top. Cover and cook in a 400° oven for about 35 minutes until the garlic cloves are browned and soft. Let cool then squeeze the cloves out of the skins and place them in the bowl of a food processor.

Sauté shallot in 1 tablespoon of olive oil until golden. Add to the food processor.

Meanwhile, place cauliflower in a pot of boiling water, reduce heat and cook until soft. Drain, let steam escape, then add to the bowl of food processor.

Add remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and non-fat half and half to food processor. Process until smooth. Add more half and half if necessary to get a gravy-like consistency. Season with fresh grated nutmeg, salt, and white pepper. Transfer gravy to a sauce pot and heat through. Serve warm.

Pasta Recipe #1

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy

  • whole wheat spaghetti
  • zucchini

Slice zucchini into long thin strips. Blanch in boiling water for one minute, then drain well. Season with a very light drizzle of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Meanwhile, cook whole-wheat spaghetti according to package instructions. Toss equal amounts of vegetable and pasta together. Ladle on the plush cauliflower gravy.

Pasta Recipe #2

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy

  • whole-wheat elbows
  • panko bread crumbs
  • olive oil

Heat a small sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil. when the oil is hot, add panko and toss continuously until the breadcrumbs are golden. Season with salt.

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy

Add more vegetables:

  •  zucchini, sliced
  • red bell pepper, diced
  • corn

Sauté your favorite vegetables in a small amount of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Toss pasta with Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy then fold in the vegetables.

Place pasta mixture in a baking dish. Top with toasted breadcrumbs and cook in a 350° oven until heated through.

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy

No cheese. No butter. No heavy cream. No guilt. Cheers to a happy healthy delicious 2014!

Food Network’s Comfort Food Feast

Taste With The Eyes

featuring

macaroni and cheese

Comfort Food Feast is a season long franchise where Food Network editors team up with bloggers to share recipes about everyone’s favorite comfort foods. Be sure to check out the Pinterest Board with over 100,000 followers called Let’s Pull Up A Chair! And if this Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy got you in the mood for a comforting mac ‘n cheese, you might enjoy taking a peek at other creative recipes from some fabulous bloggers below…

Feed Me Phoebe: Jalapeno-Scallion Mac n Cheese
Jeanette’s Healthy Living: Triple Cheese Chicken Pasta Bake
Dishing With Divya: Baked Mediterranean Macaroni and Cheese
Weelicious: Green Mac and Cheese
The Heritage Cook: Gluten-Free Mac and Cheese
Taste With The Eyes: Macaroni and Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Gravy
Red or Green: Mac & Cheese with Tuna and Green Chiles
Napa Farmhouse 1885: Mac & Cheese with Roasted Cauliflower and Leeks
Virtually Homemade: Ham and Cheese Mac and Cheese Bites
Domesticate Me: Skinny Mac with Cauliflower Cheese Sauce and Chicken Sausage
The Sensitive Epicure: Cauliflower ‘n Cheese (Gluten-Free)
Devour: Mix-Ins for Macaroni and Cheese
From My Corner of Saratoga: Queso Mac and Cheese
FN Dish: 10 Ways to Make Mac and Cheese

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