Mac N' Cheese is the quintessential comfort and indulgent food. My cauliflower mac n'cheese gives you the comfort without feeling like you are indulging. This makes a perfect side dish to hamburgers, bbq chicken or pork, or own its own.
Cauliflower Mac N'Cheese
8 cups cauliflower florets (1 head of cauliflower)
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
½ tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups skim milk
½ cup heavy cream
3/8 tsp. table salt
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese (4 oz.)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Toss the cauliflower florets in the olive oil on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with the kosher salt and ¼ tsp. of the pepper. Roast until fork-tender and lightly browned in spots, 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven but leave the oven on and reduce the temperature to 350 degrees.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk. Simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently, until thickened, 2 to 4 minutes. Whisk in the heavy cream and cook for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and stir in all but 2 Tbsp. of the cheese, the table salt, and the remaining ¼ tsp. pepper. Stir until the cheese melts, then cook, stirring often, until thickened, 8 to 10 minutes.
Place the roasted cauliflower florets in an 8x8 inch glass baking dish or four 10 oz. ramekins. Pour the cheese sauce over cauliflower. Sprinkle the top with the remaining 2 Tbsp. cheese.
Bake until the cheese is bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve warm.
Serves: 4 ppl
*Recipe courtesy of Modern Hospitality
Sweet and Spicy Coleslaw
The tangy sweet and heat vinaigrette in this coleslaw will have your tastebuds jumping. This would be a great topping for fish tacos or pulled pork bbq.
Sweet & Spicy Coleslaw
½ head purple cabbage, stalk removed, halved, sliced thinly
¼ red onion, sliced thinly
Sweet Jalapeno & Pecan Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup pecan halves, toasted
¼ cup sugar
1 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh jalapeno pepper
3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
¾ tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/8 tsp. celery seed
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
To prepare the cabbage: Combine the cabbage and onion in a large bowl.
Combine the pecan halves, sugar, pepper, the vinegars, lemon juice, celery seed, salt, and pepper in a blender. Blend to combine. Remove the cap from the center of the blender’s lid. With the blender on low, drizzle in the olive oil until combined.
Toss the cabbage mixture with the vinaigrette. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Serve.
*Recipe courtesy of Modern Hospitality
If you live or in NYC, come by Bloomingdales on 59th Friday, Feb. 3 from 2-5:00 p.m. to watch me demo the above recipes and sample the dishes. Also get your copy of Modern Hospitality signed.
Fingerling Potato Skins
Stuffed in these bite size potato skins is my spicy and cheesy pimento cheese. Your friends will be impressed by the presentation.
Fingerling Potato Skins
18 (about 1 lb.) fingerling potatoes
1 Tbsp. olive oil
½ tsp. kosher salt
Spicy Pimento Cheese recipe (see below)
Preheat oven at 400 degrees.
Place fingerling potatoes onto a baking sheet. Toss potatoes in olive oil and salt. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool slightly.
Slice the potatoes lengthwise. Scoop out the pulp. *Tip: use a metal ¼ tsp. measuring spoon. Reserve pulp for another dish.
Place the potatoes skin side up on the baking sheet. Bake for 6-10 minutes. (depending on size of potatoes)
Turn potato skins over. Spoon ½ heaping tsp. spicy pimento cheese into potato skins. Bake for 2 minutes or until cheese melts.
Spicy Pimento Cheese
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded
½ cup cheddar cheese, shredded
3 Tbsp. mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. pimentos
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients until combined.
No Name Bars "Too Good For Words"
I put a twist on my no name bar recipe by incorporating different ingredients. By adding cocoa powder, I have turned the no name bars into a fudgy brownie. One of my favorite bar cookies is a magic cookie bar or some call it a hello dolly. The main ingredients are coconut and chocolate. I added in coconut into the no name batter then swirled chocolate ganache. You will definitely want to try my no name bars and any of these variations.
No Name Bars
Crust:
1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, melted
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Filling:
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
2 large eggs
4 Tbsp. (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13x9 inch baking dish.
To make crust: Mix the melted butter and sugar together in a medium bowl. In another bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until combined. Stir in the vanilla. Spread the mixture into bottom of the baking dish. Bake for 5 minutes.
To make the filling: Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the eggs and mix until combined. Stir in the melted butter and vanilla. Stir in the confectioner’s sugar and mix well. Spread the mixture on top of the crust.
Bake until set, about 38 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before cutting into squares.
Chocolate No Name Bars: add 3 Tbsp. cocoa powder to the crust and 1/4 cup cocoa powder to the topping
Coconut Pecan No Name Bars:
½ cup sweetened shredded coconut
¼ cup pecan pieces
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Tbsp. heavy cream
Stir in the coconut and pecan pieces into the topping. Spread the topping mixture on top of the crust.
In a small saucepan, stir the chocolate chips and heavy cream until smooth. Pour into a small bowl and chill until thickened.
Spoon two lines lengthwise a few inches apart from each other in the pan. Using a knife, swirl the ganache into the coconut batter.
One of the presentations I really enjoyed was given by the president of PepsiCo in the Middle East & Africa. PepsiCo owns Lays potato chip company which I think I remember him saying is one of the largest snack food companies in the world. The slide from his presentation shows a popular potato chip in Thailand. Their nori seaweed flavored potato chip represents 30% of Lay's sales worldwide. I can't imagine the flavor of this chip. He also discussed the marketing behind the different country's flavored potato chips for example Russia's mushroom and cream potato chip. He explained of how some German's memories include foraging for mushrooms and taking them to make the traditional mushrooms and cream sauce. The Lay's company knows what it is doing when it comes to marketing. 
