Mashed Cauliflower - You've gotta try this!

More violent crimes around here to report: armed intruder in a woman’s motel room, armed home invasion, armed gas station hold up and a double shooting. What a wonderful place to raise a child…

Besides violent crime, Sh*t-hole of the Earth (Oops, I slipped again… Lawton) also has a bazillion stray dogs. Seriously, it’s like finding pennies on the sidewalk, they are everywhere! We’ve only been here 2 months and have already picked up 2 nursing mommas! Sheesh!

Besides not getting shot and picking up strays, been doing a lot of cooking. A lot of cooking! I’ve tried somewhere in the range of 30 new recipes, most of which I’ve been pretty stoked about. I’ll be posting a few of my favorites here coming up, so keep an eye out.

Most surprising food we’ve enjoyed was mashed cauliflower. I know, right? Ew. CPT Fromage hates the stuff, but one of our weekly dinner guests is on a trendy carb diet, so mashed potatoes were out of the question. I figured if these sucked, no big deal, I’d blame it on his dietary restrictions. Haha. But can I tell you, we LOVED them. We tore through the entire bowl and still wanted more. CPT Fromage has even announced publicly that he prefers them to mashed potatoes. Dying to try them now? Here’s what you do…

Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower
2 Tbl heavy cream
1 Tbl butter
2 ounces flaked Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Break down the cauliflower and discard the stem, steam until tender. When you’re done steaming, be sure to let the cauliflower cool for a little while; it helps the texture so you don’t end up with a soggy side dish.

Once the cauliflower has cooled, it’s time to blend it with your remaining ingredients. You’ll want to warm it up again ever so slightly so that the butter and cheese melts in (I know, it seems like a pain, but trust me, you  should let it dry out).

I so badly wished that I had a food processor because it was a… splendid… experience trying to puree with my electric hand mixer. Messy messy! I ordered a food processor the next day to avoid this in the future. All that to say, use a food processor if you have one handy, as I’m sure it’s easier, but if need be, you can mix it without one.

I served mine up with some green onion on top, and if we weren’t watching carbs, probably would have added some sour cream. Let me know what you think and if you make any tasty changes!

Stayin' Alive, Stayin' Alive!

In just the last week or so, our local news has reported a police standoff with a man holed up in his house with a gun, a shooting turned car chase through town, a domestic situation where shots were fired, blood was on the scene but no victim ever surfaced, and a car that crashed through an apartment building into a man’s bedroom as he slept. Never a dull moment around here I suppose.

This sort of thing wouldn’t surprise me if we lived in LA or the Bronx, but really? Sh*t-hole, USA (Er, I mean, Lawton, OK)? Somehow, this city is also the 8^th most dangerous in the country for women and has a violent crime rate that’s almost twice the national average. Who knew the southern-midwest could be so…. Exciting.

In an attempt to make it out of this 8-month stay without getting shanked, CPT Fromage and I bit the bullet and spent the extra money for a place with extra security features in a safer part of town, and we rarely leave it after dusk. Not that there’s much to do here anyway; unless you’re into meth that is.

Thank goodness for a German shepherd, concealed carry permits and a lifetime of being taught self-awareness (Thanks, dad!). 2 months down and no 9-1-1 calls yet!

So, it’s been a lot of Pintrest, Hunger Games books (Uhm, if you haven’t yet, READ THEM!) and trying lots of new recipes. You know, cooped up activities. We also FINALLY came to a decision on a baby name! We’re pretty excited to meet our little guy, who now has a more formal moniker (because “Dat Baby” wouldn’t carry over well into adulthood).

Hooray for a trip back to Colorado this weekend for my bro’s high school graduation (Know what’s depressing? Baby Fromage will graduate class of… 2030! I feel very, very old). So looking forward to a few days of good company, good restaurants and no more sundown curfew!