Riced Cauliflower Stuffing…Trader Joe’s Frozen Version vs. “You Can Totally Make Your Own!!”
Well, the holidays are here and Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Most people already have their menus planned out, some kind of starchy vegetable, turkey, cranberries, cakes and pies, and of course, stuffing. Like everything in the food world nowadays, there is always opportunity to have a traditional version of a dish, but with food allergies abound, paleo, ketogenic, gluten-free and vegan versions of everything are trending, and the holidays are no exception this.
Walking through the grocery store this week, I was curious to see what kind of random frozen Thanksgiving items I might find, this one in particular caught my eye.
I guess I shouldn’t be shocked, since nowadays, there is a cauliflower version of, well, everything. With cranberries, onions, leeks and celery, this doesn’t sound so bad. After checking out the nutrition label, it really isn’t bad at all. The sodium isn’t high and the ingredient list isn’t too large. I do think I could use better quality oil (think avocado oil instead of sunflower oil) and with fresh vegetables and herbs, I think I can make this product taste better.
I don’t want to seem like a jerk, I get the convenience of this dish, but it is SO EASY to make your own.
Pictured below is Trader Joe’s mirepoix, which is a container of freshly chopped carrots, celery and onion. I added chopped leeks and minced garlic to this bowl.
All of those ingredients re then added to a skillet with two tablespoons of avocado oil. Avocado oil is great for cooking because it haws a higher smoke point and is considered a healthy fat. Sunflower oil has a higher omega-6 content, which is said to be more unstable and oxidize more quickly, which is why I chose not to use this oil in my homemade version.
Next, I added fresh cauliflower rice, which also makes a huge difference because since it is fresh, it has more volume and isn’t as wet and mushy as the frozen version. I also added some of the fresh seasonings, but I will add more after I cook this for a few minutes.
Next, the dried cranberries were added, but also more of the fresh rosemary, sage and thyme, which give this recipe all the Thanksgiving taste!
The dish below is the frozen version, cooked for 7 minutes in a cast iron skillet. It actually didn’t look bad, but its a pretty small amount, so if you wanted to make this stuffing for a dinner with a few people, you would probably need 2-3 bags of it.
Here is the final product of the homemade version.
Here is the final product of the frozen version.
Again, the frozen version isn’t bad, nor did it look bad when it was plated. My lesson here is more based on the amount in the package and how much better certain oils are than others. Also, there is nothing that can replace cooking with fresh herbs, the taste is much stronger in the homemade version. As I was making this I realized how easy it is, and maybe it wasn’t the best idea for a remake, but then again it was a good idea, because it was so easy to recreate, you might as well do it yourself so you know exactly what is going into it and also, so you can add more herbs and spices to give it more flavor!
A healthier take on a traditional Thanksgiving dish.
- 1 bag fresh riced cauliflower
- 1 container fresh mirepoix (or 1/2 cup each carrots, celery and onion)
- 1 leek, chopped
- 5-6 cloves garlic, minced
- 2-3 tbsp. avocado oil
- 1/4 cup organic carrot juice (optional)
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- fresh rosemary
- fresh sage
- fresh thyme
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
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Add 2 tbsp. avocado oil to a heated skillet.
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Chop carrots, celery and onion or use a pre chopped mixture. Add chopped leeks and minced garlic. Add the whole mixture to the skillet. Cook 3-5 minutes.
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Add the cauliflower rice and carrot juice. Add a bit of all the seasonings. I honestly just eyeballed this and added more after the dish was cooked as well. Cover and cook 5 minutes on medium heat.
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Stir the dish, add the cranberries and more herbs, if desired. Cook another 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and serve with fresh parsley if desired.
