Bacon Burger Cauliflower Rice Casserole

Serves 4 

Ingredients

• 3 cups cauliflower riced
• 1 lb extra lean ground beef
• 6 slices bacon cooked and crumbled
• 8 ounces tomato sauce or puree
• 2 cups packed baby spinach**
• 1 large sweet onion**
• 1 tbl fat of choice (bacon fat, ghee, butter)**
• 1 medium tomato or 2 roma/plum tomatoes sliced
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp paprika
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ¼ tsp celery seed
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• ½ cup grated cheese *optional omit for paleo

Instructions

1. Peel the onion, cut in half and thin slice the entire onion.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon fat of your choice in saute pan over med-med high heat
3. Cook onions until translucent
4. Reduce heat to low - med low and slow cook onions until caramelized to a deep brown without burning (approximately 20-30 minutes on low)
5. In a food processor or blender, grind cauliflower florets into a rice texture.  You want 3 cups riced.  Set aside.
6. Preheat Oven to 400 F, and lightly grease or oil a 2.5 quart casserole dish.
7. In a large skillet pan over medium high combine and brown:  ground beef, garlic powder, paprika, sea salt, celery seed, and black pepper. Stir and cook until browned (do not drain beef).
8. Add tomato sauce and cauliflower rice to the ground beef skillet. Stir and continue cooking over medium to medium high heat for 3 minutes. 
9. Add caramelized onions and spinach.  Cook for 2-3 minutes until spinach wilts. Remove from heat.
10. Carefully spoon all ingredients from the skillet into the casserole dish. Spread around casserole dish evenly.
11. Sprinkle the top of the casserole with bacon crumbles and optional cheese. Place sliced tomatoes on top, and bake for 20 mins. Remove from oven and serve.

My personal preference for extra lean ground beef is a brand called Maverick (grass fed) which only has 130 calories in 4 ounces and is 95% lean.  The bacon I used was thin sliced (Publix Brand) and only 60 calories per piece.  The cheese I used was shredded off the block extra sharp cheddar (Publix Brand).  By my count the calories for all this was 379 calories per serving.

**Options:  Don't like spinach - omit and serve over shredded lettuce.  Don't want caramelized onions - dice up 1/2 sweet onion and cook with the ground beef.  Use your choice of cheese just like you would on your burger.  The options are endless and you can change up or add more veggies of your personal choice.

Shepherd's Pie with Cauliflower Mashed Topping

Shepherd's Pie with Cauliflower Mashed Topping

Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower, chopped into florets
• 2 tablespoons fat (avocado oil, ghee, coconut oil, etc)
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 celery ribs, diced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound ground beef or lamb
• 1/4-1/2 cup beef broth (I prefer Swanson as there is no added sugar)
• 1 tablespoon ketchup (organic, no high fructose sugar) or tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (or 1 tablespoon dried parsley)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons fat (ghee, butter, avocado oil, etc)
• ½ cup shredded cheese (omit for Paleo)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 2-3 quart casserole dish and set aside (for individual servings use 14 oz bakeware).
2. In a large pot, steam or boil cauliflower until tender.
3. Heat 2 tablespoons of fat in a large skillet or saucepan over medium high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots and garlic and cook until beginning to soften, around 5 minutes.
4. Add the ground meat to the pan and cook until browned. Drain off the extra fat.  Add beef broth as necessary to keep the mixture wet. Add the ketchup or tomato paste (if using), parsley and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat and let simmer while you prepare the cauliflower topping.
5. To make the topping, drain the cooked cauliflower. Mash or puree with a stick blender or food processor until smooth. Add 2 tablespoons of fat (I use ghee or butter) and season with salt and pepper.
6. To assemble, spread the meat mixture on the bottom of the dish (separate into 4 ovenproof bakeware if making individual portions). Top with the cauliflower mixture and smooth with a spoon. Cover with shredded cheese, if using.
7. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is brown and bubbly. Serve warm.

Short on time? Make sure you cut all the veggies the day before then simply start cooking (about 10 minutes plus 30 minutes cooking time of the day you serve it).

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 30 Minutes

Cook Time: 30 Minutes

Total Time: 60 Minutes

Pumpkin Chili

Do not curl up your nose at another pumpkin recipe.  This chili has a unique combination of heat and sweet (even though there is no sugar added) to make your taste buds dance.  Using my preferred beef, tomatoes and broth my calorie count came out to 136 calories per serving....and it was one heck of a healthy serving too.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds Extra Lean Ground Beef (I like Maverick Grass Fed)
• 1 tablespoon Avocado Oil (or Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
• 6 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 large Green Pepper, diced
• 1 Jalapeno, minced
• 2 - 14.5 oz cans Fire Roasted Tomatoes (I prefer Muir's Fire Roasted)
• 1 cup Beef Broth (I use Swanson's as there is no added sugar)
• 1 tablespoon Paprika
• 1 tablespoon Chili Powder
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon Salt 
• 1 - 15oz can organic Pumpkin Puree (do not confuse pie filling for puree)

Instructions

1. In a large saucepan or dutch oven crumble and brown the ground beef over medium-high heat. Drain off any fat and set the ground beef aside.
2. In the same pan heat the Avocado oil then cook the onions and garlic for a few minutes until the onion are beginning to soften and the garlic is developing some color.
3. Add the bell pepper and jalapeno to the onions and garlic.  Cook until the peppers are soft.
4. Add the cooked beef back with the onion/pepper mixture.  Add in the tomatoes, broth and spices.
5. Allow the mixture to heat through and reduce heat to medium-low allowing the mixture to simmer 15 minutes to allow the flavors to blend.
6. Add the pumpkin puree to the chili.  Cover the pan to allow the chili to come back to temperature and cook for another 10-15 minutes.

Serves 6