{Spectacular Spanish "Rice"}

Summer is now over and the college application process has begun! I'm almost done with my first one- actually I am, but honestly pushing "submit" is the most terrifying thing in the world, so I'm avoiding it at all costs. Seriously, I'm having mini panic attacks and arguments in my head!

Now that I'm a senior in high school, I'm transitioning to adulthood, learning about how to live on my own. With that comes learning how to cook on my own, and be creative in an affordable way. As the summer ended, so did my time to cook and experiment, which has also led me to try quick and easy recipes. That said, this recipe is quick, easy, and affordable, not to mention DELICIOUS!

In our household, my family cannot survive a week without at least one Mexican dinner. Before going Paleo plus, I would always have a taco salad and Spanish rice. Then I'd have Spanish rice for lunch the next day. And as a snack. And for lunch. And when it was all gone, I'd wait in anticipation for the next Mexican dinner. That said, when I cut out grains, I was severely jealous, eating my skimpy salad as I savored the smell of that forbidden rice. 

Even as I made dishes with cauliflower "rice," I didn't even think of trying to make a Paleo plus edition of Spanish rice, for it was forcibly pushed out of my memory. Then, as I experimented new veggie recipes and learned my new desire for spice, memories of that delicious dish of old came flooding back and I KNEW I had to see if I could resurrect this old love. 
 

Need I say I was successful?!? O I wasn't sure what to expect, but when I put a steamy spoonful into my mouth, I was almost afraid because it tasted like I remembered. How could cauliflower be made to taste so delicious?!? What made it even better, is it took about ten minutes of actually doing something before it cooks. So as the cauliflower cooked, I was able to do homework (exciting right?). 

Coming up with the "Spanish" part of the dish was complicated. I did not want to spend time making my own salsa, or the money for fresh tomatoes. Instead, I used Trader Joe's Fired Diced Tomatoes because peppers and spices are added for a spicy decadence. If you do not use this option, I recommend using another spicy canned tomato sauce, or adding in some red peppers, a little chili pepper with fresh or canned tomatoes.

This can be served as a side dish, as a snack, or even used as a base for a chicken/vegetable entree. Now its quick, easy,delicious, affordable, economic, and versitle! Can it get any better?!

I hope you come to enjoy this favorite as much as I do! 

~SPANISH RICE~

Ingredients:

Coconut oil

1 can Fire Roasted tomatoes, pureed

6 ounces tomato paste

4 cloves of garlic, pressed or minced

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 cauliflower, chopped into florets

Instructions:

Heat coconut oil in the bottom of a pan on medium high. Grind cauliflower in a large food processor. Pour into the pan and cook until slightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Slowly add in the pureed tomatoes and tomato paste (be careful- it may splatter). Stir until well-incorporated, then add in the chicken broth. 

Cover the pan, lower temperature to medium, and cook for 35 minutes. When the time is up, stir the cauliflower, and if there is still substantial liquid, cook for about 5 minutes more. 

Serve and enjoy!