The great Halloween detox has begun around our house. This mostly means I'm so sick of eating candy I'm hiding it on myself. I've eaten way more than either child this year. Blast those 100 Grands! My husband started making costumes for Halloween when Amelia was a baby, and this year the tradition continued. Our girls were Alice in Wonderland and the Cheshire Cat. My husband vastly overestimated how many hours are in a day and I may have spent most of the day before Halloween sewing purple and pink striped leggings and a tunic while my girls ran around the house like wild animals. It's always fun, though, to see them get so excited to dress up. 

This is a recipe I've been wanting to post for months, so now is as good a time as any as we try to slowly get the sugar out of our system. We've been craving some "real" food at our house, and these cauliflower tots fit the bill nicely. First of all, my daughters love them. They have no idea that they are made with cauliflower, but they love that they are cheesy and dip nicely into ketchup. Second of all, I love them too. Cauliflower, being the ultimate diguisable vegetable, blends deliciously in these cheesy, crispy, oniony stand-ins for tater tots. I've made these for lunch for the kids maybe five times now, and every time I make them I tell myself I'll just eat leftovers and leave the tots for the girls but I always end up pulling out a plate for myself after stealing three or four off of theirs. They are a fun way to eat cauliflower and a healthier alternative to real tater tots. And a delicious way to get off the junk food train of this past weekend. 

Cauliflower Tots

By Heat Oven To 350 Published 11/04/2015

Ingredients

• 5-6 cups cauliflower florets (about 1 small-medium head)
• 1/2 cup chopped green onion
• 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs (I've used panko as a substitute but usually have to add about 1/4 cup more of the panko to thicken the mixture enough)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• pepper
• 1 large egg
• 1 egg white

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees and spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. (Or use parchment paper or a silpat liner.) Add the cauliflower florets to a microwave safe bowl with 1/4 cup water. Cover and cook for 6-7 minutes or until florets are tender but not mushy. Drain water. (Alternatively, you can steam the florets in a saucepan with a little boiling water on the stovetop.)
2. Add cooked florets to a food processor and pulse a few times until they are chopped finely. (If you don't have a food processor, chop them by hand.) You should get about 2 cups of cooked, chopped florets.
3. Add the green onion, cheese, breadcrumbs and salt and pulse a few times until combined. Taste the mixture, add salt and pepper as needed, and then add the egg and egg white. Pulse again to mix.
4. Using either your hands or a small cookie scoop, divide mixture into 1-2 T portions and place on prepared cookie sheet. (The mixture will be fairly loose. Just pack it together the best you can. The pieces will solidify more while baking.)
5. Bake tots in oven for 16-18 minutes, or until they are golden brown and fragrant. Remove from oven and serve.

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 20 mins.

Cook time: 18 mins.
Total time: 38 mins.
Recipe Source: adapted from skinnytaste.com

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