Lori's Corner: Buffalo Cauliflower Bites with Zesty Cilantro Dip

As formerly seen on the website at www.teempt.com/Loris_Corner:

Whether you watch for the commercials, the half time show or the game itself, over 100 million Americans will tune in on Sunday, February 1^st to see the New England Patriots battle the Green Bay Packeeeeerr, I mean Seattle Seahawks (sorry cheese-heads). But, what would a Super Bowl be without some super-sized snacks? Did you know that the average person consumes an upwards of 1,200 calories on snacks alone during the Super Bowl? According to the USDA, Super Bowl Sunday is the second highest day of food consumption in the U.S. after Thanksgiving. I'm not going to ask you to give up your Super Bowl party snack staples, but I do have some tasty alternatives that will please your chip-loving, cheese-dipping, gotta eat buffalo wings friends!

Snack Staple	Tasty Alternative
Lays Potato Chips	Kettle Chips with Sea Salt
Doritos/Tostitos	Late July Multigrain Chips (lime and summer time blues are my favorite!)
Nacho Cheese Dip	Field Day’s Organic Salsa or fresh guacamole (#superfood!)
Microwaveable popcorn	Angie’s Boom Chicka Pop
Buffalo Wings with blue cheese dressing	Buffalo Cauliflower Bites with Zesty Cilantro Ranch Dip (see recipe below!)

Preheat oven to 450*

1 head of cauliflower½ cup almond milk½ cup water¾ cup whole wheat pastry flour2 teaspoon garlic powder2 teaspoon onion powder1 teaspoon cumin1 teaspoon of paprika¼ teaspoon sea salt¼ teaspoon ground pepper

Wing Sauce1 tablespoon butter1 cup frank's red hot sauce

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. Wash and cut cauliflower head into small bite sized pieces. 3. Mix all ingredients (except for the butter and hot sauce) into a mixing bowl. The batter should be thin enough that it runs off of the fork and the cauliflower florets. 4. Dip each floret into the mixture and coat evenly. Shake or tap off the excess on the side of the bowl.5. Lay florets in an even layer on the parchment lined baking sheet.6. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown

 *While the cauliflower is baking prepare the ranch dip and wing sauce.
In a small saucepan on low heat melt butter and mix in hot sauce, bringing to a low simmer before removing from the heat. 

 7. Remove the cauliflower from the oven and put all of the baked florets into a mixing bowl with the wing sauce and toss to coat evenly. 

8. Spread the wing sauce covered florets out onto the same baking sheet and bake in the oven for another 25 minutes.
Zesty Cilantro Ranch Dip6 ounces plain greek yogurt2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar¼ cup fresh cilantro1 garlic clove½ cup almond milk ¼ teaspoon dillsalt and pepper to taste

In a food processor, combine all ingredients and blend to desired consistency.