Russian Style Salmon with Fried Cauliflower

Well it is February already if you can at all believe that!  Today I am so excited to introduce a great friend to the Treat Traders Blog, Maggie from Fireworks.Sparkle.Rainbow, this super cool chic is going to visit our blog as a guest contributor once per month and we cant wait to see what she cooks up for us,
Take note Killer {K}, no Chia seeds to be found here ;-)

{M}'s Russian Style Salmon with Fried Cauliflower

Indulge with Russian Style Salmon with Fried Cauliflower or go healthy with Boiled Cauliflower and Baked White Fish

Start out by washing your cauliflower and cutting into small to medium pieces. Place pieces into boiling water. Let boil for 5 minutes or until desired tenderness.

While the cauliflower is boiling,  you can start on the Russian breading to make the fried cauliflower. Skip this step if you're trying to be as healthy as possible.

To make the breading simply take two eggs, and approximately 1/2 cup of flour. Add some salt and a little bit of water. 

Mix until smooth. 

Once the cauliflower is done boiling, drain. 

Dip the cauliflower into the breading mixture. 

Deep fry until golden brown.

Once all the cauliflower is done, set aside.

Now to prepare the salmon, or white fish if you're trying to be as healthy as possible. Also, if your goal is to be healthy simply bake the fish without the dressings.

To dress up the salmon first start by smearing mayonaise on the top of the fish, next add sour cream and hot sauce in the center. 

(finished fried cauliflower)

(finished Russian salmon, after baking for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees)

And Voila! You have the option to indulge or go healthy, either way this meal turns out delicious!

Serve with bread, if you'd like.

Enjoy!

 Please visit our buddy Maggy at Fireworks.Sparkle.Rainbow@comcast.net she would love to see you. and tell her the Traders sent you !

Food Funnies

Its Sunday and the Traders will be back live and in color on Monday but for now we wanted to leave you with a few more funnies to get you through the last day in your weekend, stay on track guys Monday will be here before you know it!

Want to form a Treat Traders group at your office, do you have a few great tips for us, or would you like to become one of our guest contributors? Drop us an email at treattraders@yahoo.com




 









Thanks to abduzeedo.com for the great shots

Enjoy

Weekend Edition

Welcome to the weekend, the Traders are off but the blog is on and hopefully this weeks Food Funnies will deter even the best of us from falling off of the wagon:

"Just Dont Do It"

Swedish designer Olle Hemmendorff

"Food Fight"

American Designer Jeremy Scott

No Explanation needed

Lambertz Bakery Group

Project Runways Chris March

Thanks to the wonderful site delish.com for this awesome find!

Enjoy





OM (freaky freaky) G

Ok is there nothing sacred in the world of chocolate!

Today Killer {K} pulled out all of the stops to show the ladies of the office that there is fun in healthy food. Well it was fun watching grown women mask the disgust of the new fresh brownie treat, and there was also fun in watching the supervisor squeal (actually that was quite funny) and another coworker take 20 minutes to eat 1 square but the bottom line is, (Ms Jessica Seinfeld ), there should not be spinach in brownies lol. Or carrots for that matter.
It turns the texture of the treat into a somewhat cornucopia of moist, chocolate, dirt, dust, but still because its high in fiber we must partake right. Right.
 As I passed this Pyrex bowl around the office I did get a few very positive comments "ooh its high in fiber, Nah I think it taste ok, ooh {V} did you make these!" but the trick on this bad boy was taking it home to my 5 and 10 year old and offering up the fresh brownie treat for an after dinner snack.
First- my daughter{10}- and old enough to know better, "Um no thank you mommy, these don't smell right, I think I will eat and apple" {wth}
Second-my son {5}- " mom, I didn't eat the whole brownie ok? I just did a taste test, did you make these while I was act school?- "Actually no son, my awesome coworker made them for everyone do you remember Ms {K}?"- son- DO YOU MEAN KILLER {K}!. Mom I'm gonna just save mine ok? lol

So the verdict is in about 50/50 for the adults and seeing the green string in the middle of the brownie has her batting at ZERO for the kiddos.
But for you I will leave the recipe and you can see for yourself, I'm gonna get healthy if it kills me ;-)

     Deceptively Delightful Brownies (note the Jedi Mind Trick Introduction)

These brownies fool everyone! You won't believe how scrumptious they are (or how good they are for you) until you make them yourself. Just don't serve them warm -- it's not until they're completely cool that the spinach flavor totally disappears.
Prep: 15 minutes
Total: 55 minutes
Yield: 12 brownies
Ingredients

Nonstick cooking spray 3 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate 1/2 cup carrot puree (After peeling and trimming the ends, steam for 10-12 minutes and then puree in a food processor for 2 minutes) 1/2 cup spinach puree (Steam for 30 to seconds, then puree in a food processor for 2 minutes) 1/2 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 2 tablespoons trans-fat-free soft tub margarine spread 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 2 large egg whites 3/4 cup oat flour, or all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat an 8x8-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
2. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or over a very low flame.
3. In a large bowl, combine the melted chocolate, vegetable purees, sugar, cocoa powder, margarine, and vanilla, and whisk until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Whisk in egg whites. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt with a wooden spoon.
5. Pour the batter into the pan and bake 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into 12 bars.

These brownies are low in calories (only 133 per brownie) and saturated fat. They're also packed with 3 grams of fiber (which is just crazy for a brownie!), while spinach and carrots provide two powerful antioxidants that help your kids' eyes stay healthy.

Enjoy

Goose Poo

That's my story and I'm sticking too it! For those of you that regularly follow this blog you know that a famous Killer {K} snack was obviously left on my desk this morning, we will come back to that.
 {E} had a remarkable weekend and weighted in this morning 2 pounds lighter! GO {E}.
 {J} went bananas in our local grocery store over the weekend, so I actually think the traders have enough snacks to last them the rest of the month,can you say go bulk cheese, kiwi, apple packs, with a dash of  that 5 gallon bucket of Cha Cha Chia seeds.

But at it again weighing in at about T minus 10 pounds is Killer {K} whose treat today was a mix of all things toddler stool sample in appearance, but whose taste ended up being a variable party in my mouth. No Really, when I first opened up her going green, Pyrex glass bowel, I thought to myself "surely my days are numbered!"but to my surprise out of the corner of my eye I spotted what looked like a piece of Chocolate. YES YES YES, I can do this, I will do this, I can eat this mix, and even though at first glance it looked like goose poop at first taste it was more like sweet harmony.

For your dietary pleasure I give you

                                 Killer {K}'s Chocolate Dried Blueberry Nut Mix
Mix one cup Almonds ( toasted and cooled)
1 cup Walnuts ( toasted and cooled )
2/3 cup Dried Blueberries
3/4 cup of chopped dark chocolate
Makes 12 1/4cup servings enough for all of the Traders at the office


Heart healthy highlights of this quick snack: Nuts are loaded with heart protecting unsaturated fats. Dark chocolate can lower blood pressure, and the dried blueberries help with arterial plaque.
Now the goose poo was my description, but my DH says if you want the full goose poo appearance add a bit of non fat plain yogurt.
Enjoy

Neat Treats for your Valentine Sweets

Treat Traders is so proud of how fast our blog is growing and we are pleased to introduce our newest contributor Amanda of   I am Baker, Amada is one of the greatest bakers around and is so kind to share her expertise with our readers monthly. Please visit Amandas Blog http://iammommy.typepad.com/i_am_baker/ you will not be disappointed!

We gladly share Amandas quick recipe for:

                         White Chocolate Dippers {Valentines Edition}

                          

These are white chocolate dippers... made to be dunked in a nice mug of warm milk, or, if you are a chocolate maniac like me, a nice cup of hot cocoa!
Yes.  All it is a huge glob of chocolate on a stick.  Whoever thought of these is my best friend for life. 

They are so easy to do its not even funny.


Get bag of white chocolate chips.
Melt them.
Put them into a small cup. (I used mini plastic cups)
Insert popsicle stick or spoon.
Place in refrigerator for about one hour (or as long as you want) then remove from cup.


 You can add strawberry extract, or almond, or vanilla, or coconut, or banana, or lemon, or... uh.., whatever other extracts are made!

 You could even put them in a sweet little bag and present them to your friends and family for Valentines Day. or you could leave them on the desk of your favorite Treat Traders, I'm just sayin ;-)

Enjoy

Hunger Pains

The second artist featured in the {Food Funnies} weekend intermission series, is Ted Sabarese, his Hunger Pain series features models wearing nothing but their most craved foods.
Which model represents you?
 Back to our regularly scheduled broadcast on Monday!





{CHECKMATE}





{Enjoy}