Eat Your Heart Out Wrap Up

We had a great class last Tuesday where we made stuffed strawberries and cauliflower mac and cheese.  These recipes were super easy and fast to make and the participants were excited to try them out.  

Zul started off the class showing us how to make the stuffed strawberries.  After washing the strawberries, she carefully hulled out the stems (see our how-to video) and cleaned out a bit more of the inside.  The cheesecake filling was made by mixing 12 ounces of whipped cream cheese, ¼ cup powdered sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract with a fork.  

Pro tip: if you’re unable to purchase whipped cream cheese you can do it yourself by softening the cream cheese to room temperature and whipping it with a hand-held mixer.  Also, you can thin out the cheesecake filling by adding in some milk and can thicken it by adding in a bit more powdered sugar.  

The strawberries were filled with the cheesecake mixture and then topped with crushed graham crackers for a more cheesecake taste.  However, these stuffed strawberries can be topped with any number of delicious alternatives, like sprinkles, coconut flakes, or mini chocolate chips.  

Next, Jada taught the class how to make cauliflower mac-and-cheese.  In the last few years, cauliflower has been found to be a great substitute for many carbohydrate-rich and high gluten foods, such as pasta, breads, and other grain products.  Using cauliflower is a great way to add in more vegetables, increasing your intake of fiber and antioxidants.  It is also very versatile, being used for pizza crust, mash, tortillas, tots, rice, and, of course, mac and cheese.  

First, Jada showed us how to carefully and safely cut the cauliflower head into small florets.  Roughly 4 cups of the cauliflower florets were added to 6 cups of boiling water and cooked for about 5 minutes, or until they were tender.  The florets were drained and returned to the pan.  Spices were added to the cauliflower to give it some flavor such as salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic powder.  After that we stirred in 4 tablespoons of softened cream cheese, 2/3 cups shredded cheddar cheese, and some parmesan until melted and combined.  The veggie mac and cheese was served up and parsley was added for a nice touch.  

These recipes can be found on our website, along with many others.  Don’t forget to sign up for our Italian Night class on February 23rd at 6:00 pm.  We will be making Avocado Pesto Linguine and Caprese Salad.  This is a free virtual class, and we hope you sign up and cook along with us.  You can register at bit.ly/CookingOnCampus.  And don’t forget to visit the UA Campus Pantry for free ingredients to cook with.  Hope to see everyone on the 23rd and happy cooking!

Follow us on instragram @uacookingoncampus #CatsInTheKitchen