Last week I was at a Trader Joe’s and I saw these super cute little tiny heirloom tomatoes.  I could not resist buying them, if only for their vibrant colors!  Who cares how they might taste because they were so beautiful!

All the way home from Boise I thought of ways I could use them.  I ended up roasting them.  Roasting tomatoes concentrates all their sugar and transforms them into these tiny sweet and savory flavor bombs! And, since I can’t stop thinking about cauliflower rice, this dish was born.  Mini Roasted Heirloom Tomatoes with Creamy Cauliflower Rice! It seemed like the perfect marriage of comforting flavor and texture.  So simple, just 5 ingredients!

Yesterday was the first official day of summer.  

I spent the first half of my day in a Red Cross CPR/AED certification class.  There’s nothing like a life saving certification class to get you thinking about life and death and how quickly it can all be striped away in an instant.  But what really got to me about the class was the personal space invasion.

I had to touch and be touched by two strangers!  One of them had to find my belly button through my shirt during a demonstration of the Heimlich maneuver. And then I had to turn around and do the same thing back to them.  These situations have always been hard for me.  I grew up in a very modest household.  Nudity was a rare accident!  We all hug a lot and we love each other very much.  We’re all just super private when it comes to covering up,  bathroom stuff, and being touched by strangers.

When the instructor told us we were going to pair up and do this I panicked a little.  I began looking around the room wondering who I’d have to touch and who would have to touch me.  I thought, “What perfume do I have on? Is it too much, is it enough?”  No one in the class seemed creepy at all, so that was good.  I got paired with a super kind kid sitting next to me.  I could tell he felt as awkward as I did.  We both acted as professionally as possible and got through it!  It makes me wonder if all the people in my class went home with the same thoughts.  Am I the only one with this freakish, stranger touching, anxiety? 

Print

Mini Roasted Heirloom Tomatoes with Creamy Cauliflower Rice

Ingredients

• 1 lb. 16 oz. mini heirloom tomatoes
• 1 ~24 oz. of florets large head cauliflower (trimmed and cut into florets)
• 3.5 oz. non-fat plain Greek yogurt
• 2 tsp. + 1 Tbsp. Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute
• 2 tsp. kosher salt

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Cut each tomato in half and place cut side up, spreading evenly, over the parchment paper.
2. Sprinkle tomatoes evenly with 2 tsp. 21 Seasoning Salute and 1 tsp. kosher salt.
3. Roast tomatoes uncovered for 60 minutes. Turn oven down to 200°F and roast tomatoes for another 30 minutes. Remove tomatoes from oven and set aside.
4. When the tomatoes are nearly done roasting process the cauliflower. Working in batches, in a food processor, chop the cauliflower into pieces a little larger than actual rice. (note: if you make the pieces too small they will get mushy in the cooking process)
5. I used the pulse button on my food processor. I performed roughly ten one second pulses for each batch of cauliflower. For one head of cauliflower head I processed about four batches. (note: I only filled my 10 cup processor bowl ~3/4 of the way.)
6. Add the riced cauliflower to a large sauté pan and sauté, over medium high heat, until the cauliflower begins to soften (2 to 3 minutes).
7. While the cauliflower is cooking sprinkle it with the other Tbsp. of 21 Seasoning Salute.
8. After the cauliflower is barely tender turn off the heat and add the yogurt. Stir to combine.
9. Add the tomatoes, stir to combine. Serve and EAT!!!
10. Note 1: Can be served at room temperature.
11. Note 2: Makes 4 side dish servings or 2 main dish servings.
12. Note 3: If you don’t have Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute any salt free multi seasoning blend would work. Use what you like. Italian seasoning with a little lemon zest would probably come out fabulous!
13. Note 4: If you can’t find mini heirloom tomatoes use cherry tomatoes instead.