Poppy Seed Broccoli

Lately I’ve been experimenting with a high-carb, low-fat (HCLF) vegan diet. It’s commonly referred to as Raw Till 4, which means that I eat mostly raw fruit up until 4 p.m., and then a cooked, high-carb vegan meal for dinner. I’m not too strict about the time on the clock, but I focus on lots carbs (at least 80%) and little fat (less than 10%).

Trying out new eating styles is always fun to me, and I have many new recipe ideas. I recently made a recipe video for HCLF Broccoli Alfredo inspired by this Poppy Seed Broccoli recipe, which you can check out on my new videos page. I plan to keep making videos to share some of my Raw Till 4 meal ideas, so subscribe to my youtube channel if you’re interested.

What do you want to see on the blog? Do you want mostly sweets and desserts still? Do you want mostly raw recipes? Do you want some of the more indulgent (higher fat) recipes like another flavor of Muddy Buckwheaties perhaps? Let me know, because I have lots of ideas and I want to focus my efforts.

On to the recipe. A popular dinner in my house growing up was Poppy Seed Chicken. I always volunteered to crush the cracker crumbs, and more often than not I overdid it, puncturing the bag, and making a crumbly mess. We always had broccoli on the side, and even though I wasn’t a child who usually mixed foods, I loved to mix the two together. So I subtracted the chicken and the sour cream and the butter and the crackers, and created Poppy Seed Broccoli that is fat-free and vegan. And it is soooo good!

Poppy Seed Broccoli

1 head cauliflower

1 large stalk of broccoli

1 tsp poppy seeds

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Process 1/3 of the head of cauliflower in the food processor or blender to create small, crumb-sized pieces.
2. Chop the broccoli into bite-sized pieces. Chop the rest of the cauliflower into large chunks.
3. Steam the large chunks of cauliflower in one pot and the broccoli in another. You want the broccoli to be bright green and the cauliflower to be very tender.
4. Puree the steamed cauliflower. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Add the cauliflower crumbs to a large, non-stick pan with no water or oil. Allow them to cook on medium-high until golden brown and just barely crispy. Keep an eye on them and stir frequently to avoid burning. Season with a little salt and pepper.
6. Take the crumbs off the heat, and add the poppy seeds.
7. Pour the cauliflower puree over the broccoli and stir gently to coat. Spread in a shallow dish, and top with the cauliflower poppy seed crumbs.