Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Monday, July 30, 2012
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Chicken Cacciatore
CHICKEN
CACCIATORE
My husband, Ian, loved this meal of tender
chicken thighs in an exceptionally tasty, rich sauce. This is a quick meal to prepare and tasty
enough to serve to informal company. Even with reheating the chicken remains tender and delicious. I love this sauce. It would probably be a great sauce for stirring into cauli-rice. Yummy!
6 tbsp olive
oil, divided (90 mL)
1
medium onion, diced
14.5
oz can diced tomatoes (411 g)
1/3 cup tomato paste (75 mL)
11/3 cups
water (325 mL)
1/4
cup Parmesan cheese (60 mL)
1
tsp crushed garlic (5 mL)
9 boneless chicken thighs
Seasoning
salt, to taste
1/2 cup grated Mozzarella
cheese, (125 mL)
Optional
Zucchini
angel hair “pasta”
In nonstick frying pan in 2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil, fry onion until
caramelized. Add tomatoes, tomato paste,
water, Parmesan cheese and garlic. Cook
until heated through.
In another nonstick frying pan in 2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil, cook half
chicken thighs and sprinkle with seasoning salt on both sides. Turn occasionally during 10 minutes until
they are nicely browned on both sides.
Place cooked chicken and pan drippings in tomato sauce pan and place
over low heat to cook gently. Repeat
with the remainder of the chicken thighs.
Do make sure the chicken is cooked properly (i.e. no pink inside). Add to the chicken cooking in the sauce and
heat through thoroughly.
Serve over zucchini “pasta” with a sprinkling of Mozzarella cheese, if using.
Helpful Hints: I use a Joyce Chen® spiral slicer that I bought via the internet. Nuke the “pasta” in the microwave oven 2
minutes or more until tender. When
serving the hot chicken cacciatore over the pasta, some liquid will escape the
zucchini; mop the perimeter of the dinner plate with a clean paper towel and
serve. People will use varying amounts
of “pasta”, so add the carbs accordingly.
Sometimes, however, the zucchini will look juicy after nuking. Gently squeeze the juice out over a colander
or take handfuls (make sure your hands are very clean) and gently squeeze over
a bowl. You can also make this meal using chicken breasts. I usually cut the chicken into big chunks. I noticed chicken breasts took longer to cook.
You can finish cooking it in the sauce so that it absorbs the flavor of the
sauce.
Yield: 6 servings (analysis shown without the "pasta")
1
serving
165.2
calories
19.5
g protein
5.8
g fat
6.0
g net carbs
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Exciting News for our LCAF's Facebook!
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Our Low-Carbing Among Friends' Facebook page is a truly wonderful resource - but it has a serious, annoying drawback that is due to facebook's architecture. Except for the first screen or two of the facebook page, it's really not that easy to find all of those valuable recipes, news items, cartoons and other things from weeks gone by. The photo search at the top of our page is somewhat useful, and will still be so for a while longer, but when there are hundreds of photos, it will eventually make searching for something in particular like looking for a needle in a haystack.
So, I've decided to do everyone a favor and INDEX our team's Facebook on my blog (see Right Hand Side) - categories will be prefaced LCAF-FB. It is a lot of work, however, I'll do it in a measured fashion - no more than 10 or so posts a day, on account of the people subscribed to my blog may be inundated with new (albeit high quality) posts - I would not want to send 50 posts your way, in just one day, for instance. Eek! Overall, when you see the finished product, I think you will agree that it is a small price to pay, and only for 5-8 weeks, until I'm all caught up indexing all of our Facebook page's posts - after that it will usually be only around 5 posts a day. Hope everyone can see the advantage of having our Team's fabulous professional recipes and other informative and/or fun posts indexed in categories for easy searching and access whenever you wish. What an awesome resource that will be when it's all done! So please, if you can bear with me for a month or so, getting about 10 fabulous blog posts a day, you will end up being the big winner!
So, I've decided to do everyone a favor and INDEX our team's Facebook on my blog (see Right Hand Side) - categories will be prefaced LCAF-FB. It is a lot of work, however, I'll do it in a measured fashion - no more than 10 or so posts a day, on account of the people subscribed to my blog may be inundated with new (albeit high quality) posts - I would not want to send 50 posts your way, in just one day, for instance. Eek! Overall, when you see the finished product, I think you will agree that it is a small price to pay, and only for 5-8 weeks, until I'm all caught up indexing all of our Facebook page's posts - after that it will usually be only around 5 posts a day. Hope everyone can see the advantage of having our Team's fabulous professional recipes and other informative and/or fun posts indexed in categories for easy searching and access whenever you wish. What an awesome resource that will be when it's all done! So please, if you can bear with me for a month or so, getting about 10 fabulous blog posts a day, you will end up being the big winner!
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
THE FAT FAST (ATKINS)
THE FAT FAST
(Atkins)
Counterintuitive
as it may sound, if you can’t budge the scale on Induction, a few days on this
regimen may allow you to break through metabolic resistance. More Splendid Low-Carbing was written during a time that I discovered I was
metabolically resistant to weight loss.
At the end of that year I was diagnosed with a thyroid problem –
Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. If you are
having trouble losing weight, it’s a good idea to at least get a TSH test for
starters to make sure your thyroid is working well. Many folks are hypothyroid
without realizing it and it can really play havoc with one’s weight. If you find you are hypothyroid, then you
would need other tests like a thyroid antibody test to see if it is an
autoimmune disease or if it is just simply a sluggish thyroid.
Certain
individuals are so metabolically resistant that only more intense dietary
restrictions prove successful. Once
medications, thyroid problems and candida are brought under control, almost all
overweight people who diligently adhere to the Atkins diet will lose and keep off
weight, but for a small group of people, more extreme measures are
necessary. I knew of a few people who
lost over 100 lbs using the Fat Fast and cycling with slightly higher carbs and
lower fat.
To
help these metabolically resistant people (I was one of them), Dr. Atkins
modified what he called “the most effective weight-loss eating pattern ever
described.” British researchers Alan
Keckwick and Gaston Pawan developed it and Frederick Benoit and his team
confirmed its superiority in burning off fat, compared to an absolute total
fast. This extreme diet consists of
1,000 calories daily, comprised of 80 to 90% of fat. No other weight-loss regimen has matched its
ability to burn off stored fat. Dr.
Atkins modified the Kekwick diet to make it as enjoyable as possible and dubbed
it the “Fat Fast.” I personally took the
challenge a little further and introduced a few more things we could enjoy on
the fat fast in More Splendid Low-Carbing. The late Dr. Atkins tried it on many of his
patients and found it often worked when all else had failed.
The
Kekwick diet forces the body into lipolysis so that it burns its stores of
fat. Lipolysis cannot take place if
there is a significant source of glucose.
Since all carbohydrates and any excess protein is converted to energy in
the form of glucose, eliminating almost everything but fat from the diet forces
even the most resistant body into lipolysis.
My
experience: I would actually gain weight
if I went over the 1,000 calorie limit, so I relied heavily on Fit Day to
calculate my intake. Over a period of 3
days, my scale weight would usually drop 2 lbs.
I doubt it was all real weight, but it was good to finally see the scale
drop. These days I have less of a
problem losing weight although it is much easier for me to maintain than lose
weight. My thyroid is also much
better. I cannot take more than about 37
mcg of T4 without becoming hyper. If
anyone wants to know more, feel free to email me.
You
could divide your day into frequent (i.e. five) tiny meals of 200 calories each
and you will find you will not experience hunger – boredom, perhaps (my book can
help relieve that), but not much hunger.
WARNING: Dr. Atkins
warned that if you can lose normally on Induction then the Fat Fast could be
very dangerous as you would most likely lose weight too fast and you could develop a dangerous electrolyte imbalance.
Lisa Marshall's "Honey" Roasted Barbecue Sauce
This recipe is from Lisa Marshall in Low-Carbing Among Friends, Volume-1. It took ordinary roasted chicken from the grocery store and transcended it to something really special. Try it and see! We loved it! If you have digestive trouble with the maltitol in the sugar-free honey, use only a tablespoon and make up for the rest with extra sweetener or maybe use a sugar-free pancake syrup that agrees with you or I believe there is another sugar-free honey without maltitol in it that you could use instead, although some of the reviews are a bit iffy too. I wish manufacturers would eat their own products. I am so sick of manufacturers trying to sell us products that put many of us low-carbers in the bathroom. I get suckered once, but believe me, never again!! I think xylitol is fine in moderation but again can cause digestive problems for some folks I used a little real honey (took my chances with the carbs rather) and extra sweetener. Phew - it was seriously good! Nancy commented that Birgit has a homemade sugar-free honey over here.
In saucepan, blend oil, honey substitute, mustard, ketchup, sweetener, paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat and cool ten minutes. Stir in vinegar, liquid smoke and lemon juice. In bullet blender, place the egg yolk and water, or process with an immersion blender until pale yellow.
“HONEY”
ROASTED BARBECUE SAUCE
If you are a fan of the
honey roasted barbecue sauce that is a special request item at Chick-Fil-A,
then you will be a fan of this sauce. The flavor is there; only the carbs are
missing!
1/2 cup light
olive oil (125 mL)
1/4 cup sugar free honey substitute (60 mL)
1 tbsp dijon mustard (15 mL)
1 tsp sugar free ketchup (5 mL)
1 packet sweetener
1/4 tsp paprika (1 mL)
1/4 tsp salt (1 mL)
1/8 tsp pepper (0.5 mL)
1/8 tsp garlic powder (0.5 mL)
1/8 tsp onion powder (0.5 mL)
2 tbsp vinegar (30 mL)
3/4 tsp liquid smoke (3 mL)
1/4 tsp lemon juice (1 mL)
1 egg yolk
1 tsp water (5 mL)
1/4 cup sugar free honey substitute (60 mL)
1 tbsp dijon mustard (15 mL)
1 tsp sugar free ketchup (5 mL)
1 packet sweetener
1/4 tsp paprika (1 mL)
1/4 tsp salt (1 mL)
1/8 tsp pepper (0.5 mL)
1/8 tsp garlic powder (0.5 mL)
1/8 tsp onion powder (0.5 mL)
2 tbsp vinegar (30 mL)
3/4 tsp liquid smoke (3 mL)
1/4 tsp lemon juice (1 mL)
1 egg yolk
1 tsp water (5 mL)
In saucepan, blend oil, honey substitute, mustard, ketchup, sweetener, paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat and cool ten minutes. Stir in vinegar, liquid smoke and lemon juice. In bullet blender, place the egg yolk and water, or process with an immersion blender until pale yellow.
Add 1/4 cup (60 mL) of the sauce to the egg yolk and blend
well. Add in half the remaining sauce and blend. Add the last remaining sauce
and blend. The mixture should emulsify to a spoonable sauce.
Yield: 16 servings
1
tbsp (15 mL) per serving
74
calories
trace
protein
7 g
fat
1
g carb
Saturday, July 21, 2012
DECADENT COCOA BROWNIES
DECADENT COCOA BROWNIES
These brownies are so decadent-tasting –
very close to the real thing! You do want a nice, rich frosting for these brownies. Upon refrigeration they become very solid and are easily cut into beautiful-looking squares. In this photo, they are at room temperature and the texture is different. We're taking these as snacks with us to an exotic island for a few days along with these Glazed Almond Chocolate Chip Bars.
4 eggs
3/4 cup melted butter (175 mL)
Liquid
sucralose to equal 1 cup (250 mL)
SPLENDA® Granular
1/2
cup granulated erythritol (125 mL)
11/2 tsp vanilla extract (7 mL)
1
cup Gluten-Free Bake Mix, (250 mL)
page___
1/2
cup cocoa (125 mL)
1/2
tsp baking powder (2 mL)
1/4
tsp salt (1 mL)
MilkChocolate Frosting, page___
In food processor,
process eggs. Add butter, liquid
sucralose, OR SPLENDA®
Granular, erythritol and vanilla extract; process.
In medium bowl,
combine Gluten-Free Bake Mix, page___, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Add to egg mixture; process. Spread in greased 8-inch (20 cm) square
baking pan. Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes
out clean. Cool, frost and
refrigerate.
Yield: 25 servings
1
serving
113.5
calories
2.6
g protein
10.5
g fat
2.2
g net carbs
Another Chocolate Frosting:
1/3 cup SPLENDA® Granular
1/4 cup whole or skim milk powder (powdered if coarse)
3 tbsp powdered erythritol or Steviva Blend
2 tbsp whey protein powder
2 tbsp cocoa
2 tbsp butter, melted
3 tbsp heavy cream
Combine dry ingredients and stir in wet ingredients until frosting is very smooth. Use immediately.
GRILLED CHEESEBURGER WRAPS
GRILLED
CHEESEBURGER WRAPS
Wow, these
were tasty! Simple idea, but tasty and
the presentation is great with the grill marks on the tortilla wrap. I used a George Foreman type of indoor grill.
My hubby immediately put a blob of butter on the warm wrap and I must say that
is highly recommended! One wrap is all I
needed along with a delicious salad.
page 94, Low-Carbing Among Friends, vol-2
1
lb lean ground beef (0.45 kg)
2
tbsp sugar-free ketchup (30 mL)
2
tbsp Worcestershire sauce (30 mL)
1/2 tsp salt, OR to taste (2 mL)
1/4 tsp black pepper (1 mL)
1 cup shredded cheese of
choice (250 mL)
4 small Roma tomatoes, sliced
thinly
1/3 cup
sugar-free ketchup (75 mL)
1/3 cup
mustard, optional (75 mL)
1/3 cup
mayonnaise, optional (75 mL)
Healthy Butter, page 84, Low-Carbing Among Friends, vol-2 (optional)
Prepare
Jiffy Flexible Microwave Tortillas, page 94, Low-Carbing Among Friends, volume-2. Preheat grill to 400°F (200°C).
In
frying pan, fry ground beef until no longer pink. Stir in ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, salt
and pepper; continue cooking 5 minutes. Layer
about 3 tbsp (45 mL) shredded cheese down center of tortilla and about 1/3
cup (75 mL) warm, savory cooked beef. Add sliced tomatoes, ketchup, mustard and
mayonnaise, if using. Fold in sides and
gently roll wrap closed. Lift with
spatula to preheated grill which has been lightly greased with olive oil. Grill and carefully, using 2 spatulas if
necessary, turn the wrap over to get the grill marks on the other side as
well. Serve warm with a blob of Healthy
Butter, page 84, Low-Carbing Among
Friends, volume-2.
Yield: 5 servings
1
serving
534.4
calories
33.3
g protein
39.6
g fat
8.9
g net carbs
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Jiffy Chocolate Chip Cookies
JIFFY
CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Sometimes you only want one or two
chocolate chip cookies and not the temptation of a whole batch of cookies! These simple, delicious cookies fit the bill. Choose tasty chocolate chips for an
extra-special treat! It's hard to believe that these actually get browned in the microwave oven, but they do. These are actually quite substantial cookies. Great to produce in a jiffy if a friend drops by for tea (as long as you already have the Gluten-Free Bake Mix on hand, which I almost always do).
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp butter, melted
Liquid sucralose to equal 2
tbsp (30 mL)
SPLENDA® Granular
1/4
tsp vanilla extract (1 mL)
1/4
cup Gluten-Free Bake Mix, (60 mL)
page___
1/4
tsp baking powder (1 mL)
1/8 tsp salt (0.5 mL)
2
tbsp sugar-free chocolate chips (30 mL)
In small bowl, combine egg yolk, butter, liquid sucralose, OR SPLENDA® Granular and vanilla
extract. In another small bowl, combine
Gluten-Free Bake Mix, page___, baking powder and salt. Stir dry ingredients into egg yolk mixture
until well combined. Stir in chocolate
chips. Form 2 equal-sized dough
balls.
Spray 2 small ramekins with nonstick cooking spray. Press a dough ball evenly in bottom of each ramekin. Microwave 45 seconds for a crunchy, browned
cookie and 35 seconds for a less crunchy, less brown cookie. Enjoy!
Helpful Hints: My microwave oven is 1200
Watts. Your timing may vary depending on
the wattage of your microwave oven. Do
not use Truvia® or Steviva Blend® in these cookies – they will burn too easily. If your chocolate chips have been kept in the
freezer or refrigerator, briefly nuke them before stirring them into the cookie
dough for best results. I have never
been able to wait long enough to eat these, but you can find out if you prefer
them later on or if you prefer them after they have been refrigerated.
Yield: 2 cookies
1
serving
193.5
calories
4.1
g protein
15.4
g fat
3.7
g net carbs
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Cauli and Yam Mash
This not a recipe per se, but an idea. I made yams a while back when my boys were visiting and took some and mashed it in with our cauli-mash. Boy was it good - much thicker and more substantial-tasting! Definitely more carby but not as much as eating yam or sweet potato by itself. So for a special occasion, I highly recommend it. I know others do the same thing using rutabagas, but I can't find that over here.
Saturday, July 7, 2012
How to Cook Zucchini Pasta Noodles
Someone asked me how to cook the zucchini noodles. Place in boiling salted water for 1 minute. Remove to a colander and place under running, cold water to stop the cooking. Now you're ready to toss your "pasta" with your favorite, creamy Alfredo sauce or whatever you prefer.
In the previous post, Chicken Alfredo Veggie Medley, I simply warmed up the noodles in the skillet with the chicken and veggies until they were as soft as I like them, so I skipped the boiling part.
If you like, you can add the drained, par-boiled zucchini noodles to melted butter in a skillet, saute briefly and sprinkle with grated, fresh Parmesan cheese or other hard cheese of choice; now you have a tasty side dish. By the way, do it in two batches rather than all at once. Sprinkle with, chopped fresh herbs for garnish, if desired.
Someone just commented below that she throws it in a covered dish and into the microwave oven for 1 to 2 minutes. That's an alternative. Thank you for that tip. :)
Thursday, July 5, 2012
How to make Zucchini Pasta Noodles
I used to leave the peel on my zucchini pasta as in the image below. Make you own fabulous spaghetti meat sauce and serve on a bed of "pasta". However, I suggest removing the peel first and also not using the core with the seeds. I use either a vegetable peeler or my spiral slicer which I bought on the internet. I love the angel hair pasta setting and nowadays I prefer to remove the peel, because the peel definitely detracts in my opinion - it has a bitter taste. You want a neutral taste just like regular pasta. Some people go to the trouble of salting the zucchini noodles; check it out.
Here is how I used to make it using a vegetable peeler and leaving the bitter skin on the zucchini.
Here is how I make it these days - angel hair-style without the skin - fabulous!
Here is a video by a raw food enthusiast. It's amusing to me to see the fancy stove and oven behind her. Looks like she has an amazing kitchen. Anyway, ignore the fact that she likes to eat it raw, the video will show you exactly how to make zucchini pasta. Find the video here.
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Here is how I used to make it using a vegetable peeler and leaving the bitter skin on the zucchini.
Here is how I make it these days - angel hair-style without the skin - fabulous!
Here is a video by a raw food enthusiast. It's amusing to me to see the fancy stove and oven behind her. Looks like she has an amazing kitchen. Anyway, ignore the fact that she likes to eat it raw, the video will show you exactly how to make zucchini pasta. Find the video here.
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Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Happy 4th of July and introducing my friend, Ramona.
Happy 4th of July, my blog and Facebook friends! :) I didn't have time to come up with something, but my blog friend, Ramona, did. Her blog is over here. She is one of the most talented, young ladies I have "met" . To be honest, there are a few young people that I know that are also very talented. It is important to respect young people and their talents. I absolutely love visiting her blog to see what else she has created. Today I'm sharing her post. I hope she won't mind as there is no way to contact her personally.
This absolutely gorgeous dessert for 4th of July is very easy to convert to low-carb. Just use 1 tsp of my Thickening Agent, or your own (maybe a titch of cornstarch mixed with xanthan gum) and blend with the juice in a blender until smooth (after blending the fruit separately). Use my fabulous ice cream custard recipe and you have yourself a beautiful, delicious 4th of July low-carb dessert inspired by my friend's wonderful idea.
Hope you enjoy Ramona's dessert and her blog!
Chicken Alfredo Veggie Medley
CHICKEN ALFREDO VEGGIE MEDLEY
This was an incredibly tasty, creamy-delicious meal. I used to make it
with Dreamfields pasta, but now that we’re gluten-free, this was great and I
didn’t miss the pasta at all. I loved the zucchini noodles. I made them by
peeling the zucchini and using my simple spiral slicer. (Jen)
Alfredo Sauce:
8
oz cream cheese (250 g)
1/2 cup butter, melted (125 mL)
1/2 cup heavy cream (125 mL)
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (75 mL)
Chicken Veggie Medley:
1/4 cup olive oil, divided (60 mL)
4
boneless, skinless chicken breasts,
cut into bite-sized pieces
Seasoning
salt, to taste
1
tbsp olive oil (15 mL)
1/2 cup chopped onion (125 mL)
2
medium tomatoes, chopped
1
cup cooked broccoli (250 mL)
1
cup canned, sliced mushrooms (250 mL)
Zucchini
noodles made from 4 peeled zucchini (I used the angel-hair spaghetti setting)
Alfredo Sauce: In skillet, add cream cheese,
butter and cream; stir until melted. Add
Parmesan cheese and keep stirring until smooth.
If the sauce separates, place in food processor or blender and blend
until creamy and smooth.
Chicken Veggie Medley: In large
skillet in half olive oil, stir-fry half of the chicken until white and no
longer pink inside. While cooking,
sprinkle chicken with seasoning salt.
Repeat with remaining oil and chicken pieces. Set aside.
In skillet, fry onion in 1 tbsp olive oil until caramelized. Add tomato and cook until softening. Add cooked broccoli and mushrooms and
stir-fry until warm. Add chicken and
stir-fry until getting warm. In a
casserole dish with lid, cook zucchini noodles a couple of minutes on high;
drain. Pour Alfredo Sauce over chicken mixture, stirring to combine well and
heat through. Serve over zoodles.
Helpful Hint: My spiral slicer which I
bought from Amazon.com has two settings, one for angel hair “pasta” and one for
a thicker, curly pasta shape.
Yield: 5 servings
1
serving
599.9 calories
32.5 g protein
48.2 g fat
7.8
g net carbs
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