Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Ranting Mode On



Today is the day I weigh myself. I do this once a week to keep track. 219 lbs. :(
After 2 1/2 weeks, I have lost a whole 1 lb. Big flipping deal. I hear stories of people losing so much their first week, and here I lose one whole pound? I feel like I must be doing something wrong. Even if I wasn't doing the low carb thing, I am definitely lowering my food intake, my sugar intake, and overall trying my hardest. Am I there yet? No. I am still floundering here! Thankfully I see my nutritionist on Monday! But you would think I would lose something! Even on Weight Watchers (with carbs included) I lost 5 pounds my first week and around 2-3 pounds every week after that. What am I dong wrong?
The one good thing that has happened because of this is that my blood glucose levels are terrific now, after being way out of whack for about 3-4 years, but I also want to lose this huge tummy. I know I need patience, and I get it, but come on 1 pound after 2 1/2 weeks??
This is real life folks, and I didn't say it would be pretty. I want to journal how I am feeling so I can look back on this and see what happened in my journey.
Sorry....off my rant now.

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Brown Butter Mushroom Soup

 
 


I found this recipe at All Day I Dream About Food. I love mushroom soup in any form. Even Geoff liked it, and he is not that fond of soup. The one thing I did notice however, was that the soup is very thin. I think next time I will only add 3 cups of broth, and I would also leave some pieces of mushroom so I would have "chunks" of mushroom in my soup. Serve this with a side salad, and you have a nice lunch. This lasted me for 4 lunches, and one snack on Sunday afternoon for Geoff and I.


Brown Butter Mushroom Soup

Yield: About 6 cups
Serving Size: 1 cup

Ingredients
6 tbsp butter
2 tbsp fresh sage, chopped
1 lb mushrooms, sliced
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup heavy cream

Instructions
In a large pot, heat butter over medium heat until it begins to brown and turns fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Add sage and cook one minute more.
Add mushrooms and stir to coat, then saute until mushrooms are tender and lightly browned, 4 to 5 minutes.
Stir in stock and bring to a simmer. Cook 4 to 5 minutes more.
Transfer to food processor or blender (in batches, if your processor is not large enough). Blend until smooth.
Return to pot and stir in cream. Serve immediately.
Serves 6.

Each serving has 2 g of carbs.



Sunday, January 26, 2014

Coconut & Shrimp Patties and Avocado Mayo Dipping Sauce


Coconut and Shrimp Patties and Avocado Mayo Dipping Sauce




I wanted to make a seafood dish and this fit the bill just right for me. I found this recipe at The Healthy Foodie. The author of this recipe asked that I not put the recipe on my blog, so you will have to go to her site to see the recipe.

A warning however; don't use a blender for this recipe. It makes a gummy/babyfood consistency near the bottom while not mixing anything at the top. I wound up adding some coconut milk to the mixture after stirring it with a knife all the while being plugged in. ( I know Mom, don't say it) It wound up being too gummy to make any proper patties. It did work out because I dropped the said gummycakes onto the coconut and made a sort of round patty. And it was tasty! I found the Avocado Mayo Dipping Sauce on the bland side. Next time I will add some garlic and salt, and maybe a bit more ancho chili powder. I think I may have not added enough avocado, or maybe too much mayo, because my dipping sauce was rather runny. Time for a food processor!
I added the Asian Slaw as our side dish. See the Recipe below. I can't remember where I got the recipe for the slaw, so if anyone knows, please email me.


 

Asian Slaw

 Ingredients
1 small to medium head green cabbage outer leaves removed, quartered and shredded finely
1 cup roasted unsalted peanuts chopped briefly in a food processor
1 bunch green onions green and white parts thinly sliced
1 cup cilantro roughly chopped
Salt
1 tsp white pepper
Dressing:
1/2 cup canola oil
4 Tbl rice vinegar
1 Tbl + 1 tsp sugar
1 Tbl sesame oil
2 tsp soy sauce
 
Instructions
Toss the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
Whisk the dressing ingredients in a bowl until emulsified. Taste and adjust to your preferences. (Add more sugar if you want it sweeter, more soy sauce if you want it saltier, more vinegar if you want it tangier, etc.)
Toss with the cabbage. Refrigerate for at least an hour. Taste again and adjust seasonings before serving.
  
 I used a bag of broccoli slaw, and completely forgot about the peanuts.
1 Tbsp of sesame oil is waaaay too much! Next time I will just add 1 tsp and then try it.
This made approximately 4 servings.

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Amazing Low Carb Pancakes



Amazing Low Carb Pancakes

We had to have pancakes this morning. After so many mornings with eggs, I needed something different. Strangely enough, eggs are *the* go to breakfast meal, even if it is almost every morning. My doctor told me that eggs are not as bad as the science and health community is making them out to be. Go figure. Well, we tend to go with the trends, do we not? Anyway, I found this recipe at Pilates By Lisa. I made them just the way she said, but they were not as thick as she claimed they should be, so I think next time I will use an extra 2-3 Tbsp of coconut flour. Perhaps she used medium eggs, while I used large. I also did use the almond milk.
Do NOT expect these to taste like pancakes. She calls these pancakes "to die for"....well, not quite, but they are an awesome alternative for us, and they are delicious. And of course you have to have bacon. We are using reduced-sodium bacon. We do like our special breakfasts on the weekend. :)


Amazing Low Carb Pancakes

Ingredients
1/2 cup of Milk (I use organic moo milk, but I’m sure almond milk would be fine if you’re that way inclined!)
2 organic eggs
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/2 tsp Baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp of coconut oil

Instructions

Combine Coconut flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and combine.
Crack two eggs into another bowl and whisk thoroughly to aerate the mixture, then add the milk to the eggs and combine.
Mix wet and dry ingredients together thoroughly to make a nice smooth batter.
Once you are happy with the consistency (Should be quite thick) heat a non-stick frying pan and melt a heaped teaspoon of coconut oil. Place the mixture into the pan with a large spoon to make three large pancakes.
Allow the pancakes to cook until you can easily slide a spatula underneath without breaking up the pancake (around 5-8 minutes)
Flip your pancake and allow to cook on the other side.
Serve! I like them just as they are, but you can add a little passion fruit, a chopped banana, berries…whatever takes your fancy!

1 Serving

Amount Per Serving:
  Calories 293.2
  Total Fat 21.4 g
  Cholesterol 327.4 mg
  Total Carbohydrate 8.4 g
      Dietary Fiber 0.4 g
      Sugars 0.4 g
  Protein 16.8 g


Honey Butter Pork Tenderloin

Honey Butter Pork Tenderloin



This recipe was found at Momma Hen's Kitchen. I found there was more than enough meat for Geoff and I, so I just gave us our portion and saved the rest for a salad the next day for lunch.
I also served this with Mashed Faux-tatoes. I chopped up 1/2 head of cauliflower and put it in a pot with about 1/4 cup of water and some salt. I simmer/steamed it for about 15 minutes. Now this is just too long, and it was too mushy. I will get it right one day! LOL Then I added a bit of butter, a bit of heavy cream, 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, and some black pepper.


 Honey Butter Pork Tenderloin

Yields: 3 Servings

Ingredients
4 tbsp butter
2 tbsp honey
1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin trimmed
1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning
1/2 tsp black pepper
3/4 cup water
 
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In an ovenproof pot, heat butter and honey over medium heat until melted. Sprinkle pork tenderloin with Cajun seasoning and black pepper. Brown each side for 5 minutes in the honey butter. Lower heat if honey begins to burn.
Place pot in oven and roast uncovered for 15 - 20 minutes*. Remove pot from oven and transfer the pork to a plate. Cover with foil. Add water to the pot and stir over medium heat. Simmer for about 5 minutes, until sauce is reduced slightly. Slice pork on the diagonal and drizzle sauce over top to serve.

*May need to cook longer depending on the size and thickness of the pork tenderloin.

Amount Per Serving:
Calories 676
Total Fat 35 g
Sugars 11.2 g
Sodium 235mg
Total Carbohydrate 11g
Fiber 0.0g
Sugars 11.2 g
Protein 70.6g

Friday, January 24, 2014

30 Minute Butter Chicken with Cauliflower "Rice"



This is the first recipe I made after deciding to start my low carb way of life. I have to admit, it was terribly difficult (and still is in some ways) to figure this whole thing out, but I must be doing something right, as my blood sugars are almost under control! After only 2 weeks! I found this recipe at The Iron You.
I couldn't find fenugreek leaves anywhere, so I left them out, and I also used unsweetened almond milk instead of the regular milk, and I used the heavy cream, as I do not like yogurt.
To make the cauliflower "rice" I grated a fresh head of cauliflower (I found that half a head of cauliflower was just enough for Geoff and I) in a cheese grater, and put it in one of those Ziplock Steam bag for the microwave for 3 minutes. I found that wasn't quite enough to cook it to my liking, so I will try 4 minutes next time.


30-Minute Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)

Yields: 4 Servings

Ingredients
3/4 lb boneless chicken cubed
2 tablespoons butter
2 medium onions finely chopped
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 garlic clove minced
2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
pinch Dried fenugreek leaves
1 teaspoon Garam Masala
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons Greek Yogurt or Heavy cream
Fresh cilantro for garnish
 
Instructions
In a large frying pan over medium-high heat melt the butter, add onion and saute’ until golden brown, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add ginger, garlic, coriander, chili powder, turmeric and 1 teaspoon of salt and saute’ for a minute, until spices are fragrant.
Add tomatoes and tomato paste and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring every now and then. Turn off the heat and with an immersion blender (or using a stand blender) purée until smooth.
Turn the heat back on to low, add fenugreek (if using), milk and chicken. Cook covered for about 14 to 16 minutes until the chicken is soft and cooked through, stirring every so often.
When the chicken is cooked through, remove the lid and cook for further 2 minutes. Add Garam Masala, Greek yogurt and mix well, making sure it doesn’t boil.
Adjust seasoning to taste and serve sprinkled with fresh chopped cilantro.

One serving yields 263 calories, 11 grams of fat, 12.6 grams of carbs and 30.6 grams of protein.