Shrimp and Sausage Bisque

I made the most scrumptious seafood bisque tonight for dinner.  It was ready in just 1 hour, too!  I wanted to make seafood gumbo, but I didn’t have okra in the freezer and gumbo just isn’t gumbo to me without okra.  So I pulled out my trusty gumbo recipe of many years and basically made that, less the okra.  I subbed in cream for all the canned tomatoes in my gumbo recipe to make it more like a bisque.  WOW!  We LOVED IT!  This one is a keeper for sure!  This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins, provided those still on Induction omit the white wine and those on Paleo use coconut milk instead of cream.

Many more simple, tasty low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own copy of our cookbooks  LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS.  Volume 8 is almost exclusively comprised of my recipes with some new George Stella and Jennifer Eloff creations.  Volume 9, due out in October, has mostly my recipes once again.

EARLY BIRD SECRET SALE!!  Order here for estimated October delivery:  https://amongfriends.us/Secret-SALE.php

Order any of our books from Amazon  or here: amongfriends.us/order.php. There’s currently a special offer of a bundle of all 8 previous volumes that reduces their individual price to only $13.22!  Don’t miss out on this bargain!  And please, if you’ve already bought Volume 8, I sure would appreciate your taking a moment to stop by this page and leave your personal review:

INGREDIENTS:

3 oz. bacon, coarsely chopped

1 c. celery, chopped

3/4 c. green bell pepper, chopped

3 oz. onion, chopped

½ c. parsley, chopped

6 oz. pork breakfast sausage

1 medium leaf kale, (about 3/4 c.), stemmed & chopped fine

2 cloves garlic, minced

¼ tsp. Cajun Seafood Spice Blend

½ tsp. dried thyme leaves

¼ tsp. black pepper

Dash cayenne pepper

22 large shrimp, (shell removed), cut in halves (12 oz tail-on pkg)

2 c. chicken broth (preferably homemade, or seafood stock)

1 c. heavy cream

¼ c. white wine

Tiny dusting of xanthan gum or your favorite thickener

11 San Marzano mini tomatoes cut into 4 pieces (or 22 cherry tomatoes left whole)

VARIATION:   Add 1 c. shelled/cleaned fresh crab meat + 1 c. extra chicken/seafood broth.  Mmmm.

DIRECTIONS:  In a large soup pot, over medium-high heat, brown the bacon.  Add the Louisiana “Holy Trinity” (celery, bell pepper and onion) to the pot and saute until they begin to soften.  Add sausage and saute, crumbling as you do so.  Add kale, garlic and the four spices.  Lower heat to medium.  Add shrimp and saute until opaque.  Add chicken (or seafood) stock, white wine, and cream.   When returns to a simmer, lower heat to lowest setting.  Add tomatoes and simmer about 10 minutes.  Some like this stage of thickening from the cream.  But if you like your cream soups a bit thicker, add the light sprinkle of xanthan gum.  Alternately, if you like more broth in your soup, or ned to stretch this out for more servings (it was a bit thick with “solids”) you can always add 1-2 more cups of chicken stock to the pot.  If you do add more broth, you will definitely want to use a thickener.  Simmer a few minutes longer for the thickener to go to work.  Pour into a soup tureen and serve at once.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:  Makes 6 servings (as written), each containing:

382 cals, 31g fat, 7.01g carbs, 1.53g fiber, 5.48g NET CARBS, 16.3g protein, 410mg sodium

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Meatza Meatza® Spinach Burrito

I broke my run on salads this week, OH MY!  I just wasn’t hungry for breakfast this morning, so I just had a cup of coffee.  The hubs took his usual Sunday hobby trip to Austin and it was just me and Button left to our own devices.  By 10:00 I was feeling a might peckish, so I ate brunch.  With just one last psyllium flat bread in the fridge, this is what I came up with.  A couple meats, a dash of fresh spinach and a bit of cheese to bind it altogether and man, was this ever tasty and filling!   This would be great breakfast, brunch or lunch!  I’ll need to get in the kitchen later today to make some more of my flat breads!  This recipe is not suitable until you get to the flour/grains carb re-introduction level (Phase 2) of Atkins due to the very healthy Einkorn flour and CarbQuik bake mix in the ingredient list for the flat bread.

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own copy of our cookbooks  LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS.  Volume 8 is almost exclusively comprised of my recipes with some new George Stella and Jennifer Eloff creations.  Volume 9, due out in October, has mostly my recipes once again.

EARLY BIRD SECRET SALE!!  Order here for estimated October delivery:  https://amongfriends.us/Secret-SALE.php

Order any of our books from Amazon  or here: amongfriends.us/order.php. There’s currently a special offer of a bundle of all 8 previous volumes that reduces their individual price to only $13.22!  Don’t miss out on this bargain!  And please, if you’ve already bought Volume 8,  I sure would appreciate your taking a moment to stop by this page and leave your personal review:

INGREDIENTS FOR EACH BURRITO:

1 Flat Bread round

3 oz. bulk pork breakfast sausage

2 slices thick pepper bacon

3/4 c. fresh baby spinach leaves

2 T. shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese

DIRECTIONS:  Lay the cooked flat bread on a serving plate and set aside the stove top.  In the middle of a small skillet, using your fingers, form the sausage into an oblong, half-moon shape the size of one half of the bread round.  Lay each strip of bacon along the outer edges of the skillet.  Over medium-high heat, brown until all the meat is thoroughly cooked on both sides.   With your spatula, set the sausage on one side of the bread round.  Lay the two strips of bacon on top of the sausage.  Now wilt the sausage right in the grease remaining in your skillet.  When wilted/cooked lift it onto the burrito atop the bacon.  Sprinkle the 2T. cheese on top and fold the other side of the flat bread over all, securing with a toothpick.  Place plate in microwave at 30% power for about 3-4 seconds so the cheese will melt.  Remove and serve at once.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:   Makes 1 burrito which contains:

670 cals, 60g fat, 18.5g carbs, 10.1g fiber, 8.4g NET CARBS, 33.4g protein, 1417 mg sodium

Carbs can be lowered serving open-faced on only 1/2 bread round; sodium and fat can be lowered making your own lean sausage homemade.

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Holy Moly Beef Guacamole Salad

I’ve been on a “salads for lunch” kick lately.  Today, I had 3 avocados getting perfectly ripe all at the same time!  So I came up with this simple dish tat was super tasty.  Guacamole salad with beef added!  We didn’t have breakfast today (quite unusual for us, actually), so by 11am, we were both ravenous.  This recipe definitely makes 3 servings, but the two of us finished off all 3 servings!  We were just famished by the time I made it!  This was not intended to be a taco salad, so we didn’t add cheese or tomato.  You could though, if you like.  It’s fun to be bad every once in awhile.  🙂  As the name implies, Holy-Moly was this salad ever good!!……..and extremely filling! Avocados are so good for you, with all their minerals and nutrients, so we try to eat them twice a week.   The fiber offsets their carbs nicely.  🙂

This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins, but if still on Induction, you should reduce the guacamole “dressing” on your plate, as only half an avocado is allowed during Induction.

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own copy of our cookbooks  LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS.  Volume 8 is almost exclusively comprised of my recipes with some new George Stella and Jennifer Eloff creations.  Volume 9, due out in October, has mostly my recipes once again.

EARLY BIRD SECRET SALE!!  Order here for estimated October delivery:  https://amongfriends.us/Secret-SALE.php

Order any of our books from Amazon  or here: amongfriends.us/order.php. There’s currently a special offer of a bundle of all 8 previous volumes that reduces their individual price to only $13.22!  Don’t miss out on this bargain!  And please, if you’ve already bought Volume 8,  I sure would appreciate your taking a moment to stop by this page and leave your personal review:

INGREDIENTS:

6 cups mixed salad greens (I used Romaine and Iceberg lettuce)

3 avocados, skinned, seeds discarded

1/4 tsp. total garlic powder

1/8 tsp. sea salt

11 oz. 90% lean ground beef

1/2 tsp. chili powder blend

DIRECTIONS:  In a medium skillet over high heat brown the ground beef with 1/8 tsp. of the garlic powder and the chili powder.  Reduce to lowest heat setting to keep it warm.  Remove skin and seeds from 3 avocados.  Scoop the pulp out with a spoon and mash with a fork on a paper plate.  Add the remaining 1/8 tsp. garlic powder and sea salt to the mashed avocado and stir well.  Set aside.

Chop the lettuce(s) you have chosen to use.  Place the lettuce equally onto 3 serving plates.  Top each portion with about 1/3 of the meat mixture (reserve 3 T.).  Then spoon 1/3 of the guacamole mixture in the center of each plate.  Top each with 1 T. of the reserved meat mixture. Serve at once lest the guacamole turn dark on you.  Holy Moly is this ever good!

NUTRITIONAL INFO:  Makes 3 servings, each contains:

584 calories, 48.3g fat, 18.4g carbs, 13.76g fiber, 4.64g NET CARBS, 24.63g protein, 128 mg sodium

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“Lobster Salad” Salad

I went to the grocery store today and picked up two lobster tails expressly to make our lunch.  For the two of us, that just means two small lobster tails.  This salad was visually appealing and its flavor matched its attractiveness on the plate.  It was also extremely filling, so I would definitely call this one a main dish.  This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins and other Keto diets.  Paleo and Primal folks can enjoy this one as well!

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own copy of our cookbooks  LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS.  Volume 8 is almost exclusively comprised of my recipes with some new George Stella and Jennifer Eloff creations.  Volume 9, due out in October, has mostly my recipes once again.

EARLY BIRD SECRET SALE!!  Order here for estimated October delivery:  https://amongfriends.us/Secret-SALE.php

Order any of our books from Amazon  or here: amongfriends.us/order.php. There’s currently a special offer of a bundle of all 8 previous volumes that reduces their individual price to only $13.22!  Don’t miss out on this bargain!  And please, if you’ve already bought Volume 8,  I sure would appreciate your taking a moment to stop by this page and leave your personal review.

INGREDIENTS:

4 c. mixed salad greens

10 leaves baby spinach

4 San Marzano mini tomatoes, sliced crosswise (or use 8 cherry tomatoes)

2 oz. red bell pepper, sliced thin

½ green onion, chopped into ½” pieces

1 ripe avocado, skin & seed removed

4 T. my Shawarma Mayonnaise

2 lobster tails (10 oz. in shell, 8 oz. after shelled)

VARIATION:  Add some finely diced celery and a dash of cayenne pepper to the lobster salad mixture.

DIRECTIONS:  Bring a 4-qt. saucepan of water to a boil.  Drop in lobster tails and boil for about 8 minutes.  Remove, cool a bit and holding with a pot holder, cut the tail shell down the “belly” side and remove the meat from the shell.  Cut meat into 1/2″ bite-sized pieces and set aside for now to cool further.

While the lobster is boiling, plate your base salad greens, dividing the above vegetables equally between two serving plates.  In a small bowl, toss the cooled down lobster meat with the Shawarma Mayo and spoon half of the mixture onto the center of the greens on each plate.  You can use a plain, unseasoned homemade mayo, but the shawarma spice taste is particularly tasty with lobster.  Serve at once.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:   Makes 2 servings, each contains:

414 cals., 35.4g fat, 13g carbs, 7.25g fiber, 5.75g NET CARBS, 26.45g protein, 415 mg sodium

 

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Chicken-Kale Salad

We baked chicken this week and earlier in the month as well, therefore I had quite a bit of leftover chicken meat in the freezer.  I decided to make an interesting salad with it for lunch today.  I’ve discovered I quite like raw kale in salads.  It’s not bitter or strong when used raw and in moderation.  But if you’re totally hung-up on not eating kale, you can certainly substitute fresh baby spinach leaves in this salad.  I would leave the baby spinach leaves whole and pinch off the stems.  This salad was surprisingly delicious and very filling.  If you are farther along in your weight-loss journey, you can add more chopped prune if you like a fruitier chicken salad.  I think it would be good with more prune, to be honest.  I always put some onion in the processor when making my homemade mayo, but if you do not, you might want to add a bit of slivered red onion to this salad.  This salad is not suitable until you are in phase 2 of Atkins.

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own copy of our cookbooks  LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS.  Volume 8 is almost exclusively comprised of my recipes with some new George Stella and Jennifer Eloff creations.  Volume 9, due out in October, has mostly my recipes once again.

EARLY BIRD SECRET SALE!!  Order here for estimated October delivery:  https://amongfriends.us/Secret-SALE.php

Order any of our books from Amazon  or here: amongfriends.us/order.php. There’s currently a special offer of a bundle of all 8 previous volumes that reduces their individual price to only $13.22!  Don’t miss out on this bargain!  And please, if you’ve already bought Volume 8,  I sure would appreciate your taking a moment to stop by this page and leave your personal review:

INGREDIENTS:

1 large (or 2 small) leaves curly-leaf kale (about 1 c. chopped)

4 c. cooked chicken meat, cut in ½” dice

¼ c. homemade Shawarma Mayonnaise

2 dried prunes (Del Monte has no added sugar), chopped

OPTIONAL:  8 black olives, chopped, 8 walnut halves broken up, some red onion

DIRECTIONS:  Stem and coarsely chop kale and place in medium bowl.  If you prefer to use baby spinach, stem and leave leaves whole.  Add 4 c. chopped chicken meat to the bowl.  Next add the homemade Shawarma mayo.  Chop prunes small and add to the bowl.  I actually did add the optional black olives to this at my husband’s urging, but thought they added nothing and may just leave them out next time.  I’m not fond of them thrown into as many dishes as he is.  😉  Add walnuts if using.  Using a large spoon, toss all ingredients to coat well with mayo dressing.  Spoon into a serving dish and serve at once.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:  Makes 4 servings, each contains:

447 cals., 33g fat, 4.8g carbs, 0.92g fiber, 3.88g NET CARBS, 37.6g protein, 624 mg sodium

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Bacon-Mushroom Stuffed Pork Loin

I bought a whole pork loin this week and cut the point end off for making a pork roast one night.  Tonight was the night!  I have fresh mushrooms in the fridge so I decided to stuff it.  A little cream cheese and smoked Gouda to bind and for added flavor.  Man, oh, man, was this ever good, even if it spattered making for a less than stellar photo.  I know it sounds rich, but it really wasn’t!  This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins and Keto diets.

My roast was just a little 1¼ lb. tip end of the loin, so I had some stuffing leftover.  Your roast may be larger and accommodate all the stuffing nicely.  If not, just heap it up at the front of the cut end much like a Thanksgiving cornucopia, “spilling out”.  We spooned some of the extra stuffing onto our portions!  🙂

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own copy of our cookbooks  LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS.  Volume 8 is almost exclusively comprised of my recipes with some new George Stella and Jennifer Eloff creations.  Volume 9, due out in October, has mostly my recipes once again.

EARLY BIRD SECRET SALE!!  Order here for estimated October delivery:  https://amongfriends.us/Secret-SALE.php

Order from Amazon  or here:  amongfriends.us/order.php. There’s currently a special offer of a bundle of all 8 previous volumes that reduces their individual price to only $13.22!  Don’t miss out on this incredible steal!  And please, if you’ve already bought Volume 8,  I sure would appreciate your taking a moment to stop by Amazon to leave your personal review:

INGREDIENTS:

1-1¼ lb. small pork loin roast

2 slices bacon, chopped

5 medium mushrooms, chopped

2 oz. onion (I used red), chopped fine

1 oz. cream cheese

1 oz. Smoked Gouda cheese, shredded

3/4 c. parsley (loosely packed), chopped

Dash each sea salt and coarse black pepper

2 T. hemp hearts

DIRECTIONS:  With a large kitchen knife, cut a pocket into the pork roast, being careful not to go all the way through on any sides.  Spread apart and set on baking pan to receive stuffing.

Preheat oven to 350º.  In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown the bacon.  Add the onion, salt and pepper and saute until onion is tender.  Add all remaining ingredients, mashing up the cream cheese until it is fully melted and well-blended.  Remove from heat and stuff into the slit in the pork roast.  Pack it in well, allowing any overage to spill out onto the baking pan.  Cover front side where stuffing is with a piece of foil to prevent over-browning during cooking (removed when nearly done).  Pop into 350º oven and bake for about 1-1¼ hours, or to internal temperature of 160º.  I used my convection setting, so my roast only took around 45 minutes to get done.  Remove from oven and serve in baking dish or remove to a platter carefully.  I added a couple tablespoons of water to the pan to de-glaze the tasty brown bits to make a thin natural gravy but this is not necessary.  I’m just a gravy nut.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:   Makes 4 servings, each contains:

492 cals., 34g fat, 3.5g carbs, 1.25g fiber, 2.25g NET CARBS, 41.3g protein, 504mg sodium

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Chipotle-Guajillo Baked Chicken

Yum!!!!!

It’s what’s for dinner tonight!  This simple baked chicken recipe delicious and a wonderful choice when you don’t feel much like cooking. Those are the nights I tend to bake chicken as simply as possible.  The seasoning flavor profile is subtle here and once you try it, you’ll be baking this bird again.  I usually serve this tasty dish with an avocado/green salad and ½ roasted sweet potato.  This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins, Keto diets and also for Paleo-Primal diners.  Clarify the butter if you follow a Paleo diet.

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own set of Jennifer Eloff and friends’ latest cookbooks LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS. She has collaborated with famed low-carb Chef George Stella and several other talented chefs to bring you a myriad of delicious recipes you are going to want in your collection. Even a few of my recipes are there! Order your set of cookbooks (also available individually) TODAY from Amazon or here: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

If you’ve already purchased a copy, I sure would appreciate your taking a moment to stop by and leave a review of any recipe you’ve tried:  https://www.amazon.com/Atkins-friendly-Wheat-free-Sugar-free-Gluten-free-Cookbooks/dp/099829974X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1523112817&sr=1-1&keywords=Low-Carbing+Among+Friends+Volume-8

INGREDIENTS:

1 whole chicken, butterflied

4 T. unsalted butter, melted

½ tsp. guajillo chile powder (or 1 seeded, ground whole dried guajillo chile)

¼ tsp. smoky chipotle powder (or 1 rinsed, seeded & mashed/minced canned chipotle in adobo sauce)

¼ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. onion powder

Dash of salt

DIRECTIONS:  Preheat oven to 450º.  Cut up the back of the chicken (butterfly or spatchcock).  Melt the butter in your baking pan (I prefer metal pans for roasting meats) and brush over all chicken surfaces.  Mix the spices in a small saucer or paper plate and sprinkle over the chicken.  Sprinkle with a dash of salt to facilitate browning.  Pop pan in the oven and in 15 minutes, take it out.  Using a brush, baste the chicken with the melted butter.  Return to the oven and bake at 450º for around 20 minutes.  Remove and lower heat to 350º.  Baste again with buttery pan juices and return to hot oven.  Bake an additional 30 minutes or until a meat thermometer stuck into the leg/thigh joint and breast reads internal temp of 170º.  Baste one last time with pan juices and serve with a nice guacamole or green salad and/or your favorite, low-carb vegetable(s).

NUTRITIONAL INFO:  I will provide the nutritional info for 1/10th of the basting marinade as I get 10 pieces of chicken from a whole bird.  Bear in mind the pan juices are not all consumed, but there is no other way to break this down as it is dependent upon how much of those you actually eat.  You will need to add in the info for the specific piece(s) of chicken eaten.

Makes 8-10 servings; One serving contains: (does not include the particular pieces of chicken each person eats.  Add meat values to these baste numbers)

46.3 cals, 5.1g fat, 0.31g carbs, 0.08g fiber, 0.23g NET CARBS (sauce alone), 0.07g protein, trace sodium

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