Nacho Bean “Soft Tacos”

This idea was inspired by my love of Mexican food and by my tasty Mozzy Dough recipe.  I wanted to see if I could cut the carbs on the Mozzy Dough and tried pork rinds in place of the “flours” in that recipe.  I melted a little less shredded cheese and also chose Cheddar instead of Mozzarella.  You could probably use Monterey Jack cheese if available.  These remind me of both nachos and soft tacos, just without any meat.

Well, the verdict is I couldn’t taste the pork rind flour as such.  The chili powder took care of that issue.  These were also less bread-like than my Mozzy dough.  The “wrap” is soft yet substantial enough to pick up and eat with your hands.  This is not at all crisp like a taco shell…more like a soft taco.  If you prefer a crisp/taco quality, you are going to want to make a different wrap, the classic, crispy, all-cheese oven-baked low carb “taco” shells and recalculate the numbers below. These are great for snacking and great for party finger food as well.

Boy, oh, boy, were these ever good!  Ended up the jalapeno pepper I used was too hot for me and I had to pull some of it off mine, but this was a nice snack served warm.  You should be able to reheat these quite nicely, too.  This recipe is not suitable until you reach Atkins Phase 2 and are at the legumes rung of the carb-reintroduction ladder in that phase.

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, by Jennifer Eloff, Chef George Stella of Food Network fame, and myself, is almost exclusively comprised of my recipes with some new creations by Chef George Stella and Jennifer Eloff.  Order your copy (or any of our  cookbooks) from Amazon  or our direct order site: amongfriends.us/order.php.

INGREDIENTS:

1½ c. shredded Cheddar cheese

2 T. cream cheese

1 egg, beaten

1½ c. pork rind flour (about 2 c. crushed)

½ tsp. chili powder or Taco seasoning

2/3 c. canned refried pinto beans

¼ c. Monterey Jack Cheese

1 medium jalapeno, seeded and sliced into very thin rounds

VARIATION:  Add 1 T. taco-seasoned browned ground beef atop the beans before finishing construction.

DIRECTIONS:   Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.  Preheat oven to 375º.  In your microwave, melt the Cheddar cheese, cream cheese and chili powder in a glass bowl for about 1 minute on HI.  When fully melted, remove and stir once.  Add the beaten egg and pork rind flour.  If you don’t eat pork rinds, you could sub in some low-carb bake mix instead.  (Be sure to re-calculate the stats if you do, as they will be HIGHER IN CARBS with that change. The only way I can afford any beans is by using 0-carb pork rinds.)  Quickly stir together vigorously with a fork until ingredients appear to be uniformly distributed and it forms a uniform ball of dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl.  Divide into 10 equal portions, slightly roll into a ball and with fingers, press onto parchment in 2″ circles that should be slightly thinner than 1/4″. If sticky to work with, dampen your fingers with a bit of water.

Pop into 375º oven for about 7 minutes or until dry in the center to your finger touch.  Remove from oven and spoon 1 T. beans onto each dough round.  Spread beans out a bit but not all the way to the edges of the dough circles.  Carefully do this as the dough is still very soft and not fully cooked.  Place 2 slices of jalapeno on each one (or 1 if you don’t like things spicy).  Garnish each dough round with about 1 tsp. Jack cheese.  Pop pan back into oven and bake these for about 10 minutes more or until beans have had a chance to warm up and the Jack cheese is melted.  Remove from oven and fold them in half.  Press slightly in middle so they will stay folded.  Serve warm.  I suspect these would reheat nicely in your oven set at 350º.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:  Makes 10, each “soft taco” contains:

126 calories, 10.96 g fat, 3.85 g carbs, 0.99 g fiber, 2.86 g NET CARBS, 8.95 g protein, 353 mg sodium

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Turkish Pide (pronounced pee-day)

Although a traditional Turkish treat, they make something similar to this meat-filled flatbread in several Middle Eastern countries.  The seasoning used varies from country to country.  This dish is often served at Ramadan when the feasting begins.  Classically, it is made with wholewheat flatbread dough, but mine is made with my Mozzy Dough to keep it lower-carb.  I just chose spices and herbs reminiscent of our days in Teheran, as my Mom didn’t bring a recipe for this dish back to The States.   The chosen seasonings here are typical of many Middle Eastern recipes.  My husband ranted about this at lunch today! 

This recipe is not suitable for Atkins Induction as the dough has a small amount of flour product in it (Carbquik).   Although this is a main course, it can be served in smaller portions as a pizza-like snack.  It is substantial enough to require a plate, fork and knife to eat, however.

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, by Jennifer Eloff, Chef George Stella of Food Network fame, and myself, is almost exclusively comprised of my recipes with some new creations by Chef George Stella and Jennifer Eloff.  Order your copy (or any of our  cookbooks) from Amazon  or our direct order site: amongfriends.us/order.php.

INGREDIENTS:

½ recipe my Mozzy Dough

8 oz. lean ground beef (or lamb, for more authentic version)

2 oz. onion, finely chopped

15 cherry tomatoes (or San Marzano minis), chopped

3/4 c. parsley, chopped

¼ tsp. each: dried mint, dried fenugreek leaves, my Baharat Spice Blend

¼ tsp. each salt and coarse black pepper

DIRECTIONS:  Make the Mozzy Dough per that recipe’s instructions, reserving half the dough for another use.  It freezes well in a plastic baggie.  Roll the dough into a fat canoe shape about 12″ x 7″ on a parchment lined sheet pan.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 375º.  Brown the beef (or lamb) in a skillet with the onion.  Add the parsley and all seasonings listed above.  Cook over medium-high heat for a few minutes to tenderize the onions.  Remove and spoon evenly into the “canoe” of dough, leaving a good inch of dough free of filling.  Sprinkle the chopped tomatoes on top.  Fold the uncovered dough up over the meat to create the sides of the “canoe”, pinching the pointed ends together with your fingers to help maintain the “canoe” shape.  Traditionally, they sprinkle sesame seeds on the sides of the “canoe” dough before baking but I did not, as the hubs isn’t fond of seeds on/in breads.    Pop into 375º oven for about 20-25 minutes or until begins to brown.  Remove from oven and cut into four equal portions.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:    Makes 4 servings, each contains:

316 calories, 23.5g fat, 12.17g carbs, 6.2g fiber, 5.97g NET CARBS, 24.424 g protein, 476mg sodium

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Spicy Onion Rings

 

Spicy Onion Rings

I am not so wild about onion rings, but my husband just LOVES them!  These are oven-baked instead of fried, so no greasy mess on the stove.  They came out very tasty, but not consistently as hand-holdable as batter-fried rings.  No surprise there.   But the coating does brown nicely and is very crunchy.  Just so you know, only the smallest diameter rings cut from the ends of the onion can be picked up by hand and eaten from hand.  I place the larger ones onto my plate and use a fork to eat the big ones.  These tasty rings are Induction friendly, too!

More delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own set of Jennifer Eloff and friends’ best-selling cookbooks LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS.  She has collaborated with famous low-carb Chef George Stella and several other talented cooks to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try.  Even a few of my recipes are in the cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (also available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

8 oz. onion cut into ½” rings

2 oz. plain pork rinds, crushed very fine

3/4 tsp. my Seafood Spice Blend

4 T. my homemade mayo

DIRECTIONS:  Preheat oven to 450º.  You will need a large, preferably non-stick baking sheet to bake these.  Slice onion and separate rings until you have 8 oz.  That’s about 16 medium ½” rings.  Parboil for 1 minute in boiling water and lift out onto paper towels to totally dry. Crush pork rinds very fine in processor, blender or by hand.  Remove any larger, hard bits that are invariably in pork rinds when you crush them.  Mix spice into crushed rinds in a small bowl.  In a shallow dish or pie plate, pour the 4T. mayo.    Slowly dip an onion ring into the mayo, coating the outside and the inside (with your finger if necessary.  Then drop them into the pork rinds and coat well outside and inside.  Lay each onto the baking sheet.     Repeat until all rings have been coated.  Pop into 450º oven for about 25 minutes.  They tend to brown more and faster on the bottom where they touch the pan, so you may want to turn them over at the 15 minute mark.  Not much grease so no draining necessary.  Lift onto serving platter and ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO:   Makes 4 servings of 2 0z. each.  Each serving contains:

196 cals., 15.6g fat, 5.1g carbs, 0.53g fiber, 4.57g  NET CARBS, 9.5 g  protein, 271 mg sodium

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San Marzano Tomato Focaccia

This was what we had for lunch today as I didn’t really feel like a full-blown pizza with a lot of toppings.  I had a bag of San Marzano tomatoes to use up quickly as my husband bought a ginormous box of cherry tomatoes at Sam’s the very next day, not realizing I had just bought the San Marzanos the day before.  Another great use of my Mozzy Dough.  I’m having so much fun trialing new applications for this dough.  TIP:  I’m making up 10 batches of the dry ingredients pre-measured on paper plates.  Then I fold and pour each into a sandwich bag and store the bags in a shoe box in my pantry.  Very convenient…..as then all I have to do is grab a bag, melt the butter, add the beaten egg, melt the cheese and make my dough ball.  So easy that way.  I store the paper plates and baggies and re-use for the next batch. 🙂 

Boy, was this focaccia ever simple to make and delicious!  I made mine fairly thin.  If you like focaccia thicker, make a smaller sheet (using fewer tomatoes, of course) and you’ll have to recalculate the nutritional info doing that change.  Mine was plenty thick to pick up and eat with our hands though.  🙂  This recipe is not suitable until you get to Phase 2 grains reintroduction level of Atkins as the Carbquik has some flour in it.

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, Volume 8, by Jennifer Eloff, Chef George Stella of Food Network fame, and myself.  Volume 8 is almost completely comprised of my recipes! Chef George Stella and Jennifer Eloff are also including several tasty new delights in Vol.  8! Order yours (or any of our earlier cookbooks) from Amazon  or our direct order site: amongfriends.us/order.php.  Remember, they make GREAT birthday or holiday gifts!  If you’ve already purchased a book, the team would appreciate it if you would please take a moment and drop by the our Amazon page to leave your personal review.  🙂

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe my Mozzy Dough

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

25-27 San Marzano mini tomatoes (I used entire 10 oz. bag)

1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

¼ shredded Parmesan cheese

2 cloves garlic, chopped fine

½ tsp. dried basil (or 1 T. fresh basil chopped)

¼ tsp. dried oregano

DIRECTIONS:  Preheat oven to 350º.  Make the Mozzy Dough per that recipe’s instructions.  Line a baking sheet with parchment and press the ball of dough out to a 9″x12″ rectangle.  With a brush baste the dough with half the olive oil.  Sprinkle the chopped garlic evenly over the top and press it down a bit.  Now sprinkle 1/2 c. mozzarella over the crust evenly.  Slice the tomatoes lengthwise into halves and place skin-side down evenly over the top of the focaccia sheet.  Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella on next and then the shredded Parmesan.  Sprinkle on the basil and oregano last.  Pop into oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until the dough is browning on the edges and the tomatoes are looking cooked on top.  Serve with a nice green salad.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:    Makes 12 3″x3″ squares of focaccia, each square contains.

190 calories, 15 g fat, 6.88 g carbs, 3.61 g fiber, 3.27 g NET CARBS, 12.6 g protein, 276 mg sodium

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Jack Snack Nachos

My extremely popular recipe for Jack Snacks (millions of fans on Facebook)  I have just taken to a new level.  Last night my husband asked for some and begged me to put just a few refried beans on top this time.  So I did the nutritional math for a tiny bit of those added and the damage wasn’t as bad as I thought:  3.45 net carbs per piece (original version w/o beans is .08 NC per piece), but definitely higher than the inspirational recipe.

These were VERY good and I felt like I was eating a real Texas-style nacho.  I baked them  in two stages and let them get crisper than I usually do so they might get crisp enough for the final nachos to be manageable in our hands.  That surprised me as I thought the moisture in the beans might make them a bit soggy and require a fork to eat them.  But that didn’t turn out to be the case.  These are not suitable until you reach the legumes rung of Atkins Phase 2 carb reintroduction ladder.  Keto folks can have these if the numbers fit your daily limits.  These are not suitable for Paleo or Primal due to the beans.

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, Volume 8, by Jennifer Eloff, Chef George Stella of Food Network fame, and myself.  Volume 8 is almost completely comprised of my recipes! Chef George Stella and Jennifer Eloff are also including several tasty new delights in Vol.  8! Order yours (or any of our earlier cookbooks) from Amazon  or our direct order site: amongfriends.us/order.php.  Remember, they make GREAT birthday or holiday gifts!  If you’ve already purchased a book, the team would appreciate it if you would please take a moment and drop by the our Amazon page to leave your personal review.  🙂

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe my Jack Snacks

½ c. canned refried beans, warmed a bit in the microwave for a minute or so

1/3 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:  Preheat oven to 375º.  Per the Jack Snack recipe, place 1 T. of the shredded Monterrey Jack cheese on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  A total o f 16 little piles should be formed equally spaced apart.  Pop into the hot oven and bake about 10-15 minutes or until golden on top and around the edges.  Remove pan and dot each cheese portion with about ½-3/4 tsp. of the warm beans.  I used a tiny demi-tasse spoon to dip these up for portion control.  Do not spread the beans out lest the cheese bases get soggy!  Lay the jalapeno slice on top of each and sprinkle the 1/3 c. shredded Cheddar on top.  Pop back into oven and bake until the Cheddar has melted or about 7-10 minutes longer.  Remove from oven and cool a minute or so so the bases can form/crisp up for removing.  Serve and enjoy!

NUTRITIONAL INFO:   Makes 16 nachos, each contains:

45 calories, 3.3 g fat, 3.73 g carbs, 0.59 g fiber, 3.45 g NET CARBS, 1 g protein, 107 mg sodium

 

 

 

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Silver Dollar Pizzas

When I was growing up my mother used to make us tiny pancakes she called Silver Dollar Pancakes, served up in a “Leaning Tower of Piza” stack.  My brother and I LOVED THEM!    They were just regular old pancakes made about 2½” round, but it got us excited about eating them when we were little.  Well, I made some real tiny pizzas in my muffin-top pan today and decided that would be a perfect name for these tasty  pizza bites.  I used my new Mozzy Dough, which held up nicely for eating with fingers.  They made a great lunch and they would make great party appetizers!   These delicious little gems are not suitable until you get fairly well into Phase 2 Atkins, as there is a little wheat product in Carbquik bake mix (in the dough).

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, Volume 8, by Jennifer Eloff, Chef George Stella of Food Network fame, and myself.  Volume 8 is almost completely comprised of my recipes! But George Stella and Jennifer Eloff are also including several tasty new delights to try in this latest Volume 8! You’ll LOVE these delicious recipes, so order yours (Volume 8 or ANY of our cookbooks) from Amazon  or our direct order site: amongfriends.us/order.php.  For a limited time, there is free shipping if you order 2 or more cookbooks on the same order.  Remember, they make GREAT birthday or holiday gifts!  If you’ve already purchased a book, take a moment and drop by the our Amazon page and  leave your personal review on the latest book.  Inquiring minds want to know. 🙂

INGREDIENTS:

½ recipe my Mozzy Dough

¼ c. Classico Spaghetti Sauce (Tomato & Basil) or other low-carb sauce

1/4 tsp. dried oregano leaves, crushed

12 slices pepperoni

12 black olives, sliced into 3 slices each

1 oz. green bell pepper, sliced into 12 thin pieces

½ c. shredded mozzarella cheese

3 T. shredded Parmesan

DIRECTIONS:  Preheat oven to 350º.  Make the Mozzy Dough per that recipe’s instructions.   Divide in half and wrap/store half for some other use.  Divide the half you are using into 12 equal balls (that’s about 1½ T. each ball of dough).  I used a non-stick muffin-top pan, but you could alternately use the bottom of non-stick muffin pan slots or a parchment-lined baking sheet if you don’t own a muffin-top pan.  Place a ball of dough into each of the 12 pan slots and press flat into a 2½” circle.  Top each with 1 tsp. of spaghetti sauce.  Sprinkle on the oregano.  Next place a slice of pepperoni on top of each Pizza.  Then place 3 slices of olive on each, followed by 3 pieces of bell pepper.  Finally, top each pizza with 1-2 tsp. mozzarella shreds, ending with a sprinkle of the Parmesan shreds.  Pop into 250º oven for 15 minutes or until lightly browning on the edges.  Remove, plate and serve warm.  These can be handled with your fingers, so the youngest kiddoes will love these and be able to eat them without dropping a bit on the floor or their lap.  Of course, they may have never seen a real silver dollar and wonder about the name.  Silver Dollars are rarely seen nowadays.  Perhaps you have one you can show them?

NUTRITIONAL INFO:     Makes 12 Silver Dollar Pizzas, each contains:

98.3 calories, 7.85 g fat, 3.32 g carbs, 1.83 g fiber, 1.49 g NET CARBS, 6.44 g protein, 231 mg sodium

 

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Cheese Puffs

I decided to modify my Cheese Thin Buns recipe by adding some Carbquik to the ingredient line-up.   What a marvelous change that makes!  These tasty little snacks are less than 1 net carb per puff!  We both love snacking on cheese bread, but that isn’t exactly on a low-carb diet.  This is my answer to a late night snack that is suitable on a very low-carb diet.  These are easy to make and I’m certain they’ll be a hit with your family.  If you don’t like things spicy, omit the cayenne; if you do like things spicy, you may even want to increase the amount of cayenne!  🙂  These are suitable once you get to the end of Phase 2 Atkins.

Many more delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, Volume 8, by Jennifer Eloff, Chef George Stella of Food Network fame, and myself.  Volume 8 is almost completely comprised of my recipes! But George Stella and Jennifer Eloff are also including several tasty new delights to try in this latest Volume 8! You’ll LOVE these delicious recipes, so order yours (Volume 8 or ANY of our cookbooks) from Amazon  or our direct order site: amongfriends.us/order.php.  For a limited time, there is free shipping if you order 2 or more cookbooks on the same order.  Remember, they make GREAT birthday or holiday gifts!  If you’ve already purchased a book, take a moment and drop by the our Amazon page and  leave your personal review on the latest book.  Inquiring minds want to know. 🙂

INGREDIENTS:

3 eggs, beaten

½ c. water

2 T. olive oil

2 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

1 T. + 1 tsp. glucomannan powder (there is no substitute for this)

¼ c. whey protein powder (plain, unsweetened)

1 T. (3 tsp) baking powder

¼ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. onion powder

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper (optional but greatly enhanced the flavor layers)

1/8 tsp. sea salt

1 c. Carbquik (use gluten-free bake mix for a gluten-free version)

DIRECTIONS:  Preheat oven to 350º.  Measure out the dry ingredients in a small mixing bowl and stir well to evenly mix.  In a separate medium mixing bowl, beat the wet ingredients with an electric mixer or whisk.  While you are whisking the egg mixture, slowly add in the dry ingredients until all is well blended into a batter resembling pancake batter.  Stir in the cheese and mix it well.  Let the dough stand a few minutes as it will thicken/stiffen up a bit.

I used a non-stick mini-muffin pan.  The cheese will bleed out some oil, so you shouldn’t have to oil a non-stick pan.  But if yours is NOT non-stick, oil the cups of your mini-muffin pan lightly with a brush.  Using a measuring spoon, put 1 level tablespoon of batter into each cup raking it out with a finger to get it all.  Will make exactly 34 muffins, so a second baking will be necessary unless you own two mini-muffin pans.  Pop into 350º oven and bake for 17 minutes or until browning on top.  We found browning enhances flavor, so you may want to even bake yours a bit longer.  Remove from oven and cool a couple minutes.  If cooled a bit, they will come out of the pans with a knife tip’s help without tearing apart.  If removed too hot, you are going to tear them up.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:    Makes 34 Cheese Puffs, each contains:

50.6 cals., 4.52 g fat, 2.13 g carbs, 1.43 g fiber, 0.70 g NET CARBS, 3.06 g protein, 138 mg sodium

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