Jul 21 2017

Banana-Peanut Butter “Twinkies”

Banana-Peanut Butter “Twinkies”®

One of my Mom’s favorite afternoon snacks for us when I was growing up was a banana sandwich with a smear of peanut butter on it. Well, I took that flavor to a new medium……….a banana muffin batter. These were tasty beyond words. A little carb-y, so they are not for regular consumption. But they are a tasty treat once in a rare while. 🙂 These are not suitable until you have reached the high-carb fruits level of the Atkins carb reintroduction ladder, nearer to maintenance. These are too high carb for most Keto followers, but those at goal weight might indulge. Totally not suitable for Primal-Paleo folks.

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. Several of my own creations appear in each of the 5 volumes! Order your set TODAY! (also available individually) from Amazon or our direct order site: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe my Banana Muffin batter

1 ripe banana, mashed

2 T. natural peanut butter (I use Laura Scudder)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Lightly grease a non-stick Twinkie® pan (or use a regular muffin pan if you don’t have a Twinkie® pan). Make the recipe of banana muffin batter in a medium bowl. Stir until smooth. Spoon into the 12 slots of the pan equally (will be quite full as they don’t rise much). Bake at 350º for about 22-25 minutes. I’m still learning to use a new oven in a new house so these came out a little browner than I like, but the oven performed pretty well for me. Remove when firm to the touch and cool off. Slice in half and set aside. Stir the mashed whole banana and peanut butter together until well-blended. Makes 3/4 c. filling or exactly 12 tablespoons. Fill each “Twinkie”® with 1 T. of the filling, spreading somewhat evenly. You can, if you prefer, just “frost” the Twinkies® on the tops if this is easier. 🙂 ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 12, each contains:

244.7 calories, 19.76 g fat, 13.15 g carbs, 4.29 g fiber, 8.86 g NET CARBS, 6.83 g protein

Jul 12 2017

Ranch® Buttermilk Salad Dressing (or dip)

Ranch Buttermilk Dressing

Ranch Dip for Veggie Trays

I finally came up with a low-carb version of Ranch® Dressing for my husband, who just loves it on salads. I think my version tastes better than what is sold in the bottle (which I actually don’t like). No unhealthy ingredients in mine, either.

I’m not too fond of dill, so I tend to reduce it in most recipes. But my husband LOVES dill and likes more in recipes, thus the range of dill shown in the Ranch® Powder recipe linked below. I basically used equal amounts of the herbs I selected except the dill and thyme. A tablespoon of thyme would have been waaaaay too much! This dressing is super yummy! Try it and see if you don’t agree it’s even better than the famous bottled stuff! As you well know, this also makes an excellent dip for raw vegetable party trays. All you have to do for the dip is increase the sour cream to make it thicker. You’ll have to recalculate carbs to add in the extra sour cream. This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins and Keto diets.

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

DISCLAIMER: I do not get paid for this book promotion or for the inclusion of my recipes therein. I do so merely because they are GREAT cookbooks any low-carb cook would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

1 c. homemade mayonnaise

3/4 c. sour cream (add ¼ c. more if using as a veggie dip)

¼ c. buttermilk (only 2 T. if using as a veggie dip)

1 T. my Ranch Dressing Powder Blend

2 tsp. red wine vinegar

1/8 tsp. salt

OPTIONAL: 1/8 tsp. glucomannan powder if you like a thicker dressing

DIRECTIONS: Measure the first 3 ingredients into a medium bowl. Whisk well to blend to a smooth mixture. Add my Ranch Dressing Powder Blend, vinegar and salt and whisk a couple minutes until the herb mixture is thoroughly blended in. If using the glucomannan thickener, whisk it in last. Transfer to a saved empty plastic dressing bottle (I always keep and wash them for homemade dressings) if you have one, or a lidded jar. Close tightly and chill. Serve on crisp green salads or as a dip for raw veggies.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes two cups or eight ¼ c. servings, each contains:

251 calories, 26.8 g fat, 1.81 g carbs, 0.1 g fiber, 1.71 g NET CARBS, 1.72 g protein, 66 mg sodium

May 29 2017

Einkorn Tuna Pimiento Cheese Muffins

Tuna is always in my pantry, so I reached for some to make lunch today. These two-bite mini-muffins I created today, honestly……..my husband had trouble stopping at SIX of them! But he’s a big eater. I stopped at four. 🙂 These go together fast and only took 13 minutes to bake. I highly recommend slightly cooling before attempting to loosen them from even a non-stick pan, as baked egg tends to stick to whatever pan you use. I’ve not had good luck baking tuna items in silicone pans. Tuna likes browning. I used a 24 ct. metal pan to bake these. This recipe is not suitable until Phase 2 Atkins when you are nearing maintenance, due to the Einkorn Bake Mix. You can lower the carb count per muffin even more using a lower carb bake mix than mine, which has Einkorn Flour in it. But the count is already pretty darn low in my opinion. Those still in the initial 2-week Induction Phase of Atkins need to eliminate the bake mix entirely and increase the eggs to about 6. The muffins will naturally have a different, and somewhat eggier texture than mine here, but should taste about the same. These should freeze nicely for about a month. If you do the Induction version, adding 1-2 T. flax meal to that variation would add a little firmer structure to them.

Many delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, by Jennifer Eloff and low-carb friends (me included). Chef George Stella also brings to the table a wealth of delicious recipes added to the collection! You’ll LOVE these recipes! Order your copy today from Amazon or our direct order site: amongfriends.us/order.php.

INGREDIENTS:

4 beaten eggs

3 small pouches (7.8 oz. total) water-pack tuna

1½ c. my Einkorn Bake Mix

3/4 tsp. my Seafood Spice Blend

¼ tsp. sea salt

1 lg. 4-0z. jar chopped pimiento, drained

1 lg. green onion, chopped fine

2 2/3 slices American Deluxe or Cheddar cheese, 2 cut into 9 squares, 1 cut into 6 squares

VARIATION: Add a few drops of Tobasco or a few shakes of cayenne pepper to the batter for a spicier muffin.

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Beat the eggs in a medium bowl. Add all other ingredients but the cheese. Oil 24 slots of a mini-muffin pan. Using a 2 T. scoop, add one level scoop to each slot. They will be nearly full and there should be just enough batter for 24. Place 1 square of cheese atop each and push it down slightly into the batter. Pop into hot 350º oven. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until they puff up and the cheese just begins to brown on top. Remove and cool slightly. If you try to remove while too hot, they will tear up on you. Gently loosen with a knife tip or fork and enjoy. A modest serving would be 4 mini-muffins. A big eater will want 6 of these minis.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 24 muffins, each contains:

22 calories, 0.9 g fat, 0.35 g carbs, 0.08 g fiber, 0.27 g NET CARBS, 3.22 g protein, 74 mg sodium

Feb 28 2017

“Ravioli” Bites

Here is an exciting and delicious way to use my incredible glucomannan dumpling dough! Man, are these ever good, and for only 1.28 net carbs per bite! Can’t beat that. Picture a platter full of these for Super Bowl next year! And guilt free! Very similar to Totino’s Pizza Rolls in taste but even better! The cooking is a two-step process, but necessary for the dough to fully cook all the way through. These are suitable for all phases of Atkins and Keto diets. Omit the bit of flour, subbing in oat flour (slightly higher carbs), and these are suitable for Primal-Paleo as well! An added note, I reheated the leftovers in the oven for lunch today (350º for 15 minutes) and they were GREAT! I suspect these would freeze nicely, too, as the dumpling dough has proven, after simmering in sauces, to freeze well.

INGREDIENTS:

2 recipes my Peggy’s Original Dumplings dough

2 T. finely grated Parmesan cheese

2 T. total Einkorn flour or oat flour (from certified gluten-free oats if required)

1 tsp. olive oil

6 oz. Italian sausage, cut into 3/8″ slices

½ c. low-carb spaghetti sauce (I use Lucini or Classico Italian)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Make the double batch of dumpling dough (adding the Parmesan and 1 T. of the flour to the dry ingredients) per that recipe’s instructions. When the dough has firmed up nicely, divide into eighteen equal balls around 1½” round. Dust the counter with the remaining flour and pat your fingers in it frequently to keep them from getting sticky as you pat/work each ball of dough into a small 2″ round on your fingers. You’re not looking for perfection here. This soft dough is very difficult to roll, so I just do this in my hands. Again, keep touching the flour with your fingers and patting onto the dough surface as you work so your fingers don’t get sticky as you work. Place a slice of sausage on one side of each circle of dough, fold the other side on top and very gently press the edges together to close it up. Repeat for all 18 ravioli. Set on counter or paper towel. When all 18 are made, heat oil on griddle and brown each side lightly. With tongs, gently lift them onto a parchment lined pan and pop into 350º oven for about 5-10 minutes to finish baking and browning. Remove and serve with a cup of your favorite low-carb spaghetti sauce for a light dip. ENJOY!

VARIATION: Use pepperoni slices instead of the sausage. Alternately, you can take the finished raviolis after griddle searing and just pop them into a huge pot of your favorite marinara sauce and eat them more like traditional ravioli is served. You could also, after baking, pour some of my Pink Cream Sauce over them and garnish with parsley. BE CREATIVE with sauces!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 18 “ravioli”, each contains:

43 calories, 3.06 g fat, 3.15 g carbs, 1.87 g fiber, 1.28 g NET CARBS, 2.57 g protein, 188 mg sodium

Feb 26 2017

Tuna Cheesies

I’ve been making these creamy, cheesie goodies for probably 20 years or more. My husband just LOVES these things so I made a pan of them for our lunch yesterday. Mmmm, I forget how good these are. The inspirational recipe I found years ago in a newspaper used saltine crackers. My low-carb version here uses my Almond-Flax crackers. You could alternately use baked low-carb flour tortilla wedges or baked, low-carb pita bread wedges. This time I cut my almond cracker recipe into 12 oblong larger rectangles as shown above (instead of my usual 48 small square crackers for the cracker recipe). These tasty treats are suitable once you get to Atkins Phase 2. They are OK for Keto dieters if they fit your daily macro limits.

INGREDIENTS:

½ recipe my Almond Flax Crackers (or 24 pre-baked low-carb crackers/chips of choice)

1 6-oz foil pouch tuna (or a 5 oz. can, drained)

1 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

2 slices Kraft American Deluxe cheese, shredded

3 T. homemade mayo (or soft butter)

2-3 shakes cayenne pepper (more if you like things “hot”)

4-5 drops Worcestershire sauce

1/8 tsp. onion powder

VARIATION: Add a bit of chopped green onion.

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. As to making the cracker base for these, I tend to mix up a whole recipe of the cracker dough and shape it on the baking sheet into two rectangles, one on each end, not quite all the way to the edges of the pan, with a slight separation between them. I use half the cracker recipe for these Tuna Cheesies and save the other rectangle to cut into plain crackers to have on hand for other uses. Or if you’re having a party, you could double the topping ingredients and use the entire recipe of crackers for a total of 48 Tuna Cheesies. They disappear fast, so make the batch of 48 for a party! 🙂

Prepare and bake the crackers by that recipe’s instructions at 350º. Cool slightly on the pan. If you made the full recipe of crackers, but only want 12 or 24 portions, store the rest of the crackers in a lidded container on your kitchen counter for up to 2 weeks.

While the crackers are baking, mix the tuna-cheese topping in a bowl. When crackers are cooled and cut into the number you want, spread tuna-cheese mixture on top. Pop back into the oven for about 5-10 minutes longer to melt the cheesy topping nicely. Remove from the oven and enjoy! Serve warm. Often for parties, I’ll make two pans of 24 each, waiting untilt he first pan has been wolfed down by guests before popping the second pan in the oven. They are definitely better hot so the cheese is gooey. 🙂

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 12 rectangular Tuna Cheesies, each contains:

147 calories, 11.83 g fat, 3.5 g carbs, 2.01 g fiber, 1.49 g NET CARBS, 7.9 g protein, 203 mg sodium

NOTE: If crackers cut into 48 squares and you use 24 for this recipe, divide the nutritional numbers above for by 2 to get the per serving numbers for each smaller square.

Feb 24 2017

Spicy Cheese Thins

This recipe is a variation of an Almond Thin cracker recipe posted on Low Carb Friends forums. It was originally posted there by a member known as Miredkitty, but am not sure if it is in fact Miredkitty’s own recipe. It has been tweaked by so many good cooks they have come up with a ton of wonderful savory and sweet variations.

I took the basic almond flour thins recipe, doubled it, omitted the Splenda and then added cheese and one of my favorite seasoning combinations to come up with a spicy little snack cracker reminiscent of Cheez-its or Pepperidge Farm Goldfish. These are very thin and VERY crispy if you allow them to brown a bit! They are good alone or they are delicious with soup! You can eat five of these crackers for under 2 net carbs!! My kind of cracker! These are not suitable until you get to the nuts and seeds rung of the Atkins OWL ladder.

VARIATION: For an even cheesier taste, you can add 2 T. Nutritional Yeast to the dry ingredients when mixing the dough. 🙂

You can have many more delicious cracker and snack recipes to serve your guests with your very own copy of LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, a collection of recipes by International author Jennifer Eloff and some other VERY talented low-carb cooks, including George Stella, well-known to the low-carb community. Open the link to see a lovely sampling of what awaits you in these cookbooks. You can order the 5-volume set or individual volumes at Amazon or here.

INGREDIENTS:

2 c. almond flour

2 egg whites from large eggs

¼ tsp. onion powder

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional) [use more if you like)

1/8 tsp. chili powder

1 c. grated Cheddar cheese (more if you want them cheesier)

¼ tsp. salt (optional)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 325º. Cut parchment paper to fit exactly the bottom of an 11″ x 16½” sheet pan. Just set the paper on your kitchen counter for now. Mix almond flour and seasonings in a bowl. Add egg whites and stir with a fork. Add cheese and continue stirring until it forms a moist dough. Spoon (or crumble with your hands) the dough evenly onto parchment working from the center out. Cover the dough blobs with a sprayed/oiled sheet of waxed paper the same size. Using a rolling pin, roll dough into a single, smooth rectangular sheet of dough the size of the parchment. Be careful to not let the dough exceed the piece of parchment paper. If it does, put those bits back into the sheet and roll smooth again. You definitely want this dough to go all the way to the edges of the parchment paper so the crackers will be thin enough to be crisp.

Slowly and carefully lift off the waxed paper. Use the tip of a pointed knife to lift up two corners and with your hands, applying tension to keep the sheet stiff, carefully lift parchment, dough and all onto the baking sheet. If you cut it the right size, it should sit right down on the bottom nicely. Using your sharp knife, carefully (and gently since the dough is fragile) score the dough into cracker shapes (8 x 10, making 80 crackers total). Pop into your preheated 325º oven and bake for about 10-11 minutes or until lightly browned. The outer rows brown faster, so you will likely need to remove outer rows as soon as they are browned so those don’t get over-browned while the center ones finish cooking. Cool a few minutes and separate into separate crackers along your score lines. Store in an airtight container or ziploc bag. NOTE: If these lose their crispness on day 2 or 3 (due to high oil content of cheddar cheese) re-crisp on a baking sheet in a 325º in the oven for about 10 minutes.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 80 crackers, each cracker contains: (using 1 c. cheese only)

23.5 calories, 1.98 g fat, .64 g carbs, .3 g fiber, .34 g NET CARBS, 1.12 g protein, 20.4 mg sodium

Feb 1 2017

Eggplant Focaccia

This is a fairly easy dish to throw together and it is quite tasty. Any leftovers can be reincarnated the next day by adding some browned Italian sausage and mushrooms or some super thin slices of green pepper and seeded tomato. My husband is a hearty eater and had 3 slices. It took only 2 to satisfy me. Not suitable until Atkins Phase 2 OWL unless you use a different, Induction-friendly bread instead of the bread mentioned below. I added 2 sausage patties to the focaccia pictured above, because that’s what I had cooked, leftover in the fridge. Next time I’ll use 4 patties. If you add sausage, be sure to add that to the nutritional info shown below.

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

1 batch of Artisan Flat Bread (use Jen Eloff’s Gluten-Free mix in this bread for gluten-free version)

8 oz. unpeeled, eggplant (sliced thin, about 1/8″-¼” thick)

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

1 T. chopped fresh rosemary

¼ tsp. crushed dried oregano

Pinch each onion powder and garlic powder

3 oz. Havarti, Emmentaler, Swiss or Jack cheese, shredded

1 oz. Parmesan cheese for final topping

VARIATION: Add a little cooked crumbled pork or Italian sausage crumbles to crust before layering with eggplant.

DIRECTIONS: Slice eggplant and spread onto paper towels and lightly salt. Let sit 10 minutes and pat the water off tops. Repeat for other side of eggplant.

Preheat oven to 350º. While eggplant is “bleeding” out its water, make the Artisan Flat Bread per recipe instructions. I always use mozzarella cheese where the recipe says Italian blend cheese. Spread batter onto parchment-lined 13×15 pan. You can spread batter all the way to the edges and make the sheet rectangular, or make it oval like I did in the picture below. Sprinkle rosemary, oregano and onion and garlic powder on top. Now evenly spread half the grated cheese onto the batter. If adding sausage, do it now. Arrange eggplant slices in 1-2 slightly overlapping layers evenly on top. Sprinkle with remaining grated cheese. Finally, top with the Parmesan. Drizzle with the olive oil and bake for 30 minutes at 350º or until eggplant is done. Remove from oven and slice into 12 pieces. Serve immediately. This is nice with a green or tomato salad. Easiest eaten with your hands like pizza.

Shown with a little cooked sausage added under eggplant layers.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 12 servings. Excluding any added sausage, each serving contains:

238.5 calories, 19.7 g fat, 4.76 g carbs, 2.34 g fiber, 2.42 g NET CARBS, 14.1 g protein

Jan 11 2017

Grilled Chicken & Spinach Pizza

This pizza was absolutely delicious. I call it my white pizza. It’s so different from classic red-sauced pizzas. I’ll definitely add more spinach next time as it was so good on this pizza. I used ½ cup on this one but will use 3/4 c. next time and have calculated for that below. The red onion is key to the flavor so wait until you can get a red one for this recipe. They have a sweeter, fruitier taste than other onions.

This recipe is not suitable for Atkins Induction but will be OK for all other phases. The carb count is certainly low enough for most Keto diets.

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe my Gluten-Free Pizza Crust

1½ c. grilled chicken meat, chopped (skin on)

3/4 c. (3 oz) shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese

3/4 c. (3 oz) shredded Mozzarella Cheese

3/4 c. baby spinach leaves

¼ tsp. dried oregano leaves, crushed (or 1 tsp. fresh, chopped)

Pinch garlic powder (optional)

1 oz. red onion, slivered as thinly as possible

2 oz. heavy cream

2 T. Parmesan cheese (kind in green canister is fine)

Pinch (about 1/16 tsp.) glucomannan powder (to thicken Alfredo sauce)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Make the pizza crust by that recipe’s instructions, on a 16″ pizza pan (preferable pan with holes) lined with parchment. Remove crust from oven. Evenly spread the Jack cheese on the crust.

For your Alfredo sauce, mix the cream, Parmesan and glucomannan in a saucer and let it sit for a few minutes. Should thicken up a bit. When it appears thicker, spread it on the top disturbing the Jack cheese as little as possible. Go almost to the edges of the crust with the sauce. Next spread the Mozzarella cheese evenly on top. Sprinkle with the oregano. Sprinkle with a bit of garlic powder if you like also.

Now evenly top the pizza with spinach leaves. They may overlap if need be. Next evenly place the diced chicken meat on the pizza and the final topping will be the wafer thin onion slivers. Pop into the still hot oven and cook until the cheese appears to be melted and the onion is cooked, or about 15-20 minutes. ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 8 slices, each contains:

321 calories, 23.5 g fat, 4.0 g carbs, 1.7 g fiber, 2.3 g NET CARBS, 23 g protein, 281 g sodium

Dec 1 2016

Eggplant Parmigiana Slices

This Eggplant Parmigiana like dish if fun to serve in individual slices. I LOVE how the eggplant crust came together. Just as crunchy as classically prepared Parmigiana. Couldn’t even taste the pepperoni though. Won’t bother or will put more next time. What I do know is this was extremely filling and truly DELICIOUS! I’m going to make Eggplant Parmigiana (this minus the pepperoni) more often from now on. Pork rinds are just wonderful as a stand-in for breadcrumbs in Italian cooking. If you keep some of the Lucini sauce in your freezer, it can be defrosted quickly int he microwave for such recipes. Makes prep time a cinch! This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins, Keto diets and Primal Blueprint.

VARIATION: Increase recipe, omit the pepperoni and make a full casserole pan full of these slices for classic Eggplant Parmigiana. 🙂

INGREDIENTS:

2 slices eggplant, unpeeled, about 3/8″ thick

1½ T. homemade mayonnaise

1½ oz. pork rinds (2 handfuls) crushed

Dash your favorite seasoning blend

Dash Italian spice blend (or oregano)

1½ oz. shredded mozzarella (about 5 Tbsp.)

4 T. spaghetti sauce (I use Lucini brand I buy at Walmart)

½ oz. green bell pepper, sliced extremely thin

5 slices pepperoni, chopped a bit

2 T. Parmesan, grated

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 450º. Line baking sheet with parchment.

Slice off eggplant slices and brush both sides with mayo. Crush pork rinds and stir in spices. Sprinkle them onto both surfaces with pork rind crumbs, coating well. Place slices onto parchment lined pan and bake at 450º for about 15 minutes. No need to turn during baking. Remove from oven and lower to 350º.

Sprinkle each slice with 2 T. mozzarella cheese. Dot each with 2 T. sauce. Place bits of green pepper next. Evenly space the pepperoni bits. Sprinkle each with Parmesan cheese and the remaining 1T. mozzarella. Bake at 350º for 5-10 minutes to melt the cheese. Serve and ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 2 slices, each contains:

310 calories, 23.1 g fat, 7.0 g carbs, 3.1 g fiber, 3.9 g NET CARBS, 18.9 g protein, 700 mg sodium

Nov 14 2016

Einkorn Sausage Balls

This is an ever-popular Holiday appetizer that never goes out of style or favor with your holiday guests. And they are so easy to make ahead, heat and serve. I have another Sausage Cheese Ball recipe on my website that rings in at only 1 net carb per ball. But I like this one a bit better and it’s easier to put together, with fewer ingredients. This recipe features my convenient homemade Einkorn Low-Carb Bake Mix (similar to Bisquick and Carbquick) and have come up with what I think is an even tastier, more moist Sausage-Cheese Ball. And this improved recipe only rings in at 1.76 net carbs per ball. Not bad for the convenience of just reaching for 3 ingredients in lieu of a whole bunch of ingredients. These are not suitable until the grains rung of the carb re-introduction ladder of Phase 2 OWL. They are OK for Keto diets if you can fit them into your daily carb limits. They would be totally unacceptable for Primal-Paleo due to grain.

INGREDIENTS:

12 oz. breakfast sausage (I used my homemade breakfast sausage recipe)

1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

2 c. my Einkorn Bake Mix (For gluten-free version, use Jennifer Eloff’s Gluten-Free Bake Mix or another GF mix of your choice)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Mix the above ingredients in a medium bowl with your hands as you would a meatloaf mixture. When thoroughly blended, form into 30 1″ balls and place on non-stick baking sheet or one lined with parchment or silicone sheet for ease of clean-up. Bake for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned. Remove to paper towels to drain off any excess grease (mine had none actually). Serve warm and ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 30 1″ balls, each sausage ball contains:

95 calories, 7.81 g fat, 2.4 g carbs, .64 g fiber, 1.76 g NET CARBS, 4.82 g protein, 81 mg sodium

Oct 16 2016

Pepper Jack Cheese Crisps

These are the cheese crackers I like to make when I’m out of fresh jalapenos as well as those pickled in a jar. They get nice and crispy if browned properly. I ALWAYS have Monterrey Jack cheese in the house, so here’s my short-cut method of making my Jack Snacks of Facebook fame from millions of shares. The pepper taste isn’t so strong in these, but they make a nice snack or dipping cracker for other things like bean dip or guacamole. These are suitable for all phases of Atkins, Ketogenic diets and Primal followers if you do the occasional dairy. These are clearly not suited for a Paleo diet.

Many delicious low-carb recipes like this can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, by Jennifer Eloff and low-carb friends (me included). Chef George Stella also brings you a wealth of delicious recipes you will love! Order yours TODAY! from Amazon or our direct order site: http://amongfriends.us/order.php. DISCLAIMER: By personal choice I do not accept payment for this book promotion. I promote them because they are great cookbooks anyone would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

5 slices Monterrey Jack Pepper cheese (5 oz.)

Parchment paper (DO NOT use waxed paper!)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Using a large knife, cut the four slices of cheese into for smaller squares. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Again, DO NOT USE WAXED PAPER or you will ruin these. The wax and cheese melt together and bond. Waxed paper is not to be cooked with. Pop pan into 350º oven for about 12-15 minutes (check them often, as ovens vary).

Allow them to cool completely on the pan before attempting to remove with the tip of your knife. Serve alone or with your favorite dips and ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 20 cheese crisps, each one contains:

27.5 calories, 2.25 g fat, 0.19 g carbs, 0.0 g fiber, 0.19 g NET CARBS, 50 mg sodium

Jul 24 2016

Chicken Roasted Asparagus Pizza Alfredo

Please forgive my slightly out-of-focus photo, but I’m still wearing a brace on my broken wrist and it is still hurting and shaky at times. 🙂 My husband just LOVED this new pizza I made tonight from two pieces of leftover baked chicken. I liked it, too, but felt the asparagus was lost among the other flavors. The hubs didn’t think so, but he’s particularly fond of roasted asparagus anytime, anyway. 🙂 This recipe makes a 12″ pizza, so if you need a larger one for your family, you might want to increase the ingredients accordingly. I would think 1½ recipes would make a 16″ pizza. Two slices filled both of us up nicely (served a green salad with it) and there are two slices left for a snack or lunch one day. This recipe is suitable for Phase 2 (OWL Ongoing Weight Loss) Atkins and most Keto diets.

Many delicious low-carb recipes like this one can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, by Jennifer Eloff and low-carb friends. Chef George Stella also brings you a wealth of delicious recipes you will love! Order yours TODAY! from Amazon or our direct order site: http://amongfriends.us/order.php. DISCLAIMER: I do not accept payment for this book promotion. I promote the books because they are great cookbooks anyone would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe Peggy’s Pizza Crust

Light sprinkle of Italian Seasoning

15 small, fresh asparagus spears

1 T. olive oil

Dash salt and pepper

½ c. Alfredo Sauce (I used Bertolli Basil Alfredo Sauce, 2 carbs per 1/4 c.)

1 c. shredded Mozzarella cheese

1 c. cooked chicken meat, chopped (baked or grilled)

1 oz. slivered red bell pepper

1 small can (6.5 oz) sliced mushrooms, drained

DIRECTIONS: Make the pizza crust by that recipe’s instructions (linked above) and sprinkle with a dash of Italian seasoning. Bake crust for just 10 minutes initially. It will not be fully done or browned, but the batter will be set and dry to touch on top. Remove from oven and set aside.

Turn up oven to 400º. Cut the asparagus into 1-1½” pieces and place in small metal baking pan. Add the olive oil, dash of salt and pepper and roll around to coat pieces well. Pop into oven to roast for just 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven to cool.

Assemble the pizza: Spoon a thin layer of the Alfredo sauce onto the crust nearly to the edges. I only used 1/2 cup so the crust wouldn’t get soggy in the center (plus I’m not too fond of basil). Top next with the mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle the meat on top as evenly as you can. Evenly place the bell pepper next and finally, the sliced mushrooms. Pop into 350º oven for about 10-15 minutes or just until the crust is browning on the edges and the cheese is melted.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 6 large slices, each contains:

356 calories

27.28 g fat

8.20 g carbs, 3.36 g fiber, 4.84 g NET CARBS

24.7 g protein

685 mg sodium (less if you use less mozzarella)

Jun 7 2016

Olive-Hummus Canapes

Do you like Greek Olive Tapenade? We adore the rich olive-garlicky-parsley flavors! Next time you’re entertaining, try these tasty little canapés. You can make as many or as few as you need. I whipped up a dozen for our lunch today! Of course, I already had the crackers on hand, as these are my go-to crackers. You can use other low-carb crackers, but the black pepper in these crackers really enhances the total flavor of these tasty treats. But you could just sprinkle some black pepper on them if using some other crackers. You will also need to make up the hummus and the olive tapenade before assembling.

These are not suitable until you reach the legumes rung of the Atkins carb re-introduction ladder. But they are OK for Keto followers as written, if you can fit the carbs into your daily numbers. They would not be acceptable for Primal-Paleo unless you sub in a plan appropriate cauliflower hummus that has no chick-pea flour.

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. Order your set TODAY! (also available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php DISCLAIMER: I am not paid for this book promotion nor for the inclusion of my recipes therein. I do so merely because they are GREAT cookbooks any low-carb cook would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

¼ recipe my low-carb cauliflower Hummus

½ recipe my Olive Tapenade

24 my Almond-Arrowroot Crackers (or low-carb crackers of choice)

12 tiny pieces pimiento from a jar (optional)

DIRECTIONS: Make the crackers by that recipe’s instructions and completely cool. Make up a half recipe of the hummus by that recipe’s instructions and set aside. Make the olive tapenade in your food processor or blender by that recipe’s instructions.

Olive mixture leftovers keep for about a week in the refrigerator in a covered container. It makes an excellent additive to salad vinaigrette dressing! 🙂 The hummus doesn’t keep well, so unless you’re making a lot of these for a party, you might want to only make up a 1/4 recipe of the hummus so you won’t have a bunch leftover.

To assemble the canapés, spread 1 tsp. hummus on the center of each cracker. Nest place a ½ tsp. dollop of the olive tapenade in the center of the hummus. If using, top with 1 tiny piece of pimiento. Place on a decorative tray and serve at once.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 24 canapés, each contains:

50 calories

4.58 g fat

1.95 g carbs, .94 g fiber, 1.01 g NET CARBS

1.16 g protein

71 mg sodium

Jun 2 2016

Meatza “Donuts”

I wanted to make a crustless pizza today for lunch yet didn’t want to do my usual Quick Skillet Pizza or a traditional round shape. I thought first about my stick/bar pan, a muffin pan and then my eye caught my donut pans. Light bulb moment. So I decided on making Meatza “Donuts”! They came out so cute and quite delicious as well. These are suitable for all phases of Atkins, Keto diets and Primal. Not suitable for Paleo unless you have a plan-suitable non-dairy cheese. These can be refrigerated or frozen. They would make great portable food for camping or office reheating. Great for a meal or for a late night snack. 🙂

More delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, by Jennifer Eloff and low-carb friends. Chef George Stella also brings you a wealth of delicious recipes you will love! Order yours TODAY! from Amazon or our direct order site: http://amongfriends.us/order.php. DISCLAIMER: I do not accept payment for this book promotion. I promote the books because they are GREAT cookbooks anyone would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

VARIATION: Add 1 tsp. pizza or meatless spaghetti sauce (lowest carb) before adding toppings.

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. lean ground pork

1/8 tsp. garlic powder (or coarse granulated garlic)

1/2 tsp. fennel seed, crushed

¼ tsp. oregano

1 T. parsley, chopped

3/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

½ c. grated Parmesan cheese

3 T. thin slivers green bell pepper

12 black olives, sliced into 3-4 slices

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Press meat into two large doughnut pan slots (total 12 slots). It will take about 3 T. per slot and each wil be pretty full. if using sauce, smear 1 tsp. atop each “donut”. Add 1 tsp. mozzarella cheese atop each “donut” trying to keep in on the meat and not all over the pan. it’s actually not easy to do. 🙂 Push any roaming bits of cheese back onto the meat. 🙂 Then put 4-5 slivers green pepper on each one. Slice the olives into 3-4 slivers and put 3-4 slices onto each “donut”. Finally sprinkle 1 tsp. Parmesan over each circle. Press each on top slightly to seat the toppings well into the meat. To maintain the donut shape, take your finger and push any cheese off the center post of each form.

Pop pan into middle shelf of oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until slightly browned on top. Meat should also be done at that juncture. Remove pans from oven and walk over to sink and tip each pan slightly to drain off most excess grease and juices that bled out during cooking. Using a knife, loosen each donut with a knife point, lift out of pan and place them on your serving platter. ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 12 Meatza “Donuts”, each contains: (two filled us up nicely)

144 calories

11 g fat

0.89 g carbs, 0.21 g fiber, 0.68 g NET CARBS

9.9 g protein

158 mg sodium

May 20 2016

Tuna-Cheese Stuffed Mini Peppers

I have been seeing mini bell peppers of late in the stores and find them so cute and colorful I decided to buy some this week. Decided on a tuna stuffing for them. The tuna and cheese flavors here play nicely with the sweet edge of the peppers. The touch of cayenne pepper give them just a little bite. Omit that if you don’t like spicy food, but this amount isn’t very hot to me, as I don’t like real spicy foods myself. These are suitable for all phases of Atkins and Keto diets if the carbs will fit your daily limits.

More delicious low-carb recipes can be at your fingertips with your very own cookbooks from LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS, by Jennifer Eloff and friends. Chef George Stella also brings you a wealth of his delicious recipes! Order yours TODAY! from Amazon or our direct order site: http://amongfriends.us/order.php.DISCLAIMER: I do not accept payment for this book promotion. I promote the books because they are GREAT cookbooks anyone would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

14 small sweet mini bell peppers (red, yellow, orange)

1½ c. shredded Cheddar cheese (I used a mixture of Cheddar and American Deluxe)

3 oz. softened cream cheese

1/8 tsp. red cayenne pepper

6.2 oz. tuna, oil pack (I use the foil pouch)

VARIATION: Instead of cayenne, use 1 tsp. Tobasco brand Chipotle Hot Sauce

DIRECTIONS: Bring a 4 qt. pot of water to boil. Cut stem end off peppers and seed with the point of a knife. Cut in halves lengthwise. Plunge them in the boiling water for 2 minutes just to soften just a bit.

Line a baking sheet with parchment. Preheat oven to 350º. In a medium bowl, soften cream cheese on a covered paper plate in your microwave set on defrost for about 20 seconds. Add the Cheddar cheese, cayenne and tuna. Mix well, blending with a fork. Using your fork, fill each half with about 1-1½ tablespoons of the filling. Place them on the paper covered pan. Pop pan into 350º oven for about 10 minutes just long enough to melt the cheese and they barely begin to brown. Serve hot!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 28 pieces, 4 pieces per serving and each serving contains:

202 calories

14.14 g fat

3.98 g carbs, 0.67 g fiber, 3.31 NET CARBS (just under 1 carb per piece!)

14.3 g protein

267 mg sodium

Dec 14 2015

Pesto Mini Meatzas

These are incredibly quick, incredibly easy and incredibly good! I keep all the ingredients made up in my freezer and refrigerator so that such lunches are a snap for me! These little gems can’t be picked up and eaten like regular pizza as they are too wet/messy, so get out a fork to enjoy these. This recipe is not suitable until you reach the nuts rung of the Phase 2 OWL carb ladder. They are OK for Primal diners, but not Paleo. These would be lovely served with a nice green salad. These can also be made with ground beef, or with a bit of shredded, cooked chicken.

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

12 oz. breakfast sausage (I make homemade sausage)

1 egg, beaten

¼ tsp. each fennel seed and dried oregano leaves (or ½ tsp. Italian seasoning)

¼ c. low-carb spaghetti sauce (I use Lucini basil pesto sauce)

¼ c. pesto sauce (or use commercial pesto)

1 c. grated mozzarella cheese (about 4 oz.)

½ oz. thin sliced red or green bell pepper, cut into strips

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. In a medium mixing bowl, well mix the sausage, egg, fennel and oregano with a fork or your hands. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of meat into each of 12 muffin cups and press down with the back of the spoon. I used a silicone muffin pan. Pop into your 350º preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove, tilt and blot off excess grease with paper toweling. Top each meat pattie evenly with 1 tsp. spaghetti sauce. Next spread 1 tsp. pesto sauce on top. Sprinkle each with about 1T. of the mozzarella cheese, going back and using it all up evenly. Top with a piece of bell pepper. Pop back into oven and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. Cool slightly and gently lift them out with a fork onto your serving platter.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 12 mini-meatzas, each contains:

161 calories

13.4 g fat

1.44 g carbs, .36 g fiber, 1.08 g NET CARBS

8.5 g protein

136 mg sodium

Aug 25 2015

Pesto-Sausage Pizza

I’ve always loved the smell and taste of fresh basil, but it often doesn’t agree with me. Interesting thing is the dried basil doesn’t bother me a bit. This creation for my husband’s lunch today went over well. He has always been fond of basil and loved it. Better yet, this didn’t bother my stomach! The key for my tolerance of basil, it would seem, is the amount of basil consumed. This gluten-free, grain-free crust would make this recipe suitable for Phase 2 Atkins and beyond. It is also suitable for Keto followers. The crust isn’t suitable for Primal or Paleo however.

DISCLAIMER: By personal choice, I do not accept payment for this book promotion nor for the inclusion of my recipes therein. I do so merely because they are GREAT cookbooks any low-carb cook would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe my Gluten-Free Grain-Free Pizza Crust

2 c. more shredded mozzarella cheese

6 oz. breakfast sausage, pre-browned and drained of grease

¼ pesto sauce (I used my homemade Pesto Sauce)

¼ c. grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. In a medium bowl, make up the crust batter per that recipe’s instructions (linked above). Spread batter evenly on a parchment lined pizza pan (preferable a pan with holes). Bake until it is just barely dry to the touch in the center but not very browned. While it is baking, brown the sausage lightly and drain off any excess grease. Remove crust from oven when half cooked, slide parchment out from under the pizza for better crust browning. Sprinkle 1 cup mozzarella over the top of the crust. Next sprinkle the sausage crumbles on top evenly. Dot with the pesto sauce. Finally top with the remaining mozzarella and the grated Parmesan. Bake just long enough to melt the remaining cheese or about 5 more minutes.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 8 slices. Each slice contains:

377 calores

29 g fat

4.37 g carbs, 2.85 g fiber, 2.85 g NET CARBS

23 g protein

371 mg sodium

Aug 24 2015

Avocado Ranch Dip

Nothing like coining your own words! I’ve read recipes for mayonnaise with avocado added to it before but have never taken the plunge with the addition of Ranch® style flavorings added. Man, is that ever good! It is good on cucumber slices, for dipping cherry tomatoes, raw cauliflower, broccoli flowerettes, sliced yellow squash or zucchini, carrots, celery. The shawarma spice really adds something special! This recipe is Atkins Induction friendly.

DISCLAIMER: By personal choice, I do not get paid for this book promotion or for the inclusion of my recipes therein. I do so merely because they are GREAT cookbooks any low-carb cook would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

1 small avocado, peeled and pitted

6 T. my homemade mayonnaise

1 oz. yellow or white onion

Dash salt

few drops lemon or lime juice to prevent discoloring of the avocado

1 T. my Ranch Dressing Powder Blend

DIRECTIONS: Peel and seed the avocado. Place the flesh into a blender or processor with all the other ingredients. Pulse until it it smooth. Serve any of the above mentioned ways or get creative and think of new applications for this delightful concoction!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes about 10 T. Each tablespoon contains:

90.4 calories

9.2 g fat

4.29 g carbs, 2.08 g fiber, 2.21 NET CARBS

.62 g protein

19 mg sodium

May 3 2015

Smoky Poblanos

I had 2 poblano peppers and a small bit of smoked ham to use up somehow for lunch, and these treats made for a nice lunch today. I used grated Monterrey Jack cheese, but sliced would be easier to work with. Just didn’t have any on hand. The key to these is to sear them off (or roast them) in a skillet. Most poblanos are not hot, but I have gotten hold of some hot ones once or twice. Roasting or searing them takes most of the heat out and sweetens them up! In fact these 2 today were the sweetest I’ve ever eaten! I made a couple with cheddar cheese but personally didn’t care for it. This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins, Ketogenic diets and Primal Blueprint, but with cheese it is not suitable for Paleo.

INGREDIENTS:

Poblano peppers average 4-5″ and are very dark green.

2 poblano peppers about 5″ long

2 slices or 2 oz. Monterrey Jack Cheese (or Pepper Jack)

4 oz. fried, cured ham (or 4 slices bacon)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Fry ham (or bacon) until lightly browned but is not dried out. Cut stem end off the peppers and cut them lengthwise. Remove seeds. Cut the walls of each pepper into five 1″-wide strips, making 10 pointed strips. Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet or on a griddle. Sear the peppers on both sides until lightly browned and turn off heat. Turn each piece of pepper skin side down. Cut fried ham into long thin strips about ¼-½” wide. Lay a strip(s) of ham on each strip of poblano pepper. If using sliced cheese, cut each slice into 5 strips. Top each with a strip of cheese (or 1 T. if using shredded cheese). Pop skillet or griddle into oven and heat until cheese is melted. These will require a fork, knife and small plate to eat. ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 10 pieces, each piece contains: (serves 2-5 people, depending on whether they are served with other food or not)

55 Calories

Cheddar version

4 g. fat

0.66 g carbs, 0.22 g fiber, 0.44 g NET CARBS

3.9 g protein

212 mg sodium

Mar 8 2015

Jack Snacks

Baked only 10 minutes (chewy)

Baked 12 minutes (crisper)

Starting a low-carb diet? Bet you’re wondering what YOU can snack on when the rest of the family is enjoying verboten foods. Well this recipe, if you can call it a recipe, is one solution. It’s suitable for Atkins Induction Phase, Keto diets and even Primal followers that eat occasional cheese. Takes just minutes to make and bake! This is now my #1 recipe in popularity, having well over 30,000,000 fans on Facebook now, blowing my Lebanese Baked Chicken (my former #1 recipe) right out of the water. 🙂

And if you seed the jalapeno, like I did, these were not even all that hot (I don’t like real hot/spicy foods). Leave the seeds in if you like to spice things up! These are delicious and so low-cal/low-carb you could eat the entire batch if you were so inclined! The hubs and I split this batch equally and we both loved these! Now, to be quite honest, I’ve also just melted plain old pepper-jack cheese before, but these really are better for some reason. Maybe the cheese is better; maybe the fresh pepper is just better. All I know is these are much better than just melting jack cheese! 🙂 Some have asked, and if you try to save some and reheat, you better really watch them closely, as they are inclined to burn when reheated.

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 each of the 5 volumes! Order your set TODAY! (also available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

DISCLAIMER: By personal choice, I do not receive money for this book promotion nor for the inclusion of my recipes therein. I do so merely because they are GREAT cookbooks any low-carb cook would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup shredded Monterrey Jack cheese

1 medium fresh jalapeno, sliced real thin

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a metal cookie sheet. DO NOT use a silicone/silpat sheet, waxed paper or foil (unless it’s the special non-stick foil) to bake these or they will not cook properly. Using a tablespoon, scoop up 1 T. of cheese and make a small pile on the parchment. Press it slightly flat. Repeat 15 more times. Place a slice of jalapeno on top of each pile. Pop into 350º oven for about 10-12 minutes. I would recommend browning them a wee bit more than shown in the photo for a firmer snack to serve at parties. These are somewhat pliable if under browned. Allow them to completely cool and fully firm up before removing from the pan for best results. 🙂

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 16, each contains:

25.5 calories

2.13 g fat

0.10 g carbs, 0.02 g fiber, 0.08 g NET CARBS

1.63 g protein

60 mg sodium

Jan 28 2015

Eggplant Spread

This recipe is a delicious new use of one of my other very popular recipes (Eggplant al Pesto). This is served as a spread on your favorite low-carb crackers rather than as a layered vegetable dish or meat-added casserole. 🙂 Prep is only slightly changed. This recipe is suitable for all phases of Atkins, Keto diets and Primal guidelines. Omit the cheese for Paleo adherence.

I use just a hint of pesto sauce to make the flavors pop in this. This is one of those dishes that isn’t so pretty. But face it, Baba Ganoush isn’t a pretty either yet people love it! DELICIOUS, this one! It will go fast at parties, so make a double or triple batch for a big crowd. 🙂

NOTE: If you use a regular skillet to saute your eggplant, you will need this amount of olive oil. Using a non-stick skillet will allow you to use less oil to cut calories and fat. Your call. As an alternative, you could lightly grease a baking sheet, bake slices of the eggplant for about 20 minutes at 375º and just before assembling this dish, chop it and add. The final eggplant spread will taste the same regardless of your prep on the eggplant.

More delicious low-carb side-dish recipes like this one 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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

8 oz. eggplant, peeled, chopped into ½” dice

3 T. olive oil [see notes in red above]

1 T. my pesto sauce (or any commercial plan-suitable pesto sauce)

½ c. low carb spaghetti sauce (or low-carb sauce like Lucini in a jar)

1 T. Parmesan cheese, grated

1/3 c. mozzarella cheese, grated

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. If baking eggplant, follow the directions in red above, remove from oven and chop. Spread it out evenly in a pretty oven-proof serving dish. If sauteing eggplant, heat oil in skillet and saute the eggplant, turning often with a spoon, sauteing until it is completely translucent (will be nearly done at this point). When eggplant is done, place in a pretty oven-proof serving dish. There’s no need to grease the baking dish as the eggplant will have absorbed most of the olive oil. Dot the eggplant evenly with the spaghetti sauce. Then dot evenly with the pesto sauce. Sprinkle on the Parmesan and finally spread the mozzarella evenly on top. Pop into a 350º oven for about 10-15 minutes to thoroughly melt the cheese and to allow flavors to blend. Remove and serve on a food warming element or tray with your favorite low-carb crackers. My favorite Almond Arrowroot Crackers with black pepper are outstanding with this spread.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: I can’t possibly know how much 1 individual will eat of this, so I’ve calculated 1/4 of this recipe is an adult serving and that amount contains (numbers do not include crackers):

214.5 calories

18.5 g fat

6.3 g carbs, 2.63 g fiber, 3.67 g NET CARBS

7.08 g protein

71 mg sodium

141 mg potassium

Jan 13 2015

Zucchini Pepperoni Pizza Bites

My husband wanted a snack last night so I made him some little “pizzas”…..well, sorta. I used zucchini for my “crust”, added lots of cheese and 1 slice of pepperoni per “slice” and they came out DELICIOUS! Didn’t have the usual watery issues I typically have with zucchini, either. That really surprised me, especially since I used a silicone sheet underneath them to prevent cheese sticking to the pan. Those sheets tend to promote moisture sweating issues. These cooked up beautifully! This snack is suitable for all phases of Atkins, Keto diets, Primal, but not good for Paleo due to the cheese.

NOTE: If you’re not particularly sodium sensitive, you could use 2 slices of pepperoni on each squash slice, leaving them whole. But be aware that’s going to be a very high sodium intake which will make you retain fluids and cause “sausage finger” syndrome. LOL

Zucchini Pepperoni Pizza Bites

INGREDIENTS:

16 oz. zucchini (I used 2 medium calaba squash, it’s close cousin)

½ c. your favorite low-carb pizza sauce (I use Lucini basil spaghetti sauce)

6 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese

½ c. Parmesan cheese

28-30 slices pepperoni, torn in halves

DIRECTIONS: Line a cookie sheet with either a silicone sheet or parchment. You could also use a non-stick cookie sheet if you have one. Slice zucchini (skin on) as thinly as possible (I got 28 slices using a Rival slicer). Preheat oven to 350º. Place zucchini slices side-by-side in the lined pan. Using a brush, brush each slice of the squash with a wee bit of the pizza/spaghetti sauce. There should be just enough sauce to lightly coat each slice (you do not want too much or these will be “soupy”). Sprinkle mozzarella cheese evenly on the tops of the slices. Next sprinkle the Parmesan evenly on top. Tear the pepperoni slices in halves and place 2 halves on each slice of zucchini. Pop into preheated 350º oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until cheese and pepperoni are just lightly browned. If you sliced your zucchini thin enough, it will also be done. Remove and serve at once, as they cool off quickly.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 28 slices or fourteen 2-slice servings. Each serving:

112.4 calories

8.1 g fat

2.69 g carbs, .74 g fiber, 1.95 g NET CARBS

7.23 g protein

376 mg sodium (cheese & pepperoni are VERY high in sodium)

Nov 20 2014

Einkorn Crackers

I wanted to see what a little Einkorn flour would do for my best cracker recipe and it definitely makes them crisper. I also slightly reduced the flax meal and omitted the arrowroot powder totally. They are still as delicious as ever but a bit crisper in my opinion and my husband’s opinion. The jockeying around of ingredients from the inspiration cracker (.64 g net carbs) has maintained a .66 g net carb count per cracker. NOT BAD! So the “expense” of adding a little Einkorn to this recipe was not detrimental to the stats at all really. These are clearly not suitable until the grains level of the Atkins Phase 2 OWL carb reintroduction ladder. FYI: I order my Einkorn flour from Jovial Foods.

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 each of the 5 volumes! Order your set TODAY! (also available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

DISCLAIMER: I am not paid for this book promotion nor for the inclusion of my recipes therein. I do so merely because they are GREAT cookbooks any low-carb cook would be proud to add to their cookbook collection.

INGREDIENTS:

2 c. almond four, lightly packed

1 c. Einkorn flour

½ c. flax meal

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. onion powder

2 tsp. coarse black pepper

2 T. oat fiber

¼ c. grated Parmesan cheese

3/4 c. tap water

2 T. olive oil

DIRECTIONS: Line two 11×17 sheet pans with parchment, cut to fit. I use plastic food-service gloves to press dough into pans. You can use a third sheet of parchment if you don’t have any or a plastic sandwich bag on your hands. Preheat oven to 350º.

Stir warm water and olive oil together in a small bowl. In a large bowl, measure out all the dry ingredients and stir with a fork. Add the water and oil mixture and stir well with fork to moisten the dough. It will be clumpy and crumbly. Divide the dough roughly into two portions and using hands crumble half the dough over each pan. Press or roll the dough all the way to the edges. It will seem like it won’t be enough to get it all the way to the edges, but until you do, they aren’t thin enough. Trust me, the dough WILL go to the edges of the pans with effort. With a long-bladed knife, score pressed dough gently into rows of 6 x 8 crackers, or 48 in a pan). Lift the knife blade slowly to avoid messing up the crackers. Pop into 350º oven for about 18-20 minutes. Ovens vary. You don’t want to brown them too much. I even take out individual crackers early if they are getting too brown. The ones around the edges brown much faster. Remove the pans and cool. Separate into crackers with the same knife you scored them with. These crisp crackers are better when they are 100% cool, even better on day two.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 96 crackers, each contains:

20.1 calories

16.8 g fat

1.19 g carbs, .53 g fiber, .66 g NET CARBS

.75 g protein

24.6 mg sodium

Oct 27 2014

Pumpkin Granola

Granola

My husband was asking for an easy breakfast cereal recently, because occasionally I just don’t want any breakfast and he doesn’t want me to cook when it’s just for him. So I created a very tasty cereal yesterday. This stuff is great for just snacking, too! The slight yellow hue to the coconut is due to the pumpkin in the recipe, but trust me, I can’t really taste pumpkin (or the coconut, for that matter) in there. I taste the spices, nuts and fruit mostly. 🙂 This recipe is not suitable until Atkins Phase 2 OWL when nuts are introduced.

NOTE: Just wanted to add that this keeps AMAZINGLY well over time. I stored mine in a Tupperware canister, it is now March, 6 months later, and this granola (what is left) is still dry, as crisp as when I made it and DEElicious! 🙂

INGREDIENTS:

½ c. roasted sunflower seeds, unsalted

½ c. roasted pumpkin seeds, unsalted

2 T. chia seeds

1½ c. large flake coconut, unsweetened

1 c. walnuts, coarsely cut

1 c. pecans, coarsely cut

1½ tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground nutmeg

¼ tsp. ground cloves

1/8 tsp. sea salt

2 T. erythritol

5 dried prunes, chopped fine like tiny dried currants (I use DelMonte which has no added sugar)

1/3 c. liquified coconut oil

¼ c. sugar-free maple syrup

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 c. canned pumpkin puree (do not use the pie filling!)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 300º. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Measure the first 12 (dry) ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir well. In a small bowl, stir the last 4 (wet) ingredients well. Using a rubber spatula, pour the wet ingredients evenly over the dry and with the spatula, stir and toss to coat all the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. When well-blended, pour half the mixture onto each paper-lined pan. Spread evenly. You will need to bake until it is dry and somewhat crisp to the touch, or about 1½ hours (longer for some ovens). Stir ever 15-20 minutes to be sure it is cooking evenly. Do not allow to overly brown or the nuts will taste burned. Turn off oven and let the granola dry in the oven as it cools. Break it apart into smaller clusters if you like. I like mine in larger clusters, as I eat it more as a snack than a cereal. Transfer to an airtight container or zip-loc gallon bag. BE ABSOLUTELY SURE IT IS FULLY COOLED BEFORE STORING. Otherwise it will “sweat” and get soft (just rebake to crisp it up again). This stuff is delicious, so do ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 9 cups total or eighteen ½ cup servings. Each ½-cup serving contains:

214 calories

19.6 g fat

7.5 g carbs, 3.21 g fiber, 4.29 g NET CARBS

4.89 g protein

42 mg sodium

Oct 8 2014

Grilled Chicken & Spinach Pizza

Grilled Chicken-Spinach Pizza

This pizza was absolutely delicious. I call it my white pizza. It’s so different from classic red sauced pizzas. I think I’ll add more spinach next time. I used ½ cup on this one but will use 3/4 c. next time and have calculated for that below. The red onion is key to the flavor so wait until you can get a red one for this recipe. They have a sweeter, fruitier taste than other onions.

This recipe is not suitable for Atkins Induction but will be OK for all other phases. The carb count is certainly low enough for most Keto diets.

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe my Gluten-Free Pizza Crust

1 c. grilled chicken breast, chopped (skin on)

½ c. grilled chicken thigh meat, chopped (skin on)

3/4 c. (3 oz) shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese

3/4 c. (3 oz) shredded Mozzarella Cheese

3/4 c. baby spinach leaves

¼ tsp. dried oregano leaves, crushed (or 1 tsp. fresh, chopped)

Pinch garlic powder (optional)

1 oz. red onion, slivered as thinly as possible

2 oz. heavy cream

2 T. Parmesan cheese (kind in green canister is fine)

Pinch (about 1/16 tsp.) glucomannan powder (to thicken Alfredo sauce)

For your Alfredo sauce, mix the cream, Parmesan and glucomannan in a saucer and let it sit for a few minutes. Should thicken up a bit. When it appears thicker, spread it on the crust as evenly as possible, almost to the edges of the crust. It needs to be a fairly thin layer or it will cause your crust to get soggy. Next evenly spread the Jack cheese on the crust. Next spread the Mozzarella cheese evenly on top. Sprinkle with the oregano. Sprinkle with a bit of garlic powder if you like also. Next evenly top with spinach leaves. They may overlap if need be. Next evenly place the diced chicken meat on the pizza and the final topping is the wafer thin onion slivers. Pop into the still hot oven and cook until the cheese appears to be melted and the onion is cooked, or about 15-20 minutes. ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 8 slices, each contains:

321 calories

23.5 g fat

4.0 g carbs, 1.7 g fiber, 2.3 g NET CARBS

23 g protein

281 g sodium

Sep 12 2014

Sofrito Deviled Eggs

Sofrito Deviled Eggs

I’ve found yet another wonderful use for my addictive Sofrito sauce. Both I and the hubs loved these eggs! They’ll be so nice to have ready made on a plate in the fridge for snacks! Wonderful for parties as well. This recipe is OK for all phases of Atkins, Keto diets and Primal as well. Paleo folks will want to omit the Ranch dressing.

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 each of the 5 volumes! Order your set TODAY! (also available individually) from Amazon or our direct order site: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

6 large eggs, hard-boiled, peeled and neatly cut in half

2 T. my Homemade Mayonnaise

1 tsp. my Ranch Buttermilk Dressing (or dash onion and garlic powder)

1 T. my Sofrito

1/4 tsp. wine vinegar (or 1/4 tsp. Dijon mustard)

Pinch glucomannan powder (1/16 tsp. or less! optional, to thicken filling)

1 sprig cilantro or parsley (for garnish)

DIRECTIONS: Boil, chill, and peel eggs as you do normally. Slice neatly into halves. With a knife point, tip the yolk part onto a paper plate. Set the whites onto your serving platter for now. To the egg yolks add the mayo, the Ranch dressing, the Sofrito and wine vinegar. Mash and blend until smooth with a fork. Decide if it is stiff enough to pipe. If not, stir in a tiny pinch of glucomannan powder and wait a couple minutes for it to stiffen up. Fill a piping bag with large tip or a quart plastic bag with a 1/4″ hole cut in the corner (or a cookie press with a large decorative tip) and pipe about 1-1½ T. of the filling (in a circular motion) into each egg white half. You can optionally garnish the plate with chopped parsley or cilantro, and for even more color, 2 cherry tomato halves.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 12 deviled egg halves. Each half contains:

60.33 calories

5.14 g fat

.38 g carbs, .05 g fiber, .33 g NET CARBS

3.25 g protein

51 mg sodium

Sep 2 2014

Ranch® Buttermilk Salad Dressing (or dip)

Ranch Buttermilk Dressing

Ranch Dip for Veggie Tray

I finally came up with a version of Ranch® Dressing for my husband, who just loves it on salads. I think my version tastes better than what is sold in the bottle (which I actually don’t like). No unhealthy ingredients in mine, either.

INGREDIENTS:

1 c. homemade mayonnaise

3/4 c. sour cream (add ¼ c. more if using as a veggie dip)

¼ c. buttermilk (only 2 T. if using as a veggie dip)

1 T. my Ranch Dressing Powder Blend

2 tsp. red wine vinegar

1/8 tsp. salt

OPTIONAL: 1/8 tsp. glucomannan powder if you like a thicker dressing

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes two cups or eight ¼ c. servings, each contains:

251 calories

26.8 g fat

1.81 g carbs, .1 g fiber, 1.71 g NET CARBS

1.72 g protein

66 mg sodium

Jul 17 2014

Tuna Cheesies

I’ve been making these for probably 20 years or more. My husband just LOVES these things! I do, too, really. The original version was melted on saltine crackers. My low-carb version here is baked on my Almond-Flax crackers. This time I cut them into 12 oblong rectangles as shown above, but more often I cut them into 24 saltine shaped squares. These are suitable once you get to Atkins Phase 2, and they are OK for Keto diets.

INGREDIENTS:

½ recipe my Almond Flax Crackers (or 24 pre-baked low-carb crackers)

1 6-oz foil pouch tuna (or a 5 oz. can, drained)

1 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

2 slices Kraft American Deluxe cheese, shredded

3 T. mayonnaise (I use homemade)

2-3 shakes cayenne pepper (more if you want them really “hot”)

3-4 drops Worcestershire sauce (optional)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. As to making the cracker base for these, I tend to mix up a whole recipe of the cracker dough and shape it on the baking sheet into two rectangles, one on each end, not quite all the way to the edges of the pan, with a slight separation between them. I use half the cracker recipe for these Tuna Cheesies and save the other rectangle to cut into plain crackers to have on hand for other uses. Or if you’re having a party, you could double the topping ingredients and use the entire recipe of crackers for a total of 48 Tuna Cheesies. Your call depending on how many of these you want to make.

Prepare and bake the crackers by that recipe’s instructions at 350º. Cool slightly on the pan. If you made the full recipe of crackers, go ahead and score that extra rectangle into 24 crackers and store them in a lidded container on your kitchen counter for up to 2 weeks.

While the crackers are baking, mix the filling ingredients in a bowl. Spread onto the baked and slightly cooled cracker sheet. Pop back into the oven and bake for about 5-10 minutes longer, just long enough to melt the topping nicely. Remove from the oven and with a knife or pizza cutter, cut into either 12 wedges as shown above, or into 24 square-shapes. Serve warm.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 12 rectangular Tuna Cheesies, each contains:

147 calories

11.83 g fat

3.5 g carbs, 2.01 g fiber, 1.49 g NET CARBS

7.9 g protein

203 mg sodium

NOTE: If cut into 24 squares, divide the nutritional numbers above for by 2 to get the per serving numbers for each smaller square.

Apr 19 2014

Tzatziki

Greek Tzatziki

This well-known Greek sauce is one of those recipes I’ve been meaning to put up on my site for ages and ages and just kept forgetting to do it. This year I’m really trying to get to posting all those recipes I make often but are the meal “extras” and not the “main attraction”. This is typical condiment with Greek food and Middle Eastern/Mediterranean grilled beef or lamb kebabs and ground beef/lamb koftas. It’s also great on tuna, salmon or crab cakes or on shawarma gyros-type sandwich wraps. I’ve even used this sauce on cucumber-tomato salads as a dressing! It’s ever so simple to make, too!

Be sure to squeeze out as much water from your grated cucumber as you can before combining all the ingredients or else it will bleed out its water into the sauce and really weaken the flavor and spoil the appearance. This recipe is not suitable for Induction due to the yogurt, but you could make it with all sour cream and enjoy 2-3 Tbsp. This sauce is suitable for other Keto diets and Primal Blueprint (occasionally), but not at all Paleo approved.

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

1 large 8-9″ cucumber, peeled, seeded and grated

1 c. drained or Greek yogurt, or half yogurt and half sour cream (my personal preference), or all sour cream (for lower carbs)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 T. yellow onion, minced finely

½ tsp. dried dill weed (or 2 sprigs fresh, chopped)

½ tsp. dried mint (or 1 T. fresh, chopped fine)

Dash each salt and black pepper

DIRECTIONS: At least 1 hour before serving, peel the cucumber. Cut in half and seed with a spoon. Grate the cucumber onto paper toweling double thick or even better, place it in a clean cotton woven kitchen towel (not terry cloth, please). Blot the water away with paper towels or wrap, twist and squeeze it in the kitchen towel to remove all water. You want to get as much water out as you can. Add the cucumber to a medium bowl. Add all remaining ingredients and stir well. Cover and chill until ready to serve. If it bleeds out more water, blot it from around the edges with a paper towel, stir and serve.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes about 2 cups or 4 servings (perhaps more depending on how much people eat). 1/4 of the batch contains:

102 calories

8.1 g fat

4.6 g carbs, .8 g fiber, 3.8 g NET CARBS

3.2 g. protein

110 mg sodium

Mar 1 2014

Indonesian Pork Bites

I wanted meatballs for dinner tonight but not “the usual”. So I opened up my spice cabinet by the stove and just started throwing Asian/Indonesian ingredients into the bowl. It never ceases to amaze me that sometimes those “no-recipe” creations end up coming out soooooo tasty! These had a very delicate flavor, despite the fact that the ingredients have pretty strong flavors. I guess my ingredient amounts were spot on for our taste buds as we both just LOVED these little pork bites! I served them with steamed cauliflower and green beans. As the raw meat mixture was quite “sticky” (not sure why) they were difficult to roll into smooth, round meatballs. So I improvised and ended up dropping little “roundish” blobs of meat onto my hot, greased skillet and then flattened them with the back of my spatula a bit.

Made even smaller and served with toothpicks, these would be great party food or a first course when entertaining. As I used nut-based crackers, as written, this recipe would not be suitable until you reach the nuts and seeds level of the Atkins carb ladder in Phase 2 OWL. Substituting an Induction suitable cracker, those on Induction could also enjoy these little pork delights. These fit a Keto lifestyle nicely, too. Paleo-Primal followers will want to use a nut butter in lieu of the peanut butter. 🙂

DIPPING SAUCE: If you want one to go with these morsels, the one in this recipe is very nice.

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. lean ground pork

1 beaten egg

1 oz. onion, finely minced

2-3 T. chopped cilantro

¼ tsp. Thai green curry powder

1/16 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)

4 low-carb crackers of your choice (I used Almond-Arrowroot Crackers ), crushed

1 tsp. coconut aminos (or low-sodium soy sauce or tamari)

1 small clove garlic, minced

2 tsp. fish sauce (I use Thai Kitchen brand)

2 T. all natural peanut butter or other nut butter of your choice

1 T. olive oil (for frying)

DIRECTIONS: Mix all ingredients together using a fork or your hands in a medium mixing bowl. Heat the oil in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Form into 13 “rough” meatball shapes, drop onto hot greased skillet, and with the back of a spatula, press them slightly to flatten to about ½” thick. Fry until golden brown on both sides. This will take about 5 minutes per side. Serve at once with your favorite Asian stir-fried vegetable dish. ENJOY!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 13 pork bites, each contains:

133 calories

11 g fat

1.2 g carbs, .4 g fiber, .8 g NET CARBS

7.45 g protein

133 mg sodium

Jan 9 2014

Almond-Arrowroot Crackers

I recently came across a Crispy & Flaky Gluten-Free Thin (Pizza) Crust recipe by Brittany Angell on RealSustenance.com that looked intriguing. I already have a pizza crust I’m very happy with. But when she described how crispy it was, I decided to adapt it and create what has become the BEST cracker recipe! Her recipe has no egg, and that’s what originally caught my eye. I’m just not fond of eggs in crackers. So I began to tinker around with her recipe and just see what I ended up with! I couldn’t be happier! The final result was so good, I’ve now made this recipe dozens of times and these tasty, crisp crackers blow all my other cracker recipes right out of the water! Even my non-low-carb husband likes these things! I think the magic here is the arrowroot and oat fiber, so I don’t recommend omitting or substituting for those two ingredients lest you end up with a totally different result.

Let me say up front, my method for making the crackers does not read at all like the original recipe, but it sure produces a crisp cracker that STAYS crisp for days and days! I changed amounts of come ingredients, added a couple things and definitely spiced them up a bit! Those changes and additions are noted below in blue, including the oven temperature. I also added a bit of oat fiber for a flour-y flavor, crunch and fiber.

This recipe is not suitable for Induction due to the oat fiber and arrowroot flour. It isn’t suitable for Primal-Paleo unless you omit the oat fiber and cheese. This is a really BIG recipe that makes two full sheet pans of 48 crackers each. Half the recipe if you do not want that many (tasting them will change your mind next time 🙂 ). That said, they do keep well and stay crisp in a loose-lidded ceramic canister on my counter for 2 weeks or so. That’s much better than any of my other cracker recipes keep for me.

I look forward to trying the inspiration pizza crust recipe as a pizza crust, with no changes one day, just to see how it is as a pizza crust. I’m thinking this recipe has some very exciting dessert potential as well. 🙂

You can also make round crackers that are slightly thicker but just as crisp. Using 1 level tsp. dough per round cracker, I only got 66 round crackers. I show numbers below for the round version also.

Round version made in silicone muffin molds/liners

Many more cracker and snack recipes can be at your fingertips, with your very own set of Jennifer Eloff’s latest cookbooks Low Carbing Among Friends. Check out their Facebook page for a sampling of many of the recipes in this 5-volume set authored by international author Jennifer Eloff, George Stella and a group of some of the most popular, low-carb food bloggers on the internet! You can order from Amazon or here: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

DISCLAIMER: I do not receive remuneration for this promotion nor for the inclusion of my recipes therein. I promote them because they are GREAT cookbooks!

VARIATION: Omit the black pepper and add 1-2 T. of my 8-Seed Spice blend instead.

INGREDIENTS:

3 c. lightly packed almond flour (weighed out it was 11 oz. (311.8 grams)

4 T. arrowroot flour/powder

2/3 c. flax meal (I use a 50:50 mix of dark & golden)

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. sea salt

1 T. onion powder

1-2 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper (I use 2 tsp.)

2 T. oat fiber (omit for gluten-free version)

¼ c. grated Parmesan Cheese

3/4 c. warm tap water

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS: Line two large sheet pans (mine are 11½ x 17) with parchment. I use plastic gloves to press crackers into my pans, or sometimes I cut a third piece or parchment, lay it on top and roll out the dough that way, using my gloved fingers to finish off the edges evenly. The key is to get the cracker dough thin and even in the pan. Thicker areas don’t cook well; thinner areas will burn quickly.

Preheat oven to 350º. Stir the warm water and olive oil together in a small glass to mix well. Measure out all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Stir well with a fork. Add the water-oil mixture to the dry ingredients and blend with the fork to form a solid ball of dough. I form the dough right in the bowl into in a log shape and cut in half to divide it equally. Crumble half the mixture onto each parchment-lined pan. Roll the dough or, wearing plastic gloves, press the dough in the first pan evenly and all the way to the edges. It will be very thin, and I always think it isn’t going to make it, but half the dough WILL reach the edge of the pan. I like to roll the surface with a straight-sided glass I own. If rolling with a rolling pin or straight glass, cover crumbles with parchment and roll as evenly as possible all the way to the edges of the pan. You’ll likely have to finish the edges with your fingers (use a piece of plastic wrap if need be). With a large chef’s knife, score the rolled dough into rows of crackers 6 x 8 (48 crackers). Repeat this process with the second pan of crackers.

To make round crackers, use silicone muffin pans or silicone cupcake liners. You can also use paper liners in a metal muffin pan. Measure 1 level teaspoon of dough into each mold and press down evenly with a your fingers (I use plastic glove to do this to avoid dough sticking to me). Set silicone muffin pans and/or molds onto metal sheet pans for support. Pop the pans into the preheated 350º oven and bake for for about 20-22 minutes. Ovens vary, so start watching them at 18 minutes. Do not over brown! I recommend removing those around the edges as soon as they begin to brown and those on the outside are inclined to burn. When all have browned, remove, cool 1-2 minutes, re-score with the chef’s knife and then let them cool completely before eating. These are not tasty hot in my opinion. The flavor develops when they have cooled.

Break apart and enjoy plain, with butter, cheese spreads (I’m addicted to them with chive & onion cream cheese) or your favorite hard cheeses and meats! Store remainders in a plastic zip bag or any canister of your choosing. I just use a ceramic cookie jar on my counter. These stay crisp for around 2 weeks. Mine get eaten within 2 weeks, so I honestly don’t know if they would keep longer or not. 🙂

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 96 square crackers, each cracker contains:

28.4 calories, 2.38 g fat, 1.32 g carbs, 0.68 g fiber, 0.64 g NET CARBS, 0.97 g protein, 37 mg sodium

NOTE: If you make round crackers pressed into silicone muffin molds/cups you will only get 66 crackers, using 1 level tsp. dough per cracker. Each round crackers will contain 41.3 calories, 3.46 g fat, 1.91 g carbs, 0.98 g fiber, 0.93 g net carbs, 1.41 g protein and 54 mg sodium

Oct 27 2013

Inside-Out Pizza Muffins

I saw the cutest little salami “bowls” on Blueberriesandblessings.com yesterday. I thought they were so clever! I wanted to try my hand at these cute little “bowls”, and saw so many potential uses for them! So this first incarnation evolved literally as I threw it together for lunch today. The first time I made the little “bowls” exactly as she did. But 400º and 10 minutes was too hot for my oven. The first batch of “bowls” almost burned. Then I made them again but this time at 350º for only 6 minutes, which turned out to be just perfect in my oven. You only want to partially cook the salami to firm it up.

You can use any toppings, but I have provided the nutritional stats for the toppings I chose today for my crust-in-the-middle pizza muffins. You can use a slice of any low-carb bread you have on hand, or even cut up a low-carb tortilla, or a Joseph’s Oat Fiber/Flax Pita for the center crust layer. I used a slice of my Gluten-Free Focaccia Bread I had in my freezer (defrosting it first, of course). I wanted the bread layer real thin, so I sliced the bread less than ¼” thick laterally, so I ended up using only about 3/4 of a whole slice. I sliced the slice laterally one time and cut each thin layer into 4 small squares, using 6 of the 8 squares for my recipe.

The final pizza muffins were FANTASTIC! Not too salty, not too cheesy, not too gooey and easily hand held for eating.

No Fork or Plate Needed!

It took 3 of these to fill me up at lunch, as I ate nothing else along with them. There are Just 4 bites in these. I used a square muffin pan for mine, but a round one will work just fine. This recipe makes six of these babies and serves two adults in my opinion. But as usual, I will provide per piece stats and you can judge what you think a serving size is. 🙂

In order for this to be suitable for Atkins Induction, you will have to use an Induction-friendly bread like Oopsie rolls or flax bread sliced thin. These are suitable for most Keto dieters. Primal folks will need to use a plan-suitable bread in the middle. These are not Paleo suitable.

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 each of the 5 volumes! Order your set TODAY! (also available individually) from Amazon or our direct order site: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

6 slices hard or Genoa salami (I used Hormel)

1 slice Gluten-Free Foccacia Bread

3 oz. pork breakfast sausage

1 oz. onion, finely chopped

6 tsp. (2 T.) tomato paste

3 oz. mozzarella, shredded (I find cheese very salty and use much less than some folks. Add more if you care to.)

1/4 tsp. Italian seasoning or crushed dried oregano leaves

½ oz. green bell pepper, sliced into 12 pieces

6 olives, sliced

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Push 1 slice of salami down into the slots of a muffin pan (square or round will work just fine). Pop pan into oven and bake for 6 minutes. Remove from oven. Brown the pork sausage and onion together in a non-stick skillet just until no longer pink. Remove from heat.

Now you’re ready to to construct your pizza muffins. Slice your bread laterally into 2 thinner slices and then slice each of those into 4 squares (you will use only 6 of the 8). Push one square of bread down firmly into each salami “bowl”. Trim if necessary to allow the bread to sit flat at the bottom of the salami “bowl”. Spread 1 tsp. tomato paste atop each bread slice. Sprinkle the sauce evenly with the Italian seasoning. Sprinkle about 1 tsp. mozzarella on each muffin next. Then 1/6 of the browned sausage and onion mixture. Than sprinkle 1 tsp. more cheese on top. The cheese acts as a binder for all the ingredients. Top with sliced olives (1 olive per muffin) and place 2 pieces of the bell pepper on each. Pop into a 350º oven for about 8-10 minutes or until they are lightly browning on top. Lift them gently out of the pan slots with a knife tip or fork and place on a plate. Serve at once.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 6 pizza muffins, each contains:

131 calories

23 g fat

2.38 g carbs, .60 g fiber, 1.78 g NET CARBS

335 mg sodium

Jun 2 2013

BBQ-dogs

When you BBQ a big piece of brisket, like we do from time to time, it seems there’s always so much leftover (there are just two of us here). I like to chop some of the leftover meat, add a little of my low-carb BBQ sauce, so there is some convenient chopped beef BBQ for sandwiches throughout the week.

Last time we grilled a brisket, I also happened to need to bake some low-carb bread, as I was down to my last. Then when I started stirring all those ingredients up in my mixing bowl this finger-food idea just popped into my head. Using my protein bar silicone baking pan (but you could use a regular muffin pan), I formed the tastiest little treats! These are great for parties, great snacks or even several for a grab-and-go lunch! They’re low in carbs, too!

I have started adding 1 tsp. yeast dissolved in 1 T. warm water to my bread batter, not for rise, but for flavor. You can omit that, but it will only lower net carbs by .13 g, so why not go ahead and add it for that touch of yeast flavor? These are suitable once you get to the nuts level of Atkins Phase 2 (OWL, Ongoing Weight Loss). If you add that cheese, be sure to add in those cheese carbs. You can bake these in muffin pans if you don’t own or want to get the specialty pan shown below. I just happen to have stumbled on a couple of these pans in my local Tuesday Morning store one day.

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe my gluten-free grain-free focaccia bread

12 oz. leftover chopped BBQ beef or pork

¼ c. low-carb BBQ sauce (1-2 carbs per tablespoon or less)

VARIATIONS: Add 1 tsp. shredded Cheddar cheese or some chopped green onion on top of the meat portion before topping with the “cover” batter. 🙂

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Make up the bread recipe per that recipe’s instructions. If you like, you could add a little onion powder to the batter, or finely minced green onion, but be sure to add in those carbs if you do! Toss the chopped beef with the ¼ c. BBQ sauce. If not using silicone pans, grease your muffin cups generously to prevent sticking. Dip up about 2 tsp. batter into each of your pan’s 12 slots. This should take about half the batter. Using a spoon or fork, spread it evenly on the bottom of the form. Next dip 1 oz (about 1 Tbsp.) chopped beef mixture onto the batter. Gently spread the meat evenly. Finally, spoon the remaining batter on top of the meat in each slot (about 2 tsp.). Again, with the back of a spoon, spread that batter carefully and as evenly as possible. You want to completely cover the meat as best you can. There will barely be enough batter to complete the job, so it is important you measure the bottom and top batter as suggested to avoid running out before all 12 “dogs” are “constructed”. Place silicone pan on a sheet for support and pop into 350º oven for 25 minutes or until lightly browned as shown. ENJOY! Below is a pic of the silicone pan I used, but these can be made in muffin shapes just as well.

Click to enlarge

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 12 “dogs”, each contains:

193 calories

13.3 g fat

2.71 g carbs, 1.05 g fiber, 1.66 g NET CARBS

15.7 g protein

145 mg sodium

Jan 21 2013

Sour Cream and Onion Crackers

Sour Cream & Onion Crackers

I decided to try my hand at a sour cream and onion cracker today. I used the Almond Thins recipe on Low Carb Friends forums as my base. This versatile cracker recipe has been tweaked and cooked so many different ways and seems to consistently cook up well for everyone that tries it. I doubled the amount of almond flour and substituted sour cream for the egg whites. I also added a bit of oat fiber for taste and also a bit of flax meal. I cooked these at 250º rather than my usual 350º for crackers. So glad I did, as these aren’t very good if overbrowned. My crackers came out GREAT! They’re delicious by themselves, but you could eat them with cheese as well. Definitely a keeper for us, this little cracker.

When baking these crackers, DO NOT over brown or they will lose a lot of the subtle onion flavor and just taste like toasted (or scorched) almonds. For this reason, do not be tempted to cook them at a higher temperature. TIP: The thinner you can roll them out the crisper they will bake up for you. If you roll your out thinner into a rectangle larger than an 8″x14″ rectangle, reduce the cooking time as I’m sure it will take maybe 10 minutes less for thinner crackers.

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

2 c. almond flour

1 T. oat fiber (not the same thing as oat bran or oat flour)

1 T. golden flax meal (optional but calculated below)

½ tsp. sea salt

2 tsp. onion powder

¼ c. finely minced chives or green onion tops

¼ c. sour cream (add 1-2 tsp. more only if you can’t form a nice dough after few minutes)

DIRECTIONS: Cut parchment about 10″x16″ and place on cookie sheet. Set aside until you are ready to form crackers. Preheat oven to 250º. No, that isn’t a typo, you want a slow oven for these as you DO NOT want them overbrowned. Measure all dry ingredients into a medium mixing bowl. Stir with a fork to blend. Add sour cream and keep stirring with your fork, blending int he sour cream evenly, stirring until the loose meal begins to form a unified mass of dough. It won’t clump into a single ball of dough, but all loose particles should adhere in large clumps of dough.

Place all the clumps of dough evenly onto parchment covered pan. Either using plastic gloves or baggie “gloves (or cover dough with waxed paper or more parchment, press or roll dough into a rectangle about 8″x 14” (roughly the size of a legal sheet of paper). TIP: I hold a wide-bladed knife along the edges to press the dough up against and still keep the edges very straight. Score dough lightly with a sharp thin knife into 45 crackers (9×5). Pop into preheated 250º oven and bake for 50 minutes. I have you check here because ovens do vary and you don’t want to over brown these. They will likely not be brown at all. Mine weren’t at this point, but appeared to be fully done through. I baked for 10 minutes more to a slightly brown stage. The crackers at the corners of the sheet browned a little more, which is how I discovered you do not want to overcook these. They just don’t taste as good. Remove pan from oven and press sharp knife along score lines to separate the crackers. Fully cool before eating as they get crisper as they cool off. Store in an air-tight container.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Entire recipe contains 1488 calories, 130 g fat, 62.4 g carbs, 31.7 g fiber, 30.7 g NET CARBS, 52.4 g protein. Divide by the number of crackers you get for your per cracker stats. I get 45 crackers, therefore 1/45th (each cracker) would contain:

33 calories

2.9 g fat

1.39 g carbs, .7 g fiber, .69 g NET CARBS

1.16 g protein

28.64 mg sodium

Sep 29 2012

Almond-Flax Crackers

I came across a cracker recipe on Food Lover’s Kitchen website recently that I wanted to try: http://beta.primal-palate.com/recipe/herb-crackers/. I baked them first as written and didn’t care for the oregano or the cumin in them. They were also way, way too salty for us. Flax itself carries a sodium load and I rarely have to add salt to anything made with flax. Texture was overall very good for these crackers. Brittle and crisp, especially the browner crackers that were around the outer edges of the pan. But even those in the center of the pan were pretty crisp.

I decided to bake a second batch, majorly reducing the salt and substituting finely chopped dried rosemary for the oregano and cumin. VOILA! Those were magical for MY palate. Not too salty either. I’m very pleased these will stay crisp all week long just in a ziploc bag on the counter!

Today, I baked them a third time, again leaving out the herbs and spices, just using the onion powder and less garlic powder, allowing the black pepper flavor to really come through. I REALLY think this will be a more versatile, more neutral low-carb cracker for me, that will not “conflict” with spices in soups and entrees I might be having them with. I’ve baked so many different cracker recipes that mix almond flour and flax meal, but this ratio on those two key ingredients is JUST RIGHT! I can see this recipe is going to be one I have again and again (I’ve already baked it 3 times in two weeks!!). I’m so glad my non-low-carb, non-paleo husband likes these also! So my sincere thanks to Primal Palate for sharing this basic recipe. These crackers, excellent with cheese, butter, soup or whatever, are suitable for Paleo, Primal and are suitable for Atkins diners once you reach the OWL (on-going Weight Loss) phase.

INGREDIENTS:

2 c. almond flour

1 c. flax meal (I use a 50:50 mixture of dark and golden)

2 tsp. onion powder

½ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. salt

2 tsp. coarse black pepper (this is the magical ingredient that makes these so good)

2 T. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 eggs, beaten (or 3 egg whites if you prefer a crisper cracker)

VARIATIONS: Any herb(s) you like along with onion and garlic powder, any combination of grated cheeses with or without onion/garlic powders, rosemary and onion powder, just onion powder, just garlic powder, onion powder and cayenne, onion powder and smoky chipotle powder and any combination of these things that suits your fancy. I’m looking forward to trying out all these possibilities over time. 🙂

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Line a sided sheet pan with parchment. Mine is 11½ x 17″. Measure all dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl. With a fork, beat in the two eggs and olive oil until the mixture is moist throughout. Crumble the dough evenly over the parchment lined pan. Then, using plastic gloves or baggies on your hands press the dough evenly into the pan, trying to achieve the same thickness throughout. If you have a straight sided glass, you can even roll the dough out for a smoother surface, but this isn’t really necessary. This will take you a few minutes. Score into 48 crackers (8 x 6) with a straight edge knife. Pop into preheated oven and bake for 15-16 minutes. They will brown around the edges of the pan faster and you may have to remove outer crackers as they bake. Don’t over brown as flax products can get a burned taste real fast if over-browned. Cool and break apart along score lines. When thoroughly cool, store in ziploc bag at room temperature.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 48 crackers, each cracker contains:

33.2 calories

2.84 g fat

1.37 g carbs, .93 g fiber, .44 g NET CARBS

1.1 g protein

15.2 mg sodium

23.3 mg potassium

Aug 21 2012

Apricot Trail Mix

I absolutely LOVE trail mix. And such a healthy snack! It has the added bonus of being very transportable, for hiking, biking, camping, or taking to the office in a little baggie. This apricot-coconut mix was a Christmas favorite of a relative. She always broght some to the holiday gathering. The stuff is so good I have to dip my ½ cup portion out and put the bag away, or I’ll just keep eating and eating it. Wrapped prettily with a ribbon, this makes a lovely gift when going to parties or for the holidays. Just place in a pretty clear glass container and affix a pretty bow on top! This very nutritious dessert/snack is not suitable until the highest fruit rung of the Atkins OWL carb ladder (pre-maintenance or maintenance). This recipe is suitable for Paleo-Primal eaters.

VARIATION: Substitute dried pieces for the dried apricots. I also have a Cranberry Trail Mix recipe you might like.

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

5 oz. pumpkin seeds, hulled, roasted (unsalted)

5 oz. sunflower seeds, hulled, roasted (unsalted)

2 oz. walnuts (about 28 halves), coarsely chopped/broken up

6 oz. fresh coconut meat, slivered thinly

4 oz. sliced almonds

6 oz. dried apricots, no sugar added (I buy them at Sam’s)

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 200º and spread thinly sliced coconut onto a sheet pan. Dry for about 1½-2 hours, stirring occasionally. Remove from oven before coconut begins to brown and cool. You don’t really want to toast it for this recipe, just dry it out a bit. In a large mixing bowl, toss all ingredients together. Using kitchen shears, cut apricots into small pieces and add to the bowl. Stir to mix well. Store in a zipper plastic bag in your pantry.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes about 6 cups or twelve ½ cup servings. Each ½ cup serving contains:

301.6 calories

23.5 g fat

18 g carbs, 5.3 g fiber, 12.7 NET CARBS

9.81 g protein

53.6 mg sodium

Mar 22 2012

Spicy Cheese Thins

VARIATION: For an even cheesier taste, you can add 2 T. Nutritional Yeast to the dry ingredients when mixing the dough. 🙂

INGREDIENTS:

2 c. almond flour

2 egg whites from large eggs

¼ tsp. onion powder

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional, use more if you like things hot)

1/8 tsp. chili powder

1 c. grated Cheddar cheese (more if you want them cheesier)

¼ tsp. salt (optional)

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 80 crackers, each cracker contains: (using 1 c. cheese only)

23.5 calories

1.98 g fat

.64 g carbs, .3 g fiber, .34 g NET CARBS

1.12 g protein

20.4 mg sodium

Mar 21 2012

Rosemary Onion Almond Thins

Click to enlarge

These little crisp crackers have fewer ingredients than my Rosemary Onion Wafers and are therefore simpler to put together. This recipe is a variation of an Almond Thin recipe posted on Low Carb Friends forums. http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/recipe-forum-sticky-threads/238499-almond-thins.html. I believe it was originally posted there by Miredkitty, but am not sure if it is Miredkitty’s original recipe or not. It has been tweaked by many to come up with variations worthy of applause.

I took the basic almond flour recipe, doubled it, omitted the Splenda and then added one of my favorite seasoning combinations to come up with a spunky little cracker for serving with cheese, just eating plain or buttered! These are also delicious with soup! These are not suitable until you get to the nuts and seeds rung of the Atkins OWL ladder.

INGREDIENTS:

2 c. almond flour

2 egg whites

½ tsp. dried rosemary (or 1 T. fresh, chopped very fine)

Dash each salt, onion powder and cayenne powder

2 T. Parmesan cheese, grated

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 325º. Cut a piece of parchment paper the exact size of a large cookie sheet pan. Just set paper on your kitchen counter for now. Mix almond flour and seasonings in a bowl. Add egg whites and stir until it forms a moist dough. Spoon or crumble with your hands the dough evenly onto parchment working from the center out. Cover the dough blobs with a sprayed/oiled sheet of waxed paper the same size. Using a rolling pin, roll dough into a single, smooth rectangular sheet of dough. Be careful to not let the dough exceed the piece of parchment paper. You want this as thin as possible, but my dough didn’t quite reach all the way to the edges of my cookie sheet. Slowly and carefully remove waxed paper. Applying tension to keep the sheet stiff, carefully lift parchment (dough on top) and place on the baking sheet. Score into the size crackers you want. Pop into your 325º oven and bake for about 10-11 minutes or until lightly browned. The outer areas brown faster, so I removed those rows of crackers as needed until the center ones have browned nicely. Cool a few minutes and separate into separate crackers along your score lines.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: As it is difficult to know how thin you may roll your dough, what size you cut your crackers or how many you will ultimately get from this recipe, I am going to provide the total recipe stats below. Just divide those numbers by the number of crackers you get each time you make these. If you do get the 100 crackers this double recipe is supposed to make, each cracker would have .258 net carbs. I didn’t get that many crackers (only 80 if I remember right) as I didn’t roll the dough as thin as I probably could have. Next time I will try to roll the dough all the way to the edges of the cut-to-fit parchment paper. What I’m certain of is that you will get enough crackers out of this recipe for them to have under 1 net carb per cracker, which is goodness in my book!

ENTIRE RECIPE CONTAINS:

1362 calories

115 g fat

50.1 g carbs, 24.3 g fiber, 25.8 g NET CARBS (if you get 100 crackers, each has 13.6 calories and .258 g net carbs; if you get 80 crackers each cracker has 17 calories and .32 net carbs)

59.2 g protein

343 mg sodium

135 mg potassium

Jan 9 2012

Clam Dip

I created this dip to “test the waters” for serving it at a small gathering of hubby’s male friends this week. I used to love clam dip as a child but have never tried to make one from scratch myself. This one isn’t as thick as those I remember from my childhood, but is came out very tasty, so I think the guys will enjoy it with low carb crackers and dippers. It is shown above with my flax sesame crackers to which I added a bit of almond flour this time. The dip was VERY good with these. This recipe is Induction friendly if you limit your serving to 2-4 tablespoons to stay within the 2T. limit on sour cream and 2T. limit on cream cheese per day. Be sure to double the recipe for a large SuperBowl party gathering!

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

5 oz. cream cheese, softened

¼ c. sour cream

¼ c. canned clams, drained solids only (you can reserve and add 1-2 T. juice, but this will make your dip much softer than what is shown. If you use juice, I’d reduce the sour cream above by 1 T.)

2-4 drops liquid smoke

3-5 drops Worcestershire sauce

4 drops Tobasco sauce

1 shake of cayenne pepper

dash salt

1/8 tsp. onion powder

1/16 tsp. garlic powder

DIRECTIONS: Soften cream cheese and stir sour cream, drained clams and all remaining ingredients into it until it is well mixed. You can add 1T. of the clam juice if you like for stronger flavor. Chill and serve with your favorite low-carb flax or almond crackers or jicama “potato” chips (potato chips for non-lowcarb guests).

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes a little over a cup or about 18 T. of dip. Each tablespoon of dip contains:

36.5 calories

3.44 g fat

.44 g carbs, 0 g fiber, .44 g NET CARBS

1.06 g protein

53.8% RDA Vitamin B12

36 mg sodium

Oct 27 2011

“Potato” Chips

Click to enlarge

These little crispy gems I made today were FANTASTIC alongside my bunless hamburger at lunch. I could eat them all by themselves or with a good sour cream onion dip any old day. Tasted just like potato chips to me and were VERY crisp, even after they cooled off. When I was growing up, my Dad always asked Mom to fry french fried potatoes with the skin on and loaded his up with black pepper. I always thought that funny at the time, but have learned to enjoy pepper on fries over the years. 🙂 In his honor (he passed away 6 years ago), I put some pepper on some of these little chips today and they tasted just like his skin-on fries to me! Really good with just sea salt and with both salt and black pepper!

I have often wondered if you could deep fry jicama, but I honestly just didn’t believe you could hide the sweet taste of jicama to want to try it. I also didn’t think I could ever slice it thin enough to work for something like this. Well, I bought a little folding Rival slicer recently and tried jicama on it today. The entire batch has 6.7 carbs, and that is pretty good! Didn’t test them in dip, but they’d probably do OK with soft sour cream or yogurt dips. They would probably break apart in thicker dips.

INGREDIENTS:

6 oz. peeled jicama

Oil of your choice 1″ deep or more for frying (only 1T. absorbed is calculated into nutritional info below)

Dash sea salt, black pepper optional

DIRECTIONS: Set some paper towels on newspaper by your stovetop for draining purposes. Next, peel and slice jicama VERY thin. I used a Rival fold-up slicer set on the thinnest setting, but a mandoline set on the thinnest blade setting would also work. It will take a very adept slicer to get it thin enough slicing with a knife by hand……not sure you can really. My food processor doesn’t slice this thin with either of the blades I have, but maybe you have a thinner blade than I. But if knife in hand is all you’ve got to work with, slice it as uniformly thin as you can. Bear in mind you will have to cook it much longer to get thicker slices to brown enough to get them truly crispy. You’re aiming for 1/16″ thick. Heat the oil in a deep skillet or deep fryer. Drop about half the slices into oil carefully so as not to spatter on yourself and to not cool off the oil too much with overcrowding. The bottoms will begin to brown first, so flip them over several times to get the most even browning. You want these quite brown, but of course, not burned. Any white areas in the center will NOT be crispy, but rather chewy. But if these are browned well, they will be crisp even after they cool off! I was most impressed with that fact. When brown, lift out of oil with slotted spoon onto awaiting paper towels. While still hot and oily, sprinkle with salt and pepper if using. Fry the second half of the chips, drain and season. These are best served hot, but will stay somewhat crisp even when cool, if they are browned properly. TIP: The browner you get these, the more they taste like real potato chips. Just be sure you to stop short of burning.

VARIATIONS: BBQ potato chip version is here: https://buttoni.wordpress.com/2011/10/27/bbq-potato-chips/ The Nacho Cheese Corn Chip version is here: https://buttoni.wordpress.com/2011/10/27/nacho-cheese-corn-chips/

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes about 20-25 chips (that depends on the cut, of course). Entire batch contains:

184 calories

13.7 g fat

15 g carbs, 8.3 g fiber, 6.7 NET CARBS (for the entire batch)

1.2 g protein

196 mg sodium

266 mg potassium

46 % RDA Vitamin C and 13% iron

Oct 27 2011

BBQ “Potato” Chips

BBQ Potato Chips

These crispy little chips came out extremely close to the flavor of commercial BBQ potato chips! We LOVED them! So crisp, too. And best of all, these little snack chips are an Atkins Induction friendly recipe. Of course, you can omit the spice blend for plain “potato chips”. I also have a Nacho Cheese “Corn” Chip recipe you might like.

I have often wondered if you could deep fry jicama, but I honestly just didn’t believe you could hide the sweet quality jicama has enough to want to even try it. I also didn’t think I could ever slice it thin enough to work for something like this. Well, I recently bought a little folding Rival slicer and it slices jicama VERY thin. These are delicious with burgers or by themselves!

These can also be made plain and those taste like real potato chips to me! At 8 net carbs for this entire batch not bad all in all. The plain ones even hold up to sour cream and yogurt dips.

For more delicious crackers, chips and snacks, you really should visit the LOW CARBING AMONG FRIENDS Facebook page and see what a marvelous collection of recipes are in these best-selling cookbooks. International author Jennifer Eloff has collaborated with several other talented low carb cooks, including George Stella, well-known to the low-carb community! You can order individual volumes or the entire 5-volume set at Amazon or http://amongfriends.us/order.php.

DISCLAIMER: I do not receive money for this book promotion nor for the inclusion of my recipes therein. I promote them because they are WONDERFUL recipes any low-carb meal planner would be excited to serve to family and friends alike.

INGREDIENTS:

6 oz. jicama, peeled

Oil of your choice 1″ deep or more for frying (1T. is calculated into nutritional info below as absorbed, but I suspect less than that is actually absorbed)

Dash sea salt

¼ tsp. my Seafood Spice Blend

1/8 tsp. dehydrated tomato powder. Goya makes it in bouillon shaped cube and also in block form (optional)

DIRECTIONS: Mix seasoning (and the crumbled tomato powder if using) into a paper plate (I poured mine into an empty salt shaker I keep for such purposes). Set some paper towels on old newspaper by your cooktop for draining purposes. Peel and slice the jicama VERY thin, 1/16″ or less or they will not get crisp when cooked.

I use a Rival slicer set on the thinnest setting, but a mandoline set thin would also work. It will take a very adept slicer to get thin enough slices with a knife, cutting by hand. My food processor doesn’t slice this thin with either of the 2 slicing blades I have, but maybe you have a thinner blade than I and will try that method.

Heat oil in a deep skillet or deep fryer over high heat. Drop one slice of jicama in the oil for a test fry. If it browns too fast or burns, turn the fire down a wee bit to lower oil temp. Drop about half the slices in the oil next so as not to crowd and cool off the oil too much. The bottoms brown first, so keep flipping them during frying for the most even browning. If any areas in the center are white, those areas will NOT be crispy! White areas will be tough/chewy and nothing like a potato chip. If browned properly, they will be crisp even after they cool off, an impressive fact for such a moist vegetable. As soon as they are brown, lift them out of oil with a slotted spoon onto awaiting paper towels to drain. While still hot and oily, sprinkle with salt and the spice blend on both sides. Fry the second half of the chips, drain and season. These are delicious served hot, but will stay crisp even when cool, if browned properly.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes about 20-25 chips. The entire batch contains:

190 calories

13.7 g fat

16.7 g carbs, 8.4 g fiber, 8.3 NET CARBS (for the entire batch)

1.3 g protein

196 mg sodium

Oct 27 2011

Nacho Cheese “Corn Chips”

Man, I have often wondered if you could deep fry jicama, but I honestly just didn’t believe you could hide the sweet quality of jicama enough to bother to try it. I also didn’t think I could ever slice it thin enough to work for something like this. So I bought a little folding Rival slicer and tried jicama on it today to have with my bunless burgers. The nacho cheese corn chip version shown above was sprinkled with a mixture of nacho cheese popcorn seasoning, corn bran and sea salt. This is the closest to a true tortilla chip as I’ve come to in my my attempts to come up with one. Though crispy fried jicama usually tastes more like potato chips, this combination of seasoning gives it more of a corn chip flavor. These are suitable once you get to the grains rung of OWL due to the tiny bit of corn bran.

The corn bran, virtually pure fiber and no carbs, I have only found at Honeyvillegrains.com. But sadly, they only sell it in a huge bag, so it’s probably not worth your trouble to buy just for this recipe (though it was cheap, as I recall). I keep mine in my freezer and have been using the same bag for a couple years now with no ill effects during storage. It is used in very tiny amounts to add a slight corn flavor to recipes.

I used Kernel Seasons brand of cheese popcorn seasoning I get at Walmart where the popcorn is shelved. Yeah, yeah, I know it’s not the greatest product in the world, for anybody, but this tiny amount shouldn’t kill your daily carb count and brings sooooo much cheesiness to these nacho chips. If you can get pure powdered cheese, that would be a healthier choice.

If you omit the corn bran, you can enjoy these during Atkins Induction. These are great with burgers, just as a snack, or would compliment your next Mexican food dinner quite nicely! ENJOY!

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 each of the 5 volumes! Order your set TODAY! (also available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

6 oz. peeled jicama, (that’s about 1/4-1/3 of a 6½” jicama)

Oil of your choice 1″ deep or more (I use palm shortening)

1/8 tsp. corn bran (optional, I order at Honeyvillegrains.com)

1/4 tsp. nacho cheese popcorn seasoning (or pure powdered cheese if you can get it)

Dash sea salt

DIRECTIONS: Mix seasoning and salt in a paper plate. I poured mine into an empty salt shaker I keep for such purposes. Set some paper towels on newspaper by your stove-top for draining purposes. Next, peel and slice jicama VERY thin. I used a Rival fold-up slicer set on the thinnest setting, but a mandoline set on the thinnest setting would also work. You’ll just never get them thin enough with an ordinary knife. My food processor doesn’t slice this thin with either of the blades I have, but maybe you have a thinner blade than I. You’re aiming for 1/16″ thick cut on the jicama.

Heat oil in a deep skillet or deep fryer. Drop about half the slices in so as not to crowd or cool off the oil to much. The bottoms will begin to brown first, so I flipped mine over several times to get the most even browning. You want these quite brown, but of course, not burned. Any white areas in the center will NOT be crispy, but rather chewy. But if these are browned well, they will be crisp even after they cool off! I was most impressed with that fact. When brown, lift out of oil with slotted spoon onto awaiting paper towels. While still hot and oily, sprinkle with the seasoning mixture on both sides. Fry the second half of the chips and season as well.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 1 serving of about 20-25 chips (depends on size). Entire batch contains:

186 calories

13.7 g fat

15.4 g carbs, 8.5 g fiber, 6.9 g NET CARBS

1.2 g protein

161 mg sodium

Oct 8 2011

Beef Jerky

My new kitchen toy is a Guide Gear 10-shelf dehydrator, seen here, if interested. It just cranked out the most beautiful, tasty batch of beef jerky in 4 hours flat!! I love me some good beef jerky!! This has always been my husband’s favorite snack as well. And the perfect low-carb snack indeed! At $12-16 per pound in most meat markets, this is a very expensive little snack. For years I made my jerky on regular sheet pans in the oven at 155-160º for 4-6 hours, basting and turning the meat a couple times during the drying process. Doable, but not as easy. A dehydrator allows the strips of meat to dry on open racks, with forced warm air circulation around all sides of the meat, eliminating the need to turn the meat at all, somewhat speeding up the drying process. My old plastic small dehydrator with only 4 very small shelves gave up the ghost years ago and I’m just now replacing it with this large model. And I’m SO glad I finally acquired a new one!

This recipe can be done with other cuts of beef, but sirloin will be the lowest in calories and fat (except for skirt meat) and probably the best meat value for jerky. I began with 4 nice sirloins (about 6# raw meat total) that when trimmed of all fat, sinew, any visible gristle and membrane, yielded exactly 5# of lean strips of raw beef. That dried out to exactly 32 oz. of finished jerky. Since I can’t possibly know how much you will eat at a sitting, I’m giving you nutritional info for a 1 oz. serving, which is probably 2-3 pieces, depending on their size.

When slicing your meat, it is important to slice it uniformly thick (FYI, longer strips are best for dehydrator trays. If oven cooking, the length of the strips is unimportant). I aim for 3/16″-1/4″ thick slices. HANDY TIP: Slicing partially frozen meat is easier, if you can take the time to partially freeze it. Any thinner than 3/16″ will reduce your final jerky to crispy critters faster than the thicker pieces (must remove those from cooking sooner); thicker than 1/4″ will take a long time to fully dry out.

I like to marinate my meat for at least 6 hours (or overnight) in the refrigerator in a covered plastic pan before dehydrating. You will get better flavor results with longer marinating time. 🙂 For those that like a sweeter, teryaki-type jerky, you can add 1 tsp. of maple extract and a dab of your favorite sweetening agent.

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 chefs to bring you a wealth of delicious recipes you are going to want to try. Even a few of my recipes are in her cookbooks! Order your 5-volume set TODAY! (available individually) from Amazon or: http://amongfriends.us/order.php

INGREDIENTS:

6-6½ lbs. boneless sirloin (will yield about 5 lb. trimmed meat)

1 T. tomato paste (Walmart Great Value brand is pure tomato pulp, no added sugar)

3/4 c. red wine or water

1/3 c. soy sauce (not low-sodium), wheat-free tamari or coconut aminos

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. garlic powder

2 tsp. coarse black pepper

1 pkt. stevia, Splenda or other sweetener (optional)

DIRECTIONS: Trim all fat, membrane, sinew and gristle off the meat. Any left on will expedite spoilage. Partially freeze meat to facilitate slicing. Slice the partially frozen meat 3/16″ thick. In large plastic/glass marinating pan, blend tomato paste with soy sauce until smooth. Add water and remaining ingredients and stir well. Add meat to the marinade and using hands, toss meat several times to coat well. Cover and marinate 6 hours or overnight, covered, in refrigerator. You can also marinate the meat in gallon zip-log plastic storage bags. I recommend placing them into pans though, in case of leakage you won’t want to mess up the refrigerator 😉 Stir once or twice during marinating (or manipulate the bag with your hands to be sure all the meat is touching the marinade.

When ready to dehydrate, lift meat pieces out of marinade and lay on dehydrator trays or non-stick baking sheets, leaving a ¼” space between pieces. You do not want them to touch each other as this will block air/heat circulation. Set dehydrator to meat setting (155º-160º) for 4-6 hours. I check mine every hour, in case small/thin pieces are over drying. No matter how hard you try, some pieces will slice out thinner than others. It just happens!

My jerky takes 4 hours in my dehydrator, but it used to take me 8 hours, for several reasons, mostly tray overcrowding in my old smaller dehydrator. If oven cooking on pans, set oven between 160º-200º. Turn meat every hour (usually 1 or 2 times is enough). Take pieces out of the dehydrator/oven as they appear to be fully dried. It goes without saying, any thick pieces will take longer to fully dry out. Discard any marinate remainders as it is contaminated with raw meat juices. When jerky has cooled, ENJOY!!

For remainders, wrap in small batches in foil and then place the foil packs into a large ziploc bag. Though they can be stored on the counter for 1-2 months, if not properly dried, it can mold/spoil. Refrigerating therefore, is always the safest way to store jerky that has not been done commercially. I actually keep most of mine in the freezer and just thaw 1 foil pack as needed, keeping the one in the fridge until that pack is fully consumed.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 32 oz. (2 lb) finished jerky, or 32 servings of 1 oz. each. Each serving contains:

94.59 calories

2.52 g fat

0.58 g carbs, .09 g fiber, 0.49 g NET CARBS

16 g protein

128 mg sodium

Oct 2 2011

Smokin’ Jack Sausage Bites

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A quick snack if using fully cooked smoked sausage. I had 1 link we grilled this week leftover in my refrigerator and made a plate of these tasty bites for lunch today. This is Induction friendly.

INGREDIENTS:

1 link smoked sausage, pre-cooked (mine weighed 2½ oz.)

3 oz. pepper jack cheese

DIRECTIONS: Preheat broiler. Slice cooked sausage into 12 even slices. Place on metal pan and top with folded bits of pepper jack cheese. Pop in broiler until cheese is melted and starting to brown. Place on paper towels a moment to soak up excess grease and put on serving plate. Have toothpicks handy for easy grabbing.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 2 servings, each one contains:

271 calories

22.3 g fat

1.75 g carbs, 0 fiber, 1.75 g NET CARBS

15 g protein

456 mg sodium

25 % RDA calcium

Oct 1 2011

Onion Crackers

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I continue experimenting with cracker recipes. These came out VERY crisp indeed. They were flavorful enough on their own merit to eat as chips, with dips, cheese or just butter! These are not suitable until the nuts and seeds rung of the OWL ladder. I actually put 1 tsp crushed dried rosemary in these but hubby and I think we would prefer them without the rosemary next time. 🙂

INGREDIENTS:

2/3 c. flax meal

1/3 c. almond meal

1/4 c. oat fiber

2 tsp. onion powder

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

3/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

3/4 c. water

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Mix dry ingredients in a bowl. Add water and stir with a fork until all dough appears to be moistened. Pour crumbled mixture evenly onto a well-oiled or parchment-lined 11″x 17″ sheet pan . I use plastic gloves for this next step, or you can use plastic sandwich bags to cover your hands. Press the crumbly mixture firmly onto the pan until it is evenly and uniformly spread in an extremely thin layer, avoiding any holes/breaks in the dough. You can put plastic on top and use a rolling pin to smooth it out, but I find I don’t need to do this. When done, using a long knife, gently score the dough into 48 crackers (8×6 rows). Pop into 350º oven for about 20-25 minutes. You do not want to over brown, so I start checking at 15 minutes! Re-score with knife again as soon as you remove them from the oven. Cool, separate and put in an air-tight container.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 48 crackers, each contains:

19 calories

1.44 g fat

1.15 g carbs, .93 g fiber, .22 NET CARBS

1.04 g protein

15 mg potassium, 25 mg sodium

Sep 13 2011

Prune Protein Bars

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I was shopping last month and found the coolest silicone baking pans on sale at my local Tuesday Morning store. They only had two of them and they were framed with steel, so they will support themselves and have something to grab onto that supports them when picking up to place/remove from the oven. The compartments are approximately 4″x 1¼”x 1¼”, which is perfect for individual bar cookies, brownies, protein bars, mini cakes, or making little petit fours. Here’s what it looks like: But of course, you can press this dough into a pan and cut into squares with a knife as well. This specialty pan isn’t essential for making these, just fun! 🙂

This recipe was inspired by a gluten-free granola bar recipe I saw over on Joyfulabode.com. I decided to sweeten it up more as well as add some protein powder, DaVinci caramel syrup, and dried prunes. The final result was very, VERY good. And best of all, no cooking to speak of, so no heating up the kitchen. These were so easy to make, I’ll be making variations on this recipe, I’m sure! Plus these are stable/safe to store at room temperature, but I think they are less fragile if kept chilled. In other words, they are not well-suited for back pack jostling. 🙂 They will tend to break apart if handled roughly. For anyone interested, I froze a few and they froze just fine. They did not get sticky on the surface or soggy in any way after defrosting. This recipe is not suitable until the higher carb fruit rung of Atkins OWL Phase.

INGREDIENTS:

½ c. each almonds, walnuts, and pecans

¼ c. each roasted pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds

1½ c. coconut, unsweetened

½ c. erythritol (or preferred ½ c. sugar equivalent sweetener)

1 scoop (¼ c.) whey protein powder, unflavored, unsweetened (I use NOW for 1 net carb per scoop)

½ tsp. cinnamon

5 dried prunes, chopped

¼ c. sugar-free honey (I buy at Walmart)

¼ c. DaVinci caramel sugar-free syrup

1 tsp. vanilla

¼ c. coconut oil

¼ tsp. salt (omit if seeds above are salted)

DIRECTIONS: Place the first 7 ingredients into the bowl of a food processor (or blender) and pulse 2-3 times to a medium grind. You don’t want it too coarse; you don’t want it too fine. 🙂 In a small saucepan, bring the last 5 ingredients to a bubble over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and pour over the dry mix and stir well to moisten all ingredients. If you have suitable silicone muffin cups, press into 18 patties or bars, making them as level as you can with your fingers. I found each one took about ¼ c. dough. If you don’t want round patties, just press dough onto a 9×13 non-stick or parchment-lined pan. Chill for 1 hour and cut into 18 bars. Store extras covered in the bottom of your refrigerator or in your freezer. I actually prefer to just freeze them and eat them right from the freezer, as they never really get hard, hard in the freezer.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION: Makes 18 bars, each contains:

187 calories

16.88 g fat

5.72 g carbs, 2.86 g fiber, 2.86 g. NET CARBS

5.1 g protein

57 mg sodium

159 mg potassium

12% RDA Vitamin E, 34% copper, 17% iron, 18% magnesium, 39% manganese, 113 % Thiamin, 13.3 % zinc

Aug 13 2011

Spicy Onion Rings

I’ve been wanting to try my hand at onion rings. I am not so wild about onion rings, but my husband sure loves them. These are oven-baked instead of fried, so no greasy mess on the stove. They came out very tasty, but were considerably softer than a deep-fried, batter-coated onion ring. No surprise there. The coating browned nicely and was very crunchy. I would definitely do these again. Just so you know, only the smallest diameter rings could be picked up by hand easily. I dipped the larger ones onto my plate and used a fork to cut them in half to eat. These are Induction friendly.

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 calories

15.6 g fat

5.10 g carbs, .53 g fiber, 4.57 g NET CARBS

9.5 g protein

271 mg sodium

85 mg potassium

31% RDA Vitamin B12, 26% riboflavin and 40% selenium

Aug 2 2011

Smoked Oyster Canapes

Smoked Oyster Canapés

A quick and tasty snack or party appetizer for your next football game gathering. Of course, if you don’t care for smoked oysters, you probably won’t like these. But my folks always kept smoked oysters in the house and it was a favorite snack with saltines. But I’ve found a low carb way to still enjoy them. Oysters have carbs, but there’s only 7 net carbs in an entire 3.75 oz. can, so eating 4-5 of these is doable for a low-carb snack. This recipe is Induction friendly. Every brand of oysters is different the size/number of oysters in the can. That makes it hard to formulate a big recipe and know how many you’ll end up with. As a rule, the oysters are very small after smoking, but my can had 27 in it this time. I make up just the number of these I think I want or need for guests, because my husband is not so fond of smoked oysters and never eats them with me. So the recipe below is for ONE canapé and you go with that based on consumption. You’ll need toothpicks to put these together as well.

INGREDIENTS:

1 smoked oyster

1 medium black olive, pitted

1/3 tsp. Philly cream cheese with chive and onion

DIRECTIONS: Dab 1/3 tsp. cream cheese on each oyster, Spear through both with a toothpick, catching a black olive on the bottom of each canapé.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Each canape contains:

12 calories

.8 g fat

.6 g carbs, .1 g fiber, .5 g NET CARBS

.7 g protein

83 mg sodium

Jul 10 2011

Italian Meatballs

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I like to make a huge batch of meatballs when I make them so I’ll have a bunch to freeze for convenient future use. Not only do these make wonderful snacks as is or with your favorite low-carb sauces, but it’s nice to have them already cooked to pop into your favorite spaghetti sauce. They make a wonderful meatball sandwich on your preferred low-carb bread as well. 🙂 This recipe is Induction acceptable. I have to watch my sodium intake now, but if you’re not sensitive, you might want to increase the salt to ½ tsp. in these, as that’s what my original recipe calls for. I just can’t have that much salt anymore. 🙂

INGREDIENTS:

3 lb. lean ground beef

4 oz. onion, chopped very fine

4 oz. green bell pepper, chopped very fine

2 T. bacon grease

1/3 tsp. dried oregano

1 c. parsley, chopped

3 eggs beaten

4 T. grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp. coarse ground black pepper

1/4 tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Lightly grease two baking pans with sides. Place meat in large mixing bowl. Chop onion and pepper and saute in bacon grease until completely fender. Add to meat, grease and all. Add oregano, parsley and Parmesan. Add the beaten eggs, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly, which is most efficiently done with your hands. I use a small ice cream scoop, or you could use a large melon ball tool if you have one. Scoop up equal amounts of meat mixture, enough to roll into 1½” balls. Place closely together on two baking sheets. I get 48 meatballs out of this recipe. Place pans of meatballs in a 350º oven and bake uncovered for about 25-30 minutes. Check one for doneness. They should be grey and not pink in the center. Remove from oven and cool unless using some immediately. These will exude a lot of beef juice during cooking. When removing meatballs from the pan, if you twist them as you lift, they will come up without that congealed juice attaching to the meatball. I scrape all that good solid juice stuff off the pans for my two little rat terriers to have as gravy on their next meal. 🙂 They love me. 🙂

I set aside 10-12 for immediate use and snacks and then freeze the rest on a clean, dry baking sheet so they will freeze individually. Then I pour them all into a gallon ziploc bag and put the rest in my freezer. For snacks and future use, just defrost the ones you need!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 48 meatballs approximately 1¼” in diameter. Each meatball contains:

88 calories

5.9 g fat

.44 g carbs, .12 g fiber, .12 g NET CARBS

7.91 g protein

139 mg sodium

34% RDA Vitamin B12, 7.8% B6, 11% iron, 11% niacin, 13% selenium, 23% zinc

Jun 29 2011

Flax-Sesame Crackers

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I have discovered I am so salt sensitive, I’m having to virtually eliminate the salt and greatly reduce the cheese in my cracker recipe. These are not acceptable for Induction unless you omit the sesame seeds. Below is my lighter, blander version that I am going to have to use from now on if I ever want to get to my goal weight. I not only drop the salt from the traditional recipe, but I cut the Parmesan 90% to reduce saltiness even further. My crackers will now be more “neutral” in flavor and impact on my body’s water balance. Flax tends to burn (particularly around the edges) REAL FAST!! So do watch these, as ovens vary. Sometimes I like to crumble a chicken or beef bouillon cube into the dry ingredients of my crackers for a bit of a flavor twist, but I omit any salt in the recipe if I do. For a milder cracker, sometimes I reduce the flax meal 2-3 tablespoons and substitute in 2-3 T. almond meal. Both methods are good. If you omit the sesame seeds, these crackers are suitable for Atkins Induction.

INGREDIENTS:

1½ c. flax meal (I use a mixture of dark and golden)

1 T. grated Parmesan cheese

1½ tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. cayenne or black pepper (I like cayenne best; my husband likes black best)

¼ c. sesame seeds (omit if still on Induction)

¼ tsp. salt

½ c. water

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350º. Line the bottom of a 12×17 cookie pan (with sides) with parchment paper and set aside. In a mixing bowl, mix the dry ingredients well with a wooden spoon. Add water and stir to blend until all ingredients are moistened with the water. Break up or crumble the dough onto the parchment paper evenly. I use plastic gloves, but covering your hands with sandwich baggies will work. Press the dough evenly over the paper to fill the pan. I know it will seem like there’s not enough dough to reach the edges and it will seem very thin, this dough. But trust me, it WILL reach the edges of the pan if you are patient and diligent with your pressing. Smooth the dough until there are no holes or gaps in it throughout the entire sheet. Check for places places where it may be thicker and smooth them out. You want this as even and thin throughout as possible. If you want, you can cover the dough with plastic wrap and roll a smooth/straight-sided glass or rolling pin over it for a smoother surface, but I personally don’t bother with that. Score the dough gently with a knife into 64 crackers (8×8). This is done best by pressing the knife into the dough and gently lifting it straight up repeatedly. I you drag the blade too fast through the dough, or back and forth, that will tear the dough up.

Bake at 350º for about 10 minutes. Check often as flax burns easily. The outside crackers will brown much faster, so I actually check at about 10 minutes and every 5 minutes thereafter to remove the outer ones to a platter as they brown. Then I put the pan back in the oven for the rest to finish browning. I burned my first batch of flax crackers, so I learned my lesson. Pop the remaining crackers back in the oven to finish browning. When all crackers are done, turn the oven off, return all of the crackers to the the pan and set it back in the cooling down oven to “crisp up” to their ultimate crispness. If you go to this extra step, they stay crisp for days and days in a ziploc bag. When I don’t go to this trouble, they soften up on me and I have to go back and re-crisp them in the oven 2 or 3 days later. Just my experience. Store in a ziploc bag or airtight container. DO NOT refrigerate or they will lose their crispness.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 64 crackers, each contains:

18.1 calories

1.43 g fat

.98 g carbs, .84 g fiber, .14 g NET CARBS

6.65 g protein

11.5 mg sodium