All posts by Rene Averett

Beef, Soups and Stews

Guinness Pot Roast is Grand

Photo: Pot Roast in Guinness broth

When you think of St. Patrick’s Day, your first thought probably isn’t a pot roast.  In many ways, it is similar to an Irish stew though. Beef, broth, vegetables, and Guinness Stout. So, I thought, why not? The stout not only brings flavor, but it is great to tenderize the beef. Add turnips and kohlrabi instead of potatoes, then throw in some baby carrots and onions, and you have a delicious low-carb meal in one pot.

Guinness Stout Pot Roast

3-1/2 to 4 lb. Pot Roast
1 16 oz.-can Guinness Draught Stout
2 cups Turnips, peeled and cubed
20-24 Baby Carrots
3 stalks Celery, medium-sized
1 Onion, peeled and quartered
2 cups Kohlrabi, peeled and cubed
1 packet LIPTON RECIPE SECRETS ONION Mix or other Onion Soup mix
1 tablespoon Garlic and Herb Seasoning
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2 tablespoon Olive Oil

Heat oven to 325 degrees (F.)

Peel the turnips and kohlrabi and cut each into eighths. Remove the strings from the celery and cut into one-inch pieces. Cut the carrots in half or leave whole. Peel the onion and cut it into quarters.

In a Dutch oven or ovenproof deep pot, add the olive oil and heat over medium heat. Prepare the roast by rubbing it with seasoning on both sides. Sear the pot roast in the hot oil to get a brown char on one side, then flip over and repeat.

Remove the roast, add in the onions and sauté for about five minutes. Return the roast to the pan, then add the Guinness beer and 1/4 cup water along with the Onion Soup mix. Bring mixture to a simmer, then turn off heat. Cover with a lid or with a double layer of aluminum foil. Place in the oven and cook for 1 hour 30 minutes.

Add the vegetables to the pot and cook for another 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours until the vegetables are fork tender.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

To help sop up that flavorful sauce, serve slices of low carb Irish Soda Bread. Get the recipe here.

Italian Inspired Recipes, Recipes

It’s Gnudi Time!

Photo: Gnudi with meatballs and pasta sauce

Sometimes I learn about something and wish that I had known about it sooner in my life. Gnudi (pronounced nudee) fit in that category. I saw Giada Di Laurentis make these on television and decided I had to try them. They are similar to the filling in gnocchi, but really, it tastes like the center ricotta layer in lasagna. So delicious!

And they are easy to make. I adapted them only slightly to be low carb, which meant swapping out the regular wheat flour for low carb flour. I used Dixie Diner’s All Purpose Flour. I expect that coconut flour might work well in this also. I plan to try that the next time I make them. Since coconut flour absorbs more liquid, use only 1/4 cup in the ricotta mixture. If the dough gets too stiff, add a little egg white or water.

Use freshly grated Parmesan cheese, not the canned variety that’s been sitting in the cupboard for two months. It’s worth it. This recipe is adapted from one I found at thekitchn.com.

Ricotta Gnudi

1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
2 cups Whole-milk Ricotta Cheese
1 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground Black Pepper
1 tablespoon Garlic and Herb Seasoning
1 cups Low Carb All-purpose Flour, divided
1-1/2 cups Marinara or Pasta sauce, store-bought or homemade
Fresh Baby Spinach

Place freshly grated Parmesan cheese in a large bowl then add ricotta cheese, eggs, salt, pepper and seasoning salt. Stir together, then add 1/2 cup low carb flour and stir until combined.

Put parchment paper or aluminum foil on top of a rimmed baking sheet. Dust with 1/3 cup flour. Using a 1-1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop or an over-filled tablespoon, scoop out golf-ball sized gnudi and place on the baking sheet. You can shape them into balls with your hands if they aren’t rounded. Repeat until all the dough is used.

Sprinkle the remaining flour over the tops of the dough. Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator to chill for 20 to 30 minutes. The more chilled they are, the better since the low carb flour breaks down in the boiling water more than regular flour.

Fill a large pot with water, add about a teaspoon of salt, and bring to a boil. While waiting, get out the spinach and cut or tear into pieces for garnish. Warm the pasta sauce in a pan.

Use a slotted spoon to lower five or six gnudi into the water, one or two at a time. Try not to get too much extra flour with each one. Boil until the gnudi float and are firm to a light touch, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the water with the slotted spoon and put on a serving bowl or plate. Repeat until all the gnudi are cooked.

Spoon warmed pasta sauce over the top, garnish with additional Parmesan Cheese and the spinach leaves.

If you wish, you can add a couple of meat balls to the plate as I did.

Image: Gnudi in pan with butter and spinach

The other way you can serve gnudi is with a melted butter sauce. I heated my day-old gnudi up in the butter, lightly browning them. Melt a stick of butter, add 1 teaspoon minced garlic and let the butter get slightly browned. If you wish, you can add 1/2 to 1 cup of baby spinach while you’re stirring the butter. Spoon over the gnudi to serve.

This is great with roast chicken or pork chops as well as the meatballs.

Makes 24 gnudi. I used 4 gnudi per serving.

Leftovers can be put in plastic bags with the air gently pushed out as you seal it, or you can put them in a flat plastic container with a tight lid. They will keep up to three days in the refrigerator.

Image: Nutrition

 

Desserts

Easy Microwave Brownies

Microwave Brownie with Hazelnut Cream Topping

A few weeks ago, I splurged big time and bought a microwave brownie baker at my local dollar store. What the heck? It might turn out to be a shortcut to one of my favorite treats, you know. (By the way, you can buy one just like it or a Betty Crocket one for $5 to $10 dollars!)

The kit includes a plastic pan for the microwave and an odd little measuring box. It has separate compartments and markers to put in your ingredients. Then you dump them all into the baking pan and mix them together. So I guess you could call this a measuring box.

I tried it once as written, cooking them in the microwave for 3 minutes. My brownies came out a little too done and not gooey as promised. So, I changed the recipe a little, using another similar one but used butter in place of oil. I cut the time back by 15 seconds. Brownies were a little less done but lacking the texture I was hoping to get. On the third try, I cut the time back to two minutes. Whoops. Still not in the gooey mode. The fourth time, I cut them back to 90 seconds. This time, they weren’t quite done in the middle. So, the most recent attempt was one minute and forty-five seconds. Success! While the brownies looked a little underdone when I first removed them from the microwave, they cooked a little longer and are now perfect.

The moral of this tale is that you may have to play with the time in your microwave. Since my unit is 1000 watts, a 1200-watt one might need only 90 seconds, while an 800-watt unit might need two minutes.

Alternately, you can abandon the microwave and simply cook them in an 8×8″ pan in the oven. Instructions are below.

I used a combination low carb flour of 6 tablespoons Bakesquick and 2 tablespoons Almond Flour.

Microwave Brownies

1 cup Sugar Substitute
1/3 cup Cocoa Powder
1/2 cup All-Purpose Low Carb Flour
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder

Wet Add-ins:
1/2 cup Butter, melted and cooled
2 Eggs
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1/4 cup Pecans or Walnuts, chopped (optional)

Optional Topping (ices two brownies):
1 tablespoon Sugar-Free Hazelnut Spread
1 tablespoon Butter, softened
2 tablespoons Cool Whip or other toppings

Brownies:

Put all the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk them together.

Melt the butter and let cool for a few minutes.

In a small bowl, add the butter, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk together until the eggs are completely incorporated.

Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir together until all the flour is moist. Add nuts and stir them in. If you wish, you can add 1/3 cup of sugar-free chocolate chips to make them even richer. Pour batter into a microwavable 6″x6″ pan to microwave or into an 8″x8″ baking pan for the oven.

To microwave, cook 1 minute 30 seconds to 1 minute 45 seconds and let cool. With luck, this will produce a moist, gooey cookie. If it’s not quite as you like it, cook it more or less the next time you make it.

To bake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F.) Bake 20 to 22 minutes, checking with a toothpick to ensure it doesn’t get overcooked.

To bake in the oven, let cook for 20 to 22 minutes, checking to make sure it doesn’t get overcooked.

Makes about 6 to 8 brownies.

For the topping:
It’s best to make only enough for what you’re going to eat at the time. This recipe makes enough for two brownies.

In a small bowl, add hazelnut spread and butter. Mix together, then add Cool Whip (or even whipped cream if you prefer.) Stir together until it is blended, then spread over the top of the brownies.

If you have friends over and you’re eating the whole pan at once, simply triple the amounts for the topping.

Low Sodium Brownies

For my friends who need a low sodium intake, this recipe works with almond flour and coconut flour.

To make low sodium brownies, use these ingredients:

1 cup Sugar Substitute
1/3 cup Cocoa Powder
1/4 cup Almond Flour
2 tablespoons Coconut Flour
1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder

Wet Add-ins:
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, melted and cooled
2 Eggs
3 tablespoons Egg Whites
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1/4 cup Pecans or Walnuts, chopped (optional)

Cook in the microwave as described above.

Breads, Breakfast & Brunch, Recipes

Keto Breakfast Bars with Variety

1 Comment

Photo: Keto Breakfast Bars

This is a low-carb or Keto adaptation of an oatmeal breakfast bar recipe that has changed so much that it is really a new one.

Using a combination of flour products, I created a nice mix with great flavor but isn’t overly sweet. You can experiment with add-ins, but be aware of the added carbs in your additions. I recommend Carbquick or Bakesquick for the baking mix since they are both low in carbs. Other low carb baking mixes, such as Bob’s Red Mill and King Arthur Flour, also work. Add extra sugar substitute if you want your bars to be sweeter. I also add a simple icing for that purpose.

While I’ve used unsweetened almond or coconut milk to keep the carbs low, you can use whole or 2% fat milk or cream. The carbs will go up a little.

Blueberry Oatmeal Bars made in pan with separator.

These make eight breakfast bars that are filling and very satisfying with your morning coffee or tea. If you feel overly full or want to cut the carbs a little more, you can make a dozen by slicing 4 bars in one direction and three the other way. I have a Copper Chef 11×7-inch pan with separators to make 12 bars that I used, but you can also use an 8×8-inch pan and cut them yourself.

Keto Oatmeal Bar

Keto Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

1/4 cup old-fashioned Rolled Oats
1/4 cup Almond Flour
1/4 cup Golden Flax Meal
1-1/4 cup CarbQuik or other baking mixes
⅓ cup packed Swerve Brown Sugar
1 tablespoon White Sugar Substitute
1 ½ teaspoons Baking Powder
½ teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1 cup Unsweetened Almond or Coconut Milk
2 Eggs
2 tablespoons Canola Oil
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract or Almond Extract
1/4 cup Chopped Pecans or Walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease an 8-inch square pan.

Combine oats, brown sugar, white sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Whisk milk, eggs, canola oil, and vanilla extract together in a separate bowl. Stir egg mixture into oats mixture until well combined; set aside until flavors blend, about 20 minutes. Spread oats mixture into a prepared square pan.

Bake in the preheated oven until edges are golden brown, about 30 minutes.

To make this using Coconut flour, replace the Baking Mix with 1/2 cup Coconut flour and add 1/4 cup Egg Whites. The extra egg whites will be absorbed by the flour and help it to rise.

Add-Ins: 1/2 cup chopped Pecans, 1/2 cup chopped Sugar-reduced Craisins, 1/2 cup Blueberries, or 1/2 cup Pumpkin Puree

This version is made with Coconut flour and uses pumpkin puree. You can use this as a base to make any of the bars using Coconut flour.

Makes 8 servings

Nutrition Info: Keto Oatmeal Bars

Image: Pumpkin Oatmeal Bar

Oatmeal Pumpkin Bars
With Coconut Flour

The pumpkin version is my favorite bar. It’s very moist and filled with spices.

1/4 cup old-fashioned Rolled Oats
1/4 cup Almond Flour
1/4 cup Golden Flax Meal
2/3 cup Coconut Flour
⅓ cup packed Swerve Brown Sugar
1 tablespoon White Sugar Substitute
1 ½ teaspoons Baking Powder
½ teaspoon Salt
1 tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 cup Almond or Coconut Milk
1/2 cup Pumpkin Puree
3 Eggs
2 tablespoons Canola Oil
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract or Almond Extract
1/4 cup Chopped Pecans or Walnuts (optional)

Icing
4 tablespoons Swerve Confectioners’ Sugar
1 tablespoon Unsweetened Almond or Coconut Milk
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Prepare according to the above instructions and add pumpkin puree with the wet ingredients. This recipe may take a little longer to cook, so check at 30 minutes, then extend by 5 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Makes 8 servings

Nutrition Info: Pumpkin Oatmeal Bar with Coconut Flour

Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

Savory Acorn Squash

Photo: Herb roasted acorn squash

If you’re like me, you haven’t thought about using acorn squash or butternut squash with savory seasonings. I grew up with it being covered in butter and brown sugar with cinnamon, so it was more of a sweet treat. It’s still a favorite way to eat the squash, but others are also delicious.

The herbs and butter mix on this one is wonderful, bringing a delightful flavor to the squash. It pairs well with ham, pork roast, or chicken.

This recipe is adapted from one at therealfoodrds.com and is slightly easier, mainly because I use a pre-packaged mix of herbs rather than mixing several together myself. For this recipe, I used Mrs. Dash Garlic Herb Seasoning, one of the staples in my kitchen. Any garlic herb mix will work.

Herb-Roasted Acorn Squash with Parmesan

1 large acorn squash (about 4″ in diameter)
⅓ cup shredded or grated parmesan cheese
2–3 tablespoon Mrs. Dash Garlic Herb Seasoning
1 tablespoon Butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon salt or more to taste
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 400℉. Prepare 2 baking sheets by covering with either aluminum foil or parchment paper.

Cut acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Then slice each half into ½-inch thick slices.

In a small bowl, mix the spices, cheese, salt, and pepper.

Arrange the acorn slices on the baking pans with flat sides down. Spread the melted butter over each piece with a cooking brush. Use a spoon to sprinkle the herb and cheese mixture over the squash liberally. Coat the entire top of each slice.
.
Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until a fork easily pierces the squash, and the parmesan cheese is crispy and slightly browned.

Serve hot. Makes 6 servings.

Image: Nutrition Information