All posts by RAverett

Breads, Recipes

Peanut Butter & Jam Surprise Muffin

Here’s an adapted to low carb muffin recipe that I probably saw originally some years ago although I don’t recall where. It’s certainly not a new concept, but the approach may be a little different and I didn’t follow any other recipe in creating it.

I used LC Foods strawberry jam in my recipe, but when I figured the nutrition, I used Smucker’s Sugar Free Jam, which you car purchase at almost any grocery store. Of course, you can substitute your favorite flavor sugar free jam in the recipe.

1/4 cup Peanut Flour or Almond Flour
1/4 cup Whey Protein Powder or 2 tablespoons Coconut Flour
1/2 cup Carbquick
2 Eggs
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Cinnamon, ground
1/4 cup Coconut Oil
1 tsp Vanilla Extract (omit if using vanilla whey powder)
1/2 tbsp Heavy Whipping Cream
1/4 cup JIF creamy Peanut Butter
3 tbsp LC Strawberry Jam or low carb jam of your choice

Preheat oven to 360 degrees F. Prepare six muffin cups with baking spray.

Mix peanut flour, Carbquick and protein powder together with baking powder, and cinnamon. Beat eggs, whipping cream and vanilla extract together, then stir in coconut (or peanut) oil and mix into flours. Combine until moist, but don’t over mix. If the mixture is too dry, add a little water until it is a droppable consistency.

Using 1/2 of the batter, fill each muffin cup about 1/3 full. Spoon a half teaspoon of peanut butter (see photo) into the middle of each muffin and top with a teaspoon of strawberry jam. Divide the remainder of the batter equally over the top of the filling mixture.


About 1/2 teaspoon of peanut butter.
  

Drop peanut butter on top of muffin batter… then add jam and spoon more batter on top.

Bake for about 20 minutes until the muffin is golden brown. Cool and serve. Makes 6 muffins.

Nutrition Information:
Per muffin (made with Smucker’s Jam):
Calories 147, Net Carbs: 5.2 g, Protein: 7 g

Originally POSTED BY RENE AVERETT AT 11/18/2012 1:21 PM

Breads, Main Dish, Recipes

Rene’s Sausage, Pepperoni and Bacon Pizza


I am away from home this week — house sitting for my friends in Las Vegas, so this presents a bit of a challenge in my cooking plans. First test of the month – I’m facing another one later as I jet off to Arizona for a week with my bro and sis-in-law. “What challenge?” you might ask. “Finding some of those special ingredients that I order at home,” I reply with blinking eyes.

And here I am on a Wednesday craving pizza and I’m without either CarbQuick or Atkins flour, let alone any other low carb baking mix. But the Wal-Mart does carry Bob’s Red Mill Flax seed meal and almond flour. I like Bob’s almond flour because it’s a nice, smooth mill and is lighter, although higher in net carbs than Now’s almond flour. So, the thing to do here is to substitute the Carbquick in my recipe with the Flax meal and use the almond flour for Flax meal in the original recipe. The crust is an adaptation of two other recipes, but with my own twist on it. The bonus with this is that it’s also gluten free. The toppings are a mix of meat and veggies that blend well and really make a great meal. I must add that this is delicious! No, it doesn’t taste like a yeast wheat flour pizza crust, but it’s pretty darn good anyway.

If you’re counting calories, it’s pretty high at 559 a serving, so plan for it.

 

Flax-Almond Pizza Crust

3/4 cup Flax Meal
1/4 cup Almond Flour
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
1 Egg
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tblsp Olive Oil
1/4 to 1/2 cup Water

Topping

1 or 2 slices of Thick-cut Bacon, fried crisp
2 links Bratwurst Sausage or Italian Sausage
1/2 cup Broccoli pieces, fresh or frozen and cooked
1/4 cup Red Onion, sliced thinly
1/4 cup Mushroom slices
2 small Sweet Peppers or 1/2 cup Bell Peppers, sliced
Pepperoni slices
1 tablespoon minced Garlic (optional)
1 cup Mozzarella or pizza cheese mix
1 cup Pasta Sauce (homemade or bottled)
Check for the lowest carb available. I have found a couple with the net carb of 5 g for 1/2 cup

Start with the pizza crust. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Mix flours and Parmesan cheese together with the baking powder, Italian seasoning and salt. Make a well in the middle and add olive oil and egg. Add 1/4 cup water and mix well. Add additional water as needed to make dough moist and pliable, but not runny. Let sit for about 5 minutes for meal to absorb the liquid.

Prepare pan by spraying or oiling a 12″ pizza round or a 9 x 11 inch rectangular pan or 10″ square pan. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the pan, press on top of the oil, then spray or oil the top of the parchment. If you use a silicone mat, just put it in the pan and spray it with cooking spray.


Parchment paper sticks to the pan if it has been oiled or sprayed with cooking spray.

If you use a stone, oil the stone, but you don’t need a mat or parchment although it makes it easier to get the pizza off. Use a spoon to put large spoonfuls of the dough on the pan in evenly spaced mounds. Wet your hands and pat the dough to as even a crust as you can get that fills the pan. It should be a little less than 1/4 inch thick.

Bake in the oven for 15 to 18 minutes until lightly browned. Remove from the oven.

While the pizza crust is baking, prepare your topping. Remove sausages from casing and fry in a pan until browned, but not cooked all the way through. Remove to paper towel to drain. Stir fry the vegetables until just tender.

When the crust comes out of the oven, assemble the pizza. Spread 1 cup of the pasta sauce over the crust, spreading it all the way to the edges. Spread the sausage and crumbled bacon, distributing as evenly as possible. Top the meat mixture with slices of pepperoni, about twelve to sixteen slices depending on the cut. Spread vegetables over the top of that and top with mozzarella cheese. Put back in the oven for about 10 minutes to finish cooking the sausage and melt the cheese. Check on the pizza at 5 minutes, then again at 10 minutes to see that it’s done the way you prefer and not overdone.

Cut into four slices and serve with a salad.


The recipe is flexible… don’t like mushrooms? Leave them off! Broccoli doesn’t thrill? Substitute something else or just omit. That’s the fun of pizza — it can be personalized easily.

Crust only information: Carbs for 1 slice of original crust: 1.9 g calories 178.6, protein 11.3 g
Carbs for Flax-Almond crust (gluten free) – 1.5 g calories 212.4 protein 11.6

Pizza with toppings above:
Original Crust: Total Carbs for 1 slice of pizza: 8.6 g, calories 525 protein 28.9
Flax-Almond Crust: 8.2 g, calories 559, protein 29.2

Originally POSTED BY RENE AVERETT AT 10/11/2012 1:10 AM

 

Breads, Recipes

Cinnamon Buns and Danish – yum!

From August 17, 2012 on my LJ Blog.

As a bread lover, one of the things that’s always made it hard for me to stay on a low calorie or low carb diet in the past has been the desire for pastries, pies, cookies, and bread in general. With so many low carb flour options and some out-of-the-box thinking, there are possible substitutes for these items I’ve craved.
Recently, I found the recipe for “Oopsie Rolls” from Your Lighter Side’s web site. This is a simple little flour-free bread based on the Atkins Revolution Roll that Jamie made an error when making and created a new version. It’s a sturdy enough bread to handle a hamburger. Go to her web site for the original recipe if you’d like to try this roll. (You’ll find it easy and amazing!)

But it started my brain to working and I immediately made a couple of changes to give it a little more of a bread flavor and substance, adding 2 tablespoons of low carb flour (CarbQuik) and more seasonings, such as onion powder and garlic powder. Taking it one step further, I thought it would make a great cinnamon roll and came up with a tasty pecan and brown sugar topped roll. Then thought why not try it as a Danish roll? Well, the result isn’t a flaky Danish, but it is sort of like a doughnut with a fruit jam topping.  I like them and hope you will also.


Cinnamon Bun Puffers

3 large Eggs
1/8 teaspoon Cream of Tartar
3 oz. Cream Cheese
*3 teaspoons Splenda or preferred sugar substitute
*12 drops liquid Sucralose
2 tablespoons Almond Flour
1 tablespoon CarbQuick or other low carb flour
**1 tablespoon Whey Protein Powder Vanilla
1 teaspoon Cloves, ground
1 tablespoon Cinnamon, ground
1 teaspoon Vanilla

Topping
1/2 cup Pecans, chopped
2 teaspoons Splenda Brown Sugar Blend
1 tablespoon Cinnamon
2 tablespoons Butter

Icing:
1 tablespoon Cream
1/3 cup Powdered Sugar from sugar alcohols

* You can use ½ cup of Splenda if you prefer. I use the liquid sucralose since it doesn’t have any carbs in it and Splenda has a little less than 1 per teaspoon.

** You can use another tablespoon of almond flour if you prefer. I like the added texture, protein and vanilla flavor I get from the protein powder.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Separate eggs and put egg whites in a clean bowl and put the yolks in a separate bowl. To the yolk bowl, add cream cheese, ricotta cheese, protein powder, flour, Splenda, liquid sucralose , cloves and cinnamon.

Beat egg whites until frothy, then add cream of tartar and beat until egg whites are stiff. Peaks will stand on their own.

Mix the ingredients in the egg yolk and cream cheese bowl together and add vanilla. Fold the yolk mixture into the egg whites carefully so it doesn’t break down the egg whites.

Spray large muffin pan or 3″ cake round pans with cooking spray and spoon the batter into each of six cavities until they are filled. If you don’t have the pans, batter is stiff enough that you can simply spread them into six mounds on a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet. Be sure to spray the parchment with cooking spray so they will release easily. Use a spoon to make a shallow indent in the middle of each mound.

Cook in oven for 20 minutes. About 5 minutes before the time is up, combine pecans, butter, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and microwave for about 20 seconds to melt the butter and brown sugar.

Pull the buns out of the oven and spoon brown sugar mixture evenly over each bun. Return the buns to the oven and cook another 10 minutes until lightly browned.

Let buns cool. When they are cool, combine powdered sugar and whipping cream with enough water to make a drizzle icing. Drizzle over each bun. Store any leftovers in an air tight container.

Makes 6 buns

Nutrition Info: per bun
Calories: 225   Net carbs:  3.5 g

Danish Style Puffers

Follow recipe above for the basic cinnamon bun. Instead of putting the pecan and brown sugar topping on it, put a tablespoon of sugar free jam in the middle.

The carb count will vary depending on the brand and the type of jam. LC Foods has an excellent low carb jam that ranges from less than a carb to about 1.5 carbs, depending on the fruit. I used peach, which is 1.2 carbs, and blackberry, which is less than 1 carb, per 1 tablespoon. More easily available is Knott’s Berry Farm jams that are consistently about 3 carbs per tablespoon. The bun is about 1.5 carb less without the brown sugar and nut topping, so it evens out pretty much.

Like some doughnuts, these are delicious when warmed in the microwave about 10 seconds.

Originally POSTED BY RENE AVERETT AT 10/8/2012 11:25 AM

Breads, Recipes

LC Irish Soda Bread

Whether it’s with stew or soup or just plain snacking, Irish Soda Bread is a nice, sturdy bread that drinks up liquid and makes you feel so warm and loved. So, I had to adapt this to a low carb version. Once again, I am relying on Carbquick, low carb flour from Tova Foods, although there are other brands that are low carb, such as Atkins and Bob’s Red Mill baking mixes, as well as LC Foods. Any of these will work in this recipe, although check the carb counts as some may be higher. Since these products are sometimes hard to find in local stores, I order mine from Netrition.com. Amazon also carries Atkins products.

Not worried about carbs or sugar in your food? Lucky you! Make the recipe using regular flour and sugar.

2 cups Carbquick or other low carb flour
3 tsp Splenda
6 drops Sucralose or use 2 more tsp Splenda
1/4 cup Butter
1 large Egg
1/2 cup Buttermilk
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a large baking sheet. I usually use a silicone mat, but I still apply a cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and margarine. Stir in 1/2 cup of buttermilk and egg. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead slightly. Form dough into a round or an oval for a traditional look or a loaf shape and place on prepared baking sheet. Use a sharp knife to cut an ‘X’ into the top of the loaf for a round or a long slash down the middle with two cross bars. These help the loaf to cook in the middle.

Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Let cool for 15 minutes before slicing.

Calories per slice: 135 Net Carbs: 3.3 (8 slices per loaf)
Calories per slice : 108 Net Carbs: 2.1 (10 slices per loaf)
Calories per slice: 89 Net Carbs: 1.7 (12 slices per loaf)

Originally POSTED BY RENE AVERETT AT 9/17/2012 1:37 PM

Breads, Recipes

Savory Sandwich Rounds

This is the second move for this recipe since I am now moving all of my site to WordPress. This recipe was from May, 2012. I’ve updated the recipe a little to reflect a change in the proportions of flour that I am using.

About a year ago, I decided to try a change to a low carb lifestyle and it’s been great. I’d lost about 30 pounds the previous year (2010), but it was mostly from a month long bout with kidney stones rather than a real diet. I managed to keep that weight off, but I wanted to lose more. Since February 2011, I’ve dropped an additional 72 pounds and I did it with a low carb diet. It’s that miraculous diet that allows you to eat things that other diets forbid. One of the tough parts of it is that bread it just about right out, along with potatoes, and other starches. But I’ve found substitutes for most things. I’ve found low carb tortillas and there is a great recipe for a breakfast muffin called Muffin In A Minute on the Atkins web site. And there are low carb breads, but they are pricey.

Over the past few months, I’ve started making my own easy egg bread rolls for sandwiches. These are tasty and while they aren’t a yeast bread, they are an acceptable substitute when it comes to a sandwich. This particular recipe, which is based on the Muffin In A Minute, is for a savory roll, which is great for any meat sandwich, including a hamburger. You can also make these as a sweeter roll for breakfast to replace a muffin or to toast. I use a silicon 4″ cake mold that has three molds in the cake and these are a perfect size. I bought mine at Amazon, but they are probably available in stores that carry baking molds. You don’t have to use these and you can make the dough a little stiffer and shape them or cook them in a 4″ souffle dish. You can also spread them into a 8×8 inch pan, then cut them into 4″ squares for a square sandwich roll.

About the flours used:

This recipe uses CarbQuik low carb baking mix, which I order on-line from Netrition.com, but is available from other places and might actually be in a health food store. You do not need to use the baking mix and can use just flax meal flour or a combination of flax meal and almond flours. It will change the color and texture of the rolls, depending on if you use golden flax meal or regular flax meal and if you add almond meal. Generally, I use Bob’s Red Mill (available at most grocery stores) because it is the lowest net carb count I’ve found for the meal and also a good price. NOW foods also has a low carb almond flour that is lower than Bob’s Red Mill.

Makes 3 rolls – about 1.5 carbs each

Savory Sandwich Rounds (Low Carb)

1/2 cup CarbQuik low carb baking mix
1/4 cup ground Flax meal flour
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon dried onion flakes, re-hydrated in about 1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon pepper, garlic and herb seasoning
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt (or regular sea salt)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 drop liquid sucralose or 1 packet of Splenda or equivalent product

Heat oven to 365 degrees. Mix the dry ingredients together, then add the egg, oil and liquid sweetner. Mix well making a thick, but spreadable dough. Spray 4″ round cake molds or pans (or use 4 inch souffle dishes) with cooking spray. If you don’t have the round, you can make the dough thicker by adding another tablespoon of flax meal and shaping them by hand, flattening the top by placing parchment or waxed paper over them and smoothing with the back of a knife or a rolling pin. Spoon 1/3 of the mixture into each of the cavities in the pan. Use a spoon back to spread the dough in the mold and smooth it to even thickness.

Bake for about 20 minutes until the roll is lightly brown and springs back when pressed. Let cool, then remove from pan and slice through the middle.

The roll can be sliced and toasted or warmed in the microwave.