Category Archives: Breakfast & Brunch

Atkins Diet Tips, Breakfast & Brunch, Healthy Life, Main Dish, Mexican/Spanish Recipes, Pork, Recipes

Induction Eating Plan – Day 2

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Today is the second day of the 20 net carbs or less diet plan. It’s not bad, really, but then I’ve done it before and my usual intake is about 23 net carbs. I’ve been exceeding them a little, which is why I’ve gained weight.  Boy, I have a slooooow metabolism.  Anyway, I’m on day 2 and here’s the menu for June 7, 2017. (I’m one day behind on reporting if you recall.)

If you’re doing this, remember to get enough salt, drink a cup of bullion to help with that, and drink lots of water. Your body goes into withdrawal a bit and you can feel lightheaded and sluggish while you’re adapting to the change in your diet.

Food NC
chorizo scramble 2
Coffee with creamer 1
1/2 tortilla 1.5
Vitamin B12 Gummie 1


Chorizo and Eggs Scrambled

These are super-easy to make and you can use either Mexican-style or Basque-style chorizo. The former has a more liquid chile and melts more than the Basque type. But both work very well. I have a recipe on the site already for this, but the super low version I made follows:

4 oz. Chorizo, Mexican or Basque style
2-3 large Eggs
1 teaspoon dehydrated Minced Onions
2 tablespoons Cheddar Cheese, shredded
6 leaves Baby Spinach, torn into pieces

Break the eggs into a bowl and whisk until mixed, add a little water and the dehydrated onions. Stir, then set aside.

In a skillet, cook the chorizo over medium high heat. Use a spatula to cut and separate the meat until it looks like ground beef. Cook until lightly browned. Stir the egg mixture again, then pour into the skillet, reducing the heat a little so the eggs don’t cook too quickly. Stir the eggs and chorizo together and cook until they begin to firm up. Sprinkle the cheese and the spinach over the top, then stir into the mixture. When the eggs are done to your liking, remove from the heat and serve.

Makes 2 servings

Nutrition information per serving (with 2 eggs):
Calories: 351.4 Fat: 28.2 g Net Carbs: 2.0 g Protein: 21.4 g

The third egg adds about 30 calories and 0.2 net carbs

Lunch:

Food NC
Tuna Salad 2.3
Green Salad 1.6

 

Simple Tuna & Egg Salad

I like my tuna salad with a little bit of sweet, which I get from adding sweet pickles. There are several brands of sugar-free sweet pickles at the markets. I use Del Monte’s. I had left over salad from the first day, so that was the nest for the tuna salad.

5 oz. Tuna, canned or in packet
1 hard boiled egg
2 tablespoons Sugar-free Pickle Relish or chopped Sugar-free pickles
1/4 cup Mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Sugar-free Pickle juice
Pepper to taste
Salt to taste

Put the tuna into a bowl and break it up with a fork or a spatula. Cut the peeled hard-boiled egg into sections and chop it up with the fork, then add to the tuna. Add mayonnaise and mix into the tuna and egg, then add the chopped pickles or relish and the juice. Mix well.

Makes two servings. Great served over a green salad.

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories: 283 Fat: 23.4 g Net Carbs: 2.3 g Protein: 17.1 g

Dinner and Dessert:

Food NC
Chile Verde with 3.5
1/2 cup Riced Cauliflower
1/4 avocado sliced 0.8
1 T Avocado Salsa 1
1 T Cheddar Cheese 0
Microwave Cheesecake 1.25
1 tsp Raspberry Sauce 0.25


Chile Verde Casserole

Really easy to make . I use Herdez Green Chile Salsa, which comes out to 8 net carbs per 1/2 cup. I find per-made PIco de Gallo at my grocery store. If you can’t find it, then it is chopped tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers, and cilantro. Find a recipe here at All Recipes.

1 lb Pork Loin or Pork Chop, cubed
1/2 cup Green Chile Salsa
1/2 cup pre-made Pico de Gallo
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
2 cups riced Cauliflower

Pre-cook the riced cauliflower in a pan or the microwave for about 6 minutes to soften.

In a hot skillet, add the olive oil then add the pork and cook until browned. Stir in the green chile salsa and 1/4 cup water, then turn the heat to a high simmer. Let cook about 10 minutes until the pork is tender. Add the Pico de Gallo and seasonings. Let cook another 10 minutes, then stir in the riced cauliflower. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 more minutes until the dish is thickened and the cauli-rice is hot. Serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving:
Calories: 295 Fat: 15.5 g Net Carbs: 3.5 g Protein: 33.1 g

For the Microwave Cheesecake, please visit this great website where I found it a few years ago.  Total carbs for the day is 16.5 g.

That’s it for this day. Be back tomorrow with more.

Breakfast & Brunch, Recipes

Easy Chorizo and Eggs Brunch

Here’s my second Cinco de Mayo recipe suggestion. This is a great breakfast or brunch meal and it’s easy to make.

A simple dish, but delicious and satisfying. This used the Mexican-style chili sauce chorizo that is very moist and cooks into the egg well. If you buy the chorizo in a long tube, it is usually 12 oz. folded in half in the grocery. Use 1/4 of the tube for the recipe. The secret ingredient in this is ricotta cheese , which adds a little more substance to the scramble.

Pork Chorizo image
This is the pork chorizo type that I used in this recipe. You can also get it in beef or a combination.

Chorizo and Eggs Deluxe

2 Eggs
3 oz. Chorizo
2 tablespoon Ricotta Cheese
1 teaspoon dried Onion Flakes or 1 tablespoon chopped Green Onions
1/4 cup Cheddar Jack Cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 low carb Tortilla, cut in half

Heat a small skillet and add the chorizo to cook down over medium high heat, stir until it melts. Beat the eggs in a small bowl and add dried onions to soften. (If you’re using green onions, do not add them at this time.)

Tear one half of the tortilla into small pieces and set aside. Cut the other half into two pieces, butter, and place under the broiler to lightly toast. This won’t take long, about a minute, so watch closely so it doesn’t burn.

When the chorizo is melted, add the eggs and ricotta cheese. Stir with a wooden spoon so the dish is blended as the eggs begin to cook. Add the cheese and seasonings and cook until the egg is cooked to your preference and the cheese is melted. (If you are using green onions, add with the cheese or use them as topping.)

Put the toasted tortilla on the plate and serve the eggs on top.

Makes two servings

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories: 306 Fat: 23.1 g Net Carbs: 3.5 g Protein: 20.4 g

Breakfast & Brunch, Desserts, Recipes

Yummy Crunchy Peanut Butter Bars

Unless you can’t eat peanuts, who doesn’t love peanut butter bars?  They are so tasty and satisfying.  And they can be low carb as well.  Incidentally, if you happen to be one who can’t eat peanuts, but you can eat almonds, you can make this with almond butter also.

I’ve seen several recipes for these bars, but this one is based on the one from Dixie Diner(tm). Of course, they would like you to use their sugar substitute and flour in it, but it works with any of the options available. I used CarbQuick and  Ideal Sugar in mine. If you aren’t concerned about the quantity of carbs in your food, lucky you, then go ahead and make these with regular flour and sugar.

Crunchy Peanut Butter Bars

1 cup Skippy Peanut Butter or other 4 nc per 2 tablespoons
1/4 cup Peanuts, chopped
1/4 cup Low Carb Flour
1/4 cup Sugar Free Chocolate Chips (optional)
1/4 cup Sugar Substitute
2 Egg Whites (boxed will work)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F.) Prepare an 8×8 inch pan by spraying with baking spray or putting parchment paper on the bottom and spraying the sides with baking spray.

In a bowl, mix the peanut butter, egg whites, flour, and sugar substitute together until you have a nice, thick dough. Stir in the sugar-free chocolate chips if you are using them.

Spoon the dough into the baking pan and smooth with the back of a spoon. I used a 6×6 inch pan to get thicker bars, but it does make only eight bars, so higher carb’d ones.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the bars are golden brown. Let cool so they set up before cutting them into bars. To cut into twelve, cut across the middle of one side, then cut each section into three equal cuts. Then turn the pan and cut through the middle of the uncut side and you’ll have six long bars on each side of the middle cut.

If you chill them in the refrigerator, they will come out of the pan easier. You can also melt the sugar free chocolate chips with 2 tablespoons butter and use it as an icing on the top, if you wish.

Makes 12 bars.

Nutrition Information per bar:
Calories: 161.3 Fat: 13.3 g Net Carbs: 3.5 g Protein: 6.6 g

If you add in the chocolate chips, it adds about .2 grams of carbs to each bar.

Note: I specified Skippy Peanut Butter because I know that the carb count is 4 net carbs per 2 tablespoons and others are not. Some of the store brands (such as Wal-Mart, Raleys) are the same count. So check the net carbs to see that they are as low.

Breakfast & Brunch, Recipes

Like apples? Baked Apple Pancake

How about something a little special for your Easter Sunday (or any Sunday) breakfast? This baked pancake, a variation of a Dutch Baby Pancake or the German Pancake, takes about 30 minutes to make, with 20 minutes of it being the oven time, giving you time to make bacon and eggs to go with it.

Or, it also makes a yummy, not too heavy dessert after a filling meal. Serve it with a scoop of low carb ice cream, whipped cream, or a low carb yogurt topping. So good. And with less than 5 effective carbs a serving, you don’t have to feel even remotely guilty about indulging. This works pretty well with almond flour, CarbQuick, or any other low carb flour – just watch the carb count – CarqQuick is about 2 net carbs per 1/3 cup. The recipe also works well with regular wheat flour, but those carbs shoot up.

Baked Apple Pancakes

1/2 cup Cream, room temperature,
plus enough water to make 2/3 cup
1/2 cup Low Carb Flour
3 large Egg, room temperature
2 tablespoons Sugar Substitute
1/4 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/4 teaspoon Salt
3 tablespoons Butter
1/2 Apple, cored and sliced
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
Sprinkle ground Clove

Topping:
1 tablespoon Butter
1 tablespoon Confectioners’ Sugar

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees (F.)

Chop the apple into small pieces. If you wish, you can peel it first. Set aside. Alternately, you can shred the apple. I’ve done it both ways. The shredded version doesn’t seen to have as much apple taste. Set aside for now.

In a bowl or a blender, add the ingredients except the apple and butter and the topping ingredients and mix together well. Stir in the apple.

Heat a cast iron skillet on a burner over medium heat and add the 3 tablespoons of butter cut into pieces. Stir the butter until it melts completely. Remove from the heat and pour the batter with the apples into the pan. Use a rubber spatula to make sure the apples are evenly distributed.

Put the pan in the hot oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until it is golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush the softened butter over the top, then sprinkle with sugar free confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar).

Serve with a couple of slices of bacon and scrambled eggs for a great breakfast. Serve with a scoop of low carb ice cream or whipped cream for a satisfying dessert.

Image at the top of the page is with shredded apple. The photo above is with chopped apple. The first piece was also harder to get out of the pan.

Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving -4 servings (pancake only):
Calories: 324.5 Fat: 27.5 g Net Carbs: 4.9 g Protein: 13.2 g

Note: In case you forgot or haven’t tried it, powdered sugar substitute is easy to make. Simply use Splenda or another crystal-type sugar substitute and pulse it in a blender until it is powdered.  It takes about three times as much sugar to make the powdered version.

Breakfast & Brunch, Desserts, Product Review

Product Review: DCC Carrot Snacking Cake

 

Dixie Carb Counters puts out a big assortment of low carb mixes and meals. Previously, I’ve tried and really like several of their breads. So, I picked up a package of their Carrot Snacking Cake and one of their Cinnamon Swirl Snacking Cake. Last week, I made the carrot one, but instead of making it a cake, I made cupcakes – mainly because I didn’t have the correct size cake pan. It calls for a 9×9 inch pan.

The cake goes together quickly and easily. You need to add water, eggs, melted butter, and oil. Once mixed, pour it into the cake pan and bake. Add their topping flavorings to the cream cheese and once the cake is cooled, spread the icing over it. Simple and it makes nine servings, each about 2 net carbs each. The instructions say that you can add nuts and/or crushed pineapple, water-packed with the liquid drained off, if you wish and it will add about one net carb to the count.

As I mentioned, I made cupcakes and got a dozen normal-sized cupcakes from the mix. Nice surprise for me. They looked great and so delicious. Then PK and I tasted them. They are not sweet, came out somewhat dry, and there is an aftertaste. I went back to look at the instructions thinking that I should have added sugar substitute to them, but it didn’t call for it. The added spices for the cream cheese also didn’t have much sweetener in it, so that didn’t help either. If you don’t like your carrot cake sweet, then you might enjoy this, but to be honest, the dried carrots in it didn’t seem to have much flavor and it didn’t have the moist rich texture that carrot cake usually has.

I took the last six of the cupcakes, broke them into bits and added more sugar substitute, eggs, cream, vanilla, and a little whiskey and made bread pudding out of them. I got six individual cups of bread pudding. It tastes much better, but the after taste still lingers. This uses soy flour, which I don’t care for, but I think the low glycemic mono-sacharide is the culprit producing the after taste and I suspect it is saccharine, from which I’ve always detected a bitter aftertaste.

I think if I was to try these again, I would add more oil, at least 1/2 cup sugar substitute, and pineapple to help increase the moisture. I would also add about 1/2 cup powdered sugar substitute to the cream cheese. Incidentally, I had at least half of the cream cheese left over, so it could be made with 4 ounces of cream cheese instead of the whole 8 ounce block.

On a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the top of the flavor profile, I would give this a 2 when prepared as stated on the package.

Disclaimer: I have not received any promotional items to review and no one from any of the companies whose products I review have asked me to do so. I have purchased the product and am giving my honest opinion about it. Should any company send me a product to try, I will state it up front and will still give my honest opinion.