Moved from my Live Journal blog where is was published July 26, 2012.
I love food, almost any food, but Italian is a real favorite. How can you go wrong with cheese and pasta? Oops, pasta. That’s the problem with Italian and a low carb lifestyle.
(Note from 05/06/14 – I have been using Dreamfields, which claimed to have a 5 nc pasta, however, those claims are apparently incorrect and the pasta is not low carb. All I can say is that I have been using it and it appeared to not impact my weight loss. Other people have had issues with it. So, use an alternative to pasta for this dish.)
My recipe this week is for Chicken Parmesan with pasta. But you don’t need to serve it over pasta. You can make zucchini noodles by slicing the zucchini into long, thin strips and dropping them in boiling water for three to five minutes before draining and putting them on the bottom of your casserole dish. You can also substitute in spaghetti squash, which has a slightly nutty flavor and is also a delicious pasta substitute.
Chicken Parmesan Over Pasta
Ingredients:
3 large skinless Chicken Breast halves, butterflied and pounded
1 large Eggs, slightly beaten
1 tablespoon Water
1 tablespoon Oil
1/2 cup Pork Rinds, crunched up to the consistency of flour
1/2 cup finely grated grated Parmesan Cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan Cheese
1 cup Mozzarella Cheese
1 to 1 1/2 cups Pasta Sauce, to taste (I use a tomato basil sauce with around 3 net carbs per 1/2 cup)
Salt and Pepper to preference
1/2 teaspoon Italian Herbs
2 cups cooked Zucchini strips or 2 cups Spaghetti Squash
Oil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook whichever squash you are using for your pasta and keep it warm until ready to serve.
Combine eggs, water, 2 teaspoons of olive oil, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning and set aside. Combine crushed pork rinds and finely grated Parmesan cheese .
Heat oil in a heavy skillet.
Dip chicken breasts in egg mixture, then into pork rind crumbs, then cook in the skillet for 6 to 8 minutes per side until lightly browned.
Drain pasta and pour over the bottom of a 9 x 12 baking pan, arrange chicken breasts over the top, then spoon pasta sauce evenly over the breasts and pasta. Top with mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly.
Makes 3 to 6 servings depending on how hungry you are.
Maybe not quite all, but for those who count, namely the birthday boy, PK and me. By birthday boy, I mean Timmy Cat, who just turned nine years old. I wanted to celebrate with a special salmon cake for the cats, but only two of the four have any interest in people food. Timmy is one who never turns down a good meal and Milo enjoys most anything I eat, including spicy food. Hooligan may have eaten only a bite, but he definitely enjoyed the broth I poached the salmon in. So, for this special meal, I bought a pound of salmon and poached it in the oven until just cooked – about 20 minutes (350 F oven) in a pan with about a half inch of water in it. You can used canned salmon, but I prefer the taste of freshly cooked fish.
Are they appreciated? Timmy and Milo enjoy their salmon cakes. They may need a little help getting started so cut it in half or quarters to make it easier. Our dog, Flynn, also enjoyed a little of cake even though he isn’t a fish-lover. Must have been the cheese…
Like many cat parents, I thought a special treat on the cat’s birthday would be great and although there are lots of goodies at the pet store for dogs, there isn’t anything special for cats. I suppose it’s because cats aren’t into biscuits, cakes and cookies so much. So I went hunting on the web and found a recipe for tuna cake, which can be easily made with salmon. The simple recipe first is the one for the cats, then on to the one for people. Actually the cat one is perfectly edible by people, just not as tasty as the people recipe. My cats prefer bacon to shrimp, so I used bits of bacon to top it. You can also spread a little mayonnaise over the top as an icing if your cats like it.
Salmon Cakes for Felines
Ingredients:
1 Egg
3/4 cup Salmon
2 tbs Flour
4 tbs shredded or grated Cheese
Baby Shrimp or pieces of Bacon, to garnish
Sprigs of fresh Cat Nip and/or Cat Mint for garnish
Preheat oven to 350˚F.
Prepare cupcake tin or 4 silicone cupcake molds by lightly spraying with cooking spray.
Kitty birthday cakes – pre-bake and after. Yum…
Break up salmon in a medium bowl, checking for bones as you go. Lightly beat egg in a separate bowl, then combine with tuna. Add in flour and cheese. Stir to combine.
Makes 4 small cakes.
Scoop batter into cupcake tin or silicone cups. Bake for 15 minutes. Allow to cool completely before serving.
Salmon Cakes with Dill Sauce
Yes, this is the one for the humans. This recipe was originally for Carab Cakes and is adapted from EatingWell.com. I have adjusted it to a low carb version. The main changes are to replace the bread for the bread crumbs with a low carb bread and the original recipe called for yogurt in the dill sauce, which I’ve replaced with lower carb sour cream. Use the flax meal sandwich roll recipe to make the bread (you can omit the oat fiber, buttermilk and onion flakes for this). Or you can buy low carb bread and use two slices of that. or you can just use whole wheat bread if you aren’t concerned about the 20 net carbs in it, which breaks down to about 4.5 additional carbs per serving.
I used a small food processor to chop the onions and the celery. Just be sure to trim off the pithy parts and the strings on the celery. Unfortunately, the blades just slide right over the parsley and dill. Chop those with a knife.
For the salmon cakes:
3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely diced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
15 ounces canned salmon, drained, or 1 1/2 cups cooked salmon
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay spice or other seafood spice
1 1/2 cup flax bread rolls (2 rolls), processed to crumbs
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
For the Dill Sauce
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 green onions (scallions), thinly sliced
1 to 2 tablespoon lemon juice, about 1/2 a lemon
1 to 2 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill*
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
Chopped ingredients for the sauce and the cakes. From the top clockwise, chopped celery, parsley, onions, and dill. On the right, sliced green onions for the sauce.
Prepare Creamy Dill Sauce first and put in the fridge to allow the flavors to chill and blend together.
Combine mayonnaise, sour cream, chopped onions, lemon juice, dill and pepper in a small bowl and mix well. Taste and adjust lemon juice, dill and pepper to your preference. I used about 1 tablespoons of lemon juice and dill in my sauce.
• You can use dried dill if fresh isn’t available. Or you can substitute parsley, but then it isn’t a dill sauce.
Prepare the salmon cakes
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray or use a silicone mat and lightly coat with cooking spray.
Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and celery; cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in parsley; remove from the heat.
Break the bread into pieces and put in your food processor. Pulse until it is reduced to fine crumbs. Set aside.
Place salmon in a medium bowl. Flake apart with a fork; remove any bones and skin. Add egg and mustard; mix well. Add the onion mixture, breadcrumbs and seasonings; mix well. Shape the mixture into 8 patties, about 2 1/2 inches wide.
Heat remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in the pan over medium heat. Add 4 patties and cook until the undersides are golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a wide spatula, turn slide them onto the prepared baking sheet, uncooked side up. Repeat with the remaining patties.
Bake the salmon cakes until golden on top and heated through, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with dill sauce. Elegant and delicious!
Makes 8 – 2 1/2 inch cakes, two cakes to a serving, so makes 4 servings.
Nutrition Info Per serving for Dill Sauce
Calories: 209.3 Fat: 22.8 g Net Carbs: .9 g Protein: .5 g
Nutrition Info Per serving for Salmon Cakes
Calories: 227.6 Fat: 11.4 Net Carbs: 2.7 g Protein: 25.6 g
Tip: If you’re like me, you buy a bunch of fresh parsley or fresh dill, make one thing and throw out the icky green sludge a couple of weeks later. Plan to make a pesto with the parsley or use it on plates as garnish. Failing that, dry it. Same thing with the dill. I use an inexpensive dehydrator, but you can put your parsley or dill on cheese cloth and set it in a sunny spot to dry out. Once dry, put it in a plastic bag or a jar and use whenever you need it.
When preparing the salmon cake recipe, you can mix it up earlier in the day, stopping before shaping into patties, cover and refrigerate until 40 minutes before you want to serve them. Then shape them and cook as instructed. The dill sauce can also be made in advance. You can actually go through the shaping and putting on a baking sheet step, but if your ‘fridge is like mine, there’s no place for a baking sheet in it.
I’m pretty confident this salmon cake recipe will work equally well with tuna, crab and shrimp. As I try them out, I’ll let you know. Or if you try them before I do, let me know. Deal?
I first posted this on May 20, 2012 on my LJ blog.
I have a couple of dear friends who are in France this past week on a well-deserved vacation and I celebrated by making crepes — those lovely little French pancakes that are so thin and light. And they can be low carb since the main ingredient in them is egg. If you’re under the impression that they are difficult to make, that’s not true. They may take a little practice to get just right, but they are worth it. I haven’t made them in quite a few years so it was almost like starting over for me.
I have a gas range, so it takes a little experimenting with the controls to get the right flame under the pan. You want a medium hot flame, not too hot to burn, but hot enough to cook them fairly quickly and evenly. I use an omelette pan, non-stick and I spray it with cooking oil between each crepe although some instructions say you don’t have to do that.
So to the basics.
Note on flours used: I used a combination of CarQuick baking mix from Tova Foods and Atkins baking mix. You can make it completely from either mix. A combination of mixes sometimes brings a better result, but I don’t know if that is the case with crepes. This is the first time I’ve made them using the baking mixes. It is essential that you use a low-carb baking mix or flour to make these as low carb as possible. If you use regular flour, reduce it to one tablespoon and expect an eggier-tasting crepe. If you’re not worried about the carbs, then use regular flour.
2 eggs
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
2/3 cup CarbQuick baking mix
1 pinch Salt
1 1/2 teaspoons Vegetable Oil
1/2 cup Water
1 tablespoon Sugar Substitute (optional for sweet crepes. Omit for savory ones.)
Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
Spray a non-stick omelette pan (approximately 6″ in diameter) with cooking spray and heat on a medium high heat. Put a little less than 1/4 cup of batter in the pan and swirl around until it coats the entire bottom of the pan. The batter is thin and will spread thinly on the pan. As the crepe cooks small bubbles will form in the cake. Watch the edges for the slightest browning and for the surface to appear almost dry. Carefully slide a flat, long spatula under the cake and flip it to brown the reverse side. This should only take a few minutes. Remove the crepe to a plate with either wax paper, parchment paper or plastic wrap on it and place a layer over the top of the completed crepe. This will prevent the crepes from sticking to each other.
Repeat the process for the next crepe. There should be enough batter to make 8 to 10 crepes.
Makes 8 crepes Each crepe is about 1.2 net carbs and 95 calories.
Crepes can be filled in hundreds of ways. The recipes below are a couple of my own favorites. You can make them with ham and asparagus covered with cheese. Or make a vegetable filled crepe with sauteed squash, onions and tomatoes.
Filling for Mushroom and Chicken Crepes:
A really tasty crepe filling that goes together easily. Use the basic crepe recipe to make your crepes.
Makes 6 crepes. I usually use 2 per serving.
Ingredients:
Cooked chicken 6 ounces, cubed or shredded
1 tablespoon Carbquick or other low carb thickener
1/2 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1/4 cup of water
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 cup Mushroom pieces or slices
2 oz. Cream Cheese, cut into cubes
1/3 cup Italian Cheese tri-mix, shredded
In a sauce pan or skillet, melt the butter, add onion and sauté until the onion turns translucent. Add the CarbQuick or thickener and stir to make a roux. Add the whipping cream and stir well. Remove about 1/2 cup of the sauce. Then add the creamed cheese and Italian seasoning and stir until it is mixed well. Then add the chicken and mushrooms and cook until heated thoroughly. Add 1/2 of the Italian cheeses and stir well.
On a plate, place a crepe and put about 2 1/2 tablespoons of filling in the middle. Fold over and secure with a toothpick. Place in a shallow pan or broiler proof dish. Repeat with the remaining crepes. Pour the reserved sauce over the top and sprinkle with the rest of the Italian cheese. Place in the broiler for about 5 minutes. When the top is lightly toasted, remove from the broiler and serve with a salad or fresh vegetables.
Each crepe is about 2.2 net carbs and 250 calories.
Sweet Strawberry Filled Crepe
I love cream cheese and this is an easy way to make a strawberry cream cheese crepe that is still low carb and delicious. You can substitute any low carb fruit for the strawberry, such as blueberries or raspberries.
Makes two servings, one crepe in each serving.
2 sweet or regular crepes
1/2 cup of sliced strawberries
2 tablespoons whipped cream cheese
2 tablespoons whipped topping or whipped cream
2 drops of liquid sweetener
Sugar free, carb free chocolate sauce
Low carb vanilla ice cream (optional)
Mix the cream cheese and whipped cream together with a spoon in a small bowl and add liquid sweetener. You can also add a teaspoon of flavoring such as strawberry, orange or raspberry sugar-free syrup at this point and mix it in. Spread almost half of the mixture on each crepe, saving just about two teaspoons.
Place the strawberry slices on top of the cream cheese mixture and fold the crepe over them. Use a little of the reserved mixture on one side of the crepe to act as a “glue” to hold it together. Spread the remainder of the mixture on the top of the crepes and place a couple of strawberry slices on top.
Crepes with cream cheese mixture and berries before rolling.
Spoon a little whipped cream on top or top with a scoop of low carb ice cream. Drizzle a little chocolate syrup over the top and voila’, you have an elegant dessert!
September 17 is half-St. Patrick’s Day. Not exactly a national holiday, but among Celtic-oriented folk, it’s another excuse to celebrate. At the very least, you can sit down with a nice bowl of stew and a loaf of Irish soda bread. Actually, I am checking this out as a main dish for an Alban Elfed gathering this weekend to celebrate the Fall Equinox. Being as this is a Celtic group of people, how can you go wrong with a Guinness stout enhanced recipe? And it makes the meat juicy and tender.
At this time of the year, you’re probably not too keen to heat up the kitchen with a stew in the oven, but this version is cooked in a crock pot and is made with chicken so it isn’t as heavy as a hearty beef stew, which is so welcome in winter. This version is pretty low in carbs, even with potatoes thrown in. I usually use turnips, but if you don’t like them, it’s only a couple of extra carbs per serving to use regular potatoes.
2 half Chicken Breasts, boned and skinned
2 Chicken Thighs, boned and skinned
1 tblsp Olive Oil
1 cup cubed Turnips or potatoes
1 cup Guinness Draught Stout Beer
1/4 cup Carbquick
2 medium slices Bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 tsp minced Garlic
1 cup Green Beans, frozen or fresh, cut into pieces (optional)
2 stalks medium Celery, chopped
2 cups Chicken Broth
Salt, to taste
1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
1 teaspoon ground Thyme
1/2 cup fresh Mushrooms, pieces or slices
1/2 cup chopped Onions
In a shallow bowl or tin pan, mix together the Carbquick, a pinch of salt and pepper. Wash and trim the chicken and pat dry. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour mixture and place in the skillet. Cook until lightly browned, about 2-4 minutes on each side. Put into crock pot.
Add chopped bacon to the pot, then pour beer and chicken broth into it. Stir well.
Add the garlic, thyme and the vegetables and stir well.
Cover and cook until the chicken falls apart, 4 hours on High or 7 to 8 hours on Low.
Add additional salt and pepper if needed.
Makes 6 servings
Calories: 124 Net Carbs: 5.1 g Protein: 14.3 g
Without green beans: Calories: 119 Net Carbs: 4.7 g Protein: 14.3
With 1 cup diced potatoes instead of turnips: 132 Net Carbs: 7.2 Protein: 14.6
I’ve made my quiches with ricotta cheese in them for years and find the addition is really good, no matter what other ingredients I put in with the eggs and cheese. This quiche features ham and sausage along with fresh spinach. I use pico de gallo for the tomatoes, onion and cilantro since the local grocery store has a lovely fresh version all ready to go. This is an especially good use for the pico de gallo when it is “on the verge” of becoming not so good.
6 large Eggs
3/4 cup of browned bulk Pork sausage
1/2 cup diced Ham
1/4 cup chopped Onions
1/4 cup chopped Tomatoes,
2 tbsp chopped Cilantro
1 cup fresh Spinach, fresh, torn or chopped
1/4 cup Heavy Whipping Cream,
1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
2 tbsp chopped fresh Chives
3/4 cup cheddar jack or Mexican four cheese mix
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon Garlic herb mix seasoning or other seasoning of choice
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Mix together eggs, ricotta cheese, whipping cream and seasoning. Reserve 1/4 cup of the cheddar jack cheese and mix the rest with the remaining ingredients into the eggs.
Use a cooking spray to lightly coat an 8×8″ square pan or a deep dish pan plate. Pour the egg and meat mixture into the pan.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until eggs are set and lightly browned. Turn off oven. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese on top of the quiche and put back into the oven for another five minutes to allow the cheese to melt.
Cut and serve. Also reheats in the microwave easily. Just heat for 1 minute.
6 servings
1 serving equals calories: 268, Net Carbs 2.5 g and protein 19.1 g.
Original POST BY RENE AVERETT AT 9/21/2012 1:30 PM
