Category Archives: Recipes

Breads, Italian Inspired Recipes, Pork, Sandwiches

Calzone-Style Sandwiches are Delish!

Calzone Pizza photo

In my mind, and in the ones bought locally, the calzone has always been like a pizza sandwich. Mind you, I’ve since heard that real calzone has ricotta and other cheeses in it and no sauce or gravy, as they say back east. Nonetheless,  I love the dough, which is like pizza dough, and the convenience of a pocket sandwich.

I’ve tried several low carb flour brands to create a passable pizza crust and the best one I’ve tried is from LC Foods, their Pizza, Calzone, and Bagel flour mix. I’ve also tried Dixie Carb Counters All Purpose Flour and it works, but the dough is sweeter than I like. Other flours may work, but nut flours don’t give as good a result. For one thing, the yeast doesn’t seem to work well on them.

Ready for the oven, calzone made with DCC All Purpose Flour.

Basic Calzone Recipe

Based on the LC Foods Recipe for pizza crust.

3/4 cup LC Pizza Flour
3/4 tsp Sugar Substitute
1/8 teaspoon Salt
3/4 teaspoon Rapid Rise Yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons Olive Oil
1/4 cup Water, warm

Mix sweetener, salt, and yeast into flour. Add water and oil and knead dough by hand until a gluten film forms and the dough doesn’t break. You can use a bread hook or a bread mixer if you wish, but it is just as easy to do it by hand.

Pull the dough together in a  ball, then place in an oiled bowl or on a bread board and cover then place in a warm place for the dough  to double in size, around 30 to 40 minutes.

Calzone dough flat
Dough rolled into a 5 to 6 inch circle.
BBQ Pork filling.
Calzone with pork filling ready to fold.

 

 

 

 

For  calzone, divide the dough in half, then roll or stretch each out on a lightly floured, using low carb flour, bread board into 5 to 6 inch thin rounds.  Place on baking screen or stone and fill one half with desired filling. Fold it over to make a half circle and pinch the edges closed. Small gaps for air vents are okay.

Bake at 415 degrees for 9 to 12 minutes until browned or crisped to desired level.

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories: 147 Fat: 3 g Net Carbs: 3 g Protein: 16.5 g

BBQ Pork Calzone.

BBQ Pork Calzone-Style Sandwich

This is more a BBQ Pork sandwich in a calzone pocket than an actual calzone. It is delicious though and not too difficult to make. Works great with left over pork ribs.

1 Pizza Dough recipe made up and split into two balls
2 cooked boneless Pork Ribs (about 3 oz.), chopped or shredded
1/4 cup Sugar-free BBQ Sauce (I used Walden Farms, 0 calorie & 0 carbs)
1/4 cup Bell Pepper, chopped
1/4 cup Onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Garlic, minced
1/4 cup Cheddar Jack Cheese, shredded
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 teaspoon Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 415 degrees (F.).

In a small skillet, heat the Olive Oil, then add the onion, peppers, and garlic and cook until almost tender. Add the pork and the BBQ sauce, stir together, and cook a couple of minutes.

Roll out one ball of dough to make a 5 to 6 inch circle. It will be very thin so try not to break through the dough. Place the dough on top of a pizza screen or on a pizza stone. If you have to use a baking sheet, line it with parchment paper.

Put one half of the toppings on one side of the dough leaving a slight edge clear. Fold the dough over the filling and press the edges together to seal it into half-round pocket. Brush a little melted butter over the top. Make the other calzone in the same way.

Bake in the oven about 15 minutes until the calzone is golden brown. Let cool a couple of minutes then serve. You can add an additional small dish of BBQ Sauce for dipping if you wish.

Nutrition Information for filling only:
Calories:180.1 Fat: 12.0 Net Carbs: 2.9 g Protein: 14.5 g

Nutrition Information with calzone dough:
Calories: 327 Fat: 15 g Net Carbs: 5.9 g Protein: 31 g

Pizza calzone
Pizza-Style Calzone made with LC Foods Pizza, Calzone and Bagel flour.

Pizza Style Calzone Sandwich

This is a simple variation of the same recipe only using typical pizza ingredients for the filling. You can add in pepperoni or ground beef or any other meat of your choice without altering the carb count too much unless the meat has a lot of carbohydrates in it.  For reference, I used Bertolli Vodka Pasta Sauce for this recipe. A couple of other pasta sauces are lower in carbs.

1 Pizza Dough made up and split into two balls
3 oz. Italian Sausage
1/4 cup Pasta Sauce of Choice (Look for lowest carb)
1/4 cup Bell Pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped or slice Olives
2 tablespoon Mushroom slices, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Garlic, minced
1/4 cup Mozzarella or other white cheese, shredded
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2 cup Greens of choice (optional)
1 teaspoon Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 415 degrees (F.)

In a small skillet, add cook the Italian sausage until lightly browned, remove and set aside. Add garlic and bell peppers to the pan and saute. When bells are getting soft, add the mushrooms and cook for about 30 seconds more. If you are using the green, stir them into the pan and cook until they start to wilt. Remove from heat. Add the sausage back to the pan and stir in the olives. Mix in the pasta sauce.

Roll the dough out for the calzones and place on pizza screen or on pizza pan. Spoon filling over one half of the calzone dough, sprinkle on cheese, and fold it over. Seal the edges, leaving a couple of open spots for venting. Sprinkle a little cheese over the top if you wish.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until golden brown.

Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition Information for filling only:
Calories: 188.4 Fat: 14.9 g Net Carbs: 3.0 g Protein: 10.9 g

Nutrition Information with calzone dough:
Calories: 368.5 Fat: 17.9 Net Carbs: 5.9 g Protein: 25.4 g

Tip: To get a golden brown and shiny bread, you can brush with  olive oil or spray with an olive oil or butter baking spray before  baking.

Breakfast & Brunch, Recipes

Light and Delicious Ricotta Pancakes

A light and delicious breakfast treat, these little pancakes are satisfying in the way toast and jam is. I used homemade sugar-free cranberry sauce as a filling, but you can also use strawberries or blueberries in them. The carbs come out about the same.

1 tablespoon Butter, melted
1 Egg
3 tablespoons Ricotta Cheese, whole milk
1 tablespoon Sugar Substitute
1 tablespoon Cream
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3 tablespoons Low Carb Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 cup chopped Nuts (Pecans, Walnuts, Almond)

In a medium-sized bowl, add the melted butter, egg, ricotta cheese, cream, vanilla extract and sugar and whisk together well. Mix baking powder and flour together and gently stir into the egg mixture. Add chopped nuts and stir them through the batter. Add a tablespoon of water if the batter is too thick.

Heat a griddle or heavy skillet over medium high heat until a drop of water sizzles on it. Reduce the heat a little. Put two tablespoons of batter on the griddle for each pancake. They should be about 3 inches across. Unless you have a large griddle, you can cook two at a time easily. Cook for about 2 to 2-1/2 minutes until bubbles break through the pancake and the batter appears to be set. Turn to cook the other side for 1 to 2 minutes until it is lightly browned.

Remove to a warm plate to keep warm. Prepare the remaining batter into two more pancakes. Butter and serve with syrup or jam.

Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition information per serving:
Calories: 246 Fat: 21.9 g Net Carbs: 3.4 g Protein: 8.9 g

With Cranberries/no nuts
Calories:252.6 Fat: 22.0 g Net Carbs: 4.4 g Protein: 9.0 g

 

 

Desserts, Recipes

Lemon Cookies Made Easy

Like the taste of a lemon cookie? Want an easy way to make them in a low carb version? Read on…

Adapted a little from the version on the Atkins Diet site, these cookies are simple to make and taste really good. I made a couple of little changes to my version, starting with the flour. The original called for almond flour and coconut flour. I opted to use Dixie Carb Counters All Purpose Flour for the main flour and used the almond flour in place of the coconut flour, but you can use whichever low carb flour you prefer. I did try it with coconut flour, but it tends to give the cookie a slightly gritty texture and adds a bit of bitterness to the taste. I also omitted the vanilla as I prefer to taste the lemon more.

So here’s my revised recipe for…

Yummy Lemonade Cookies

2 large Eggs
1 tablespoon unsalted Butter, melted
1/4 cup granular Sugar Substitute (xylitol)
1 tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 tablespoon Sugar-free Lemonade Mix
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract (optional)
1 TeaspoonLlemon Zest (Optional)
1 cup Low Carb Flour
1/4 cup Almond Flour (or other low carb flour of choice)
1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder

Preheat oven to 325 degrees (F.) Line a cookie pan with parchment paper or a Silpat mat.

Melt the butter. In a small bowl, add the eggs and whisk until blended. Add the butter, sugar substitute, lemon juice, Lemonade mix, zest, and vanilla (if you are using). Whisk all together. In a separate mixing bowl, add the low carb flours, baking powder, and salt and mix together. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir together. You may need to add water if it is not getting all the flour moist. You want it wet enough to pull all the flour together, but the dough should be fairly stiff. Mix with your hands if you’re having trouble getting the flour mixed in.

Take a tablespoon of the dough and roll into a ball and place on the cookie sheet. Repeat with the rest of the dough. It will make 15 or 16 cookies. Flatten the top of the cookies a little. This cookie will not spread out in the pan.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the cookie is slightly browned around the edges. I prefer to under cook a little to keep it moist. Remove and let cool for about 5 minutes. Sprinkle the cookies with powdered sugar substitute or put the powdered sugar in a bowl and roll each one in it. Enjoy.

Nutrition Information per cookie (15 per recipe):
Calories: 54.3 Fat: 4.2 g Net Carbs: 1.4 g Protein: 2.9 g

Note: This count is using DCC All Purpose Flour and Almond Flour. Most low carb flours will be in this range.

Beef, Main Dish, Recipes

Quick and Delish Steak and Cheese Bake

Steak cheese bake photo.

I love it when a recipe jumps out at me and screams, “I’m low carb!” This easy cheese baked steak, that I found at 12Tomatoes.com did just that. It’s so simple to make and so delicious to eat. I moved it right into my make-often file.

While it calls for steak tips, I couldn’t find any at my grocery store, but they did have a lovely package of round streak cut for carne asada, which is thinly sliced and much less expense than many cuts of meat.So I took this and sliced it into smaller strips and used that to make a tender, perfectly cooked dinner. This would be awesome served with thick plank celery root fries or turnip or butternut squash fries. I served with a cauliflower rice medley from Green Giant and some red beans. It would also be great as a steak sandwich.

Steak and Cheese Bake

1 pound Steak Tips or other steak choice
1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated
1 cup Fontina Cheese, grated
6 slices Bacon, optional
1 medium Onion, thinly sliced or chopped
2 cloves Garlic, minced
2 tablespoons Herbs de Provence
Sea Salt and freshly ground Pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees (F.) I used my stove to oven copper skillet for this, but you can transfer the steak mixture to a casserole dish.

Cook the bacon until it is almost done. It will cook more in the oven. If you didn’t cut it into small pieces before cooking, then let it cool and break it into pieces. If you cooked the bacon in a skillet, drain off most of the fat, but leave a little in the pan.

Add the steak tips or pieces and cook on high heat, turning until the steak is browned on all sides.Remove to a plate and set aside.

Reduce to medium heat,add the onions and cook until almost translucent, then add the minced garlic and cook another minute or two.

Turn heat off and add the steak and bacon to the skillet and mix it together. If you are moving it to a casserole, add the steak and bacon, then add the onions and garlic and mix it in the casserole pan. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence, about 1 teaspoon of sea salt, and pepper into the mixture and stir.

Sprinkle both cheeses over the top evenly and sprinkle a little more of the Herbs de Provence on top.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and toasty and the steak is cooked to your preference. If you prefer it pinker, then go with less time.

Let sit about 5 minutes, then serve. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories: 310 Fat: 20.0 g Net Carbs: 2.2 g Protein: 28.1 g

Poultry, Recipes

Easy Chicken with Mushrooms dish

So easy you can make it on a busy night!

This simple dish is one of my throw-together combinations. Let’s see, I have chicken, mushrooms, and spinach. What can I do with that? Well, this is one delicious option. Simple, yet completely satisfying.

For a side dish, I added cut-up turnips and kohlrabi, cooked in the microwave until fork tender, then added butter and seasoning salt. Yummy. The fresher the turnip or kohlrabi, the sweeter the taste. If they sit too long in the ‘fridge, they will get tough and a bit bitter.

Creamy Chicken with Mushrooms & Spinach

2 large Chicken Breasts
1/2 cup Mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup Cream
1 oz. Cream cheese
1 teaspoon Mustard
1 cup fresh Spinach
1/2 teaspoon Cumin
2 tablespoons Butter

Cut chicken breasts into several pieces about the same size for even cooking.

In a large skillet, add 1 tablespoon of butter and let it melt. Add the chicken and brown on both sides over medium heat. Chicken pieces should be cooked most of the way through. Remove chicken to a paper towel or plate.

Add mushrooms to the pan and sauté until brown, then add cream cheese, cream, mustard, and cumin and stir. Continue to stir until the sauce begins to thicken. Tear and add spinach and stir in. Return chicken to the pan and add rest of the butter. Cook for another five minutes until chicken is done.

Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories: 329.5 Fat: 22.4 g Net Carbs: 1.4 g Protein: 28.4 g