Category Archives: Recipes

Desserts, Recipes

Low Carb Fruit Mini-pies are possible

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Ever wished for a little mini-pie to satisfy your sweet tooth, then looked at the carb count on the package of one of those pre-made ones?  Yikes!  One of the them can run around 70 net carbs for an apple one.

But you can make a low carb one at home fairly easily.  How, you may ask? Using low carb flours and sugar substitute really brings the carb count down.  Apples are a high carb fruit, but you can make a low carb apple mini-pie (or turnover) for under 10 net carbs.  I definitely don’t recommend this for anyone who is still losing weight and on phases 1-3 of the Atkins plan.  But for those who are on maintenance or have a high daily net carb count, this recipe will give you a great little pie. Just don’t make a habit of it.

You can use the same recipe for other fruit pies, such as peach, cranberry, raspberry, blueberry and blackberry.  Of these options, raspberry is the lowest carb count, coming in around 4 net carbs per pie. I broke open the crust in the photo so you could see how flaky the crust is and how good the fruit looks.

Low Carb Fruit Mini-Pies

1 Gala or other semi-tart Apple or 1 cup of other fruit
2 tablespoons chopped Pecans or Walnuts
2 tablespoon Butter
1 tablespoon Diet Cranberry Juice
1 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground Cloves
2 tablespoon Brown Sugar Substitute

1/2 cup Low Carb Baking Mix
1/4 cup Coconut Flour
2 tablespoon Vanilla Whey Protein Powder
3 tablespoons Shortening
2 to 3 tablespoons Cold Water

Make the pie crust by mixing the flours together in a small and cutting in the shortening until it resembles crumbs. Add enough water to pull the flour mix together into a ball. Wrap in wax paper and put in the refrigerator to chill for about an hour.

While the dough is chilling, make the filling. Peel the apple, if you wish, and cut into thin slices or chop it, whichever you prefer. Melt butter in a skillet and add the apples, nuts, cranberry juice, brown sugar and seasonings and stir together, continuing to cook and stir for about five minutes. Turn off the heat and let the filling cool until the dough is done.

Before you take the dough out, preheat the oven to 265 degrees (F.). Prepare four muffin wells by spraying with baking spray.

Separate dough into five balls. Dough should not be sticky. Place a piece of waxed paper on a bread board and put a little low carb flour on it. Press the dough into a small round, then put another sheet of waxed paper over the top and roll until you have about a three-inch in diameter crust. Press into a well of the muffin tin. Repeat with three more balls of dough. Use a fork to poke a few vents in the bottom of the crust.

Spoon 1/4 of the filling into each of the muffin wells and top with 1 teaspoon of butter. Now, take the fifth ball of dough and split it into four smaller balls. Roll each one into a round that is large enough for the top of the muffin tin. Place the top dough on each pie in the tin and seal the edges. Poke a couple of holes in the top with the fork or a knife.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the crust is a golden brown. Remove and let cool about 10 minutes. Serve with a scoop of low carb ice cream or a tablespoon of whipped cream topping.

Makes four mini-pies.

Nutrition Information per Apple pie:
Calories: 320.5 Fat:23.3 Net Carbs: 9.6 g Protein: 11.5 g

Nutrition Information per Peach pie:
Calories: 307.2 Fat:23.3 g Net Carbs: 6.6 g Protein: 11.6 g

Nutrition Information Raspberry pie:
Calories: 276.4 Fat:22.7 g Net Carbs: 4.0 g Protein: 11.9 g

Main Dish, Pork, Recipes

Delightful Pork with a Mustard Sauce

I love pork, so I really enjoy finding recipes that combine it with savory sauces.  This is a very good one and the mustard adds just a little bite to the flavor.  Serve it with the vegetable of your choice and a small side salad.  If you aren’t that crazy about pork, the other white meat, a chicken breast, works well.

4 boneless pork chops, about 1/2 inch thick (2 to 3 oz. each)
1/2 teaspoon Lemon Pepper
1 tablespoon Butter
1/4 cup Hot Water
1 teaspoon Better Than Bullion
1/4 cup Heavy Cream
1 tablespoon Dijon-style or Brown Mustard
1/2 teaspoon Dry Mustard Powder
1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce

Sprinkle the pork chops with lemon pepper on both sides. In a skillet, melt the butter, then add the chops and cook until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes on each side. Remove to a plate.

Mix the bullion in the hot water and add to the skillet, stirring to get all the meaty bits loose and pulled into the sauce. Add the mustard, mustard powder and Worcestershire sauce. Stir into the mixture, then stir in the cream. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and continue to cook and stir until the sauce begins to thicken.

Add the pork chops back in with any juices on the plate. Cover the chops and cook a little longer to heat them up and finish any side dishes. I served mine with asparagus and diced turnips with butter and cheese.

Makes two servings.

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories: 434 Fat: 30.4 g Net Carbs: 2.9 g Protein: 36.7 g

Breads, Main Dish, Pork, Recipes

A touch of the tropics in a ham patty

Another recipe from Better Homes & Gardens “Dieting for One” that I’ve adapted for a low carb lifestyle. When I first read the recipe, I chuckled at the simplicity of it, but I thought I’d give it a try. It uses chunk-style canned ham, but if you’d rather avoid the canned taste, pick up a ham steak at the grocery instead or use leftovers to make it. This tasty little round goes well with a slaw or you can put it on a low carb bun and make a tasty sandwich.

Polynesian-style Ham Patty

2 spears of fresh Pineapple, each cut into six wedges
1 6-1/2 oz. can Chunk-style Ham or 7 oz. Ham
1-2 tablespoons Mayonnaise
2 tablespoon Soft Low Carb Bread Crumbs*
1 teaspoon Minced Onion Flakes, rehydrated
2 tablespoons Green Sweet Pepper, finely chopped
2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F.)

Cut the ham into chunks or cubes, if it isn’t already, then put it into a food processor  and pulse two or three times to make it ground or flaky.

In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients except the pineapple and mix well. Form two patties with your hands, each about 4 inches in diameter. If the mixture is too moist to hold the patty shape, use a baking-spray-coated muffin ring (or cut the bottom out of the ham can or a tuna can for this purpose) to hold the patty.

Spray a baking pan with cooking spray and place the patties in the pan. Press six wedges of pineapple into each ham patty.

Bake for 25 minutes or until the ham is lightly browned.

Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories: 161 Fat: 9.2 g Net Carbs: 5.8 g Protein: 12.0 g

* To make low carb bread crumbs, use a Muffin in a Minute recipe, using any low carb flour to replace one tablespoon of the flax meal. If you don’t like flax meal, use almond flour and low carb baking mix.

Muffin in a Minute Adapted

1 Egg
1 Tablespoon Oil
1 Tablespoon Low Carb Baking Mix
1 tablespoon Flax Meal or Almond Flour
Pinch Salt & pinch Pepper
1 tablespoon Parmesan Cheese, grated

In a coffee cup or small microwaveable bowl, add the egg and oil and beat with a skinny spatula or fork to blend the egg into the oil until it looks creamy. You want to ensure the egg is completely mixed in. Add the flour and seasonings and mix together well, making sure the flour is completely mixed in.

Microwave for one minute. Loosen the muffin with your fingers when you take it out, then let it cool a few minutes before crumbling up as much as you need for crumbs. It will not be a fine, dry crumble, but the soft little pieces work well for this recipe. If you’d like to dry it out more, slice it into rounds and put it in a 300 degree (F.) oven to toast for about five minutes.

Nutrition Information per muffin:
Calories:269 Fat:23.8 g Net Carbs: 1.7 g Protein: 11.4 g

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Recipes

Sugar Free Fruit & Chocolate Candy

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Product Review: Russell Stover’s Sugar Free Bites

I’ve always loved Russell Stover’s candies, even before I started on low carb.  Since switching to the new lifestyle, I’ve grown even fonder of the candies offered by this company.  They have a very good line of sugar-free chocolates and I’ve used the chocolate truffles and plain chocolate in low carb cakes and other desserts.

The newest offering is Sugar Free Bites, little dark chocolate balls with fruit centers that are wonderful.  They come in three flavors — orange, blueberry, and cranberry.  The orange really stands out well and the blueberry is tasty although not as much as the orange.  I love the cranberry, but it doesn’t have as strong a flavor as the other two.  When I first tried it, I had sampled the orange first and found that the cranberry flavor got a little lost.  But when I ate a cranberry one without eating another flavor first, it popped more.

 

 

 

 

 

The best part of this new candy is that a serving of ten of these little balls is only two net carbs!  That’s fantastic.  I usually find that five of the chocolates is enough at one time to satisfy my sweet tooth and chocolate cravings.  Each bag holds about 35 candies and sells for about $5.95.  You can purchase them at CVS and Walgreen’s drug stores, but they may be coming to other places that normally handle Russell Stover’s candies, such as Walmart and your grocery stores.  They are also available online from Netrition and Amazon.  I did notice that the price at Amazon is almost double what you can buy them for at the store.

If you have a chocolate craving, these little candies really offer a great low carb solution.

I give them five cooking spoons of goodness.

5-spoons

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.

Main Dish, Poultry, Recipes

Turkey Meatloaf with Cheese & Salsa is a Winner

Using ground turkey in a meatloaf brings a different flavor to the dinner table while still being an easy and filling meal.  The addition of cheese and salsa gives it a south-of-the-border flair. For the bread crumbs, I used the Magic Muffin recipe below with a low carb flour to make a muffin, cut it into three slices and toast them.  Let them dry out or put them in a low-heat oven to dry.

Turkey Meatloaf with Cheese & Salsa

2 lbs Ground Turkey
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
1/2 cup Water
1 cup low carb Bread Crumbs
1/4 cup minced Onions
2 Eggs
1 teaspoon Seasoning Salt
1/4 teaspoon Ground Pepper
2 cups Cheddar or Colby Cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Salsa

Preheat oven to 400(F.) Spray a standard loaf pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, add the turkey, milk, bread crumbs, eggs, salt and pepper and mix together using your hands. Add the cheese to the mixture and work it in. Put the meat into the loaf pan, distributing it evenly.

Bake for 45 minutes, then sprinkle a little more cheese and spread salsa on the top. Bake another 15 to 20 minutes until the turkey is done all the way through. It should have an internal temperature of 180 degrees (F.)

Let the loaf rest for about 10 minutes, then cut into slices and serve. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition information per serving:
Calories: 474 Fat: 34.2 g Net Carbs: 3.6 g Protein: 37.3 g

Magic Muffin

Based on the Atkins Muffin-in-a-Minute recipe.

2 tablespoons Low Carb Flour
1 tablespoon Golden Flax Meal, ground
1 Egg
1 tablespoon Oil
1 tablespoon Parmesan Cheese
Pinch of Pepper
Pinch of Salt

In a mug or a straight-sided bowl, stir the egg, oil, cheese, salt and pepper together until it is completely blended. I use a rubber spatula with a small head for this. Stir in the flour and flax meal until it is thoroughly mixed in. Be sure to scrape the sides down.

Cook in the microwave for 1 minute. Take out, loosen the edges, and let cool for about 5 minutes to set up. Use a knife with a serrated edge to cut the muffin into three slices. Toast in a toaster or in the oven until browned.

Let dry out or put back in the oven on very low to dry it out to make bread crumbs. Put in a food processor to crumble.

Nutrition Information per recipe (included in the meatloaf recipe):
Calories: 297 Fat: 26.6 g Net Carbs: 2.4 g Protein: 12.8 g