Tag Archives: Atkins friendly recipes

A to Z Challenge 2015, Breads, Breakfast & Brunch, Recipes

Fantastic Figs – A Good and Versatile Fruit

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Living in West Texas as I was growing up, figs weren’t a common fruit in our grocery stores and most of what I experienced were the ones in a dried fruit platter sent by relatives in California at Christmas. I wasn’t that impressed, leaving them to the rest of the family to eat. When I moved to Los Angeles after graduation, my Aunt Emilie introduced me to canned Kadota figs, which were beautiful and plump with a lovely, fruity taste. We usually ate them for breakfast. Still, figs have never been at the top of my favored fruit list.

Even though Nevada borders on California, I rarely see fresh figs at the grocery stores. When I do, they tend to be a little pricey, but I did pick some up a year ago only to cut them in half and dry them for later use, such was my enthusiasm for actually eating them. But when I chose to put them in this blog, I was reminded of the Kadota figs and how much I enjoyed them.

Health Benefits

When I started researching, I found that figs are extremely nutritious. They’re a good source of potassium, help lower blood pressure, reduce cholesterol, and are a fiber-rich food. Additionally, the leaves are also good for you. In some cultures, they are a regular part of the diet. One of the properties of fig leaves is that they have anti-diabetic properties and can help lower insulin. Fig leaves appear to also lower levels of triglycerides in animals and inhibit the growth of some types of cancer cells.  Research is underway to determine the effectiveness.

History

Figs have a Biblical beginning and certainly the fig leaf played a prominent role in the story telling. They were mentioned in the Bible and other ancient writings. One of the first foods cultivated by man, the edible fig is believed to have originated in Egypt and spread from there to Crete. Around the 9th century BC, they arrived in Greece and became such an important part of the Grecian diet that they passed laws to ensure the best quality ones stayed in Greece. Across the way, the Romans considered the fig a sacred fruit. At least 29 varieties of figs were known at this time.

In the late 19th century, figs were brought to California by Spanish missionaries to San Diego, but the trees were not equal to the quality of those that came from Europe. California horticulture began improving the cultivation and processing techniques in the early part of the 20th century. Now, California is one of the largest producers of figs, rising alongside Turkey, Greece, Portugal and Spain.

Popular figs in production in California are Brown Turkey Figs, Black Mission Figs, Kadota Figs and Calmyrna Figs. They come to market between mid-May and mid-December. Figs can be used fresh or dried. I dried my figs in a small dryer that I own and put them in a plastic bag to keep in the refrigerator or freezer. They can be reconstituted somewhat if you put them in hot water and let them sit about an hour. From a carbohydrate stand-point, I prefer drying my own fruit so that no additional sugar is added.

Nutrition Information for 1 medium fig (2 1/4 inch inch diameter)
   Calories: 37 Fat: 0.2 g Net Carbs: 8.6 g Protein: 0.4 g

For now, this recipe for scones made with figs is the only recipe on my site that uses them.  That will change when I can get my hands on more figs.  There are many wonderful-sounding recipes at California Figs.

Fig-a-licious Scones

1 cup Low Carb Flour
2 tablespoons Almond Flour
2 tablespoons Vanilla Whey Protein Powder*
1 tablespoon Oat Fiber*
3 tablespoons Sugar Substitute
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/2 tablespoon Baking Powder
1/4 cup cold Butter
1/2 cup dried Figs, chopped (about five)
1/2 cup slivered Almonds, toasted and chopped
1 large Egg
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla extract
1/4 cup Buttermilk

* Vanilla Whey Powder and Oat Fiber are optional ingredients. The recipe will work perfectly fine if you use the equivalent amount of the other flours to replace them. They add texture and more fiber but are not necessary.

Chop the dried figs into small pieces. After I softened them and was able to cut them with a knife, I put them in my small food chopper and chop them to little bits. Toast the slivered almonds in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring until they just start to brown. Set aside for now.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flours, protein powder, oat fiber, sugar, salt and baking powder. In a small bowl or cup, add the egg, vanilla extract and buttermilk and beat together. Cut the cold butter into little pieces and add to the flour. Use a pastry cutter or your clean or gloved fingers to mix the butter into the flour until it resembles little crumbs. Add the egg and milk and mix together with a spoon until the flour is completely mixed in. Then add the chopped figs and almond and mix completely through the dough.

Prepare a baking pan with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Sprinkle a tablespoon of low carb flour on the pan, then turn the scone dough onto the paper or mat. Pull it together, kneading a few times, then shape it into a 6 or 7 inch round. Using a sharp knife, cut a score line across the middle, then score three slices on each side of the middle line. If you wish, you can cut all the way though and separate by easing each section out a little to allow them to bake with a crust on all sides. I left mine scored so the inside cuts are not crusted.

Put the pan in the freezer for 30 minutes to chill the dough well. This will help it to hold its shape while it bakes. 10 minutes before you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 425 degrees (F.).

Bake the scones for 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes before serving with clotted cream or butter.

Nutrition Information per scone
   Calories:221.5 Fat: 17.5 g Net Carbs: 6.2 g Protein: 0.9 g

References used for this article include: Wikipedia, World’s Healthiest Foods, Nature’s Pride and California Figs

Top photo permission from Wikipedia:  “Ficus carica0” by Kurt Stueber – link: [1], part of www.biolib.de. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

A to Z Challenge 2015, Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

Eggplant is an Egg-cellent Choice

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Sorry about that!  The demon eggplant made me do it.   Read on…

You might think that eggplant originated in the Mediterranean region since it is a very popular vegetable in Italy, but this vegetable grew wild in India. The Chinese began cultivating it in the 5th century B.C. and from there it spread to Africa some time before the Middle Ages then migrated to Italy. Because the early variety was very bitter, the plant didn’t gain a lot of popularity and some people blamed their ills on eating it, even suggesting that it caused insanity, leprosy and cancer. As the vegetable became more cultured and lost much of its bitterness thanks to modified varieties in the 18th century, it grew into favor with chefs and from them on it was all Eggplant Parmesan and Moussaka. These days, the top growers are Italy, Turkey, Egypt, China and Japan.

An early variety of the plant was white and resembled a hen or goose egg prompting the name “eggplant”. A variety of nightshade, the fruit is white, green or purple and only the fruit is eaten. Since it is a nightshade, the leaves may be toxic and can certainly affect allergies. In England and other parts of Europe, the eggplant is known as aubergine, in Asia, it is called brinjal and other common names include melongene, garden egg and guinea squash. Whatever you call it, the eggplant is a much more diversified vegetable than just the uses you might expect. It is used in all types of cooking and reading about it has certainly inspired me to want to expand the way I use it.

I planted an Asian variety in my garden two years ago and it produced about four eggplants that were very good and mild-flavored. I think I’ll try it again this year if we have enough water to actually plant a garden.  The drought affects Nevada also.

Try out this recipe on Skinny Girl that is both low carb and delicious.

Italian Style Stuffed Low Carb Eggplant

And here’s my recipe for…

Eggplant Pizza

by Rene Averett

1/2 Eggplant, peeled and sliced into 1/2″ rounds
1 Egg,
2 tablespoons Almond Flour
2 tablespoon Bread Crumbs
2 tablespoons Parmesan Cheese
1 teaspoon ground Oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/4 lb. Seasoned Sausage
1/4 cup Bell Pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons Onion, chopped
1 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
1/2 cup  Pasta Sauce

Peel about 2 1/2 inches of the large part of the eggplant. Cut off bottom of the eggplant, then slice off four 1/2 inch thick rounds. Lightly salt the eggplant slices.

Preheat oven to 365 degrees.  Prepare a baking pan by spraying with cooking spray or put a silicone mat or parchment paper on it.

Put the egg and salt and pepper to taste in a shallow bowl or pan and beat. Put the bread crumbs and almond flour in another bowl and add the Parmesan Cheese and oregano. Dip an eggplant slice into the egg, then dredge in the flour/bread crumbs mixture, pressing it into the eggplant. Place on the prepared pan. Repeat with each slice of eggplant.

Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes until lightly browned. Raise the temperature to 385 degrees.

Meanwhile, lightly brown the sausage. Don’t overcook as it will cook a little in the oven. When the eggplant slices are done, spread two tablespoons of pasta sauce on each slice, then top with sausage, onions and peppers. Sprinkle the cheese over the top and add a dash of crushed chili peppers, if desired. Return to oven and bake another 10 to 15 minutes until the cheese is lightly toasted.

Serve with a salad to complete your meal.

Makes 4 slices.

Nutrition Info per slice
Calories: 250 Fat: 17.0 g Net Carbs: 6.6 g Protein: 15.1 g

 Learn more from my references for this blog, which include Wikipedia, The World’s Healthiest Foods and Care2.com

Top Photo Credit:  “Three Types of Eggplant” by J.E. Fee – originally posted to Flickr as Three Types of Eggplant. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons – 

A to Z Challenge 2015, Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

Awesome Artichokes – an Ancient and Strange Vegetable

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I grew up eating artichokes,. In my house, as in many houses, the only way to eat them was to boil or steam the artichoke, peel off the cooked leaves one by one and dip them in either mayonnaise or a small bowl of melted butter with lemon. Delicious. Then when you got to the heart, you just savored the creamy, richness of it.  But there are many recipes that use artichokes and I will be exploring more of these over the next year.

What is an artichoke anyway? Where did it come from and who on earth decided to eat this thorny-looking plant? Well, we can blame the Romans and the Greeks and just about anyone else in the Mediterranean area. In Rome, a variant of the vegetable called a cardoon was native to the area and widely enjoyed by the people in the region. While the plant was originally a wild species, the Greeks were cultivating it in the Classical period. By the 9th century, globe artichokes were grown around Naples. The vegetable spread across Europe and in the 14th century, the Dutch introduced it to the English court. It was grown in Henry VIII’s garden at Newhall. But it wasn’t until the 19th century that the artichoke arrived in America, traveling with the French to the New Orleans area and the Spanish to California.

The artichoke itself is a fierce-looking vegetable with a globe shape that can grow several inches in length. Each of its triangular leaves wrap around the heart or the center bottom of the vegetable and they are tipped with a sharp point. It also produces a beautiful purple flower, which makes it attractive in an ornamental garden.

When it comes to eating an artichoke, here are the key things to remember.

• Most of the vegetable is edible.
• You need to trim off the spiky points before cooking.
• The lower part of the leaf is the meaty part and is best scraped off with your teeth.
• Savor the tender leaves at the center that are covering the choke.
• Don’t eat the choke. It’s the fuzzy center of newly developing leaves and it pretty much will choke you if you try to swallow it.
• Do eat that lovely lump under the choke, which is the heart and is the real prize of the artichoke.
• Part of the stem is also edible so long as it is tender.

Preparing the Basic Boiled Artichoke

This is the method that both my family and PK’s family used.  It is very much like the Romans prepared it long ago.

To prepare to cook the artichoke, begin by placing it on its side on a cutting board and use a sharp knife to cut across the top quarter of so of the leaves to make a flat top. Then use kitchen shears to trim the rest of the leaves down about ¼ of the way to remove the spikes and the tough part of the leaf.

The simplest way to cook an artichoke is to put on a pan of water big enough to submerge the whole artichoke. Bring the water to a boil then add a tablespoon of vinegar to the water, a little lemon and a teaspoon or more of garlic. Put the artichoke into the water with the stem bottom down in the pan. They may float to the top, so push them down and turn them often while cooking. Boil until a fork inserted in the bottom goes in and the leaves pull off easily.

Remove the artichoke and drain it in a colander, then prepare your dipping sauce. The basic one is mayonnaise, plain or with a little lemon. I added a bit of cayenne pepper the other night. You can also melt about 3 tablespoons of butter and add a ½ teaspoon of lemon juice to have a wonderful sauce. Or you can just pour some Ranch Dressing in a small bowl and dip the leaves in that. Many options work, so experiment around.

Artichokes are easy to share as an appetizer as two or three people can easily pull leaves and dip. When you reach the choke, use a spoon and a knife to cut under it and remove it. Then slice the heart into pieces and enjoy.

Nutritionally-speaking, the artichoke is good news for a low carb lifestyle and it is so good for your health.

Nutrition Info for one medium artichoke (about 3 “height from the base)
   Calories: 60.2 Fat: 0.2 g Net Carbs: 6.2 g Protein: 4.2 g

Artichoke Trivia

Here are few interesting bits about the artichoke.

• In 2012, Worldwide production yielded 1,634,219 artichokes.
• The top production of artichokes was in Egypt with 387,304.
• The United State is ninth on the list of top growers with 51,300, but almost all of the US commercial crop is grown in California.
• Castroville, California is the self-proclaimed “Artichoke Center of the World” with over three-quarters of the artichokes grown in the U.S. coming from there.

References for this article include: Wikipedia, California Artichoke Advisory Board, and Oceanmist.com

Recipes, Vegetables & Salads, Vegetarian

Recreating a Restaurant Vegetable – Broccoli with Mornay Sauce

At the beginning of March, my roomie and I went to San Jose to see Celtic Thunder and decided to eat at a restaurant near the theater.  While the cuisine was a little pricier than we had expected, it was fantastic.  One of the dishes we ordered was Broccoli with Mornay Sauce that was just wonderful  So, I decided to recreate this with a low carb Mornay.    Couple this with my joy in finally getting a whole case of kohlrabi that I ordered from my grocery store because no one in Reno has gotten in kohlrabi in over 8 months.  I was in withdrawal!  It’s like taking away my potatoes, only worse, because it’s my substitute for potatoes.  So, my version of the broccoli dish is now Broccoli and Kohlrabi with Mornay Sauce.  You can make it without the kohlrabi by increasing the broccoli, but give it a try with the “cousin” root vegetable.  It is really good.

Broccoli & Kohlrabi with Mornay Sauce

1 cup Broccoli, cut into pieces
1 cup Kohlrabi, 1/4″ cubes
1/2 cup Leeks, sliced
4 cloves Garlic, sliced
2 slices Bacon, fried (optional)
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
1 tablespoon Butter
1 1/2 tablespoon Low Carb Flour
1/2 cup Water
Pinch Pepper
1/8 teaspoon Nutmeg
1 oz. Cream Cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
1/2 teaspoon Salt

Prepare sauce: In a saucepan, melt the butter and stir in the flour to form a paste. Remove from heat and stir in cream, water, pepper and nutmeg. Return to heat and stir until the sauce begins to thicken. Add cream cheese and Parmesan cheese and stir until it is melted in. Remove from heat and set aside.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F.)

Steam broccoli, kohlrabi and leeks in a bowl in the microwave or in a steamer until just tender, about 3 to 4 minutes in the microwave. In an oven safe skillet, add a little butter and the chopped garlic and cook until just fragrant. Add the vegetables and cook a couple of minutes, then add the sauce and mix together until completely coated. Break the bacon into pieces and sprinkle over the top of the vegetables, then sprinkle a little more Parmesan cheese on top.

Bake in oven for 15 to 20 minutes until the top is just starting to brown. Remove, let cool for a few minutes, then serve.

Makes 4 servings

Nutrition Info per serving:
Calories: 235.3 Fat: 20.5 g Net Carbs: 5.3 g Protein: 6.6 g

Note:  For vegetarian, omit the Bacon.

 

Main Dish, Recipes, Seafood

Lawyer Up with Wonderful Lobster

T’is that time of the year again when I look at all my Irish-type recipes and try to figure out the St. Patrick’s Day dinner and dessert.  I have many Irish recipes in my house and quite a few Irish-American ones as well.  The corned beef we eat in America is not popular in Ireland and my Irish friends tell me that it doesn’t taste the same either.  But for those of us who’ve had it nearly every St. Patrick’s Day of their lives, it is the dish of the day.

But why not break out with something different?  This dish called “Dublin Lawyer” is a very good example of an Irish alternative.  This is an old Dublin dish with a colorful name that I haven’t been able to find the origin.  Possibly, given that it’s a lobster dish with whiskey in it, it was a favorite of the lawyers, who may have been the only ones who could afford it. It’s similar to Lobster Thermidor with whiskey substituting for the white wine or sherry in the latter.  I made very few changes to this recipe as it is just naturally low carb’d.

Dublin Lawyer

As prepared by Rene Averett

2 Lobster Tails (6 to 8 oz. each), cooked
2 tablespoons Butter
1/4 cup Irish Whiskey (Jameson’s or Paddy’s)
1/4 cup Heavy Cream
1/4 cup sliced Mushrooms (optional)
2 tablespoons Leeks, chopped (whites)
2 tablespoons Low Carb Bread Crumbs*
1 Egg Yolk
Salt
Cayenne pepper

Preheat broiler to 485 degrees (if you can control it) or heat a toaster oven set to Broil.

Remove the lobster meat from the tails.  Clean the shells and set aside.  Cut the lobster meat into bite-sized pieces and set aside.

Trim the leeks and cut them finely, using a combination of white and a little of the green part near the white.  Heat the butter in a pan and sauté’ the leeks and mushrooms until the leeks are tender. Add the cream, salt and cayenne pepper and bring to a boil. Remove pan from the heat and stir in the whiskey. Return to the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes,

Pu the egg yolk in a cup and beat with a whisk.  Spoon 2 tablespoons of sauce into the egg and whisk together, then add another 2 tablespoons.  Add the egg and sauce mixture to the pan and whisk it in gently.  Heat on simmer for a few more minutes and it will begin to thicken.  Add the lobster to the sauce and let it simmer another 3 minutes.

When you have the rest of your dinner almost prepared, put the lobster into the cleaned shells or into individual serving dishes.   Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the top and spray lightly with butter spray or olive oil. Put the tails into a small baking dish or individual dishes.  Cook under the broiler for 3 to 5 minutes until lightly browned.

Serve immediately.  Serves 2.

Nutrition Info per lobster tail
Calories: 316 Fat: 25 g Net Carbs: 1.8 g Protein: 4.2 g

* I always have low carb bread crumbs on hand.  They can be from any quick low carb bread, such as the Wheat Germ and Flax Bread Rounds or the Irish Soda Bread, linked below.  If you don’t have them, look for the lowest bread crumb at your grocery store and add that carb count to the amount above.

For more St. Patrick’s Day options, here are more recipes from Skinny Girl Bistro to round out your celebration.

Use up the leftover corned beef in one of these dishes:
Corned Beef Hash
Corned Beef Quesadillas

Make side dishes for your Irish meal:
Irish Style Celery and Kohlrabi
Irish Soda Bread
Smashed Turnips and Leeks

Top your dinner off with a sweet or a drink:
Slim Irish Cream Cheesecake
O’Kelly’s Slim Irish Cream
Irish Apple Cake