Tag Archives: Atkins friendly

A to Z Challenge 2015

Glorifying Green Beans

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Is there anyone in the United States and, quite possibly, Canada who didn’t have the famous “Green Bean Casserole” on the Thanksgiving dinner table? You know the one I mean. The one made with green beans, cream of mushroom soup and canned French fried onion rings. I know it made a regular appearance at our house and I loved it. It’s a great way to encourage kids to eat green beans. But it tends to be a little high in carbohydrates and there are many other ways to enjoy the wonderful flavor of green beans.

Quite probably, green beans are one of the most popular vegetables in the world. They can be used in so many dishes or stand on their own as a tasty side dish. Throw some green beans in a pot of hot water, add garlic and seasonings and let it cook until their tender and you have a quick, delicious vegetable for dinner. What could be easier?

All beans, including kidney beans, black beans and navy beans are referred to as “common beans”, which probably means they came from a common bean ancestor that was in Peru. Beans were spread throughout South and Central America by tribes of migrating Indians. I would presume they also made it into North America as those tribes continued to move northward. Spanish explorers took the beans to Europe in the 16th century where they spread across Europe. On November 4, 1492, when he saw cultivated lands in Cuba, Christopher Columbus noted that he found faxones and fabas (possibly cowpeas and fava beans) that were different from the ones he knew in Spain. These were likely the beans from South America. A 1988 study traced the beans from the western Mediterranean region as coming from those that originated in the Andes.

All fascinating information, but the main thing is that green beans have a crisp, clean taste and are great to eat raw or cooked. Try slicing them on the diagonal and adding them to a fresh salad or you can snack on them. They can be baked, boiled, stir-fried, fried and dried. I often add them to soups, stews, and casseroles, using them as a fill in for peas in some recipes.

Recipes Using Green Beans

Fish and Vegetables Tampura Style – green beans are in the middle of the plate. Photo by Rene Averett.

Here are a trio of recipes from Skinny Girl.

Spicy Chicken Kohlrabi Curry
Fish and Vegetables Tampura Style
Quick and Easy Green Beans with Turnips

For those that might like to try the Green Bean Casserole, the recipe is here at Campbell’s web site. I may have to try for a low carb adapted version. Another good and lower carb green bean casserole is Green Beans Amandine. Try this one from Food.network’s Bobby Flay.

Nutrition Information for 1/2 cup of green beans
Calories 16, fat: 0 g, Net Carbs 2 g, Protein 1 g

Information for this article was gleaned from the following sources:  World’s Healthiest Foods, Clifford A. Wright Foods, Wikipedia

Photo on the top is used with permission from Wikipedia Commons By Daderot (Daderot) [CC0 or CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

A to Z Challenge 2015

Diversify with Daikon Radish

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I thought for sure that I was going to escape from that Mediterranean origin with the Daikon radish, but it turns out that it, too, came from the Cradle of Civilization. It moved to the Orient around 500 B.C. and it really came into its own in Asia. When it comes to using this amazing vegetable, Asians have the jump on the Western world. Over 90% of Daikon grown is in Asia. In the U.S., most of the commercial Daikon production is in California and a small percent in South Texas, around Houston. Some farmers use it as a fodder crop, leaving the roots in the ground and feeding the tops to their animals. So, we’re a little slow learning about this great vegetable.

I first started using Daikon about three years ago when I noticed the big white root vegetable in the grocery and was curious about the taste of this radish. Of course, after peeling it, I used it in a salad as I would a normal radish. It had a crisp, lightly peppery taste and was similar to the standard radish. Being on a quest for potato replacements, I tried cutting a few thin rounds and frying them and was pleased to find that they tasted great!

The picture at the top of the page gives you an idea of what the Daikon radish looks like, but mostly, I’ve seen them as a big, white root with the top and the bottom chopped off. Incidentally the name Daikon is two Japanese words, dai and kon that, respectively, mean ‘large” and “root”. It’s an apt description. They range from 2 to 4 inches in diameter and 6 to 20 inches long. In Asia, farmers have grown ones that weigh up to 50 pounds!

I have used Daikon in many ways, raw in salads, cooked in stews, stir fried, roasted, French fried and shredded into hash browns. After reading more about them, I am going to be using them many more ways. It’s a very versatile and overlooked vegetable. So, tell me, have you used Daikon in your cooking? If so, how have you used it?

Here’s a trio of recipes on Skinny Girl that use Daikon.

Welsh Broccoli and Bacon Soup
Summer Harvest Cauli-Risotto
Home-Style Veggies O’Brien

Nutrition Infomation for 1/2 cup (113.4 grams)
     Calories: 12 Fat: 0.3 g Net Carbs: 1.1 g Protein: 0.0 g

Reference sites for this article include Wikipedia, The Tokyo Foundation and the Idaho Government.

A to Z Challenge 2015, Vegetables & Salads

Bountiful Beets

When I used to think of beets, I thught of the red canned ones that we added in little strips to salads or to make into Harvard Beets for the holidays. Then I discovered the taste of freshly cooked beets.  There are so many other uses and other types of beets that can make this vegetable a real star in your meals.

Like many of our foods, beets originated in the Mediterranean region and North Africa and were cultivated by ancient Greeks and Romans. Originally, they were grown primarily for their leaves, which can be chopped and cooked into greens or eaten raw. It wasn’t until the 14th century that eating the bulbous root became common. By then the root had developed from a thin, parsnip-like shape into the rounded vegetable we now know.

When it comes to the taste of the beet, it is a “like it or not” personal preference. The beet has an earthy taste that comes from geosmin, a substance that also yields a sweet spring scent when it rains. This is more prominent in the red beet while the golden beet has a much milder taste. As with eating most vegetables, the freshly prepared vegetable usually tastes better than a canned version.

Other uses for beets have included beet sugar, a beet alcohol and red natural dye. As soon as you cut a red beet, it will immediately begin bleeding a red juice that can stain your hands, any material near it and anything else that comes in contact with it. A picked eggs recipe uses the water that red beets are cooked in to dye hard boiled eggs red. This recipe from All Recipes uses canned beets, but could be made with freshly cooked beets. For low carb, be sure to use a sugar substitute in place of the sugar.

I didn’t use to be much of a beet fan, but as I grew older and tried Harvard beets, I discovered the flavor was better than I remembered it.  Incidentally, I once red that people’s taste buds change every seven years and I have seen a steady growth in the number of foods that I now enjoy that I didn’t use to like, so maybe there’s some truth to it.  Once I tried fresh beets, I became a real fan. I just recently found Chiogga beets at my grocery store for the first time and picked up a few. These are small red and white beets with circular rings of each color inside.

Here are a couple of recipes from this site that use beets in their preparation. They can be used in surprising ways.

Amazing Chocolate Beet Cake 
Short Ribs with Root Vegetables

Nutrition Information for 1 cup beets
   Calories: 59 Fat: 0.2 Net Carbs: 9.2 g Protein: 2.2 g

Want to know about the health benefits of beets? Visit The World’s Healithest Foods.

References for this article include The History Kitchen,  Love Beetroot.co.uk, Aggie Horticulture and The World’s Healthiest Foods

Top Photo used with authorization from Wikipedia: By Beet man (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Asian Recipes, Main Dish, Poultry, Recipes

Celebrate Chinese New Year with Orange Chicken

Orange brings a fabulous flavor to chicken or shrimp in this great dish. It’s easy to make, just prep everything ahead of time. This version is actually pretty mild, so if you want a little more kick in your dinner, add more red pepper and/or cayenne pepper to the sauce.

Orange Chicken with Bean Sprouts

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or 12 large shrimp
2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice* (See note)
1 teaspoon orange extract
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon orange zest
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons sugar free honey
1 teaspoon brown sugar substitute
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons minced ginger
1/2 onion, sliced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
1 cup bean sprouts (optional)
2 tablespoons chopped green onions, including the green tops

Partially freeze the chicken to make it easier to cut, then cut it into bite-sized pieces. Dry chicken with paper towels.

Prepare the sauce ingredients by mixing the orange juice and zest, the orange extract, brown sugar substitute, ginger and pepper flakes, then set aside. In a small bowl, add the water and cornstarch and mix well. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok until hot. Add half of the chicken and cook until brown. Remove to a paper towel covered plate, then cook the rest of the chicken and drain on paper towel.

Small batches help control the temperature of the pan so the chicken will cook more evenly.

Orange Chicken with Bean Spouts with Egg Foo Yung and Basic Cauli-rice.

In the same skillet or wok, with the pan drippings from the chicken, add the onions and a little more oil, if needed, and stir fry until tender, then spoon the onions out to the paper towel. Add the sauce mix to the wok, then the honey and stir together. Add the cornstarch and water to thicken. Use a wooden spoon to stir well and scrape the bits of meat that have stuck to the pan.

Toss in your chicken and onions and heat it through. Add bean sprouts and green onions and cook one more minute.

Serves 4.

Nutrition Information: (Chicken)
Calories: 192.5 Fat: 5.6 g Net Carbs: 6.4 g Protein: 28.9

Nutrition Information: (Shrimp)
Calories: 77.5 Fat: 3 g Net Carbs: 6.5 g Protein: 6.4 g

Atkins Phases 3 & 4

Note: You can push it a little on Phase 2, but not recommended under Atkins as orange isn’t on the approved list. You can substitute orange Crystal light or double the orange extract and add 1/4 cup water to mix it in. It will add the orange flavor without the carbs! Having said that, I made several dishes with orange while I was on Phase 2 and still lost weight. Just use it in moderation and if it affects your weight loss, don’t continue to use it while you’re in Phase 2.

Posted on 1/24/2014

Breakfast & Brunch, Desserts, Recipes

Breakfast or Dessert? Sour Cream Blueberry Cobbler

PK and I brought home a large bag of frozen blueberries at the same time we were buying many things for a party and completely filled the freezer. So a week down the road, I had a bag of thawed (and leaking – thank goodness I put it in another storage bag!) blueberries. So, what to do with blueberries? I started out looking at a blueberry muffin recipe, but wanted to use more blueberries then hit on using the muffin recipe on top of the blueberries to make the cobbler. The result is awesome! I can’t wait to try it with other fruits, maybe even a strawberry rhubarb combination. As to the breakfast or dessert question, I think this works well for either. Let me know how you like it.

Sour Cream Blueberry Cobbler

3 tablespoons Coconut Flour
1/2 cup Almond flour
1 cup Carbquick or other low carb baking mix
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons Coconut Oil
2 large Eggs
2/3 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1/2 cup sugar substitute (like Ideal Sugar Substitute)
12 drops liquid Sucralose (like E-Z Sweet)
2 cups Blueberries, fresh or frozen (unsweetened)
1/2 cup blueberry juice, if available, or water
1/2 cup Sour Cream
6 drops liquid sucralose

Preheat oven to 365 degrees F.

In a small bowl, mix the flours and baking powder together. Set aside.

Put 2 cups of thawed blue berries and 1/2 cup of blueberry juice in a 9×12″ deep baking dish. Add sour cream and 6 drops of liquid sucralose. You can use Splenda or Equal, but it will increase the carb count. Mix together well, cover with plastic wrap and set aside.

In a medium-sized bowl, beat the eggs, add whipping cream, sugar substitute and 12 drops of liquid sucralose. Mix well, then add the coconut oil and mix it in. Add the flour about 1/3 at a time, mixing it in before adding the next third.

Remove the plastic wrap over the berries and drop the batter on top of the berries, spreading it to cover the entire top.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until the top is golden brown and firm to the touch. Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving. Add whipped cream, whipped topping or sour cream with a bit of sweetener added, if you would like.

Nutrition Info: 1/8 of recipe
Calories: 256.8 Fat 28.1 g Net Carbs: 7.5 g Protein: 6.3 g

1/12 of recipe
Calories: 171.2 Fat: 18.7 g Net Carbs: 5.1 g Protein: 4.2 g
Originally POSTED BY RENE AVERETT AT 5/8/2013 4:46 PM