Tag Archives: cream cheese

Breads, Breakfast & Brunch, Main Dish, Pork, Recipes, Vegetarian

A Delicious & Trendy Breakfast

June 9, 2024 RAverett Leave a comment

Guacamole Toast

My gosh, May slipped right past without a post, although I got the Cinco de Mayo one up before the end of April! My life has been super busy, but I want to publish at least one new recipe this month. This one is simple but big on flavor and in demand right now.

Avocado toast is one of those quick breakfast items that people are finding popular in the past couple of years. You can even order it at IHOP and other restaurants. It’s simple to make at home, where you can use low carb bread and other ingredients to create a filling breakfast treat.

I use premade guacamole on my toast to add extra spice, but you can start with avocado slices. Avocados turn brown quickly once they’re cut open or the guac container is unsealed. A little lemon juice and plastic wrap can slow the process in any unused avocado.

Guacamole and cream cheese toast.

Guacamole Breakfast (or Snack) Toast

Ingredients:
1 slice Keto Wheat Bread (or Keto bread of choice)
2 tablespoons Philadelphia Jalapeno Cream Cheese Spread
2 tablespoons Guacamole or Mashed Avocado
1 or 2 slices of cooked Bacon, broken into 2 pieces

Instructions:
Toast the Keto bread. Spread the cream cheese over the top and smooth. Spread the mashed avocado for the next layer and top with the cooked bacon.

Makes one serving.

Nutrition Information Per Serving:
Calories 199 , Total Fat 15 g , Cholesterol 30 mg, Sodium 332 mg, Potassium 210 mg, Carbohydrates 16 g, Fiber 12 g, Sugars 2 g, Protein 10 g, Net Carbs 4 g

Add-ins: You can easily add an egg to your toast and it won’t add another carbohydrate to it, but it will raise the calories to 342. You can also add a little cheese, either white cheddar or mozzarella and it won’t add carbs, but it will increase the calories. For a variation, replace the bacon with thin sliced ham. If you don’t want to put cream cheese on your toast, feel free to substitute mayonnaise. If you don’t like Jalapeno cream cheese, use plain cream cheese.

About Bread: Many tasty Keto breads are now available in your local markets. They are not created equal. Inked Timberwolf Keto bread is 1 net carb per slice, Hero bread is 0 net carbs, Sola bread is 1 net carb, Franz and Oro Wheat are 2 nc, Carbonaut is 2 net carbs, and Alvarado St. Wheat Sourdough is 4 nc, I will be doing a post soon comparing some of the low carb breads I’ve tried. I used Timberwolf for this recipe and also tried the sourdough with it. Both are very good.

If you try this recipe and/or come up with a different variation, please comment on it and tell me what you added or changed.

Note: Nutrition information is based on the ingredients I used in this recipe and my measurements. Although they are a close calculation, your results may be slightly higher or lower. Ingredient substitutions may affect the carb count. Different brands may have other carb counts.

Desserts, Recipes

Sweeten Up Your Valentine!

February 12, 2024 RAverett Leave a comment

Here’s an easy to make dessert for your Valentine’s Day or any other time you want to give your sweetie a heart. While it is simple, you need to allow time for the baked cookies to cool down before cutting, then allow them to chill before you top it off to serve. This works best when you assemble just before serving.

Initially, I made these by cutting the valentine shape from the raw dough, but I think you’ll have fewer breaks if you cut them after the dough is cooked and is still cooling. Use a valentine-shaped cookie cutter or cut out a pattern, place it on the dough, and cut around with a knife. Then let the cookies cool until firm before putting the valentine ones in the ‘fridge to get completely cold.

These look pretty and taste fantastic!

Valentine Cookie With Cocoa Swirl and Strawberries

Sugar Cookie Base
1/2 cup Low Carb All Purpose Flour
1/2 cup Almond Flour
1 teaspoon Almond Extract
1/2 cup Butter, softened
1/2 cup Sugar Substitute
Pinch Salt

In a medium bowl, beat the Butter and the sugar substitute with a mixer until creamy. Add the almond extract and beat to incorporate. Add the flour 1/4 cup at a time until it is all combined. It may look like lumps, but use your clean hands to pull it together into a ball.

Heat oven to 350 degrees (F.)

Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Cover a bread board or pastry board with parchment paper. Put the dough on the board and press it into a circle. Place another piece of parchment over the top and roll it into a circle about 1/4-inch thick.

Remove the top paper and place the dough and the bottom parchment paper onto a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. The cookie dough should be lightly browned. Let cool for about 5 minutes, then take a 2-1/2 to 3 inch valentine cookie cutter and cut out four cookies. If you don’t have a cutter, then cut a valentine pattern and use a sharp knife to cut around the pattern placed on the dough.

Allow the cookies to cool complete, then remove the excess dough from cut cookies and place the valentines in the refrigerator to cool while another 30 minutes. This allows the butter to set again and makes it easy to handle the cookies.

Eat the pieces you removed from around the cookies or save for topping ice cream.

Next, make the filling.

Cocoa Cream Cheese Fluff
4 oz Cream Cheese
1/2 cup Heavy cream
2 to 3 tablespoons of Hershey’s sugar free Chocolate Syrup
Or 1/4 cup Unsweetened Powdered Cocoa
1/4 cup Powdered Sugar-free Sweetener

In a small bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Spoon 4 tablespoons into a cup.

In another bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and sweetener until light and fluffy.

Add half of the whipped cream and mix well.
Use a silicone spatula to fold in the rest of the whipped cream, excluding the 4 tablespoons you set aside.

Topping
20 Strawberries, sliced in half and sprinkled with sugar substitute
Whipped cream, save from the earlier step.

Assembly to be done before serving:
Take one of the valentine cookies and place on your serving plate. Spread a thick layer of cocoa fluff over the top and smooth it out.

Place 1/2 strawberry in each top curve of the cookie, two more on the sides, and a 1/2 strawberry inverted in the point at the bottom.

Use a small spoon to spread whipped cream between the strawberries.

Drizzle some chocolate syrup over the top and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition Information Per Serving:
Calories 494 , Total Fat 45 g , Cholesterol 119 mg, Sodium 281 mg, Potassium 349 mg, Carbohydrates 17 g, Fiber 8.9 g, Sugars 4.5 g, Protein 11 g, Net Carbs 8.1 g

Note: Nutrition information is based on the ingredients I used in this recipe and my measurements. Although they are a close calculation, your results may be slightly higher or lower. Ingredient substitutions may affect the carb count. Different brands may have other carb counts.

Main Dish, Poultry, Recipes

Something Wonderfully Delicious for Valentine’s Day!

February 11, 2024 RAverett Leave a comment

Want a really tasty dish for your Valentine’s dinner?

This one is easy to make and tastes so delicious you won’t believe it’s low carb. Serve with a side dish of cauliflower in a butter sauce or broccoli with cheese sauce. I opted for getting a frozen cauliflower in cream sauce dish that worked perfectly. The biscuit is made from Carbquik with cheddar cheese in it.

Chicken and Leeks with Cream Cheese Sauce

Ingredients:

2 large Chicken Breasts Or 1 lb. Chicken Thighs
8 oz. Cream Cheese
1 large Leek, cleaned and sliced
1 teaspoon Garlic, minced
1/4 cup Chicken Broth or Better Than Bullion
1 tablespoon Herb Seasoning
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated or shredded
1 teaspoon Rosemary, semi-fresh
1 tablespoon Olive Oil

Instructions:

Cut the chicken into several smaller pieces so they will cook faster. You can use all white meat or all dark or a combination depending on your preference.

Heat the oil in a large skillet. If you use one that can in the oven, you’ll save dirtying up a casserole dish. Cook the chicken pieces until they are partially done.

Add the garlic and leeks and cook for about four minutes. Add the chicken broth, rosemary, and herb seasoning. Stir well, then add the cream cheese. Cook for about eight minutes until the cream cheese is melted. Stir it several times while cooking. Add 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan Cheese and stir into the dish.

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees (F.)

If you don’t have an ovenproof skillet, transfer the contents of the skillet to a casserole dish.

Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan cheese and put it in the oven. Cook for ten minutes to melt the cheese.

Serve hot with a side dish or salad.

Makes 4 servings.

This turnip side dish can also be made with cauliflower and would be wonderful with this chicken and leeks dish.

Turnips with Cream Sauce

Check back tomorrow for a fun dessert twist for your valentine.

Nutrition Information Per Serving:
Calories 399 , Total Fat 13 g , Cholesterol 144 mg, Sodium 394 mg, Potassium 506 mg, Carbohydrates 7 g, Fiber 0.5 g, Sugars 3.1 g, Protein 31 g, Net Carbs 6.5 g

Book News, Desserts

Cool off with Keto Key Lime Cheesecake Pie

August 16, 2023 RAverett

Keto Key Lime Cheesecake Pie

Hi, everyone…

How is summer going for you? Too hot?? July was the hot month here in Northern Nevada, but August has been a little cooler. Still, a nice cool dessert recipe is always refreshing. This is a recipe I adapted from Sola Bread for their Keylime Cheesecake Bars. I didn’t use their Keto Granola but substituted an almond flour sugar cookie bottom crust. It’s easy to make and goes well with the cheesecake pie.

I admit, I never seem to get much flavor from any fruit zest, but chefs swear it carries more flavor than the juice. So I put it in. Add a teaspoon more lime juice if you don’t want to use it.

In other news, I am working on a new Asian Cookbook with recipes from China, India, and Thailand. I have a couple of Korean and Japanese recipes in there, also. I plan to have this released by the end of November, but it takes time to make and photograph all the recipes in the book, so fingers crossed I hit that deadline.

Keto Key Lime Cheesecake Pie

Recipe adapted from Sola Bread recipe
by Rene Averett

Crust
1 cup Almond Flour
2 tablespoons granulated Sugar Substitute
2 Tablespoons melted butter

Filling
4 Tbsp Hot water
1 Tbsp gelatin (1 packet)
16 oz cream cheese, softened
4 oz heavy cream
1/3 c sugar-free sweetener
3 Tbsp key lime juice
1 tsp lime zest

Garnish
Whipped topping
lime zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F.) Spray an 8″ pie plate with baking spray.

In a bowl, mix almond flour with melted butter and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar substitute until it begins to pull together. Pour into pie pan and use fingers to press the crust into place on the bottom. Bake for about 10 minutes until the edges are lightly browned.

Add gelatin and hot water to a bowl, stir once and let sit for five minutes. Stir until the gelatin dissolves. If any chunks remain, remove them.

Add the cream cheese to a large bowl and blend until smooth. Add gelatin, cream, sugar substitute (you may use liquid sweetener if you like), lime juice, and zest. Mix until combined. Scrape down the sides as you go. Add one drop of blue and two drops of yellow food coloring to make a pale green mixture if you wish.

Pour the cheesecake mixture into the prepared pie pan and use a spatula to smooth it around evenly. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours to allow it to set.

Cut into 8 slices and serve with whipped topping. Garnish with a little lime zest if you like.

Makes 8 servings.

nutrition information

Note: Nutrition information is based on the ingredients I used in this recipe and my measurements. They are a close calculation and may be slightly higher or lower. Ingredient substitutions may affect the carb count. Different brands may have other carb counts.

Appetizers

St. Pat’s Appetizer

March 15, 2022 RAverett

Photo - cheeseballs

This is a quick to mix recipe for a tasty appetizer cheese ball. PK pulled it out of her mother’s recipe book that we put together about two decades ago. It goes well with carrot or celery sticks, cauliflower and broccoli flowerets, or oven crisped low carb tortillas broken into chips.

However you serve it, this ball of goodness makes a great way to start your St. Patrick’s Day Celebration.

Grandma Tony’s Guinness Golf Balls

1 package Cream Cheese
1 tablespoon Onion Flakes
1 tablespoon garlic juice
1 tablespoon Seasoned Salt
1 cup chopped Pecans
2 tablespoons Guinness Gold

Combine all ingredients. Pinch out pieces of mixture. Carefully cover each pecan with enough mixture to form a ball. Use the rounded back of a spoon to press dimples into balls to create golf balls.

Chill for about 1 hour before serving.

Variation: Grind pecan pieces and add to all ingredients. Form into a large cheese ball

Makes 14 walnut-sized cheese balls.

To toast low carb tortillas, heat the oven to 350 degrees, put tortilla on a foil-covered pan and bake for three to four minutes until browned and crispy. Break into pieces to use as dipper.

Cheese spread on chips