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Main Dish, Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

Seven Salads for a Cool Supper

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We’re winding down July now and getting ready to step into Hot August Nights. Actually, our temperatures in Reno Nevada haven’t been too bad and the forecast shows us entering August in the mid-80s. Still too hot to do anything elaborate in the kitchen.

With this in mind, I took a stroll through my previously posted salads to revisit during the month. So, I’d like to share these with you since some go back a few years and might be new to you. All are deliciously low carb.

Shrimp and Asparagus Salad

Requiring only a little cooking for the shrimp and asparagus, this dish comes together in about thirty minutes or less. The lemon vinaigrette can be prepared in advance and refrigerated until ready to serve.

Photo: Shrimp Salad

Find this easy to prepare salad here.

 

Salmon Salad

Although I originally made this on a chilly March day, it is still an excellent summer salad.

Photo: Salmon and Bacon Salad

Get this recipe here.

 

Bacon and Cauliflower Salad

Photo: Cauliflower salad

While this is my substitute for a potato salad, this one is hearty enough to be a main course. Or add a sausage and low carb hot dog bun (several on the market) for a more substantial meal.

The recipe is here.

 

Summer Vegetable Salad

Another substitute for a potato salad, this one is light, low calorie, and low carb, and it tastes wonderful.

Find the recipe here. 

 

BLT Salad

Love a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich? This is a great way to get all those lovely flavors without the bread. Easy to make and delicious to eat. Check out the secret ingredient.

The recipe is here.

 

Tostado Salad

Butternut Chicken Tostada

This is like a taco salad with butternut squash and so tasty. If you don’t have a star mold to shape the low carb tortilla (you can get 0 carb ones now!), you can use a cup cake pan to shape it by flipping the pan so the opening are facing down and positioning the tortilla between the cups to form a bowl shape.  Or you can just wrap the salad in a warmed-up tortilla.

Get the recipe here.

 

Fresh Chicken and Strawberry Salad

You can find these on the menu in several restaurants during the summer. Strawberries are a natural in salads.

Get the recipe here.

That wraps up this selection of salads. Give them a try and/or add your own twists to them. Don’t like strawberries? Add a different fruit. Prefer a different meat? Change it out.

 

Main Dish, Poultry, Recipes

Something Wonderfully Delicious for Valentine’s Day!

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

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.

Italian Inspired Recipes, Pork, Poultry, Recipes

Italian Flavors in this Chicken & Sausage Dish

Photo of Chicken & Sausage Italiano dish

I wanted to use up a little pasta sauce I’d opened for a pizza a few nights earlier, so I came up with this variation on Chicken Parmesan. I use the extra Italian sausage in it along with two cheeses. Simple to make and delicious. You can use a premade pasta sauce or your own recipe.

I had a bear of a time getting the nutrition information for this. The website with the calculator I’ve been using shut down and the others I’ve found aren’t as robust. I finally located one that calculated about what I estimated the carbs to be, but it didn’t include the fiber, cholesterol, or potassium counts in it, so I had to hunt those down individually. I believe the final result is accurate, depending on which pasta sauce you use. I used Prego’s plain sauce. If you use a dry red wine in it, the count may be about 1 net carb higher.

Chicken & Sausage Italiano

2 chicken breasts
1/2 pound Italian Sausage
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1/3 cup sliced Mushrooms
1 cup Pasta Sauce
1/4 cup Water or Red Wine
1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese
1/2 cup Mozzarella Cheese

In a medium skillet over medium-high burner, heat the olive oil. Season the chicken with salt and pepper then add to the skillet. Brown chicken on both sides. Set aside on a plate. Add sausage to the pan and use a spatula to separate the meat. Cook and stir for about three to five minutes until the sausage is browned. Push to one side.

Add mushrooms and cook about two minutes. Add pasta sauce and water or wine and stir sausage and mushrooms until mixed. Return chicken to the pan and spoon sauce over the top. Cover pan and reduce heat to simmer. Cook about 20 minutes until chicken is tender. Sprinkle Parmesan over the chicken and sauce, then cover with mozzarella cheese. Cover the pan again for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese.

Makes two servings.

Image: Nutrition Information

Short Non-Cooking Message:

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Main Dish, Poultry, Recipes

Chicken Casserole with Biscuits #2

Very similar to chicken pot pie, but easy to put together for dinner. This recipe makes 4 to 6 servings, depending on whether you serve it with a salad or other side dish or not. I used the leftovers from my roast chicken, but you can pre-cook about 2 large chicken breasts or get pre-cooked chicken from the grocery. I substituted potatoes, peas, and carrots for low carb vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, and kohlrabi. Celery is an optional ingredient. If I’d had some in the house, I would have used it. So it’s up to the cook.

I tried the biscuits included with the recipe, which are basic Bisquick biscuits with seasoning, but it either didn’t adapt well to Bakesquick or something was missing from the recipe. My gut feel was that the mix needed butter or shortening in it as my biscuits came out a tough. So, I am including  my tried-and-true low carb biscuits. If you have enough free carbs, you can use a can of biscuits instead (26 grams of carbs in one biscuit!).

Chicken Casserole with Biscuits

3 tablespoons Butter
1-1/2 teaspoons Garlic
1/3 cup Onions, chopped
1/3 cup Low Carb Flour or Thick It Up™
1-1/4 teaspoon Mrs. Dash™ Italian Seasoning Blend
2 cups Chicken Broth
3 cups Chicken, cooked light meat, chopped
1 cup Kohlrabi, cubed
1 cup Broccoli & Cauliflower Blend
1/2 cup Green Beans, cut into pieces
1/2 cup Celery, cleaned and diced
3/4 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Pepper

For Low Carb Biscuits
1-1/2 cups low carb Baking Mix or other Flour
3 tablespoons Butter or Shortening
1 tablespoon Cold Water + extra if needed
1 teaspoon Garlic powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Use a deep-sided skillet that can go into the oven, such as a copper or cast iron skillet, to save having to transfer the casserole to a baking dish. Otherwise, spray a 6×8-inch (medium) deep-dish casserole with cooking spray.

Melt the butter over medium-high heat in the pan. Add the garlic, celery, and onions and cook for about 2 minutes. Mix in the flour, salt, Italian seasoning, and pepper. Stir the flour in well, then add the broth, stir, and bring to a boil. Continue to stir for 1 minute, then reduce heat. Stir in broccoli and cauliflower blend, kohlrabi, and green beans. Simmer 5 minutes, then add the chicken and mix well.

Prepare the biscuits. In a bowl, mix the baking mix or low carb flour, a little salt, and garlic powder together. If your using a flour, add in 1/2 teaspoon baking powder.

Cut in the butter or shortening or mix it in with your clean hand. Add the water, 1/2 at a time and mix it into the dough until you have a dough that pulls together into a ball easily, but isn’t too sticky. If it needs more water, add a little at a time. Add in seasoning or 1/2 cup shredded cheese if you wish. Separate the dough into six pieces and shape into balls, then press flat to a biscuit size.

If you’re using an oven-worthy skillet, place the biscuits on top in about the center of each serving. If you’re using a casserole dish, transfer the skillet mixture to the baking dish and put the biscuits on top.

Bake for 30 minutes. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 10 more minutes or until the biscuits are browned. Spoon chicken mixture over the biscuits to serve.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Image: Nutrition Information Chicken Casserole with Biscuits

 

Note: To see my original variation on this recipe, click here.  

You might also like my Chicken and Leek Pot Pie.

Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

Delightful Taste of Celery and Kohlrabi

Photos: Braised Celery and Kohlrabi

While I’ve posted a recipe for a celery and kohlrabi dish before, this is a different version of one. It is delicious and beautiful with all the color in it.  It makes a wonderful side-dish for almost any meal.  Celery is a low-carb and low-calorie food that should find its way into our meals more often, but it is easily overlooked when we’re planning out meals.  If you try this recipe, I think you’ll want to include in the menu more often.

Can’t find kohlrabi in your store? Apart from asking them to order it, you can substitute in turnips or cauliflower.

Braised Celery and Kohlrabi

6 stalks of celery, trimmed
1 medium Kohlrabi. peeled and chopped
2 to 3 mini peppers
2 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon Seasoning Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Chicken Bullion
1/4 cup Water

Put chopped kohlrabi in a microwaveable bowl and cook for one minute to partially cook it.

Cut celery into 1-inch slices on the diagonal. Cut peppers into pieces.

Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add celery, kohlrabi, and seasonings and cook 10 minutes.

Mix chicken bullion with 1/4 cup hot water. Add broth and peppers to the celery mixture, and reduce heat to low. Simmer for about 10 minutes more until the celery and kohlrabi are fork tender.

Serve immediately.

Makes four servings.

Nutrition Information per serving:
Calories 77.7 Fat: 5.9 g Net Carbs: 2.9 g Protein: 1.4 g

If you enjoy my recipes or have any questions about them, please comment below. I’d love to hear from you.