Tag Archives: tomatoes

Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

Delightful Summer Vegetable Salad

Summertime is a great time for all kinds of salads. Looking for a substitute for potato salad to take on a picnic? This one might do the trick.It’s light, low caloried, and low carb’d, and it tastes wonderful. Like most seasoned items, it tastes better the longer it sits in the ‘fridge to allow the flavors to really come through, so allow several hours to chill if you can.

Originally, I spotted this recipe on Foxes Love Lemons website and I thought it looked delicious, so I wanted to adapt it for low carb. It was a pepe pasta recipe and the pasta is too high in carbs, so I pulled out the versatile cauliflower to stand in for it. After tasting it, I added in sliced radishes to give it a little more crunch and flavor and I also added in a little cayenne pepper. You can add sweet peppers for more flavor and color burst. If you prefer your salad dressing a little on the sweet side, add a teaspoon or two of sugar substitute when you mix the dill dressing.

By the way, the dill dressing is lovely for dipping vegetables in for a party. I cut back the amount of buttermilk for this as it made quite a lot, so unless you like your salad completely doused with dressing, the amount below should be enough.

This dish is good for all phases of Atkins except for Induction.  For induction, you can substitute the buttermilk with heavy cream and add more seasonings or make a straight mayonnaise dressing.

Vegetable Summer Salad

2 cups riced Cauliflower
2 tablespoons unsalted Butter
1 Leek (white and light green parts only), halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
1/2 bunch Asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan Cheese
1 cup Baby Corn, chopped
1 cup Grape Tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup Radishes, sliced
1/4 cup Sweet Peppers, chopped (optional)

Dill Dressing

1/2 cup Buttermilk
1 teaspoon Sugar Substitute (optional)
2 tablespoons Mayonnaise
2 teaspoons dried fill or 1 tablespoon fresh Dill
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground Black Pepper

If using purchased pre-riced cauliflower, cook according to directions on the package. Many of these are in steam bags that can be microwaved or cooked in a pot.

If ricing fresh cauliflower, put in a food processor and pulse until you have rice-sized pearls. Put in a microwave safe bowl, add a tablespoon of water, and cover. Microwave for about 2 minutes to cook the cauliflower. Set aside.

Cut all the vegetables up before starting so they are ready to go.

In a large pot or deep skillet, melt the butter, then add the leeks and sauté until they are softened, then add the cut asparagus spears. Continue to sauté over medium heat until the asparagus are just slightly tender. If using red peppers, add them when you add the asparagus.

Stir in the baby corn pieces and cauliflower and mix it well. Remove from the heat. Add radishes and grape tomatoes.

Mix the dressing by combining all ingredients in a small bowl and whisking until they are well blended. Taste for seasonings. If you want any of the flavors stronger, add a little more.

Put the vegetable mixture in a large salad bowl and pour the dressing over it. Toss to mix the dressing into the salad. Chill in refrigerator for at least two hours. Can be prepared up to two days in advance of serving.

Makes 6 to 8 servings, 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup.

Nutrition Information per serving (6 servings):
Calories: 114 Fat: 7.5 g Net Carbs: 6.9 g Protein: 2.1 g

Nutrition Information per serving (8 servings):
Calories: 85.5 Fat: 5.6 g Net Carbs: 5.2 g Protein: 2.1 g

Nutrition Information per serving with sweet peppers (8 servings):
Calories: 86.7 Fat: 5.6 g Net Carbs: 5.5 g Protein: 2.1 g

Beef, Main Dish, Mexican/Spanish Recipes, Recipes

Cinco de Mayo Taco Casserole

Happy May Day! Happy Beltane!

And in just 5 days, happy Cinco de Mayo! No matter where you live, you’re likely to find people celebrating this Mexican holiday. It’s a great excuse to drink margaritas and eat your favorite Mexican food. So the challege here is what can I eat that isn’t going to explode the carb count? A few things on the menu at a restaurant are not too high in carbs, but avoid the chips, the tortillas, the beans, and the rice. That doesn’t leave much, does it?

Chile Verde is a good choice if you eat without any of the trimmings. A Chile Rellano isn’t too bad but the batter may have flour in it. Albondigas Soup is usually pretty low in carbs, although some places add rice to it. No matter what you eat out, you are likely to find hidden carbs. So what to do? Make a Mexican dish at home to celebrate with family and friends.

Here’s one that is easy to do and uses spaghetti squash as a stand-in for rice and tortillas. It’s a casserole that can be made in a stove-to-oven deep skillet or prepared in any skillet and transferred to a casserole dish. I’ll be posting two more recipes this week, so check back to see what else you can do for the day and check out the blog for many recipes already on it.

If that’s not enough, I have a Mexican Food booklet that has 15 recipes in it, most of which are not on this site. Check it out at Amazon.com or Smashwords (link in the sidebar.)

Spaghetti Squash Taco Casserole

3 cups cooked Spaghetti Squash (cooking instructions below)
1 cup Mexican Style Shredded Four Cheese
2 oz. Cream Cheese, softened
3/4 lb. Ground Beef
1/3 cup finely chopped Sweet Peppers
2 teaspoons Taco Seasoning
2 Green Onions, thinly sliced
1 can 15 oz. Tomatoes with Chile

To Cook the Squash:
About two hours before you want to make the casserole, roast the squash.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (f.)

With a heavy knife, like a Chef’s knife, cut the squash down the middle vertically from stem to bottom. Use a spoon to remove the seeds and any gummy strings. Rinse out and dry with a paper towel. Use about a teaspoon of Olive Oil and rub it into each side of the squash and sprinkle a little salt on it.

Spaghetti Squash face up waiting to be oiled. Turn them over to roast so the cut side is down.

Wrap a cookie tin or baking tin with aluminum foil and place the squash on top face down so the shell is on top.

Bake for 50 minutes. Remove and let cool about 15 to 20 minutes until you can handle the squash without burning your fingers. Use a fork to separate the strands of the squash into a bowl. Cover and set aside or refrigerate until you prepare the meat sauce.

Sauce and assembly:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees (f.)

In a deep skillet-to-oven pan, such as a cast iron or copper skillet, brown the ground beef until it is lightly browned. Remove to a plate or bowl and wipe any excess oil from the pan. Put the cream cheese in the pan and add the taco seasoning, sweet peppers, and tomatoes. Cook and stir until it is blended and heat up. Add the ground beef, then stir in half the cheese and add the spaghetti squash and mix until the sauce is evenly distributed into the squash. Smooth with the back of a spoon until even.

If you don’t have a skillet that can go into the oven, then transfer the mixture into a large casserole dish and smooth it with the spoon.

Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top and put in the oven. Bake for 25 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown and the dish is bubbly.

Cooked casserole in a skillet.

Let cool about 10 minutes, then serve with sour cream and guacamole if desired.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Nutrition Information per serving (6 servings):
Calories: 292 Fat: 20.5 g Net Carbs: 7.9 g Protein:16.2 g

Nutrition Information per serving (8 servings):
Calories: 219 Fat: 15.4 g Net Carbs: 5.9 g Protein:12.1 g

Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

Southern Treat of Oven-fried Green Tomatoes

My first post for August and I’m sorry about that.  It’s been a busy couple of weeks with my mini-cookbook, Breakfast Choices for a Low Carb Lifestyle coming out at the end of July followed by an unexpected medical issue last week that left me with a bandaged face and poor vision.  Doing better now, so I want to get a recipe up that I hope you will enjoy.

If you’re from the southern United States, you’ve probably counted Fried Green Tomatoes as one of the best things about tomatoes in the spring and summer. They are picked before they begin changing colors and the larger, the better. Slice them about 1/4 inch thick and dip them in seasoned flour to create a special treat made the low carb way. I did try to fry these, but the flour and egg mixture didn’t want to stay on the tomato. It’s a problem I’ve encountered before with using low carb flours. But if you bake them in a hot oven, they get crispy and delicious.

Oven-Fried Green Tomatoes

1 Green Tomato, medium to large
1/4 cup Coconut Flour or other Low Carb Flour
1/3 cup Flax Meal
1 large Egg
2 tablespoons Parmesan Cheese, grated
Pinch Black Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Spicy Red Chili seasoning

Preheat oven to 400 degrees (F.) Prepare a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.

Slice the tomato into four to six slices, about 1/3 inch thick.
Put the almond flour into a saucer. Break the egg into a bowl and beat with a little water. In another saucer, put the flax meal, Parmesan cheese and seasonings.

Dip each slice in the flour, then in the egg and then the flax mixture, pressing the flax into the tomato until it sticks.

Place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with each slice. If you don’t have enough flax mixture, add a little more plus more seasoning. This can vary with the size of the tomato slices.

Bake in the oven for about 15 to 20 minutes until the slices are sizzling and golden brown.

Serve with a mayonnaise-based dressing or a low carb Ranch Dressing. Delicious as a side dish or as a snack.

Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition Info per serving:
Calories: 249 Fat: 18.3 g Net Carbs: 4.6 g Protein: 12.1 g

Note: You can fry these instead of baking them, but I had trouble with the batter staying on the slices when they are fried. If you wish to fry, use a small pan and add about 1/4 inch of oil to it.

Crock Pot Recipes, Main Dish, Poultry, Recipes, Seafood, Soups and Stews

Slow Cooker East Texas Jambalaya

Hey, y’all!  This here recipe is a variation of one PK’s mother, Toni Kelly, used to make and we’ve adapted it a little to make it low carb and add more meat to it. The changes are in the choices of vegetables and tomatoes that go into it.  Always, a southern recipe includes the “holy trinity” of Cajun-cooking, which is celery, bell peppers, and onions.  This is a delicious and slightly spicy dish that warms you up on a cold day and just bursts with flavor as you eat it.

And it is pretty easy to make.  If you want to put it on before you leave for work, then do the prep work, including lightly cooking the chicken and bell pepper, onions, and celery the night before and refrigerating until morning when you put it all in the slow cooker.  Then just add the rest of the ingredients, except the shrimp and mushrooms, put it on low to cook all day.  When you come home, check the seasoning mix, adjust, then add the shrimp and mushrooms and cook for another 30 minutes to cook the shrimp.

You want to look for the lowest net carbs for the tomatoes that you can find. Check the nutrition information on the back of the can, which is per serving, and find the carbohydrate count, then subtract the fiber. This is the net carb count of one serving. I used canned tomatoes that were 8 net carbs per cup for the calculation. You can add more chicken without increasing the carb count, but the calorie count will go up accordingly. If you are making chicken only, then use two whole breasts (4 of the half breasts).

1 whole Chicken Breast, skin removed
1 link Andouille Sausage
1 oz. can whole or diced, peeled Tomatoes
1 cup Butternut Squash, cubes (optional)
1 cup Green Bell Peppers cut into strips
1 cup Zucchini, (Green and Yellow), sliced
3 stalks Celery, trimmed and chopped
1 cup Chicken Broth
1/3 cup Mushrooms, sliced
6 oz. Shrimp, peeled and cleaned
1/2 cup Ham, diced
1 teaspoon Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2 tablespoon Garlic
1/2 tablespoon Creole Seasoning
1/2 cup Onions, Chopped
2 tablespoons Pumpkin Puree

Cut chicken into cubes or small bite-sized pieces. Cut the sausage into small pieces and dice the ham. In a large skillet, add 1 teaspoon olive oil and over medium heat, sauté the garlic, celery, and onion until the onion sweats and softens a little, then add to the slow cooker. Add green peppers to the skillet, then the chicken. Add a little more olive oil if needed. Cook for a couple of minutes to just get the chicken to start to firm up. This is mostly to add flavor to it before adding to the cooker. Put the chicken and peppers in the cooker.

Add the tomatoes, zucchini, butternut squash, chicken broth, Creole seasoning, salt and pepper. Turn the cooker on High and cook for 1 hour, then reduce it to low setting. Let cook for two hours. Check the seasonings in the sauce and adjust if needed, then add the ham and the pumpkin puree. The pumpkin will work to thicken the sauce and adds a little flavor. Cook another 30 minutes, then add the shrimp and the mushrooms. Cook another 30 minutes or until the shrimp are cooked through, but not overcooked.

Serve with cauli-rice or stir-fried angel hair cabbage to keep the carbohydrates low. The butternut squash adds an interesting flavor to the Jambalaya, but can be omitted, which will also reduce the number of carbs per serving. Makes 8 servings, about 3/4 cup each.

Nutrition info with Butternut Squash per serving:
(doesn’t include the cauli-rice or cabbage)
Calories: 150 Fat: 5.1 g Net Carbs: 7.6 g Protein: 16.3 g

Nutrition info without Butternut Squash per serving:
(doesn’t include the cauli-rice or cabbage)
Calories: 140 Fat: 5.0 g Net Carbs: 5.6 g Protein: 16.1 g

Notes: Jambalaya is a flexible stew, but almost always includes chicken and the “holy trinity” of southern cooking, but the vegetable and meat choices vary with personal taste. You can add other vegetables such as okra, green beans, cauliflower, carrots or broccoli. The carbs will vary a little based on what you add, but it will be close.

Typical net carb (nc) values of the possible add-ins per half cup diced or chopped:
Okra – 1.6 g nc; Green Beans (fresh) – 2.0 g nc; Cauliflower – 1.3 g nc; Carrots – 4.3 g nc; Broccoli – 1.0 nc; Butternut Squash – 7.8 g nc; Turnip Greens – 1.1 g nc; Turnips – 3.0 g nc; Kohlrabi – 1.5 g nc; White Potato – 10 g nc