This is not about food today, but about a special day in our lives... a day of remembering a son... a gift from God who we had for a short time in our lives. Today is the anniversary of the day he left us and went to Heaven. It's been 4 years, yet it seems like yesterday. I lost my sister and my son within a year from each other. A human life is never just gone. They are there with you forever. You can't ever remove them from your heart, or your memories and I know I will see them both again one day.
How strange to see a life from the beginning to the end. How strange to see the fruit of your womb gone before you. How blessed we were to have known him and all the Lord did in our lives through his.
1-13-83 a brand new soul was born into the world
Ben, Micah, Jesse, Josiah in the chair
Ben with attitude
Making music with good friends
(Psalm 73:26) My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Goodbye Ben. See you soon! We love you and miss you!
It's hard to believe Thanksgiving is already upon us once again. I thought we would not have a Thanksgiving meal this year, since my husband was scheduled for esophagus surgery the day before Thanksgiving, and my son and his new bride were not planning to be here this year with us. It just seemed hardly worth the effort to make a Turkey with all the trimmings for the few of us left at home. But things changed rapidly. First my son, Jesse, let me know that Thanksgiving is his favorite holiday and he expects a turkey and all the trimmings whether or not it's only us. My husband's surgery got rescheduled, and I got a text from my daughter in law asking if it was too late to change plans and come for Thanksgiving. Suddenly I have a house-full! So thankfully, I have this week off work, and am making my plans. I thought I'd share some of my own favorites for Thanksgiving, plus a few others of friend's blogs.
Kent's video of Pecan Pie Cheesecake looks pretty wonderful too. Take a look at these blogs. They have so many great ideas! I feel small in comparison!
Whatever foods make Thanksgiving day special to you, don't forget to give thanks! I have so much to be thankful for! I posted this on Facebook last year on Thanksgiving... Wouldn't it be great if we had only one day a year to grumble and complain and every other day of the year we gave thanks for all God's blessings? I know I am very blessed. I have little to complain about in comparison with all God has given me.
I got up yesterday morning, wanting something more than my usual cheese omelet. I love my cheese omelet but needed a change. Coffee cake sounded good. I had made a pan of coffee cake the week before but that was gone and I didn't want to make a whole pan that takes an hour to wait for. So I tried an idea from the minute muffin recipes, and did this 2 minute coffee cake. It turned out really good.
This actually makes 2 nice servings. You can make it in what ever shaped container you have. I used a cereal bowl and cut it in half.
Very nice and moist inside, topped with a delicious cinnamon topping. Not only is it very tasty and sweet, but it is has 6 g protein and 5 g of dietary fiber, and only 3 useable carbs per serving. And almond flour and coconut flour are both so good for you! So you don't have to feel guilty about having coffee cake for breakfast. Just enjoy it!! You're truly getting a healthy start for your day.
In a cereal bowl that is microwaveable, whisk together the first 5 ingredients. Make a well in the center and add egg, melted coconut oil (or butter), kefir (or buttermilk or other liquid), and whisk together briskly until smooth. It will be stiff. Blend in enough water to make a cake batter consistency.
Topping: Blend almond flour, Truvia, xylitol, and cinnamon together in another small bowl. Cut in the butter with a fork or pastry blender until it is crumbly. Spread on top of batter.
Microwave on high for 2 minutes approximately. My microwave is 1000 watts and 2 minutes is perfect. Test for doneness. Cool a minute or two and serve.
Well, this pie was born out of a sleepless night. I woke up at midnight one night dreaming about food. Sometimes my most creative recipes happen in the middle of the night. 2 recipes resulted from my sleepless tossing and turning. This was one of them. I guess sleepless nights aren't all bad. I don't know what it is about stress that drives me to the kitchen, but it seems to have that affect on me, but not to eat. I don't eat when I'm stressed. I cook. When I was grieving I cooked. When I was stressed I cooked. When I was bored I cooked. I cook and pray at the same time. Cooking seems to be my way to work through things. I feed everyone else.
They say dreams are our mind's way of processing things and working through them. I don't know what my mind was working through that brought this about, but it made a few people happy anyway. I brought it to church for our fellowship meal and asked everyone for their unbiased, honest opinion. I got several different ones from "tart" to "very rich" to just "sweet enough". Myself I thought it was great other than I think the crust needed a little more sweetener added. So my recipe below has a little more sweetener in the crust than how I made it.
Creme de Menthe Pie
Crust
1 cup almond flour, (I use Honeyville)
1 cup flax meal, Golden
1/4 cup cocoa powder
10 packets truvia
1/4 cup butter -- melted Filling
12 ounces cream cheese, softened (1 1/2 packages)
6 drops green food coloring, (optional)
1/2 cup creme de menthe DaVinci SF syrup
1/8 teaspoon mint flavoring
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar-free vanilla pudding and pie filling
1 tablespoon creme de menthe DaVinci SF syrup Topping
2/3 cup heavy cream
8 squares Lindt 85% Cocoa Bar, chopped into small pieces
6 packets Truvia
Crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all ingredients together in the bottom of a 10" pie plate and press into the bottom and up the sides. Bake for 10 minutes and let cool.
Filling: Beat together the cream cheese, food coloring, if you use it, SF syrup, and mint flavoring with an electric beater until smooth and creamy. Whip the cup of heavy cream together with the SF vanilla pudding and pie filling mix, and the DaVincie SF syrup, until peaks form. Fold into the cream cheese mixture until all is blended well. Pour onto prepared crust.
Topping: Bring heavy cream and Truvia just to a simmer, stirring constantly, and remove from heat. Quickly stir in the chopped cocoa bar until smooth and creamy and spread on top of the pie.
Chill the pie overnight or several hours before serving.
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16 servings (Per Serving): 241 Calories; 26g Fat (84.5% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 7g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber 4 net g carbs
Oh oh oh! This is...what can I say... it sends endorphins to my brain. This is something I know I won't make except on special occasions because it would just be too hard to not eat them all and get sick. They are rich, creamy, the kind of thing that makes your eyes roll into the back of your head and you get a delightful shock that goes through your taste buds down to your tummy. It is heavenly good. Ok, ok... I know I am running on here, but oh my! I just don't know how to describe them! I am so thankful for the taste buds God gave me and the delightful foods He gave us to enjoy, and this is one of those pleasures He gave that makes you just know Heaven has got to be wonderful. I'm not exaggerating!
This is the way they hit my taste buds... I'm just sayin'. I came home from work dead tired, after chasing a room full of 12 to 18 month olds around, and though they are really truly delightful and fun and cute, I know why God gives us children when we are young. At 57, 4 hours of that is about all I can handle. And those cute little kiddie songs go through my head in my sleep now. But baking cookies really was the last thing on my mind when I got home. Taking a good long nap was actually what I was longing for. But I was looking through my recipes, none-the-less, (that is what I do in my spare time), and I got an idea and I'm glad I did.
So I made them, and was revived. I think they sort of brought out the kid in me. :)
So here they are...
Vanilla Cream and Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
Cookies
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup Torani (or DaVinci) vanilla flavored SF syrup
12 packets Truvia (or sweetener equal to 1/2 cup sugar in sweetening power)
1/4 cup xylitol
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups almond flour, (Honeyville is what I use)
2 tablespoons coconut flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt Filling
1/3 cup heavy cream
6 packets Truvia
8 squares Lindt 85% Cocoa Bar -- chopped into small pieces
Cookies: In a medium mixing bowl add butter, vanilla sugar free syrup, Truvia, xylitol, egg, and vanilla. Beat with electric mixer on low until creamed together.
Add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder and salt and beat again until it is well blended.
Drop by 1 Tbs fulls on parchment lined cookie sheet and flatten with the back of a spoon sprayed with non-stick spray.
Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 15 to 18 minutes and cool on the pan.
Filling: Add heavy cream to a small saucepan over medium heat. Add 6 packets of Truvia. Bring just to a simmer, stirring. Remove from heat and add the Lindt 85% Cocoa Bar and stir with a wire whisk until well blended and smooth.
Spread on a cookie and top with another cookie.
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11 sandwich cookies (Per Serving): 211 Calories; 23g Fat (77.6% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 7g Dietary Fiber
I'm learning more about the differences between gluten intolerance, wheat allergy, Wheat or gluten sensitivity. It all seems very confusing. The more I read the more I seem to fit in the category of wheat allergy. I found this site helpful.
"Even though it occurs as a reaction to protein in wheat, Celiac Disease is not specifically a wheat allergy. A wheat allergy — like most well-known allergies — is the response of white blood cells called basophils and mast cells to something called Immunoglobulin E (or IgE for short). In laymen terms, this is a traditional allergy where you develop antibodies to an allergen, in this case wheat. Believe it or not, you can have a wheat allergy and not have Celiac Disease (or gluten intolerance), and you can have Celiac Disease and not have a wheat allergy. They’re two completely different responses in your body. In a vast majority of cases, gluten intolerance symptoms will be systemic and will be a result of consuming gluten over a period of time. But symptoms of wheat intolerance will instead manifest themselves more like you perceive a typical allergy: quickly and with single exposure. Being gluten intolerant can be frustrating as this autoimmune disease can be subtle and insidious."
My #1 symptom is sinus inflammation, and it happens quite soon after exposure. In fact, yesterday I had lunch with a friend at Subway. I didn't eat there. I ate my own gluten free sandwich made from coconut flour and gluten free meat. As I sat there, very soon I noticed I was feeling the congestion begin. I walked in there and if you've been in Subway you know what I mean... it just wreaked of the smell of freshly made bread. For some reason much stronger a smell than at any bakery or any other restaurant I've ever been to. I know they make their rolls right there in their oven. I couldn't believe just the smell of the bread was causing me to have a reaction when I didn't even eat any! I mean, come on!!!
I also discovered I cannot handle the play dough where I work with preschool children. I used to make the play dough and sure can't do that anymore, but I cannot even handle it without using gloves and then washing my hands after, because if I touch my face while handling it I get a reaction. I don't have all the digestive issues that people with Celiac have, but have had problems with IBS. I can't tell if that is improved with giving up wheat or not because at that same time I began taking L-glutamine and drinking kefir again. I think what ever improvement I have had has been due to that. Because when I stop doing that, it comes back, regardless of having no wheat. It's so hard to know these things!
So does it matter if it's an allergy, sensitivity, or intolerance, or celiac? I suppose it would help me to know, but no matter, I have to stay away from wheat. What I don't understand is that I seem to be more hyper-sensitive to wheat after being off from it for a year than I ever was when I was actually eating it. So very little gives me a very big reaction.
So I'm still learning about all of this and striving to find hidden wheat wherever it may show up and be careful. Almost impossible to eat out. Every time I do, no matter how careful I think I am, I get a reaction. It sort of scares me in a way. I don't know where this will go, or how bad it can be, or if it could develop into even stronger reactions. In that sense I suppose it's important to know if it is truly an allergy or a sensitivity.
If you're out there also struggling with this do read the site above that I linked to. It has a lot of helpful information! I have just started reading and I know I need to read more. If anyone has any other helpful information please let me know.
One advantage I have is that I have been low carbing for about 5 years already so going from that to taking away wheat was not so huge and overwhelming. I already knew how to make breads and baked goods for myself with low carb non-wheat flours.
So that's where I'm at for now. I hope you all have a happy wheat-free low-carbing journey! I'm doing my best to make it that for myself and whoever else I can help along the way. :)
I have so many chili recipes. Each one has its own uniqueness. Lately, being Fall, and having pumpkin on my mind a lot, as well as chili, I decided to try a pumpkin chili. I never had pumpkin in chili before but as I was browsing the internet for recipes and reading reviews, I decided on a combination of several ideas for one. I didn't know if I should lean more on the pumpkin type spices or the chili type spices. But I ended up using a little of each and the result was great! I asked my family on a scale of 1-5 what would they rate it. My son said, "A million!" My husband and my son both do not do low carb or gluten free. So I consider their opinion pretty weighty when it comes to how a non-low carber will like something.
Pumpkin Chili
2 lbs ground beef
4 oz mushrooms, chopped
1/2 cup onion, diced
6 oz green chili peppers, diced
16 1/2 oz tomato juice (3 - 5.5 oz cans)
14 1/2 oz diced tomatoes, (1 can)
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 tablespoon cumin
2 tbs chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp salt
1 tsp Splenda
Brown the beef, add mushrooms and onions and stir and fry until tender. Add green chili peppers, tomatoes, tomato juice, pumpkin, spices, and Splenda.
Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 30 minutes.
Makes 6 1/2 cups, Each serving is slightly more than 1 cup.
I thought I'd try something a little different tonight. I wanted to make a filled meat loaf. It did not turn out as a nice firm pretty loaf but more like a casserole. I was inspired by a recipe I saw for a filled turkey loaf, which I can no longer find. It had rice, cheese, and red peppers for a filling. In spite of how it looked when finished, it was wonderfully good in taste. My non-low carbing husband and son both gave it a 5 star rating and said it was wonderful.
I started out with a turkey loaf that I make using
2 lbs ground turkey
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup low carb ketchup
1 tbs prepared mustard
2 tbs soy sauce, gluten free (
2 cups Cauliflower rice (cauliflower shredded in food processor, or chopped fine)
1 cup fiesta blend shredded cheese (or any other kind of shredded cheese you like)
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
Mix all of the first 10 ingredients for the meat loaf together well.
On top of a mat, or cookie sheet, spread out the meat on a piece of waxed paper to a rectangle (as wide as your loaf pan so that when you are done it will fit in the pan).
On top of this, spread the cauli-rice, leaving about an inch on each side.
Top with shredded cheese, and chopped red bell pepper. Make sure to leave
enough room on the sides to seal.
Roll it up carefully, seal the edges, and place in a greased loaf pan, by placing the pan on top of the loaf and holding the sides of the waxed paper, and the mat underneath, and carefully turning it over into the pan.
Bake at 400 degrees F. for approximately 1 hour. Place a meat thermometer in the center to test for doneness. Drain the juice and turn out onto a platter. I could not pick it up out of the loaf pan. It does not hold together.
I had no intentions of blogging this tonight, but decided to because it turned out so yummy good! So I have to apologize for my poor quality picture, which I took from my old camera. From now on I will be using my new Nikon COOLPIX L120 14.1MP 21X Ultra Zoom Camerawhich I got apretty cool deal on. We were able to bring in an ad and they matched it so I got my camera for $216 rather than their sale price. But I have yet to get it out of the box and put in the batteries and use it. Just have been too busy!
So I'm getting side-tracked here. Back to the food. I had this for dinner tonight. Needed something to throw together fast. I had just gotten an order from Netrition and tried some of the Walden Farm's products, so I used their alfredo sauce in this. I must say I was not disappointed! And if their claim is true, of no calories, and no carbs, (which puzzles me), then it's a pretty good deal for everyone. It's also gluten free.
I hastily threw this together, and did the best I could to write down the recipe as soon as I finished eating. It went really well over mashed cauliflower and for the non-low carbers, I made mashed potatoes, and made some steamed broccoli with melted butter seasoned with minced garlic and mustard powder, and a tbs. of lemon juice.
* Exported from MasterCook *
Hamburger and Mushroom Stroganoff with Mashed Cauliflower
1 jar Walden Farms alfredo sauce -- (no calories or carbs)
3 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper -- to taste
Mashed Cauliflower
1 pound cauliflower -- (I use frozen)
1/4 cup kefir
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt -- (or to taste)
Place cauliflower in a microwavable dish and microwave on high for 10 minutes or until cooked soft. While it is cooking, using a large frying pan, brown the ground beef. While it is browning, place the mushrooms in a food processor and pulse a few times, just to roughly chop them. Or chop by hand.
Add the mushrooms to the ground beef, and stiry and fry a couple minutes longer and then add the alfredo sauce, cream cheese, onion and garlic powders, and salt and pepper.
Simmer, covered for about 15 minutes. While this is simmering, place the cauliflower that has been cooked, into your food processor and process until smooth. Add the kefir, butter, and salt, and process some more until it is the consistency of mashed potatoes. If you need to add more kefir do so.
Scoop about 1/2 cup of the mashed cauliflower onto your plate and top it with the stroganoff.
Ok, this has been functional for a time now, but I just finally figured out how to get it. If you want to use the Cool Looks on my blog, you need to use this URL: http://ginnyslowcarbkitchen.blogspot.com/view/sidebar
click on it and see what you get! It's pretty cool. You get a whole different view of everything on my blog.
You can choose from several different views by clicking one of them on the upper left side: Classic, Flipcard, Magazine, Mosaic, Sidebar, Snapshot, and Timeslide. Check them out! I love it! I was messing around with it on Jennifer's blog and found that I could use it on my own as well. Thanks Jen for explaining it! I'm a bit late in announcing it, but better late than never, huh?
I just had a wonderful week celebrating our 36th wedding anniversary with my best friend, lover, and soul mate. I think in these days that is something to celebrate! This man is God's gift to me and evidence of His love and grace in my life. We had a great week together, without spending a lot of money (we're cheap--or frugal we like to say), and enjoyed that our anniversary this year coincided with a week off from work. I work for the public school and it was MEA week here. The rest of the district gets 2 days, but in ECFE (Early Childhood Family Education), we get the whole week. What a beautiful time of year to do it and to have an anniversary, even though the colors this year are a bit pathetic in our area. The wind has blown most of them away. Nevertheless, it was a great week. I'll be back to cooking once again, after a week of trying to stay low carb and gluten free in restaurants. I managed pretty well I'd say. I also brought my own food along to help. So here are a few pics of our week. These are all at Frontinac State Park, Lake Pepin. Click on the picture for a larger view.
Lunch and dessert all in one. I get these ideas sometimes. I would have added bacon to the mix if I had had any, but I didn't. Sometimes my mixes aren't what others would care for, but there may be some of you out there like me, so I share them.
Everyone who knows me by now, knows that I like chocolate and peanut butter, and add caramel to that and what could be better? And sometimes to have a lunch and then add dessert is just too much, so why not make your lunch and dessert all the same? I think it's a good idea anyway!
So I took my microwave coconut bread recipe idea and created a chocolate bread out of it. I bought some Walden Farms sauces and syrups from netrition.com lately so thought I'd add some caramel syrup to this and the taste was everything I hoped it would be! You could use this bread recipe as a cake in itself and just frost it if you like. It was great in both taste and texture!
I know that many do not like to microwave in plastic, and I understand that it has the risk of giving us those xenoestrogens and all that, and I probably should be careful of that, and actually for the most part am, but occasionally I like to use my plastic Wonder Bread microwave container to get that nice bread shape. So I'm not a purist. But if you are and you are more diligent about that than I am, than feel free to use a container that is not plastic for this. The shape, after all, is not going to change the taste of the product.
Or if you don't like the microwave at all for any food, you can make this pancake style on a griddle but it won't have the same consistency as when you microwave it, yet I'm sure it would still be quite tasty.
* Exported from MasterCook *
Chocolate Peanut Butter and Caramel Sandwich, LC, GF
Recipe By :Ginny Larsen
Serving Size : 1 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Bread Breakfast or snack
desserts lunch
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ -------------------------------- Chocolate bread
1 tablespoon coconut flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
6 packets Truvia -- (or sweetener equal to 1/4 cup sugar)
1 large egg
2 tablespoons kefir
1 teaspoon oil
water as needed Filling
2 tablespoons unsweetened peanut butter -- (I do add Truvia to my peanut butter so it is a little sweet from the jar)
1 tablespoon *Walden Farms Caramel Syrup -- (zero carbs or calories)
Mix all the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Stir together getting out any lumps.
Make a well in the middle and add the egg, kefir, and oil. Mix together well.
Drizzle water in and stir just enough to make a cake batter consistency. Mix well with a wire whisk until it is smooth.
Spray a small container, such as a Wonder Bread plastic container, or a square entree container, or ceramic cereal bowl, whatever you have, with non-stick spray.
Add half of the batter, and spread around evenly. Microwave for 70 seconds (depending on your microwave. Mine is 1000 watts), on high. Plop out on a paper towel and do the same with the remaining batter.
Spread the peanut butter on one piece. You may have to microwave it to soften it so it spreads easily. I microwaved mine for about 30 seconds since it came out of the refrigerator. Then add the caramel syrup and spread evenly on top of the peanut butter. Cover with the other piece of bread and enjoy!
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Per Serving: 377 Calories; 28g Fat (65.3% calories from fat); 17g Protein; 17g Carbohydrate; 8g Dietary Fiber
Serving Ideas : I may add some bacon to the mix of this next time!
Using coconut flour, because of how it absorbs liquid, I can use a lot less of the amount for making this bread, so now I've got another variation I, so far, like best of all. I guess, actually, this is a whole different recipe, so I could post it as a separate one, but there are so many variations of 1 and 2 minute breads on low carb sites, and I have not checked all of them out, so if there is another one like this, sorry... I don't have time to check the entire low carb community to see if there is or not. So if you have already done this or seen it, I'm really not trying to take credit for someone else's recipe! I just play around and see what I come up with sometimes. This is my new favorite, and it's a lot less calories, more close to a regular wheat slice of bread, and very low carb, only 2 effective grams of carbs per slice.
I like the flavor better than almond or flax. I also like the texture better. It's lighter in the stomach, and doesn't leave me with a heavy stomach like almond flour sometimes does. It seems much easier on my digestive system. I was actually having trouble gaining weight with all the almond bread. Regardless of others' experiences with that, I only know mine... I gain weight with too much almond flour. So I've cut back on the bread and desserts, even though they were low carb. But making this variation, I am cutting calories quite a bit. Yes, I do have to watch calories as well as carbs. If you don't, be very thankful! Unfortunately, if I eat lots of good low carb food with lots of calories I gain weight or I don't lose any. We all have our unique set of problems to tackle.
So here is my latest favorite. Just thought I'd share it with you.
* Exported from MasterCook *
Coconut 2 Minute Bread
Recipe By :Ginny
Serving Size : 2
Categories : Bread
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 tablespoon coconut flour
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon xanthan gum -- (optional, but improves texture)
1/4 teaspoon splenda
couple dashes of salt
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large egg
2 tablespoons kefir -- (or other liquid)
Mix all dry ingredients first, getting out all the lumps. Make a well in the middle and add the liquid ingredients. Stir the liquid ingredients in the middle and then gradually stir in the dry until all is mixed well and smooth.
In a square or round container, such as a cereal bowl, or a plastic entree dish, pour half of the batter and rap hard on counter a couple times to get out bubbles.
Microwave on high for about 60 to 65 seconds, depending on your watts.
Plop out onto a paper towel and do the same with the second half of the batter.
You can use this to make a sandwich, or you can toast it. Use just like bread.
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Per Serving (2 servings per recipe): 99 Calories; 7g Fat (63.5% calories from fat); 6g Protein; 3g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber
In my opinion, there is no taste sensation that beats peanut butter and chocolate together. So taking my favorite flavor combination and making it into a pie turned out to be all the delight my taste buds wanted. I had some chocolate cookie crumbs (low carb and gluten free of course) in my freezer that I wanted to use, and this was the perfect way to use them. But if you don't have anything chocolate that you can make into cookie crumbs you can certainly do this with any nut crust you want to use as well. The chocolate crust really made this wonderful though!
Here is the recipe I used for the crust:
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 large eggs
3/4 cup splenda -- (18 g. carbs, if you use liquid sucrolose you save the carbs)
6 packets Truvia (or erythritol)
1/2 cup coconut oil -- (or butter, melted)
2/3 cup almond flour, Honeyville
1/2 cup cocoa
2 tablespoons coconut flour
Mix all ingredients together well. pour into a microwave proof container, sprayed with non-stick spray and microwave for about 5 minutes. Check it to see if it is hard. Let it cool completely. Less time will be softer, more like brownies, more time dryer and harder for crumbs.
Plop out of your pan and crumble into your food processor and process into crumbs. Store in your freezer until you are ready to use it.
NOTES : Nutrition info is according to 12 servings for a pie crust.
This is a bit high in carbs as a dessert altogether, but a good treat if you can tolerate more carbs, and especially if you have a lunch of protein, and little or no other carbs, which I can easily do with an almond bread sandwich. I can stay within Dr. Bernstein's 12 g. per meal that way. But today I simply had a piece for lunch all by itself. It was all I needed! I will work on lowering the carb count, however, using different sweeteners in the crust in place of Splenda.
* Exported from MasterCook *
Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie, LC, GF
Recipe By :Ginny
Serving Size : 12
Categories : Dessert
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ -------------------------------- Cookie Crumb Crust
2 cups chocolate cookie Crumbs -- *see above recipe
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/4 cup water
3 packets truvia Peanut Butter Cream Filling
1 cup heavy cream
4 packets Truvia
8 ounces fat free cream cheese -- (doesn't have to be fat free, this is what I had--same carbs, lower calorie)
1/3 cup unsweetened peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 packets Truvia Chocolate Topping
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2 tablespoons coconut oil
12 packets Truvia
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons warm water
For the Crust: mix the crumbs together with the melted oil, water, and truvia and press into a 10" pie plate. Bake in 350 degree F. preheated oven for 15 minutes. Cool completely and Chill
For Filling: Whip the cream with the 4 packets of Truvia until it is stiff. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese, peanut butter, vanilla, and Truvia until creamy and smooth. (more Truvia if you want it sweeter. Taste and add to your taste. Everyone's different)
Fold in the whipped cream until it is well mixed in.
Pour out into your chilled crust and spread evenly.
For Topping: Powder your Truvia in a coffee grinder or bullet blender. Set aside.
In a small saucepan, melt your chocolate over low heat, along with the coconut oil, stirring until melted. Be careful not to burn. If you don't know how to do this over low heat, better to use a double boiler. (This goes faster if you chop up the chocolate first).
When melted, remove from heat and add your sweetener. Gradually whisk in the cream. It will get thick and look awful and you'll be sure it's not going to turn out right but don't worry.
Gradually drizzle in water and whisk until it is the consistency of a glaze. It should be smooth and shiney and pourable. But not too loose so that it is runny.
Pour over your filling and spread evenly. Chill pie for several hours or overnight for best results.
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Per Serving: 347 Calories; 33g Fat (82.2% calories from fat); 5g Protein; 11g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber
Oh my! It is cool outside, and the fresh air is coming in the house, and the wonderful good fragrance of freshly made doughnuts is drifting through the house and out our window to anyone passing by. How wonderful it is to be able to bake again without having to use air conditioning to cool off the house! We actually had a frost advisory last night. It does put one in a baking mood. I am more energetic once again, and enjoying this cool weather! That's what I like about MN. If you hate the weather, it will change. Lots of variety!
These muffins are so wonderful, and so full of healthy ingredients for you instead of nutrition-less, sugar-filled doughnuts from your bakery, that lack anything in them that your body can use for good. They are low carb, gluten free, and high fiber. The original recipe for these came from Laura Dolson on about.com. I have made my own variations that worked better for me. I used a higher temperature for baking, and some other changes. So this is my variation. I also used less nutmeg than she did, and less oil, and less liquid in the entire recipe. I loved the results! This is my very favorite muffin. You can use doughnut pans if you have any, to get the doughnut shape along with the doughnut flavor. They do taste like cake doughnuts. You'll be surprised!
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* Exported from MasterCook *
Donut Muffins, LC, GF
Recipe By :Ginny
Serving Size : 12
Categories : Bread
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1 cup flax meal, Golden
1 cup almond flour, Honeyville
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
12 packets truvia -- (or 1/2 cup equivilant)
1/2 cup Torani vanilla flavored SF syrup
1/4 cup coconut oil -- melted, or butter
4 large eggs -- beaten
Mix all dry ingredients in a medium sized mixing bowl until well incorporated and all lumps are out.
Make a well in the center of your dry ingredients, and add the syrup, coconut oil, and beaten eggs.
Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the liquid until all is well incorporated. Mixture will seem too liquid, but you need to let it sit for about 3 minutes or until muffin batter consistency.
Fill each muffin cup 3/4 full. Bake in preheated 400 degree F. oven for 20 minutes. Turn out on wire rack and cool completely. Top with your favorite low carb frosting, glaze, or powdered sweetener.
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Per Serving: 169 Calories; 14g Fat (74.2% calories from fat); 5g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber
What a find! Had to share it! A friend on another forum pointed me to these links of online recipe books from 1917. It has things like thickening sauces with egg yolks instead of flour. It comes from back in the day before the ADA told people with problems metabolizing sugar and carbs, to eat more sugar and carbs I guess.
I intend to spend some time in it, as soon as I get over some of my digestion issues that is!! I've been frustrated lately with not being able to eat much because whatever I eat feels like it sits in my stomach like a rock. I am dealing with nausea, stomach pain, no appetite, and not having much fun, and not doing much cooking, so sorry I just have not been posting many recipes because of it. After going through a horribly hot summer, we are finally having some beautiful sunny days with low dew points and 70's. It's been as low as 40 at night actually! We're enjoying having our windows open again. So now that it's cool enough to feel like cooking and baking again, my stomach is just not up to it.
I suspect I have an ulcer and am treating it with oil of oregano, aloe vera juice, kefir, and L-Glutamine which I've discovered is excellent for healing the mucosal lining in the stomach. I am feeling better, somewhat already, but the hardest part of it all is giving up my morning coffee. *Sigh* In fact I haven't yet. I had one small cup compared to the 3 large mugs I usually have every morning. I guess I have to give it up for a while and get my stomach back. Today it was peppermint tea to bring to work with me and chamomile tea at night. I'm hoping to have some good recipes coming once again soon. I'm also back to work for the school year. Busy time for me! But one has to eat, busy or not, right? Oh yes. Must have lots of good low carb, gluten free things on hand, quick and easy to prepare.
Need a quick pizza and don't want to heat the oven? This one worked for me. It is low carb and gluten free. I just sort of had a thought in my mind, wondered if it would work, and whipped it up to see. It worked. I don't know if I needed to add the baking powder. You can try with or without it and see what happens. I think next time I may try without it. It is a soft crust, you'll need to eat it with a fork. I guess you could pick it up in your hands but it won't be stiff in your hands like a crisp crust. While the "norms" (non-diabetic, wheat tolerant folk) ate their regular pizza I whipped this up quickly for myself. If you can make an omelet, you can make this.
* Exported from MasterCook *
Frying Pan Pizza
Recipe By : Ginny Larsen
Serving Size : 1 Preparation Time :Approximately 5 minutes
Categories : Main dish
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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2 large eggs
2 tablespoons almond flour, Honeyville
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
sprinkle onion powder
sprinkle salt
sprinkle italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon baking powder -- (I think you could do without it) Toppings
2 tablespoons pizza sauce
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
7 Pepperoni Slices, *Armour
With a wire whisk, beat the eggs together with the flour, parmesan cheese, seasonings, and baking powder.
Preheat a non-stick medium skillet for omelets, on medium heat, pour batter into the pan and cover. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until it is ready to flip.
Carefully flip over to the other side, remove from heat and quickly spread on your toppings. (It's a good idea to have them all ready right next to your pan so you can do this quickly.)
Put back on heat and cover for about 2 minutes. Check to see if bottom is lightly browned and the top is melted and gently slide onto your plate.
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Per Serving: 520 Calories; 40g Fat (67.5% calories from fat); 33g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber;
Serving Ideas : You can do this with any choice of toppings you like. Nutrition info will vary.
