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High Protein Recipes

Avocado Egg Cups

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I love the simplicity and elegance of this low carb breakfast. It’s so easy to make this up on a busy morning and the end result is so impressive that you could serve this at your next brunch. Come on – you brunch don’t you?

The carb count doesn’t include salsa or cheese but if you’re not in Phase 1 of a high protein eating plan you can indulge in those extras.

Fat and calorie alert! If you’re on a low calorie or low fat eating plan, this breakfast is NOT the way to go. If low fat or low calorie is your plan of choice check out one of our other healthy breakfast recipes.

2 servings = 2 carbs per serving

Ingredients:

1 Hass avocado

2 eggs

pinch each sea salt and black pepper

Instructions:

Cut a small slice from each side of the avocado so that each half won’t roll around in the pan. Cut avocado in half. Remove and discard pit. Use a spoon to remove about 2 tablespoons of avocado so that you have a space large enough for an egg to fit into.

Pour one cup of water into a baking dish. If you have any broth handy use that instead of water to give your avocado cups a little extra flavor. Place avocados into the dish. Crack one egg into each avocado cavity. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the whites are set.

Remove from oven and eat as is or season with hot sauce. And if you’re at my table you’ll have to wrestle the hot sauce away from me. Now that I think of it, I should probably give everybody their own personal bottle of hot sauce.

High Protein Recipes

CC Cucumber Mint Salad

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CC as in “cottage cheese” which I like to use in place of yogurt when I’m looking for a super low carb meal.

This salad is a spin off from a cucumber raita which is commonly served in India as a condiment to cut the heat of the spicy dishes on the table. My salad has more cucumber and less yogurt than a traditional raita. In fact I’ve subbed in cottage cheese for the yogurt because it has much fewer carbs than yogurt, 6 net carbs versus almost 17.5 for plain yogurt! If that’s not a reason for a low carber to switch to cottage cheese then I don’t know what else to say to convince you. I’ve used cottage cheese in place of yogurt in salad dressings, smoothies, puddings … with great success.

Be sure to use 1% cottage cheese, that’s the sweet spot for less carbs. Nonfat cottage cheese tastes so bad that it’s not even worth going there.

I’ve also experimented with the carb counts using sour cream and crème fraiche in place of some and even all of the cottage cheese, thinking that it would reduce the carb count  even further and both substitutions actually RAISED the net carb count!

This salad is fabulous as a sauce for steak or chicken as well as fish. If you’ll be serving this recipe as a sauce instead of a salad, dice the veggies instead of chopping them.

This salad can be prepared anywhere from 2 hours to 1 day ahead.
Ingredients:
2 large unpeeled English hothouse cucumber, halved, seeded, chopped
1 cup 1% cottage cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ rounded teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions:
Wrap chopped cucumber in a kitchen towel and squeeze to eliminate some of the liquid.

Puree cottage cheese in a blender. Place remaining ingredients in a bowl. Pour cottage cheese over salad and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

 

Cucumber Cilantro Raita

Simply substitute cilantro for the mint.

4 servings = 5 net carbs per serving with 1 cup Greek yogurt
4 net carbs per serving with ½ cup Greek yogurt

Recipes Starches

Honey Flaxseed Bread

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Is flaxseed the new miracle food? That’s a big claim to live up to, yet this tiny little seed provides 3 incredible benefits for your diet. Dr. Oz highly recommends a daily dose of flaxseed as a great source of fiber, omega-3 and lignans which reduce the risk of breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men. And if all that isn’t enough to get you on the flaxseed wagon, flaxseed  has been known to reduce hot flashes. Go flaxseed!

I’ll take any opportunity to get some flaxseed into a meal. I’ll sprinkle it into fruit smoothies, oatmeal, yogurt, and bread is a great way to get lots of flaxseed into your diet.

I prefer golden flaxseed as it has a much lighter flavor. Don’t buy pre-ground flaxseed. Grind it yourself in a coffee grinder or a blender. Flaxseed starts to degenerate as soon as its exposed to heat and air so a bag of pre-ground flaxseed sitting on a shelf in a grocery store is not an option for me. Besides it’s super easy to grind it yourself.

This recipe makes one loaf. You can of course double the recipe if you’ll be serving a lot of bread this week, or set aside one loaf after the first rise, wrap it in plastic and freeze it. Then when you’re ready to bake it up, thaw it at room temperature or in the fridge, do the second rising in the loaf pan and bake it up. So much easier than making the entire recipe twice.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup flaxseed

1-3/4 cups lukewarm water

1 tablespoon honey

2 1/4 cups whole grain flour, whole wheat, white whole wheat, pumpemickel, or rye

2 teaspoons sea salt

1 package (2-1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast

Instructions:

In food processor grind flaxseed into a coarse meal. Set aside.

In a large bowl, stir water and honey until honey is dissolved, or pulse in food processor. Sprinkle in yeast; let stand until yeast bubbles, about 5 minutes.

Add 1 cup flour, salt and ground flaxseed. With a wooden spoon, stir vigorously in the same direction until batter is smooth or pulse in a food processor. Alternatively, mix dough in a stand-up mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.

Gradually stir in 1 cup flour until mixture becomes too difficult to stir comfortably. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead, adding only enough of the remaining bread flour to keep it from sticking, until dough is smooth and elastic, 10 to 12 minutes. The dough will be slightly sticky.

Lightly oil a large bowl. To save on dishes if I’ve mixed this in a bowl rather than a food processor I use a spatula to scrape out as much of the dough as I can into an oiled loaf pan, then oil the bowl. Place dough back into the bowl, turning to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap or a towel and let rise in a warm place such as the top of a television set or the refrigerator on in the sun until doubled, about 1-1/2 hours.

Lightly oil a loaf pan. Punch dough down. Flatten into a disk and tightly roll the dough into a log. Place seam-side down in loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until dough comes over the top of the pan, about 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Bake bread for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking for 20 to 25 minutes, or until bread is pulling away from the sides of the pan. Turn bread out onto a wire rack and cool completely before slicing. Although I have to admit I can never resist cutting off the ends to eat as soon as the loaf is cool enough to handle.

Beverages Dessert Fruit Kid Friendly Living Food Neutral Recipes Vegetarian

More Fruit Smoothie Recipes

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Basic Fruit Smoothie Instructions:

Place ingredients in a blender – a food processor won’t give you a smooth puree, an immersion blender will work, but not as easy as a counter top blender.

 

Mixed Fruit

1 frozen banana
2 cups mixed fruit
1 cup fresh fruit juice

 

Papaya – Nectarine

1 papaya, peeled, seeded, cut into chunks
1 medium nectarine, pitted, cut into chunks
1 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup nondairy milk

 

Creamy Pineapple

I prefer this shake made with dates, almond extract and orange juice, and no rum extract. But that’s me, you may love it without dates and with rum extract. When I make this drink for guests I make it how I like it, and pour it into glasses for some of my guests. Then I add the rum extract for the rest of my guests, and viola! everybody’s happy.

1/2 pineapple, cut into chunks
1 banana
1/4 can coconut milk(there is a light version that most supermarkets carry in the Asian foods section which I think tastes watery, but you can boost the flavor with coconut extract)
3 dates, chopped (or 2-3 tablespoons honey, date or maple sugar)
(almond extract )
(rum extract)
(juice from 1-3 oranges)
 

Creamy Pineapple Berry

This is a variation of our Creamy Pineapple Smoothie

1/2 pineapple, cut into chunks
1 banana
4 large strawberries, tops removed
1/4 can coconut milk(there is a light version that most supermarkets carry in the Asian foods section which I think tastes watery, but you can boost the flavor with coconut extract)
3 dates, chopped (or 2-3 tablespoons honey, date or maple sugar)
almond extract, optional
rum extract, optional
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

 

Raspberry – Watermelon

2 cups seeded watermelon, cut into chunks
1 cup raspberries(fresh or frozen)
1 cup ice cubes or 1/2 cup fresh apple or pear juice
2 tablespoons date or maple sugar

 

Creamy Almond

2 bananas
1 apple, cored & peeled
1/4 cup almond butter
dash of sea salt
glug of vanilla

 

Coconut Orange Cream

4 oranges, peeled, sectioned, membrane and seeds discarded
1 banana
2 cups coconut milk (if you use light coconut milk, bolster the flavor with coconut extract)

 

Tropical Cream

Grind to a fine crumb in blender:

1/2 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
1/2 cup date pieces

Add and blend until pureed:

1 tablespoon vanilla
(1/4 cup honey)
1 cup fresh orange juice
2 bananas
2 cups sliced peaches, peeled, fresh or frozen

 

Recipes

Take the Boring Out of Tortilla Chips

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Chips and salsa anyone? Ho-hum. Been there, done that. I like the ease of serving up a bowl of tortilla chips with a satisfying dip however I balk at commercial chips which are either deep fried or if they’re fat free they tend to taste like cardboard. And then of course, chips and salsas are so overdone that I want something a little more interesting to eat myself, to serve to my family or to share with friends at a party.

Let’s start with the chip itself. It’s so easy to make your own low fat, low calorie tortilla chips. Once you see how easy it is you’re going to regret every bag of chips you’ve ever bought.

 

Baked Chips

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Stack whole wheat tortillas, corn tortillas or pita bread rounds on a cutting board. Use a sharp chef’s knife to slice into wedges. Spray or brush a cookie sheet with oil. Place chips on the cookie sheet in one layer. Spray with oil and sprinkle with salt. You can even sprinkle on some taco seasoning, cumin, cayenne pepper or ground coriander if you want a little variety.

 

Melon Salsa

Ingredients:

1/2 honeydew melon, diced
1 cantaloupe, diced
1/3 jalapeño, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, diced
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
16 ounces chunky salsa

Instructions:

In large serving bowl mix all ingredients.
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. If your salsa is too watery, drain it in a sieve or coffee filter lined colander until it’s the consistency you want.

 

Beyond the Border

Even though tortilla chips are a classic Mexican side dish, you can nudge them across the border and serve them up with toppings that are Greek, Italian, Indian … When you think of them as corn chips that helps to know what to pair them up with. And if you’re working with whole wheat tortilla chips then even more possibilities are opened up to you.

Smoky Eggplant Dip

This dip works well with both corn chips and whole wheat chips.

Ingredients:

2 medium eggplants

3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon chipotle pepper in adobe sauce
1 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons aged sherry vinegar
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grill the eggplant until soft, about 25 to 30 minutes. The skin will get wrinkly and the eggplant will start to collapse. Let cool slightly, cut each eggplant in half, and scrape out the flesh with a large spoon into the work bowl of a food processor. Add the remaining ingredients and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Scrape the mixture into a serving bowl.

 

Creamy Basil Dip

Ingredients:

1 cup basil pesto
1/4 cup (2 ounces) gorgonzola, at room temperature
1/4 cup (2 ounces) mascarpone, at room temperature

Instructions:

Heat the pesto over medium heat in a medium-sized saucepan or heat until hot but not bubbling in the microwave. Remove from heat and whisk in the gorgonzola and mascarpone until well blended. Pour the dip into a serving bowl and serve with whole wheat chips.

 

Sweet Onion Nachos

Instructions:

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive or nut oil
1 cup of onions, diced
½ cup of goat cheese, grated
1/4 teaspoon agave nectar, honey or maple syrup
A pinch each salt and pepper

Instructions:

Preheat broiler.

In a medium-sized pan, melt the butter and oil over medium heat. Add onions and let them cook for a few minutes, until they’re a light tan color. Stir in sweetener.

Spread the chips in a single layer in several pie plates or one cookie sheet.

Spoon the onions over the chips. Sprinkle the goat cheese over the onions and place under the broiler for a minute or two until the cheese is melted and lightly browned.

Remove from the oven and serve.

 

Parsley White Bean Dip

This dip works for both corn and whole wheat chips.

If you don’t have cannellini beans you can use any white bean such as garbanzo, lima or soy beans.

Ingredients:

1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil, plus 4 tablespoons
1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley
salt
black pepper

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor. Puree until the mixture is pureed. Taste and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Transfer to a small bowl.

Variations:

Substitute fresh basil, dill or mint for the parsley.

High Protein Kid Friendly Low Carb Recipes

Low Carb Peanut Butter Muffin

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peanut-butter-muffin

from The UnDiet Low Carb Phase 2 – 14 Days of Menus With Recipes scheduled for release September 2016.

This recipe makes 4 muffins with 3.5 net carbs per muffin, however it’s super easy to double or even quadruple the batter and then bake fresh muffins whenever you want them.

Don’t be tempted to substitute cream cheese for the mascarpone cheese, cream cheese will add 1 carb to each muffin which makes the mascarpone cheese the super hero of this recipe.

Nobody will guess these muffins are part of your diet plan. Just serve up a plate of them along with a selection of toppings such as natural peanut butter, sugar-free jam, maple syrup sweetened mascarpone cheese … for everybody who isn’t eating low carb to enjoy.

Ingredients:

¼ cup peanut butter

¼ cup mascarpone cheese

2 tablespoons unsalted butter or coconut oil

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon baking powder

4 packets Splenda or Truvia

Blend together peanut butter, mascarpone cheese, and butter. Mix in baking powder, Splenda, and egg. Divide among 4 buttered coffee cups or ramekins. Microwave for 1 minute to 1 minute and 15 seconds. The time will vary according to your microwave. You could also spoon the batter into 4 muffin tins and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes (check at 10 minutes) or 8 muffin tins (for thinner muffins) and bake for 10 minutes (check at 7 minutes).

Dessert Fruit Kid Friendly Living Food Recipes

Beyond Smoothies – Fruit with Attitude

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These fruit concoctions can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, some are even grown up enough to be served at your next party. Remember though that they still need to be eaten before, with, or just after a meal, or wait 4-1/2 hours after a Protein meal, 2-12 hours after a Starch meal.

Blue Waldorf Salad

Toss together:

cubed apple
sliced celery
sliced green onion (both white and green portions)
mayonnaise thinned with fresh lemon or lime juice
sea salt and black pepper to taste

Garnish salad with:

toasted almonds (slivered, sliced or chopped)
cubes of Rosenborg Extra Creamy Blue Cheese in Oil, crumbled by hand over the salad

 

Pecan Applesauce

I prefer using toasted pecans, but raw will do just fine also. On a cold winter night I sometimes use this applesauce in place of a salad for dinner.

In a food processor finely grind 1/4 cup pecans for each apple you’ll be using. Add to bowl and process until smooth:

peeled, cored, chopped apples
1/4 banana per apple
2 tablespoons cream or nondairy milk per apple
a shake of sea salt per apple
If the applesauce is too runny let it sit a bit to give the nuts a chance to soak up some of the liquid.

Variations:

add a splash of rum
add a tablespoon or two of shredded coconut (this will help thicken up a runny applesauce)
use fresh orange juice in place of the cream
add a sprinkle of unrefined sugar
add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract per apple

 

Living Apple Pie

Here is an excellent tasting recipe from Anne Louise Gittleman’s “Get The Sugar Out.” This won’t taste exactly the same as a baked apple pie, but it’s delicious and well worth giving it a try. When it’s a chilly morning, I love this for breakfast, barely warmed with a little cream or nondairy milk poured over the pie. M-m-m good!

In a food processor pulse 3 cups walnuts or pecans to a fine powder, so that you have 2 cups of ground walnuts. Take care not to end up with nut butter. If you need to add more nuts, do so. Dump out into a 9-inch pie pan. Pulse 3/4 pound dried dates, pitted and chopped in food processor. Dump nuts back into food processor and pulse until well mixed. Pat dough into pie pan so that it forms a crust on the bottom and up the sides of pan. Chill overnight.

Soak 3 large apples, peeled, cored, quartered, and sliced into 1/4 inch pieces in juice of 1-1/2 lemons (about 1/4 cup) and 1 teaspoon cinnamon, overnight. The next day, pour into crust.

 

Mint Syrup

Boil gently for five minutes:

1 tablespoon honey
1/2 cup fresh orange or apple juice
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, finely diced

Stir in:

juice from 1 lemon
juice from 1 orange
Toss your choice of Fruit with a modest amount of this syrup.

Variations: use thyme, or rosemary in place of the mint.

 

Peach Salsa

This salsa is great over fish or chicken or as a topping for Chili Relleno Crepes. I filled a soy cheese and whole wheat tortilla quesadilla with this salsa the other night and WOW!

If you use Nutrasweet or Sweet ‘N Low in place of the unrefined sugar then this is a zero calorie food.

Makes 3-1/2 cups.

Freeze 4 cups peeled, pitted, chopped fresh peaches, then thaw and drain (save the juice for a Fruit shake), or measure 4 cups frozen peaches, then thaw and drain. Save the peach juice for a Fruit shake or to add to a salad dressing or marinade. Chop the peaches and place in a medium bowl. Stir in

1 medium red bell pepper, minced
2 teaspoons minced jalapeno chili
1/4 cup unrefined sugar
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar or unfiltered, unpasteurized apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons whole cloves
Cover and refrigerate overnight. Just before serving, add 1/4 cup sliced green onion, both white and green portions.

 

Blue Pear Salad

This salad is surprisingly delicious. I came up with it when I was in the mood for a Waldorf Salad, only it wouldn’t have gone with the meal I was serving. The mild sweetness of the pears stands up to the sharpness of the blue cheese and the bite of the black peppercorns.

Toss with Blue Cheese Vinaigrette:

pear, sliced or chopped
jicima, chopped
toasted walnuts, halves or broken
Serve on a bed of lettuce dressed with Blue Cheese Vinaigrette. Garnish with crushed black peppercorns and fresh or dried oregano, sage, or rosemary.

 

Blue Cheese Vinaigrette

Whisk together or whirl in blender:

4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar, or unfiltered, unpasteurized apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup blue cheese
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice or more vinegar
1 teaspoon tarragon, dried or 1 tablespoon fresh
(1/2 teaspoon dried mustard, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Taste and adjust seasoning to taste.

 

Banapplesauce

This is a zero calorie dish 🙂

Puree 2 apples, peeled and cored and 1 banana. Stop and scrape as needed until you have a smooth puree.

Variations:

vanilla extract
a tiny pinch of sea salt
apple pie spice
cinnamon
a bit of heavy cream, yogurt, or buttermilk

 

Mock Peach Pie

Another zero calorie dish 🙂

Puree:

2 cups peaches, frozen or peeled fresh peaches
1 banana
1 teaspoon vanilla
(1 tablespoon cream)

 

Spicy Peaches

If you use Nutrasweet or Sweet ‘N Low in place of the unrefined sugar than this is a zero calorie food.

Mix:

1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1 ½ tablespoons maple or date sugar

Gently fold in 5 peaches, sliced or cubed.

Variations:

Gently heat the peaches just until warm.
Substitute 1/2 cup UnDiet Whipped Cream for the heavy cream.
Substitute pears or apples for the peaches.

 

Carmelized Apples

Stir continuously over medium heat until sugar melts 2 teaspoons butter and 1 tablespoon unrefined sugar.

Turn off heat. Add ingredients below to sweetened butter, stirring until the apples are well coated:

1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
dash nutmeg
2 apples, peeled, cored and chopped

Variations:

Substitute 1 sliced banana for one apple. To keep the banana from turning brown soak in fresh lemon or lime juice before adding to the apple.

Use as a topping for Cinnamon Banana Pudding , Cocoa Banana Pudding, or Creamy Orange Gelatin.

 

Strawberries with Creme Fraiche Dip

In a small bowl, mix:

1 cup creme fraiche or whipped heavy cream
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup unrefined sugar

This is enough dip for 4 cups of strawberries.

Variation: spoon sauce over or use as a dip for blueberries, raspberries, boysenberries, peaches, bananas or a mix of these Fruits.

 

Spicy Fruit Gazpacho

If you skip the feta cheese then this is a zero calorie dish.

Mix 1/3 cup lime juice, 2/3 orange juice, a dash of chili powder, and a dash of hot sauce. Add 2 cups pineapple, diced, 2 cups cucumber, diced, and 2 cups mango, diced. Spoon into 4 tall glasses or bowls. Top each serving with a sprinkle of crumbled feta cheese and/or minced chives.

 

Frozen Grapes

Absolutely a zero calorie dish.

That’s it. The whole recipe is in the title. Freeze the grapes. Your kids and teenagers won’t care that they’re healthy – they’ll eat them like ice cream!

 

UnDiet Whipped Cream

Refrigerate bowl and beaters at least 30 minutes before whipping cream. Whip ingredients below until soft or stiff peaks form:

1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup unrefined sugar or 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla

Variations:

Substitute your choice of liqueur in place of the vanilla.

Stir 2 tablespoons cocoa powder into the cream when you place the bowl and beaters in the fridge. Whip with rest of ingredients when ready.

Beverages Living Food Neutral Recipes Vegetarian

Juicing Smuiching – We’re Having Smoothies!

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I promised you some of my veggie smoothie recipes, which if you think about it is really a drinkable soup. Still you can’t just pour soup in a cup and go, well you can, but it won’t be a smoothie, it will be a cup of broth. It’s best to have a smoothie that tastes good cold and is, well smooth (chunk free).

I’m really enjoying taking a veggie smoothie with me when I’m out running errands. Eliminates the need to stop for nourishment, keeps me hydrated and I like having something delicious to sip on as a change from drinking plain water.

If you want a perfectly smooth smoothie then you’ll want to peel and de-seed all vegetables. I don’t always (as in never) have the time and I like to get the nutrition contained in the peels and seeds, so I leave them in.

When pureeing vegetables, roughly chop the veggies, place a little liquid in the blender, then the veggies and buzz until smooth, adding more liquid if needed. Once the veggies are pureed, then you can add the rest of the ingredients and buzz until well mixed.

Depending on the broth or tomato juice that you use you may or may not need to add salt or pepper to your smoothie. So my suggestion is to make the smoothie without adding any salt or pepper, taste and add if needed.

 

Cucumber Salsa Smoothie

1 medium cucumber
1 large tomato
1/4 cup fresh salsa
1/4 fresh cilantro
1/2 cup salsa juice, tomato juice, vegetable broth or water

 

Virgin Bloody Mary

This recipe didn’t take much imagination on my part but it sure is delicious!

3 stalks celery from the heart, including leaves
2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon chopped shallot
dash Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon celery salt
1 teaspoon kosher salt
12 dashes hot sauce, or to taste
2 limes, juiced
1 (48-ounce) bottle tomato juice

Chop the celery, including the leaves, and puree in a food processor or blender. Once the celery is pureed add the remaining ingredients and buzz until smooth. Pour the mixture into a large pitcher, add the tomato juice, and stir.

 

Cucumber Dill Smoothie

1 large cucumber
1 cup vegetable broth
1 cup silken tofu or yogurt
1/4 cup fresh dill or 1 to 2 tablespoons dried dill
salt and pepper to taste
Add more broth if needed.

 

Mediterranean Smoothie

This recipe is based on one of my favorite soups. I substituted cucumber for the eggplant in the original recipe as eggplant does not taste good raw – trust me, it does not.

3 medium tomatoes, chopped (about 3 cups)
1 large cucumber, chopped (about 2 cups)
1 red bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 1/4 cups)
3 cups canned tomato juice
2 tablespoons fresh herbs (such as tarragon, thyme, or parsley), chopped
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
juice of 1/2 a lemon
salt
cayenne pepper

If too thick thin with additional broth or tomato juice.

 

Creamy Tomato Smoothie

I love creamy tomato soup so I came up with this recipe for a creamy tomato smoothie. You can change it up by using 1 cucumber in place of 2 of the tomatoes.

1/2 cup plain yogurt or silken tofu
1/2 cup tomato juice or vegetable broth
2 large tomatoes, quartered
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
If smoothie is thick thin with broth or tomato juice.

 

Smoothie de Tortilla

Since Sopa de Tortilla is one of my favorite soups, I was looking forward to developing a smoothie recipe that incorporated the same flavors.

If you can’t find a Sopa de Tortilla broth you can use a canned Sopa de Tortilla as long as it doesn’t contain pieces of chicken.

2 cups Sopa de Tortilla broth
2 large tomatoes, quartered
1/4 to 1/2 cup cooked corn
salt and cayenne pepper to taste
Thin with additional broth or water if needed.

High Protein Kid Friendly Low Carb Recipes

Cajun Chicken Tenders

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This recipe is from my soon to be published cookbook with a working title of “Weight No More – Low Carb Phase 2”. I’m struggling with the title so if you have any feedback on the title or title suggestions I will gladly gift you the book when it comes out on Kindle. I’m serious. Even if I don’t use your suggestions, I value your feedback so I’m happy to get the ball rolling with a free book offer 🙂

This recipe is for 4 servings with a net carb count of 6 carbs per serving.
I like to use a technique called “flash frying” when making deep fried dishes. By cooking the chicken prior to coating it you only need to fry it for 30 to 60 seconds instead of 6 to 8 minutes. The chicken absorbs much less oil and yet tastes just as crispy and delicious as if you deep fried it in the traditional way. I know, I know, we’re not counting calories or fat grams when low-carbing, but it doesn’t hurt to go for healthier eating when you can.
BTW – the carbs are figured as best as possible, although it’s really impossible to determine exactly how much buttermilk and how much flour will cling to your chicken. Just to be on the safe side, I’ve slightly overestimated the carbs.

 

Ingredients:

3 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons salt or celery salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk, low fat
1 tablespoon Cajun or Creole seasoning
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken tenders
2 cups soy flour
4 to 6 cups frying oil

 

Directions:

Heat the chicken broth with 1 teaspoon salt in a medium pot over high heat. Add the chicken tenders and bring the broth to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat to low. Simmer until the chicken is thoroughly cooked, about 30 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking:
Pour oil into a large pot and heat to 400 degrees F.

Line a baking pan with paper towels. Set a wired rack (such as the kind you use for cooling baked goods) on top of the paper towels.

Combine flour, Creole seasoning and 1 teaspoon salt in a shallow dish.

Warm the buttermilk just enough to take the chill off and pour into a large bowl.

Once chicken is cooked remove from liquid, pat dry and place into buttermilk bowl.

Remove chicken from buttermilk and dredge in flour mixture. Dip in buttermilk and dredge again in flour mixture. This will give you a nice thick coating that your family will thank you for.

Fry several chicken pieces at a time, turning at least once with tongs, until deep golden brown, about 30 to 60 seconds for each batch. Place chicken on the wire rack as you remove it from the fryer.

 

Healthy Eating Tips

Choose an oil that’s low in saturated fat such as grape seed, peanut, or soybean oil.

Watch your oil temperature carefully. Clip a fry thermometer to the side of the pan so you can keep the temperature consistent. If it’s not hot enough, your food will soak up lots of extra oil that isn’t necessary to make it either crispy or delicious. If it’s too hot it will move very quickly from just right to burned and inedible.

 

Meal Suggestions

In the book I’ll be including a recipe for “Nutty Lemon Rice” which utilizes a simple technique to use cauliflower in place of rice but you can serve green beans sautéed over medium heat in garlic and extra-virgin olive oil. 10 four-inch long beans will add 2 carbs to this meal’s carb count and one 1 Minute Muffin per person which will add #carbs to the meal. So if you make this meal as posted here you’ll have a total net carb count of # per person.

High Protein Low Carb Paleo Recipes

Devil Me Eggs!

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deviled-eggs

I’m pretty sure that pirates did not carefully craft deviled eggs while they were out to sea raiding merchant ships, but somehow the sound of “Devil Me Eggs!” struck a chord with me and so I’ve taken poetic license with the title of this post.

I love deviled eggs. But then, who doesn’t? Me being me though I tend to start experimenting and so we’ve been enjoying all kinds of deviled eggs here in the UnDiet kitchen. For your eating enjoyment I’m posting some of our fave recipes below. Oh, and since I’m working on a series of low carb cookbooks the recipes below are all 0 carb. Yes, that’s right, I said it – 0 carb!

 

The Perfect Hard Boiled Egg

Even though it seems simple enough to boil an egg, if not done correctly you’ll spend a lot of time peeling off teeny-tiny bits of eggshell and end up with a pock-marked egg white. After much trial and error I’ve found one way (I don’t say “the way” because I’m sure there are other ways to get a good result) to boil an egg for easy peeling and with a fully cooked yolk.

Place the eggs in a pot large enough to hold them in a single layer. Cover the eggs with cold water and bring to a full boil over high heat. As soon as the water boils, turn off the heat, cover the pot, and let the eggs stand for 15 minutes. Drain the water off and fill the pot with cold water. Set aside until the eggs are cool. I like to do this in the morning or the day before as there’s nothing worse than staring at a pot of eggs waiting for them to cool. Well, there are worse things, but I still don’t like waiting for eggs to cool.

 

Getting the Yolks Back into the Whites

It’s easy for the chickens, they lay an egg and the yolk is right there in the middle. We cook the eggs, remove the yolks, mash them with a fork and then stand there perplexed as to how to get them back into the whites. You can of course spoon it in, but that usually ends up in a yolky mess. Thanks to the multi-purpose plastic bag it’s actually quite easy to present a beautiful deviled egg to family and friends.

Place the yolk mixture into a plastic bag and twist to push the mixture into one corner. Cut off the tip of the bag in that corner. Push the yolk mixture towards the hole to pipe into the whites.

With all of the extras added to the filling you’ll most likely have extra egg yolk mixture left after filling the egg whites. You can use this filling to fill celery sticks, spread on a cucumber or radish slice, spread on a slice of meat and fold or roll up, or use as a sandwich spread.

 

Tips

Once you’ve made the deviled eggs, stick a toothpick in several of the eggs and cover loosely with plastic wrap so that you don’t flatten the filling. The toothpicks will keep the plastic wrap from touching the filling. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.

Store deviled eggs in a single layer in an airtight container in the fridge.

Serve deviled eggs within two days of making. After the second day, they won’t taste quite as fresh. If you have any deviled eggs still left at that point, mash them up, add some fresh ingredients such as cucumbers, tomato or fresh herbs and use them for sandwich filling. For those of you who are watching your carbs, you’ll need to add the carb count for these extra ingredients.
 

Crabby Eggs

Ingredients:
4 ounces lump crabmeat
1/2 stick celery, finely chopped
2 tablespoons mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon sour cream
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 hard boiled eggs, peeled, halved, and yolks removed

Directions:
In a medium mixing bowl combine the crabmeat, celery, mascarpone cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, and chives. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

 

Tuna Deviled Eggs

With all of the extras added to the filling you’ll have extra egg yolk filling left after filling the egg whites. You can use this filling to fill celery sticks, spread on a cucumber or radish slice or make a sandwich with a 1 Minute Muffin or 1 Carb Protein Bread.

Ingredients:
6 ounce can water packed tuna, drained & squeezed dry
½ cup mayonnaise
6 hard boiled eggs, peeled and sliced in half lengthwise
2 tablespoons onion, minced
2 tablespoons inner celery leaves, minced
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
Carefully remove the yolks from the whites, placing them in a small bowl. Use a fork to mash them together with the remaining ingredients until the mixture is smooth. Fill egg whites with mixture. Dust with paprika if desired.

 

Shrimp & Bacon Deviled Eggs

With all of the extras added to the filling you’ll have extra egg yolk filling left after filling the egg whites. You can use this filling to fill celery sticks, spread on a cucumber or radish slice, spread on a slice of meat and fold or roll up, or make a sandwich with 1 Carb Protein Bread.

Ingredients:
8 hard-boiled large eggs, shelled and cut in half lengthwise
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon red pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
½ cup cooked medium shrimp, peeled and chopped (about 4 ounces)
3 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
paprika, cayenne pepper or chili powder

Directions:
Carefully remove the yolks from the whites, placing them in a small bowl. Use a fork to mash them together with the mayo, mustard, salt, pepper and parsley until the mixture is smooth. Stir in shrimp & bacon if eating right away. If not eating until later in the day or the next day, reserve bacon to sprinkle on top. Fill egg whites with mixture. Dust with paprika, cayenne pepper or chili powder.

 

Smoked Salmon Deviled Eggs

Ingredients:
8 hard-boiled eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
2 ounces mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives, plus 1/2 teaspoon extra for garnish
4 ounces good smoked salmon, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces salmon roe, optional

Directions:
To the egg yolks, add the sour cream, mascarpone cheese, mayonnaise, lemon juice, chives, salmon, salt, and pepper. Beat with a fork or mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Fill the egg whites with the egg yolk mixture.

When ready to serve, garnish with a dollop of salmon roe and some extra chopped chives. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve.

 

Truffled Eggs

I know that not everybody is up for a truffled egg, but I love, love, love, love, love, love, love, LOVE truffles. If you’ve never tried one I strongly encourage you to try something, anything, flavored with real truffles, if not an actual truffle. And if you’re going to have truffles, eggs are the perfect thing to have them with.

Ingredients:
6 hard-boiled eggs
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 & 1/2 teaspoons truffle oil
a pinch of cayenne
1 tablespoon chopped jarred black truffles, optional but strongly encouraged
1 chive stalk

Directions:
Remove the yolks from the eggs. Mash yolks, mayonnaise, truffle oil and cayenne together until smooth. Mix in chopped jarred black truffles, if using. Spoon into the egg whites and top with chopped chives.

 

Green Eggs & Ham

If the idea of eating green eggs and ham has your mouth watering and you just can’t wait until you can get to the store and pick up some fresh herbs, you can substitute, chives, lettuce, carrot tops or beet tops for the herbs.

You can use any type of avocado, but if you’re concerned about carbs, the Haas avocado is significantly lower in carbs. Don’t ask me why, I have no idea, I just know that it is so.

Ingredients:
6 hard-boiled eggs
1/2 Haas avocado
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
2 tablespoons chopped mixed herbs such as cilantro, parsley, mint or dill
1/2 teaspoon chopped garlic
salt and pepper

Directions:
Mash egg yolks, avocado, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, chopped mixed herbs, chopped garlic, and salt and pepper. Divide among the egg whites. Crisp 3 slices prosciutto in a skillet; crumble over the eggs.