Low Carb Chili Con Carne

The first recipe here is the quick and easy recipe using a Club House packet of seasoning. I used the slow cooker and it took about 2 hours on low to get it to the consistency that I wanted.

It is very filling, but it is not completely homemade.

I love to add in leftover meats as well, chicken breast etc. And, I always put cheese on top of the chili (this is not included in the nutritional information).

I know the pictures are not very enticing. These were the best ones I could muster.




Ingredients
-100g of deli chicken (or use desired amount of chicken breast)
-1/2 Teaspoon of salt
-1 Packet of Club House 'Hot-n-Spicy Chili Mix'
-1 Can of Pizza Sauce (213 ml)
-1 Can of Kidney Beans (540 ml)
-3/4 LB of Cooked Ground Beef
-1/2 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
-1/8 Teaspoon Paprika
-3 Cups of Water
-1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
-2 Tablespoons of Hot Sauce

Procedure

1. Ensure all meats are cooked.
2. Add all ingredients to crock pot/slow cooker. Cook on low for around 2 hours*.

Nutritional Information (it makes 6 servings)
Calories: 281
Total Fat: 8.2g
Carbs: 19.7g
Fiber: 5.2g
Sugars: 2.2g
Protein: 30.5g


Here is the recipe for my homemade chili. Its an all day affair, I really like to leave it cooking for all the flavours to set in. There isn't much difference in calories but there are fewer carbs.

Ingredients
-1LB of Cooked Ground Beef
-100g of deli chicken (or use desired amount of chicken breast)
-3 Strips of Bacon
-1 Teaspoon of salt
-1 Can of Pizza Sauce (213 ml)
-1 1/4 Cup of Kidney Beans
-1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
-2 Teaspoons Paprika
-5 Cups of Water
-1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
-2 Tablespoons of Hot Sauce
-1 Tablespoon Cumin
-2 Teaspoons Oregano
-4 Tablespoons of Tomatillo Salsa
-4 1/2 Cups of Water


Procedure
1. Ensure all meats are cooked.
2. Add all ingredients to crock pot/slow cooker and cook for around 8 hours on low* (cook until it is your desired consistency).

Nutritional Information (it makes 6 servings)
Calories: 278
Total Fat: 11.8g
Carbs: 13.5g
Fiber: 4.1g
Sugars: 1.6g
Protein: 28.2g


*From all of my experiences, slow cookers vary cook times. Make sure you keep an eye on it the first time you make it.

Low Carb Cookies & Cream Cake

Little, but mighty. 

I baked this cake the other day. I really, really liked it. It is small, but very filling. I baked mine in two layers, but you could make the mix in just one big cake. I really want to incorporate peanut butter with this cake in the future. I consider a slice of this cake a treat. It has about 7 carbs per slice and a ton of fat and protein. 

Side view

Ingredients
Cake
3 Cups of Almond Flour
3 Tablespoons of Sweetener
3 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder
2 Teaspoons of Baking Powder
1/4 Teaspoon of Salt
5 Eggs
2 Teaspoons of Vanilla

Icing
1/4 Cup of Melted Butter
5 Oz of Cream Cheese
1/4 Cup of Whipping Cream
1 Teaspoon Coconut Oil
2 Teaspoons of Vanilla
1/4 Teaspoon of Cinnamon 
2 Tablespoons of Sweetener
3 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder
1/4 Bar of 99% Cocoa Chocolate (I use Lindtt)

Prep Work
-Preheat oven to 350.
-Grease cake pan. 


Procedure
1. Mix the dry ingredients: Almond Flour, 3 Tablespoons of Sweetener, 3 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder, baking powder and salt. 
2. Whisk eggs and 2 teaspoons of vanilla in a separate bowl. 
3. Add eggs mixture to the dry ingredients. 
4. Pour into greased pan (or pans).
5. My small oven baked the cake in 30 minutes. Keep an eye on it, this will vary (of course) by oven.

Make the icing while the cake bakes. 

6. Warm (but do not completely melt) cream cheese and butter together. Mix well. 
7. Add in teaspoon of coconut oil.
8. Add in 3 tablespoons of coca powder and 2 tablespoons of sweetener.
9. Add cinnamon and refridgerate. 

10. Allow cake to cool.

11. Ice cake and shave 99% cocoa chocolate over the cake. 

Inside.

Nutritonal Information (per slice, 8 slices per cake):
Calories: 460
Total Fat: 38.3g
Carbs: 13.3g
Fiber: 6.1g
Sugars: 3g
Protein: 15.2g

No Bake, Creamy Cheesecake

I made this with an aching for a coffee flavoured dessert. This was the perfect fix! I garnished mine with two different things, sugar-free caramel sundae syrup (pictured) and peanut butter. The nutritional information and ingredient lists do not include garnish.

Ingredients 
1/2 Cup of Coffee
2 Cups of Heavy/Whipping Cream
2 Teaspoons Of Vanilla
1/8 Cup of Liquid Sweetener
1 Packet of Unflavoured Gelatin 
2 8oz Bars of Cream Cheese
4 Tablespoons of Instant Coffee (I used French Vanilla flavoured) 
3/4 Cup of Sweetener




Procedure
1. Sprinkle packet of unflavoured gelatin over 1/2 cup of coffee in a small pot. 
2. Heat on medium for about 5 minutes and stir until gelatin is dissolved.
3. Remove from heat and add instant coffee, stir in one tablespoon at a time. 
4. Refrigerate for 10 minutes. 
5. While coffee mixture is cooling in the fridge, warm cream cheese in a microwave safe bowl in the microwave for 45 seconds. 

6. Beat cream cheese with 1 teaspoon of vanilla until it is smooth.
7. Once the coffee mixture has cooled a bit, add 1/2 cup of sweetener.
8. Beat together the coffee mixture and cream cheese mixture. 
9. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Stir frequently to ensure no chunks develop. 
10. While the cream cheese and coffee mixture is chilling whip 2 cups of cream with 1/8 cup of liquid sweetener, 1 teaspoon of vanilla and 1/4 cup of sweetener. Try to do this when the other mixture has about 10 minutes left in the fridge. This is essentially whipped cream, keep it in the fridge until you are ready for the next step. 
11. Fold whipped cream into the coffee and cream cheese mixture. 
12. Grease a pie pan or whatever you would like to use to shape your cheesecake. 
13. Spread mixture into pan. Chill (DO NOT FREEZE) overnight.


*This mixture filled a pie pan for me and I then made 6 mini-square versions in a cup-cake pan. I decided to do the nutritional information for 8 slices and then the entire mixture, divide it how you want. 





Nutritional Information (8 servings)
Calories: 413
Fat: 40.8g
Carbohydrates: 4.7g
Fiber: 0g
Sugar: 2.1g
Protein: 4.7g 


Nutritional Information (entire mixture)
Calories: 3,307
Fat: 326g
Carbohydrates: 37.2g
Fiber: 0g
Sugar: 16.6g
Protein: 37.3g 

Low Carb Mini Pavlovas

These flakey pavlova crusts are very tasty. 

They remind me of the sponge toffee inside a Crunchie chocolate bar. 

You can flavour them, for instance with banana extract or lemon juice. The recipe below is for the basic vanilla pavlova.

These are good with breakfast or as a treat for dessert. 


Ingredients
4 Egg Whites
1/2 Cup of Sweetener
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
2 Teaspoons of Cornstarch 

Prep Work
-Pre-heat oven to 250 degrees (F).
-Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. 


Procedure
-Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, add sweetener in slowly. 
-Beat the mixture until it stiffens. 
-Add in vanilla. 
-Add in cornstarch slowly while beating.
-Spread mixture into six circles on parchment paper.
-Leave a dent in the middle of each blog for filling. 
-Bake in oven for 23-26 minutes. Remove occasionally and press down on the dent to ensure it has room for filling. 
-Turn off heat and leave in oven for 30 minutes. Each pavlova should be crispy, not moist. 


*Add fruit, whipped cream and syrups to taste just before eating. 


Nutritional Information (per pavlova):
Calories: 30
Total Fat: 0g
Carbs: 3.2g
Fiber: 0g
Sugars: 0.2g
Protein: 3.9g

Keto/Low Carb Éclair

I had a really bad craving for eclairs and so I thought I would give making them a shot. Here is my first attempt at the recipe. I experimented with a few different ways to make them, the following is the recipe for my best of the batch. 

Overall,  I really liked them. I used home made low-carb vanilla pudding and used it for the inner cream, next time I am going to use low-carb pre made  pudding. You don't need too much pudding, maybe half a pack made from a mix. My homemade pudding (found in a separate blog post) was not think enough and leaked through the bottom. I froze them to avoid leakage. This recipe should make 12, mine are a little bigger than they should be. 

Ingredients 
1/2 Cup Butter (I used salted, if you do not use salted add 1/4 teaspoon of salt)
1 Cup Water
1 1/2 Cup Almond Flour
1/2 Tablespoon Of Cornstarch
4 Eggs
2 Cups Of Vanilla Pudding
3/4 Cup Heavy Cream
1/4 Cup Granulated Sweetener
3 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
5 Squared Of 90% Cocoa Chocolate
2 Tablespoons Butter
1/3 Cup Sweetener
3 Tablespoons Of Hot Water

Prep Work
-Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
-Grease a cookie sheet.

Procedure
-Combine 1/2 cup of butter and 1 cup of water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, melt butter completely.
-Reduce to medium heat. Stir in almond flour, 1 teaspoon of vanilla and cornstarch. After a few minutes of brisk stirring reduce heat to low and let thicken. Remove from heat.
-Add eggs, one at a time. Mix completely.
-Put batter on cookie sheet in 1 1/2 x 4 inch strips. 
-Bake 10 minutes.
-Add more batter on the semi-firm top of each strip. Attempt to double it in size. 
-Reduce heat to 325 and bake for 15 to 20 more minutes. 
-Check on them, you want them to puff up and balloon. They will not end up being completely hollow on the inside.
-Cool on a wire rack.

For the filling:
-Beat the whip cream until soft peaks form. 
-Beat in 1/4 cup of sweetener and 1 teaspoon of vanilla.
-Fold whip cream into pudding. 

-Cut the tops off of the pastries once they have cooled.
-Spoon in filling and cover. Chill or freeze.

For icing:
-Melt chocolate and 2 tablespoons of butter in saucepan in low heat.
-Stir in 1/3 cup of sweetener and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. 
-Add water, one tablespoon at a time. 

-Drizzle or smooth icing over chilled pastries. I liked to seal the top back on with the chocolate icing. I then put mine in the freezer to make sure they stuck together. 

Nutrition (per eclair)
Calories: 315
Total Fat: 30g
Carbs: 6.6g
Fiber: 1.9g
Sugars: 1.1g
Protein: 6.2g

How To Start A Keto Lifestyle

I thought my boyfriend was crazy when he cut the carbs. My university roommate was a nutrition major and she also did not recommend eliminating carbs. After watching him drop weight quickly I changed my mind. 

1. I cut carbs completely. When I changed my eating habits I did not ease into it as some people do. The main reason I made the clean cut was because I know some people go through withdraw and have cravings if they continue to eat carby foods (even if they eat smaller portions). 

2. Throw out (or give away) all sugary, gluten packed foods. The basic (and I mean very basic) conversion I started to live by was subtracting fibre from carbs. I lived by on the notion that fibre carbs are good carbs, stay away from sugar and other avoid sweeteners. I aimed to stick under 20 grams of carb everyday, without any exercise. 





3. Check out the nutrition info on everything you buy. Some things vary in carb content. Chicken wings are a good example of a food that change depending on the brand. Honey ham may also surprise you, depending on the brand. Fresh meat is always better than processed meats. Go to the grocery store with a list of theses key items:
-Eggs
-Unsweetened Almond Milk
-Nuts, I prefer almonds (they are perfect to grab by the handful for a snack.
-Heavy cream
-Cheese
-Boston lettuce (you can use this instead a bun)
-Your favourite fresh meats: chicken, pork, beef, turkey
 -Favourite specialty meats: bacon, sausage, certain chicken wings
-Salad Dressings
-Mustard (a core part of my first few weeks of keto)

4. Treat yourself. Find recipes online for things that match your cravings. Jump in, learn new keto recipes and keto treats you can eat from Day 1. Don't deprive yourself. Set your carb limit per day and then stick within it, eat as much as you want of foods with little to no carbs. If you want ice cream, make it. If you want cake, figure it out. There are a tonne of great resources online to help you make something that will satisfy your dessert cravings.

5. Pack your lunch everyday. Have one special lunch a week. This will save you money. Pack leftovers in your lunch from the supper you make the night before. This way you control what you have to eat, the temptation to grab a slice of pizza won't be there.  

Another thing I did when I started keto was drop breakfast. I make a protein shake in its place and have two big meals. I eat "breakfast foods" (eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, omelettes) as main courses now. I make meals now, not just food. I don't scramble to eat the quickest, easiest foods now and put love into the meals I make. 

I think it would be interesting to see how other people got started and what they recommend for newcomers, please comment below and let me know what you did to get started and any tips for newcomers. Let me know what your thoughts are! 

Almond Meal Brownies

Pictured Here With Cookies & Cream Homemade
Protein Powder Ice Cream 

Yet again I could not find a pan so I used a pie pan. This recipe makes 8 equal pie pieces, nutritional information is based per piece. 

Ingredients
3/4 Cup of Almond Meal
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder
1/2 Teaspoon baking powder
40 drops of liquid sweetener 
3 eggs
1 Tablespoon Vanilla 
1 Tablespoon Granulated Sweetener
1/4 Cup Butter
2 Tablespoons Heavy Cream
1 Tablespoon Chocolate Almond Milk 
1/2 Bar (25 g) Lindtt 99% Cocoa Chocolate

Prep Work
Grease an 8x8 pan or pie pan.
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
Procedure
1. Mix together in medium bowl: almond meal, salt, cocoa, granulated sweetener and baking powder.
2. Melt together in a small bowl: chocolate, butter, 10 drops of sweetener.
3. Mix together in another medium bowl: eggs, the rest of the sweetener, almond milk, heavy cream, vanilla.
4. Pour melted mixture from Step 2 into mixture from Step 3.
5. Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
7. Cool before cutting 


Nutritional Information (Per Slice)
Calories: 146
Fat: 14g
Carbs: 3.2g
Fiber: 1.8g
Sugars: 0.4g
Protein: 3g

Where Are The Pork Rinds?

If you would have told me at this time last year I would be craving pork rinds I would have said one of two things:

1. "I need to stop watching American Horror Story because weird cravings are not my style."

or, more likely...

2. "What the hell are pork rinds?"

Keto has opened my eyes to some new foods, things I never thought I would eat. Like miracle noodles. Granted, I never will eat Miracle Noodles again, there is one thing I truly miss now that I am back in Nova Scotia that is impossible to find. Pork rinds. 

Living in the arm pit of the universe makes it hard to find certain things you grow accustomed to eating beyond the boarder. Pork rinds are the first example, they common place in any convenience store in other provinces and in the United States but impossible to find in Nova Scotia. My boyfriend and I joke about the reasons why these 0 carb snacks are "illegal" on the peninsula, but I would seriously like to know why we are not allowed to buy pork rinds. 

In general, we do not have a diabetes store or anything of the sorts that we can find. This obviously does not make keto/low carb living impossible, but it does add a few challenges. When living in Calgary we were able to by 0 carb, sugar-free foods pretty conveniently.  Here, it is a completely different story. Pete's Frootique carries some sauces that have made life a little easier, but lines like "Guy's Barbecue Sauce" and "Walden Farms" sauces simply do not seem to exist here. 

Have you run into these problems? This is a problem for me, I do not have a credit card. I would much rather buy local than order things online, but right now that is looking pretty impossible. I try to cut frankenfoods as much as possible from my diet, but sometimes a syrup or sauce is just nice to have. And, pork rinds are the perfect snack for nachos or just on their own. I much prefer them to Beanitos (which we do have in Nova Scotia). 

Believe me, if I had money to spare (if I wasn't a poor student), I would open a Diabetic store in Nova Scotia.