Low Carb Shamrock Protien Shakes

 When I was a kid I was obsessed with Shamrock Shakes from McDonald's. I has been a lifelong problem. I even had Shamrock Shake stickers on my dorm room mini-fridge at university.


While we were on vacation Kev had a Shamrock Shake on his cheat day and I have been craving one ever since.

So, I altered some Shamrock Shake recipes I found online to make it a low carb treat. We are only a week away from St. Paddy's Day, so get your fill now or drink it anytime of year!

Here it is in all of its high calorie glory. I really liked it using half-and0





Ingredients:
1/2 cup of half-and-half cream
1/2 cup of water
1 scoop of vanilla protein powder
1/4 teaspoon of mint extract
1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract
3 ice cubes
2-3 drops of green food coloring (optional)
*you can sprinkle grated dark chocolate on top for a tasty garnish

Procedure:
Mix all together in a blender and boom, a low carb take on McDonald's Shamrock Shake!

Nutritional Information: To come.
This will vary depending on what brand of protein powder you use. You can safely add a little bit of water in most cases.
Calories:
Fat:
Carbohydrates:
Sugar:
Fibre:

Carbquik Waffles

I really miss super carby breakfasts with crepes, pancakes and waffles. After moving and going through a big transition period where it has been easiest to stick to bacon and eggs we finally got out shit together this morning and made waffles for the first time in months. Boy, were they ever good. 

I don't normally like to post about products that you have to purchase that are hard to find but this morning I am just so happy to have had a special breakfast treat that I have to post about it. Carbquik is expensive, but so worth it to have to make things (easily) that you miss while cutting carbs, like waffles. 

Yum.



The best thing about having a box of Carbquick around the house is how easy it is to make all of the Carbquik recipes. I use the waffle recipe on the back of the box and then add a little bit more vanilla and sugar-free caramel syrup (if I have it). Sometimes we add a scoop of protein powder to the mix too!

Fried Pepperoni, The Easiest Night-In Snack

I used to hate pepperoni, now I love it.

Its greasy greatness, the perfect treat if you are staying in and want a quick snack.

Ingredients
-100g of your favourite pepperoni (I used cheddar pep in my photos)
-coconut oil
-sour cream, salsa, mustard or ranch for dip

Procedure
1. Cut up your desired amount of pepperoni into thick (or thin) rounds.
2. Heat coconut oil at a medium-high on stove top.
3. Fry pepperoni until crisp.
4. Place pepperoni on paper towel and let sit for a couple minutes to allow grease to run off.
5. Serve with selected dip.


Nutritional Information (per 100g)*
Calories: 493
Total Fat: 43.0g
Total Carbs: 0g
Protein: 21.9g

*This is approximate, different brands and makes of pepperoni may have different nutritional values.

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