Category Archives: Keto recipes
Good info about ketogenic diet with food list, menus, and advice
Found an inspiring blog with some solid keto diet advice. I especially agree with this:
One of the most effective tricks during a diet is routine. Eat the same meals over and over or plan your meals ahead for the whole week. I’ve found it effective to pre-make dishes on Sunday and have them ready for the week. That makes it incredibly easy to stick to the diet because I avoid thinking which means I avoid creativity and creativity requires decision making which leads to hard choices. Just avoid the hard choices and have it all planned and some of it ready to grab and go.
The Basic Keto Diet, a page on Mike Maunder’s blog, has about everything you need to understand the ketogenic diet principle, plus a list of foods and menu plans. It’s thorough and inspiring.
Day 307: Keto-friendly crustless spinach quiche
Total weight loss: 41 1/2 pounds
I know I need to plan ahead to be successful on the keto plan, and to avoid all those carb-laden “easy” foods. Sunday morning, I decided to make a quiche that would last me the week. I used this crustless quiche recipe, from the Budgetbytes blog, and adapted it a bit.
I made a spinach, feta cheese and onion quiche, and it turned out a little too “green” for me. Next time, I’ll try adding more eggs and cream. I like my quiche to be eggier. Rick liked it alot. I like having an “instant breakfast” to take to work during the week ahead.
That’s all I really have to report for Sunday. I didn’t get time to blog all week, and I can’t remember what I had for dinner, but I was pretty strictly on keto since I know I’ll be having a few cheat days at the end of the week. My birthday is on Thanksgiving, so I’ll be having cake that day (plus whatever other carbs at dinner) and the evening before, my neice is taking me to dinner and a movie. I will have about 4 cheat meals in a row, so I’m eating as well as I can in anticipation.
Rick went shopping to get a variety of ingredients I need to create some keto-friendly Thanksgiving desserts. I’d like to try something with pumpkin and cream cheese. YUM.
Day 305: Delicious keto-friendly taco soup
Total weight loss: 41 1/2 pounds
Yesterday was Friday and the last day of diner eating. Rick and I decided it’s a bit much to go to breakfast every day – it’s a bit too much on his waistline and our pocketbook. I plan to make a quiche Sunday. I’m hoping that will motivate me to eat at home before work next M-W (Thursday is Thanksgiving, so no work).
However, we did eat at the diner, and I had the usual breakfast of cheese and onion omelet. Lunch at work was my quick and easy cheesy tortilla recipe (not much of a recipe. lol)
After work, of course I did not feel like cooking, because I NEVER do. However, I’ve been wanting to try a taco soup recipe my son Brandon has been making. He let me taste it at work this week, and it was really yummy.
Rick did the shopping while I was at work, of course. He makes keto easy!
I must give credit where credit is due, the recipe is from LINDA’S LOW CARB MENUS & RECIPES. She has a lot of really good keto-friendly recipes on her site. I had forgotten about this site, and I’ll have to reinvestigate it soon.
http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/creamy_sw_taco_soup.html
I adapted the recipe a bit. I only used one can of rotel tomatoes. I assumed correctly that these made up the bulk of the admittedly small amount of carbs in the recipe, but I’m not that fond of tomatoes and I thought I’d save carbs where I can. One can equals 10 grams of carbs, so that’s a significant savings.
As I started laying out the ingredients, I sadly discovered that the cumin bottle was nearly empty. Sigh. Rick and I searched the cupboards for another jar, but there was none to be found. I did have a jar of taco seasoning mix, so I subbed that for the cumin and chili powder. It was still tasty, but not as good as the spoonful I tried of Brandon’s “original” recipe.
I think mine ended up about 2 3/4 grams of carbs per servings, which is very very good. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the soup, but it looked just like the one on Linda’s page. It only took about 15 minutes, so I’m sure I’ll be making this again.
Day 296: Yummy pot roast from Costco
Total weight loss: 41 1/2 pounds
You may notice that I skipped Tuesday’s blog post (day 295). It was election day, and I knew I was going to attend a party at my friend Jo’s and would probably succumb to the temptation of her moist and chew brownies. I declared a cheat day in advance, and ate a Mexican pizza from Taco Bell for dinner, plus the aforementioned brownies and some chips and dip.
I had actually planned to have a cheat meal yesterday, since we were supposed to close on the home sale and celebrate at Macaroni Grill. Unfortunately, the closing was postponed until next week. This is the most difficult home sale we’ve ever had – and we’ve been through a few in the past 15 years. Since the cheat meal on Weds. was cancelled, I just moved it to the election party on Tuesday.
Yesterday morning began with a cheese and onion omelet at the diner. I added a side of crispy bacon and it was a very good meal.
Lunch was at my desk. I ate 2 Beddar Cheddars.
I had chili lime almonds for a late afternoon snack.
I worked late and didn’t get home from work until 7 pm. I popped a Costco pot roast from Costco into the microwave. I’ve had it before and I thought it was pretty tasty. It only takes 10 minutes to cook. I ran off to do some cleaning and sorting in the basement. When the 10 minutes were up, I tossed a bag of frozen cauliflower in the micro for 6 minutes and went outside for a quick vodka and diet drink on the deck.
It was a REALLY quick drink, because it was 40 degrees outside. Rick may enjoy the great white north, but not I. I cut my drink short and went back inside to whip up the cauliflower into mashed potatoes.
We had a quick and hearty meal in fewer than 25 minutes.
For dessert, Rick wanted me to whip up the keto-friendly chocolate mousse from heavy cream that I used to make. I did, and we had a lovely dessert.
Day 293: Trying a new chicken piccata recipe
Total weight loss: 41 1/2 pounds
Sunday morning and we decided to stay in for breakfast. It was a chilly, but sunny day and it was nice to eat in our cozy home. I had a leftover egg/sausage/cheese bowl that Rick had made for my Friday breakfast at work. I didn’t get around to eating it, and it was a perfect easy-peasy breakfast for someone who doesn’t love to cook. I ate that while attempting the NYT puzzle. This week’s was a bear!
On to the busy day: we went for one last clean out at the house we sold. I spent the day washing out the fridge, washing floors, vacuuming, sweeping, and for the grand finale: carrying old boxes, paints, and sundry items out of the basement. It was good exercise, but I was achy when finished.
We took a mid-day break at the Del Taco nearby. I wonder if that’s the last lunch I’ll have there, now that the house is sold. I ordered the macho beef burrito and was eating it without the tortilla, when I realized that it had beans in it. The guy taking our order did keep messing up, so I wasn’t surprised. I decided to eat it anyway, since I already had planned to have a cheat lunch due to the addition of 2 churros.
Eating the cheat lunch didn’t stop me from trying out a new keto-friendly dinner recipe. I think I am getting the hang of being balanced about this plan. I used to be so “all or nothing” that I would have just eaten a lot of carbs for the rest of the day since my lunch consumption was far from perfect. After more than 9 months on keto and nearing the 50 pound mark (woohoo!), I have learned to jump back on the wagon right away.
Chicken piccata ingredients include chicken (duh), garlic, white wine, lemon juice, and capers. I added mushrooms to make it similar to the meal I had at Angelo Brothers a few nights ago. Rick kindly shopped for the ingredients, and even cut the chicken and pounded it flat with a mallet. After that, the whole recipe took me less that 20 minutes to complete.
I sauteed the chicken in olive oil and butter, then transferred to a plate. Then I sauteed garlic and mushrooms, added wine and lemon juice, then added capers. I let this simmer.
I had some leftover cauliflower mashed potatoes and those made a great side item, since the soaked up the delicious gravy.
All in all, it was pretty good, but I need to work on it. I was tired from a long day, and didn’t feel like cooking, but it was a really nice and quick meal. I’ll attempt it again next week and see if I can get the proportions right, then I’ll post the entire recipe on the blog.
Day 288: Oops, cheat lunch at Chinese restaurant / excellent keto-friendly lasagna
Total weight loss: 41 pounds
We finally decided not to go out to breakfast. Just too costly. Rick made my “breakfast bowl”: 2 eggs, 2 sausage patties, cheese, and Taco Bell hot sauce. He puts it in a bowl, and I reheat, chop up, and eat at my desk. MMMMMMMM. Thanks, honey.
I was going to eat 2 Beddar Cheddars for lunch, but I got a surprise lunch invite from my niece, Marsha. The AUCE Chinese restaurant that we both love is very near my workplace, so I agreed to lunch with her.
I debated if I could do a low carb lunch, or if it was too difficult with the few options that I should just do a cheat meal. I sort of did a blend of both options.
I went to the Mongolian section and made a bowl with chicken, onion, garlic, and a little crab. I asked the cook to use garlic oil – he offered spicy; I said sure. It turned out to be delicious. Unfortunately, the Mongolian counter was at the back of the store, past the crab rangoons and the tempura sushi. Sigh.
So, I sort of did a half and half cheat meal. I had a main course that was low carb, and side dishes that were coated with breading. I do think I’ll get some garlic oil and try to make my own “Mongolian” stir fry at home. It’d be pretty easy, and keto-friendly. Always looking for some fresh ideas for keto recipes.
While I was off galavanting with my niece, Rick was home slaving away over the stove – for me! He made marinara sauce with the low carb tomato sauce and diced tomatoes he found yesterday at Kroger. He also cooked a pound of ground up Italian sausage. He was preparing the ingredients for a new keto-friendly, low-carb lasagna recipe I wanted to try. I thought I’d make it pretty close to my Dad’s traditional recipe, only using spaghetti squash as the lasagna “noodles.”
I saw this idea on several low carb sites, but most of the recipes, although low carb, were too high in carbs for keto. Rick did some investigating while shopping and found that a 14 oz can of Del Monte diced tomatoes with zesty mild green chilis was 7g per can, and Kroger tomato sauce was ZERO net carbs per can. He used 2 cans of each in his recipe, with 2 tbsp of olive oil (og), and various ingredients like garlic, 1/2 cup onion (10g), and 1/2 cup of red wine (4g). The whole recipe is posted here.
After work, I cook a whole large spaghetti squash, gathered the rest of the cheeses and ingredients and assembled a lasagna. Approximately one hour later, we sat down to a delicious bubbly authentic-tasting lasagna meal. At approximately 7.4 grams of carbs per serving, it surpassed my wildest dreams. I am no cook, but Rick’s marinara sauce is really flavorful and added to cheese and pepperoni, this tasted almost like my dad’s traditional recipe!
Here’s a picture of the whole pan…
So, dinner was a hit, and I have lots of servings to warm up during the week. This will definitely be a staple of my keto diet, and I’ll be making it a couple of times a month. I have to recalculate and be sure I didn’t mistake any of the carb counts. For instance, the mozzarella cheese said less than one gram of carbs per serving. Well, if you have many servings, when does that become 1 or even 2?
We each had an Adkins coconut bar for dessert. It was kind of an up and down day in terms of the keto plan, but creating such a keto-friendly pan of lasagna was a real high point of the day.
Day 285: Yummy steak with onion blue cheese sauce
Total weight loss: 41 pounds [I like typing that]
Saturday morning breakfast at the diner – cheese/onion omelet with a side of bacon
We worked on emptying and readying the house we [finally] sold. We packed and cleaned for a few hours. This stuff seems to multiply. Afterwards, we went to Del Taco. I had the usual macho beef burrito and opened up and ditched the tortilla.
My 2 pounds weight loss yesterday morning buoyed my spirits. I’m sometimes tempted to “reward myself” with some kind of cheat meal, but realized it would be better to save that for when I’m not losing, to perhaps shock my body into responding to the diet. So, I didn’t have a cheat meal, but my compromise was eating 1 1/2 cinnamon churros. I have to admit they were good. Now I will look at the carb count…..egad – 21 carbs per churro. So much for being in ketosis. Sigh. So, I had approximately 32 extra grams of carbs yesterday. Not good.
Oh, another tip: carry a “real” fork with you. I carry one in my purse and it comes in handy when I order things like this burrito, or a burger with no bun. I HATE using a plastic fork, and some of those burgers actually break them.
Dinner was legal and delish. Rick grilled steaks. I made the accompanying blue cheese onion cream sauce and some cauliflower mashed potatoes. Before dinner, I cleaned the house, put the tv/pc back in order (the old hard drive had failed), and generally spruced up the place. While cleaning out the sold house earlier in the day, I had grabbed Brandon and Lindsey’s lamp set, which they aren’t currently using, and I put one on each side of our Ansel Adams print next to the table. It looked warm and elegant, so we ate our gourmet dinner using cloth napkins and each had a glass of cabernet. I had one more glass out on the deck [oh, what the heck? I already ate 30+ carbs of churro earlier – bad attitude, I know].
Dessert was the usual choco/peanut butter low carb treat.
Day 283: A really good salad: Big Boy’s buffalo grilled chicken salad
Total weight loss: 39 pounds
Well, I really enjoyed that early morning breakfast Wednesday, so I made the effort to rise early and try it again. This time, we went to the Senate Coney Island, which is a bustling diner even at 7:30 am. I ordered a cheese omelet, asked them to add grilled onions, and skipped the toast. The side of bacon was enough for me to share with Rick. I topped the egg with sour cream (of course) and called it a meal. The service was fast, the omelet was delish, and the bacon was perfect. No extra hash browns to deal with and I just skipped the toast. We’ll be back.
Lunch was on the run, again. More paperwork and banking to do. This house closing is dragging on, and there are still details to cover and items to move from the house.
We went to Big Boy. Since this blog is all about honesty, I had a really difficult time deciding NOT to eat carbs. I love BB fish and chips, so that was hurdle one. I was tired, stressed and hungry (too hungry), so my decision making processes were hampered by the need for some comfort food. I had tried the buffalo chicken salad a while back and decided to try that. The spiciness might make me feel like I was having some tasty treat, and the blue cheese dressing that comes with would be creamy and fill that need for comfort.
It was a hit! I was a little worried that I made a wrong choice when I saw that the chicken had some kind of coating on it, but at that point, I was eating it no matter what. The tangy buffalo sauce was subtle on the small slices of chicken and blended well with the blue cheese. It was filling and delicious.
Again, I forgot to take a picture, so here’s one that looks similar. I will definitely be ordering this again soon, so I’ll get an authentic one on my next visit.
I looked up the nutrition information when I got home and it passed muster. Without croutons (which I removed), it’s 10.2 grams of carbs minus 2.3 grams of fiber, for a net of 7.9. That’s not counting the blue cheese dressing, but after a really low carb breakfast, I knew I’d be able to stay under 19 for the day. It also looks like they have similar salads at Chili’s and other restaurants.
Bad afternoon – I worked until 6:30. At 5:30, that damned Halloween candy bowl at work called my name. I ate a peanut butter cup and 9 whoppers (actual circles of candy, not packages). I have no defense. I do think a salad doesn’t stick with me long enough to ward off the temptations. Whatever. I guess I’ll just have to plan ahead in case I’m tempted again tomorrow – drink a lot of water and eat almonds in the late afternoon?
Dinner – home late again. Rick didn’t feel like cooking, so we stopped to pick up a rotisserie chicken. Again, I was tempted. I had already eaten candy, so how about some macaroni salad on the side? NO NO NO. Rick didn’t buy it, and I made cauliflower mashed potatoes instead. Wonder why this is so difficult lately.
Oh, here’s a tip I figured out in the past few months. I really like the cauliflower mashed potatoes, and I really don’t like cooking very much (in case you didn’t figure that out). I now buy small frozen packages of cauliflower and have about 4 on hand. I use the same recipe as I have posted here, but here are the amounts of the ingredients I use with this size package….
Easy peasy cauliflower mashed potatoes – open one bag of cauliflower, pour in bowl, microwave 5 minutes. Put the cauliflower, 3-4 tbsp of cream cheese (definitely less than half a package), and one tbsp of butter into a food processor. The cauliflower should be steaming hot to melt the cheese easily. Process and eat. One package makes a little more than 2 servings. If Rick doesn’t eat his, it warms up well the next day.
Well, that quick recipe was a life savor, and I avoided the carby macaroni salad. I ate about 6 ounces of chicken with the “caulitatoes.” Dessert was 2 squares of chocolate with natural peanut butter.
Day 4: Yum, stuffed mushrooms and a crazy day
Today’s weight loss: 2 pounds
Total weight loss since 1/12/2012: 6 1/2 pounds
Yesterday, I got a very late start on breakfast.
My husband Rick and I have my 88-year old dad stay with us every Friday thru Sunday. He suffers from Alzheimer’s and can’t live alone. By the time I got him up, fed, showered, and settled in his room with some fresh clothes, I didn’t get breakfast until 1:30 p.m. There were some major difficulties during shower time…he was unable to get out of the tub and landed on the floor. He wasn’t hurt; he just sort of slowly slipped down to a sitting position. Nonetheless, my husband and I had quite a time trying to maneuver and lift him.
Once that trauma was over, Rick went off to get some groceries to aide in my new keto diet. He’s a very supportive husband and has tried each of the new recipes with me. He is also the grocery shopper and cook in the marriage, so with him on board, my chances of being successfully carb-free are great! As the “not-cook,” I am surprised to find I’m enjoying playing around with some of these wonderful recipes I’ve found online. Maybe this cooking thing isn’t so bad, after all.
So, at 1:30, I experimented with my nuked cheese crackers and enjoyed a relaxing brunch.
Because I ate breakfast so late, I never really had a true lunch. Dinner was stuffed mushroom appetizers, then 2 pulled pork tacos. (See a picture in my last post.)
Rick altered his classic mushroom recipe by using crumbled pork rinds instead of bread crumbs. He also left the sweet spicy hot sauce off (8 carbs a tbsp!), and I dipped mine in a small bowl to get a bit of the flavor without all the carbs.
My energy level is fantastic. I never feel like cleaning the kitchen after dinner, but I spent an hour and a half tidying up last night. It sparkles! I can’t seem to stop moving. So far, I’m a big fan of the keto eating plan!
Yesterday’s meals –
Breakfast: 6 “cheese-its” with avocado/spinach/parmesan dip
Lunch: 4 stuffed mushrooms with 2/3 tbsp of sweet/hot sauce
Dinner: 2 tacos made from Costco pulled pork, provolone cheese shells, grated cheese/onions/Taco Bell hot sauce
Snack: 2 pcs Lindt 79% chocolate and one glass of cabernet
Splurge: 1 diet coke