Ketogenic Diet

[Dejah]

Daughter's been wanting us to reduce carbs in our diet. So, I'm trying! Haven't had real or processed bread, rice, or potatoes since Thanksgiving. Well, I slipped for a wedge of naan at an Indian restaurant for staff dinner earlier this week. Portion control is also something we are trying to work on, to reduce and control calories. Using full cream, butter, and cheese are "lifesaving" ingredients. Keto is much like the old Dr. Atkins diet we were on years ago. Meals take some thinking but certainly workable with what I usually have on hand. I need to work harder in keeping a "measured" diary and counting. Both my hubby and I need to lose weight, specifically belly fat.  If anyone has recipes and suggestions, I'd SO appreciate it!
I did order some supplies from a Canadian low carb / gluten-free, high-fibre suppliy store: pitas, hot cereal, breading / batter mix (soy flour), Konjac fettuccini (no fish aroma as with Shirataki but using same ingredient), Swerve sweetener, and a blueberry syrup.

 

Daughter left us with some Pumpkin Cream Cheese muffins - dense, full of fibre, and SO good (who could resist cream cheese!)

In the news this week, researchers were lamenting that we eat so much processed food, which goes straight to the blood stream. The microbs in our belly need "cud" / fibre, so I am heeding that call.

 

For meals: 

 

A dry Beef curry with cheesy cauliflower au gratin and baby bak choy fried in chicken stock.

 

Cumin - whole grain mustard Lamb cooked in the Big Easy. Fresh mint sauce with rice vinegar.

 

Chicken meatballs with Konjac fettuccini and Alfredo sauce

 

Bittermelon and Beef stir-fry - Shirataki Fettuccine

 

Pan-fried Salmon coated with a smear of mayo and soy flour / Parmesan cheese - roasted cauliflower, steamed broccoli with leftover Afredo sauce.

 

Roasted corned beef with simmered cabbage and fennel seeds

 

Breakfasts usually consist of eggs in some way. Lunches are a small salad with some bits of the leftover protein from previous suppers. Snacks can be small pieces of hard old cheddar, 1/2 avocado, almonds, pork rinds, or my favourite - a tbsp of cream cheese enjoyed like a lollipop!

Daughter had made a Lemon Slice with almond flour crust. REALLY good. I think I'll just make the filling (like lemon pie) and use the crust as a crumble. Fewer calories.

Hope some of you readers out in eGullet land have some ideas to share!

 

 

[Duvel]

Cabbage lasagna with Savoy cabbage, minced lamb and middle-eastern type spices

Abura-age tofu sheets as pizza bases

Deep-fried tofu cubes with ragu bolognese

Any type of fish fillets baked in a puréed spinach/ricotta mixture

Bulgogi-style dinner with any meat / veggies

(And once you enter the not so strict phase: check "retrograded starches" and go for sushi and potato salad in 1001 varieties ;-)

[Deryn]

Well, I have to say you certainly make dieting look delicious! Thanks, Dejah. Wish you well on the quest. How long have you been at this so far and is it yielding the desired results yet?

[Darienne]

Dear Dejah,  All best to you and DH on this diet.  I found that trying the Atkins diet left me in a dreadful 'mood' or frame of mind...or something...and just couldn't do it.   Thus I have no advice, but warm wishes.

[Dejah]

Darienne, Thank you for your good wishes. 
The only negative symptoms I've experienced have been flu-like symptoms. That apparently is the body saying "I need sodium!" I drink a lot of water and that washes out the salts in the body. I drink a mug of chicken broth reinforced with No-Salt for the sodium and potassium. The symptoms disappear. The other is sometimes very tired legs - and magnesium eases that and gives a great sleep if taken at night! Daughter said that most patients that she's worked with are  usually low in magnesium, so it's not a bad idea to take a tablet every day.

 

Duvel: Thanks for the suggestions. I will definitely try them.

 

In 2 weeks of "not strict enough" dieting, I have lost 3 lbs. The next step, literally, is exercising - more walking before anything else more serious. Gotta break us in gently.

[Dejah]

Trying a few more dishes. Took Duvel's suggestion of deep fried tofu squares and had braised chicken thighs with rehydrated Chinese mushrooms, canned waterchestnuts for crunch, and ginger.

 

 

Steamed fresh & salted eggs with ground pork

 

 

Dessert: High fibre Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

 

 

[Dejah]

Keto-friendly 10 minute Chili: The recipe is actually for a casserole, layered with chili, sour cream, cooked spaghetti squash, etc, but I just made the chili, used konjac fettuccini from a commercial source with alfredo sauce, and shredded habanero cheese on top. Good chili! Bowl was enough for two with some for another lunch portion.

 

Beef Shortribs on sale at local supermarket. Cooked up 7 chunks and have enough for 3 more meals in the freezer. Meat was browned in ghee. Added 2 small chunked kohlrabi and some celery. Eaten with pan fried tofu.

 

Need to learn to use xanthum gum or something else as thickener. I used 1 tsp. cornstarch in stock as thickener this time. That's pretty minimal for a big pot of stew.

 

 

[naguere]

I have pretty much given up carbs, substituting Polenta/Kashka and just loads of veg.

 

This dish is sauteed lambs liver, Kaska and mushrooms finished in the pan along with a dash of red wine.

 

I went to my local Waitrose (uk) and asked for calves liver. the lady butcher said that lambs liver was just as good and a good deal more affordable, my order came to 70 Pence (enough for 2 meals).

would you like to know how much that would be if you had chosen calves liver?, she pressed a button on the scale and it showed £7.70.

 

It seems that some people will pay that price.

Edited November 8, 2015 by naguere (log)

[Dejah]

WOW! That's really high price for calf liver. Luckily, it's cheap here whereas lamb livers are available only from an abattoir. If I order a whole lamb, quite often I'd get several from others who do not want the live or kidneys...Can't imagine!

Just looked up carbs for kasha, if that's what you meant. It's pretty high. One serving is 33 gm carbs with 5 gm fibre. That's net carbs of 28 gms. I am trying to limit to 20 gms a day, so, that option is out.
Mushrooms, on the other hand...GREAT!

[Dejah]

Supper last night was a piece of sirloin tip roast on sale for $4.98 / lb. For $25.00, I got 8 x 1.5 inch slabs for the freezer, enough for 8 meals.

Kept one out for last night's supper. It was an end piece, slightly thicker. It was good for the two of us plus some for our lunch salad today.

Eaten with stir-fried baby bak choy.

 

 

Also made an 8 x 8 casserole of Cauliflower Mac'n'Cheese. High in calories 358 g and 31 g fats (cream, cream cheese, cheddar cheese) but low in carbs = 6 g per serving. I made sure we each had only ONE serving.other than my licking the spoon.  I asked about using light cream cheese, etc, but no...keep the fat as the body needs it, but definitely keep the portions down to check calorie over-load.

 

 

 

[jayt90]

I like your use of sirloin. When beef prices are high, it is at least reasonable,and often on special. 

[SLB]

Dejah, your low-carb reports are thrilling!  It's a diet that works well for me -- everything in me performs better with lots of protein; but I get spiritually exhausted with all the meat, all the time.  This is, like, dynamite!

[Dejah]

SLB:  Thank you for your comments...just in time to give me a boost.

Got side-tracked this week due to a dinner and brunch out. The dinner was at a fundraiser. Even tho' the bread basket was fabulous, I could only eat half a dinner roll (good for me!), but the potato flan was a little harder. Next day, the family all went out for dim sum, along with some Shanghai noodles. Yup...I caved, but with moderation.

 

Now, I'm trying to get back to a routine. Just got my Ketogenic Cookbook by Jimmy Moore and Maria Emmerich. Lots of great recipes for me to try.

 

Tonight, I made Chicken Parmasan, a recipe from Cooking by the Ruled.

 

 

Chicken thighs dipped in egg, coated with flaxseed meal and grated Parmasan cheese. These were pan-fried, then topped with tomato sauce and Mozz / cheddar cheese and broiled until the cheese melted.

Eaten with pan-fried tofu.

 

 

 

[Dejah]

Productive cooking weekend! I needed to stockpile breakfast foods so I am not just eating eggs every morning. Altho' I love eggs in various forms, it wouldn't do to get sick of 'em.

 

Made Frittara Muffins with eggs, bacon, cream, cheddar cheese, red bell pepper: 171.2 Calories and 1.6 g net carbs. I doubled the recipe and made 12 "muffins"

11 Maple Pecan Muffins with almond flour, flaxseed meal, pecans, erythitol,coconut oil, eggs: 208 Calories, 1.5 net carbs, 

1 loaf (12 slices) Vanilla Butter Pound Cake with butter, almond flour, eggs, erythitol, vanilla:  223.8 Calories, 1.4 net carbs

15 Blueberry Sour Cream Muffins: almond flour, erythitol, sour cream, eggs, butter, blueberries: 147 calories, 3 net carbs.

 

Haven't tried the Maple Pecan Muffins or the Blueberry ones, but the frittata and the pound cake are great!

 

 

 

For supper, I made the NIrvana Meatballs (don't know why "nirvana") from my new Ketogenic Cookbook by Jimmy Moore and Maria Emmerich. They were an equal mix of ground pork and ground chicken, with cream cheese, diced celery, egg, and freshly grated Parmesan (as I didn't have blue cheese on hand). They were REALLY good! Instead of buffalo sauce or whatever choice, I made a "sauce" with sauteed mushrooms with sour cream and a dash of cream. Have leftovers for the freezer .

 

 

 

 

[Dejah]

Been busy with teaching and playing a role (Chinese restauranteur) in "A Christmas Story - the Musical", so it was easy to throw a roast in the oven. Did not calculate carbs but I think fairly on track. Sides were Cheesy Broccoli and a few stir-fried soybean sprouts.

 

Tonight, I had a break, so made Asian Style Meatballs with Chili-Lime sauce. The recipe called for 1 lb ground pork. I used 1/3 lb pork and 2/3 lb ground beef for 18 meatballs. They were baked in the oven.The texture reminded me of the beef meatballs at dim sum restaurants - light and bouncy  
The sauce was sugar-free ketsup, lime juice, soy sauce, chili paste, and sesame oil. Lovely and tangy with a bit of heat.

 

 

For 6 meatballs, 424.3 calories, 3.8 net carbs.

[Dejah]

Finally getting back to trying out more "recipes" for Keto diet.

 

Fried up some pork chops dusted with Montreal Steak Spice - finished off in the oven. Made a sauce with fresh mushrooms, 2 tbsp sour cream, and a splash of cream to thin it out. Supper for 4 with roasted cauliflower "steaks" seasoned with Slap Ya Mama...

 

Tonight: Orange Chicken: chunks of chicken breast coated with crushed pork rinds and almond flour. These were browned in coconut oil and topped with a tangy, salty sauce with a touch of sweetness (orange juice, orange zest, no-suagr ketsup, rice vinegar, fish sauce, soy sauce, a few drops of Stevia, 1/4 tsp xanthum gum) Ate this with sauteed bok choy. Really good!

 

 

 

[Dejah]

Butter Chicken from scratch, sauteed Chinese cabbage, low-carb pita (purchased). Thank goodness for butter and cream!
Cut a whole chicken into 4 parts, rubbed with spices, sour cream and tomato sauce. Placed under broiler to char, then finished off on top of stove with cream.

 

[Dejah]

Playing catch-up with Keto cooking. My boss is also on this diet. He's divorced and doesn't cook, so I've been making extra portions and delivering to him:

Lamb Tikka Masala with sauteed kohlrabin with cumin seeds

Orange Chicken and Sesame Cabbage

Moussaka and Spaghetti Squash

Grilled Sirloin Tip and Zuchinni Tots

 

 

 

 

[Dejah]

Another recipe Chicken a la King without bell peppers over a bed of Nu Pasta Konjac Fettuccini

Cheesy Spaghetti Squash

And make-shift Beef stroganoff : leftover roast beef, mushrooms, and gravy over Tofu Shirataki Noodles

 

 

[ElsieD]

If your food tastes as good as it looks, well, when can I come for dinner?  Your meals look lovely.  How do you like the tofu Shirataki noodles?  We ate a lot of them a couple of years ago when we were trying to lose weight and thought they were pretty good.  I was surprised to read recently that a lot of people said the noodles "smelled" and for that reason wouldn't eat them.  I always rinsed them before using them for whatever I was using them for.

[Dejah]

Hi ElsieD: We've been eating the Tofu Shirataki noodles for a couple of years and like them. I wish our store would get the macaroni shape ones again.This  Keto diet is better as there's more variety in meats...and THE CHEESE! 
The tofu noodles do have a fishy smell when you open the packages, but rinsed under hot water then use for whatever is fine with my nose;-) Usually, we have them in soup: chicken stock, Romaine or whatever greenery and protein on hand.No smell once "cooked".
Right now, we are also using a product made from the same konyaku tuber - ordered thru' a low carb supplier in Ontario: NuPasta. The texture is a little less "bouncy" and less of the fishy smell. We like it but it's more expensive.
We've really enjoyed the meals posted above. There's no reason for food to taste blah when on a diet. I have modified some of my own recipes, use resources on line and in a Keto cookbook I bought.  My boss is very happy with his "personal chef"... and I am earning a little extra $ for Christmas. Besides, he won't want to lose my from his staff!

[Dejah]

Modified Moussaka: No Bechamel sauce but this was pretty good - cream, Parmesan cheese, eggs.

Mashed Creamy Cauliflower : Microwaved 1 head of chopped cauliflower with 2 tbsp cream and 2 oz. of cheddar cheese. 

Malaysian Beef Rendang

Lamb Tikka Masala with cumin kohlrabi

Beef Tendon Shirataki Noodle Soup

 

Leftovers for next week!

 

 

 

 

Edited December 13, 2015 by Dejah (log)

[Dejah]

Slow roast saddle of lamb with whole grain mustard and fresh rosemary. Eaten with roasted cauliflower steaks, fresh mint sauce, and salad

Hot & Sour soup base - just needs some tofu...not thickened...

[Anna N]

 Not even pretending to be following a ketogenic regime but your photos, Dejah,  make it look very doable and appetizing so when a friend offered to lend me the book I took her up on it without hesitation.  The book is equally appealing with it gorgeous plating and photos. 

 

Today I made the masala sauce and tossed in some already sous-vided chicken breast.  I cooked a couple of tiny papadum in the microwave and had very satisfactory meal.  There was more than enough sauce to freeze some for a couple more meals.   Re-heated with a protein of some sort thrown in I have a couple of fast meals in the wings for those days when my energy level really tanks. 

 

 

[Dejah]

Your masala sauce looks perfect, Anna N. Papadum or naan would have been great with the lamb we had, but the kohlrabi with cumin worked well as substitute. You should try the Nirvana Meatballs. Great over "pasta".

We love the Orange Chicken, so I made it again, with chicken thighs. They turned out the BEST - just like fried chicken!

Daughter came home from Boston for the holidays. She wanted beef, so it was fajitas with low-carb tortillas and all the trimmings.
But we cheated a bit for dessert: a small piece of New Zealand Birdseed bar that I am making as gifts for friends. VERY addictive!