Monday, November 5, 2012

Savory Quiche - Grain free, Gluten Free

On the weekend, I am always in the mood for something a little more extravagant then a fried egg and a glass of milk. 
However, Kyle always wants eggs, and bacon :) Usually I will stick to waffles or pancakes (using both my whey powder recipes). However on Sunday, I wasn't in the mood for carbs.
I woke up a bit early so I had some extra time. I was having some fond memories of a hot warm quiche coming out of the oven as I sipped on my coffee and watched the snow pile up on the windows. Mmmm quiche. You know those little mini tarts that are served at parties? Besides those parties and Home Economics, I never really made them. 
I was excited to try something new without adding a full carb load onto my day. 
 I wasn't sure exactly what crust I was wanting to try. traditionally a wheat pie crust would be used, or a store bought frozen tart shell.
I was thinking about how I didn't really feel like making my FABULOUS pie crust this early am. So I went with a herb almond flour crust. 
This crust was very flavorful and delicious. The only downfall I could say is it doesn't hold together as well hot fresh out of the oven versus when it's cooled down or eaten cold. 
You can cut it and it holds together, don't get me wrong, but it does crumble.
 I think this recipe turned out delicious, but it did take longer then the average breakfast. To pick up the pace I would recommend making the crust the night before and refrigerate. Then simply mix up your quiche, pour it in and bake. If you want you could switch out this crust for my pie crust or you can simply let the quiche cool for 15-20 min or eat cold with a salad at lunch time.
The best part about a quiche is you can really use up a bunch of vegetable that are just hanging out in your fridge. I used our last garden tomato on the top of this one!
For the most part, the vegetables will float so you can be creative with the colors of what you throw in. 
When I was making the crust I was really just throwing in a bunch of deliciousness into a bowl and tossing it together. I have made this twice now. Same crust different veggies. Perfect every time.

The crust is a press in. You will need to use your hands and press it in. It's your choice if you want to go up the side of the pie plate or not. You can do a thicker crust just on the bottom or a thin one up the sides as well.
I love the crispy savory texture of the crust so I always put it up the sides so every bite is delicious. Feel free to use any other spices or herbs you deem fit in the same ratio. You can also double the recipe for a lasagna pan size casserole, versus a quiche. This fed us most of the week for breakfast. Just fry a crisp piece of bacon and served the quiche hot from the toaster oven with coffee.

Savory Herb Quiche - Grain free, Gluten free

For the Crust:

In a small saute pan:
Brown 1/2 C diced red onion with 1T butter until tender and soft. Set aside.

In a small mixing bowl:
1 1/2 C blanched almond flour

2 T chopped fresh Parsley
1 T dried italian herbs or 2tsp each dried oregano and basil
1/4 t Herbamere, sesame sea salt blend, sea salt, or kelp seasoning
1/4 t garlic powder
1/4 t onion powder
dash smoked paprika

Stir together. Add in the sauteed onions. 

Melt 1/3 C coconut oil, or butter and pour into mixing bowl. Toss ingredients together until wet and crumbly. Scoop the crust into a greased pie plate and press with hands on the bottom and up the sides. Approx. 1/4 inch thick. 
Place in the refrigerator until firm. 10-15 min.

For the Quiche:

In a large mixing bowl:

1/2 C diced baby spinach or brocolli
1/4 C chopped red pepper or mushrooms
4 pc bacon cooked and crumbled or 1/4 C diced ham
1/4 C cream cheese, goat cheese, or grated cheese of choice
1/4 C heavy cream, half and half, or coconut milk
5 lrg Organic eggs
1 T thyme

Dash cayenne pepper
1/4 t smoked paprika
1/4 t garlic powder
1/4 t black pepper
1/8 t Herbamere, or sea salt

Mix very well until combined. Pour into the firm and cool crust. On the top place
1 tomato cut into 8 wedges.
Bake in the oven at 400 for 35-40 minutes. Quiche will puff up in the oven and fall once removed. Quiche is cooked when the center is firm and not wiggly. 

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Biscuits - Grain free, Gluten free

It has been a Loong summer over here. Hectic, busy and lots of vacationing.. 
So sorry for the delay! Just because I have been away doesn't mean that I haven't been cooking. 
Today it's snowy, cold and winter is blowing in. I felt like soup. Vegetable soup and what goes good with vegetable soup?
BISCUITS!
I can tell you it has taken me months to find biscuit that I like. 
I follow a lot of blogs, but none of them make a biscuit I am excited about. 
Coconut flour makes very dense biscuits, like think cake donut. Solid and heavy. 
I know without Gluten you cannot really acheive the same idea as glutenous baking powder biscuits, but you can still make them light. 
NOW to make them Grain Free is a totally different subject. You can make delicious ones with Oat or rice flour but then the carb load is just outrageous. 
A falling asleep carb load is not what I had in mind. 
So here is a delicious biscuit, light, cracky, moist, soft, hold together well and delicious savory with ham and cheese, or with honey and tea.
You can definitely serve these with guests over that eat wheat and they would like them. What's the secret to a soft puffy biscuit that is grain free? Whey powder.
My favorite ingredient of course! Adding whey powder to these not only has the nutritional benefit but it helps them rise and be not as dense.

 
Baking Powder Biscuits - Grain Free, Gluten free
Makes 8.

In a glass bowl:
2 C blanched almond flour
1 t aluminum free baking soda
1 t sea salt
2 T unsweetened whey powder

In a small bowl:
1/4 C melted butter, grape seed oil, or lard**
2 small eggs or 1 lrg egg
1/4 t sucralose, stevia or other sweetener

Mix the wet ingredients into the dry. Form into 8 equal size biscuits and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Biscuits will rise and puff up.
Bake at 350 for 8 minutes for soft and tender or 10-12 minutes for crunchy and firm.

Bottom should be just slightly golden brown. Allow to cool for 3-5 minutes before cutting, if they are too hot they will fall apart as you cut them. 

Make these savory and throw in some rosemary, dry mustard, dill, cheese, ham, chives, garlic etc. 


**substituting coconut oil for the butter will give them a coconut taste.

Store in a parchment or brown paper bag on the counter or refrigerate if desired. Storing in a Ziploc or plastic will make them very soft and they will mold fast.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Chocolate Chip cookies - flourless, grain free, dairy free, gluten free, sugar free

I was so excited today, I was planning on listing pancakes. However, I was really really really craving chocolate chip cookies. 
I wanted to make some but I have a hard time making them healthy.
I've been doing some research on baking pavlova cakes and pie crusts. I thought it would be a delicious alternative to grains using a meringue pie crust. 

I am planning on going crazy with making macaroons for Christmas this year. I will make them in every color! Why macaroons? 
They look great, colorful and decorative. But mostly, because then I only have to make one big batch and I can divide them per household that we go visit. No more making 10 different kinds of cookies because of all the different dietary needs and different tastes.

While I was browsing, I thought, how delicious would it be to make a cookie that was macaroon based instead of from grains. A meringue cookie, without being a shatter hard meringue. A meringue cookie without being gummy and chewy and funny looking..  A meringue cookie tasting like a cookie, looking like a cookie, and being small enough to shove one in my mouth every time I walk by type of cookie.
They are chewy, melt in your mouth tender, and simple ingredient wise compared to my other recipes. 
Honestly, I will probably never make any other kind of cookie again. They were sooooo good, and I don't feel guilty after eating them.
These are meringue cookies, or macaroons without the filling. You could fill them though, if you wanted. I could hardly stand waiting for them to cook though so I don't think I would fill them. 
They may look like ordinary cookies in the picture, but they are different. You could put them out on the table and just wait for someone to sneak one. They wouldn't even notice they didn't use flour or grains.
You can make them as difficult (by piping them out fancy) or easy (spoon) as you like. They will taste the same. 
They didn't spread, or rise. They didn't change shape or move, so put them in the same shape you want them to come out.

Chocolate Chip Macaroons - 
primal, grain free, gluten free, sugar free, dairy free

A macaroon (/mækəˈrn/mak-ə-ROON) is a type of light, baked confection, described as either small cakes or meringue-like cookies depending on their consistency.

In a stand mixer bowl, beat until stiff peaks form:

3 organic egg whites
1/4 t sea salt
pinch cream of tartar or lemon juice

In a separate bowl mix together:
powdered sweetener to equal 5 tbs sugar (sucralose, or stevia)
1/4 C almond flour
1 t vanilla powder**
dash cinnamon

Once egg whites are stiff, sprinkle in 1/3 of dry mix over top of the whites and fold in gently. About 3 folds. Continue until all mix is combined.

Add: 1/4 C semi sweet or unsweetened chocolate chips

Fold twice. On a large cookie sheet with parchment paper, drop delicately by the tablespoon. Swirl top and flatten to size of desired cookie (You can also pipe the cookies for more elegance).
Cookies don't rise or spread so little space is necessary.

Bake at 300 degrees for 40 minutes, or until slightly golden and crisp on the outside.

The cookies should be chewy and soft in the middle but slightly crispy on the outside. I probably waited 3 minutes before trying one and it was great warm. I will have to try one cold and notice the texture change. 

For best results keep cookies cold to stop meringue from turning gummy.

* If you don;t have vanilla powder, you can use vanilla extract but adding it to the egg whites while mixing. Too much vanilla with break down the whites.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Grain Free Granola - sugar free

Ever since we got a dehydrator I have been thrilled with making my own granola. When we first started going grain free spending 9$ for a bag for only 1 weeks worth was tragic.

Originally I have always been an oatmeal eater, still to this day because it's so delicious; organic gluten free oats; I don't know how you can go wrong.
Sadly, I have been trying to slowly reduce my oats to weekly or biweekly, just because there are good reasons to do that and I like experimenting. 

So I was thinking, a grain free granola? Hm, sounds good. Only I don't just want a mouth full of nuts.  I like almonds, but almonds on top of almonds is a little too much for me.
You know my new favorite ingredient is Whey Powder.  It's delicious, and has many different beneficial properties, besides being low in carb. 

So I thought, how great would it be to use Whey powder as a base for the granola instead of rolled oats.
 Here is what I cam up with:

 

 Grain Free Granola - sugar free 

Make this into, cinnamon raisin, strawberry vanilla, cranberry crunch, etc.

In a large mixing bowl:

4 C sliced blanched almonds*
2 C shredded coconut unsweet
1 C vanilla Whey powder unsweet
1 C organic raisins
1/2 C flax meal or 1/4 C chia


Stir together, In a seperate bowl mix:

1 C unsweetened apple sauce
2 T palm sugar, or equal to in splenda, stevia
1 T vanilla powder or real extract
2 T ground cinnamon
1 t sea salt

Combine the two bowls. Mixture should clump together but not be wet. Spread out on to several racks in dehydrator. Dehydrate at 200 degrees. Every 2 hours stir and crumble granola with your hands until mix starts to clump and dry together. Dehydrate 8 hours or so until crunchy.

Can be made in the oven baked at 200 degrees until crispy. Stir every 2 hours just the same.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Grain Free Bread - Dairy free, gluten free

I know, I know. It's been a LONG time since I have posted.
MY life just started getting busy, and busy, and busy, and it's time for some changes around here.
My business has been taking up all my free time, I am trying hard right now to actually increase my free time and pull away from my business slightly in order to have a life.

I have been cooking and baking just as mush as ever, but I haven't listed anything. I have lots of pictures stacked up. So I hope to have some great recipes to share with you.
I don't know what it is about today, but I felt like baking bread.
I am shocked actually to discover I should be eating more alternative grains then I am used to on a cleanse, so I have been making bread.
I know how some people just stay away from bread all together, but sometimes I am really at a loss for what to do with left over chicken, or ham and I would love just a quick sandwich.
I refuse to buy processed bread. Anything you can buy Gluten free, is full of horrible starches and more rice then I eat in a month. I can't force myself to eat them without feeling awful full allllll day and a total pile of guilt.
I have made some breads in the past.
Coconut flour, tapioca flour, almond flour, and I usually don't really care for them. I will say I don't like finding coconut flour in my bread.
I also don't like really dense cakey bread. But, of course you know it's near impossible to get a fluffy and light loaf without Gluten.
I went to my favorite organic, Natural food store and was very please with their big variety of nut butters. I have honestly never bought anything but almond or peanut. I thought, HEY, if I can make semi good bread from almond butter, what can I make from others?
I dunno if you have noticed but almond butter doesn't really have that much taste.
So what about other delicious organic butters? Raw cashew, tahini, sunbutter, pumpkin seed, hemp seed. There is just so many how can you choose?

Today I knew I was going to bake bread, so I looked in the pantry and had inspiration.
I wanted to see if it was possible to make a better tasting bread that was just as good for sandwiches, as it was to smother with goat cheese and olive oil and eat as a snack. I want it to be grain free, and delicious without a lot of starches.

Delicious and moist, fluffly with air bubbles, and a crispy crust. It's pretty much all I could ask for. Now if only I could get my bread maker to make it for me :)

When it comes to the grocery bill, this is not a cheap bread to make. Compared to the $9 loafs you can buy though they taste better and cost about the same.
 I used a combination of raw and organic nut butters in this recipe with the desire of taste in mind. You can definitely use substitutes in place. The only butter I don;t recommend is coconut. It is by far different and I really don;t know what you would end up with. Changing the recipe could cause your bread to rise differently, bake faster, shorter and change color.
One thing I can note is using sunflower seeds will cause your bread to turn green. Not a very nice green either, but it is totally okay to eat. Using sunbutter you will want to decrease the baking soda in order to decrease the "green" doing so will make your bread more dense.

Grain Free Bread - Gluten free, Dairy free, Sugar free

Yields approx. 4-5 inch tall loaf

*Whey powder will give you a great rise, almost double in size without having to beat your egg whites. I recommend it*

In a stand mixer bowl:

3/4 C Raw Smooth Organic Cashew Butter
                                   - Substitute, Tahini, Pumpkin Seed, Almond, or a combination

1/4 C Organic Sesame Tahini (sesame seed butter)
4 organic eggs
1 T organic apple cider vinegar
1 T sweetener (honey, agave, stevia, sucralose, palm sugar)

Beat well until very smooth. Scrape the bowl and add:

1/4 C unsweetened Whey Powder
                         - substitute almond flour, I prefer to use good for you Whey powder versus
                           beating egg whites. If using almond flour you may want to beat egg 
                           whites separately and fold into ingredients.
2 T pumpkin seeds chopped
2 T chia seeds or hemp seeds
1/2 t sea salt
1 t aluminum free baking soda
1/4 c golden flax meal or arrowroot powder

Beat until smooth and thick. 

Grease a medium size bread pan with coconut oil or "flour" with flaxmeal and use butter.
Spread batter into pan and smooth out the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 min.

**Using a big pan will cause a shorter loaf of bread. If using a big pan double the recipe.
**change out the salt for cinnamon and vanilla if sweet bread is desired**

If you use a different combination of nut butter that you like let me know. I have found this to be my favorite blend. Almond butter will cause a much darker loaf but very delicious.


Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Crisp Crumble Topping - Grain Free, Sugar Free, Gluten Free

I found myself once again with a huge bag of fresh organic rhubarb ready to made into something delightful. 
I am not daring enough yet to try it as a soup or a stew. I have not come up with a recipe yet for a pie crust that follows the 17DD. 
The most recent one that I listed is my favorite and most up to date recipe so I am going to stick with that.
I suddenly was dreaming about the delicious strawberry rhubarb pie that I made a few weeks ago. The hot filling with cold vanilla cream is delicious!
I realized that I don't care if it's pie or not but the combination and the taste is what is the best. 
I had a thought that a crisp would be a good way to go. I knew I could figure out a way to make the topping without using anything I can't have. I was also glad not to have to make my kitchen all dirty making and rolling out pie crust. SO.. This is what I came up with.
A delicious crisp with a topping was crispy, golden brown, cinnamony and warm.
My only complaint is there will not be enough to last the week.

The best part about this topping is you could use it on absolutely any kind of crisp, or crumble you so desire. It will be a recipe that you can use as a substitute in any recipe needing a crumbly topping. I might actually get gutsy enough and try making it into a granola!
MMMmm I LOVE granola. Homemade granola is so good you could just shovel it in your mouth. But the oats always make it not very good for you if you shovel it in lol.
I also realized once trying it that it would work for a terrific substitute for graham cracker crumbs or a no bake graham cracker crust
First step, I made the topping. I wanted it to cool and dry out a tiny bit before adding it to the filling as I didn't want it to get soft.

6. Crumble Topping - grain free, gluten free, sugar free, low carb

In a large mixing bowl:
1/2 C blanched organic almond flour or ground almonds/nuts
1/2 C sliced blanched almonds or unsalted dry roasted pumpkin seeds
1/2 C sugar free vanilla/unsweetened whey powder
1/2 C xylitol with 1 t of organic mollases/breakfast syrup (for brown sugar taste)
                                                    or
           organic coconut palm sugar/ brown sugar sucralose blend
2 T cinnamon

In a separate bowl mix melted butter with vanilla and molasses(if using):
1/2 t vanilla powder or 1 t real vanilla extract
1/4 C plus 2 T melted butter or organic coconut oil/lard

Mix the dry ingredients and slowly stir in the melted butter stirring constantly until the mix begins to clump together and stick. It should look like coarse oat meal. If needed add more butter or coconut oil to until desired texture.

Set the bowl aside.

In order to make the filling 17DD compliant and starch and grain free you are going to have to use a fabulous alternative to traditional corn starch. Konjac powder. If you don't have this you can definitely substitute gelatin or regular tapioca starch.
I love how it's 0 calories, 0 carbohydrates and thickens 10 times stronger then corn starch. GREAT for diabetics or anyone wanting to avoid the regular high glycemic index of starches. 
This recipe usually needs 3 Tablespoons of flour or corn starch. I used 1 tsp on Konjac and I found it to be exactly right. 
The only trouble with Konjac I find is if you add more before it has completely thickened you can pretty much turn anything into jello. lol. Watch your gravy turn into a jello mold, (don't laugh it happened to me ok). 
Konjac powder is also used to make Noodle and "rice". Of course don;t expect them to be the same as traditional pasta but they hold together like a regular noodle and do the job. They just don't taste like anything, konjac is tasteless. I am really beginning to love these noodles. I see lasagna in the future! it's 17DD friendly!!!!


Strawberry Rhubarb Filling - sugar free, starch free

Feel free to reduce the sweetness to what suits you best. I like it slightly tart if you want it sweet add the full 2 C equal to of sugar.

In a large bowl toss together well:
3 C chopped organic rhubarb
2 C sliced organic strawberries
1 t konjac powder or 3 T tapioca/arrowroot/corn starch (not 17DD compliant)

Mix the konjac well with the fruit until it is evenly spread to reduce any clumping.


Stir in:
1 T real lemon juice
1/4 C egg whites or 1 organic egg
1 1/2 C xylitol, stevia  or sucralose (any sweetener equal to of sugar)

Mix well until filling become sticky and well combined. Pour half of the filling into a grased 9x9 square baking dish. Stir your topping and using your hands drop crumbles of half of the topping over the filling.
Add the rest of the filling over the topping. Crumble remaining topping over the filling.
Cover with tin foil and bake 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Uncover, increase heat to 400 degrees and bake uncovered for 20 minutes until rhubarb is tender and the topping darkens and becomes crisp.

Meet me back here tomorrow for pancakes!!!!!!! :)

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Chocolate Lava Cake - Sugar free, flour less

I always have trouble with my chocolate cravings following cycle 1. I like chocolate, but since we don't buy sweetened chocolate anymore it's really not good alone by itself.
I love chocolate desserts, but not just melted chocolate gobbed onto fruit.
So, I was searching through my delicious grain free cookbooks and found a great option for a chocolate Lava Cake.
One of my most favorite desserts when we would go out for dinner was chocolate lava cake or toffee pudding.
Nothing is really more delicious in my book.
Of course the trick right now is to avoid any kind of starches or grains or flour. So luckily I was able to figure out a recipe for lava cake without any kind of flour whatsoever. 
If you have ever made a flour less chocolate cake I am sure this is very similar. 
The addition of whey powder causes them to puff up and be more cakey then traditional flour less cake.
They are only partially baked so the inside is soft and warm still like lava. The best part was they fell after baking and left a delicious hole in the center just waiting to be filled with something creamy. If you eat them directly out of the oven they will still be puffed up like the picture above. Thats how they looked right out of the oven. After about 10 minutes they looked more like this.
<---------------------------------------------------
I had this thought of coffee ice cream that I usually order and I figured I would be able to get the same flavor out of whip cream without added sugar. 
Ice cream is not allowed on 17DD and neither is caramel sauce right now.
So coffee whip cream!
It turned out fluffy, creamy and coffee delicious. I hope you use this as a great recipe to fall upon on any kind of diet as they are significantly low in carbs and delicious. This brings me to recipe number 5 out of 17. I hope your having as much fun as I am.

5. Chocolate Lava Cake - Grain free, sugar free, flour less

In a mixer whip together until creamy:
3/4 C melted butter/coconut oil
3 organic eggs
1/4 C egg whites or 2 egg white
1/4 C heavy cream/cashew milk/coconut milk

Blend dry ingredients together:
1/2 C xylitol, date sugar, or date syrup (my recipe) (palm sugar or sucralose may be substituted)
1/4 C unsweetened whey powder
1 t baking soda
splash organic apple cider vinegar

Slowly scoop dry ingredients into mixer bowl while spinning. 
Once well combined slowly pour in chocolate so that it doesn't seize.

4 oz unsweetened bakers chocolate or 1/2 C melted

Slowly pour the chocolate in a steady stream into the batter and beat for 1 minute.
Grease 6 ramekins or 6 large muffin cups with coconut oil.
Place on a baking sheet and bake for 8-12 minutes at 400 degrees until the center is still moving when you shake the ramekin.
Let cool for 10 minutes before serving. Dollop with coffee whip cream just before serving.

Coffee Whipped Cream - sugar free

1 C of whipping cream
2 T strong coffee
1 t real vanilla extract
1 t stevia
2 T fresh ground coffee

Whip whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Fold in coffee, vanilla and stevia. Sprinkle coffee grounds and fold in.
Dollop whip cream into centers of each lava cake. Eat while warm. Sprinkle with more coffee if so desired.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Breakfast Egg Muffins - grain free, gluten free, starch free

It was a very nice long weekend and I realize when I come back home and get back to routine how much my baking is missed.
When it comes to lunches if I haven't been making anything there is really nothing to eat besides carrot sticks and canned fish.
It's difficult being Grain Free and eating breakfast on the go, especially when you get down to 17DD as the regular grain free indulgences all of a sudden become non existent.
Your main source of breakfast food becomes eggs and yogurt in Cycle 1.Yogurt is fine but eggs on the go? Boiled eggs are only fun for about a week. 
I make a fair bunch of fritatta and egg casseroles but even those can be troublesome to eat when you're driving to work with a delicious hot steaming coffee.
SO ... I had a VISION!
What if I was able to make a delicious breakfast muffin! Not just a muffin like all of my other recipes, but a BREAKFAST muffin.
We're talking Eggs, cheese, turkey bacon, scallions oh yum.
I looove my lemon, cranberry, whey powder muffins. They are great. But sweet muffins with sweet yogurt and sweet coffee is not for every day.

Here is a fabulous way to eat a balanced breakfast, grain free, starch free, and without additional carbs.
I love how you don't need a mixer or a food processor, to complete these. 
You can obviously pick many different savory flavors to complete these muffins.
I stuck to my basics. 

I used the silicon and the paper baking cups to make them easier to remove from the pan without sticking. You could omit these by using coconut oil or butter to grease the muffin tins.
I added some whey powder to the recipe to make them more "cakey" other than "eggy" and I quite liked it. You may need to adjust seasonings accordingly to make up for flavors, and sweetened or unsweetened whey powder.
Using the whey powder in the muffin will also cause them to "rise" similar to a regular muffin. Without the whey powder you will probably have fairly flat muffins.
If you want to omit the whey powder completely it will be totally fine. To substitute the whey powder I would recommend coconut flour.

This brings me to my 4th 17DD safe recipe!!!

4. Breakfast Muffins - grain free, starch free, dairy free, gluten free

In a glass bowl scramble together:

6 organic eggs/whites equal to
1 C coconut Milk/Dairy Milk/Cream/Almond Milk
1 t sea salt
1/2 t garlic powder
1/4 t black pepper
1/4 t onion powder
dash of paprika

Add to egg mixture:
 
1/2 C finely chopped vegetables.
  • scallions, bell peppers, pimentos, mushrooms, tomatoes etc.
4 slices turkey/chicken bacon fried crisp and diced (ham, bacon, sausage etc)
1 cold 4 oz cream cheese brick chopped into pieces (1 C old cheddar cheese)

Mix the filling into the egg mixture and scramble as you would an omelet. You want to leave the cream cheese in pieces as it will melt in the oven.

Slowly scoop in 3 T unsweetened whey powder or 2 T coconut flour

Mix all ingredients together and pour into greased or paper lined muffin cups. Fill 2/3 full and bake.
Bake at 400 degrees for 13-18 minutes. Just until the top is firm, and starting to brown.
Let cool for 10 minutes before eating.

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Waffles - Grain Free, Sugar Free, Gluten Free

I kind of get tired of eating breakfast on the 17 DD like 5 days in lol. I like eggs, but I don't like them without bread or something under them unless they are created into an omelet. But I don't want to make an omelet every morning either.. 
So eggs get boring quickly when I can't use any of my alternative grain recipes. So I love to venture out into waffles, pancakes, french toast, muffins, loafs.. etc.
However it's pretty hard to make any of those things on a diet when you can't eat any significant carbs or grains.. or is it? 
I have this great recipe book about grain free, low carb eating with no sugar. I use it as a reference as even in that book almond flour and coconut flour are used throughout which would be fine if I wasn't following the 17. 
There is a recipe for pancakes in there and I based this recipe using similar ratios but different ingredients that are compliant with 17. 
Every post I have written lately has been complaint on the 17 DD. I will be listing 17 recipes that are able to be eaten on every cycle and here is number 3.

Delicious, crunchy, moist and golden brown. 
I have made many different waffles using almond flour and coconut flour. I will say though this one is by far the easiest of all of them, and I actually liked it the BEST. NO I am not just saying it so I can talk myself into eating more diet food. I actually like these the best as they are so similar to wheat waffles I completely have forgotten about them. 
Don't get my wrong my coconut flour waffles are d e l i c i o u s. They are more expensive to make due to the fat content that is needed to keep them moist. But they contain beans, (which I don't always have soaked, cooked and ready to go) and are tricky to cook. They take much longer than a regular waffle to cook and I am always having to delicately and patiently lift them out of the iron trying not to make them shatter into too many pieces as they crumble unbelievably. (It turns into how many people does it take to get the waffle out of the iron)
I found that using whey powder in a lot of my recent recipes is really quite useful as it is really sticky when combined with liquid and holds everything together quite well.
I was able to lift up on one corner of the waffle and set in on a plate. 
It was done and cooked through following the regular cooking time on my waffle iron. I am not sure if it will work that way for everybody but mine were firm and good. It was about 2 minutes per side.
The only challenge I had with this recipe is they really, really, really, expand when the batter hits the iron. I can't hesitate enough that they DOUBLE in size and then deflate as they cook. 
I found the easiest way to avoid it pouring out all over my counter was to leave the lid slightly open for 1 minute, then I closed the lid and flipped the iron over. If yours doesn't flip, just lock the lid and continue until done.
I made these using a fiber source that is compliant versus using flax. Psyllium Husk.
Psyllium husk is a first for me. I haven't really used it as I always use flax instead. I must say I enjoyed using the psyllium as it is white or golden and didn't cause unwanted coloring in my waffles. It also had a pretty neutral taste compared to flax so I didn't really notice it in the recipe. If you don't want to use psyllium you could switch it out for golden flax meal or almond meal. However, 2 T of nuts or flax meal is considered one fat serving on the 17 DD and therefore you would have to eliminate all fats for the rest of the day after consuming these.


3. Waffles - Grain Free, Gluten Free, Sugar Free, Starch Free, Flour less

Please let your iron lid open for 1 minute once batter is poured to avoid spilling over.

Grease your iron well and cook on med high.

In a food processor beat until smooth:
3 organic eggs
1/2 C organic cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, Greek yogurt

Add into food processor:
1/2 C psyllium husk** (substitute 1/2 C almond meal or golden flax meal)
2 t Xylitol or stevia, sucralose, plam sugar, or raw agave nectar
1 t real vanilla extract
1 t real lemon juice
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t sea salt

Beat until smooth. While mixer is running slowly add:
1/2 C sugar free vanilla whey powder

Scrape down sides well and add:
1/2-3/4 C water
Let the batter stand for 3 minutes 

Batter should become thick and frothy. If it's too wet add more whey powder. If it's too dry add more water. You will have to adjust following climate.
Batter will be thicker than traditional batter and this is ok. You will have to scoop the batter into the iron and spread it out versus pouring it in. 
Let your lid stay open for 1 minute while batter puffs up and starts to cook. Close lid and lock. If your batter pours out it was to full.
Divide batter into 3-4 waffles and cook following manufacturers directions.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Oopsie Rolls - Grain Free, Wheat Free, Starch Free

So... I am getting excited about summer food. Steak, ribs, hamburgers, baked beans, hot dogs, potato salad, Greek salad, Cole slaw, BBQ corn cobs, baked potatoes, planked fish.. MMMm seriously how can you resist? 
It's definitely harder on a grain free diet as we hardly eat potatoes, no bread, and if I do make bread it doesn't go with hamburgers..
So, in anticipation of getting our fire pit outside I have been planning ways to get through the delicious hamburgers cooked over the fire. Also we love to do day trips to the mountains on the weekends and the less crap we have to take with us the better. You have to have forks and everything... lol
Hamburgers with lettuce leaves are also kinda boring sometimes because I want bacon and mushrooms and onions and tomato and cheese and it's weird without a bun.
SOOOOOOooo I was a little worried as we are coming up to our day 1 of the 17 and I wanted to make all recipes compliant.
I was doing some research as usual with using Whey Powder to cook with as that is relatively new for me. 
Well, good news I came across a few recipes that were posted all over the Google. 

"Oopsie Rolls"
 
Yes they are flat, unlike traditional rolls. However we all know that around here nothing is traditional.
They are soft, fluffy, and neutral so whatever taste you have it will become! 
I checked over the ingredients and I was a little worried as Kyle does NOT like meringue in any way, shape or form.
The main ingredient in these is eggs, whipped eggs to be exact so I was worried after all of my work and planning he wouldn't like them. So I just didn't tell him.. I put out extra lettuce just in case it was needed.
I have a delicious pancake recipe (soon to be posted) using very similar ingredients and I LOVED  the pancakes so I was ready to embrace the yumminess.

Here it is.. My delicious hamburger!

Trust me the rolls are perfect. They are a vehicle from the plate to your mouth. End of story.
But they are very useful, as they are easy to make savory, or sweet.
What I like best about them is they are not full of starch or carbs like my bread rounds, coconut buns, biscuits etc. They are not going to fill you up and make you unhappy. They will only help you enjoy the experience that your mental relationship plays in your life. 
I hope you have time to make these one night. They are great.
They can be a little tricky so please follow the recipe exact. You may need to adjust according to climate in order to the texture just right. 
Also ovens may vary. I cooked mine in my mini oven with the element close to the pan so they kept there shape fairly well. It may help to cook them in the same place in your oven or increase the heat if your having trouble with keeping them separated. 
Work quickly, the faster the less liquid you will end up with that will not be useable.


#2 Oopsie Rolls - Gluten Free, Grain Free, Sugar Free, Dairy Free, Starch free

this is my version of an original which can be found @ the lighter side of low carb :)

In a stand mixer bowl beat on high until stiff peaks form:
4 organic egg whites
1/8 t cream of tartar or organic lemon juice
pinch of sea salt

In a separate stand mixer bowl beat well until thick:
4 organic egg yolks
1/4 t organic lemon juice /organic unfiltered apple cider vinegar
1/4 t aluminum free baking soda
1/2 C organic cottage cheese/organic cream cheese room temperature
3 T unsweetened/vanilla whey powder
Spices needed for sweet or savory (recipe follows)

Prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Move oven rack to top half of oven and set to 300 degrees.
Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. In a separate bowl beat yolk mixture until pale yellow and thick. VERY delicately fold yolk mixture into white mixture without crushing whites. Mix should look like fluffy yellow meringue.
On prepared baking sheets use your spatula and dollop mound circles without flattening  the mix and leaving generous space in between. Divide into 12 mounds. 

Immediately place pan into oven and bake for 20-25 minutes.
They need to become browned or they are going to be too soft to do anything with.
Bake until set enough to handle and cool completely. 
Leave them out on the counter until use, closing them will cause them to get soft and mushy. 
You can toast them lightly just before eating in the toaster oven to firm them up.

For savory rolls:
1/8 t onion powder
1/4 t sea salt
pinch dry mustard
sprinkle with sesame seeds once on sheet pan

For sweet rolls:
1 xyliol/stevia/sucralose/raw agave nectar/palm sugar
1 real vanilla extract
dash cinnamon