Monday, April 30, 2018

Low Carb Seed and Nut Rosemary Garlic Crackers ... a great LCHF crunchy treat

I was craving a cracker, and my theory on low carb high fat living is ... if you want something bad enough, find a way to make it low carb. So, here is my project for a crispy cracker to use with some ham salad I'm making tomorrow.
The finished product. Crispy low carb crackers.
Place dough between two layers of parchment to flatten out.
First, gather up your ingredients and preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix 1 cup blanched almond flower with 2 cups of shredded cheese of choice. I used sharp cheddar and 2 oz. of cream cheese. Put in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for one minute. Stir it all together and let it sit. Then, add one beaten egg and seasonings of choice (once it's cooled a little to prevent the egg from cooking). I used Badia Complete, Rosemary, Garlic and Sea Salt blend and a little Himalayan pink salt. Mix it into a ball and place between two pieces of parchment paper on a cookie sheet.

I also mixed in a seed trilogy mix with chia, hemp and flax, along with about a quarter cup of roasted sunflower seeds and a touch of Bob's Red Mill hulled hemp hearts.

Place the dough between two layers of parchment and spread thin using your hands or a rolling pin. Cut into squares using a pizza cutter or knife. I baked at 450 for about 6 minutes on one side, then used the parchment to help flip it over and baked another 6 minutes on the other side. Crispy and flavorful, perfect for dipping with low carb ham salad, chicken salad, tuna salad, you name it. Or, just a good snack by themselves.
I missed crackers :) Now I don't have to. This recipe made about 10 servings of 10 small crackers. So good! Only about 3 net carbs per 10 crackers.

Just after baking. I had to taste test that bottom left corner.

Collard green wraps with lunchmeat ... the perfect way to make your wrap low carb and get your greens in!

I am so excited about these collard green wraps ... they are fantastic. I bought a fresh bunch of collards and blanched them, then used just one leaf as a wrap for sandwich fixings. SO GOOD. Finished product was delicious. I used some rotisserie chicken lunchmeat, two sliced Vlasic no sugar added sweet gherkins, a little mayo and mustard, and two baby portabella mushrooms, sliced. Wrapped it like a burrito and cut in half. All together, about 6 net carbs. It would have only been 4 if I had opted for deli or yellow mustard instead of the sweet and spicy honey, which had 2 carbs by itself.
To blanch your collard green leaves, just put each leaf in a pot of simmering water, take it out after about 15 seconds, then put in an ice water bath and dry off. You're done.

The finished product. I love the consistency of the collard green leaves. Holds together great!

Low Carb Beef Tips with Mushroom Gravy hit the spot and still only 6 net carbs!

I was craving a creamy beef tips with mushroom gravy recently, so I made it low carb high fat and it was delicious. I used sirloin tip steak, which I marinated overnight in soy sauce and seasonings. I cut it into small pieces and fried in olive oil, removed from pan, sauteed a little onion, minced garlic and a box of baby portobella mushrooms. Removed all that from the pan, used the drippings and mixed with a cup of beef broth and a quarter cup of heavy whipping cream and a little xanthan gum for thickening. Stirred 'til slightly thickened, then added everything back in the pan, covered and cooked for about another 15 minutes until it was tender and delicious. Served over a small helping of Hanover mashed cauliflower. Total 6 net carbs for the meal.
The finished product, served over Hanover mashed cauliflower.
These mushrooms made it so good.
The ingredients.
Sizzling beef tips.
I used xanthan gum for thickening. Zero carbs!