May Challenge Recipes--Main Courses, Weeks ONE-FOUR

[SherryJ]

Hey Gang! How's it going in "getting prepared" land? :D

My first new-to-me recipe is based on one from Dana Carpender's 200 Lowcarb Crockpot Recipes, her "Balsamic Pot Roast". You can get a copy of this book from your library, or pick one up from amazon at a decent price.

The idea of the recipe was to make a roast in the crockpot. The list of ingredients included: onion, garlic, rosemary, diced tomatoes, beef broth and bouillion, balsamic vinegar, and the roast, of course! After the roast has cooked on low for 8 hours, make a gravy from the juice, and enjoy!!!

Now to the interesting part! ;)

Did we like it, LOVE it or hate it?
I, personally, LOVED it!


Did the family like it, LOVE it or hate it?
The rest of the family said "yes!" to it as well. Mr. Biggest (8) turned his little nose up at the tomatoes on top of the roast, but then scarfed it down... :D


Will we make this recipe again?
Absolutely!


What did we change in the original recipe? Actually, I didn't make the original! A new member here, kevinpa, had made some adjustments to the amounts of broth, tomatoes and rosemary... I used the recipe according to his specifications, and will not change a thing!!!


If we made it again, would we change anything we did the first time?
Nope! ;)


Off to find a pizza recipe for the next go 'round!

Anyone else try their's yet? :)

Sherry

[poodle_woman]

I posted one for Tuna Steak in the recipe forum under seafood. I adapted a recipe from Fran McCullough low carb cook book as I felt like ginger. Yes we both liked it and would use it again.

[SherryJ]

Ellen, I'm just grabbing a copy to put here, so we can have them all in one place. Sounds YUMMY!

Sherry

Grilled Tuna

2 Tuna Steaks 6 OZ
Olive Oil
Salt (Prefer Kosher)
Pepper to taste
2 tbs Reduced Salt Soy sauce
1 Clove Garlic minced
1 Tbs Grated Fresh Ginger

Rub tuna steaks with olive oil, salt and pepper. Let stand for 10-30 minutes. Combine rest of ingredients; and smear on tuna steaks on both side let stand 5 minutes to add flavor. Sear of hot grill for 45 seconds a side. Lower grill if gas and cooked turning once to desired wellness. I did mine to medium rare. Enjoy. My best guess is that each steak will be about 1 ecc as most of the garlic and ginger fall off leaving just flavor….

To which Gaelen added the comment...

And even if they didn't, 1 clove garlic (5g ECC) and 1 T. grated fresh ginger (2g ECC), divided by two, would only add 3.5g ECC to each tuna steak, so enjoy those flavors!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Counts from Mastercook: (assume 1 tablespoon of oil on each tuna steak)
Per Serving : 378 Calories; 22g Fat (53.2% calories from fat); 41g Protein; 2g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 65mg Cholesterol; 667mg Sodium.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
__________________

[Gaelen]

wtg, Sherry (nice recipe customization, btw...;) )

I've got the ingredients for egg custard ready to make this afternoon, and I'd like to work up something homey and simple for Cinco de Mayo...but I may save that one for next week. If the custard works, it'll be my first contribution. I haven't made a baked egg custard in forever, and boosting the protein took a bit of tap-dancing. I wanted something for those days when you need the protein but your stomach is unpredictable, and thought of egg custard...it would also be a great grab'n'go portable meal. I'll let you know in an hour or so. ;)

[kevinpa]

Pork Shoulder Boston Butt Roast

In keeping with sherrys theme I will share a roast and change the meat.

I was at Wal-Mart on Friday and they had pork shoulder boston butt roasts that looked so good that I decided to try one. This was my first atempt at a pork roast so I decided to crock it. I was looking for a sweet pork taste so after I seared the 4 lb roast on all sides in EVOO, I put the browned roast in the crockpot.

Then in a mixing bowl I put:
1 can turkey broth
1 can petete diced tomatoes
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 balsamic vinegar
18 to 20 drops sweetzfree....approx 3/4 cup equivalent sweetener
2 heavy teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon sesame seed oil

mixed and poured over the browned roast and set crock to low.

At 8 hours this wonder aroma permeated throughout the house.
The sauce is sweet and a touch salty and the meat is falling off the bone....Yum! http://forum.lowcarber.org/images/smilies/yum.gif

I let it go 1 more hour then thicken the sauce a bit with thickenthin not/starch and served it with fresh steamed cauliflower.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Counts from Mastercook for 6 servings:
Per Serving: 577 Calories; 42g Fat (67.1% calories from fat); 42g Protein; 5g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 161mg Cholesterol; 1050mg Sodium.
for 8 servings:
Per Serving: 433 Calories; 32g Fat (67.1% calories from fat); 31g Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 121mg Cholesterol; 787mg Sodium.

NOTE from Gaelen: I don't have nutrient counts for sweetzfree or Thick'n'thin NotStartch...If anyone want to PM me with those counts from the box in your kitchen, I'll plug them into this recipe.

http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e352/kevinpa/PP%20recipes/DSC00029.jpg

Did we like it, LOVE it or hate it?
I thought it tasted great....the gravy was kind of a sweet barbaque taste.
Did the family like it, LOVE it or hate it?
The wife started out resisting but by the end of the meal was asking for more sauce.
Will we make this recipe again?
For sure!
What did we change in the original recipe? Actually, it was an original!!!
If we made it again, would we change anything we did the first time?
Nothing

[Mitra]

I may need the egg custard on Thursday after 2 hours of root canal repair.

[SherryJ]

Pat, I'm looking forward to it... yes, we DO need something for those "tummy days", don't we? Thanks!

Kevin! You never fail to amaze me... the picture is almost too dark to see, but from other pics, I KNOW it's beautiful! Thanks for participating, my friend!

Sherry

[Belfrybat]

Here's a simple one:

"Dressed up Chicken"

1 chicken, cut into quarters
1/2 bottle of Italian style salad dressing (I used Rosemary & Lime)

Preheat oven to 375, place chicken quarters in pan, pour dressing over. Bake uncovered 50 mins, basting several times.

4 servings at about 1-2 ECC per serving depending on the brand of salad dressing as I imagine not much actually stays with the chicken.

---------------------------
This was very good and certainly easy. It will probably become a staple recipe for me. The wings burned a bit, so the next time, I think I'll remove them before cooking.

The only problem was the wonderful "pot likker" left and nothing to pour it over. This is when I miss potatoes or rice. Had I thought ahead, I would have drained the broth earlier cooked the veggies in it.

[Gaelen]

Belfry-Bat...that 'pot likker' is one of the best reasons to keep salad greens on hand...they'd have been perfect tossed with the hot sauce and maybe some toasted seeds or nuts. Failing salad greens, a bag of cauliflower florets in the freezer, steamed 'til tender and dressed with the sauce... ?

The egg custard looks fine, but I had to go out, so it's chilling now. I'll taste it later, and post the recipe.

[gitfiddle]

Okay, now you've gone and made me hungry, all of you! This is what I made last night:

Tiger Stew
2# cubed beef (I get stew meat from this wonderful market and a good deal of it is steak trimmings)
Brown the beef in EVOO or Peanut Oil (which I used)
I added zucchini, diced tomatoes and mushrooms. I wish I had thought of carrots and peppers. Cabbage would have been a thought, too.
Basil, garlic, salt & pepper to taste. What made it special was about three tablespoons of Tiger Sauce (6 ecc) but I'm sure you could work something out with a 0-carb hot sauce and 0-carb sweetener.

I liked it. The boys gobbled it up with one making a comment that it needed potatoes. Didn't slow him down. It tasted even better today.

I mentioned above that I would try more/different vegetables in the future. DH can't eat onions, but my quest is to get good flavor by using other seasonings.

BC, I'm going to try your "Dressed Up" recipe with pork chops. The only time I get raves is by dousing them in mushroom soup (which limits them for me!). I'll let you know how they turn out.

[Missy]

Tonight, I made a yuuummmy dinner! It was fantastic! and my hubby enjoyed it too! You just have to be gentle with turning it while it's browning, or the coating wants to fall off. For him, I made a handful of spaghetti....and for us both a side salad. YUMMY!!!!

Recipe by Linda's Low Carb Recipes:

http://users3.ev1.net/~fontlady/food_photos/parmesan_chicken.jpg

PARMESAN CHICKEN
3 large boneless chicken breasts
2 ounces parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup
2 ounces almond flour, 1/2 cup
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup oil, or as needed
Salt and pepper, to taste
6 tablespoons spaghetti sauce
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
Cut each chicken breast in half to make 2 servings from each; cover with plastic wrap and flatten. Mix 1/2 cup parmesan, almond flour, garlic powder and Italian seasoning in a shallow dish or pie plate. Put beaten egg in a separate shallow dish or pie plate. Dip each chicken breast in egg to coat, then lightly coat them with parmesan-almond mixture. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Fry chicken in hot oil until browned and meat is almost done, but still slightly pink in the center. Place chicken breasts in a foil-lined and greased rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Top each with 1 tablespoon of spaghetti sauce, then 1/6 of the mozzarella. Sprinkle each with 1 teaspoon parmesan cheese. Bake at 350º about 20 minutes until chicken is done and cheese is melted and bubbly.
Makes 6 servings Per Serving: 400 Calories; 25g Fat; 39g Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 3g Net Carbs

[SherryJ]

WOW!!!! These are some great dishes!!! I'm especially tantalized by the Parmesan chicken, Lynn... **now, where's that lickin-your-lips smiley when you need it?!?!?!** ;)

Sherry

[Missy]

AMEN SISTER!!!!!!!!!! AMEN!!!!

A girl need's her assessory's, don't you think? lol:D

[SherryJ]

INDEED, she DOES!!! :p

Sherry

[Gaelen]

Here's that egg custard recipe. I tried a shortcut, and made the entire custard in a 1 1/2 qt. baking dish instead of individual ramekins. Easier to prep and store, but it took longer to bake to a point where it was set, and it was trickier to make the bain marie. I always forget how simple custard is to make until I do it...then I resolve to make it more often. I am thinking this will be a great taste and a good way to get in calories and protein Thursday and Friday when I'm likely to need something gentle on my stomach. Don't be alarmed at the fat content; sometimes you just have to splurge.

Did I like it? I LOVED it. ;) Only cooking for me, so my opinion is the only one that counted. ;)
Would I make it again? Yes.
What did I change in the orginal recipe(s)? I actually combined elements from about three recipes--one from my trusty all-purpose cookbook and two online versions.

I reduced the sugar to 1 tablespoon of confectioner's sugar, from 1/2 cup of granulated white sugar. I really wanted to use a tablespoon of dark honey, but I seem to be out at the moment, so that's why I used 10X sugar.
I increased the eggs from 2-3 to 6
I changed out the 2 cups of milk for 2 cups of heavy cream to reduce carbs further.
All the original recipes used nutmeg or mace, but I prefer cinnamon.


What would I do differently next time? I think I'll stick to ramekins next time; it's harder to butter them but much easier to bake them! I also think that the sugar wasn't necessary for the volume, nor did it give the custard much sweetness. If you wanted it to taste sweet, you could always sprinkle on a dash of sweetner when you ate it. Eliminating the 10X sugar would reduce the carbs per serving by 3g. And next time I'll wait to taste it until it chills...that really brings out the vanilla flavor.
==========================

* Exported from MasterCook *

Baked Egg Custard with Cinnamon

Recipe By : Gaelen/PAS
Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time : 1 hr
Categories : breakfast

Amount Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- -----------------------------------------------
2 cups heavy whipping cream
6 eggs
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (the REAL stuff!)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Beat together all of the ingredients except the cinnamon. Combine them
just until they change to a lemony color; do not overbeat. Lots of bubbles in your liquid custard will equal tiny bubbles in your baked custard.

Pour the liquid into buttered 6 oz. custard cups/ramekins, or a buttered 1 1/2 quart casserole. Make a bain marie (water bath) by filling a baking pan with a shallow amount of hot water, and put the custard cups/ramekins into the pan. Raise the water level as needed to just about the same level of the custard in the cups. If you're baking the custard in a single 1 1/2-qt. casserole like I did, place the casserole into a water bath in a larger (2 1/2-qt.) casserole/bain marie.

Bake at 325° for 40 to 55 minutes, depending on the depth of the custard in the baking bowl(s). At the 30 minute mark, sprinkle the cinnamon on top of the custard. To check if the custard is set, a knife inserted into the center should come out clean, and the top should be golden brown.

Chill for an hour, and serve slightly warm or at room temperature, or chill longer and serve very cold, garnished with berries.

Nutrient info per serving for 4 servings with large eggs: 534 Calories; 52g Fat (86.7% calories from fat); 12g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; 0g Dietary Fiber; 481mg Cholesterol; 204mg Sodium.

Nutrient info per serving for 6 servings with large eggs: 356 Calories; 35g Fat (86.7% calories from fat); 8g Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; 0g Dietary Fiber; 321mg Cholesterol; 136mg Sodium.

Nutrient info per serving for 4 servings, using medium eggs): 516 Calories; 51g Fat (87.2% calories from fat); 11g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; 0g Dietary Fiber; 444mg Cholesterol; 195mg Sodium.

[gitfiddle]

And after that, Gaelen, I'm supposed to be content with my Stallone pudding?;)

Last night I made some wonderful pork chops using BC's "Dressed Up" chicken recipe. I suppose you could call it "Dressed Up Pork":

Pork chops in baking dish big enough to lay each one flat
Italian dressing (there are so many choices)

Pour the dressing over the chops and let it run generously down into the pan. Bake for 50 minutes at 350, basting once or twice.

The result was tender, browned pork chops.


I liked it
The boys thought it wasn't salty enough
I plan to make it again
I changed chicken to pork
I would experiment with other dressings

[Mitra]

Roast Chicken with Pork and Liver Stuffing

The first Monday in May is a holiday over here, so we had something a bit flashier than our usual weekday meals. This is based on a recipe from Marcella Hazan's book, Marcella Cucina. It's one I've been meaning to try for a long time. She bones the chicken, but as I wasn't feeling up to tackling that this week, I left mine whole. She includes liver in the stuffing, but my husband hates liver, so I made some with and some without, and cooked them separately.


Ingredients

1 chicken (about 4 pounds)
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp rosemary leaves, chopped
1/2 cup dry white vermouth
6 bay leaves
2 Tbsp dark rum

for the stuffing:
1oz bread, crumbled/cubed and soaked in 2 oz milk (these are reduced in quantity from the original recipe - you could probably leave them out completely, but they only add about 2g carb to each serving, and help to hold the juices in the stuffing)
6 oz minced pork and 8 oz finely chopped lamb's liver
OR 14 oz minced pork
2 Tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp chopped sage
1 small clove of garlic, finely chopped
grated zest of one lemon
salt and pepper

Counts: About 250g protein, 30g carb total (serves 6)

Roast the chicken:

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Mix the olive oil, rosemary & some salt, and brush it all over the chicken. Put the chicken breast side down in a roasting tin, and put it in the oven. After half an hour, turn the chicken over, and turn the oven temperature down to 160°C/325°F. After another 20 minutes, pour half the vermouth over the chicken. After 15 mins more pour the other half over, then cook for 15 mins more (about 1 1/4 hours total.)

Make the stuffing:
Mix all the ingredients together, put it in a loaf tin (I did some with liver, and some without, so used a few small tins), and put it in the oven with the chicken after the first half hour (when you turn the temperature down).

Finishing touches:
When the chicken comes out of the oven, put the bay leaves in the bottom of the roasting tin. Put the rum on a large (metal) serving spoon, and set fire to it, then pour it (still alight) over the chicken (this bit is fun :D ). When the flames die down, put the chicken on a board to carve it, and spoon some of the pan juices over each serving.

Did I like it?
Yes, though I found the liver a bit dominant in the stuffing. Another thing I liked is that the leftover stuffing did me a couple more breakfasts and lunches, and the two of us had two more dinners from the chicken with minimal extra cooking required :). The leftover chicken re-appeared as Moroccan chicken with preserved lemon and olives.

Did the family like it?
That's my husband. He had liver-less stuffing. He loved it. Without the liver, the lemon zest flavour came through much more strongly.

Would I do it again?
Definitely, and my husband also requested that it be added to our collection - and it would be a good one to give guests.

What did I change from the original recipe?
I didn't bone the chicken, and cooked the stuffing in separate bowls, not in the chicken. That also had the advantage that you're not tied to using it up in the same way at subsequent meals.I did some stuffing without liver, and used a different kind from the one specified (because that was what my butcher had on the day). The recipe suggested Italian sausage for the stuffing, but I used minced pork because it was easier to find (and has fewer dodgy ingredients than a lot of sausages). And (can you tell I never follow instructions?) I reduced the bread/milk quantities to about half the original to lower the carbs.

Would I change anything next time?
I'd reduce the proportion of liver - maybe just use the chicken liver (or, if cooking for guests, quite likely leave it out altogether). Marcella was adamant that the liver (she used calf liver) was essential to give the dish a gamey flavour, but I would like to try it toned down a bit. And I'd still like to try boning and stuffing the chicken as per the original recipe.

[Ottawa]

There are times when I really want a PB or Ham Sandwich with bread on both sides and not worry about trimming it down to 10 ECC. These Flax Buns provide me with two slices of “bread” that are moist and firm and give me my Ham Sandwich at under 5ECC.
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/538-Sandwich1.JPG

The above sandwich with 2.5 oz. of regular sliced ham, 3 leaves of Romaine and some Wasabi Mayo adds 1 ECC and 13 protein for 35 Protein and 4.1 ECC.

Fresh out of the oven they look like this...
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/18-Baked1.JPG
each bun is 14.2 Carbs -11.1 Fiber = 3.1 ECC and 22 Protein at 326 Calories


They smell great baking and my son who is an adult came in last week and excitedly asked, “Are you making Cinnamon Buns?!!”

Recipe for Flax Buns

Mix dry ingredients ...
1.5 cups LC Pancake/Baking Mix (I used CarbQuick although Atkins Pancake Mix)
1 cup Almond Flour
1 cup Plain Whey Protein (O ECC, 25 Protein/scoop)
1.2 cup ground Flaxseed (3/4 cup of raw flaxseed)
2 Tbs. Cinnamon
Pinch of Salt

Blend Moist Ingredients
4 Eggs
1 Block Extra Firm Tofu (10.5 oz.) 3 ECC for whole block
¼ cup oil (I used peanut but any oil should do)
8 drops SweetZfree (or sweeten to taste with Splenda)
3/4 cup water - add a little more later to get "bun-like" texture
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/3173-blend2.JPG
Pour blended liquid over the mixed dry ingredients and mix until thick. You will have to add a little water as you work it into a thick dough.
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/2702-mixb.JPG
After forming "bun/loaves" I baked at 325 for about 25-30 minutes. I press them down to just over an inch and they rise just a little.
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/507-baking1.JPG


Did we like it, LOVE it or hate it?
These are my favorite LC Bread thing!

Did the family like it, LOVE it or hate it?
My wife is a picky LC eater and she has them almost every day as a meal nuked and buttered or as a sliced meat sandwich with lettuce. I have PB and Walden Farms Jam every couple of days or a Ham Sandwich as shown above. Even my son (Non LC) has them with butter although finds them heavier than a regular bun but a treat. If made Dinner bun size these would be about 1.5 ECC and be better with some baking powder added to lighten them up.

Will I make this recipe again?
I've made them twice and will make them every few weeks. They store well and stay moist.

What would I change?
For a treat I will try to make a Cinnamon Bun thing using more Cinnamon mixed with Xylitol or similar sweetener, swirled inside and sprinkled on top.

Note: You do not want to overcook these since they will lose moisture and become crumbly. It is better to give them less time than more to ensure a moist bun. Corrections to teh above include Flaxseed conversion when ground and the fact that this dough will not easily roll to make Cinnamon Buns. Although it did make Cinnamon Muffins and a type of bun by adding 1/2 tsp. of baking powder and more Cinnamon and sweetener, it was not workable into a classic Cinnamon Bun.

[Missy]

:D I love pictures! How helpful!

[Shadow]

Randy - How yummy - I wish that ham sandwich were here for my lunch time :D!

Now, a couple questions ;) for you. Do you add the sweetener and cinnamon even if you're going to be using it as bread for a sandwich? And, if you don't have tofu, could cream cheese or something else be substituted?

[Gaelen]

Wow...Mitra, I'm inspired to go preserve some lemons for that recipe...and Ottawa, that is some flax bun recipe. I'll have to do some experimenting next week when food starts looking like a better idea. ;)

[Mitra]

Gaelen, chicken with preserved lemons and olives is one of our regular ways of using up leftover roast chicken. But probably not what you want today ;).

[Ottawa]

Randy - How yummy - I wish that ham sandwich were here for my lunch time :D!

You would have to come to my office and I'd make it for you.:p It would be like a Low Carb Date.


Now, a couple questions ;) for you. Do you add the sweetener and cinnamon even if you're going to be using it as bread for a sandwich? And, if you don't have tofu, could cream cheese or something else be substituted?

As a true PP Hedonist I wanted real bread taste and the sweetener did it.
"White Wonder Bread" it ain't but when you haven't had that type of bread in years,this more than does the trick. The Cinnamon is not necessary and would save you a few ECC in the two Tbs but you are supposed to have some Cinnamon every day, along with Tumeric, Chocolate, cooked tomatoes, almond, garlic, fish ... and on and on ...

If you don't have tofu ... ... ... go get some. I have just recently discoved what a great tool this in in cooking everything to give you a moist, low carb filler. I haven't found a low carb "almost freebie" since baby zucchinni's and black Soy Beans. Thetofu gets used in cookies, muffins and these buns. When a vegetarian drops by I slice it in strips, soak it in Balsamic, Olive oil, Cinnamon and Nutmeg. It comes out with a meaty texture and yu use a sauce on it.
Make sure you get the extra firm. It adds a body that cream cheese would not.

[Shadow]

Thanks Randy! I'm on my way for lunch, but as good as that sandwich looks, I might need two of them, okay :p?

I do see using the sweetener since bread has sugar in it but I was dubious over the cinnamon ;). I think I'll leave it out for the sandwich bread but include it, of course, should I branch out to cinnamon buns :).

I am so glad you posted this! I've been trying different "bread" recipes and nothing has worked. And since I so conveniently have some lc baking mix someone gave me a couple of years ago that I've been wanting to use up and get out of my way, I think it might be time to experiment :D!

But shoot - I'll need to get the tofu. Oh well, I can probably handle that....

[Mitra]

I do see using the sweetener since bread has sugar in it

Well, sweet bread has sugar in it. I find that even a spoonful of sugar in a loaf tastes distinctly odd, because I'm not used to sweetened bread - except if it's supposed to be a sweet thing, like spiced bread, say. Another case where it's just a question of custom, and what's familiar, I think.

[Shadow]

Maybe I should've said that American bread has sugar in it - even the "non-sweet" kind ;). Even when I made homemade bread, it called for a little sugar. America certainly has a love of that stuff :p - no wonder we're all carboholics!

Randy - Forgot to ask... how many "buns" do you get out of this recipe :)? If I counted the plate of buns correctly, you get 8?

[Mitra]

Well, even without the sugar, bread's pretty carby!

[Ottawa]

It made 10 buns. We each ate one while they were hot.:D

I was not a TOFU fan prior to this. It was only due to having a vegetarian by a few times a month that I began playing with this food to come up with a nice dinner that I found this. It works out to $.85/brick in a 3 brick pack from Costco, which makes it an inexpensive find.
The soft kind is almost too soft and has an odd mouth texture that takes getting used to. The firm stuff has less soy taste as well as lower ECC, and when blended in with the eggs and water comes out creamy looking. The major attribute it adds to baking is moisture and a nice texture at a low carb cost.

Although I have seen a few negative things about Tofu including babies getting too much in various formulas and foods, there seems to be many more positive things especially for women.

http://www.city.hitachi.ibaraki.jp/upload/freepage/shikatsu/hyotanhp/2002oct/health%20benefits.htm

[Shadow]

Thanks, Randy :D! I am pleased to say that tofu is now on the shopping list and my roommate (who does the shopping) is getting it this afternoon. So, my dear Canadian friend, I am obviously trusting you to have not led me astray :p! And if the site's claim to "reduce menopausal symptoms including mood swings" works, everyone who puts up with me on a daily basis is going to be eternally grateful to you :D!

[Shadow]

Well, even without the sugar, bread's pretty carby!
So true, Janet! But as I recall, the recipe I used to make had only 1 T or so and made more than one loaf, so at least it wasn't that much extra carbage in the mix ;).

[Gaelen]

Okay, here's my second recipe...it's Cinco de Mayo tomorrow, so I decided to have a fish taco from the stuff I had on hand. Enjoy!

LATER: oops, forgot the survey questions:
-- I love this; I prefer it with a fresh grilled fish or shrimp, but I often use this tuna version as a cupboard meal.
-- Again, live alone so my opinion is all that counted here. ;)
-- Will I make it again? Absolutely.
-- What would I change in the original recipe or do differently? I first had a fish taco at a local Mexican restaurant, and I've explored a lot of versions since then. The only constant is the red cabbage 'slaw,' some type of fish and a corn tortilla (for me). I use any fish available, have made both mayo-based and vinegar-based slaws (prefer the mayo-based), and added toppings (I love avocado when I've got on hand; salsa when I don't have an avocado; cilantro always unless I'm out.) This recipe is so flexible that it's easy to experiment and make it your own, but IMO, keeping it simple and fresh is the best of all.

* Exported from MasterCook *

Tuna Tostadas (or tacos, if you want a hand-held meal)

Recipe By : Gaelen/PAS
Serving Size : 2 Preparation Time : 10 minutes
Categories : seafood, Mexican

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 teaspoon mustard
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 dash hot pepper sauce -- green Tabasco
1 cup shredded cabbage
6 ounces tuna in water, canned -- drained
1/4 cup tomato -- chopped
1/2 cup avocado cubes
2 taco shells -- corn tacos, 7g ECC each

Drain the canned tuna while you mix up the coleslaw topping. When it's
drained, use a fork to break it into large chunks.

Mix the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar and hot sauce together, and stir it into the finely shredded cabbage. I like to use red cabbage, but in a hurry, any packaged shredded coleslaw mix from the fresh produce section will do and won't affect the ECC of the taco at all. If you have fresh cilantro, a half-tablespoon of finely chopped cilantro leaves makes this coleslaw sing. I was out of the cilantro I froze from last summer's herbs, and the newly planted cilantro isn't sprouted yet, so I did without--but it's wonderful if you've got it.

Break each corn taco shell into pieces and warm them slightly to soften them. I like to use corn tortillas, but if you prefer flour tortillas, use them. Divide the pieces between two plates, and layer on the shells in this order: a spoonful of the coleslaw and dressing, half of the drained tuna, another spoonful of the coleslaw, and half of the chopped tomatoes and and chopped avocado. Serve and enjoy!

GAELEN's NOTES: I just used store-bought taco shells today...regular sized corn taco shells from Ortega and Old El Paso both average about 7g ECC apiece, and so do Bearitos organic yellow corn or blue corn taco shells...a little more pricy, but no hydrogenated oils. If you prefer low carb tortillas, go with them. The taco shells add 7g ECC to each serving. You can also serve them as standard tacos...I just like tostada-style better.

If you have FRESH grilled or poached tuna, these are just awesome--but the canned (or foil vacuum packed) tuna is very tasty and makes this an easy cupboard meal. This recipe also works with grilled salmon, tilapia, and any other medium to lightly flavored firm fleshed fish. The real key is using the coleslaw as a topping instead of plain shredded lettuce. Green olives or chopped chiles are also a good addition, and shredded cheese will boost the protein if you need to do that (I'd use
Montery Jack.)

If you're really hungry, you can make a single tostada, layering all the ingredients on one tortilla. Counts for one serving on one taco shell, broken into pieces: 255 Calories; 14g Fat; 24g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 28mg Cholesterol; 398mg Sodium.

Yield: 2 tostadas. Recipe can be easily doubled, tripled, quadrupled to feed as many people as you like.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Per Serving : 286 Calories; 16g Fat (47.5% calories from fat); 24g Protein; 14g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 28mg Cholesterol; 423mg Sodium.

[Bones]

Okay, here is our favorite main dish salad

Lettuce
Diced chicken (approx. 2 chicken tenders per person)
Bacon (we use turkey bacon) (approx. 2 slices per person)
Boiled egg, sliced (approx. 1 per person)
Diced tomatoes
Shredded cheese
Pine nuts
Salad dressing

My whole family loves this. It's a reliable standby...sorry, I don't have exact counts, but it's obviously low. Just watch your salad dressing counts and you should be fine.

[miralin]

I tried a new chicken piccata recipe .... will post it tomorrow (with my screw up and fix!) when i'm more coherent. Definitely will repeat it, yum!

OK here's the original recipe, from Dana Carpender's 500 low carb recipes

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/4 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp lemon juice, or juice of half a lemon
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 Tbsp capers, chopped
3 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Place chicken breasts one at a time in a large, heavy zipper-close bag and beat with a hammer, meat tenderizer, or what have you, until 1/4 inch thick.

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken (two batches if necessary) and cook til it's done through, 3-4 minutes per side.

Remove the chicken from the pan. Add the garlic, lemon juice, white wine, and capers to the pan, stirring it to get all the tasty brown bits off the bottom. Boil the whole thing hard for a minute or so to reduce it a little

Put the chicken back in the pan for another minute, sprinkle the parsley over it, and serve.

Now I messed up the beating down to a quarter inch part, and so the whole 3-4 minutes thing, didn't happen. I opted to cover it with the 1/2 cup wine and enough chicken broth to just cover, and simmer it like that until the chicken was done. Then I poured off most of the broth, and added in the rest, and it was still pretty good! I loved it, and I want to find my hammer so I can do it right next time. No family or anything to judge it, as I live alone, but yeah......... good stuff, and not the sort of standard grilled chicken breast thing.

[Omlette]

There are times when I really want a PB or Ham Sandwich with bread on both sides and not worry about trimming it down to 10 ECC. These Flax Buns provide me with two slices of “bread” that are moist and firm and give me my Ham Sandwich at under 5ECC.
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/538-Sandwich1.JPG

The above sandwich with 2.5 oz. of regular sliced ham, 3 leaves of Romaine and some Wasabi Mayo adds 1 ECC and 13 protein for 35 Protein and 4.1 ECC.

Fresh out of the oven they look like this...
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/18-Baked1.JPG
each bun is 14.2 Carbs -11.1 Fiber = 3.1 ECC and 22 Protein at 326 Calories


They smell great baking and my son who is an adult came in last week and excitedly asked, “Are you making Cinnamon Buns?!!”

Recipe for Flax Buns

Mix dry ingredients ...
1.5 cups LC Pancake/Baking Mix (I used CarbQuick although Atkins Pancake Mix)
1 cup Almond Flour
1 cup Plain Whey Protein (O ECC, 25 Protein/scoop)
1 cup ground Flaxseed
2 Tbs. Cinnamon
Pinch of Salt

Blend Moist Ingredients
4 Eggs
1 Block Extra Firm Tofu (10.5 oz.) 3 ECC for whole block
¼ cup oil (I used peanut but any oil should do)
8 drops SweetZfree (or sweeten to taste with Splenda)
3/4 cup water - add a little more later to get "bun-like" texture
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/3173-blend2.JPG
Pour blended liquid over the mixed dry ingredients and mix until thick. You will have to add a little water as you work it into a thick dough.
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/2702-mixb.JPG
After forming "bun/loaves" I baked at 325 for about 30-35 minutes. I press them down to just over an inch and they rise just a little.
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/507-baking1.JPG


Did we like it, LOVE it or hate it?

These are my favorite LC Bread thing!

Did the family like it, LOVE it or hate it?
My wife is a picky LC eater and she has them almost every day as a meal nuked and buttered. I have PB and Walden Farms Jam every couple of days or a Ham Sandwich as shown above. Even my son (Non LC) has them with butter although finds them heavier than a regular bun. Made Dinner bun size these would be about 1.5 ECC.


Will I make this recipe again?
I've made them twice and will make them every few weeks. They store well and stay moist.

What would I change?
For a treat I will try to make a Cinnamon Bun thing using more Cinnamon mixed with Xylitol or similar sweetener, swirled inside and sprinkled on top.

I know the answer is probably obvious, but I just want to make sure. You press them down BEFORE you bake, correct?

Could this be made in large muffin pans?

[Gaelen]

Everyone...Quote button hint: when you quote posts that contain images, you should probably remove the images from the text that you're quoting. Once you use the auto-quote feature, the images embedded in the post you're quoting may only come through as empty boxes.

[Ottawa]

I know the answer is probably obvious, but I just want to make sure. You press them down BEFORE you bake, correct?

Could this be made in large muffin pans?

The reason I pressed them down was to make sure that I had a bun that I could slice in two to make a sandwich. I'm sure they would work fine and cook a little faster in a muffin pan. My wife used the last one today so I'll try the cinnamon bun ones on the weekend and I'll try the muffin pans as well.

For anyone from Canada http://lowcarbfooddepot.com/ normally has CarbQuick Biscuit and Baking Mix in 5lb. bags with free shipping on large orders. Although you can make your own using some of the Faux flour listings found here, I really like how or other premixed mixes work and I only use it as a base and add simple whey protein, ground flaxseed, and often some almond flour to round it out. It should be even cheaper in the States although our dollar is catching up.:rolleyes:

I usually buy lots when I find a sale on similar LC flours on sale due to approaching Best Before Dates. When the Atkins stuff started dissapearing you could get there mixes under $2.00.

[cmcole]

OK, I'll join in with a recipe for a snack/indulgence:

Almond (or Almond-Coconut) Bark

4 T coconut butter/oil
1 or more T unsweetened cocoa (I used a combination of black cocoa and Dutch process - love the black for the colour, especially)
1 tsp (more or less) AS (I chose Sugar Twin, but you can use whatever)

Melt; spread in tray, plastic container or whatever to make the size/thickness you wish. Refrigerate or freeze.

Additional items to above:

whole or sliced almonds
shredded, unsweetened coconut (or flakes, or your preference)

I find that it tastes fine, however, it is best left refrigerated, I think (or maybe that the problem). It tends to get all over your fingers - it melts/softens with body heat.

Tried it the second time with the almonds/coconut, and used lard and butter as the fat/oil. Still has a tendency to get all over my hands.

So, it is not, to me an every-day thing, anyway, but I'm trying to figure out what would be the best "fat" combination so it didn't melt in your hands, and not just in your mouth.

I don't put too much AS in it, since I like the bitter taste. Obviously adaptable to your preferred sweetness.

I'd take a picture, but I'm not entirely sure how to post it.

[kevinpa]

It tends to get all over your fingers - it melts/softens with body heat.

A few light shreds of paraffin wax might help that.

[Ottawa]

Kevin,
I'm always interested in freebie (0 carb) foods. Do you use the Parraffin in any other foods/recipes?

[kevinpa]

Kevin,
I'm always interested in freebie (0 carb) foods. Do you use the Parraffin in any other foods/recipes?

I have a recipe that I used to make for chocolate covered peanutbutter balls(you might know them as buckeyes). They are high carb but when I made them the chocolate was melty to the touch so I added some parraffin wax to the chocolate and they no longer melted in your hand. It has been on my list of things to do to convert that recipe to low carb. Most chocolatiers use some sort of wax to some degree when making their candies.

[miralin]

Oooooh that sounds yummy Kevinpa -- not the paraffin, though I know you're right, but the chocolate peanut butter balls.

[SherryJ]

Can you believe it's week TWO of May already?!!?!? Times flies... and, I hope YOU'RE having as much fun with this as I am. THANKS to all who've participated, and C'MON to those who haven't! ;)

NOTE: I absolutely LOVE the pics! However, it would help save space if we limit the amount of pictures per recipe to one, or possibly two--after all, a picture is worth a thousand words. :p

I sooo look forward to y'all's scrumptious recipes this week!

"Happy cooking!" as Jacques Pepin would say!!! :)

Sherry

[kevinpa]

One of my favorite veggie salads is a Three Bean Salad. For those of you who have never had it, typically the flavor is a sweet and sour and has green beans, yellow beans and kidney beans in it. Last Dec. I got a craving for this salad so I tried a LC version of it and it turn out very tasty. I made it at Easter and again today to have with our meals this week. Hope you like it as much as I do.


LC Three-bean Salad Makes about 12 servings 3.5g ecc 4 protein per serving.


14 1/2 ounce can Del Monte whole green beans, drained
14 1/2 ounce can Del Monte golden wax beans, drained
15 ounce can organic Black Soy Beans, rinsed and drained well
1/4 cup granulated Splenda or equivalent (ecc counts are for using sweetzfree)
1/3 cup Balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup virgin olive oil
3 scallions, about 3 inch long and sliced super thin
1 med. clove garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons sf vanilla Davinci syrup(you can use vanilla extract and a bit more sweetner if you don't have the davinci)

Mix the Splenda, Divinci, vinegar and oil in a medium bowl. Stir in the beans and scallions and let marinate in the fridge several hours, stirring occasionally.

http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e352/kevinpa/PP%20recipes/DSC00033.jpg


Did we like it, LOVE it or hate it?
I love it!
Did the family like it, LOVE it or hate it?
The entire family loves it!
Will we make this recipe again?
Absolutely!
What did we change in the original recipe? Nothing!
If we made it again, would we change anything we did the first time?
Nope!

[cmcole]

Thanks, Kevin.
I've made those before, too, although we called them "mouse cookies". For some reason, they looked sort of like little mice on the tray, I guess.

I forgot about the paraffin addition (and, yes, it was the "cooking" type - not obtained by scraping a candle.

[Mitra]

This week's new main course recipe is going to be Shoulder of Lamb with Fennel (http://www.waitrose.com/food_drink/recipes/recipesearch/recipe/0605082-r05.asp). I saw it in my supermarket's food magazine for this month, as one of the recipes in an article on Moroccan food (http://www.waitrose.com/food_drink/wfi/foodaroundtheworld/africaandthemiddleeast/0605082.asp). I've cooked other recipes from Henry Harris, and liked them, so I was really pleased when my google search for an on-line version of the recipe that I could link to uncovered the fact that he's not only written a book, but that it's a low carb book (called Passion for Protein) - I've just ordered it, so I'll let you know what I think when I get it.

I'll report back later in the week with my review of this recipe and the carb & protein counts.

[SherryJ]

Every week, each challenger will try, and share, one - two new main dish protein recipes...

Don't forget, Gang, the challenge is we're focusing on PROTEIN dishes this month. (I've got another challenge formulating in the old brain for side dishes/accompaniments/soemthing-other-than-salad in the works! :))

Sherry

[Gaelen]

Mitra, that recipe sounds terrific.

My first recipe was really going to be something else, but yesterday I needed to feed some unexpected non-low carbing guests, and combined some leftovers into a quick lunch (that I polished off on my own today.) Even if you made the creamed cabbage from scratch, the entire dish was a half-hour from refrigerator to stovetop to table. You don't have to include the whole wheat pasta; I just happened to have a cup of cooked pasta on hand. The addition made it just 'regular food' enough that even the four year old had a second serving. She also didn't object to the various veggies that she was eagerly eating. If you'd rather use low carb pasta, or eliminate it altogether, the nutrient counts for a pasta-less version are also included. Enjoy!

Did I like it or love it? Loved it!
Did the family like it or love it? Loved it...there was only one serving left for my lunch today!
What did I change from the original recipe? Invented on the spur of the moment...ready, set, cook!
Will I make this again? Yes!


* Exported from MasterCook *

Creamed Cabbage Skillet Dinner -- 25g protein, 10g ECC

Recipe By : Gaelen/PAS
Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time : 30 min.
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 cups shredded cabbage
1/2 cup thinly sliced onions
3 tablespoons butter -- divided
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup half and half
1/4 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 pound ground beef, lean
1/2 cup diced tomatoes

Put a pot of water on to boil, salt it, and when it comes to a rolling boil, cook the pasta according to the directions on the box. If you don't have whole wheat elbows, small shells or spaghettin broken into 2" pieces will also work well.

CREAMED CABBAGE: In a medium sized saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter on medium heat. Into that, mix the sliced onions, shredded cabbage, chopped mushrooms and garlic. Toss the vegetables to coat with the melted butter, add salt and pepper to taste, and cover. Steam the vegetables 3-4 minutes, or until they've softened but not browned. Stir in the milk, cover the skillet again, and allow the vegetables to 'poach' in the simmering milk. After 3-4 more minutes, uncover and stir in the remaining
tablespoon of butter, the half and half and the shredded cheddar. Toss to
combine, remove from the heat and set aside, covered, while you prepare
the ground meat and drain the noodles. NOTE: you can also use any pre-packaged shredded cabbage or combination of cabbage/shredded carrots
intended for cole slaw that comes in around 3g ECC per 1 1/2 cup serving. (This part of the recipe is a great side-dish based on a hand-me-down recipe for Pennsyvania Dutch Creamed Cabbage.)

In a larger skillet, brown the ground beef (you can also use chicken, turkey, pork or whatever ground meat you have). Add salt and pepper to taste to the ground meat. When it's browned on all sides and cooked through, stir in the creamed cabbage mixture, the diced tomatoes and the cooked whole wheat macaroni. Continue to cook for 2-3 minutes or until the flavors blend and the tomatoes just begin to color the sauce.

Serve topped with additional grated cheddar and accompanied by a salad of
fresh greens. If you need to boost the protein, increase the amount of ground meat by 4 oz. per additional serving. If you need to extend the
recipe, increase the shredded cabbage by 1/2 cup per person. You may need
more butter to saute and cream the cabbage if you extend the recipe by
increasing the amount of creamed cabbage.

I made this with a cup of cooked whole wheat pasta because I had the leftovers and I can tolerate a half-cup serving of cooked pasta now and then. The addition definitely made the dish more attractive to non-low carbing friends and VERY kid-friendly. If you choose to eliminate the whole wheat pasta (which only adds 4g ECC per serving), these are the nutrient counts per 1 cup serving:
460 Calories; 37g Fat (73.0% calories from fat); 24g Protein; 7g
Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 124mg Cholesterol; 236mg Sodium.

You can also substitute your favorite low carb pasta and adjust the
nutrient counts accordingly.

Yield: 4 one-cup servings
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Per Serving : 485 Calories; 37g Fat (69.2% calories from fat); 25g Protein; 12g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 124mg Cholesterol; 236mg Sodium.

[SherryJ]

Gaelen, that sounds interesting!

Mitra, how did the lamb turn out?

I'm sorry, Gang, but I'm kinda out of it this week... fighting a head cold, or a sinus something... or SOMETHING!!! (Sore-ish throat, slamming headache, stuffiness, etc...)

Sherry

[Gaelen]

Uh-oh, Sherry...sounds like it's Mucinex time. ;) I've been on a maintenance dose of it to prevent sinus issues for about five years...it's that, or join my uncle in the southwest. CNY = sinus problems 10 months out of the year, but at least on Mucinex I no longer feel like my head is a living barometer of pressure and weather changes. Hope you feel better.

[kevinpa]

PA has been in a pollen alert, one of the worst in years. My sinuses have been tore up for weeks so I feel for both of you!

[Mitra]

I sympathise with all of you. Sinus problems are so miserable :(.

We haven't had the lamb yet. I bought it yesterday, and I'm planning it for dinner tonight.

[Gaelen]

Well...to get this thread back to week #2 of the recipe challeng ;) (apologies for digressing, Sherry...)

This week, while making lunch on Monday, I hit on something that has come the closest to the texture and taste of risotto that I've found in four years. I was using finely chopped zucchini, where before I'd always used grated...and suddenly, between the butter and the olive oil in the pesto sauce and the mushrooms, I had something very close to a risotta alla Genovese on my plate!

I'm going to post my experiments in the 'Protein Power Kitchen' forum, because it's still a little rough. I need to figure out if it was a 'happy accident' or something I can duplicate consistently...and more important, can other people duplicat it. The more testers, the merrier...so while it's not a formal part of this challenge yet, if it gets enough positive results on enough different stovetops, it could be my next 'mother' recipe. Risotto used to be a staple for me; I must have a dozen risotto recipes that I now only make for other people. ;) When I have some time later today, I'll post the zucchini risotto experiment thread in 'PP Kitchen' and link it back here.

[Mitra]

I had an olivada risotto that I loved. I sometimes used a similar sauce on pasta, but haven't found a home for it since LC, so I'll give it a go with courgettes :).

[cmcole]

What if you used TVP instead of rice for the risotto? Would that work, or even if you combined it with the chopped zucchini, or some other veggie (daikon, turnip, eggplant)?

[Mitra]

I cooked a shoulder of lamb with fennel (http://www.waitrose.com/food_drink/recipes/recipesearch/recipe/0605082-r05.asp). I did one of the other recipes in the same article (http://www.waitrose.com/food_drink/wfi/foodaroundtheworld/africaandthemiddleeast/0605082.asp) as a garnish: the yogurt with mint and saffron (http://www.waitrose.com/food_drink/recipes/recipesearch/recipe/0605082-r01.asp). I followed it with a salad from my new book by the same person as these recipes (Henry Harris). The salad was tomato and preserved lemon, and was wonderful - I'm not a great salad eater, but this one will definitely be appearing again. Beautiful colours and flavours that were rich and intense, but still refreshing.

But back to the main dish... First the boring stuff. The protein count depends on the size of the lamb shoulder. The carbs worked out at about 60 for the entire recipe - six good-sized servings. You could reduce them by using less onion (which contributed just over 30g for the 400g I used), or by serving yourself a bit less of the onion/fennel mix.

The sauce was a sort of sweet and sour combination, which went well with the richness of the lamb. It reminded me of some ways duck is served. Although everything was cooked together, I strained off the sauce to de-fat and reduce it, and took out the meat to separate the bones and fatty bits, so ended up with all the bits separate, which means that the extras (we'll get at least another two dinners out of it, and possibly the odd lunch as well) can be used either the same way again, or with a different sauce for variety (I'm keen on cooking that can be recycled ;).) The recipe said not to carve the meat, but to pull it apart with spoon and fork, and it was so soft and tender that that worked very well.

It was also dead easy - slice the onion & fennel, put everything in a pot then stick it in the oven for hours and hours.

It was a good recipe for this time of year, too. When the weather's not quite warm enough for very summery dishes, but you don't want wintery casseroles. The North African & Middle Eastern dishes somehow seem to evoke their warm climate.


Did we like it, LOVE it or hate it?
We liked it. It was one of those dishes that grows on you as you eat it - at the first mouthful we were saying that it needed a bit more work, but by the time we had two clean plates in front of us we were talking about doing it again.

Will we make this recipe again?
Yes.

What did we change in the original recipe?
Pretty much stuck to the recipe (did I really say that? :eek: )

If we made it again, would we change anything we did the first time?
I might be tempted to increase the harissa effect by adding more hot pepper, or to move it more towards a French style by not using the harissa, but playing up the red wine and fennel - adding some fennel seeds. Or maybe use white wine and fennel with less vinegar.


Who else is cooking this week?

[Ottawa]

Baked/Grilled Salmon
I won't do the counts on this, since even a large portion is under a few carbs unless you ate all the ginger of the top.:D As it was our guests did not eat their ginger but loved teh salmon.

I butter the cooking surface and lay the Salmon Fillet on it.
I do a light coating of warm butter on top and it congeals like a thin shell.
I sprinke liberally with Tumeric and then put a light dusting of Paprika for colour. If you like a little more flavor you could do a light sprinkle of seasoned salt beflre laying the ginger on.
I lay out thin layers of ginger that I have presweetened with lemon juice and sucralose (I used lime juice and some SweetZfree). It leaves just a hint of ginger along with some sweetness on top.
I usually eat a few pieces of ginger with the fish but some find it too strong even when cooked. I'm not sure why some turned pink.
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/3389-Baked-Salmon.JPG
I lay out some lemon slices, drizzle with lime juice and bake for 25 minutes. Our friends like their fish translucent (slightly under cooked) so I cooked this for just 18 at 350, and broiled it for 2 minutes for colour. When on the serving tray I poured the pan juices (butter, lime juice and some of the fish oil, back over top). We served it with grilled mushrooms, peppers and asperagus.

Tumeric is one of those spices you are supposed to have daily. It goes a bright yellow and is great in a Curry Sauce. It grows on you and I like it with most meats but beef.

[Mitra]

That sounds delicious, Randy. Do you have enough for some extra guests? ;)

[Ottawa]

You are all invited anytime. Just let me know in advance.

In 2004 there was a few dinners in Ottawa for Low Carb Friends from Ottawa http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=170664&highlight=Ottawa and we did two restaurants and then decided we would get together at one of our homes. I volunteered and forgot to mention it to my wife until a week later. She asked "Oh, who's coming? Do I know them?"
I answered that I didn't remember or know most of their real names but I knew almost all of them from the board.


She went a little beserk on me inviting people "off the internet" and we ended up using a restaurant. She's much better now and you can show up anytime. Just say you know me from work. :lol: :D :lol:

[Bones]

Chicken Kabobs

2.5 lbs. chicken chunks (I use the Foster Farms bagged chicken tenderloins)
mushrooms
bell peppers
onions
any vegetables you like

Marinade:

1 C. olive oil
3/4 C. low sodium soy sauce
1/2 C. lemon juice
1/4 C. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 C. prepared mustard
1 1/2 tsp. black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced

Place chicken and vegetables in marinade in a large bowl (with lid to cover) or a large Ziploc bag. Marinate in the fridge for at least 4 hrs. Arrange on skewer sticks and grill.

All I can say is, "YYYYUUUUUMMMMMMMMMM!!!" My family loves these kabobs.

[kevinpa]

Chinese Barbecue Chicken Drummettes

2 lbs chicken wing drummettes
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. 1 carb ketchup
2 T. polyD+
3 T. SF Davinci carmel syrup
1 t. sesame seed oil
1/2 t. minced garlic
Blended soy sauce, ketchup, polyD, carmel syrup, sesame seed oil, and garlic.
Combine wings with mixture and marinate for 1 hour.
Bake in 9 X 13 glass dish at 350 degrees uncovered for 1 hour.
Baste occasionally with the marinate from the dish every ten or fifteen minutes.

After wings are done baking for an hour, tranfer to broiling pan and broil on high for 10 mins basting and turn once.

it make them perfect!!


2 lbs was 13 drumettes and slightly under 1 ecc and 10 protein each
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e352/kevinpa/PP%20recipes/DSC00024.jpg


Did we like it, LOVE it or hate it?
Finger lickin good!
Will we make this recipe again?
Yes.
What did we change in the original recipe?
Added the 10 min broil.
If we made it again, would we change anything we did the first time?
wouldn't change a thing from how I made them this time.

[Gaelen]

What if you used TVP instead of rice for the risotto? Would that work, or even if you combined it with the chopped zucchini, or some other veggie (daikon, turnip, eggplant)?

CM, I've used TVP to make a risotto-like dish. It makes an okay stuffing, but as a risotto, I wasn't happy with it. It lacked something in my basic mushroom-herb risotto recipe, and other efforts didn't give me the mouth-feel I wanted, either. Sorry I didn't get the zucchini risotto-style posted in PP Kitchen; today got a little out of control, but tomorrow is another day. I had to go buy more zucchini. ;)

[Mitra]

I'll be buying some courgettes this morning, Gaelen. (And I've finally given in and ordered some kefir grains, which should arrive today or tomorrow. Another culture to take care of :rolleyes: just what I need - I think I must be using them as child/pet substitutes ;) .)

[Bones]

I'll be buying some courgettes this morning, Gaelen. (And I've finally given in and ordered some kefir grains, which should arrive today or tomorrow. Another culture to take care of :rolleyes: just what I need - I think I must be using them as child/pet substitutes ;) .)

:lol:

I saw some kefir grains at the health food store the other day and was tempted to buy some. I decided against it since we are moving soon...maybe when we get to our new house. It's so much cheaper making it yourself that it's hard for me not to give it a try.

[Mitra]

For me it's not that it's cheaper, but that I've never seen kefir for sale, so making it myself was the only way to get any. I've made a batch or two from powdered starter, but they say it's not the same as grains - so I have my first jar sitting in the cupboard :D.

[Gaelen]

Everyone, here's the link to Zucchini, risotto-style (http://www.proteinpower.com/forum/showthread.php?p=6823#post6823) in the PP Kitchen forum. I made it again today for lunch, topped with a soft-poached egg, and it came out risotto-like, just the way it did on Monday. For a vegetarian dish, it has a respectable nutrient profile, too (12g protein, 6g ECC for the entire 1 1/2 cups.)

Enjoy!

[Belfrybat]

Well, here I am barely coming in under the wire for this week. Actually, I've made a couple of new things, but by guess and by golly (my normal way of cooking) and not by recipe. I like Kevin's pastry recipe so much that I decided to try the Cheeseburger Quiche over on the Low Carb Friends forum:

http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/recipereview/showproduct.php/product/3204/sort/8/cat/13/page/6

The original recipe didn't call for a pie crust, but it worked wonderfully in Kevin's crust:

2/3 c. + 2 T. shortening (I used crisco green with no trans fats)
1 1/2 c. Carbalose flour
1/2 c. resistant wheat starch
4 T. + 2 t. cold water

Cut shortening into flour until the particles are like small peas.
Sprinkle in water, 1 T. at a time tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry is clinging to the side of the bowl.

Roll out between 2 lightly dusted(WPI) sheets of wax paper.
-------------------------
Did we like it, LOVE it or hate it?
It was very good but a bit blander than I expected.

Will we make this recipe again?
Yes -- it is easy and gave me an excuse to use pie crust

What did we change in the original recipe?
Placed mixture in a pie crust and used Carb Countdown instead of the cream/water mixture, reduced cheese to 4 oz.

If we made it again, would we change anything we did the first time?
Use some herbs and perhaps spinach--it was a bit bland. Look for ways to cut down on the calories -- perhaps use yogurt instead of mayo.

For six servings: Calories: 635, ECC 8.5, Pr 24

[SherryJ]

Oh, Guys, I am ALMOST to be counted among the living, LOL! THANKS for keeping this up and going...

I'm still mostly doing broths, as the throat is still tender from coughing, but am at least able to think about food now! You guys are amazing cooks!

I have a new grilled chicken recipe to try... that's on the list for Tuesday evening, so look out! ;)

Sherry

[Ottawa]

Continuing to explore Soy products I found a product in Chinatown that fit a need that I have for low ECC chips. We are part of a Traveling Dinner next month and we are "Appetizers" and decided to go with Tapas.

Looking for a way to lower the carb count I spied these sheets of Bean Curd. (http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/9249-Yuba1.JPG) They fill two large cookie sheets at 6.75 ECC/sheet. or 13.5/pkg..

Yuba (http://members.tripod.com/~NiallOK/yubahowto.html) (Bean Curd Sheet) 3 oz.

From Package
80 cals

Fat 2 g
Carbs 10
Fiber 1
Protein 12

I think the package is mislabeled as is much of the foreign products in these shops. This was more weight than listed so I looked it up online at about 50% more than claimed.
From Web 1 package = 13.5 ECC 18 Protein/sheet and weighs 5 oz..

http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/8067-Yuba-Chips1.JPG

The above is one package/sheet, put into two pans and cut before baking. Cutting afterwards requires scissors unless you do it while still hot/flexible.

The bottom tray is 6.75 ECC plus the cheese and spices. I used Mozzarella cheese, Paprika, a bit to much Cayenne:D , and Italian Seasoning which added about 5 ECC.
Half a tray of these would almost make a meal and ring in less than 5 ECC and 14 Protein (whole milk Mozzarella) depending on the cheese used.

I have played with these as wrapping for hot dogs, cheese rolls, etc.. After they cool down they are quite crunchy although the cheese topped ones remain flexable.


More on Bean Curd and Yuba
http://www.fengshuitours.com/sfc/NFsoyfoods38.asp (http://www.fengshuitours.com/sfc/NFsoyfoods38.asp)

[Gaelen]

Halfway through May, and lots of new recipes to consider and try.

I think Sherry may have something special planned for this week, but I thought I'd get the thread started for any early birds who've already done some new-to-you recipe experiments. Please remember, one picture is worth a thousand words, so if you include a photo, hit us with your one best shot. ;)

[Missy]

Kevin's pictures have reached out and touched me personally! :D

[SherryJ]

Oh, Missy, I read about your biscuit droolings! :p ;) :p Glad they turned out well...

In spite of this day having not much written on the calendar, it was TOTALLY packed! However, I must tell you I was able to get my planned "new meal" in... and, YUM!!! Here it is: www.bhg.com/bhg/recipe Put a search in for "Chicken with Garden Salsa"...

Did I Love it? YES!!!

Did the family like/love it? Mr. Wonderful almost drooled; Mr. Biggest had a challenge with the "green stuff" (ie, cilantro); Mr. Youngest didn't have any salsa, but did have seconds...

Will we make it again? YES...

Did I change anything? No... did it just as it was written.

Would I change anything? I used a "medium" potency for the salsa, and that was great for me and DH, but a little much for the boys... We'll drop it to "mild", and keep the cilantro out of the boys portions... Wonder what he would have said if he knew there was CUCUMBER in it?!??!?! :D

I THOROUGHLY enjoyed this, and it WILL be on the 14 day rotation... the boys can join in or not! :)

How 'bout the rest of you guys? Anything? Everything? ;)
Sherry

[Gaelen]

I was playing around with my Scalloped Tomatoes recipe, which has a pretty Italian flavor (fresh basil or pesto, parmesan cheese, shredded mozzarella and marinated artichoke hearts). I wanted more Mexican flavors, so I switched to chili powder and cumin, monterey jack cheese, and diced green chiles...but I left in the toasted pine nuts because I really like them. ;)

Did I like it or love it? I liked it.
Will I make it again? Maybe for a pot luck or shared lunch, but probably not for myself alone.
What did I change from the original recipe? (see above ;))
What would I do differently? I'd make it hotter. Ro-tel tomatoes instead of plain diced tomatoes in juice, or add more chili powder (mine is from roasted chiles, dried and ground up, so it's pretty hot and I add it in with care), or use pepper jack instead of plain...or some combination of those things. As is, it's fine for group gatherings where you never know what kind of heat people like or will tolerate. But I found myself adding hot sauce to each serving!
----------------------------------------
* Exported from MasterCook *

Chile-Scalloped Tomatoes -- 22g protein, 8g ECC for six servings

Recipe By : Gaelen/PAS
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time : 45 min.
Categories : vegetarian, casserole

Amount Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 eggs -- beaten
1 3/4 cups diced tomatoes -- one 15 oz. can, in juice
2 cloves garlic
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro -- fresh if you've got it, otherwise omit
3/4 cup pine nuts -- toasted
1 1/4 cups shredded monterey jack cheese -- divided
1/2 cup diced green chiles -- 1 4 oz. can
salt and pepper to taste

Beat the eggs into the ricotta cheese; set aside.

Finely chop the garlic. Mix the garlic, chili powder, cumin, chopped fresh cilantro and salt and pepper to taste into the canned diced tomatoes and set aside. Coarsely chop the pine nuts and set aside.

In a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish, layer half of the ricotta mixture, then half of the diced tomato mixture, then half of the plain shredded jack cheese. Repeat the layers. Top with the reserved toasted pine nuts.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the mixture is bubbly and the top is golden brown.

Variations: use pepper jack cheese instead of plain monterey jack cheese if you like a little more heat.

Yield: six 3/4 cup servings

Per Serving : 375 Calories; 28g Fat (66.7% calories from fat); 22g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 125mg Cholesterol; 261mg Sodium.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

[Mitra]

We had an unplanned new dish (actually it was last week, but I'll put it here).

Chicken with Cream and Tarragon Sauce

For 2:
Cooked chicken (I was using up the leftovers from a roast chicken)
1/4 cup white wine (optional - I actually used dry white vermouth, which has a herby flavour that goes well with the tarragon)
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup cream
2-3 Tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
salt and pepper

Protein - depends how much chicken you use.
Carbs (total for the quantities above) - 5g ecc (4 if you leave out the wine)

Put the white wine and chicken stock in a saute pan (is that a skillet in American?) and boil until it is reduced to about half, then add the cream and tarragon, bring to a boil, add the chicken and simmer for 5 minutes or so until the chicken is heated through. If the sauce looks too runny, turn the heat up and reduce it a bit more, if it looks too dry, add more liquid (stock, wine, cream or water - whichever you feel like). Taste it and add salt and pepper (you may not need to add more salt if you've used bought chicken stock).

Did we like it? We both loved it.
Would I make it again? Definitely - easy and delicious, what more could you ask for?
Would I change anything? No.

Tonight I'm planning a new stuffed mushroom recipe from the Henry Harris book, which will be this week's official recipe.

[kevinpa]

This week I made my BAKED BREADED CHICKEN:
http://www.proteinpower.com/forum/showthread.php?p=6971#post6971


Did I like it or love it? I love this chicken. Especially cold with side salads. This would make a great picnic food.
Will I make it again? Most definitely.
What did I change from the original recipe? I added some different fresh herbs.
What would I do differently? Other than play with different herb tastes.....nothing.

[Mitra]

Grilled Mushrooms with Bacon & Cheese

This recipe came from Passion for Protein, by Henry Harris, so I won't give the details here, but it consisted of pushing some slivers of garlic into the gills of portobella mushrooms, drizzling a generous amount of melted butter over, adding salt & pepper, then cooking under a grill (should that be broiler?). Fry a few slices of bacon or pancetta (I used pancetta) until it's a bit coloured, then top each mushroom with slices of bacon and of cheese (I used Taleggio, as the recipe suggested) and pop them back under the grill to melt and slightly brown the cheese.

I worked out at about 30g protein, 5g ecc per person (2 mushrooms each) and we ate it with a green salad. The recipe suggested watercress, but I didn't have any, so used wild rocket instead, which went very well.

It was simple and quick to make, and was a sort of comfort food quick supper dish.

Did we like it? Yes
Would we do it again? Definitely
What would we change? The pancetta was quite salty, so I'd maybe use a slightly less salty bacon, or possibly blanch it.

[kevinpa]

I was looking for something different for breakfast this morning and as I was looking over the contents of my fridge, a 12 oz bag of broccoli slaw kept catching my eye. When I bought it I wasn't quite sure what I was going to use it for but figured I would come up with something. Anyway as I looked at it I thought how much it looked like shedded zucchini.......then it hit me http://forum.lowcarber.org/images/smilies/icon3.gif Broccoli Latkes.

So here is what I did. I took:

6 oz broccoli slaw (1/2 bag)
2 scallions sliced thin
1 T mayo
2 eggs
1/4 c. carbquik
1/4 c. grated parmisan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Put broccoli slaw in covered glass dish with 2 T. water and microwave for 5 min.
Drain and mix with the rest of the ingredients and salt and pepper to taste.
In a buttered skillet over medium heat fry until golden brown.
I ate them just like that but they also would have tasted good with syrup.

It made 6 Latkes at 3 protein and a little under 2 ecc each.

http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e352/kevinpa/PP%20recipes/DSC00035_868264.jpg

Did I like it or love it? I loved it.......it was very tasty.
Will I make it again? Most definitely.
What did I change from the original recipe? I just made it up so its the first time I made it.
What would I do differently? nothing.

[LisaS]

Made this tonight. Was going for something like Pollo Loco - but I think I like this better.

Crazy Chicken (Pollo Loco knockoff)
Marinade:
1/3C Olive Oil
2/3C Vinegar (used apple cider & white 2/3, 1/3)
juice of 1 lime
zest of 1 lime - use 1/2 here
1 jalapeno, diced
6 cloves garlic, diced
5-6 shots Tabasco
1T dry Oregano
1/3-1/2C chopped cilantro
1/2t chili powder (the kind with cumin, not powdered chilies)
1/2t sea salt
1T pepper corns, cracked

Glaze:
7g honey (1 tsp)
juice of 1 lime
the rest of the lime zest
3-4 shots Tabasco

I marinated about 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken for about 4-5 hrs. I think it would have been just as good after 2-3 hrs. Then I grilled the chicken on the George Foreman and when it was done I put the pieces on a parchment lined cookie sheet and lacquered them with with the glaze and put the pan under the broiler for a minute or two.

---
Did I like it or love it? I liked it.
Will I make it again? Definitely.
What did I change from the original recipe? Made it up - though I've made other similar marinades from recipes, so those basics might have been in the back of the brain somewhere too.
What would I do differently? I didn't have any cumin. I'd definitely add 1-2tsp of cumin to the marinade. I'd make it hotter - more fire in the marinade - maybe a serrano and more pepper sauce and some powdered cayenne or other peppers *or canned chipotle*. I'd also add a little worchestershire sauce. I thought it was kinda lime-y rather than citrus-y - so I'd probably add a little orange juice if I had any next time - like 1-2T. I also think I'd like a little more heat in the glaze and some tomato effect - a little lc ketchup rather than tom sauce I think - or a little adobo from chipotles. And maybe molasses instead of honey. All in all, it came out pretty well.

and of course, I'd prefer to grill it outside, on a real grill.

[Always]

I thought I'd stick my nose in and contribute a recipe.

Breaded Mustard pork
Boneless pork chops (or slices of pork tenderloin)
Mustard (my fav is McIllheny...nice bite to it)
Fry it Right (this is a protein based breading)
Almond Meal (or pecan)
Salt and Pepper
Penzey's Galena Street blend (or any other spice combo you like)

Smear the mustard on both sides of the pork (you can let it sit in the fridge to absorb the flavor of the mustard if you want, but it's not necessary). Mix the dry ingredients on a plate (50-50 ratio on the Fry it Right and the nut flour). Coat the mustard laden pork with the dry ingredients and fry in your favorite oil (mine is macnut oil or coconut or garlic) until cooked through and the breading is browned. The counts vary depending on your mustard and nuts. If you don't have access to Fry it Right, just use nut flour.

Oooooh Baby!!!!!

We LOVE it.
Would I make it again? Again and again and again
I wouldn't change a thing!!!!

See ya!

[SherryJ]

Hey Gang! Hope all's well with you and your's!

This is what I'm making this week... was going to be this evening, but we've had some kinks thrown into our schedule, so I'm not sure...

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=290401

How 'bout you? What's cookin'? :)

Sherry

[ladydoc442]

Being a lover of Buffalo chicken wings and not wanting to consume a lot of deep-fried foods, I make this "Chicken Wing Dip" for parties and everyone loves it.

I take about a cup of softened cream cheese and spread it over the bottom of a deep pie pan. Then I mix together in a separate bowl:

2 cups shredded or diced chicken (I use leftover rotisserie chicken)
1 cup chunky blue cheese dressing (NOT low-fat, of course - I use Marie's)
1 cup hot pepper sauce (I use Frank's) .. use less if you like your wings mild

Spread chicken mixture on top of the cream cheese layer, then top with 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese and bake at 350 until hot & bubbly, about 30 minutes. I serve them with raw carrot and celery sticks. TO DIE FOR! I would say this much would easily serve 10 people - here's the counts (not including the items you would dip):

Per serving:
ECC - 2.5g
Protein - 15g
Calories - 300

Obviously not an "everyday" item, but wonderful for parties when everyone else is noshing on pretzels & chips :)

Deb

[Mitra]

Do we need a new week?

[Mitra]

We've just had gammon steaks. I'm not sure what they're called in American, but it's a slice of ham from a leg, usually fried or grilled. I've been unhappy with the ones I've bought, because they oozed an unappealing white goo into the pan, and had a funny chemically taste, so I decided to fake it. Strictly, a whole leg of pork is cured, then the steaks are sliced off, but I bought a couple of slices from a boned leg of pork, soaked them in a spiced brine for a couple of days, then fried them and served them tonight with parsley sauce and braised fennel.

For 2:

2 slices of leg of pork (500g - about 1 lb)

A bit over a pint of water (so there'll be the same amount as the meat, after you've boiled it)
20g salt (2/3 oz)
1 Tbs sugar (don't panic, the meat absorbs about 10% of its weight of the brine, so only 1.5g sugar gets eaten)
1/4 tsp saltpetre (potassium nitrate - optional - it's not needed as a preservative, but keeps the meat pink, so it looks like ham. If you leave it out it will taste like ham, but look like cooked pork)
1 bay leaf
4 allspice berries
2 cloves, 1/2 tsp peppercorns
1 tsp juniper berries

Boil the water. Dissolve the salt, sugar and saltpetre in it. Let it cool, then add the spices and pour it over the meat, in a non-metallic container. Put it in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Dry the meat with a paper towel, then fry or grill it.

Total counts: 90g protein, about 2g carb

Did we like it?
Yes, it was greeted with great enthusiasm. It tasted just like real ham, but without the plastic notes.
What did we change
The seasonings for the cure were based on a recipe for belly pork from Paula Wolfert, but she didn't use saltpetre. I did some research to check the right levels (safety rules say 2.5g is safe for the quantities I've given above). DH added the juniper because he likes it.
Would we do it again?
Apparently! DH says it's not one to have every week - but once a fortnight would be acceptable :rolleyes:
What would we do differently?
If we have it many times, I'll probably play around with the spicing, but we were happy with it as it was.

[Gaelen]

Well, today I felt like eating. ;) And I also spent a little time rediscovering the first TV chefs I ever watched...because on our local PBS channel on Tuesdays, they focus on cooking shows. I saw some episodes of Julia Child in 'The French Chef' that I remember from the 80s, and the version that came much later, where she invites master chefs into her kitchen to prepare things like today's Pan-Roasted Lobster in herbed butter. And then I watched an episode of Rick Bayless's 'Mexico: One Plate at a Time,' --the first time I'd seen the show. I really like Bayless's approach to Mexican cooking; it reminds me of Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger (the Two Hot Tamales, who also toured Mexico and Spain to write their own cookbooks.) Bayless inspired me to check out his website, and and I did a turn on this recipe with the ingredients I had on hand.
Here's the original: Camepeche Style Baked Fish Fillets (http://www.fronterakitchens.com/cooking/recipes/campeche_fish.html), and here's my variation:

Campeche Style Pan-Baked Fish Fillets
Two 6-oz. orange roughy fillets
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup of your favorite salsa...I used a Chipotle Salsa I found at Aldi that is 5g ECC for 1/4 cup

Pre-heat a cast iron skillet and oil lightly with extra virgin olive oil. Put the fish fillets into the hot skillet. Drizzle them with lemon juice, and season with salt and the chopped parsley. Put a couple tablespoons of the salsa on top of each fillet, and cover the pan. Roast on the top of the stove for 10-15 minutes or until the fish is flaky and tender and the sauce has reduced a bit. When the fish is cooked through, take it out of the pan.

Stir the remaining salsa into the pan, mixing it with the pan juices. Bring it up to a boil and reduce it until it's a thick sauce. Serve it over the fish fillets. Serves two. Counts for a 6 oz. serving of cooked orange roughy, with my salsa and the lemon juice, are approximately 30g protein and 6g ECC.

Bayless doubled all of these amounts to serve 4, except the salsa; for that he used a full 16 oz. jar. He recommends using any whitefish you enjoy, including snapper, halibut, mahi mahi or grouper, and used limes, not lemons (I was out of limes.) Where I used parsley (what I had), he used cilantro. He also baked the dish in the oven in a covered casserole; I did it in my new cast iron skillet on the stovetop to test out the skillet. Both the skillet and the fish passed with flying colors!

Did I like it or love it? LOVED it!
Will I make it again? Absolutely!
What did I change from the original recipe? Cut the recipe in half, made it on the stovetop instead of in the oven, used lemons for limes, parsley for cilantrol and used about 1/3 as much salsa as Bayless did.
What would I do differently next time? I liked it this way; I think limes and cilantro would also have been terrific. I'd like to try it with salmon, tilapia, and maybe with red snapper. And I'd like to try it with my homemade salsa, as well as with a couple other varieties like the peach salsa I've got in the cupboard.

[miralin]

OK I whipped up a little something on Sunday. I found a great sale on chicken thighs, so I grabbed a ton of them .....

First, I put 5 lbs of them or so in to boil, just in plain water, and left them til they were pretty well cooked through. Makes em easier to debone. Then of course, I take them out, debone them, and put all the bones and stuff back in to cook down til I have stock. Yay! No more funky fake chicken broth.

Anyway, here's the recipe, now that you know where the shredded chicken comes from. You could just as easily do this with chicken breasts if you buy them already skinned and boned, but you'll probably want to saute the chicken a bit longer to make sure it's mostly done before you get to the simmer and stir stage.

1 lb shredded chicken
1 large onion, chopped (tennis ball)
2 zucchini, chopped (these were smallish, maybe an inch and a quarter thick, 5 inches long if I remember right)
1 can stewed tomatoes (12 oz or so?)
olive oil
couple cloves of garlic, smashed
basil and oregano to taste (or pick your favorite seasonings, I just like these two together)

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Throw in the onion and zucchini and saute til the onion is translucent. Add in the chicken and seasonings (including the garlic!) and saute til everything is warm through. Add in the tomatoes -- I don't drain them -- and simmer on medium-low til the chicken is thoroughly cooked, and the zucchini are turning translucent.

et voila! I haven't named it yet, but it's got this sort of Italian thing going on. I broke it into four servings, you may want more or fewer.

And sorry I don't have counts -- most of my recipes are sort of slapdash stuff that turns out well, and I cook only for me ...

Like it/Love it? I am still eating this a few days later and it's LOVELY! I think it's better the second day, actually, than when it's fresh.

Variations from the original recipe? Um, nope, this was off the top of my head

What would I do differently? Oh, also, the first night I let it cool most of the way down, and tossed it with about an ounce of 6-cheese shredded italian blend. Very yummy!

I think for four servings I need to add a bit more protein, as that's only 4 oz per.

I'm going to figure out how to do this with sun-dried tomatoes, I think ... they would add a really nice punch to it. And of course, change up the veggies to your liking. I had mushrooms but forgot to put them in. Oh well, just more interesting ingredients in the fridge for next time!

Will I make it again? heck yeah

[Ottawa]

Sherry, this was a great challenge and there are lots of new ideas popping up for new types of protein meals. They all look/sound great.

Lately I have been playing more and more with Bean Curd, Tofu, Yuba or the many names that it goes by. It is cheaper than many protein sources and comes in many different textures and styles. I found a second supplier as well that is just $1.49/sheet for these sheets.
http://www.imgmonkey.com/image/3370-tuna-yuba.JPG
Last night for dinner there was not much in the way of protein that was not frozen. Looking through the fridge I saw the sheets of Bean Curd, Yuba, and decided to make up some mini pizza/pie things.

I cut the sheet of Yuba in 3 long slices (filled a large cookie sheet with a left over slice for the top. I doubled up the base layer (2 sheets), scored them to make six, added a few rings of onion to each, some zesty salsa, drained tuna, a slice of Provalone cheese, and put the last layer of Yuba on top. I laid a bit of Havarti Cheese on top and sprinkled with Italian Seasoning. I baked for almost 20 minutes at 325, with a minute of broil (370) at the end. They filled the sheet but shrink a bit with baking.

Total: for whole recipe (6 pieces) 1288
Fat: 69
Carbs: 30 - 4 = 26 ECC
Fiber: 4
Protein: 142
Serving (2 pieces) = the above numbers/3 = 430 cals, 23 fat, 8.6 ECC, 47.2 protein

Like it/Love it? I just liked it since I am not a big Tuna fan. I would change the filling next time to ham, chicken or even a sweet filling.

Variations from the original recipe? These were just things in teh fridge/cupboard.

What would I do differently? Drain the Tuna better so you could eat these by hand like little pies. We used cuttlery with these since the Salsa and Tuna left a bit more juice than I thought.

Will I make it again? Yes with different fillings. These things made small would make great ordourves (sp?) or even a nice dessert filled with berries and a thickened sauce (Davinci, mashed and whole berries, bit of lemon and Xanthum gum)

[Mitra]

We tried another new one last night. It was a braised pork chop recipe from Marcella Hazan's Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. In the original recipe, the chops were dipped in flour, then browned in a mixture of olive oil and butter with a few sage leaves thrown in. You could leave out the flour altogether, though it does help the sauce, both in terms of thickness and in mixing a bit of the browned meat flavour. You can limit the quantity by just putting a Tbsp (7g ECC) or however much you think you can afford, onto a plate to dip the meat in. I used boneless pork loin, cut into slices about 3/4" thick, because my husband doesn't like fiddling with bones.

After browning the meat, add about 1/4 cup chopped tinned tomatoes per person, set the pan on a low heat, with the lid slightly ajar, and let the meat and sauce simmer for about an hour. Because we had builders who didn't leave on time, then I had to go out, our meat cooked for at least two hours, but didn't come to any harm. If, when the meat is tender, there's too much liquid left (the sauce should be quite thick), move the meat to a plate to keep warm and boil the sauce fast to reduce it. Spoon off most of the excess fat before you serve it.

Protein count - depends how much meat you use
Carb count (per serving) about 2g ECC for the tomatoes, plus 4g if you use 1/2 Tbs flour per person.

Did we like it?
We certainly did.
What did I change?
I used boneless pork loin instead of chops, and cooked it for longer than specified. And I think someone poured in a bit of white wine while I wasn't looking!
Would we have it again?
Yes, definitely. In fact quite soon, because I always cook too much of this sort of meal, to have another meal for "free." :)
What would I change next time?
Nothing, I was very pleased with it as it was.

[Gaelen]

Friday, I was inspired by an episode of "Sara's Secrets" with Sara Moulton, an episode she spent on burgers. It featured Yellowfin Tuna Burgers with Ginger-Mustard Glaze (http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_23176,00.html) along with a recipe for Walnut-Chickpea burgers (that I'm still working on decarbing.) Moulton borrowed her tuna burger recipe from guest chef Michael Romano from Union Square Cafe, so I'm in good company when I modify it.

Anyhow, I didn't have any fresh raw tuna handy, but I decided to try canned tuna with a variation of the glaze that removed the teriyaki sauce and the honey, and they came out great. This would be a wonderful cupboard meal (I always have tuna on hand, and the glaze ingredients.) Here's my version:

Tuna Burgers with Ginger-Mustard Glaze

Ginger-Mustard Glaze:
2 teaspoons minced ginger
1 teaspoon minced garlic (more like crushed into a paste...;))
2 tablespoons lower sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoon unsweetened rice wine vinegar (mirin)

Tuna Burgers:
12 oz. canned tuna (I used to have chunk light tuna in water)
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons minced garlic (again, mashed into a paste)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
cayenne pepper to taste (if you don't like cayenne or want the heat, use smoked paprika)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
red onion slices, tomato slices and pickled ginger for garnish (optional)

Make the glaze: Combine all the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the glaze coats the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes. Strain the glaze and set aside to dress the tuna burgers after cooking. Glaze can be prepared up to 2 days ahead and stored, covered, in the refrigerator.

Make the burgers: When using canned tuna, drain well and lightly flake. You don't want this tuna to be mashed to a pulp; it should have some texture. If you're lucky enough to have really fresh tuna, grind about 1 1/2 pounds of cleaned, skinless and boneless raw yellowfin tuna filets in a meat grinder or chop with a large sharp knife to the texture of hamburger meat. (Do not use a food processor, which will shred the tuna rather than chop it.)

Combine the tuna with the egg, garlic, mustard, cayenne or paprika, salt, and pepper and mix thoroughly. Divide the tuna into 4 equal portions. Roll each portion into a coarse ball, and then flatten into a patty about 3" diameter.

Heat a large skillet or grill pan over medium-high heat, lightly greased with olive oil, and sear the tuna burgers until browned and medium rare, about 3 to 4 minutes a side. Serve each burger on a bed of crisp greens, drizzled with a tablespoon of warm glaze. If desired, garnish the burgers with tomato slices, red onion slices and pickled ginger.

Did I like it or love it? Loved it.
Would I make these again? Yes; they're going in the 'cupboard meal' file!
What did I change from the original recipe? I used canned tuna instead of fresh, eliminated the teriyaki sauce and honey from the glaze recipe and substituted soy sauce and rice wine vinegar and increased the mustard. I added an egg because I didn't like the way the tuna was holdng together, and decreased the mustard in the patties by 1 tablespoon because canned tuna is wetter than fresh.
What would I do differently? This worked fine, although I'd like to try it with some finely chopped chiles or smoked paprika...and I'd really like to try it with fresh tuna someday when my ship comes in. ;)

I actually ate mine with lettuce, onion and tomato in a low carb pita; with two tablespoons of glaze, the pita and the veggies it came to about 8g ECC (the pita half was 3g ECC). It was VERY tasty! Enjoy...

[Mitra]

They look good, Gaelen. I think I might try that for my lunch tomorrow.

We had an accidental new recipe on Saturday. We'd had some roast beef last weekend, which is always cooked quite rare. We eat the outside slices at that meal, and the inner, very rare part is sliced about 1/2" thick and quickly seared like a steak at another meal. The bones and any fatty, gristly bits make stock, but then I was left with a few chunks that didn't fit into any of those categories.

I minced (is that "ground" in American?) the beef, with a couple of slices of bacon, because it was a bit short of the amount I wanted, and mixed in some chopped herbs (parsley and thyme), pepper, 1 Tbs breadcrumbs (about 5g carb) soaked in a few drops of milk, and a little beaten egg - just enough to bind it together, about half an egg. Then I made it into balls a bit bigger than walnuts - about eight for the two of us.

I sauteed a very small red onion (just because I had red onions - any would do) in some olive oil, then added the meatballs, browned them slightly, and added a 1/4 cup or so of chopped tinned tomato, and cooked for 20 mins or so, adding a bit of water from time to time if it looked too dry, and then salt and pepper and some chopped parsley at the end. We had it with savoy cabbage cooked in butter, with carraway seeds.

Did we like it?
Yes, it was just the thing for this early summer weather that still feels distinctly chilly.
Would we do it again?
Yes, though it's the sort of dish that's never done exactly the same twice.
What did I change?
I just made it up as I went along (though, of course, it's following a pretty standard Italian meatball pattern, that's obviously influenced by working my way through Marcella Hazan's books).
What would I do differently?
Well, there was nothing that I wanted to change, but it's likely I'd vary the herb mix, depending on my mood and the contents of the fridge.

[Belfrybat]

I'm definitely chiming in late on the challenge but fixed two new dishes last week.

Coconut chicken

1 cup coconut flour (or 2+ cups shredded blended into powder)
1 pkg. Splenda
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 lbs. boneless chicken cut into bite-sized pieces (I used thighs)
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 325. Bake coconut flour until golden. (about 15 mins)
Transfer to bowl and add seasonings. Dip chicken pieces in egg and roll in coconut mixture. Place on greased pans and chill one hour or longer. Bake at 400F until golden brown (about 20 mins). Serve with dijon mustard.

Did we like it?
It was OK, but very dry. Also too spicy for me.
Would we do it again?
Probably not without some serious tweaking
What did I change?
Recipe called for sweetened shredded coconut. I used coconut flour and Splenda.
What would I do differently?
Add coconut oil to the egg mixture to try and moisten the breading. Cut cayenne in half.

[Belfrybat]

I hadn't had satay for years, and so this was a nice treat.

Thai Chicken Satay

2 lbs. chicken cut into 1' strips
Bamboo satay sticks

Marinade:
2 cloves garlic
1 TBS curry powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp salt
1 tsp butter (omitted)
3 TBS light cream (I used half 'n half)
1/2 C coconut milk

Mix marinade ingredients. Add chicken and marinate at least two hours. Thread chicken pieces on sticks. Broil. Baste with marinade a couple of times. Serve with peanut sauce.

Coconut/ peanut sauce

1 TBS sugar equivilent (I used stevia)
2 TBS peanut butter
1-1/4 C coconut milk (the rest of the can)
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 TBS curry powder
dash chili hot sauce (I used a dash of cayenne)

Mix ingredients together and heat slightly.

Did we like it?
Yes, it was very good.
Would we do it again?
Definitely
What did I change?
Changes are noted in recipe.
What would I do differently?
Perhaps try a more "peanutty" sauce. This one didn't have a lot of flavour, but wasn't bad.

[SherryJ]

I'm FINALLY getting to the recipe I posted... talk about me needing to plan, LOL!

Well, the verdict is in!

Did I like it, love it? LOVED IT!!!

Did they like it, love it? LOVED IT! So much in fact, that Mr. Biggest took a moment to say, "Mom!", and give me a huge grin and a thumbs up while he was watching a "future weapons" show with his Dad!

Would I do it again? ABSOLUTELY!!! In fact, both boys said they would lick their plates, if they thought they wouldn't get in trouble! :D

Did I change anything? Yes, I used chopped onions in leiu of the green onions... the store was out. I think it was a better option for US, as the color would have thrown the boys off for a bit.

Would I change anything next time... Yes, I would maybe add some mushrooms, and put some lc tortillas layed in....

All I'm sayin'... TRY IT!!! :D
Sherry