Supper Popover

I'm beginning to learn that it's possible to enjoy favorite foods when you alter the ingredients to make a low carb version. I have a wonderful Supper Popover recipe I've avoided for years due to the flour. Now that I've discovered Carbquik, I was able to recreate one my favorite dishes.

Heat the oven to 425 degrees.

Brown, drain 1 lb. of ground beef

Stir into the ground beef:

1 15 oz. can of tomato sauce
1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
2 tbsp. Carbquik
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. parsley flakes

Heat to boiling for 1 minute & stir. Pour into an ungreased rectangular pan or casserole dish (about 9 x 9).

Spread 2 cups of cheese over the ground beef mixture.

Mix:

2 eggs (beat)
1 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp. oil
1 cup Carbquik (sifted)
1/2 tsp. salt

Pour the mixture evenly over the cheese. Sprinkle diced onions on top of the cheese. Bake for 30 minutes. 6 carbs per serving.

How to Cook Bacon in the Oven

I love bacon, but I hate frying it in the pan. The popping grease freaks me out. When I was a kid I spent the night at a friend's house. Her mom let her make the bacon for breakfast. Somehow she tipped the pan and splattered grease all over her tummy. That required a trip to the emergency room. I'm still not over the trauma. Now that I've confessed...DH makes the bacon, but he doesn't like to do it because of the mess.

The other day we tried making bacon on the George Foreman. It worked out well. The bacon came out great (although I had to cut the strips in half). No splattering grease, but it was a messy clean up (even with the drip grease catcher).

How do restaurants make bacon? Their bacon always turns out so perfect. It turns out that they bake it. You don't have the grease popping mess and it's an easy clean up job. This is by far the superior way to make bacon.

Directions for Baking Bacon:

(1) Set the oven at 425 degrees.

(2) Line a cookie sheet with a lip with foil (including the lip). I like Reynold's non stick foil.

(3) Lay your strips of bacon across the pan side by side. I was able to fit about 10 pieces on my cookie sheet.

(4) Bake 10 - 20 minutes (the longer, the crispier). Check every five minutes the first time in order to get your bacon to the level of "crispy" you desire.

(5) When you remove the cookie sheet from the oven, use tongs to place your bacon on a plate topped with paper towels. Roll up the foil and throw it away! The world's easiest bacon clean up.

What Can You Do With A Low Carb Tortilla?

Mission Carb Balance Wheat Tortillas are my new bread. They are 4 carbs each. I count them in my daily (below 20) carb count. I buy mine at Kroger. Tortillas give me new recipe options and make up for sliced bread. Be warned - tortillas in general are high in carbs. In particular, stay away from tortillas at restaurants.

Top Ten Ideas for Low Carbing with Tortillas

1. PB & J. That's right. You can have a low carb version of peanut butter & jelly. I occassionally have one for lunch or as a desperation snack. I use 2 tbsp. of Parker's All-Natural Honey Creme Peanut Butter (I found it in the refrigerated section at HEB) and 1 tbsp. Polaner Sugar Free Jelly. Total: 8 carbs.

2. Make a breakfast burrito with scrambled egg, bacon (or sausage), some diced onion and bell pepper, and a little bit of cheddar cheese.

3. Cinnamon toast. Dab several spots of real butter all over the tortilla. Sprinkle with cinnamon and Splenda. Place in toaster and put on light setting (not a pop up toaster).

4. Soft taco. Mmm...A little ground beef mixed with a Picante sauce and cheese rolled up in your tortilla is totally yummy.

5. Fajitas, of course. I fill mine with a lot of meat. Two is usually enough to keep me happy. You can use beef, chicken, or shrimp, or combine them together. Throw on a little pico de gallo and cheese and you've just gone Tex-Mex.

6. Quesadillas. A little cheese and chicken and tomatoes...optional green onions, black olives, mushrooms, or whatever low carb ingredients that makes you happy. Fry your quesedilla in a flat skillet with a little oil or butter. Add your cheese and ingredients in a thin layer. When your cheese is melted, fold your totilla and flip it till browned on both sides.

7. Pinwheel roll-ups. Cut your tortillas in wide strips. Combine 1 pkg. of cream cheese, 1 cup of sour cream, and 1-1/2 tbsp. of dry onion soup mix. Spread a thin layer of the mixture onto your tortilla strips. Layer on lettuce, thin sliced ham, and Swiss cheese. Great for parties!

8. Pigs in a Blanket - the low carb version! Cut your tortillas in 2 x 4 inch strips. Layer on a sliced cheese (cut to match) and a precooked (preheated as well) little smokie sausage. Roll the tortilla around the sausage. Microwave for 30 seconds (microwaves vary).

9. Tostado. Toast your tortilla (not in a pop up toaster). Top with ground beef, diced tomato, shredded lettuce, and cheese.

10. Strawberries & Creme. Dice up some strawberries and sprinkle with a tsp. of Splenda. Let them sit for a few minutes until the absorb the splenda. Put strawberries in the middle of the tortilla. Drizzle on Walden Farms Calorie Free Chocolate Dip (also 0 carb). Roll up the tortilla. Top with Redi-Whip and more strawberries.

*Note about toasting tortillas: The tortilla will often puff up. Stick a fork in it to make it go back down.

OMG! Best Ever Pork Chops!

DH just made the best pork chops ever. OMG, they were so good. They came out juicy and delicious. The recipe is very simple.

Best Ever Pork Chops

Ingredients:

1/2 inch thick center cut chops
garlic powder
onion powder
Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning

Sprinkle seasonings onto chops. Seer the chops on both sides in a flat skillet, about 3 to 4 minutes (or until browned).

Bake the chops on 350 for 15 minutes.

We served the chops with broccoli slaw and Hidden Valley Rancy Coleslaw dressing.

Meat Lover's Pizza Casserole

I had a brainstorm. I made cheeseburger pie last week, and I wondered...what if I manipulated the ingredients and made a pizza pie instead? So the experiment began. The best part of the experiment is that it turned out great! DH said he liked it better than the cheeseburger pie.

1/2 ground Italian sausage
1/2 pound ground beef
50 pepperonis (approximate) cut in half (this took all of one minute)
1 package of "real" bacon bits
1/2 cup of whipping cream
1/2 cup of low carb spaghetti sauce
1/4 cup bell pepper
1/4 cup onion
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp basil
5 eggs
6 oz. "Pizza" cheese (pre bought package - Kraft)

Fry the sausage and beef together with the bell pepper and onion. Drain the grease. Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl. Pour into a greased (Pam) baking dish. Top with extra pepporoni and cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Snoot Stew

During my grocery shopping trip last week I found a this can of Glory Foods Sensibly Seasoned Tomatoes & Okra. Today I had an idea for lunch. We browned a pound of ground beef, added the Tomatoes & Okra fro Glory Foods and let it simmer. We seasonsed it with salt, pepper, and Tony Chachere's Original Creaole Seasoning (to taste). Dear hubby added a little tabasco sauce to his and named it "Snoot Stew" (it's a little family joke). This quick meal was delish! It is 9 carbs per serving (we each ate half), so if you are eating less than 20 carbs a day, you will need to eat a VLC breakfast and dinner.

Low Carb Recipe - Southern Green Beans

I eat a lot of green beans, considering how low they are in carbs. I was desparate to kick them up a notch, so I came up with a Southern twist that's quick, easy and yummy!

2 cans of cut green beans

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 bag of real bacon bits

2 - 3 tbsp. almond slices



Combine the ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes.

Low Carb Recipe - Blueberry Muffins

I'm rather tickled. I played around in the kitchen and came up with this recipe for blueberry muffins. They turned out great, and they are only 2 carbs each!

Ingredients:

4 eggs
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tbsp. granulated Splenda
2 tbsp. whipping cream
1/3 cup almond flour
1/4 cup fresh blueberries

Whisk the eggs, butter, and whipping cream. Sift in the almond flour and Splenda. Fold in the blueberries. Spray a six cup muffin pan with Pam. Pour the batter into the cups. (I found it simpler to pour the batter into a large measuring cup and then pour it into the muffin pan cups. The spout helped to pour the mix neatly.) Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes. Start watching the muffins at 15 minutes and adjust as needed. Bake the muffins until the are browned, but not burned.

Protein Drink Recipes

My favorite protein powder is Jay Robb's Whey Protein Vanilla Flavor Powder. It's one of the best engineered protein powders with healthy whey isolates, no after taste, and a yummy flavor. And it's only 1 carb! I make protein drinks for breakfast when I in a hurry, and for in between meals when I get hungry. I've been experimenting lately. Here are some of my favorite protein drink recipes:

Cherry Blast

1 scoop of Jay Robb's Whey Protein Vanilla Flavor Powder
8 oz. Big K Diet Drop Red Cherry Blast Soda
4 tbsp. of whipping cream
2-3 ice cubes

Root Beer Float

1 scoop of Jay Robb's Whey Protein Vanilla Flavor Powder
8 oz. Diet Root Beer
4 tbsp. of whipping cream
2-3 ice cubes

Orange Creamsicle

1 scoop of Jay Robb's Whey Protein Vanilla Flavor Powder
8 oz. Diet Sunkist Orange Soda
4 tbsp. of whipping cream
2-3 ice cubes

Big Red Float

1 scoop of Jay Robb's Whey Protein Vanilla Flavor Powder
8 oz. Diet Big Red
4 tbsp. of whipping cream
2-3 ice cubes

Add your low carb protein shake in the comments section. I'm trying to find a diet strawberry and diet grape soda. If you know of another great diet soda for our low carb protein shakes, please let readers know by leaving a comment.