That’s right! I said Ice Cream! Chocolate Ice Cream!
I’ve been experimenting all summer, and not only do I have a great recipe for you, but it is an excellent activity to keep the kiddos entertained at the same time (if you choose to do this method.)
The best part, other than the amazing taste, is the simplicity! Just a few simple, pure, ingredients that you probably have on hand, a little waiting time, and dessert is prepared! A creamy, delicious dessert that no one would ever guess is SUGAR FREE!
Whisk together cream, sweetener, and cocoa in a saucepan until it barely starts to simmer. Add vanilla and remove from heat.
Let it cool on the stovetop until the pan is not scalding. Place in the refrigerator to bring down to at least room temperature. (You don’t want to add the mixture to the ice cream maker or plastic bags at a high heat.)
Here are your options:
Kids version:
Pour 1/2 cup of mixture in a quart size Ziplock bag. Seal well! Place that bag in a gallon size ziplock filled with several cups of ice and 1/4 cup ice cream salt. Seal the gallon size bag. Hand it to your child with a dish towel and have them shake it until exhaustion or until the ice cream is the consistency of soft serve. Enjoy!
No mess version:
Pour your saucepan of cream mixture into an ice cream maker, turn on, and walk away. It should be nice and creamy in about 30 to 45 minutes! Enjoy.
I hope your family enjoys this as much as ours! Happy summer!!!
I am imagining cooler weather at this point in San Antonio. The humidity is unbearable at the moment, but the sight of pumpkins, falling leaves, and mums make me pretend it’s cold outside and dream of the cool crisp mornings to come.
I am piggy backing off of Erin’s post earlier in the week. She posted our recipe for bone-broth, which if you haven’t tried, you must. I didn’t make it for about a year after I heard about it, and then, once made, I was kicking myself for all those months without. It is an automatic pick-me-up, arthritis healer, sore throat cure, and overall, just an incredible remedy for almost anything. During flu season, everyone in our house gets a cup everyday to boost the immune system – and it works.
So what else is great when cooler weather arrives or you are feel sub-par? Soups, chowders, stews – anything piping hot! Now, I have to come clean…I was really skeptical about this one. First, I have never made clam chowder before. Second, this was a far deviation from the original version I have seen. Third, would my children eat something with clams? My reaction was, why not? Wow! And…Oh YES, they will! In fact, three out of four went back for seconds! So, in thinking positive thoughts about cooler weather, here is a brand new one for you! This is another one that you can make ahead on a busy afternoon and dinner is prepared for later!
Creamy New England Clam Chowder With Bacon
Ingredients:
4 – 6.5 oz cans of chopped clams packed in clam juice
2 – 8 oz bottles of clam juice
2 cups chopped leeks (white and light green parts – this was 5 leaks for me)
1 large head of cauliflower chopped into chunks
8 – 10 slices of bacon chopped into pieces
1 cup broth
1/2 tsp dried thyme or 2 tsp fresh
3 TBSP fresh minced Italian parsley
1/2 tsp fresh black pepper or more to taste
1 tsp Himalayan salt
1/2 cup butter
Directions:
In a large soup pot, cook your bacon over medium heat until just starting to brown. Add you leeks and sauté until wilted and soft.
Remove half of your mixture and set aside.
Add your cauliflower, clam juice, juice from the canned clams (save the clams though), water and thyme. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until the cauliflower is very soft.
Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until it is light and creamy. It should start to resemble clam chowder now. I love my Cuisinart Immersion Blender!
Now, just add the clams, the rest of your leeks and bacon, butter, salt, pepper, and parsley. Simmer for 20 minutes. You can always add cream, or more butter, salt and pepper to taste. At this point, you can turn off the heat and save it for later or serve piping hot with a little cheese on top if you like.
Today is Grandparent’s Day at my children’s school, which means a rushed morning so we make sure to have a parking space. It is a day for a breakfast casserole to throw in the oven so I have time to get dressed myself!
I was preparing last night…I went to the fridge to get my ingredients, and of course the breakfast sausage that I had checked for before grocery shopping earlier in the day turned out to be expired! Now what to do? I definitely needed a meat to throw in with the eggs, and was DEFINITELY not going to the grocery store with three children at 5:00 PM. Soooo….we are improvising! We all love beef bar-b-que sausage which I had purchased to throw in some spaghetti sauce to serve over zucchini noodles, so what about that? It was fresh, ready to go, and how yummy in eggs!
I did change up the recipe a tad to account for the extra grease from the sausage so here you go:
Bar-B-Que Beef Sausage Breakfast Casserole
1 3/4 pound Beef Sausage
10 eggs
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
3 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 tsp ground mustartd
1 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper
Steps:
Cut and brown your sausage in a pan.
Spray your pyrex or ceramic baking dish with coconut oil or butter. I like this one from Trader Joes.
Add your sausage to your greased dish. It should line the bottom of the dish.
Sprinkle your grated cheese over your sausage. I did the grating the old fashioned way for this one. My kids love to serve themselves slices of this cheese while we have it out in the kitchen.
Whisk your eggs, cream, and spices together.
Once your ingredients are thoroughly mixed, pour this over your sausage and cheese.
Place saran over your unbaked casserole and let it set overnight. Bake this for 1 hour 15 minutes in a 350 degree oven or until it is set in the center. You don’t want any jiggling.
Our little angel (youngest child and only girl – say some prayers) just celebrated her fifth birthday. She was counting down the months until her birthday…”I’m four and 8/12, I/m four and 11/12). You get the picture.
When her week finally rolled around, I asked her what kind of cake she wanted for her birthday. You may remember, I was quite the baker before my Keto days, so birthday time is always fun! In actuality, Keto baking is just as fun as regular baking once you get the hang of it. For birthdays, I let the children choose what ever they like for their one special day of the year. Keto or not! Low and behold, she said she wanted Angel Cake, which to the rest of us is Angel Food Cake. I was ecstatic! This is one recipe for dessert where Keto style tastes just like the real thing. In fact, my parents had no idea that it was sugar and grain free! That is the ultimate test in my opinion. It is also a great dessert for warm weather because it is quite refreshing. Even though it is September, in South Texas, it feels like July!
Save this cake for a day when you have time, because just like any other Angel Food Cake, the whipping of the egg whites is time consuming. This is not a difficult cake, but it is a little different from typical baking and patience is a must.
Keto Angel Cake
(Carolyn Style)
Ingredients:
Yes, this is correct! It is much different from traditional cake.
Start with 12 very cold egg whites or the equivalent of such (like I did) which is about 3 cups.
I Cup Jay Robb Protein Powder (Vanilla or Strawberry)
1 1/3 Cup Swerve Confectioners
1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp salt
1 TBSP fresh lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla (or lemon, strawberry or flavor of your choice)
Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Sift your Protein Powder and Swerve Confectioners together 2 times. Set aside.
3. In a large, very clean, cold bowl (Preferably a Kitchen Aid mixer bowl) whip your egg whites, cream of tarter and salt. Beat on medium-high to high speed until stiff. Once fairly stiff, add your lemon juice and flavoring. Continue mixing.
I didn’t time this, but it was at least 15 to 20 minutes of whipping. Just let it go. You should be able to turn the bowl over without the egg whites moving.
4. Remove the egg white mixture from the stand and slowly and carefully FOLD in your protein powder mixture. Gently fold until completely combined.
5. After all of your ingredients are mixed, pour into your angel food tube pan – DO NOT GREASE the pan!!! This is super important and you will see why! If you don’t have one, make sure you purchase one with a removable bottom. It should be a two piece pan. This was my grandmother’s pan, and all of the old ones are like this, but you have to look on the new ones.
6. Place in your oven and watch. I had to turn my heat down to 325 degrees because it was getting too brown. It needs to cook for a good 55 minutes so if it is getting too brown after 25 or 30 make sure you turn down your heat. I did another cake afterwards and turned the dial down to about 335 degrees after I placed it in the oven, and it was about right.
7. Now you will see the “why”. When the cake is super fluffy, high and browned, remove it from the oven, and immediately invert onto a bottle at room temperature. This will keep the cake from sinking.
8. This is why you don’t grease the cake!!!! Otherwise it would be on the counter. Let it cool completely like this.
9. After it is cooled, use a sharp knife to go around the edges, and then push the bottom out of the pan. Place on a cake stand, and it is ready to serve with whipping cream and berries.
I also made a prettier one that I iced with whipping cream and arranged berries on top. My kids like it this way frozen. You can do it either way.
You can see in the above picture; I removed the super brown top which basically popped right off.
This one above is actually frozen – berries and all!
That was one happy birthday girl and every bite devoured!
All the whipping in this recipe can be time consuming, but it is so rewarding! Don’t give up, and enjoy every bite!
When we meet with clients, we most often hear, “Where do I buy that?” and “What can I pack in the kids’ lunch boxes?”
These are both very good questions, and ones that we struggled with for quite some time. Like everyone, we get stuck in our ruts with our favorites, both grocery shopping and lunch planning.
I have posted before about Costco, but after the children started back at school, I decided to go on a little adventure at Trader Joe’s. They have some fantastic deals there and some fun and different items. This is my most recent haul from TJ’s:
From left to right:
Organic Broccoli Slaw (you can find the recipe on our blog – the dressing is Keto fabulous!), Tomatoes, Seaweed “crackers” (these are great for soft cheeses – just spread and wrap), Coconut Milk, Aioli Garlic Mustard Sauce, Organic Heavy Whipping Cream, Mushrooms, Sliced Brussel Sprouts, Crunchy Salted Peanut Butter with Flax and Chia Seeds (for the kids), Artichoke Antipasto, Marinated Olives, Whole Milk Yogurt, REAL Stevia, Basil (their spices are a bargain), Whole Brussel Sprouts.
The whole reason I went to Trader Joe’s was to get our favorite snack though:
YUM!!!! The Rosemary are our favorite!!!
Other great finds at TJ’s are produce, meats, cheeses – lots of cheeses – we especially like the marinated fresh mozzarella, other nuts and seeds – love the pumpkin and sunflower seeds, other items I have yet to find! Please share your favorites with us!
All of my kids are back in school! It is a jolt after a long summer, but we all love to be back in a routine.
Here are our first day shots:
Carolyn is doing her first round of Kinder this year, and loving every minute! She just turned 5 years old.
Colton is on the left – he is our middle child (and loves to tell us about it). He just started third grade, and is 8 years old. Chaz is now in 5th grade (where does the time go?). He is 10 years old and our most Keto-adapted of the three.
I only share them so that you know, I am, where many of you are, in this adventure and blessing of parenthood. It is a challenge, but oh so rewarding! They have adapted very well to our Keto lifestyle, although I do not force it on them when they are not under our roof. Generally, as their mother, I can control most of what they eat, but it is important to us (my husband and I) that they do not feel singled out, denied or forbidden. We do not want to create that “forbidden fruit” syndrome where as soon as they are away from us they run to the nearest donut or candy shop. They know how they feel when they eat healthy, and the they know how they feel when they eat sugar, so we advise – not demand. Our hope is, that through our constant example, they will learn to make healthy eating decisions on their own. I have not heard one complaint about the lunch box yet!!!
I thought it would be helpful to share how we have been packing lunch over the past week since we started back to school.
Staples in the lunch box always include:
A Protein – Steak, Fajita Meat, Pepperoni, Salami, Nut Butter, Lettuce Tacos, etc.
Other Add-Ins: Olives, Whole Milk Yogurt, Chia Squeeze (a little high in sugar for everyday, but good fiber and a treat for the kiddos), Dark Chocolate (85% or higher), Berries.
Leftovers are great, and often their favorite.
I suggest a quality thermos and decent ice packs. I always warm the thermos for hot food items by filling the cavity with simmering water for about 5 minutes. Discard the water and fill with hot food. It will stay hot until lunch this way.
This is what lunch looked like for my children today:
The blue ice pack is on the bottom. The white foil is a cup of sliced salami, mixed nuts, water, leftover steak, and blackberries. There is some cheese in there too!
This is the Thermos I use above, and the two types of cheeses I packed. They will usually eat one for lunch and save the other for snack on the way home.
The last of the lunch boxes – this is the whole milk kefir on top (yes – it has added sugar, but is a treat filled with great healthy fat just for the KIDS), blackberries, and yummy hot leftover chicken curry in the thermos!
Each child is a little different, and we are always coming up with new things we like and they like. Stay connected, and we will try to send out our newest, greatest ideas. We would love to hear from you too! What low-sugar healthy foods do your kids love?
Well, by now, if you have been following us, you know how we feel about artificial sweeteners and those other sneaky names used so you won’t know that sugar is in the ingredient list.
Believe it or not, those sneaky names are in the fine print of many pantry items you never would have imagined. For instance, my family used to love it when I mixed in the little seasoning packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Dip and Dressing mix with sour cream for a yummy dip to serve with vegetables. One of the main ingredients I discovered, as soon as I went Keto and started looking at the back of packages, is Maltodextrin.
A little about Maltodextrin: It is a food additive derived from corn, rice, potatoes, or wheat and therefore a carbohydrate. It ranks higher than table sugar on the glycemic index – 106 to 136 depending on the derived source and is in a TON of packaged foods! This means that it will spike your blood sugar levels so beware and read those labels.
It became a mission of mine and that of a few of our followers to find a better way to make ranch dressing and dip. One of the best parts of Keto is freeing yourself from all of those tasteless, chemical ridden low-fat salad dressings! You actually get to eat the real thing as long as it is real food. The Maltodextrin kind of ruined that for us though. Thanks to one of my friends and fellow ketoers, Kelley, we have found the solution! This may be even better than Hidden Valley Ranch, and it is a seasoning blend that can be used in other sauces or dressings as well. I did some minor tweaking, and we all think it is delicious. We hope you enjoy!
Ranch Dressing Seasoning
1 1/4 tsp Celtic sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 TBSP Onion Powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 TBSP dried parsley
1/4 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp dried dill weed (with a little extra for garnish)
1/2 tsp dried mustard seed
To mix into a dressing or dip, the possibilities are endless.
For a dip, I use the traditional 1 cup mayonnaise and 1 cup sour cream.
If you want to make it into a dressing, you can put all of the above ingredients into a blender and add some half and half or cream to liquify it slightly.
Modifications you can make are to add some fresh parsley instead of the dry, add some cilantro to the dressing, or even spice it up with some jalapeños or your favorite peppers. This is super easy if you use the blender! The possibilities for making this your own are endless, nutritious, and beautifully Ketogenic! Have fun with it, and enjoy!
These are Cindy’s boys! This dip with mini peppers is one of their favorite after school snacks!
Family gatherings are so fun, and a great way to pick up new recipes. At every family event over at Erin’s house her mother would bring these amazing olives. I finally asked for the recipe and have made them several times now. Her mom gave us permission to use this recipe in our catalog of many. They are a great Keto/Paleo appetizer or snack. Everyone is always looking for snack ideas, and this is a great one you can leave out on the counter after school if you have olive eaters in the house!
Marinated Olives
2 cans medium to large (not jumbo) black, green, or a mixture of olives (Drained)
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried
4 bay leaves
Directions:
Mix together your oil and vinegar.
Mince or chop your garlic and thyme. I really prefer the fresh thyme on these.
Add all your spices to your oil mixture and combine well.
Drain and add your cans of olives.
These are beautiful and yummy to serve. The garlic gives them a nice kick. Bring them to room temperature before serving. You can also invert the jar occasionally to let the spices cover all the olives.
We store these in a mason jar for a couple of weeks in the fridge if they last that long.
Erin and I were able to take part in a fun party that a friend of mine hosted for about 20 friends. She hired us to come in and talk about the benefits of Keto, the difference it has made in our lives, and how we cook. After our talk, we prepared a complete Keto meal for the whole group. It was a lively discussion filled with great questions and some new foods for most. I always wait for the reaction after dessert. It amazes people that we can make such decadent desserts without sugar. One of the desserts we made was a rich chocolate tart that I have slightly modified from the brilliant Dr. William Davis’ book, Wheat Belly 30-Minute (Or Less) Cookbook. If you don’t already have it, we do recommend it, and it is available for purchase in our Amazon store.
I made two tarts, one primarily the way it is in the cookbook with a coconut crust. In my opinion, the natural taste and texture of the coconut helps cut the bitterness of the dark unsweetened chocolate for a perfectly balanced dessert that is very satisfying. The coconut also provides a nice sturdy crust for the dense chocolate. I do understand that there are some that really don’t like the texture of coconut. For those individuals, I made a regular almond flour crust. Just know that you can always change out your crust in any recipe.
Rich Coconut – Chocolate Tart
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 inch pie plate.
Gather your ingredients:
Crust:
2 cups unsweetened coconut
3 Tbsp almond flour
3 Tbsp Swerve granular
3 Tbsp melted butter
Combine all of the above ingredients. I use my hands to combine and then press into your greased pie plate.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Let it cool while you prepare your filling.
Filling:
14 ounces of canned full-fat organic coconut milk
8 ounces of 100% Cocoa (Unsweetened) Chocolate
1 tsp of vanilla extract OR 1/2 tsp vanilla extract and 1/4 tsp almond extract
1/2 cup Swerve Confectioners
In a saucepan, over medium heat, heat the coconut milk just until bubble form.
Add the chocolate that you have chopped to the pan.
It will look like the above until it begins to melt, and then it will look beautiful. Once melted, remove from the heat and add the Swerve and Vanilla or other extracts.
Whisk all your ingredients together and then pour in your crust of choice.
Place your pie in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. You can do it overnight which is great when preparing for a party or event.
This is your finished product! To add even more to the richness, add a dollop of whipped cream to the top and you are really set! Cut with a sharp knife and enjoy.
We have all been there – you know you’re not sick but your stomach is just… off.
I remember when growing up, the go-to would be 7-Up. Not exactly Keto Friendly.
There are a TON of medicinal remedies, and back before being diagnosed with the Big C, I would have reached for the “pink stuff.” But these days I’m trying to be nicer to my insides and make healthier and more natural choices.
Today has been one of those days, and I have been sipping on Ginger Tea. There are MANY varieties that can be found in the coffee and tea aisle, but it is also incredibly easy to make at home.
What you need for a single serving of super simple Ginger Tea:
1 1⁄2 cups boiling water
1 1⁄2 teaspoons freshly grated or sliced ginger root
Boil your water, add the grated ginger, and let it steep for roughly 10 minutes.
Strain out the ginger, and you are ready to sip!
**This is a starting point – adjust the amount of ginger to your taste.
Ginger is great for you, and while for some it can be an acquired taste, it’s ability to settle a tummy is amazing. I absolutely loved ginger ale, but once I cut out sugar, it had to go.
The source of my recent onset of nausea is related to my radiation treatment. I was told that due to the location of the radiated tumor I would likely experience nausea and vertigo. This is all new territory for me! I was extremely lucky to not experience morning sickness, but I have several friends who are dealing with not just morning but all day sickies. Y’all are troopers!! This is NO FUN! The ginger tea is great for that too though.
I will post more about my treatment in the future. I have completed radiation but have several other balls still in the air about the next steps.
Last Sunday I sent my two oldest children off to camp in another state. They were super excited about their time at camp except for one thing…the food!
It is kind of funny that this was somewhat upsetting to them considering other children look forward to the pancakes at breakfast, chicken fried steak, and the candy store. Other children that go to this camp rave about the food, but mine, of course, were anxious. I have to admit, it makes me a little anxious too, but so proud of them at the same time for knowing that they understand the foods that fuel their bodies best. If you read my post recently about my children refusing the almond flour muffins it makes sense.
My oldest is definitely Keto-adapted. The other two have a way to go, but my middle child would be closer if not given outside choices. As parents, it is virtually impossible to keep our children healthy at all times. Erin and I have a 90/10 rule. If you are sugar-free and Keto-adapted 90% of the time, forgive yourself for the other 10%. Many times it can’t be helped if you are away from home also. If my children are 75%/25%, I am happy. I can’t control everything that happens at birthday parties, grandparent’s homes, and eating out with friends, nor do I try. Don’t get me wrong, I am a bit of a control freak, but I know a bad ending when I see it coming! The last thing we want to create is the forbidden fruit syndrome. They need to experience the difference in how food makes them feel to make them WANT to eat healthy. This takes time, just as it does for us. My goodness, it took me over 35 years to figure it out! Hopefully with our guidance it won’t take our children as long.
Once they figure out that carbs and sugar make them feel badly, it becomes much easier. That is, until camp time; or really anytime they are away from home for a prolonged period of time! I tried to counsel them about food choices before they left. I thought about requesting no sugar from the camp, but my husband talked me out of it saying this is their time to be kids. Again, the 75/25 for them, and he was right. My prayer is that they always make good choices, and just like most other bad choices, they will feel the consequences of them quickly if they decide to buy three candy bars and a gatorade at the camp store for snack. I have to admit, I am really curious to see how it goes. This is a lot of freedom for them.
The best advice I could give them was to remember the foods we eat at home and try to mimic them. If everything is fried or brown, go for the salad bar option and pile on the proteins and full-fat salad dressings to make sure you are energized. Instead of the cinnamon rolls and waffles at breakfast, remember how much better and energized you feel when you choose eggs and bacon for breakfast. They can skip the extra bread, have two patties instead of a bun, and go for extra veggies instead of the mashed potatoes. Pick the bag of nuts or sunflower seeds in the camp store instead of a candy bar or crackers. They know how food makes them feel now, so now is the time to put that into play. I think we all realize there will be days when there may not be a better choice, but that is okay too.
As many of us send our kids off for a few weeks, we pray for their safety, lasting friendships, spiritual growth, and growth as individuals. Encourage them to make good choices in all aspects of life including nutrition. Know, however, that if they can’t always make good healthy eating decisions, it is okay. The most important thing that you can do as a parent in teaching them, as in so many other aspects of life, is modeling. If you are making good eating choices in front of them, and cooking good healthy, low-sugar meals for them when they are sitting at YOUR table, you are making a world of difference in their futures. They will have those memories of dinnertime rituals at your table forever and carry those on to future generations. So set those examples at home, and with a little hope and a lot of prayer, let’s look forward to a future generation of very healthy eaters that can make great decisions on their own.
