Tag: high fat

almond butter keto truffles

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Do you like chewy gooey dark chocolate truffles? Are you looking for ketogenic alternatives for chocolates? If you answered “yes” to both of these questions, these almond butter keto truffles are perfect solution for you. Or if you’re not into sugar sweet chocolates and you rather like more bitter-sweet flavours, these truffles will also be great for you.

They are perfect high fat snack when you crave something sweet but not really (all the keto-people will understand what I mean). I used fresh almond butter, which is quite runny and my truffles were soft and chewy. So if you like them to be more dry and less soft, use “old” almond butter. What I mean by “old” is, when you open a fresh jar of almond butter usually the oils separate and stays on top of the jar. Even if you give it a good stir it’s difficult to reach to the bottom with is usually very thick and dry. So when you eat first half of the jar it’s usually the more liquid part of butter and a second half is much more thick. The second part will be better for these truffles. Although if you don’t mind that they are slightly softer than expected, go ahead.

As I like some crunch, not only chewiness, I decided to add some sunflower seeds. But if you have walnuts or other nuts they will work great as well. You can also skip them completely and stay with chewy gooey truffle.

Almond butter has double amount of fiber comparing to peanut butter, also it contains less saturated fats and more unsaturated fats. Almond butter contains a higher amount of magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, and calcium, zinc, iron and copper which are the basic and essential nutrients that our body needs to absorb daily to stay healthy and strong. Because almonds re high protein and low starch foods, thay can be a perfect snack for people with diabetes. Fatty acids in almond oils helps to lower LDL cholesterol and preserves HDL cholesterol. They are considered as a high energy foods, because of the high fat content. So if you’re still not sure if you’d like to buy a box of chocolates or to make your own truffles, let me tell you how they are easy and fun to make. It’s like playing with play-dough, you’ll have a lot of fun preparing them.

almond butter keto truffles

INGREDIENTS:

  • almond butter (better use “old” one)
  • coconut flour
  • raw cacao powder
  • sunflower seeds (also walnuts or other)
  • pinch of natural rock salt

DIRECTIONS:

I would recommend using slightly “older” almond butter. Fresh one is quite liquid and makes soft fat bombs. Even if you give it a good stir, bottom half is always more stiff and thick.

In a bowl mix about 3 tablespoons of peanut butter with couple teaspoons of raw cacao powder, pinch of salt and about a tablespoon of sunflower seeds. Start adding coconut flour and mix with a spoon. When you get crumbly “dough” start mixing with your hand. Keep adding coconut flour until you get the texture that allows you to roll small balls without sticking to your hands. Place the balls in the fridge for about 30 minutes. Then toss each ball in the additional cacao powder and gently cover them in the powder.

Serve straight away. I keep my fat bombs in the fridge.

Source of knowledge:

Click to access 316-318.pdf

keto chicken korma

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Since I’m back at work, I have less time for cooking and experimenting. At least one good thing of being furlough, is that you have plenty time for cooking, eating and trying for new recipes. Now I’m back to my old routine, looking for quick and healthy dinners and meals I can prepare in the morning, dump into my slow cooker and enjoy after coming back from work.

Recently I’ve discovered korma spice blend in my local eco shop, and I’ve already almost emptied it. I’m not the biggest fan of Indian spices, but this one is fantastic. There’s plenty of cinnamon in it, so it not only gives amazing aroma, but also a lot of sweetness. I’ve balanced it with couple spoons of tomato passata, it also gives it a bit more colour to the sauce. I’ve used double cream to make it very creamy, but coconut milk would work even better. For finish use some chopped fresh coriander, which gives this specific flavour. And of course quite a lot of fresh garlic, natural antibiotic and fresh ginger for extra warming effect. Ginger and garlic it’s a great combo for upcoming Autumn and Winter. Especially this year, our bodies needs an extra care and awareness. So it’s good to always have on hand fresh garlic cloves, ginger and when you feel like cold or runny nose is on their way to catch you, you can just finely chop large garlic clove (or use a garlic press) and mix it for example with cottage cheese or natural yoghurt and have this mixture once a day. To make a ginger tea, chop some fresh ginger and boil for about 5 minutes. Drink it while it’s warm but not boiling hot. It will warm you up from the inside on a colder days.

To make korma chicken, you won’t need more than 30 minutes. Remember to find good quality chicken, from local butcher or farmers market. You can serve it with bunch of cooked or fresh veggies, like broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts or leafy greens.

If you can’t find korma seasoning, you can make your own blend using: ground coriander, cinnamon, paprika, cumin, ground cardamom, clove and chilli powder.

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keto chicken korma

INGREDIENTS for two portions + leftovers:

  • 500g chicken thighs
  • 350ml double cream (or a can of coconut milk for no dairy option)
  • 1 large brown onion
  • 2-3 garlic cloves
  • about an inch (2.5cm) of fresh ginger
  • 2 tbsp clarified butter
  • about 3 tsp korma blend spice
  • pinch of coarse pepper
  • pinch of natural rock salt
  • about 3 tbsp tomato passata (or 1 tbsp tomato paste)
  • fresh coriander for finish

DIRECTIONS

Chop the chicken in smaller pieces, do the same with onion.

Heat a large skillet adding 2 tablespoons of clarified butter. Toss the chicken and fry on a high heat until it gets golden. Then add some salt and chopped onion. Fry for another couple minutes, so it also gets slightly browned.

Slice or use a garlic press, also finely chop a piece of ginger, and add to skillet. Lower the heat and add all the spices. Give it a good stir so the spices goes everywhere. Add double cream or coconut milk, about 3 tablespoons of passata, and simmer on a low heat for 10 to 15 minutes.

You should get thick, creamy and aromatic sauce. Just check if it’s salty enough, also if you like it a bit more spicy, sprinkle some chilli flakes on top. To finish sprinkle some fresh chopped coriander.

Serve hot with some fresh o cooked veggies: broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, green beans, or some salad leaves.

Enjoy!

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keto tandoori chicken, prawn & courgette skillet

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Another quick and easy recipe from the chicken series, you’ll prepare in less than 30 minutes. That’s another one, that my partner keep asking about, even though he doesn’t like courgette.

In this simple, one skillet option all you need is just toss each ingredient one by one, fry for a while a here you have – full of flavour keto tandoori chicken and prawn, courgette skillet. I love one pot meals – easy to make and there’s not many dishes you need to wash afterwards.

I like using already cooked and peeled prawns. I’m not the best with seafood, we mainly eat only small prawns (sometimes I buy frozen seafood cocktail). But if you’re good with it, you can easily take some fancy king prawns and arrange them nicely on top of the meal.

Also tandoori is one of my favourite spice blends: paprika, coriander, garlic, chilli, cinnamon, ginger, black pepper, cloves, nutmeg, cumin – this mix gives a strong, rich flavour enhancing the taste of each ingredient in the same time. These spices warm your body and improve digestion. If you don’t have tandoori seasoning, but your spice cupboard is full of different spices, you can try make your own tandoori blend.

If you’d like to buy a ready made tandoori seasoning, always have a look at the ingredients list. Tandoori is known from it’s beautiful red colour, originally red chilli peppers provided this colour. While modern blends sometimes use red dye (E129) to enhance the red colour. Synthetic Red no. 40 is derived from either coal or petroleum byproducts. Natural food dye is made from cochineal, specifically the female, a species of insect (the insects are sun-dried, crushed, and dunked in an acidic alcohol solution to produce carminic acid, the pigment that eventually becomes carmine or cochineal extract, depending on processing). Synthetic Red No. 40 contain benzidene, a human and animal carcinogen permitted in low, presumably safe levels in dyes. If you’re interested in more informations about this subject, take a look on two articles I’ve linked below.

Anyway, whatever you buy, it’s always good to check the label and see what the manufacturer decided to add to a product, that potentially does not arouse suspicion and supposed to be natural. Sometimes you can be surprised what’s inside. I don’t want you to be paranoid though, but it’s good to know what you decide to put in your mouth. I’m afraid that if we would like to buy only 100% natural products, we would die starving. So lets keep the common sense, guys!

keto tandoori chicken, prawn & courgette skillet

INGREDIENTS:

  • 350g chicken thighs
  • 300g cooked and peeled prawns
  • pinch of natural rock salt
  • 3 tsp medium tandoori spice blend
  • 2 medium courgettes
  • 1 large onion
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil
  • 2 large garlic cloves

DIRECTIONS

Dice chicken in smaller pieces. Rinse courgettes and dice them in half slices. Slice onion lengthwise and slice 2 large garlic cloves.

Heat the large skillet, adding 1 tablespoon of coconut oil. Toss the chicken, sprinkle with some salt and fry until golden. Add prawns and tandoori spice blend, fry for 2-3 minutes. Next add sliced onion, courgettes and garlic, sprinkle with some more salt. Fry until courgettes will be ready.

Serve hot with side salad (in my case easy white cabbage salad) or other depending of your choice.

Enjoy!

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2957945/

https://www.livescience.com/36292-red-food-dye-bugs-cochineal-carmine.html

bacon & egg keto salad

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Who said that keto must be boring? Who would resist to this colorful, delicious salad with bacon and cheese? My partner bored with scrambled eggs or omelette for breakfast asked me for something different. He’s a team: “salad for breakfast won’t make me feel full”. You know this kind of people? I’ve managed to convince him only because of smoked bacon 🙂 The outcome? He asked me couple more times to make this salad for him 🙂

We eat with eyes…

Prepare nice big plate, colorful veggies, other ingredients you like (cheese & bacon team), make some aromatic dressing and surprise your other half (or yourself, your kids, your mum or dad) with salad like from the restaurant. You don’t need to have master chef skills, just a bit of willingness and some imagination. Even if you make it for yourself, it’s good to spend two more minutes to place the ingredients nicely on your favorite plate. If you’re worth wearing nice clothes, pretty makeup, you’re worth having a delicious, fresh and healthy food. So make it special, leave your phone in other room, switch off your laptop or tv and focus on your meal you’ve made especially for yourself. Focus on flavour, texture and taste, and you might be surprise that the ingredients you’ve been eating thousands of times before now have brand new quality.

Eat slowly…

We live in a rush and the rush makes every activity we perform regularly automated. In a hurry, we do not pay attention to who we pass by on a sidewalk, to plants and animals around us. Even our conversations are sketchy and insignificant. We pay attention to how we look, fortunately we’ve started to pay more attention to what we eat, but still we don’t focus on how we eat. Focused on daily problems, things to do, errands to run, sometimes we forget to taste what we eat. Eating fast, eating meals on autopilot like it’s just another necessary activity to be done on a given day, often additionally perceived as a waste of valuable time. When we eat, it takes 20 minutes for the signal from the stomach to tell our brain that we are full. If we eat in a hurry, such a signal may appear delayed in relation to the food consumed. Salads are great way to practice mindful eating. You have to put each ingredient on the fork, you can try each ingredient separately or in pairs. You have to chew for a while, so you can focus on the texture. Crispy iceberg salad, firm and juicy tomatoes, salty bacon, sharp and mature cheddar, slightly bland egg white dipped in spicy dressing. So many taste sensations in one salad. I encourage you to spend some special time with yourself when preparing and eating this salad. Even if you think it sound kind of ridiculous giving so much attention to a simple thing like this one.

egg & bacon keto salad

INGREDIENTS (for one giant portion):

  • 2 hard boiled eggs
  • couple slices of smoked bacon
  • bunch of iceberg salad
  • handful of cherry tomatoes
  • piece of mature cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 yellow bell pepper
  • 1 tsp your favorite mustard
  • 2 tsp mayonnaise
  • 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 big garlic clove
  • 1/2 tsp dried dill (or fresh I you have)
  • pinch of natural rock salt
  • pinch of lemon pepper (or coarse pepper)

DIRECTIONS

Use a small cup or jar to mix all the dressing ingredients: olive oil, mustard, mayonnaise, pepper and salt, dill and finely chopped garlic. Live on a side for all the flavours to combine.

Dice your bacon and fry until golden on non-stick pan. Thoroughly rinse all veggies under running water. Chop some cheddar cheese, slice cherry tomatoes in half. Dice yellow bell pepper.

Thorn some salad on the plate, place bell pepper, tomatoes, cheddar and bacon. Slice hard boiled eggs in quarters and place them on top of the salad. Drizzle with dressing and serve.

Enjoy!

delicious beef shin (shank) rolls aka Silesian roulades

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Today I would like to introduce you to traditional Silesian cuisine. This dish comes from southern part of Poland, and traditionally is served with choowy-goowy dumplings (made with potatoes and potato starch) and grated beetroots. Oh, and it’s amazing! Roulades are made with beef, which is quite pricey, so most often, at least at my home, it has been made with beef shin.

According to Wikipedia beef shin (also called a beef shank) is not very popular piece of beef. But in my opinion it’s very tasty, and it’s also cheaper, than other parts of beef. So you don’t need to spend a lot, to eat decent piece of good meat.

You won’t find beef shin in the supermarket (at least I haven’t), but if you pop in to the butcher, you’ll find plenty.

You might think it’s tough and dry, but if you prepare it properly, it will be very tasty. That’s why I like to cook it in own sauce, and recommend adding slice of smoked bacon to each roll, so the fat from bacon will moist the meat, and add some extra flavour.

Beef shin rolls can be also made in slow cooker. Especially if you want to make a big batch and freeze for later. You’ll find directions for crock pot below.

beef shin rolls

delicious beef shin (shank) rolls

INGREDIENTS

· nice shaped beef shin (about 1 kg) to be able to slice in cutlets
· 1 large onion
· few sour pickled cucumbers
· fiery mustard
· natural rock salt
· black pepper corns
· 2-3 bay leaves
· for no keto: 2-3 tsp plain flour, for keto: 1 tsp coconut or almond flour or none
· pinch of garlic granules
· pinch of sweet pepper
· 2 tbsp fat (goose fat, lard, clarified butter, coconut oil)
· optionally: thin smoked bacon slices (as many as many cutlets you have)

You’ll also need toothpicks or thread to tie the rolls.

DIRECTIONS

Slice your beef shin in about 1 inch cutlets (you can also ask your butcher to do it for you), then take the meat mallet and beat them quite thin. Be careful not to make holes. Sprinkle each cutlet with some natural rock salt and pepper.

Cut onion in pieces, cucumbers along way in quarters.

Spread some mustard over each cutlet (place a slice of bacon if you like), place piece of onion and quarter of cucumber. Roll in tightly and fasten with a toothpick, or tie with thread.

Heat the pan with 2 tbsp of chosen fat, place the rolls and fry on each side until golden brown. Add pinch of salt (not too much, water will evaporate, it’s easier to add some salt later on than oversalt), bay leaves, garlic and sweet pepper and pour some water all over it. Not too much, just to cover half of the rolls. Cover the pan with lid and simmer until tender. It took me about 90 minutes. Flip them halfway through. Meat should be tender if you stick the fork in it.

OK, when our meat is ready, we can make sauce. Personally I don’t like the texture made by coconut flour, so I reduce the amount of liquid and leave the sauce as it is. If you don’t mind the texture, add about a teaspoon of coconut flour to thicken the liquid.

If you’re not on keto diet, and you don’t mind using white flour, take a small cup, mix 2-3 teaspoons of plain flour with few teaspoons of water, then add some hot liquid from the pan, stir and pour to the pan stirring, so you won’t get lumps.

If it happens, that you have to much liquid left in the pan, you can easily reduce it taking the lid of and leaving the pan on high heat for couple of minutes (that’s why don’t add too much salt at the beginning, because if you’ll need to reduce amount of liquid, it will become more salty).

SLOW COOKER DIRECTIONS

If you like this recipe, and want to make a bigger batch for later you can use a slow cooker. After frying rolls on the pan, place them in the slow cooker. You can put some extra pieces of onion and couple garlic cloves, so the sauce will be even more full of flavour. Pour some water or chicken/beef stock (beef bones broth will be perfect as well) a bit of salt, pepper and the rest of spices. Cook for about 8 hour on “low” or 6 hours on “high”. When the rolls cool down, you can freeze them in portions. Freeze the liquid separately in smaller containers – it will be a great base for the sauce.

I’ve been making them many times, both ways. Slow cooking is definitely better and easier if you want to make a bigger batch and save for later.

Enjoy!

beef shin