Here in the foothills of the Rockies the seasons have changed, fall is upon us and summer has become a distant memory. I do not like saying goodbye to summer, I love my flip flops, the smell of cut lawns and flowers, sitting on the deck in the evening and more hours of sun. But with the cooler temperatures, more time is spent indoors and thus I have been in my kitchen baking up some new sweet recipes.

I have also spent a good amount of time looking into adopting eating patterns with less carbohydrates, essentially less sugars and starchy foods. The Ketogenic lifestyle, gluten -free eating, Atkins Diet, I have read and researched their pros and more importantly the cons. I have said a million times that I feel a healthy, all food group consumed, balanced regimen is the only way to go. One hundred percent. That is just this girls opinion, and it is how I have cooked and baked meals for my family and friends always.

So why am I even blogging about this topic now?! Okay, if the the truth be told I simply wanted to reduce the amount of breads, pasta, potatoes, rice, baked goods, alcohol (ummmm yes wine), snack foods (potato chips AND Cheezies!) in my daily diet. Essentially everything I LOVE about eating. Insert crying 😭… Some of this stuff is processed in one way or another and I know reducing or ideally eliminating it would be of benefit. So after 6 weeks of changing my eating habits (ie low carb) how am I doing? More importantly how are other two in the house coping?

I have not chosen to take on a 100% Keto based diet as there are certain things I could not and would not give up. Sweetener in my coffee, chocolate, wine. We have been using coconut sugar in our household for quite a while as it has a lower glycemic index than refined white sugar. I am having a hard time accepting using the other sugar substitutes like monk fruit, erythritol (sugar alcohol) in my baking so am currently using coconut sugar. But I am swaying after researching some of the store products like Swerve that this may be the way to go. Using almond and coconut flour has been a challenge in baking as there is no gluten. But with trial and error, and several disasters, I have had some great results.

 

So we still have the potato chips, pasta and bread in the house. When I decided to change my eating habits I did not want to force anyone else in the household to change theirs. But that being said, less of the ‘do not consume’ products are being consumed. I guess it is partially because I do most of the cooking and baking. What they are eating away from home is their choice. 🙂

I have found that I am craving high carb food less and less, and that by eating foods higher in protein and fats I feel full longer. My vegetable intake has increased. I eat more berries. I still allow myself a glass of wine, a piece of chocolate, 🥓 bacon, 🧀 cheese. And desserts…

Learning to rethink baking has been, as I stated earlier, trial and error, some stellar flops. But I have had some very good, thumbs up results. My main goal was to still have a great end product, visibly and to the palate, yet substantially decrease the sugar and ultimately the carbohydrate amount. I haven’t gotten crazy into the breakdown of nutrients or calories with these recipes. And I apologize if that is what you are after. But I do know they taste pretty darn good. 😉

So far I have a great cheesecake recipe and cookie recipe…others are still works in progress.

To finish I need to say that this has been my journey, and I am not saying that anyone needs to change their eating habits. Even though I have reduced or eliminated certain foods from my diet I am throughly happy and content with my choices. If you do decide to make a change, read and research what is out there as there is an abundance of information. Happy eating!

Till next time…

Suzanne x

Low-Carb Cookies with two variations

What you need: (base recipe)

3 cups almond flour for chocolate chip or chunk cookies / 3 1/4 cups almond flour for the coconut lemon cookies

3/4 cups coconut sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp sea or pink Himalayan salt

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

1/2 cup softened butter

1/4 cup coconut oil (melted)

2 eggs ( I use omega 3)

1 tsp vanilla extract

To make chocolate chunk: I used Chipits 70% chunks but you can chop up a dark chocolate bar, or dark chocolate chips (the higher the cocoa % the less the carb count) – you will need approximately 1/2 to 2/3 cup depending if you use chips or chunks. Plus an extra 1/2 cup to melt if you want to drizzle over the cookies.

To make coconut lemon: zest from a whole lemon, juice from a whole lemon, 1 cup of unsweetened shredded coconut, 1 cup icing sugar (yes real icing sugar), 2 tsp whipping cream, 1/2 cup macadamia nuts chopped

How to make them:

Set your oven to 350 F. In a medium sized bowl add the flour, coconut sugar, baking soda, salt and cream of tartar. Mix with a whisk and break up any large pieces of flour or sugar. Set aside for later. In a large bowl, with an electric hand or stationary mixmaster, cream the butter, then add the coconut oil and mix well. Add the eggs one at a time until smooth. Then add the vanilla and if making the lemon coconut cookies, add the lemon zest and 1 Tbsp lemon juice. Mix again. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients 1 cup at a time, mixing well each time. Works out to be 3 or 4 times. If making the lemon coconut cookies add the shredded coconut and mix it in with a wooden spoon or spatula.

Put the dough in the fridge for half an hour to chill. It will help with rolling the dough into balls. Line your cookie sheets (2 possibly 3) with silapat mats or parchment paper. The chocolate cookie recipe will make approximately 22 – 24 cookies. The lemon coconut recipe makes 28 – 30. I use a small cookie scoop, each rolled ball is about 1 1/2 inches in size. When rolling the cookie dough into balls, if your palms get too sticky the easiest solution is to just wash them. Then keep rolling. I put them about 2 – 3 inches apart on the cookie sheet. If you are making the chocolate chip cookies, press your chunks, chips or cut up chocolate bar pieces into each ball and flatten slightly. If making the coconut lemon, flatten each ball slightly.

Bake for 12 – 14 minutes. Just until the tops start to brown.

When you take them out of the oven let them sit for 10 minutes to slightly cool before removing from the cookie sheets and placing on cooling racks.

Once the cookies have cooled you can decorate them by piping/drizzling melted chocolate or a lemon glaze onto each cookie.

For the chocolate chip cookies: measure 1/2 cup chips or chunks into a small resealable zip lock bag. Microwave for 20 second intervals on high until melted. Make a small cut in a corner of the bag and then pipe chocolate onto each cookie.

For the lemon coconut cookies: Put 1 cup icing sugar, 2 tsp cream, 1 tbsp lemon juice into a bowl and whisk together. It should be slightly thick , if it is too runny it will run off the cookies. If you feel it is too thick add 1/2 teaspoon cream. If too thick add a bit more icing sugar. Drizzle over cookies with a teaspoon, or put the glaze/icing into a small ziplock bag, make a small cut in a corner and pipe over each cookie. If you want you can then sprinkle the macadamia nuts over each cookie.

Delicious No – Bake Low Carb Lemon Cheesecake

What you need:

For the crust:

1 1/4 cups almond flour

3 tbsp butter, melted

2 tbsp coconut sugar

For the filling:

1 large pkg original cream cheese (226 g), not low fat, softened

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

1 packet sugar free lemon Jello (8.5 g)

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp vanilla extract

How to make it:

Set your oven to 350 F. Spray the bottom of an 8 inch springform pan with cooking spray. In a medium bowl mix the almond flour, coconut sugar and butter until crumbly in texture. Pour and then press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the springform pan. Bake for 10 minutes until golden brown. Set the crust aside to cool.

With an electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, cream the cream cheese first. When smooth (make sure there are zero chunks of cream cheese), scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the whipping cream slowly on low speed. Once the whipping cream is mixed into the cream cheese turn to high and whip until the mixture thickens and peaks form. Add the lemon jello, lemon zest and vanilla and mix on low. Spread the lemon cream cheese filling evenly over the cooled almond flour crust.

Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours. Even better if made the day before and left to chill overnight.

Serve with whipping cream. I cheat and use aerosol whipping cream. 😉