The Low-Carb Diabetes Solution Cookbook (8 page)

Spoon the mixture back into the hollows in the egg whites.

My friend Kay begged me to come up with low-carb crab puffs. I tried several different approaches, but, alas, they eluded me. So I came up with these mushrooms instead, and she loved them.

1 pound (455 g) fresh mushrooms

1 can (6 ounces, or 170 g) crabmeat

2 ounces (60 g) cream cheese

1
/
4
cup (60 g) mayonnaise

1
/
4
cup (25 g) grated Parmesan cheese

12 scallions, minced

1
/
4
teaspoon ground black pepper

1 dash Tabasco sauce

YIELD:
25 servings (1 piece) 41 calories; 3 g fat; 3 g protein; 1 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Preheat oven to 325°F (170°C, or gas mark 3).

Wipe the mushrooms clean with a damp cloth, and remove the stems.

In a mixing bowl, combine the crab, cream cheese, mayonnaise, Parmesan, scallions, pepper, and Tabasco, mixing well. Spoon the mixture into the mushroom caps, and arrange them in a large, flat roasting pan.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until the mushrooms are done through. Serve hot.

These are the easiest stuffed mushrooms you'll ever make, and they're really yummy, too. Feel free to use good old button mushrooms, if you prefer.

6 small portobello mushrooms, totaling 6 ounces (170 g)

1 package (6 ounces, or 170 g) garlic-and-herb spreadable cheese (such as Boursin or Alouette)

2 tablespoons (10 g) crushed plain pork rinds or skins

YIELD:
6 servings 120 calories; 12 g fat; 2 g protein; 2 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4).

Wipe the mushrooms clean and remove the stems (save them to slice and sauté to serve over steaks or in omelets). Divide the cheese between the mushroom caps. Sprinkle each one with a teaspoon of pork rind crumbs.

Arrange the mushrooms in a shallow baking pan. Add just enough water to film the bottom of the pan. Bake for 30 minutes and serve hot.

I took these to my Toastmasters Christmas party. People scarfed them right down!

1
1
/
2
pounds (680 g) mushrooms

2 tablespoons (28 g) butter

1
/
2
cup (80 g) chopped onion

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 package (10 ounces, or 280 g) frozen chopped spinach, thawed

4 ounces (115 g) cream cheese

1
/
4
cup (25 g) Parmesan cheese, plus a little extra for sprinkling

1
1
/
2
teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1
/
2
teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal

1
/
4
teaspoon ground black pepper

YIELD:
40 servings (1 piece) 24 calories; 2 g fat; 1 g protein; 1 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4).

Wipe the mushrooms clean and remove the stems. Set the caps aside and chop the stems fairly fine.

In a large, heavy skillet, over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Add the chopped stems and the onion. Sauté these until the mushroom bits are changing color and the onion is soft and translucent. Add the garlic, stir it up, and sauté for another couple of minutes.

While that's happening, dump your thawed spinach into a strainer and press all the water out of it that you can. Now stir it into the mushroom-onion mixture. Next, stir in the cream cheese. When it's melted, add the Parmesan cheese, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper.

Stuff the spinach-mushroom mixture into the mushroom caps. Arrange the stuffed caps in a baking pan as you stuff them.

When they're all stuffed, sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese over them to make them look nice. Add enough water to just barely cover the bottom of the pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve warm.

T
here is no actual grain in this chapter, but you'll find some comforting substitutes.

These recipes are some of the most complex in the book, for a simple reason: Baking is the most complicated form of cooking, and adapting starchy, sugary baking recipes to low carb makes them, if any-thing, even more complex. What's more, many of the ingredients commonly used in low-carb baked goods are still too high in carbs for the HEAL Protocol.

I have searched my archives carefully to find these recipes, and have even come up with a few new ones. I hope you enjoy them. Just be careful to keep an eye on those portion sizes!

Remember Quisp and Quake, not to mention Cap'n Crunch? This is the pork rind equivalent, and it's insanely good. You can eat it plain, of course, or just like cereal, with your 3 tablespoons (45 ml) of heavy cream, or with carb-reduced milk or sugar-free almond milk. It's also a great substitute for caramel corn. Both LorAnn and Amoretti make corn flavoring, both in buttered popcorn and sweet corn. Either will work here. I got mine through Amazon.com.

7 ounces (200 g) plain pork rinds or skins

1
/
2
cup (112 g) butter

1
/
2
teaspoon liquid stevia (English toffee)

1
/
4
teaspoon corn flavoring (optional)

1 cup (240 g) erythritol

YIELD:
8 servings 237 calories; 19 g fat; 15 g protein; trace carbohydrate; 0 g dietary fiber per serving

Preheat oven to 275°F (130°C). While it's heating, break your pork rinds up into bits about the size of cold cereal.

When the oven is hot, put the butter in your biggest roasting pan and put it in the oven to melt.

When the butter is melted, pull the pan out of the oven. Add the liquid stevia and corn flavoring, if using. Stir them into the butter.

Add the pork rinds to the pan, and, using a pancake turner, stir them into the butter until they're all evenly coated.

Sprinkle the erythritol over the pork rinds
1
/
4
cup (60 g) at a time, stirring each addition in well before adding more.

When all the erythritol is worked in, slide the pan back into the oven. Toast the pork rinds for 40 minutes, stirring everything very well with a pancake turner every 10 minutes.

At the end of 40 minutes, remove from the oven and let your Quork cool in the pan before storing in an airtight container.

Here is where you will assume I have slipped a cog, gone ‘round the bend, flat-out low-carb crackers. Pork rind pancakes? Yes, my friends, and a thing of wonder they are, somewhere between pancakes and French toast. You simply must try this. You will be amazed. If you prefer, you can cook these in your waffle iron instead. Yum.

3
1
/
2
ounces (100 g) plain pork rinds or skins (There are bags that hold 3
1
/
2
ounces.)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1
/
2
teaspoon baking powder

4 eggs

1
/
2
cup (120 ml) heavy cream

1
/
4
teaspoon liquid stevia (English toffee), or more to taste
*

Water, as needed

3 tablespoons (45 g) butter, plus more for serving

*
Alternative Sweetener

3 tablespoons (45 ml) caramel sugar-free coffee flavoring syrup

YIELD:
3 servings (3 pancakes per serving) 508 calories; 42 g fat; 29 g protein; 3 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Run the pork rinds through your food processor till you have fine crumbs. Dump 'em in a mixing bowl.

Add the cinnamon and baking powder, and stir 'em into the crumbs.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, and stevia. Pour this into the crumbs, and whisk till everything's evenly wet.

Let this mixture sit for 5 minutes or so. This would be a good time to put your frying pan or griddle over medium heat; you'll want it hot when the batter is ready.

Okay, come back to your batter. It will have been thick to start with, and will have thickened even more on standing, becoming downright gloppy. Thin it with water to a consistency you like—I keep mine pretty thick so I get
1
/
2
-inch (1 cm) thick pancakes.

Melt half of the butter in your skillet or on the griddle, and start frying your pancakes like you would any pancakes. Let them get nicely browned on the first side before flipping and cooking the other. The rest of the butter is for the second round, of course.

Serve with more butter and a sprinkle of
Cinnamon “Sugar”
.

I was determined to give you waffles! I tried several recipes that didn't cut it—limp and tasting only of eggs. These worked out! And geez, are they filling. What with whipping the egg whites and all, you'll want to make these over the weekend. Reheat in the toaster or toaster oven for a grab-and-go breakfast.

3
1
/
2
ounces (100 g) plain pork rinds or skins

1
/
4
cup (60 g) erythritol
*

1
/
4
cup (32 g) vanilla whey protein powder

1
/
4
cup (28 g) almond meal

1
/
2
teaspoon baking powder

1
/
4
teaspoon ground cinnamon

5 eggs

1
1
/
2
cups (355 ml) water

*
Alternative Sweeteners

1
/
4
teaspoon liquid stevia

12 drops EZ-Sweetz Family Size

6 drops EZ-Sweetz Travel Size

YIELD:
12 servings (1 waffle) 103 calories; 5 g fat; 12 g protein; 2 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Plug in your waffle iron. You want it hot when the batter is ready.

Run the pork rinds through your food processor until they're powdered. Dump the pork rind crumbs into a mixing bowl.

Add the erythritol, protein powder, almond meal, baking powder, and cinnamon. Use a whisk to stir everything together well.

Separate the eggs, putting the whites into a deep, narrow mixing bowl and the yolks in with the pork rind mixture. Since the tiniest speck of yolk will keep your egg whites from whipping, do yourself a favor and separate each one into a custard cup first.

Whisk the egg yolks and the water into the pork rind mixture. Let this sit while you do the next step.

Using an electric mixer, whip the egg whites until they stand in stiff peaks.

With a rubber scraper, gently fold the egg whites into the pork rind mixture, adding one-quarter of the whites and incorporating them well before adding another quarter, and so on.

Bake the batter according to the instructions that come with your waffle iron.

Serve immediately, with butter and
Cinnamon “Sugar”
or
Maple Butter
.

To freeze, cool on paper towels to absorb moisture, then put in resealable plastic bags with the towels still between them. Reheat in the toaster or toaster oven, rather than the microwave, so your waffles will be crisp.

These taste just like mom used to make; you'd never guess they were low carb. Make extras over the weekend for quick breakfasts on busy mornings.

4 eggs

1 cup (250 g) ricotta cheese

1
/
2
cup (64 g) vanilla whey protein powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1
/
4
teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons (28 g) butter

YIELD:
30 silver dollar pancakes 45 calories; 3 g fat; 5 g protein; 1 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per pancake (If you eat 6 of these silver dollar pancakes, you'll get 268 calories, 16 g fat, 27 g protein, 4 g carbohydrate, and 1 g fiber.)

Coat a heavy skillet or griddle with nonstick cooking spray and place it over medium heat.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and ricotta until quite smooth. Whisk in the protein powder, baking powder, and salt, only mixing until well combined.

Melt 1 tablespoon (14 g) of the butter on the hot skillet or griddle, and drop batter onto it by the tablespoonful. When the bubbles on the surface of the pancakes are breaking and leaving little holes around the edges, flip them and cook the other side.

Add the rest of the butter to cook the rest of the batter.

Serve these with
Maple Butter
or
Cinnamon “Sugar”
.

Lightly adapted from a recipe my friend Diana Lee allowed me to use in
500 Low Carb Recipes
. Great for those of you who are tired of eggs. In the interest of full disclosure, I must tell you that as an unregenerate Yankee I have never had real fried cornmeal mush. But Diana has, and she vouches for this. It's really tasty regardless. LorAnn and Amoretti both make corn flavoring, in sweet and popcorn flavors. I got mine at Amazon.com.

4 eggs

1
/
2
cup (125 g) ricotta cheese

1
/
4
cup (60 ml) heavy cream

36 drops liquid stevia
*

1
/
2
teaspoon ground cinnamon

1
/
4
teaspoon ground nutmeg

6 drops corn flavoring (optional)

1 teaspoon oil—I used MCT oil, but melted coconut oil would be fine

*
Alternative Sweeteners

12 drops EZ-Sweetz Family Size

6 drops EZ-Sweetz Travel Size

YIELD:
4 servings 232 calories; 21 g fat; 9 g protein; 2 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Preheat oven to 350°F (´°C, or gas mark 4). Coat an 8-inch (20 cm) square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

Simply put everything but the oil in a mixing bowl. Whisk together, and pour into the prepared baking dish.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Pull it out of the oven and let it cool a few minutes.

Put your large, heavy skillet over medium heat, and add the oil. Cut the mush into 4 squares, and fry until they're golden on both sides. Serve with
Cinnamon “Sugar”
.

This takes a decent food processor, but it's delicious and satisfying. Toast and spread with butter, or make an open-faced grilled cheese! This recipe first appeared in
The Fat Fast Cookbook
, which I wrote for CarbSmart. Thanks to my dear friend Andrew DiMino, who kindly granted permission for me to share it here.

4 cups (340 g) shredded coconut meat

3
/
4
cup (84 g) flaxseed meal

1 tablespoon (12 g) xanthan or guar

1 teaspoon erythritol—not essential, but I think it improves the flavor

1
1
/
2
teaspoons baking soda

1
/
2
teaspoon salt

1
/
2
cup (120 ml) water

2 tablespoons (28 ml) cider vinegar

4 eggs

YIELD:
20 servings 111 calories; 9 g fat; 4 g protein; 5 g carbohydrate; 4 g dietary fiber per serving

Preheat oven to 350°F (´°C, or gas mark 4). Grease a loaf pan—standard, not super-huge; the opening on mine is 8
1
/
2
× 4
1
/
2
inches (26 × 11 cm). Now line it with nonstick aluminum foil or baking parchment.

In your food processor, with the S-blade in place, combine the coconut, flaxseed meal, xanthan, erythritol, baking soda, and salt. Run the processor till everything is ground to a fine meal. Scrape down the sides and run the processor some more.

While that's happening, in a glass measuring cup, combine the water and the vinegar. Have this standing by the food processor.

While the food processor is running, add the eggs, one at a time, through the feed tube.

Finally, pour the water-and-vinegar mixture in through the feed tube. Run just another 30 seconds or so.

Pour or scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

This slices beautifully. I get 20 slices per loaf; don't slice extra thick or you'll be over your 5-gram limit. Do keep this refrigerated, or, better yet, slice it as soon as it's cool, then freeze.

I saw a recipe for Rosemary Cheese Crackers, and while I wasn't going to use flour and stuff, the flavor combination sounded great. It is! These may be the best crackers I've ever done.

1 cup (145 g) sunflower seed kernels

1
/
2
cup (80 g) rice protein powder (Nutribiotic makes this—ask at your health food store)

1
/
2
teaspoon xanthan or guar

1
/
2
teaspoon baking powder

1
/
2
teaspoon salt, plus more for sprinkling

2 tablespoons (28 g) butter, at room temperature

1
1
/
2
tablespoons (1 g) minced fresh rosemary

1 cup (115 g) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

1
/
2
cup (40 g) shredded Parmesan cheese

1 egg white

3 tablespoons (45 ml) water

YIELD:
50 servings (1 cracker) 42 calories; 3 g fat; 3 g protein; 1 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Preheat oven to 350°F (´°C, or gas mark 4).

Put the sunflower seeds, rice protein powder, xanthan or guar, baking powder, and salt in your food processor, and run till the sunflower seeds are ground up to the texture of cornmeal or finer.