Low Carb Hashbrown Casserole...Really??

Yes Really!! Came across this awesome recipe this morning. Big thanks to 24/7 Low Carb Diner for sharing!  Of course there are no potatoes in this recipe. It uses the amazing rutabaga! I have loved these ever since I tried the brown butter rutabaga recipe. I'll be trying this recipe very soon.

Three Cheese Hashbrown Casserole

6 slices bacon

1/4 lb pork sausage

2 cups shredded rutabaga

4 eggs

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

3/4 cup ricotta cheese

Bake or pan fry bacon. Drain and crumble. Brown the sausage in a small skillet. While those are cooking, place shredded rutabaga in a microwavable bowl with 2 tbsp water. Cook on high power in the microwave for 2 minutes. Drain and cool.

In a large bowl, beat eggs. Stir in the crumbled bacon, browned sausage, all the cheeses and the shredded rutabaga.

Coat an 8 inch square casserole dish with bacon grease. Pour in the casserole mixture and smooth the top with a spatula.

Bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Let cool 10 minutes before cutting into 6 servings.

Recipe can be doubled or tripled.

Serves 6   472 calories   6 net carbs

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Before I post some new recipes for the day, I wanted to give a quick thumbs up for two recipes that I recently tried out.  I made the brown butter rutabaga the other night and it was awesome! Kind of a cross between squash and potato. It was great as a potato alternative.
Tonight I tried out the celery root hash browns.  I wasn't sure how these would taste, as I've never tried celery root before and don't like celery.  They were really good! They had the same texture as hash browns but weren't as heavy. Great taste too! Nothing at all like celery.

Now for some new recipes to try out!
First here's a recipe that my Aunt Sue sent me on pinterest. Thanks! :)
Big thanks to the author, Mommy I'm Hungry Blog on Blogspot.
Can't wait to try this one out!

Parmesan Meatloaf {Gluten Free}

slightly adapted from Full Bellies Make Happy Kids

1 lb ground turkey
1 lb ground beef
2 eggs
1/4 cup gluten free breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1-2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 small onion, grated
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup marinara pasta sauce (homemade here, minus the meat)
1/2 cup shredded Italian cheese blend
minced parsley for garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a loaf pan (I used a regular glass loaf dish as in the photo above) with cooking spray, set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey and beef, eggs, breadcrumbs, thyme, oregano, basil, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese. Try not over handle the mixture otherwise it will get tough. Place the mixture in the greased loaf pan and form into a loaf. Top the meatloaf with pasta sauce.

Place filled loaf pan on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes - 1 hour. Remove the meatloaf from the oven and sprinkle the top with the remaining shredded cheese. Place the meatloaf back in the oven and bake until the cheese is melted.
Remove the meatloaf from the oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving/slicing. Garnish with parsley if desired.

*(new cooking time added, mine usually takes 1 hr for 2 lbs meat)

Here's a new dessert recipe to try out after the meatloaf....

Black Bean Flour-less Brownies

(By 'Rosestar' on the Yahoo! Contributor Network)

The preparation should take you around ten minutes and the brownies will cook in about half an hour. So in forty minutes you can eat these nutritious and healthy brownies full of chocolate!

You will need the following:

4 ounces of butter, or if you prefer your brownie more moist and even healthier olive oil!

3 cups of sweetener of your choice, make sure it measures like sugar

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

4 eggs

A pinch of salt

5 ounces of unsweetened melted chocolate

1/3 cup of cocoa

2 cups of black beans

1 tablespoon of baking powder

1 cup of water

1 cup of pecans

Preheat the oven to 375 Fahrenheit and grease the pan.

Whisk the butter and the sweetener together. Then add vanilla, and the eggs and keep whisking.

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well with a hand mixer until creamy.

Pour all into a ban and bake for about 35 minutes. The top should rise. If not keep it in for a little more. Cut and enjoy!

Recipes, recipes!

Thought I would post a bunch today since I have been slacking.  I'm still getting used to eating the six small meals a day, due to my gastroparesis diagnosis.  It's very difficult, especially since my job has me on the road a lot.   I didn't do a very good job this week of watching my carbs, so this week I need to be more vigilant LOL!
Here's a great recipe that I am sharing from Low Carbing Among Friends.
They have some excellent cookbooks.  Everything in the book is low carb and gluten-free.
This one uses celery root. Although I'm not a big celery fan, I'm wondering how the root would taste done like this.  Need to try it out!

Celery Root Hash Browns by Karen Sorenson

Ingredients
3 cups shredded celery root
2 large eggs
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 TBSP butter

Using a julienne peeler, spiral slicer or box grater , grate "noodles" out of the celery root.
In medium bowl, mix eggs, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and black pepper, then add the celery root and stir to continue.
In a large skillet over medium high heat, heat the butter.  Scoop celery root mixture into 8 hashbrown patties and place in pan.  Cook 3 minutes or until brown.  Flip and cook another 2-3 minutes.

Yield 4 servings
2 patties per serving
137 calories
4.9g protein
8.6g fat
8.7 net carbs

This one looks so good! Can't wait to try this one out in the summer :)

Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato and Avocado Salad
(Thanks to DJ Foodie!)

Ingredients
4 cups mixed greens
1 lb assorted fresh tomatoes, cut into chunks
2 whole avocados, peeled, pitted and cut into chunks
12 slices crispy bacon, cut into chunks
1/2 cup mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste

In large bowl, combine the greens, tomatoes, avocados, bacon and mayonnaise.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Yield 4 servings
Each serving---
375.2 calories
6.9 g protein
40.4 g fat
6.3 g fiber
5.9 g net carbs

Enjoy!!!!
Will be posting more soon! :)

It's been awhile

Sorry, it's been awhile since I posted any new recipes.  Had a short stint in the hospital, seems my stomach has decided to stop working. I was diagnosed with gastroparesis.  The only affect it has on my diet is that I need to have six small meals a day (with medication) instead of three.  So I will still be following my low carb, high protein diet :)
With that being said, here's a great recipe I found today.
***Again, this calls for almond extract (can't use) so I will be doubling my vanilla extract.

Protein Packed Low Carb Ice Cream

RECIPE BY

 Food.com

Ingredients

• 1 cup cottage cheese (ricotta)
• 2 tbsps lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp lemon extract
• 4 tbsps artificial sweetener
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 tbsps cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup egg white (pasteurized liquid egg whites or 14 cup light coconut milk)

PREP TIME

10 min

TOTAL TIME

30 min

SERVINGS

 

UNITS

US METRIC

Preparation

Combine ingredients in a blender or magic bullet. Puree until smooth and free of lumps, scraping down the food processor a few times. Freeze and store in a tupperware container in your freezer and consume immediately, or within two hours of making your ice cream. It turns into an icy rock beyond that point (unless you add a tablespoon of vodka to the mix). You can always pop the container in the microwave for a few seconds to defrost.

Amount Per Serving

Calories 220

Calories from Fat 35

% Daily Value *

Total Fat 3.5g	5%
Saturated Fat 3g	15%
Trans Fat
Cholesterol 10mg	3%
Sodium 960mg	40%
Potassium 490mg	14%
Total Carbohydrate 16g	5%
Dietary Fiber 4g	16%
Sugars 8g

Protein 34g

Vitamin A	2%
Vitamin C	25%
Calcium	15%
Iron	8%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

 

 

Busy, Busy!

If you've noticed, my posts have been kind of sporadic lately.  I recently returned to work full time and I'm still adjusting. But since I am back at work, I will be trying to post easy, quick low carb recipes and slow cooker, low carb recipes.  Those are the ones I definitely need to use now.  So here is my first one.  I'll be trying this out this week.  Thanks to slenderkitchen.com for this recipe!
**NOTE--please keep in mind that the nutritional values listed are for the Beef Ragu only.  It's not including any pasta, rice, polenta, etc. you may use to serve with it.  That's where you really need to keep a watch on the carb content.  Happy Eating!!!---Christine

Slow Cooker Beef Ragu
Servings: 10
Serving Size: 3/4 cup
Nutritional Info: 175.8 calories, 5.4g of fat, 3.8g carbohydrates, .9g dietary fiber, 27.4g of protein

Ingredients

• 2.5 pounds lean beef chuck, trimmed of fat
• 1 ribs celery, diced
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 14.5 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1.5 cups beef broth
• 2 bay leaves
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp fresh rosemary, minced
• 2 tbsp fresh oregano or thyme, chopped

Instructions

1. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic to the bottom of the crock pot.
2. Season your beef liberally with salt and pepper and add it to the crock pot.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and cook for 6-8 hours until beef is fork tender. Serve with your favorite pasta, or polenta, or even in sandwiches for an Italian bef sandwich.

Lucky me!

I don't know if any of my followers follow along on Low Carb Cooking with Sandi or not?
She has a great blog with wonderful recipes.  I recently entered a contest on there and won two books!
So happy! I'll be sharing some of those recipes as soon as I receive my books :)
You can check her site out here...http://lowcarbcookingwithsandi.blogspot.com/2014/02/winner-of-giveaway.html?showComment=1393689453065#c6321309541121941739

Thanks again Sandi!!

New Recipe!

I've never tried rutabaga before, but this recipe looks delicious!  I know I need to cut back on potatoes so I will be trying this out.
Happy Eating!!

Shaved Rutabaga with Browned Butter

1 small rutabaga

1/3 cup water

3 tbsp butter

Salt and pepper to taste

Peel rutabaga and cut it into chunks to fit a spiral cutter. Set the device to the shave blade. Shave the rutabaga. You can also use a mandolin, but the curls will be missing. Gently transfer the thin slices to a lidded skillet. Add water and simmer  with the lid on while you brown the butter. In a small saucepan, cook the butter over low heat until it just begins to brown. Remove from heat immediately. When rutabaga is tender (stir very gently to retain the volume of the curls) transfer rutabaga into a serving dish or plates and drizzle with browned butter. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4

Carb count varies: 1/2 cup is roughly 4 net carbs