Savory Keto Friendly Roasted Pecans

Somedays you just want a snack. Something that has flavor and maybe a little crunch or something you can just eat with your fingers.

I have found a perfect snack, it is portable, packable and snackable. Oh, did I mention they are also keto friendly?

This recipe can be adjusted to make spicy with the addition of chili powder or add some sweeter for more of a dessert flavor.

Savory Roasted Pecans:

4 cups of pecan halves

one stick of butter

1 tsp Redmond’s Real Salt

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

Put pecans in a large bowl, melt butter and pour over pecans. Sprinkle salt and smoked paprika over pecans and mix well to cover all pecans. Spread pecans on a baking sheet and bake on 275 degrees for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Store in an airtight container. Enjoy!

Keto Cornbread

I love cornbread with soup, chili or just warm with butter! My husband and I have been eating a ketoish lifestyle for a while now and love trying out new recipes that take traditional comfort foods and make a healthier version of them. This is one of those “holy cow, that good” recipes.

This recipe takes takes just a few minutes to put together and cooks in about 25 minutes. The ingredients are not stuff you would routinely have in your pantry so you will have to plan ahead the first time around. Trust me, it is worth it!

I got this recipe from Neishalovesit.com/blog. Neisha Salas-Berry is an RN and her husband Ken D. Berry is an MD. They have great information and great recipes.

You will need the following ingredients:

4 tablespoons Pork Panko (you can make your own by crunching up pork rinds or I use Pork Panko found on Amazon)

4 teaspoons coconut flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons almond flour
2 eggs at room temperature (this is important, cold eggs harden the butter)
2 ounces cream cheese (softened)
2 ounces butter (softened)

I use an 8″ cast iron pan on 350 degree oven. Grease pan pan liberally with bacon grease. Mix dry ingredients together. In separate bowl mix butter and cream cheese until creamy. Combine all ingredients together, mix well and pour into greased cast iron skillet*. Mixture will be a bit on the thick side. Cook for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy!!

*I put a lot of bacon grease in the pan and stick it in the oven while I mix the ingredients together. When I pour the mix into the pan, I can hear it sizzle and the bacon grease pushes up the sides of the pan.

Keto Bread

I found this recipe and had many doubts. It was very easy to make using a blender, it was a no knead bread and it bakes in very little time. How could it be that easy and quick and taste good…and be keto friendly?!?

So I made it, still with doubts. Then I baked it and still had doubts. Then I tried it…doubts over! This bread has a great, nutty flavor. It is slightly denser that some breads but once it has grass-fed butter melting on a warm slice, you don’t notice the density. All you notice is the yum!

You will need the following ingredients:

1/2 cup coconut flour
1/3 cup ground flax meal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt (I use Redmond’s Real Salt)
1/2 cup flavorless oil (I use avocado or refined coconut oil)
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons honey (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare loaf pan by lining it with parchment paper. Add all wet ingredients into a blender, pulse until combined then add your dry ingredients and mix well. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from center. Cool in pan for 10 minutes then move to cooling rack. Store in refrigerator for up to 1 week. Enjoy!!

Chaffels

So Keto is pretty easy once you get the hang of it and find those foods that make it simple to get through the day without too much thought.

But sometimes you want things like a grilled cheese sandwich or a BLT and it is difficult to figure out how to make them without the bread.u

Well, here is the answer!

My son created the most amazing grilled cheese sandwich several years ago. It has salami, cheese slices (I use cheddar or Munster) and dill pickle slices.

I use the waffle iron for the Chaffels and put them in the oven to melt the cheese without compromising the Chaffels.

Here is the recipe for the Chaffels:

1 egg

1/2 cup shredded cheese (I use cheddar)

Put in waffle iron for 3 to 4 minutes.

It is that easy! Eat alone or build into a sandwich.

Enjoy!!

Don’t be Tricked by Marketing and Labels

I have been trying to eat Keto or at least low carb for a few months now and have realized that reading labels is a must!

I was going through the grocery store the other day and my husband texted me asking for some ice cream (we don’t normally have this at our house). I thought that it would be ok if we had some ice cream for a change. I figured that I would get the kind that is made from avocodos so it would be lower in carbs and get him his favorite death by chocolate which obviously would have more carbs.

Notice the total carbs and the price 31.1¢ per ounce.

Boy was I wrong!

Notice the total carbs and the price 8.5¢ per ounce.

Granted, the total fat is 4 grams different but overall, it doesn’t make sense to me.

Moral of the story…

Read the labels or better yet, don’t by foods that have labels.

Keto Cheesecake

When you want cheesecake, you just want cheesecake!

There are 2 main problems with cheesecake in my opinion.

1- the sugar!

2- there is always leftovers if you only eat one piece and we all know that you cannot let it go to waste…ever! So someone has to eat it and it might as well be you. 😁

I just found what I think is the answer to both of these problems.

I ran across a pod cast called Keto for Normies and they were talking to their guests about Keto cookbooks that are called Breakfast in Five, Lunch in Five, Dinner in Five and Dessert in Five by Vicky Ushakova and Rami Abramov. Vicky and Rami also have a website called Tasteaholics.com.

Everything in the cookbooks are Keto, most are five ingredients or less and five grams of carbs or less. What’s not to love?

So my husband and I are sitting at home on a Sunday afternoon and he says that he would like some cheesecake. Now I have made some killer cheesecakes in the past but they are full of carbs and there is always leftovers for a few days.

I wanted to have a better option so I pulled out my Kindle and downloaded a copy of Dessert in Five. The “Cheesecake for One” recipe was perfect. It was just the perfect amount for my husband and I and it was made with alternative sweeteners so the sugar problem was resolved.

What about the taste? Oh my…it was incredible!!

Creamy and luscious like a cheesecake should be.

Thank you Dessert in Five! I look forward to trying more of your recipes!

My Experience of Keto While Traveling

I know that traveling can be quite grueling at times, and adding a Keto lifestyle to the mix can give you increased anxiety on top of it. Well, it doesn’t have to be such an obstacle if you just plan a bit before heading out.

First of all, decide if you are going to be eating out or if you prefer to eat in.

Eating out options can be anything from a steakhouse to Mexican restaurant to Taco Bell. Steakhouse is pretty easy, you can chose steak and veggies, salads, chicken and veggies, the list goes on and on. Mexican is fairly simple also, I get fajitas no beans or rice but extra guacamole salads fixings. Taco Bell, they now have the protein bowls. Just ask for no beans or rice and add extra lettuce. It is as easy as that.

If eating in, some hotels have the suites with kitchenettes and others will supply you with hot plates. Either way, this gives you options for Keto. I have made sausage and peppers on the hotplate and served it over riced cauliflower made in the microwave. Pretty simple!

The point is, Keto is a lifestyle that can be taken with you. I have lost 25 lbs in 5 months while traveling for work at least 3 weeks per month. If I can do it so can you!

Keto Friendly Roasted Broccoli

This is one of the easiest things to make and it is so tasty as well as good for you. Roasted broccoli goes well with just about anything as a side dish. This is a much better alternative to ordinary steamed broccoli.

Ingredients:

Frozen broccoli

Olive oil

Seasoning of choice ( I use salt, pepper, garlic salt or lemon pepper depending on what I am serving it with).

Preheat oven to 425 degrees, place frozen broccoli on cookie sheet, pour olive oil over broccoli, just enough to coat lightly, season and bake in oven for 25 minutes or until browning and crispy. The darker the best the taste.

That’s it! Simple as that! Hope you enjoy!

Keto Lemon Garlic Chicken

Cheesy Cauliflower Rice

Ingredients:

4 cups riced cauliflower

1 tablespoon butter

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

4 tablespoons cream cheese

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded (or any cheese blend of your choice)

1/2 teaspoon salt

Pepper to taste

Melt butter in a skillet, add riced cauliflower and cook on medium low until heated through, about 7 minutes. Add garlic salt, salt, pepper, cream cheese and whipping cream. Remove from heat and top with shredded cheese. Let sit for cheese to melt. Once cheese is somewhat melted, stir to combine. Serve

This is one of the very best recipes I have found since living the Keto lifestyle. It is cheesy and yummy, a comfort food for Keto for sure! It is easy to make and doesn’t take a lot of time. This makes a great side dish and kids and guests won’t even know that it is Keto. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!