Low carb high fat

I’ve developed this recipe over the years and it’s awesome! The key is to use quality ingredients, like organic tomatoes and, ideally, homemade chicken or beef bone broth. Bone broth gives such an umami flavor that it makes the sauce truly memorable. If I don’t have wine on hand, I omit it; it isn’t necessary with the bone broth.

The sauce is mostly hands-off but do give it at least 2 ½ hours to cook, which is necessary for the tomatoes to break down. If the sauce gets too thick, add more broth, wine or even water.

Omit the meat and mushrooms for a plain red sauce. You can use it for any Italian recipe that calls for a red sauce or “gravy”.

Make a large batch and it freezes beautifully.

Use plenty of oil and don’t discard the fat from the meat.

Bolognese over Spaghetti Squash

Bolognese

1lb ground organic, free range ground beef

1 /2 head or more garlic, minced

Extra virgin olive oil

1 carrot, diced small

1 28 ounce can whole/diced organic tomatoes

½- 1 cup milk, half and half or cream

4 tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup chicken or beef bone stock (homemade preferable)

2 portobella or 12 ounces shitakes, chopped (optional)

½ cup white or red wine (optional, can use more stock)

Salt & pepper

Red pepper flakes

1 bunch kale, stems removed and chopped (optional)

Heat oil and medium high and sauté mushrooms until water is released and they begin to brown and set aside. Cook until meat is brown and add to mushrooms. On low heat, add more oil and garlic and carrot and stir until garlic is fragrant, about a minute. Add wine, stock, tomato paste, and tomatoes and once boiling, lower until just bubbling with lid partially on. After an hour, add salt and pepper, mushrooms and meat. Cook at least another hour. Add milk and kale, and cook another 15 minutes.

Spaghetti Squash

Avocado oil

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Using a sharp knife, poke a few small slits in the squash skin; poke in a dotted line along where you plan to slice the squash in half. 2. Microwave squash 5-6 minutes; cool slightly. Cut squash in half and remove seeds. Rub oil, salt and pepper on cut side and put cut side down on a parchment lined tray. Bake until soft, about 45 minutes.

Using a fork, scrape the “spaghetti” out of the shell. Use as a base for the Bolognese.

Beef Summer Sausage, Feta and Olive Salad

September 10, 2018

nlhartie

This has been the year of the salad for me. While green salads have been my go-to lunch for almost two years, I’ve shied away from them for dinner because, well, I just had one for lunch.

But this summer, I got creative and expanded my salad “base”—anything from raw brussels sprouts, kale, cabbage, yellow or green squash, beets, daikon works.

It’s all in the preparation that makes virtually any raw vegetable tasty:

Pickled onions, carrot, daikon.
Spiralized squash
Massage avocado or extra virgin olive oil onto kale softens it.
Brussel sprouts, hand cut thin or use a food processor
Beets can be spiralized or thinly cut

I do lightly steam asparagus, chill it quickly and use it in salads.

Dicing root vegetables and roasting them brings out their sweetness and is nice in salads

For my lunch salads, I use roasted or sautéed chicken most often. But I mix it up with proteins like tuna and shrimp. I make enough for a week so I don’t have to cook every day. I also make a cruet or two of salad dressing and change them up every week.

This salad was inspired by this free range, nitrate free Summer Sausage I found at Adam’s in Kingston. It was smoky and delicious! Strauss doesn’t sell their products in NYC, but they do sell online, and I just ordered some free range meat and this sausage from them.

Beef Summer Sausage, Feta and Olive Salad

Assorted greens—romaine, arugula, baby spinach or whatever you like

Avocado

Artichokes

Feta cheese

Oil cured olives

Summer sausage

Pickled Onions

Red Wine Vinaigrette

¾ cup parts avocado oil

¼ cup part red wine vinegar

1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 large clove garlic, minced

Salt and pepper

Combine ingredients; either in a blender or food processor or shake in a jar or whisk.

Peruvian Chicken Thighs with Spicy Cilantro Sauce Salad

September 6, 2018

nlhartie

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Peruvian Chicken Thighs with Spicy Cilantro Sauce Salad

I’ve made this delicious recipe before from The New York Times by Melissa Clark and it is delicious. I used thighs, but breasts or the whole chicken work just as well. I cooked the chicken for two night’s dinner. The first night, my husband and I ate it hot with asparagus.

Peruvian Roasted Chicken With Spicy Cilantro Sauce

The second night, I turned it into a salad. I spiralized yellow and green zucchini, steamed and chilled the asparagus and added pickled onions to the vegetables. Fantastic and perfect for a hot, humid summer night!

Peruvian Chicken Thighs with Spicy Cilantro Sauce Salad

Melissa Clark’s recipe

Salad for two

½ pound asparagus, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 ½ yellow and green squash, spiralized

Handful pickled onions

Directions

Allow squash to drain in a colander or squeeze out extra water. Combine vegetables and add spicy cilantro sauce and toss. Place room temperature or cold chicken on top of salad and drizzle extra sauce on top.

Spiralized Vegetables

September 5, 2018

nlhartie

cooking tips Low carb high fat No Comments

Spiralizing vegetables is a great way to eat more veggies and have the fake-out mouth feel of a high carb food like pasta, rice and potatoes. Most spiralizers work best if the diameter of the vegetable is 1 ½” or more.

Lowest carbs

Green bell pepper: sauté, raw
Broccoli stem: roast, sauté, raw
Cabbage: roast, sauté, raw
Cucumber: raw
Daikon and other radishes: roast, sauté, raw
Kohlrabi: roast, sauté, boil
Turnip: roast, sauté, boil
Zucchini: sauté, boil, raw

Higher Carbs, avoid if keeping carbs at 20 grams or less, or use sparingly, like pickled onions. For example, one medium onion, 2 ½” diameter, is 10 grams of carbs. A small handful of them in your tossed salad would add about 2 grams—but will give your salad a total lift in flavor.

Carrots: roast, sauté, boil, raw
Beets: roast, sauté, raw
Celeriac: roast, sauté, boil, raw
Jicama: roast, sauté, raw
Onion: roast, sauté, raw
Rutabaga: roast, sauté, boil

I like to pickle onions, carrots and daikon after spiralizing, because it looks nicer than simply cutting them.

You can make slaw out of any of the vegetables by adding your favorite slaw dressing or any salad dressing.

Add oil, butter, ghee, bacon fat, lard spices, lemon, and vinegars to cooked spiralized vegetables. A base of spiralized zucchini is a great substitute for pasta—just top it with whatever meat and sauce you are cooking.

For example, I just made Peruvian Roasted Chicken thighs with Spicy Cilantro Sauce from The New York Times. I cooked asparagus and spiralized zucchini and both got a liberal dose of the cilantro sauce. Delicious—and the sauce made both vegetables so tasty that I didn’t miss a high carb side, like potatoes or rice.

Spicy Thai Pork Tenderloin Salad

August 30, 2018

nlhartie

ketogenic diet Low carb high fat Recipes No Comments

This is Melissa Clark’s recipe from The New York Times. I made a few changes—used brussels sprouts and red cabbage instead of napa cabbage and added pickled onions. I omitted the red peppers and cucumbers—mainly because I didn’t have them. What vegetables you use doesn’t matter that much; it’s the marinade and dressing and garnishes that make this dish a standout.

I served this main course salad with a Keto roll. The perfect summer meal!

Spicy Thai Pork Tenderloin Salad

By Melissa Clark

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017575-spicy-thai-pork-tenderloin-salad?action=click&module=Local%20Search%20Recipe%20Card&pgType=search&rank=1.

Almond Flour Cod & Kale Salad with Bacon

August 29, 2018

nlhartie

Low carb high fat Recipes No Comments

Almond flour Cod and Kale salad with bacon

I was really in the mood for fish with a crunch—like the kind from breadcrumbs, but wanted to keep it low carb, so I used almond flour and it turned out great! The almond flour imparted both crunch and a subtle flavor of almonds. Will definitely make my latest creation again soon!

The raw kale salad with bacon worked very nicely with the fish. You can also use brussels sprouts or coleslaw with the dressing. To make this salad a complete meal, add nuts and cheese.

Almond Flour Coated Cod and Kale Salad with Bacon

4-6 ounces per person Cod

Egg

Almond flour to coat

Salt & pepper

Butter

Avocado oil

Lemon juice and zest

Preheat oven to 424. Coat cod in egg, salt and pepper mix, then dredge in flour. Take a cast iron pan and heat enough oil to coat pan. When hot, add fish. Let cook a few minutes then flip when brown. When both sides are brown, place in oven for 5-10 minutes, depending on thickness of fish. Remove from oven and add a bit of butter to pan, coating the fish. Squeeze lemon juice and zest n fish and serve.

Kale Salad with Bacon Dressing

Serves 3- 4

1 large head of kale, stems removed, leaves chopped into bite sized pieces

Avocado oil

Coat kale with avocado oil and let sit for 30 minutes to wilt it a bit. Add dressing and toss in bacon before serving.

Bacon dressing

6 ounces bacon, diced

3 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 teaspoons Dijon

3 tablespoons avocado oil

Pepper

Cook bacon until fat is rendered on medium-low heat, about 10 minutes. Remove bacon. Turn off the heat and add remaining ingredients, using a whisk. Toss bacon into dressed salad last minute.

Steak and Slaw

August 23, 2018

nlhartie

ketogenic diet Low carb high fat Recipes No Comments

I had a flat iron steak from the farmer’s market that I was in the mood for and wanted to use up my vegetables, because I’m going away for the weekend. I ended up with a slaw/salad and it was very tasty!

I used a sumac dry rub and a bit of cider vinegar and covered the sliced-up steak and put it in the broiler for 5 minutes. I make a big batch of the dry rub; it’s made with equal parts of sumac, garlic, cocoa, coffee, salt and pepper and I store it in the freezer.

Steak and Slaw

Flat iron steak or other, sliced

Dry rub

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

Coat steak with vinegar and dry rub and place on an oven proof tray. Put broiler on high and cook 5 minutes.

Slaw

Serves 2

¼ cabbage, sliced thin

2-3 stalks celery, chopped

Pickled onions

Toasted bits of pecan

Handful parmesan

Dressing

1-2 tablespoons avocado oil

¼ cup Mayo or creme fraiche

1-2 teaspoons hot sauce (like Frank’s Hot Sauce or Mazi Piri Piri sauce)

1 teaspoon Dijon

2 tablespoons Cider vinegar

Combine and whisk ingredients.

Assemble salad ingredients, except pecans and add as much dressing as desired. Allow to sit for 30-60 minutes. Add pecans and steak and serve.

“Cold Noodles” with Sesame Sauce with Baked Tofu

August 22, 2018

nlhartie

ketogenic diet Low carb high fat Recipes No Comments

Low carb tofu with peanut sauce, spiralized zucchini and cucumber

I was first introduced to cold noodles with sesame by my boyfriend in college and it was the first spicy dish I had ever eaten! The first few times I ate them, it took forever because they were so hot. But I immediately loved them and when my boyfriend would visit for the weekend, he always brought me an order. I haven’t the restaurant version in years—I find them too sweet—but I’ll never forget how much I loved the cold noodles from Empire Szechuan in New York City.

This version has spiralized yellow squash or zucchini and Shirataki noodles. Use any combination; it’s all good. I add baked tofu to make the dish more substantial. Roasted chicken on the side with a little peanut sauce would also be good. Anything with this peanut sauce is good!

The first night I made this I used only yellow squash, but didn’t have enough for the second night, so I added the Shirataki noodles.

Shirataki noodles are made with yam flour and have virtually no carbs or calories. According to Wikipedia: “Shirataki are thin, translucent, gelatinous traditional Japanese noodles made from the konjac yam. The word “shirataki” means white waterfall, referring to the appearance of these noodles.”

Some brands of Shirataki noodles have soy or preservatives added, but I buy a brand that is only made of yams. I posted a picture of it on my blog, because the name is only in Japanese. It has little flavor, but absorbs whatever sauce you use on it. Buy it in the refrigerated section of your grocery store or an Asian specialty grocer.

If you want the traditional (high carb) recipe, simply substitute 1 pound Chinese-style dried noodle or spaghetti/fettuccini.

“Cold Noodles” with Sesame Sauce with Baked Tofu

Serves 4

4 yellow squash or zucchini spiralized or a combination and/or Shirataki noodles

5 cloves garlic, minced

1-2 tablespoons ginger, peeled and minced

3 tablespoon black and/or white sesame seeds, divided

1 bunch scallions, chopped

4 curby cucumber, cut into long thin shreds or spiralized

Cilantro, chopped

Sauce:

2 tablespoon San-J® All Purpose Szechuan Hot and Spicy Sauce

1 cup crunchy or smooth natural peanut butter

3 tablespoons soy or tamari sauce

1 teaspoon sesame oil

Hot pepper flakes to taste

Water

Baked Tofu

If you are using Shirataki noodles, drain, rinse and add them to boiling water and cook for 2 minutes. Drain.

Sauté ginger, 2 tablespoons sesame seeds and garlic on low heat for about a minute, or until garlic becomes fragrant. Add sauce ingredients, stirring well. Add small amounts of water until you like the consistency—should be thin enough to coat the pasta easily. Taste the sauce, as you may want to add more of one or more ingredients. If it is too hot and spicy, add more peanut butter.

Mix sauce with noodles and spiralized veggies.

Top with baked tofu and add more peanut sauce. Embellish with cucumber, remaining sesame seeds and cilantro. Serve at room temperature.

Low Carb Kale “Pie”

August 21, 2018

nlhartie

ketogenic diet Low carb high fat Recipes No Comments

Have been making kale “pie” for years and used to follow the recipe and baked it with a pie crust. Even before I went low carb, I omitted the crust, as this dish doesn’t need it. If you are eating them, sweet potatoes go well with the kale pie.

I have also made this with mushrooms, like shitake, instead of the cabbage and tomatoes.

I don’t add salt, as the feta cheese is salty enough for me.

Kale Pie

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

1 large bunch kale, stems removed, leaves roughly chopped

¼ large red head of cabbage, cored and sliced (optional)

Handful grape or cherry tomatoes, halved

1 medium red onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

Avocado or extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup milk or heavy cream

6 oz feta cheese, preferably sheep’s, crumbled

6 eggs, beaten

Pepper

Sauté onions and garlic until translucent and add kale and cabbage, if using. Sauté, about 15 minutes or until tender. Allow vegetables to cool a bit.

Mix remaining ingredients and add kale mix and combine. Place mixture in a pie dish or other shallow baking dish, add tomatoes cut side down and bake 45 minutes.

French Onion Soup with Bone Broth

August 20, 2018

nlhartie

ketogenic diet Low carb high fat Recipes No Comments

French Onion Soup with Bone Broth and Tomato Salad

Bone broth. Onions. Raw milk cheese. Put them together and magic happens…French Onion soup is a classic for a reason. Use the best ingredients for an unforgettable meal.

Beef bone broth recipe. If you cn’t make your own broth, organic, grass fed broth is available–but it won’t be as good as your own.

Traditionally, pieces of a baguette or croutons are placed in soup, but I omitted to make this low carb. However, if it’s a cheat day, serve with a hot baguette!

I served this with tomato salad with pickled onions.

French Onion Soup

Serves 4

6 large onions, thinly sliced

6 cups bone broth, preferably beef, but chicken or vegetable can be substituted

Coupled sprigs thyme

4 tablespoons butter

Salt and pepper

8 ounces cheese, preferably raw like Emmentaler and Swiss Gruyere, sliced

Heat a cast iron casserole or other sturdy pot on medium and melt butter. Add onions. Stirring occasionally, cook them slowly—you may want to lower temperature—until they slowly collapse and begin to brown, 30-45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400. Add stock, thyme, salt and pepper and bring just to a boil. Cook for 15 minutes.

Ladle soup into portion sized bowls and place on a parchment lined sturdy baking sheet. Place cheese over soup and bake about 10 minutes, or until cheese melts.