Low Carb Chocolate Chip Cookies

The most popular cookie is probably the most difficult to adjust for a low carb diet. The sweeteners you use can make or break a recipe so I recommend sticking to the ones I have suggested. In this recipe I use wheat protein isolate which may or may not fit into your definition of what you consider keto friendly. I have been in ketosis for over a year and a half and am able to expand my food list and carb intake somewhat. I also burn a lot of calories running and working with a kinesiologist, primarily working on strength and balance through resistance training. I believe that almost any food can be keto friendly as long as you respect your daily carb intake.
So without further ado, here is my version of the Chocolate Chip Cookie. It is important to let cookies cool completely before eating as they firm up while cooling.

Low Carb Chocolate Chip Cookies

Low Carb Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe

1 Cup Sukrin Gold

3/4 Cup Truvia (the little pot which is a mixture of erythritol and Stevia leaf)

1 pound butter, softened

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3 eggs

2.5 Cups almond flour

1/2 Cup Wheat protein isolate 8000

1/2 Cup oat fibre 500

1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 bag sugar free chocolate chips (Lily's brand)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Beat butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and beat until well combined.

In a separate bowl combine dry ingredients except for chocolate.

Add dry ingredients to wet and beat until well blended.

Fold in chocolate.

I use insulated cookie sheets and a large cookie scoop.

Scoop 9 large balls onto an insulated cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes or until outer rim is golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool on pan for about 5 minutes. Remove to cooling rack and cool completely.

Cookies will be a little spongy until cooled and then become crunchy on the outside and soft and chewy inside.

Recipe makes 40 large cookies.

Each cookie is approximately 100 calories and 1.5 net carbs after subtracting fibre and sugar alcohols.

I hope you enjoy these as much as we do.
© 2016-2017 diane rolfe ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

BBQ Rub

I realize that it is still winter here in Canada but we BBQ all winter and as often as my husband is willing. It makes for less work for me and also less cleanup. Double score in my books! I wanted to share my favourite BBQ rub with you today but I will also share a link to a wonderful side dish. My friend Rosa posted a recipe for these awesome Brussels sprouts so I am making those as a side dish. Here is the link to the side dish. Bacon Brussels Sprouts Gratin.

BBQ Rub

BBQ Rub

Recipe

4 Tablespoons Brown sugar substitute (I use Sukrin Gold)

2 Tablespoons Chili Powder

2 Tablespoons Paprika

2 Tablespoons Garlic Powder
2 Tablespoons Onion Powder

1 1/2 Tablespoons Kosher salt

1/2 Tablespoon Black Pepper

Combine all ingredients well. If you cannot find a brown sugar substitute that does not contain sugar then just use a white sugar substitute such as erythritol or Truvia.

This is enough to cover about 20 pieces of chicken. I make it ahead and keep it in a covered air tight container.

Approximately 1 net carb per serving.

We use this rub for both chicken and pork. Brush the meat with a little olive oil and sprinkle the rub on each piece of meat, covering liberally. BBQ to your taste.

Thai Style Chicken and Caulirice with Coconut Lime Marinade

I hope everyone has settled back into normal everyday life again after the whirlwind of the holiday season. All of the baking and cooking can take a toll of my back during this busy season. I love every minute of it but my lower back screams at me for overdoing things. Oh well, I guess it is all a part of the aging process. The 125 kilometres I ran in the month of December may have tuckered me out a tad also.
Last night I made a wonderful supper that my husband could not get enough of. If Andre says it is good then you know it is a hit. He usually just scoffs it down and I have to ask him if it was good. If it isn't good he will surely say something without any prodding. This time he volunteered the complement.
My lovely Facebook friend Allison Sklar is an extremely talented pastry chef and also a fabulous vegetarian cook with an impressive blog. She recently got recognized for her 5 Ingredient Coconut Lime Marinade on lifehacker.com. They posted a link to her marinade in an article written this past December 7, 2016 about meal planning. I have used many of Allison's recipes to make meals for my son's girlfriend Coral, also a vegetarian, and Allison has been generous with sharing some gluten free and grain free cake ideas. I wanted to try this marinade so I came up with something a meat eating carnivore, low carb person like myself could enjoy. I really only had to sub the chickpeas for chicken and the rice for caulirice in the recipe she developed so all credit goes to her. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Thai Style Chicken and Caulirice with Coconut Lime Marinade

Recipe

Coconut Lime Marinade - link

1 Can full-fat coconut milk

1 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp smoked paprika

1 Tbsp sriracha sauce (or more to taste, I used 1.5 Tbsps)

Zest and juice from 2 limes

Combine all of the ingredients and whisk together.

Chicken

2 pounds of chicken breasts cubed

Salt and Pepper to taste

Olive oil for frying

Heat olive oil in a deep non-stick frying pan. I used my wok.

Cube chicken and salt and pepper cubes to taste.

Fry in batches in oil until cooked through and juices run free.

Remove from pan wipe pan clean and set chicken aside.

Caulirice

1/4 cup butter

6 Cups riced Cauliflower (Finely grated)

Salt and pepper to taste.

In same pan used for frying chicken, melt the butter. Add the caulirice and sauté for about 3 minutes, salt and pepper to taste. Remove from pan and set aside.

Combine the Marinade and chicken in the pan and simmer on low for about 15 minutes. Stir in the Caulirice and salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chopped cilantro or parsley if desired.

Recipe serves 6 and has a net carb count of about 5.5 carbs.

Low Carb Chocolate Mousse Cake

This cake has always been my signature cake. I started making it about 27 years ago when I found it in some magazine.The original was called Chocolate Oblivion but this publication was not posted by the original author. I was baking this cake before my children were born and the oldest is nearly 26. I wrote about it in one of my previous posts and have finally found the time to ketofy it to share with you in time for Christmas. I have left the number of portions at 24, as in the original recipe because it is a very rich cake and a small piece is plenty. It is overwhelming if you try to eat a big chunk. Even ketofied, this recipe comes to about 5.5 net carbs per serving so it is definitely something to keep for a special occasion. The Cake part turned out very well and can be used separately without this decadent frosting. It has a net carb count of about 2.5 carbs. Any low carb icing will make this cake a wonderful treat.

Low Carb Chocolate Mousse Cake

Low Carb Chocolate Mousse Cake
Recipe

Cake

1 Cup Almond Flour

1/2 Cup Coconut Flour

1/2 Cup Oat Fibre 500

1 Scoop (30 grams) Whey Isolate Powder

2 Cups Sweetener (I used Truvia so I only used 1 Cup)

1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 Cup cocoa powder

2 1/2 teaspoons instant coffee granules

1 cup hot water

6 large eggs

1 cup sour cream

1/2 Cup avocado oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Line two nine inch round cake pans with parchment and spray well with cooking spray.

Dissolve the coffee in the hot water and set aside to cool.

Combine the first 9 ingredients (dry ingredients) in the bowl of a stand mixer.

Add the cooled coffee, eggs, sour cream, oil  and vanilla.

Mix until well blended and divide evenly between the 2 prepared cake pans.

Bake at 350 F for about 30 minutes, testing to make sure an inserted knife comes out clean.

Remove cakes when done and let rest for 10 minutes in pan. 

Run a knife around the edge of each to ensure sides are not sticking and remove to wire racks to cool completely. 

Whipped cream centre

3/4 Cup Heavy whipping cream

1/4 cup sweetener (I used Truvia so I only used 2 tablespoons)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Whip the cream, sugar and vanilla together until stiff.

Place one of the cooled cakes face down on a plate so that flat side is up. Spread with the whipped cream mixture and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Top with other cake, rounded side up and return to refrigerator while you prepare the Mousse.

Chocolate Mousse

6 ounces unsweetened bakers chocolate

6 Tablespoons butter

6 tablespoons sweetener (I used Truvia so I only used 3 Tablespoons)

3 large eggs separated

9 Tablespoons sweetener separated (half of that if you use Truvia)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 Cup Heavy whipping cream

pinch salt

Chop the chocolate and welt with 6 tablespoons of butter and the first 6 tablespoons of sweetener(3 if using Truvia). Set aside to cool.

Separate the eggs and beat 6 tablespoons of sweetener into the yolks until well blended.

Beat the vanilla and the cooled chocolate mixture into the egg yolks.

In a separate bowl beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until soft peaks form. Add the remaining sweetener and continue beating until stiff.

Fold egg whites into chocolate/ egg yolk  mixture.

Beat 2/3 Cup whipping cream until stiff and fold into the mousse also.

Refrigerate the mousse for about 20 minutes to firm up.

Remove cake and mousse from refrigerator. Give the mousse a little stir to soften.

Decorate tops and sides of cake with mousse.

Optional drizzle

Melt 1 ounce of unsweetened chocolate with 1 tablespoon of butter and 2 tablespoons of sweetener.

Drizzle the melted chocolate over top and around edge of cake so it drizzles down sides.

The net carb count for 1/24th of the cake is approximately 5.5 net carbs. I do not count sugar alcohols .

This cake is the best low carb chocolate cake I have ever eaten!

Enjoy!

© 2016-2017 DianE rolfe ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Low Carb Brutti ma Buoni

Here is another little gem of a recipe inspired by one of my favourite bakers on Bakes and Cooks, Franca Genio. She makes the most awesome cheese cakes, in every flavour imaginable. Apparently she makes awesome cookies too!
I doubled her original recipe and ketofied it. Here is the link to the original recipe. Brutti ma Buoni.
It was an easy adjustment, and they are quite addictive, so fortunately they are very low in calories as well as carbs.

Low Carb Brutti ma Buoni

Low Carb Brutti ma Buoni
Recipe

1 1/2 Cups liquid egg whites (or 12 egg whites)

2 Cups Hazelnuts, roasted

2 Cups Almonds, roasted

1 1/2 Cups sweetener (I used 1/2 cup Truvia)

2 Tablespoons Cocoa powder

2 Tablespoons Oat Fibre 500

1/8 teaspoon of Glucomannan

2 teaspoons Vanilla extract

Put the egg whites in your stand mixer bowl and allow to warm to room temperature.

Roast the Hazelnuts in a frying pan on medium high. Make sure to keep them moving so they don't burn. Roast until the skins start to fall off. You can wrap them in a cloth and rub to get more skin off if desired.

Roast the almonds in the same manner, until skins start to crack. The almonds won't lose their skins as much but that's fine.

Coarsely chop the nuts, combine and set aside.

Combine the cocoa powder, oat fibre and glucomannan in a small bowl and mix well. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 325 F on convection setting.

Spray two cookie sheets generously with cooking spray. You can use parchment paper to make the clean up easier but that will also have to be sprayed.

Beat the egg whites until they are light and foamy. Add the cocoa mixture, the sweetener and the vanilla to the eggs and continue beating until soft peaks form.

Fold in the nuts carefully.

Using a soup spoon, spoon the mixture onto the greased cookie sheets, about 1-1.5 inches apart.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until tops are dry and firm to touch.

Remove to wire rack and cool completely.

I made 60 cookies with a net carb count of 0.75 per cookie after subtracting fibre and sugar alcohols.

They are best when cooled completely.

Enjoy!

Low Carb Biscotti

With Christmas right around the corner one of my favourite baking groups, Bakes and Cooks, is full of awesome ideas and recipes. I have to find a way to ketofy most of the recipes posted since I am one of a small number of members who eat low carb or grain free. One of our most talented members is Mangia Bedda, a cooking instructor, caterer and food blogger. A few weeks ago she posted her Classic Almond Biscotti recipe. It looked delicious! I started playing around with a combination of flour substitutes to ketofy this lovely treat. I finally found a combination that I feel closely resembles the flour version of this recipe.
I hope you enjoy my Low carb/grain free/ketofied version of Almond Biscotti. It is easily changed into a variety of flavours by simply exchanging the almonds for other nuts and eliminating the almond extract. Cocoa can also be added for a chocolate variety. Use your imagination and the possibilities are endless.

Low carb Biscotti

Low Carb Almond Biscotti
Recipe

5 1/2 Cups Almond Flour

1/2 Cup Whey Isolate Powder

1/4 Cup Oat Fibre (Not oat flour or oat bran)

1 Cup to 1 1/2 Cups sweetener depending on desired sweetness (I used 1/2 Cup Truvia, it is concentrated.

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon glucomannan (you can substitute Xantham or guar gum)

1 Cup roughly chopped almonds

7 large eggs

2 Tablespoons vanilla extract

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (to taste)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F on convection setting and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Combine all dry ingredients including nuts and set aside.

In a stand mixer beat the eggs and the extracts. slowly add the dry ingredient until the dough comes together. It will be a little sticky.

Divide dough into two equal portions and put one on each lined sheet. form them into rectangles of approximately 4 inches wide and 1 inch high.

Bake the two sheets for 20-30 minutes or until top is golden brown and firm to touch.

Remove the sheets from the oven and cool for 10-15 minutes. 

Meanwhile, reduce the oven temperature to 300 F.

Place the logs on a cutting board and carefully slice into 1/2 inch slices using a knife with a serrated edge. 

Place a wire rack on each of the cookie sheets and place the slices on the wire rack. Return to oven and bake another 20-30 minutes until sides are golden.

I made 30 large slices with a net carb count of 2.2 net carbs. I do not count sugar alcohols. The carb count will vary depending on what you add to the dough.

Enjoy!

Low Carb Coconut Macaroons

My mother-in-law is diabetic but that has never stopped her from eating dessert! She will tell me not to put too much sugar in the whipping cream or pies I make for my sugar eating family and then she will take a piece of each pie! Little does she know, I now use Truvia sweetener in most of my desserts. I made a beautiful Hazelnut Torte last weekend with no flour and no sugar in it and there was nothing left but crumbs, well, until someone licked the cake plate as a joke!
Truvia is an Erythritol/Stevia mix. There is also one called Truvia Blend that comes in a bag but DO NOT BUY THAT ONE, it is half real sugar. Read the label! So far the Truvia without the sugar only comes in a small 270 gram pot but Truvia is concentrated and only needs 1/2 to 1/3 the quantity of real sugar. For this recipe I recommend using 1/3 cup Truvia or 2/3 Cup of your preferred sweetener since we are using unsweetened coconut.
My mother-in-law has a soft spot for macaroon but they are quite expensive to buy and the sugar in them is not good for her. She asked me if I could make them for her so I started experimenting. The final result is the recipe you find below. These cookies are almost ZERO net carbs (less than1 net carbs per cookie). YES, you read me right but do not go wild because calories still count (35 calories per cookie) and the sugar alcohols and fibre will send you running to the loo if you over do it.
Enjoy!

Low Carb Coconut Macaroons
Low carb Coconut Macaroons
Recipe

1 bag (200 grams) unsweetened shredded coconut

2 Tablespoons Oat Fibre (not oat flour) 1 tablespoon of coconut flour can be used instead.

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 Cup Truvia Sweetener (or equivalent to 2/3 Cup sugar of your favourite sweetener)

1/3 Cup liquid egg whites

1 large whole egg

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to convection setting 325 degrees F.

Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Combine all of the dry ingredients and mix well.

Add the wet ingredients and stir until well combined.

Using a small cookie scoop, scoop out the dough and squeeze in your hand to form a tight ball. Slightly flatten the ball while making sure the cookie holds together and place on parchment lined sheet. I made 24 cookies.

Bake for 18 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.

Remove from oven and continue cooling on cookie sheet for about 5 minutes and then move to wire rack to continue cooling.

The fibre and sugar alcohol content is almost equivalent to the carb content is this cookie recipe so they have a net carb count of less than 1 net carbs per cookie.

Enjoy!