BREADS: BEST LOW CARB BREAD USING BREAD MACHINE (click here to print)

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Best Low Carb Bread (Bread Machine)

  Ingredients

• 1/2 cup water
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon butter or margarine
• 2 tablespoons Splenda sugar substitute
• 1/3 cup ground flax seeds
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 3/4 cup vital wheat gluten flour
• 1 teaspoon dried yeast

Directions

1. 1Using a 1 pound capacity bread machine, combine ingredients according to order given in bread machine manual.
2. 2Select 'light' browning setting.
3. 3Don't remove bread until it is cooled.
4. 4Cut into slices, and store, covered, in the refrigerator.

diabeticconnect.com

Nutritional Facts

Servings

1

Serving Size 1 (30g)

Recipe makes 11 servings

The following items or measurements are not included below

2 tablespoons Splenda sugar substitute

Calories 73

Calories from Fat 31 (42%)

Amount Per Serving %DV

Total Fat 3.5g 5%

Saturated Fat 1.0g 5%

Monounsaturated Fat 0.8g

Polyunsaturated Fat 1.4g

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 22mg 7%

Sodium 17mg 0%

Potassium 88mg 2%

Total Carbohydrate 2.9g 0%

Dietary Fiber 1.1g 4%

Sugars 0.1g

Protein 8.2g

MAIN DISH: LAYERED CABBAGE CASSEROLE (click here to print)

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Layered Cabbage Casserole

photographer: Gabby

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground chicken
• 4 slices bacon
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 can tomato paste
• 1 can diced tomatoes, well drained
• 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
• 4 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
• 2 teaspoons dry Italian herb blend (or herbs of your choice)
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (shred from a block of cheese)
  
• 4-5 cups of thinly sliced cabbage (or a blend of cabbage, broccoli, mushrooms )

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
2. Prepare a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside
3. Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and heat on medium high heat. Add bacon cut into 1/4" strips to hot skillet and brown until almost crisp. Remove about 1-2 Tablespoons of bacon grease and set aside.
4. Toss in cabbage (or cabbage mixture) and saute until cabbage begins to wilt. Do not over cook, it needs to be firm.
5. Pour the cabbage into the prepared baking dish and return the skillet to the stove top.
6. Put the reserved bacon grease back into the skillet. Add ground chicken, garlic and onion and continue to cook until all pink is gone and onions are slightly softened.
7. Reduce heat to low and add tomato paste, diced tomatoes and salt. Cook for about 15 minutes.
8. While meat is cooking, in a small bowl, combine yogurt, herbs and cream cheese and blend until smooth.
9. Take cooked meat mixture and spread over the cabbage layer in the baking dish.
10. Take the cream cheese mixture and spread it over the meat layer.
11. Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the cream cheese layer and place in your preheated oven.
12. Bake for about 20 minutes or until top layer of cheese is bubbly.
13. Allow to cool slightly before cutting
14. You can garnish with some chopped parsley or chives. Adding some Parmesan cheese to the cream cheese mixture gives it a little extra cheesy flavor and you may be able to omit the salt.

diabeticconnect.com

Nutritional Facts

Servings

10

Servings 10 (approx 1 cup)

Calories

242

Carbohydrates

6g

Fat

11g

Protein

8g

SANDWICHES: APRICOT CHICKEN SANDWICH (click here to print)

Apricot Chicken Sandwich

Ingredients

• 1 medium chicken breast
• 1 slice of red onion, rings separated
• 6 fresh sage leaves
• 1 tsp. butter
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1 TBL mayonnaise
• 1 TBL sugar free apricot preserves (use walden farms for 0 carbs)
• 1/3 cup arugula
• 1 slice provolone cheese, halved

Directions

1. Mix mayonnaise and apricot preserves. Set aside.
2. Grill the chicken breast with salt and pepper, spraying the grill so the breast doesn't stick. Cook 3-4 minutes on each side over medium heat. When cooked all the way through, remove the chicken breast and cut in half, lengthwise.
3. While the chicken is cooking, in a small skillet, heat the butter and oil over medium heat. Fry sage leaves in the skillet until they crisp up. Remove them and place on a paper towel.
4. On the bottom half of the chicken breast, spread the apricot mayo spread. Next layer on the sage leaves, provolone cheese, red onion and arugula. Place the other half of the chicken breast on top and enjoy.

diabeticconnect.com

Nutritional Facts

Servings

1

Nutritional Facts

(for the whole sandwich)

612 calories

35 g fat

8 g carbohydrates

65 g protein

1116.75 mg sodium

.25 g dietary fiber

ARTICLES: LIFTING THE BAN ON DIETARY FAT 2015 GUIDELINES (click here to print)

THE JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION

Every 5 years, the US Department of Agriculture and Department of Health and Human Services jointly release the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. These guidelines have far-reaching influences across the food supply, including for schools, government cafeterias, the military, food assistance programs, agricultural production, restaurant recipes, and industry food formulations. An accurate revision of the Dietary Guidelines is crucial to the health of millions of people. Integral to this process is the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) report, just released,¹ prepared by appointed scientists who systematically review the literature and provide evidence-based recommendations to the secretaries of Agriculture and Health and Human Services. In the coming months, the secretaries will review the DGAC recommendations; consider comments from the public, academics, advocacy groups, and industry; and finalize the Dietary Guidelines.

In the new DGAC report, one widely noticed revision was the elimination of dietary cholesterol as a “nutrient of concern.” This surprised the public, but is concordant with more recent scientific evidence reporting no appreciable relationship between dietary cholesterol and serum cholesterol¹ or clinical cardiovascular events in general populations.²

A less noticed, but more important, change was the absence of an upper limit on total fat consumption. The DGAC report neither listed total fat as a nutrient of concern nor proposed restricting its consumption. Rather, it concluded, “Reducing total fat (replacing total fat with overall carbohydrates) does not lower CVD [cardiovascular disease] risk.… Dietary advice should put the emphasis on optimizing types of dietary fat and not reducing total fat.” Limiting total fat was also not recommended for obesity prevention; instead, the focus was placed on healthful food-based diet patterns that include more vegetables, fruits, whole grains, seafood, legumes, and dairy products and include less meats, sugar-sweetened foods and drinks, and refined grains.

With these quiet statements, the DGAC report reversed nearly 4 decades of nutrition policy that placed priority on reducing total fat consumption throughout the population. In 1980, the Dietary Guidelines recommended limiting dietary fat to less than 30% of calories. This recommendation was revised in 2005, to include a range from 20% to 35% of calories. The primary rationale for limiting total fat was to lower saturated fat and dietary cholesterol, which were thought to increase cardiovascular risk by raising low-density lipoprotein cholesterol blood concentrations. But the campaign against saturated fat quickly generalized to include all dietary fat. Because fat contains about twice the calories per gram as carbohydrate or protein, it was also reasoned that low-fat diets would help prevent obesity, a growing public health concern.

The complex lipid and lipoprotein effects of saturated fat are now recognized, including evidence for beneficial effects on high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides and minimal effects on apolipoprotein B when compared with carbohydrate.³ These complexities explain why substitution of saturated fat with carbohydrate does not lower cardiovascular risk.^1,2 Moreover, a global limit on total fat inevitably lowers intake of unsaturated fats, among which nuts, vegetable oils, and fish are particularly healthful.^1,2 Most importantly, the policy focus on fat reduction did not account for the harms of highly processed carbohydrate (eg, refined grains, potato products, and added sugar)—consumption of which is inversely related to that of dietary fat.

As with other scientific fields from physics to clinical medicine, nutritional science has advanced substantially in recent decades. Randomized trials confirm that diets higher in healthful fats, replacing carbohydrate or protein and exceeding the current 35% fat limit, reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.^4,5 The 2015 DGAC report tacitly acknowledges the lack of convincing evidence to recommend low-fat–high-carbohydrate diets for the general public in the prevention or treatment of any major health outcome, including heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, or obesity.^1,2 This major advance allows nutrition policy to be refocused toward the major dietary drivers of chronic diseases.

For decades, carbohydrates were considered a foundation of a healthful diet, as evidenced by placement of grain products (including many highly processed items) at the base of the Food Guide Pyramid of 1992. However, by 2005, the Dietary Guidelines called for restriction of refined grains and added sugars due to growing evidence that refined carbohydrates increase metabolic dysfunction, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. Presently, US consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages is declining, likely related to both scientific research and associated publicity confirming their adverse health effects. Yet added sugar in other foods and, perhaps more importantly, refined grain products—including white bread, white rice, chips, crackers, cereals, and bakery desserts—continue to represent major sources of calories in the US food supply.

The DGAC report highlights that more than 70% of the US population consumes too many refined grain products. Many of these foods enjoy a lingering health halo or at least a benign reputation, based on years of government guidelines and industry promotion. Recognizing this widespread misunderstanding, the 2015 DGAC report specifies that, “consumption of ‘low-fat’ or ‘nonfat’ products with high amounts of refined grains and added sugars should be discouraged.” The elimination of the upper limit on total fat would make it easier for industry, restaurants, and the public to increase healthful fats and proteins while reducing refined grains and added sugar.

In finalizing the 2015 Dietary Guidelines, the US Department of Agriculture and Department of Health and Human Services should follow the evidence-based, scientifically sound DGAC report and remove the existing limit on total fat consumption. Yet this represents only one action that may influence people’s diets; other policies should follow suit. For example, the Nutrition Facts Panel, separately regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), lists percentage daily values for several key nutrients on packaged foods. Remarkably, the Nutrition Facts Panel still uses the older 30% limit on dietary fat, already obsolete for more than a decade.⁶ The Nutrition Facts Panel should now be revised to eliminate total fat as well as dietary cholesterol from among the listed nutrients and instead add refined grains and added sugar. Including only added sugar, a change currently under consideration, would insufficiently acknowledge the harms—and implicitly encourage the intake —of refined grains. Similarly, the US Department of Agriculture should modernize its Smart Snacks in School standards,⁷ removing the 35% restriction on total fat from the criteria. The Institute of Medicine should update its report, now nearly 15 years old, on dietary reference intakes for energy and macronutrients.⁶

The current restriction on total fat has implications for virtually all aspects of the US diet, including government procurement for offices and the military, meals for the elderly, and guidelines for food assistance programs that together provide 1 in 4 meals consumed in the United States. The focus on total fat also affects other policies and guidelines. For example, the National School Lunch Program recently banned whole milk, but allows sugar-sweetened non-fat milk. Current National Institutes of Health guidelines on healthy diets for families and children recommend “eat[ing] almost anytime” fat-free creamy salad dressing, trimmed beef or pork, and extra-lean ground beef. Yet it recommends being cautious about eating any vegetables cooked with added fat, nuts, peanut butter, tuna canned in oil, vegetable oils, and olive oil. Furthermore, it recommends minimizing whole milk and “eggs cooked with fat,” both of which are listed in the “once in a while” eating category along with candy, chips, and regular soda.⁸ Along the same line, the FDA recently issued a warning letter to a manufacturer of minimally processed snack bars, stating that these products could not be marketed as healthy in part due to FDA health claim limits on total and saturated fat, even though the fats in these bars derive predominantly from healthful nuts and other vegetable sources. The restriction on fat also drives food industry formulations and marketing, as evidenced by the heavy promotion of fat-reduced desserts, snacks, salad dressings, processed meats, and other products of questionable nutritional value. Based on years of inaccurate messages about total fat, a 2014 Gallup poll shows that a majority of US residents are still actively trying to avoid dietary fat, while eating far too many refined carbohydrates.

The limit on total fat presents an obstacle to sensible change, promoting harmful low-fat foods, undermining attempts to limit intakes of refined starch and added sugar, and discouraging the restaurant and food industry from providing products higher in healthful fats. It is time for the US Department of Agriculture and Department of Health and Human Services to develop the proper signage, public health messages, and other educational efforts to help people understand that limiting total fat does not produce any meaningful health benefits and that increasing healthful fats, including more than 35% of calories , has documented health benefits. Based on the strengths of accumulated new scientific evidence and consistent with the new DGAC report, a restructuring of national nutritional policy is warranted to move away from total fat reduction and toward healthy food choices, including those higher in healthful fats.

www.jamanetwork.com

COOKIES: LOW CARB GRAHAM CRACKERS AND S'MORES (click here to print)

These are great on their own or used in recipes such as a graham cracker crust or s’mores.
Ingredients
3/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup golden flax seed meal
1/3 cup artificial sweetener, such as Equal
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1 large egg
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
cooking spray
Preparation
Preheat oven to 225 degrees.
In a large bowl combine all ingredients, using a standing mixer or hand mixer combine all ingredients at low speed until moist and blended. Roll out mixture onto parchment paper treated liberally with cooking spray, topped with another sheet again treated with cooking spray. Roll out flat, about 1/4″ thick. in rectangular fashion. Remove parchment and cut edges until you have a perfect rectangle with no rounded edges.  Cut in half, by pressing knife into dough then repeat in opposite direction to form 8 crackers about 1-1/2″ x 4″ each. Place parchment paper with crackers directly onto baking sheet, bake 50 minutes to 1 hour. Turn off heat and allow to sit in warm oven an additional 30 minutes.

TIP: For s'mores, make a sandwich by spreading one cracker with Walden Farms chocolate dip (you could also use a square of sugar free dark chocolate) and Walden Farms marshmallow dip...cover with second graham cracker and squeeze together.



Yields 8 Servings
Serving Size = 1 cracker
Total Net Carbs. <1-1/2 grams per serving

lowcarbsensations.com

MAIN DISH: LIME CHIMICHURRI DRUMBSTICKS (click here to print)

Lime Chimichurri drumsticks
Ingredients:
2 pounds drumsticks
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley...
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 tsp lime zest (from one lime)
pinch of red chili flakes
1 large clove of garlic, well minced
1/2 tsp kosher salt
about 5 grinds of fresh black pepper
1/4 cup lime juice (from about 3 limes)
1/4 cup olive or avocado oil
Optional: extra chopped cilantro and fresh limes to garnish

Prep:
Prepare the marinade by combining the parsley, cilantro, lime zest and juice, red chili flakes, garlic, salt, and chosen oil in a food processor.
Add the marinade and drumsticks to a large, sealable plastic bag or a dish with a secure lid. Marinade overnight.
When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
Transfer the drumsticks to an oven-proof baking dish without any of the excess marinade. So just lift it out and allow the marinade to drip away a bit before putting the chicken in the baking dish. Discard the marinade.
Cover with foil or a secure glass lid and bake at 350°F for about 35 to 40 minutes. This should par cook the chicken.
If you were meal prepping for the week and didn’t want to fully cook this recipe, you could refrigerate the chicken again at this point, then pick it back up another day and finish on the grill.
To finish the dish, grill the chicken at a medium-low heat (between 250°F to 300°F is about right) to allow the skin to crisp. It’s usually about 5 to 7 minutes per side at that temperature. Grilling to hot and fast will likely set your chicken on fire as that fat renders out from the skin, so try to avoid rushing it.
Finish with a squeeze of fresh lime and a sprinkle of chopped cilantro, if desired.
If you’d prefer to just grill the marinaded chicken, which is totally fine, it will take about 30 minutes total. Get the grill up to about 400°F so the grill is preheated. Then place the chicken down, close the lid and reduce the temperature to low, around 250°F to 300°F. (Again, keeping that temp to high will ignite the fat.) Turn the chicken about 5 to 7 minutes in, once the chicken can be lifted without any skin sticking to the grates. Meat will naturally release from the grill when it is ready to be turned, which gives you a nice safety net if grilling is a newer thing for you. Finish with fresh lime and cilantro before digging

popularpaleo.com
serves 4; 2 carbs per serving

BREADS: HOMEMADE CARBQUIK & BISQUICK RECIPE (click here to print)

CARBQUIK AND BISQUICK REPLACEMENT BAKING MIX
5 c almond flour
2/3 c whey protein isolate
3 Tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar...
2 Tbsp splenda, granular
2 tsp salt
1 c lard or tallow (check ingredients)

Mix all dry ingredients together. Sift them if you have one. If not, just mix up well with a wire whisk. It does the same thing. Break in lard (or butter) until it looks like coarse meal. Store in airtight container. I keep mine in the freezer.  3 carbs per serving

ARTICLES: AVOID ALL UNHEALTHY FATS

Avoid All Unhealthy Oils
Processed vegetable oils, margarine, hydrogenated oils, partially hydrogenated oils and other trans fats, interestified fats - sunflower, safflower, cotonseed, canola, soybean, grapeseed and corn oil are all damaging to your health. Trans fatty acids and processed oils:
are oxidized during high-heat processing which creates free radicals...
they are often made from genetically modified seeds
are pro-inflammatory and bad for your gut health
consumption of trans fats increases risk of coronary heart disease
consumption of trans fats negatively affects cholesterol levels - reduces concentrations of HDL cholesterol ("good" cholesterol) and increases concentrations of low-density LDL cholesterol ("bad" cholesterol)
associated with increased risk of cancer
Artificial trans fats are referred to as "metabolic poison". Eliminate these from your diet by avoiding foods that contain hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils. These types of trans fats are typically found in margarines, cookies, crackers or even French fries.

ARTICLES: INFO ON HOW TO COOK WITH CHAI SEEDS

http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Recipes-With-Chia-Seeds


http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/08/06/chia-seed-uses-_n_3713912.html

DESSERTS: SUGAR FREE PEPPERMINT PUDDING

weeknight treat! It’s low in carbs, gluten free and sugar free!

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup brewed, cooled coffee
• 4 teaspoons arrowroot powder (can also use chai seeds or xantham gum as thickener)
• 3 egg yolks
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1 teaspoon Liquid Peppermint Mocha Sweet Drops^™

Directions:

Pour cream and cocoa into a sauce pan and whisk until combined. Bring to a simmer then remove from heat. Stir in the coffee. Set aside. In another bowl whisk the arrowroot with the egg yolks until smooth. Stir in the salt, peppermint extract and Liquid Peppermint Mocha Sweet Drops^™ into the egg mixture. Spoon a small amount of the hot cream into the egg mixture to temper the eggs and stir well. Add the egg mixture gradually into the cream in the sauce pan, stirring constantly. Heat over medium heat and bring to a full boil, stirring constantly. Reduce to a simmer and continue to stir for 1-2 minutes until thickened. Cool slightly then transfer to serving cups. Place plastic wrap directly onto the top of the pudding so a skin will not form then refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.  Serves 4.

Nutrition Facts:

• Calories per serving: 219
• Fat: 20.9g
• Sodium: 170mg
• Cholesterol: 215mg
• Fiber: 2.5g
• Carbs: 7.9g
• Sugar: .2g
• Protein: 4.3g

sugarfree mom.com

ARTICLES: SUMMER HEAT AND TYPE 2 DIABETES

http://www.everydayhealth.com/type-2-diabetes/summer-heat-and-type-2-diabetes.aspx

DESSERTS: ATKINS POUND CAKE (click here to print)

Classic Almond Flour Pound Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup butter (2 sticks) softened at room temperature
1 cup Splenda
5 eggs - at room temperature
2 cups almond flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Cream butter and Splenda well. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each.

Mix almond flour with baking powder and add egg to mixture a little at a time while beating. Add lemon and vanilla extracts.

Pour into greased 9"-10" Spring form pan (or 9" round cake pan) and bake at 350°F for 50-55 minutes.

Alternatively, for a creamier cake, use 1/2 cup butter (1 stick) and 1/2 cup softened full-fat cream cheese.

Also change flavors for this cake by using different extract flavors and even food color if you like.

Makes 12 servings. 5.5 grams of carbohydrate per serving when using all butter.

With cream cheese, allow 6.1 grams of carbohydrate per serving.

.

cajon cooking.com

MUFFINS: FLOURLESS PUMPKIN (click here to print)

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 2 eggs or egg replacer
• ½ cup PB2 (powder) or peanut butter
• ⅓ cup sugar or erythritol
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ½ ounce dark chocolate, chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease a muffin tin, standard sized or mini, and set aside.
2. Combine all the ingredients except the dark chocolate in your Blendtec blender and blend on high until smooth and completely combined. Stir in the chopped chocolate by hand (it would be pulverized by the blender otherwise).
3. Evenly distribute the batter amongst the prepared muffin cups (6 standard sized or 18 mini). Bake in the oven at 350ºF for 8-10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the muffins cool for 10 minutes until firm. The remove from the tin and let cool completely on wire racks. These gems are best served fresh and warm, but they should keep in the fridge for about 5 days. Devour.
4. 4 carbs

foodiefiasco.com

FAT BOMBS: 19 FAT BOMB RECIPES

http://lowcarbediem.com/fat-bombs-recipes-atkins-ketosis/

MAIN DISH: SPICY SESAME NOODLES (click here to print)

Ingredients:

• 8 oz shirataki (i.e. miracle) noodles or for Paleo you can use buckwheat noodles (Soba)
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 
  
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (I grated mine on the smallest holed side of a box grater)
• 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoon coconut aminos
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 ½ teaspoons sriracha (Thai hot sauce – found by the other Asian products)
• 2 teaspoon sugar free honey (available at walmart)
• 1 cup chopped, cooked chicken breast
• 1 cup diced scallions (green onions)
• ½ cup chopped cilantro

Directions:

1.  Boil salted water in a large pot and cook the noodles al dente according to package directions.
2. When the noodles goes in, mist a skillet with cooking spray and add the garlic. Bring over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes until garlic is fragrant and snow peas are softer, yet still firm enough to crunch.
3. Combine the ginger, vinegar, soy sauce, canola oil, water, sesame oil, sriracha and honey in a small bowl and stir to combine.
4. When the are  cooked, transfer to a colander to drain and then pour the spaghetti back into the pot. Add the chopped chicken pieces and snow peas/garlic. Pour the prepared sauce from step three over the spaghetti and stir until coated. Add the scallions and cilantro and stir in. Serve immediately.

Note: read about shirataki noodles here  Walmart now has these

TIP: please test to see if you can eat buckwheat (soya) noodles. They are higher in carbs but do not get absorbed like most carbs. Contain an ingredient which removes them from your system quickly.

For nutritional values click here

- 

MY PRAYER SHAWLS

YOU CAN NOW PICK A DESIGN ELEMENT TO ADD TO YOUR SHAWL  (YOU PICK THE COLOR)
www.shawlsforcancerministry.com

COOKIES: LOW CARB GIRL SCOUT SAMOAS (click here to print)

Low Carb Girl Scout Samoas
For the Cookie:
1 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar equivalent
2 cups coconut flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp coconut milk or heavy white cream
Toppings:
2 cups shredded, toasted, unsweetened coconut
Caramel Topping:  ( you can substitute Walden Farms carmel topping if you like)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup Splenda brown sugar blend***
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp xanthan or guar gum
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt
Chocolate Glaze:
6 Tbsp cocoa
1/2 cup butter
8 tsp Truvia
For the cookies:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. In large mixing bowl, cream butter with sweetener.
3. On low, add in salt, baking powder and flour.
4. Add in coconut milk as needed to make dough adhere to itself.
5. Place dough, 1/2 batch at a time, between two sheets of wax paper.
6. Roll to 1/4 inch thickness and cut into 1-1/2 inch circles.
7. Optional: Poke holes in the center of each cookie with a large straw).
8. With a spatula, carefully move cookies to a parchment lined cookie sheet.
9. Bake for 8 minutes or until bottom is a golden color.
Allow to cool on racks completely.
For the Toppings:
Coconut:
1. Preheat oven to 300 degree Fahrenheit.
2. On a parchment lined pan, spread coconut.
3. Check every 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, as coconut browns very quickly.
For the caramel:
1. Place all ingredients except vanilla in small saucepan.
2. Bring to boil over medium heat.
3. Boil 4 minutes, stirring constantly.
4. Remove from heat.
5. Let cool 5 minutes; stir in vanilla extract.
6. You can add more thickener as needed. If mixture separates, keep stirring to reincorporate all ingredients.
For the chocolate coating:
1. Combine cocoa, butter, and Truvia in a microwave safe dish.
2. Heat for 45 seconds on high and then stir to incorporate ingredients.
3. Heat for another 45 seconds, stirring every 20 seconds.
To assemble:
1. Start by gently coating top and sides of each cookie with a minimal amount of caramel.
2. Coat with coconut.
3. Allow to rest for 30 minutes to allow toppings to adhere and dry slightly.
4. Make the chocolate coating per instructions.
5. Carefully coat bottom of cookie with chocolate.
6. Place on wax paper to dry.
7. Refrigerate remaining.

Makes about 42 cookies.
Nutritional Information per low carb cookie, roughly: Calories: 126,  Carbohydrates: 7 g , Fiber: 4g, Net Carbohydrates: 3 g , Protein: .5g , Fat: 12g
Nutritional information for an actual Samoa: Calories: 70,  Carbohydrates: 9.5 g , Fiber: .5, Net Carbohydrates: 9 g , Protein: .5g 

Note: I switched from Smuckers sugar free ice cream topping to Walden farms because Smuckers contains corn starch

yourlighterside.com

BREADS: SUBSTITUTE FOR CARBQUIK (click here to print)

5 c almond flour
2/3 c whey protein isolate
3 Tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
2 Tbsp splenda, granular
2 tsp salt
1 c lard or tallow (check ingredients)


Mix all dry ingredients together. Sift them if you have one. If not, just mix up well with a wire whisk. It does the same thing. Break in lard (or butter) until it looks like coarse meal. Store in airtight container. I keep mine in the freezer.   3 carbs per serving

MAIN DISH: PIZZA TOPPING CASSEROLE (click here to print)

PIZZA TOPPINGS CASSEROLE
1 pound bulk Italian sausage (check ingredients for all natural no fillers)
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
4 eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup pizza sauce (recipe follows)
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning and/or basil
3 1/2 ounces pepperoni, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped (2 ounces)
8 ounces whole milk mozzarella cheese, cut into small cubes
1/2 cup red onion, slivered (1 ounce)
Crushed red pepper, optional
Brown the sausage with the mushrooms; drain the grease. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, cream, pizza sauce and seasonings in a medium bowl. Grease a 7x9" deep baking dish (or 7x12" shallow baking dish) and put in the meats, mushrooms, peppers and the mozzarella cubes. Pour in the egg mixture and mix well. Top with the red onion. Sprinkle with a little more garlic powder, Italian seasoning and a little crushed red pepper flakes, if you like. Bake at 350º for 45-55 minutes until nicely browned and a knife inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Mine still had a bit of liquid in the center but it was done. Let stand about 5 minutes before serving.
Makes 6-8 servings
Per 1/6 Recipe: 582 Calories; 50g Fat; 27g Protein; 5g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 4g Net Carbs
Per 1/8 Recipe: 437 Calories; 38g Fat; 20g Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 3g Net Carbs
PIZZA SAUCE
8 ounce can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons granular Splenda or equivalent liquid Splenda
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried basil, or to taste
Bring all of the ingredients to a boil in a small saucepan. Partially cover the pot and simmer over low heat for 1 hour.
Makes about 1 cup
Can be frozen
Per 1/4 cup: 22 Calories; trace Fat; 1g Protein; 5g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 4g Net Carbs
Per Batch: 86 Calories; trace Fat; 3g Protein; 19g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 16g Net Carbs

Recipe submitted by Barbara Costello Van Antwerp