I MADE KETCHUP!

And I made it Cheap'n'Easy too! Get the recipe and read all about it at my NEW site!

Moving Day!

I was planning to wait until Jan. 1st to move all of my blogs from blogger over to my Weebly site. Meanwhile, I have been frozen from blogging. By my own brain. Having to do things twice, or copy/paste, or decide which site to post what every time I wanted to blog. For the last 4 years, 2 months, and 1 day my brain just stops - or freezes when it is overwhelmed. And apparently all of this change has overwhelmed it because I have been unable to blog after the first few times caused a chaotic response (the "warning sign")... (Yes, I know, "but you seem so normal!" lol!)

So I decided that December 17th is as good a day as any to just do it. From now on, ALL of my blogging will be done at my new site. I will not be using blogger at all, and will eventually take the blogs down, once I finish getting my recipes copied over to Weebly. I will also archive the existing posts from here, and may make them available upon request.

I seriously need to be blogging. For a month now I approach both sites with fear and trepidation, literally, and simply can't think of what to post when I log in to either site (even though my mind is full of posts until I sit at the computer!).

Thanks for your patience. Once the logjam is gone from between my ears, the river should start flowing again! :)

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Catching Up

(REMINDER this blog will be moving at the first of the year to my new site: http://www.vitainvia.com/cheapneasy-lowcarb-living.html - please make a note of it.)

Actually there isn't much catching up to do! For a week we ate cabbage soup and yogurt, with an occasional popcorn snack. But we were gone quite a bit also, so ate at restaurants several times. But almost exclusively, it was cabbage soup and yogurt until yesterday's supper.

For supper I cut a couple of pork tenderloin slices into small bites and cooked them in a frying pan in olive oil. When they were done I removed them from the pan and added a chopped onion plus a package of drained/rinsed shiritaki "rice", and let them fry up together with a little salt. When the onion was browing I added about a pound of frozen veggie mix (yellow squash, zucchini, carrots, green beans, red peppers) and a can of drained sliced mushrooms, plus some ginger (powdered) and some balsamic vinegar. Once this was all cooked together I added the meat back in to heat. The whole meal cost about $4 and was plenty for both of us.

Today for lunch I made a breakfast casserole with eggs, bacon, cheeses, and finely diced bread (a couple of Maria's sub rolls I've been making) as a crust on the bottom. Very good.

In the fridge I have a bowl of dough for ricotta gnocchi's which I will make up for supper in a little while. I actually combined recipes, because I didn't want to make up hundreds of the little things and roll them in flour and then find room in the fridge for the platter...so I made up the dough, and will drop them into boiling salted water when it's time. I plan to serve them with a creamy florentine sauce and some roasted chicken leg quarters. Since this is the first time I've tried these, I will have to let you know how they turn out.

Now that the soup is gone (but we still have about a pint of yogurt left) I will have to start actually cooking again! :)

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Idieas - Nov. 12-13

(REMINDER this blog will be moving at the first of the year to my new site: http://www.vitainvia.com/cheapneasy-lowcarb-living.html - please make a note of it.)

Yesterday was a one-meal day again. When we're eating adequate protein and all this fat, we just don't get hungry I guess.

Our meal was hamburgers on buns, with the remainder of the spinach from Sunday, to which I added cream cheese. Excellent meal!

Note about the buns: I used Maria's sub buns recipe that I've already linked to, and the last batch I made into 8 buns. They are about the size of hamburger buns, so are perfect for patties. We each had 2, plus the creamy spinach, and I didn't get hungry again until today.

Speaking of today...hubby got home from work this morning and made himself some hot dogs (no buns of course) so I had one of those and a thick slice of colby-jack cheese with him. Yesterday I made a gallon of yogurt, so we ate some of that today, and I made my biggest pot full of cabbage soup.

The yogurt is good and thick, not sweet of course, but no biting tartness to it, I used a gallon of whole milk mixed with a quart of heavy cream. Because my big thermos only holds a gallon, I just kept the remainder of the milk/cream mixture in the fridge for putting in our coffee. If you have never tasted homemade yogurt, you will never believe the difference between it, and boughten! They are like totally different foods, with the homemade being FAR superior. I just posted my method for yogurt at the new blog.

The soup: Browned 2# of ground beef with a large chopped onion in the bottom of a big heavy pot. When it was done I added a whole head of raw cabbage, chopped, 2 cans of diced seasoned tomatoes, a box of beef stock, a big can of tomato juice, about a tsp of garlic powder, about 2 tsp of sea salt, and some good shakes of white pepper. I covered it and let it all cook down over medium low heat. Meanwhile, I had a half-head of lovely sweet roasted cabbage that I'd done a couple of days ago and was saving for the soup. I chopped it up and added that for the last 15 minutes or so to get that beautiful sweet roasted flavor in the soup as well.

Tonight I made another batch of 8 rolls from Maria's recipe also...I'm finding that I'm making 2 batches a week. We are really loving hamburgers on buns again! Lots of fiber in 'em, so we're making sure to drink more too.

Cost-wise, it's all good too. The yogurt figures up to about $7 for the gallon. The huge pot of soup (way bigger than a dutch oven!) was just under $10. And, close as I can figure (very hard to figure out 1¼c of almond flour cost, when I take it out of a 5# bag that cost about $37 - barely makes a dent), the rolls are probably about a quarter each, or less.

Tomorrow will, no doubt, be a repeat of today when it comes to our meals, but seriously, how much more healthy could this food be? :)

Low Carb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Nov.9-11

Friday the 9th we had leftovers for lunch; supper was broiled steaks and mashed potatoes. Of course I had mostly steak, with just a small amount of potatoes, and lots of butter and sour cream.

Saturday we didn't until late afternoon, and just had one meal all day. I roasted some pork tenderloin, delicata squash, and cabbage/onions. We love that meal, so eat it often.

Today we had just one meal also, roasted chicken, cauliflower (tossed with olive oil/sea salt, then sprinkled with parmesan cheese when they were just about done, and shredded some asiago over them just before serving), and buttery spinach.

Tonight I made some of Maria's sub buns - I get 8 out of a recipe, and they're still plenty big enough for hamburgers or sandwiches - and custard since I had 3 yolks to use anyway. Here is how I did it:

The 3 yolks were in the smallest metal bowl of a 3-piece set I have. I added another whole egg, a dash of salt, 3T granulated splenda, 1/4t cinnamon, 1/2t of vanilla, and mixed it well with a whisk, then I whisked in cream until it was the right consistency - maybe 1/3c? but that's a guess. Then I put some water into the middle bowl of the set and set the small bowl into it and put it in the oven (which was on for the buns to bake anyway); it was fully set at about 20 minutes.

I roasted a huge half-head of cabbage, whole, yesterday, and will chop it up tomorrow to make a pot of cabbage soup. We love soups in the winter; today was 65 outside, tonight we're supposed to have snow, so I thought soup would be good. I'll use about a pound of ground beef, a big can of tomato juice, a box of beef stock, an onion or 2 (we love our onions!) seasonings of course...and I have some leftover spinach from today so i'll toss that in too, for color. And whatever else strikes my fancy :). Looking forward to it!

Low Carb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Nov.4-8

The week has gotten away from me! So I don't remember which day we had what. I do now that we went out to eat one day...Monday maybe? One day we had hamburgers and sweet potato medallions for lunch, then roasted pork country ribs with brussels sprouts for supper. One meal was simply Dreamfield's pasta with a simple sauce. Another meal was roasted chicken quarters with sweet potato medallions (trying to use my sweet potatoes!). Last night's supper was pork tenderloin slices browned in my big Farberware electric chicken fryer, then added chopped onions and cabbage, S&P of course, and let it all simmer in there for about an hour; the pan juices were more than adequate, although I did sprinkle some balsamic over it all for the last few minutes.

And that's about what we've been eating this week. Today we ate out at a buffet for late lunch/early supper so will probably have just a light snack this evening...popcorn or something. But Coyle's has their senior buffet for lunch on Thursdays, $5.50 for all we can eat (I don't eat that much but hubby can really pack it away - lol!) and now that we're down to one income for the winter, that will probably replace our weekly Friday night fish fry date.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Oct.30-Nov.3

Big clump of time covered in this post! But it won't be too bad actually. Because Tues., 10/30 I was gone all day, ate just one meal and that was at a Chinese Buffet.

Wed., 10/31 was also gone all day, but I took we took food with us so we wouldn't have to spend any money: Ham/cheese/lettuce/mayo sandwich on Maria's sub rolls, string cheese, cinnamon cookies (homemade), and sunflower seeds for snacks.

I was pretty miserable on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. My arthritis (spine, hips, knees, foot) was awful and I had full-body aches, vertigo, and a rotten headache. I didn't do much those days, but I can recall a couple of meals...one day we had salads with ham, tomatoes, cheese, and ranch dressing for lunch, and roasted chicken leg quarters with sweet potato medallions for supper. One day we had salads for supper, and hot dogs and hamburger (no buns) for lunch. One day we had broiled NY strips with some sort of vegetable (which one I don't recall).

So we've been eating ok, all is well, and definitely not bored with our meals.

The cookies I made for our trip on Wednesday I didn't write down how I made them, but I used mostly almond flour with some coconut flour, 4 eggs, a half-stick of butter, a lot of cinnamon, some baking powder and a spoonful of sour cream to work with it, some brown sugar sub, a few drops of liquid sucralose, and I think that's about it. They were very good, not too sweet (we don't like really sweet anymore) and wonderful with coffee!

Today I have some steaks out of the freezer thawing for supper, and plan to pan-fry some daikon and onions with it, and probably some green beans also. But that's just a guess; I may change my mind when I actually get into the kitchen! Not sure what's for lunch, am about to go into the kitchen and rustle something up :).

#Lowcarb Boredome - Meal Ideas - Oct. 27-29

Saturday the 27th we had popcorn - well-buttered (literally half a stick on mine, as usual) - for lunch. Supper was hamburgers. I made Maria's sub buns but shaped them as hamburger buns, brushed the tops with water, and sprinkled them with raw sesame seeds. They puffed up a LOT as they were baking, and the resulting hamburgers, served with fried onions and cheese, were AMAZING! I had been craving a good hamburger on a bun for a long time, and it more than satisfied me. I also made french fries from frozen (I have NO IDEA why there was a bag of frozen french fries in the bottom of my freezer!) but only ate about 4-5, myself.

Yesterday we munched on sausage and cheese slices on the way to church, and those tided us over through the afternoon until supper: roasted pork seasoned fairly heavily with seasoned salt and onion and garlic powders, with delicata squash (my favorite) with butter.

Today I was too busy to eat. Late afternoon - after 5:00 - I had a spoonful of peanut butter because I was starving. A couple of hours later I broiled a couple of steaks and cooked the bag of veggie mix I had bought (green beans, zucchini, yellow squash, carrots) quickly in a frying pan over high heat with butter and olive oil, seasoned with lots of onion and garlic powder, and sea salt.

And that's what we've been eating.

Tomorrow I will be out for lunch with my daughter; I will be too tired and painful too coo tomorrow night so it will be frozen pizza - yup, carbs. So be it :). I will eat a couple of pieces and that will be plenty, I'll be too tired to eat much anyway.

SHOPPING TRIP!!

You know I love to shop...and it's been about 7 weeks since I last did a big shopping, which I think was on September 8th - almost positive in fact. We haven't had to do any little grocery trips since then either, although of course have stopped for half'n'half when we've run out, and I did go to Bart's (produce) a couple of times and Aldi's once...but my last BIG Shopping Event was a long time ago...

Anyway, it was past due time, we had eaten our last package of meat and were down to just a couple partial bags of frozen veggies and half a box of Dreamfield's spaghetti.

And yesterday was our shopping day! I love seeking out the bargains, stopping at nearby thrift stores, lunch out, and most of all spending the whole day with my husband! We went to Steve's, my favorite meat store in the world, the Sav-a-Lot down in Harrison near Steve's (the Sav-a-Lot in our town could be renamed Spend-a-Lot and be more accurate), then on to Midland to go to Kroger's for their 10 for $10 sale, to Gordon's for the big bags of frozen vegetables, and finally to Meijer for daikon - and I was thrilled that they still had some delicata squash left! It is my favorite, and I hadn't seen any for sale anywhere since last month. I bought their last 4. We also picked up some Orville's because the last time we looked for it at Walmart they were out, and Orville's is the best of the best popcorn - half as much unpopped makes just as much popped as other brands.

We spent roughly $206. Of that, $108.89 was for meat:
- boneless pork loin @ $2.19/lb which they sliced free - I always get 3/4" slices
- 10 chicken leg quarters @ 59c/lb
- a boneless ham (without a bunch of junk in it!) for $1.99/lb
- a small slice of steelhead for $5.99/lb
- 10 polish sausages @ $1.78/lb
- about 5# of bacon @ $2.49/lb (Steve's has really wonderful fresh bacon!)
- country style pork chops for $1.49/lb
- 5# of ground beef for $2.29/lb (72/28)
- a whole NY strip loin (they sliced into 17 steaks, 3/4" each) @ $2.99/lb.
The meat averaged $2.22/lb, and it's high-quality meat too...I believe that's a great value by anybody's standards!

For fresh produce I just got the daikon, some tomatoes, some onions, a big napa cabbage, and the squashes. Frozen veggies - $28.20 - were broccoli, cauliflower, a vegetable blend, brussels sprouts, and whole green beans. They didn't have as much of a selection as some of the other GFS stores do, just one freezer section and most usually have two. But I got multiple packages.

I got mostly dairy at Kroger, so we have plenty of sour cream (YUM!) and cheeses. Plus some SF pudding mixes since the only ones we can get locally are chocolate and vanilla unless I want to pay over $1.00 for a small box of the name brand - which I most certainly do not! But I was able to get butterscotch and lemon, and only 59c for the Kroger brand.

And that was the food part of our day out shopping yesterday! I just love when I open the fridge and freezer and they're full...such a great feeling!

Low Carb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Oct. 26th

(Just a reminder that this blog will be moving to its new home at the end of this year.)

Actually, nothing to report for Friday. We were gone all day and I didn't cook at all. We went to a Chinese buffet for a late lunch/early supper (but lunch prices, just about $16 for both of us, that's $8 each for a whole day's food!) and that's all we had for the day. LOTS of shopping though...I'll write about that in another post :).

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Oct. 24

(Just a reminder that this blog will be moving to its new home at the end of this year.)

Was given some ham bits and pieces today from carving a ham. We got the rind parts from the outside, and the bone. I don't do bean soup so not sure what I'll do with the bone - maybe just use it in some other kind of soup? Open for ideas.

So for lunch I just had bits of ham from the bag of pieces, dipped in dijon mustard.

Supper was chicken thighs. I had asked hubby to get some chicken thighs at the store, he bought boneless skinless - UGH! I was so disappointed, the crispy skin is the best part! Anyway, I slightly warmed (until soft) about 6 oz of full-fat cream cheese and mixed it with some horseradish mustard. After laying the 6 thighs in a baking dish I spread the cream cheese mixture across the top, then covered them with a couple of big pieces the ham rind (just for the flavor, not to eat). While that was roasting in the oven, I also roasted some broccoli; when it was starting to brown and time to turn it, I topped it with shredded cheeses - colbyjack and shredded cheddar - for the last 10 minutes or so.

I don't think I snacked on anything today - oh wait, I did have a dark chocolate square after supper - is that a snack, or dessert? Really when I eat plenty of fat and adequate protein, I don't have much of an appetite.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Oct. 23rd

(Just a reminder that this blog will be moving to its new home at the end of this year.)

Simple day today.

Lunch was the last of the sausage and summer squash dish from a few days ago. Supper was roasted pork country ribs that I had seasoned with a half-packet of ranch dressing mix, roasted sweet potato medallions (just with olive oil and sea salt), and buttered chopped spinach.

I had a dish of white rice - heavily buttered of course - as a snack this afternoon. (I have discussed white rice as part of my diet in a past post.)

Still sick - in fact worst day yet. So lots of sleep and not much meal prep. Just simple food.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Oct. 21-22 & Today's Easy Bread Recipe

(Just a reminder that this blog will be moving to its new home at the end of this year.)

Yesterday before church we had some good breakfast sandwiches. Using Maria's sub buns recipe, they were loaded with bacon, eggs, and cheese. This bread plus all the high-fat ingredients are REALLY filling. We didn't get hungry again for the rest of the day.

For supper yesterday I broiled the last of the steaks from the freezer so I'd have leftovers, and reheated the leftover squash and roasted cauliflower to go with it. Very good.

Today's lunch was toasted one-minute bread (my version below), heavily buttered, and topped with diced smoked sausage and fried eggs.

Supper will be a couple of onions, chopped and fried in olive oil/butter, a bunch of mushrooms, and the leftover steak, cubed. Will toss it with some full-fat sour cream for my favorite sauce/gravy, and serve it over mashed potatoes. Being sick, I want comfort foods.

Yes, I said mashed potatoes. When I find them cheap, I buy packets of instant potatoes, which sit in my cupboard for months at a time. Then once in a while I use some of them. There are 4 servings @ 16gN each; I will eat one serving. The carbs are definitely worth it to me when I'm sick and want comfort food with very little effort! Who wants to make fauxtatoes when they're sick, anyway?

Now, my version of one-minute bread which is actually closer to 5 minutes when I make it for 2 people (or make 4 slices) but worth it!
2 eggs
2T full-fat sour cream
3 drops EZ Sweetz (I like the sweetness of the bread in the same way I used to like the sweetness of Ritz crackers.)
1/4c CarbQuik
1/4c fine almond flour
2T golden flax meal
1 tsp. baking powder
I thoroughly mix together the eggs, sour cream, and sweetener until smooth; in another bowl I whisk together the dry ingredients until well-blended. Then I mix the dry into the wet, and pour it into a greased pyrex loaf pan; then I nuke it on high for 3 minutes, turn out onto a cooling rack, and slice into 4 slices.
It is good as-is, but I really love it toasted...with lots of butter!

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - Oct. 18-20

(Just a reminder that this blog will be moving to its new home at the end of this year.)

Well first, Thursday night I didn't end up making supper. Pete slept all evening and wanted to get up as late as possible before work, so there was no point in cooking. I just ate leftovers.

Friday - yesterday - the 19th - we went out for our Friday night fish supper as always. Earlier in the day we nibbled on some smoked sausages that were in the fridge.

Since I'm sick again, I didn't feel like cooking much today so for lunch we just had some Dreamfield's spaghetti and for supper Pete went out and got a pizza. Feeling even worse now of course, after eating the carbs, but this too shall pass...

We're down to our last few packages of meat in the freezer, one pork and 2 beef, I'm thinking it'll be beef tomorrow. And now that my seasonal job has ended for the season and my weekdays are free, it will be off to Steve's on Monday to restock the freezer!

Changes Coming!

I am going to be setting up this blog elsewhere, and will be completely "moved out" of blogger by the end of the year. This blog will be archived into a single PDF file, which will be available for download at the new site by then. And I will be spending a lot of time copying/pasting my recipes from this site to the new one, which unfortunately doesn't import from blogger. But there are so many advantages to it, and I'm really simplifying most of my online activity by moving there.

Meanwhile I will continue to post as usual here, with a notice/link to the new site accompanying each post.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 10/17

Yesterday was a delicious day!

My grandson wanted pancakes for lunch, so I made some up. This is the first time that my pancakes actually looked and tasted like pancakes! In the past, I've always called them crumblecakes :). I'm going to write the recipe here, more for my own future use than anything else!

Whip up 2 eggs, 2Tbsp full fat sour cream, a dash of vanilla, 1/2tsp each of baking powder and baking soda until frothy and smooth. Add 2Tbsp coconut flour, mix until smooth. Add 1/4c fine almond flour, mix until smooth. Stir in 1/2tsp cinnamon and 1 drop sucralose (or sweetener of your choosing, equals 2tsp); mix well. I fry mine on an elderly cast aluminum electric griddle with coconut oil.

For supper last night I wished I liked peppers - would have made the dish so much prettier! I chopped and fried a couple of onions in olive oil until browning, then added 3 yellow squash and 2 zucchini squash, sliced on a diagonal so they were about 3" long, 1/2" thick, and an inch or so wide, so they wouldn't overcook. Then I did the same thing with a 2# package of smoked sausage, and once the squash was getting soft, I tossed the sausage in as well. Then I tossed in about 2Tbsp of balsamic vinegar, put the cover back on (I made this in the huge Farberware electric chicken fryer that belonged to my Gram, it's probably at least a couple of decades old!) and let it all cook together about 200 for another 15 minutes or so, tossing it around a couple of times during that time.

See why I wished I liked peppers? Wouldn't they have been a beautiful addition to this dish? Anyway, it made a huge amount, so far 4 massive servings and probably 3-4 servings left - YUM!

I had some popcorn with a half-stick of butter as a snack.

Today I had leftovers (the pork/onions/brussels sprouts from night before last) for lunch, sprinkling a little balsamic vinegar over it before I heated it up. It was almost better today than it was on Tuesday!

Not sure what I'll be making for supper tonight. Maybe that delicious puffy egg dish I made the other day, maybe with some bacon and other stuff added...? Will have to let you know tomorrow!

YOWSER! Today's #Lowcarb Lunch - YUM!

I don't even know what to call this - all I know is that it is SO GOOD! Love the moist bready-ness of it all...anyway, I will get on with the "recipe" -

Important: have everything ready before you start. You want a crust on the bottom but not a layer of burnt egg!

In a bowl lightly scramble a half-dozen eggs. Into another bowl shred about 3/4c of your favorite cheese. (I used colby-jack - if you are into spicy, a pepper jack would probably be great, can't wait to try a really sharp cheddar too!) In a 3rd bowl, mix a cup of CarbQuik, 2Tbsp of sour cream, a Tbsp of oil (I used olive), and about 1/4c of cream. Obviously this will be too dry to mix well - start adding hot water, a little at a time, until you achieve biscuit-dough consistency. Then add some more to thin it out a bit; don't turn it into a batter, but you want it a little bit spreadable.

Now, melt a half-stick of butter (not fake, the real thing!) in a saute pan, then set the heat to a titch below medium - I used my 10" pan. Once it is melted, there should be about 1/8" or a little more in the bottom; add the eggs, then most of the shredded cheese spread evenly over the eggs, then the thinner-than-biscuit-dough, spread as evenly as possible over the cheese. (If it isn't perfect don't worry!)

Cover, and walk away. In about 12 minutes, uncover to check the biscuits - you will see that they rose (thank you, sour cream!) and spread more evenly across the entire top. If they are done or almost done quickly sprinkle with the remaining cheese, some dark smoky paprika, and some parsley (or herbs of your choice); re-cover the pan to retain the heat, turn off the burner, and walk away again. In about 5-7 minutes, it will all be done.

If it all went according to plan, you will return to find a lovely fluffy moist biscuit covering a layer of gooey cheese over a layer of lovely egg atop a nicely browned buttery egg crust on the bottom. I just ate seconds (which I never do!) of this delight, and am already thinking of how I can beef it up even more! Right now thinking about chopped (pre-cooked) bacon and fresh spinach, maybe some green onion or well-drained/patted-dry tomato pieces, fresh mushrooms, (pre-cooked) ground sausage...I would think that just about anything (not too wet!) would sit well on top of those eggs and under the cheese! My only hesitation would be if the cooking time were increased by much, the lovely bottom crust would become a layer of black char on the bottom of the pan! So I'm thinking "go light" on any additions.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 10/12-15

I didn't cook much over the weekend. Of course Friday evening we went out for our fish dinner - Saturday we were down in the Midland area and ate there for lunch with leftovers for supper. Sunday we had a potluck after church.

Sunday night I did cook though. We had some catfish in the freezer that needed to be used up, so I made fish cakes with it. Having never used catfish for those before I wasn't sure how they'd taste but we both really liked them! After thawing, I put the filets in the food processor with an egg, some seafood seasoning, some CarbQuik, some parmesan, and some golden flax meal. Then I formed loose patties and dropped them into hot oil in a frying pan (medium-high setting), frying each side until crispy. They were delicious! I fixed my onion-coated fried green beans with them.

Yesterday I ate some sweet potato for lunch. I had bought 3 heads of cauliflower when we were down in Midland Saturday for $1.19 each (less than half of what we pay here!), so I cut off all the florets and roasted those last night with just some olive oil and sea salt. I fried some sliced chuck roast in butter and olive oil (just like fried steak), and we had some of the cauliflower with it; I tossed the cauli with some onion and garlic powders, and parmesan cheese. It was a wonderful meal!

Today I'm about to fry up some eggs for lunch, maybe make some toast with one-minute bread. For supper I have some country pork ribs defrosting, I'll cut them into chunks, coat them with a packet of ranch dressing mix/CarbQuik, and fry them up with a couple of onions; when I was roasting the cauliflower last night I also roasted a squash since I had the oven on anyway - we'll have that with the pork and onions. I may throw some brussels sprouts in too, since we love the combination of pork/onions/sprouts so much. Yeah, I think I'll do that...

We are getting low on meat now, so time to get down to Harrison to Steve's and load up! The 36# of meat we bought on Sept 8 will have lasted us about 6 weeks. Maybe Saturday I'll get down there...until then we have another package of pork, another chunk of chuck steak, and a couple packages of smoked sausages...we won't starve by any means :).

OH OH OH OH!! I just thought of what I'll make for supper tomorrow, can't wait, it'll be so great...I have a few summer squash left, I can slice those up (on a diagonal of course, for nice wide slices) with some of the smoked sausage (also sliced on a diagonal) and toss in some other veggies from the freezer, a chopped onion...fry it all up together...and I'll make some biscuits - probably just with Carbquik but will load 'em up with shredded cheese and chili powder - to go with. Doesn't that sound great???

I get so excited about shopping and cooking and eating - but moreso than even eating it is one way I show love for the people for whom I'm creating and cooking!

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 10/9-10

Tuesday I probably ate leftovers for lunch, as I usually do....can't remember for sure but that's the usual. For supper I made my BIG pan full of roasted cabbage and onions with ham. Just chopped, tossed with olive oil, spread in the pan, into a hot 425ish oven on the top shelf until browning, toss, return to oven until soft and crispy edges. We love this stuff, either with ham or with bacon, and could eat it every other day. I may have already posted about that, if I did forgive me, I don't remember and don't have time to keep checking.

I wanted something sort of biscuit-bready with it, so I got out a mixing bowl and put in a cupful of CarbQuik, about 1/4c each of rye flour, golden flaxseed meal, parmesan from the can, and almond flour, about 1t each of baking powder and baking soda, and a dash of salt. Whisked them together, then added 2 eggs and about 1/4c of sour cream; mixed into a stiff dough, then added half'n'half until it was the right consistency - probably 1/2c total - just a guess. I pressed the mixture into my muffin top pan wells with a baggie over my hand, sprayed with nonstick spray. By the time I was ready to put them into the oven they had risen about double in size; I cut crosses into the tops to make them easier to break into quarters (they were pretty big!) after they were done. After the cabbage/onion/ham was about done I lowered the heat to 325 and baked the, um, biscuit-bready things until they were golden and cooked through. And THEY WERE DELICIOUS! My husband calls them sand dollars :). Definitely will make them again, might try with some corn bran instead of rye to see if they'll take on a cornbread-y type flavor. The texture is already similar, although after being in the fridge overnight they slice very easily and make a great sandwich!

Today hubby brought home some frozen pizzas for lunch, there's about 100gN of carbs in one of those which is twice my maximum daily allowance, but it was delicious. I nibbled on it throughout the day. For a snack I had some leftover cabbage/onion/ham from yesterday.

And that's about it for the last 2 days! :) We sure do eat strangely around here don't we? :)

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 10/8

Yesterday for lunch I had the leftover pork/brussels sprouts/onions dish.

For supper I had some shredded roast beef. I diced a big daikon (think hash brown cubest) and an onion and browned those in olive oil because I'm out of bacon fat, seasoning them with onion and garlic powder and salt, and a lot of chili powder. When they were cooked and browning I added the beef (there was about twice as much beef as the onion/daikon mixture!) and some worchestershire sauce. Once it was nicely mixed and hot, I served my husband's over 2 slices of lowcarb bread. I had mine in a dish with some 1carb ketchup on it.

This would have also been good with cheese melted over it, slathered with salsa and sour cream, I think. I have some left so I may try that with the rest.

I snacked on ham dipped in mustard.

#Lowcarb Boredom - No Meal Ideas This Weekend!

Starting Friday I was having a lot of pain in my wrap area (see My Nissen Fundoplication Experience blog) so went for comfortable food - soft foods - rather than worrying about carbs this weekend. Plus circumstances dictated that we ate out a lot, as we were barely home; I went for foods like mashed potatoes, cream soup, applesauce, cottage cheese...things that wouldn't - in theory - hurt as they pushed past my wrap. But in reality they did. But I'm ok now. But I don't have any meal ideas to share from the last few days :).

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 10/4

Actually today I don't have any meal ideas from yesterday! I'd mentioned the leftover pork and hot dogs I ate...I had a cottage cheese snack...but was so tired for some reason that I went to bed right after work and didn't bother to eat supper at all!

Today I broiled the meat I had thawed yesterday and had that for lunch. With nothing else. This evening Pete and I will go to our usual place for the fish fry, we go every Friday.

Even though I haven't had any meal ideas, I'm not bored :). Everything I've eaten tastes wonderful! (And I was down 3# this morning! Must have done something right this week :).)

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 10/2-3

Oops - forgot to post yesterday, so today I'll post both days.

Tuesday (10/2) I had well-buttered popcorn for lunch, and roast pork with 1/4 of a sweet potato (well-buttered of course) for supper. If I had a snack I don't recall what it was.

Yesterday I had some butter with a little white rice in it - lol - for lunch and for supper my grandson and I were out running errands after I got off work, so we went out; no need to plan a meal.

Today so far I've eaten some leftover pork and 3 hot dogs (no buns of course). I have a big hunk of chuck roast out of the freezer for supper but what I will do with it remains to be seen!

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 10/1

Yesterday's lunch was toast with butter (of course! Most foods are just a vehicle for butter!) and SF fruit spread.

Supper was great! I sliced a few squash (3 yellow, 2 green) lengthwise into planks, coated them with olive oil and garlic powder and roasted them at 425. While they were roasting (I turned them halfway through) I browned some ground beef and onions. Pulled the squash planks out of the oven and sprinkled some shredded mozzarella cheese as "glue", then the crumbled ground beef/onion, then poured some SF spaghetti sauce on top, a little more mozzarella, and finally some parmesan; put it back in the oven until the cheese melted/browned. It was AMAZING!

I definitely wouldn't skip the step of roasting the squash planks, which really added some sweetness. Definitely as long as there is summer squash at a decent price, we will be eating this as often as we can!

I had some yogurt as a snack.

Need Help with my New Addiction! #lowcarb

The other day I mentioned the Thai Sweet Chili Sauce that is carby as heck and terrible for me, but which I thought I'd try since it was a buck for a big bottle and it intrigued me in a weak moment.

I LOVE THIS STUFF!!!

I seriously need to find a lowcarb way to make it. Not really being a sauce person I've not had a lot of experience creating sauces. But I NEED to have this, so I NEED to make it myself.

If you know of any recipes, or have tried any, or have created one, please please pretty please share? Meanwhile, I will be doing my own searching for something. Because I LOVE THIS STUFF!!!

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/30

I didn't feel much like eating yesterday. All of the restaurant foods over the previous few days just made me kind of sick of food.

Lunch/Supper (yesterday was a one-meal day) was cheap and simple: roasted cabbage/onions/chopped ham, with diced roasted butternut squash. I had my "treat snack" of well-buttered white rice later in the evening. (As mentioned before, white rice for some reason doesn't give me any of the typical symptoms I get after eating carbs, nor does it seem to matter to my weight. Maybe it's that half-stick of butter I put on it? LOL! Someday I'll start testing my blood sugar, maybe, but until then I will enjoy it once in a while.)

I'm about to eat lunch, late: toast. With lots of butter, of course :).

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/26-29

I don't recall what I made on Wednesday (9/26), now, and apparently I didn't blog it on Thursday - but I had a really REALLY busy call day (I work 9-5 taking calls/scheduling for a pest control service) plus was trying to get ready to leave.

Thursday we were leaving for downstate soon after I got done with work. Pete grilled up some hot dogs and steaks, and that's what we ate. We snacked on popcorn in the morning.

Friday and Saturday we were on the road and ate mostly at restaurants, but Friday night I did make supper: Chicken breasts with deep pockets sliced into them, stuffed with sausage and mozzarella, stood on the side - pocket up - in a baking dish (so the stuffing wouldn't melt out) and roasted for about 45 minutes...then I drained off most of the fat from the mozzarella and poured spaghetti sauce over them, sprinkled the tops with parmesan, and put them back in the oven for about 20 more minutes. One the side we had my lovely coated green beans. Heat up some butter and olive oil in a frying pan on high; add frozen green beans; season heavily with onion powder, and some sea salt; stir around as the beans thaw, give off steam, and finally cook through as the onion powder forms a coating on them and absorbs the fats. They are amazing! (I do variations of this, sometimes using only olive oil, or something adding some garlic powder also, or whatever.)

Tonight we were home and I cooked supper for us: chicken breasts (with skin and bones) brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with seasoned salt, because I'm exhausted from the whirlwind of the last 48 hours. And we finished up the last of the daikon casserole with it.

While we were downstate I took the opportunity to go to Aldi's to stock up on mostly dairy (saving a full 50% on some items, compared to our local prices!) and to Horrocks for excellent quality produce that is mostly at LEAST 25% cheaper than buying it here, and much of it - actually about half of what I bought - between 50-75% cheaper! I also picked up a few ham "ends and pieces" for $1.79/20 oz pkg and a big package of chicken breasts for $1.19/lb. there. We are STOCKED now! I spent $99-something between those 2 stores, and packed the trunk of the car FULL plus half of the back seat!! SO STOKED! We will be eating such lovely meals with this bounty that the Lord provided!!

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/25

Yesterday was a really delicious day!

For lunch I had "oatmeal" - I use 1/4c oatmeal, 1/4c finely chopped pecans, and 1/4c unsweetened shredded coconut mixed with enough water to cover it in my bowl, and then some - maybe ua cup and a quarter? Then I nuke it 2 minutes, covered, and let it sit another couple of minutes until the water is all absorbed. I like to eat it with LOTS of butter and cinnamon, a little brown sugar sub, and half'n'half. (I'd use cream in this, and in many other things, if it weren't twice the price of half'n'half!)

For supper I made some spicy-sweet meatballs and a "potato" casserole. Here are the recipes:

Spicy-Sweet Meatballs
This uses a Thai Sweet Chili Sauce that I found at a discount store for a buck. It's pretty carby @ 3 per tsp, but has a STRONG flavor. I use very little of it.
1 - Cooked 1/2 of a large onion in a frying pan in olive oil until browning; I did this on med-low heat which takes longer but tastes better.
2 - Mixed 1# of ground beef with an egg, 1/4c each of ground porkies and parmesan cheese, 1/2t of garlic powder, 2t of worchestershire sauce, and 1 tsp. of chili powder
3 - When onions are just browned, I moved them to side of the pan; formed meatballs (mine were walnut-sized) and added to pan; covered and let cook through. (This didn't take very long with small meatballs, about 4-5 minutes.)
4 - Added 2T chili sauce over the meatballs and tossed with the onions and pan drippings.

This made about 4 servings.

Fauxtato Casserole
1 - I finely diced (using a gadget I have for the purpose) a daikon radish and half of a large onion, and boiled the daikon in salted water for about 5 minutes just to soften slightly.
2 - Into my 9x13 glass baking dish I tossed the drained daikon, the onion, 1c of shredded colby-jack cheese, 1c of mozzarella cheese, about 1/2# of chopped cooked bacon, and a 24 oz container of sour cream.
3 - Baked 45 minutes @ 350, then topped with another 1/2c or so of cheeses and a sprinkle of parmesan for browning/crispiness on top, then returned to the oven for another 15 minutes or so.

This made about 10 servings, certainly enough for a few days' worth of leftovers. In fact I just had some for lunch, with the rest of the leftover bacon!

Both this casserole and also my roasted cabbage dish make a complete meal when I add a bunch of bacon, sausage, or ham to them, and serve with a salad of some sort (not necessarily using lettuce or greens) on the side.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/24

Yesterday for lunch I had 2 hot dogs with a spoonful of chili sauce and some cheese melted over each. (The chili sauce I buy has 18gN per can, I probably ate 1/8 of the can.)

Supper was roasted country pork ribs that I had rubbed with a packet of ranch dressing mix then roasted. I also roasted some whole baby green beans with it, that I'd just tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with a little seasoned salt.

For a snack I had some Wasa "crackers" (fairly low carb but don't remember exact count) schmeared with cream cheese.

Also please note that I drink a mug of coffee for breakfast (20 oz) and I load it up with good fatty half'n'half plus a scoop of protein powder most days. That staves off hunger until mid-afternoon, usually.

As you can see we eat very simply, but always enjoy everything we have. I typically purchase only a few different types/cuts of meat but fix them in different ways to maintain variety, but I always have at LEAST a dozen kinds of veggies in the house as well, so we have a lot of variety with those.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/21-23

Such a busy weekend, I don't know what I ate when, and we did eat out a couple of times, but here are some dishes I made:

I guy English roasts or chuck roasts from my favorite butcher shop - Steve's Meats in Harrison, MI, and these beef roasts are at least a couple of inches thick, with LOTS of great healthy fat! One of the meals I made, I sliced half of one of these roasts horizontally to make 3 "steaks" out of it, which I fried in lard, seasoned with sea salt, garlic powder, and onion powder. Meanwhile I roasted some thin-sliced sweet potato in a single layer in coconut oil at 425, seasoned with just sea salt, in the oven. That was a great meal!

Another meal I made was for potluck at church this morning. I finely diced a big daikon radish and half of a Michigan Candy Onion (they're HUGE) and browned them in my big deep electric chicken fryer in lard. Then I added a pound of ground sausage and a pound of ground beef (both from Steve's of course!), and crumbled them as they cooked. I seasoned it with simply sea salt, chili powder, and garlic powder. Then I chopped 3 scallions (because I needed to use them up, why not?) and a great big meaty tomato, stirred that into the mix...then about a pound of frozen chopped spinach...then a half dozen beaten eggs and pressed it all down into the pan with the lid on. Once it was all cooked through and the eggs were cooked, I put about 2c of shredded colby-jack cheese on top and turned the heat down just until it was melted. This was very convenient for travel (wrapped in a massive beach towel), for keeping warm, and for serving at the potluck. AND I got a lot of rave reviews and requests for the recipe :).

Just a couple more meals I've prepared this weekend...hopefully will help with the boredom factor :).

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/20

Yesterday we were on the road most of the day - well, for about 12 hours. Before we left we had pancakes (made with almond flour, eggs, vanilla yogurt, baking powder, and cinnamon) with SF syrup, and loads of bacon.

Suppertime we were on the road but found a restaurant, they happened to have a very extensive (like 8 pages!) menu, including greek food, so I got a moussaka, and a salad on the side. It was delicious! The menu said it contained seasoned meat, eggplant, cheese, and a bachamel sauce (which contains some flour, I know) and of course it would contain eggs and spices. It was served with rice, I had a couple of bites of the rice to cut the richness of the moussaka but that's it.

Snack yesterday was popcorn.

Higher carbs than most days but not horrible, and probably burned them off with all we did!

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/19

Tomorrow will be a busy day so I'm posting tonight.

For lunch (late morning) I fixed hamburger patties which I served on top of thick tomato slice and a slice of cheese, with mayo and bacon on top. Hubby ate 2, I ate one. It was GREAT, with lots of great fat!

For supper (we ate late afternoon today) hubby bought a rotisserie chicken. I had the breast and wing, and saved the thigh and leg for this evening when I get hungry again.

I also had a snack of yogurt a couple of hours after I ate the chicken.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/18

Yesterday for lunch I had leftover pork and broccoli from the night before. (Hubby works nights, so I often eat leftovers for lunch if he's sleeping.) Since I'm sick with who-knows-what - never had anything like THIS before - hubby just made some Dreamfield's spaghetti with sauce for himself. I had a small dish of it (like, maybe a half-cup?) with butter and a sprinkle of parmesan. I don't think I ate any snacks yesterday, just didn't feel like eating. So it was a boring food day but they can't all be spectacular :).

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/17

For lunch (I don't eat breakfast) I had the last of the leftover pork/brussels sprouts/onions from last week, with about a Tbsp of butter melted over it. The original dish was simply seasoned pork pieces that had originally been cooked in a crockpot; in my bit electric fryer I fried up some brussels sprouts, halved, and onion slices in olive oil and butter until browning, then added the shredded pork to it, covered, and let it cook together over medium-low heat for a while. It was amazingly delicious!

For supper last night I oven roasted some pork country ribs after rubbing them with olive oil and salting them. I roasted them at 325 for an hour, then 275 for a couple more hours until they fell off the bone. Removed them from the oven, turned the heat up to 425, and put a baking sheet with frozen broccoli that had been tossed with olive oil and salted on the top rack.

Because my back was bad I didn't want to make a batch of BBQ sauce for the ribs (plus that's more dishes to wash, and washing dishes hurts my back more than just about anything else), so I just put the ingredients on the pork one by one: onion, garlic, and chili powders, brown sugar sub, a sprinkle of liquid smoke, and low-carb ketchup.

By this time the broccoli was starting to brown around the edges so I gave it a toss, put shredded cheddar cheese on top, and returned it to the top shelf, then I put the pork on the middle shelf. Another 15 minutes or so and the cheese with browning on the broccoli, and lots of crispy bits in the pan to put on top...and the toppings on the pork had merged and gotten good and sticky.

We do eat a lot of pork in our house as it is less expensive than beef, and very versatile. We do love our beef also, and of course chicken which is the only cheap meat left in the store.

I also had some heavily buttered popcorn as an afternoon snack.

Anyway, that was what we ate yesterday.

#Lowcarb Boredom - Meal Ideas - 9/16

I got an email from someone saying that she gets bored with eating the same things over and over again, and asking me to post what I eat to maybe give her some ideas. I haven't done this in quite a while, so I told her I'd start posting what my meals.

I can tell you what I had yesterday, to start...after church we went to KFC for lunch and had the buffet. I ate 2 pieces of tender grilled chicken, a salad with bacon, cheese, and tomatoes on it with 1000 Island dressing (half packet is plenty, nasty stuff in it!), one spoonful of cole slaw, and one spoonful of potato salad.

For supper I made "steak" (we buy English cut beef roasts and slice them in half horizontally to make "steaks" out of them), fried in oil and heavily seasoned with garlic, onion, and chili powder and seasoned salt, and whole baby green beans (from frozen) that I cooked in a mixture of olive oil and butter with sea salt and onion powder.

Just an added note: About a week ago I noticed the pounds starting to creep up - just 3# but still... So I made sure to eat LOTS of fat last week and, in spite of my carby meal* on Friday night I lost the 3# plus 2# more as well.

*I usually have 1 carby meal each week. And if I'm not trying to lose, sometimes 2.

Tonight I will post what I had today.

Amanda's #Lowcarb Zucchini Bread #Recipe

Happy Birthday Amanda!

4 large eggs
½c granulated sugar sub
½c granulated brown sugar sub
1 tsp vanilla

Blend these together well, then add

½c coconut oil, softened
½c butter, softened

When thoroughly blended, add

1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
3 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ginger

Continue mixing until fully incorporated, then add

1c almond flour
½c pecan flour
½c coconut flour

When mixed and smooth, add

1½c shredded zucchini
¼c full-fat sour cream

Continue mixing, on medium, and something magical will happen - it will puff up and take on the consistency of a light marshmallow fluff!!

Gently transfer to a greased/floured (I used coconut flour) a 10x10 baking dish and smooth with the tip of your rubber scraper. Bake at 350 until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean - that was about 43 minutes in my oven.

Let cool, cut into 16 pieces, and enjoy :).

(NOTE: this is a light bread, like a combination bread and cake; this is the way my grandmother made it, so that's what I was trying to emulate. And it worked I might add...if you are looking for a heavier bread, you might try omitting the sour cream and reducing the baking soda by half, although I haven't tried it that way...just have a hunch that will work :).)

Leftover Squash? Make Cookies! #lowcarb

I had about a cup of roasted (in chunks) butternut squash leftover. We've been eating a lot of squash lately since it's cheap right now, so I'm a little squashed out! I was going to make squash pancakes but then decided to do cookies instead. Here is what I did:

(Remember I don't follow recipes or measure anything, so all of these amounts are guesstimates!)

4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
1/4c brown sugar sub
6 drops (= 1Tbsp) liquid sucralose (adjust to taste, I don't like too sweet!)
1 c winter squash, cooked
1/4 c pecan meal
1/4 c coconut flour
1/2 c unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 c raisins, chopped
2 Tbsp coconut oil (or butter)

Whipped the eggs until they were about doubled in volume, then mixed in the next 6 ingredients with the mixer on low, then added the remaining ingredients, in the order listed. (I didn't want my coconut oil to solidify upon impact.) Mixed on low until the cookie dough - it's a fairly loose dough - was formed. Then I let sit for 10 minutes to make sure everything (not mentioning any names, Coconut Flour!) had absorbed liquid.

I baked these in walnut-sized balls (the 1st batch to go in) @ 350 until they were done; I forgot to look at the clock, my nose told me and my eyes and fingertips confirmed it. They were pretty browned just on the little bits that were sticking up. Anyway, I baked them on a stone, and learned with the 2nd batch it was better to grease it first...and I also smashed the 2nd batch into flatter discs.

I have no idea how many I made, it was a round baking stone and I kept losing count. And they aren't the lowest-carb cookies to ever leave my kitchen. But they are really REALLY good, I had 2 and even though they're just walnut-sized they really filled me up!

(I could have probably given them a little with rise but wanted something with some substance today. They aren't heavy by any means - the whipped eggs helped with that - and are just a really nice little snack. My 3YO grandson will love them, and they're healthier for him too!)

Up and Down!

For some reason the last month I've been wanting - and eating - more carbs. Don't know why. But I did. And last weekend was the worst, ate carbs for almost every meal! Sunday morning I was up 11#!!! Starting Monday I've been eating clean, all meats and veggies, some dairy, lots of fats. One day I had a bowl of popcorn, heavily buttered, but that's never affected me one way or another. (No, I don't test my blood sugar, but weight-wise it's never stopped loss when I was losing, never caused gain when I was maintaining - probably because - even though I eat a big bowl of the stuff - I have a half-stick of butter on it.) And this morning I was back down 8 of those 11 pounds. As always - when I eat lots and lots of fats, and totally eliminate grains (except popcorn, evidently!) and sugars - natural or otherwise - I lose very quickly. Now I'm considering losing a little more. I still dread doing it for the reasons I've mentioned in the past, but thinking I might. Maybe go down about 10# below what I was before that 11# gain. Just a thought.

#Lowcarb Squash Cake!

I had 3 small cooked delicata squash in the fridge that needed to be used, so I made a cake. Was going to do cupcakes - like muffins - but hate washing all of those wells in the muffin pan :). Anyway, here's what I did: To the delicata (about 3c total) I added 6 large eggs and beat it will, until smooth. Then I added 1/4c brown sugar sub, 1 tsp each baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon, 1/2c each walnut and pecan meal and shredded unsweetened coconut, 3Tbsp coconut flour, 1/2t salt, a tsp of vanilla, 1/2 stick soft butter, 2T plain full-fat yogurt, and 2T SF caramel syrup. (If I was a real baker, I'd mix the dry ingredients then add them to the wet, but I throw it all together and beat well with the mixer.) I just beat all of the above really REALLY well...then poured it into a 9x12 greased baking dish. It took nearly an hour in a 350 oven. But it was well worth the wait! :)

June Grocery Totals...and more!

First, I'm not going to keep posting the grocery lists. They are SO time-consuming, and I will have posted the first 6 months of the year; the 2nd half of the year will be very similar, I'm sure. I don't get feedback that anyone is reading and/or using this, so to save some much-needed time I have decided to stop posting them all. By now, you get it :).

July went by without me noticing. Very busy, out of town for a couple of weeks, and working on clearing out our house. (See another of my blogs, http://vitainvia.blogspot.com for more info on why.) And since I wasn't here to do much of the grocery shopping, I don't have all the receipts...so good thing I've decided not to continue anyway!

Here is the rest of June:
Walmart Totals - (6) half gallons half'n'half @ $3,58 ea (1) butternut squash @ 88c/lb $2.67 summer squashes @ $1.38/lb $4.78 reduced baked goods $4.08 (don't remember what this was, probably for company) (1) jar Orville's popping corn $4.98 3# cabbage @ 54c/lb $1.59 turkey ham $4.77 32 oz. EVOO $$18.98 250 ct. saccharin packets $2.74 Sav-a-Lot totals - (3) 12-packs diet cola @ $2.48 $7.44 (for hubby and my mom) 100 ct. saccharin packets $1.19 12 oz shredded mozzarella $2.99 (2) frozen pizzas @ $1.99 ea @3.98 4# butter @ $2.39 ea $9.96 Steve's Meats - $70.49 total, including .77# smoked fish $4.34 4.99# bacon $12.43 8.27@ ground chuck $22.25 4.6# English roasts $13.75 4.2# catfish $7.52 6.38# pork steaks $12.06 8.13# chicken thighs $7.24 Chuck's (sort of a scratch'n'dent store) - Have a receipt for $14.72, not sure what I bought but pretty sure it was all food. I also spent $41.70 at netrition.com for Carbquik, Wheat Protein Isolate 5000, and liquid sucralose. Subtotal for these receipts: $200.64 Subtotal for previous June receipts: $83.33 Total for June - $283.97 YTD TOTAL - $1736.76 Monthly average - $289.46

I LOVE This Salad!!! #lowcarb

Needed to make something for a family reunion yesterday, so have been thinking about it all week. This is what I came up with. It was very pretty yesterday, not so much today so no photo. People, I noticed, ate it in small quantities, like a relish. Today, though I am eating it by the bowlful! 2 large zucchini 2 large crookneck squash 1 medium sweet red onion 4 roma tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes, if you can afford them) 8 oz hard sausage carrot slivers (I bought already "shredded" to save my back) balsamic vinegar garlic clove, crushed olive oil 2 drops SweetzFree S&P freshly shredded parmesan cheese If I'd have been willing to pay $3.48 for a pint of cherry tomatoes I would have halved them to use, but I wasn't, so I cleaned out 4 roma tomatoes and chopped into small pieces - 16 pieces per tomato - then tossed them with olive oil and balsamic, seasoned, and roasted until nice and sticky. While they were in the oven I washed the squashes and made noodles out of them, using a veggie peeler, and discarding the seedy middles when I got down that far. I put the noodles into a large mixing bowl. Next I quartered the onion and cut thin slices, so to create lovely purple slivers, and put those into the bowl. I tossed 4 oz of carrot slivers into the bowl, after rinsing and patting dry. Then I diced the sausage (I got a semi-spicy summer sausage) into small (1/4-3/8") squares, and added those to the bowl. When the tomatoes were done I put the whole pan of them into the fridge to cool, and made my balsamic vinaigrette with the olive oil, balsamic, garlic, S&P, and sweetener. (When I tasted it, I just needed something to bring out the flavor of the vinegar, and just a couple drops of the SweetzFree worked quite well!) When the tomatoes were cool, I used a rubber scraper to add not only the tomatoes, but also the lovely sweet juices from the pan into the bowl. Then I tossed everything together, adding S & P to taste. I took the vinaigrette in a separate container as it was a 3.5 hour drive and I didn't want to lose the lovely vibrant colors as it traveled (in the cooler with ice of course). We tossed about 3 Tbs of the vinaigrette with the salad right before serving. And then I realized I forgot my cheese! But it was beautiful and tasted fresh and delightful anyway. And what I brought home of it, I'm eating today - WITH the cheese. The cheese really does make a difference, even just a little sprinkle over the top, so don't forget the cheese like I did :). I had one dish of it for breakfast and am eating another dish of it for lunch. With the sausage and the cheese, it is a very satisfying meal!

June Grocery Receipts To Date

June 1st:

Meijer -
yellow tomatoes (small container, about 30 of them) 70c
2# rutabaga $1.64
1.66# eggplant $1.49
2.883# daikon $6.48
a bag of mini sweet peppers - DOZENS, all colors - $4.99
total $16.28

Aldi -
2 bags veggie chips (grandson/hubby's lunches) @ $1.69 ea
2 bags jumbo in-shell peanuts (hubby) @ $1.99 ea
2 dark chocolate bars (ALL MINE!) @ $1.49 ea
2 boxes instant white rice @ $1.49 ea
3 dozen large eggs @ $1.09 ea
33.9 oz can of coffee @ $5.49
3 tri-color cole slaw mix @ $0.79 ea
3 one-pound butter quarters @ $2.29 ea
1 ranch dressing @ $1.29
1 jar SF strawberry preserves $1.99
6 yogurts @ $0.39 ea
1 ricotta cheese, 15 oz @ $1.69
1 peanut butter @ $2.29
2 cans diced tomatoes @ $0.59 ea
1 large can crushed tomatoes @ $0.99
1 24 oz cottage cheese, full fat, small curd, @ $2.29
total $45.23

June 5th:

Walmart -
2 TV dinners (hubby's lunch) $1.00 ea
1 gal white vinegar $2.38
total $3.38

June 9th:

Sav-a-Lot -
2 quarts half'n'half @ $2.19 ea
8 oz parn cheese in the can $2.99
2 bags frozen french fries @ $1.00 ea
4 TV dinners $1.00 ea
3 cans hot dog sauce @ $0.69 ea
3 packages Eckrich hot dogs @ $1.00 ea
total $18.44

TOTAL so far for June $83.33

This should be a cheap month, since I stocked up so much last month!

Final May Shopping Total

Just by picking up bits and pieces here and there (mostly half'n'half, produce, and on-sale meats) through the rest of May I added $106.55 to the bill for the month, thereby bringing the total to $391.56, and our year-to-date total to 1452.79, or about $290/mo. It's a good thing I'm not one of those who blogs for a living :). Now that my day job (work at home as an answering service/scheduler from 9-5) is getting really busy, and having my grandson here evenings and weekends, leaves little time for blogging! But I keep coming back, sooner or later, and I keep saving my receipts, stacking them under my mouse pad until I get a chance to blog 'em!

#Lowcarb May Grocery Shopping So Far

I didn't need to do any stocking up last month, so this is the month! Because grocery shopping is one of my favorite things to do, that's how I wanted to spend my birthday weekend, so that's what we did :).

May 4th
Meijer:
rutabaga @ 79c/lb $1.94
zucchini & yellow squashes @ 99c/lb $5.82
romaine lettuce @ $1.29/lb $3.21
daikon @ $2.29/lb (!) $5.02
frozen brussels sprouts, 10 oz. $2.09
(2) boxes Celestial Seasonings teas @ $2.49 ea. $4.98
1# butter $2.59
3# sour cream $4.54
10 yogurts $5.00
5# onions $2.99
7 oz instant decaf coffee $5.99
subtotal $44.57

GFS Marketplace
4# can tuna $9.99
(2) 2# frozen broccoli florets $7.58 (decided to pay a little more for the florets; I don't like the stalky parts)
(2) 2# frozen chopped spinach $5.98
(3) 2# frozen cauliflower $8.97
(2) 2# frozen whole green beans $5.98
5# shredded cheddar cheese $11.98
5# shredded mozzarella/provalone cheese $11.49
40-ct hot dogs $8.99
subtotal $70.97

May 5th
Steve's Country Meats
subtotal $124.36 which included:
9.53# English cut roast (which we cut into 12 "steaks"), 2.95 # pollock, 2.78# turkey backs, 6.75# turkey breast, 9.91# bacon, 9.46# pork tenderloin (cut free into 26 cutlets), 12.4# ground chuck, and some cocoa powder and cheese crackers from the bulk food bin. (The average price per lb of meat only works out to $2.31/lb; if I average in the 10# of pork roast I bought from Sav-a-Lot, my fresh meat averages $2.12/lb this month.)

Sav-a-Lot
2.24# cabbage $1.10
(2) frozen pizzas $5.58
33 oz can coffee $6.99
12 pack diet Bubba cola $2.79
(3) 18 ct eggs $4.35
28 oz enchilada sauce $1.49
a big green pepper $1.39
30 oz. mayo $2.49
(5) 4 oz cans mushrooms $3.45
8 oz can parmesan cheese $2.99
(2) pork sirloin end roasts @ 99c/lb $10.69
16 oz. ranch dressing $1.49
5 oz shredded parmesan $2.79
(2) pounds butter quarters $4.98
subtotal $54.12

May 8th
Walmart
(3) half-gallons half'n'half $10.74

May 9th
Bart's Fruit Market (my FAVORITE local produce market!)
3# asparagus $5.13
1 head cabbage $1.50
subtotal $6.63

Dollar General
(2) cans diced tomatoes $1.38

less food bought for others, not for our consumption <$27.76> TOTAL so far in May $285.01

That's a lot, it seems...and I will be spending more (especially now that Bart's is open for the season!). But this bounty will provide the bulk of our meals through this month and probably throughout most of the next! And it always feels so good to have my shelves, fridge, and freezer full :).

#Lowcarb Potluck TexMex Pork Casserole #Recipe

This was cheap (about $12 for the entire casserole, served about 20 people), easy, and delicious! I made it for a church potluck.

Saturday night I heavily salted a 5+ lb. pork roast (got on sale for 99c/lb!) and put it in my roasting pan with a little water in the oven. Covered, set the oven to 275F, and when I woke up the next morning it was falling-apart tender.

I chopped a couple of onions and peppers and put them in a pan to saute with some bacon fat, then used to 2 forks to shred the pork roast into a big bowl. In my food processor I put a can of enchilada sauce (much cheaper than most similar sauces) and 2 drained/rinsed cans of black beans, and processed it together into a nice thick sauce.

Into the bowl of meat, I added the sauce, 2 cans of diced tomatoes, a can of corn, and another can of whole black beans, all drained, and mixed thoroughly. Then I added the onions and peppers which were were cooked but not soft, and a big handful of shredded cheddar cheese, and mixed again.

I pressed the mixture into my 9x13 glass baking dish (so pretty, with all those colors, through the sides!) and topped it all with a couple more handfuls of cheese.

When we got to the church it was heated in the oven until the cheese melted. I served it with a big bowl of full-fat sour cream on the side. I wish I would have taken pictures!

A couple of notes:

- Both the beans and the corn are carbier than most low carb plans allow. I mostly added the corn for the color, but it added nice little pops of sweetness among the spice. The carbs in a can of corn, divided among 20 servings, would add about 2gN of carbs per serving. I think that's worth it, you may not.

- The black beans, all told, added carbs also. If you do soy, you can use black soybeans instead. We don't, so I elected to use the real thing. Divided between 20 servings, that's another 3-4gN per serving. I could have probably omitted one of the cans in the sauce, I didn't want it to be drippy. But it would have saved some carbs.

- This would work equally well with chicken; I would have used chicken, in fact, if I hadn't found those pork roasts on sale for such a great price!

- I don't care for heat, at least not Mexican heat. (But I love horseradish - go figure!) I could have added a lot more spices rather than just going with what was in the enchilada sauce, but when serving a lot of people I opted to keep it a little milder. Maybe a jar of pepper flakes or a bottle of hot sauce on the side would be nice the next time I make this for a crowd.

I loved how the casserole looked, with the chunks of tomatoes, corn, peppers, and beans adding color. And there was a festival of textures and flavors in the mouth as well.

This is definitely something I will make again. For just the 2 of us, I will use lower carb options. But even as I made it yesterday, the carbs per serving are still very low, and it is a great satisfying complete meal!

The. Best. #Lowcarb. Cookies. EVER!!!

I have to write down this recipe before I forget, because I will want to make these delicious chewy cookies again and again! They're along the lines of an oatmeal scotchie, sort of. That's the flavor I was going for. Don't know that I hit it on the head, but they are WAY beyond delicious!!

4 eggs

1/2c coconut oil, melted 1/2 tsp vanilla 1/8 tsp butterscotch flavoring oil

1/2c granulated splenda 1/2c brown sugar sub (I used Sugar Twin brand) 1/4c polydextrose 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp cinnamon

3/4c "oats"* 3/4c unsweetened shredded coconut 3/4c pecan meal

Whip eggs with whisking attachment

Mix together coconut oil, vanilla, and butterscotch oil; add to eggs with mixer still running; mix thoroughly; exchange whisk for paddle.

In another bowl, thoroughly blend the next group of ingredients; add to mixing bowl with mixer running on low.

When these are incorporated, add last 3 ingredients and continue to mix until blended.

Place by rounded teaspoonfuls on greased baking sheet and bake at 350 about 20 minutes, or until bottoms are medium brown; remove to cooling rack.

This made 42 walnut-sized rich cookies.

*for my "oats" I usually would use 1 part steel-cut oats to 2 parts oat bran. But I'm out of oat bran at the moment, so used just the oats this time, which makes them a bit carbier.

April Grocery Bill #lowcarb (and YTD TOTAL!)

This has been a SUPER busy month for some reason, and blogging hasn't made it into my days for the most part. So I'm sitting here with my big pile of receipts, and it would take me an hour to list everything I bought...so I'll just give an overview, and will mention the highlights.

April 6: Sav-a-Lot $38.57 butter, cheeses, meat, fish, produce, drinking water

April 6: Walmart $30.32 lost the receipt so don't know what I bought, but looked up the amount at the bank website; this may not even all be for food?

April 13: Aldi's $25.40 half'n'half, cheese, eggs, potatoes, dark chocolate

April 21: Country Corner Bulk Food $49.28 This is an Amish store. I bought lard for the first time ever; there will be a separate blog post about that. Also found Heinz "low sugar" ketchup there for 69c/bottle (recently expired) - bought a dozen. 32 oz. Kraft mayo 89c/jar, got 2. Came home with 6 bags FULL of food for this price, felt like I'd made quite a killing!

April 22: Walmart $18.22 half'n'half, produce, sweetener

April 23: Sav-a-Lot $19.34 yogurt, meats, butter

April 30: Sav-a-Lot $7.36 butter, coffee, drinking water

TOTAL for April $188.73

TOTAL so far for 2012 $1061.23, averaging about $265 per month

WOOHOO!!!

Final March #Lowcarb Grocery Tally

So far in March I posted $205.51 in grocery receipts. Then I didn't post any of the others that I had accumulated through the rest of the month. So here they are :).

Walmart, 3/9/12:
Orville's popping corn, jar is about a quart $4.98
Coconut Oil $5.98
EV Olive Oil, about a quart but it's in metric $10.48
Blue Bunny no-added-sugar ice cream $3.97
TOTAL $25.41

Sav-a-Lot, 3/10/12 (These items were for a stay-at-home "date" from my husband)
.81# Kogels Viennas $3.64
8 ct. hot dug buns $1.09
(2) cans hot dog sauce @ $0,69 ea $1.38
(3) bags of salad on sale for $0.99 ea $2.97 (just because they were on sale)
TOTAL $9.08

Merchandise Mart, 3/15/12
I picked up some SF juice for my grandson, some little snacky things for hubby's lunches and for grandson, some pumpkinseed & oat crackers that I love, and some Miracle Noodles (just $0.79 each!) - too much to list, got a lot of stuff for my $24.57

Aldi's, 3/23/12
(7) quarts half'n'half $12.53
rice $2.70
(3) 8 oz cream cheese $2.97
cheese crackers for grandson $1.49
TOTAL $19.69

GFS, 3/23/12
Spent $52.62 on meats, frozen vegetables, spices, and a 5# bag of peanuts for hubby

Glen's, 3/24/12
Almost 3YO grandson wanted to go to the store for "fishsticks, raspberry tea, and waffles" - lol. With my coupons and a certificate I got this $18 order cheap @ just $2.42!

Glen's, 3/29/12
(2) big ranch steaks, last day markdown, $5.79 (close to 3# total)
(2) big turkey thighs, about 3#, $5.19
(1) big chunk of ham $8.24 (could have gotten cheaper elsewhere but too tired)*
about 6.5# of green cabbage $3.79*
10# yellow onions $4.00 on sale*
(6) sweet potatoes @ $0.99/lb $$3,19
* for the church potluck dish to pass
TOTAL $30.20

MARCH TOTAL - $369.50

Pretty high this month! Of course I did some stocking up, that always adds a lot...we had our "date", and I bought special food for the potluck, whereas typically I would use what I already had. Plus, of course, my little grandson's shopping trip (he was so cute!)...but it will all average out in the end - always does :).

End of March

I have gotten SO busy it's not even funny this month. There's a stack of grocery receipts sitting next to me on the table, I'm hoping that tomorrow I will get a chance to put them in and come up with our grand total for March!

Thrown-Together #Lowcarb Lunch - Another WINNER!

I had about 7-8 small zucchini in the fridge so I cut off the ends and scooped out the few little seeds that were in there, tossed them with a little olive oil and roasted them in the oven at 425 on the top rack until they were crispy on the edges.

Meanwhile I mixed together a leftover half-can of chili (the kind made for chili dogs, which we had over the weekend) with an equal part of shredded colby-jack cheese. When the zucchini were ready I spooned the chili mixture on top, the covered it with more shredded cheese and put it back in the oven for about 5 minutes - until the cheese was melty, and the part that had fallen on the pan was brown and crispy.

I used a big pancake turner to lift it out onto 2 plates, topped with a generous amount of full-fat sour cream, then the little crispy cheese bits.

Even though I just ate it, my mouth is watering just talking about it, it was SO SO SO good! I'd even say it was better than the chili dogs we had on Saturday...thinking next time I'll also roast some onion and, yeah, maybe put some hot dogs in it too!

Crispy Light #lowcarb TOAST!

There are lots of toasted bun recipes out there, and I'm sure they're all good, and mine is probably no better. But this was so good that I have to write it down so I don't forget how I did it, and what better place than here?

I don't pay much attention when I make the microwave bread anymore, I just toss in a little of this and a little of that and it usually turns out fine for a sandwich, and I have never toasted it.

This morning I wanted fried eggs on toast, so I greased a dish, blended an egg, added about 1/4t of baking powder, 1/4c of Carbquik, about a heaping Tbsp of golden flax meal, and a few drops of white vinegar. Mixed, it became a paste, so I drizzled in some half'n'half until it was the right consistency (like a cake batter maybe? thinner than peanut butter). I would have used heavy cream but I don't buy that too often anymore because it is so expensive.

Once I whisked everything together I put it in the microwave on high for 2 minutes.

(Note: I've started adding at least a little Carbquik to my microwave breads, just because I like the texture and taste of the end result. But certainly I've made it plenty of times without, and it's ok too. Just like it a little better with Carbquik - either a little, or a lot.)

When it was done I cut the "bread" in half and popped it in the toaster. Now maybe all of these other microwave breads would have been just as good, but I gotta say that the outside toasted crispy and almost like what I'd imagine panko crumbs would be like, before they were crumbed. And the inside was tender, almost fluffy. I've never had toast like this before!

I've been wanting more of this ever since this morning, but I try to eat the grain-based stuff twice a week or less. I may hold out until tomorrow...but in the morning, all bets are off, and I KNOW I'll be having more for breakfast!

WOOHOO! The Cupboards are full! #lowcarb shopping

Things were getting a little bare in my freezer, so I finally had to put everything else aside, bite the bullet, and go shopping! This first week in March I seriously needed to do some stocking up of just about everything (and still need to place a couple of online orders!), so it will be a big month for our food bill. It isn't often that I need to stock up on everything in the same month - thank God!

I started out at Steve's Country Market in Harrison, MI - LOVE that store! - where I spent $82.02 on over 33# of meat: chicken leg quarters were 79c/lb, pork chops (good fatty ones!) were $1.89/lb, bacon (ends and pieces, with LOTS of good big chunks!) was $2.19/lb, both tilapia and catfish were $1.99/lb, and the chuck roast was $3.19/lb! Overall, I paid less than $2.50/lb for my meats...and it's all (except the fish) FRESH and better than anything I can find in a local grocery store!

Then we went over to Cadillac where we enjoyed lunch at our favorite restaurant, and went to Meijer and GFS.

Meijer:
(2) rutabagas $1.73 ($0.79/lb)
6.62# squash $6.66 (lots of zucchini/yellow squash, 1 butternut @ $0.99/lb)
(1) daikon $3.18 ($1.39/lb)
(2) bundles of fresh asparagus $2.27 ($0.99/lb)
TOTAL - $13.73

GFS:
3# pollock "fish sticks" (for grandson) $6.99
(3) 2# frozen cauliflower $8.97
(2) 2.5# bags whole green beans $5.98
(1) 5# bag peanuts in the shell $8.99
(1) 2# frozen broccoli florets $3.79
(1) 2# frozen chopped spinach $2.99
TOTAL - $37.71

Then yesterday we had to go to Saginaw for an appointment, so we stopped at Aldi's for another big "stocking up" trip:
(2) 24 oz cottage cheese @ $2.29 ea
(2) 11.3 oz decaf coffee @ $2.79 ea
(1) 33.9 oz regular coffee $5.49
(4) 1# butter quarters @ $2.29 ea
(1) big can crushed tomatoes $0.99*
(5) cans diced tomatoes @ $0.59 ea*
(3) cans beans @ $0.55 ea*
(1) 16 oz processed american cheese slices $0.99
(1) 16 oz swiss cheese slices $1.79
1.87 lb ground beef $6.13*
(6) small cans mushrooms @ $0.59 ea
(2) 8 oz cream cheese @ $1.19 ea
(3) 15 oz sour cream @ $1.29 ea
(6) quarts half'n'half @ $1.79 ea
(1) 8 oz. can parm cheese $2.39
(4) bags pork rinds @ $0.89 ea
(1) jar mayo @ 2.19
(1) 100 ct sweet'n'low (their own brand) $1.19
(2) big bars dark chocolate @ $1.49 ea.
*I'll be making a big potful of chili for hubby and grandson (I don't care for it.)
TOTAL $72.15


So, the first week of March I've spent $205.61. By the time I place my online order for baking supplies I will probably be at, or above, the $300 mark, and will also need odds and ends between now and the end of March.

IMPORTANT POINT: Comparing last month's many mini-trips and how much they cost with this month's planned shopping, I've already gotten a LOT more food even though I've spent less so far.

My #Lowcarb "Dish to Pass" for Potluck at Church

I was rather at a loss what to make for today's potluck. Last week I had just bought a bag of potatoes, and since I'm the only low carber there I decided I'd just make seasoned potato wedges. They were great (I used the whole bag, and they were gone!), but nobody really brought a meat dish (which I usually bring, or a casserole containing meat)...so I will make sure to take one from now on.

Anyway, here's what I came up with, and it was really really good!

I sliced several yellow squash and several zucchinis on a bias so I got big slices, and also rough-chopped 3 onions, then I tossed them all with olive oil and sea salt and roasted them at 425 for about 25 minutes, tossing once.

Meanwhile I browned and crumbled about 2# of ground beef and ground turkey together.

In a bowl I mixed together 2 cans of drained diced tomatoes and a 15 oz. container of whole milk ricotta.

When the vegetables and meat were done I let them cool a bit, then tossed them with the tomatoes and cheese, and topped it all with some lowcarb bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. At the church the "food ladies" :) put it uncovered into the oven to heat, and brown the top.

I had 2 huge helpings (and a single spoonful of potato salad, and a slice of salisbury steak, and a small piece of pumpkin custard) and it was really really good! Got a lot of compliments on the dish too, it made a 9x13x2 pan full to the top!

I used about $3 of meat, $2.25 of squash, $1.18 of tomatoes, $1.59 of ricotta, and less than $1 of onions (got some out of the bargain basket yesterday). I'd say there were about 10 good helpings, for about $0.85 per helping. (Veggies, meat, and dairy all included!)

DEFINITELY something I will make again :).

Final February Food Costs #lowcarb

We ended up with more stuff from Sav-a-Lot on the 26th, then we went to Merchandise Mart where I found quite a low carb items including various crunchy snacks, crackers, and SF fruit juice. Great bargains included Dreamfield's spaghetti for $1.29 (I bought 5) and Miracle Noodles for $0.79 (I bought 2)! The total for these items was $20.46.

The total from Sav-a-Lot was $35.30 and included
(4) quarts Half'n'Half @ $1.99 ea
(6) individual pizzas @ $6.34 total (they were different brands)
(1) 12oz bottle of SF maple syrup @ $1.29
(1) head of cabbage @ $0.39/lb
(1) 24 pack of water @ $2.99 (our drinking water is awful here!)
(1) 12-pack diet cola @ $2.69 (for my mom when she's here) + $1.20 deposit
(1) 24 oz shredded mozzarella cheese @ $5.79
(1) 24 oz shredded cheddar cheese @ $5.79

So my grand total for February was $263.00.

March, I believe, will be a little higher, since I'm going to try to put in a netrition.com order for my baking supplies. I only do this 2-3 times a year, and it usually adds about $100 to the budget for that month.

So far this year I'm averaging under $60/week for groceries including snacks, or about $8.50/day! This makes me happy!

Thank You Jamie VanEaton! #Lowcarb Breadsticks

(Click on the title to be taken to this recipe in Jamie's blog, The Lighter Side.)

This will be short and sweet.

I tried these last night. My non-low-carbing daughter came in the house and said, "Wow, something smells GREAT in here!" So I offered her a freshly cut, still-warm breadstick. Hadn't even gotten out the dipping sauce yet. Said daughter took a bite, and her eyes got wide. "MOM!! These taste JUST like Little Caesar's breadsticks!!"

Just sayin'... :)

OH! MY! GOODNESS! My #Lowcarb Lunch

I know I've used the word AMAZING quite a bit in the past, but I didn't know what AMAZING was until I ate today's lunch. It was TRULY AMAZING. And cheap...and easy...so it fits perfectly into this blog :)



First I cut three 3/4"-1" slices of cabbage, brushed both sides of each slice generously with olive oil, seasoned with S&P, and put them on a baking pan in a 400* oven.

Next I chopped up 2 small yellow onions - no particular size or shape, just sliced them up and cut through each slice a couple of times. I put them in a hot frying pan with olive oil in the bottom, gave them a stir to coat, and let them cook over medium heat.

Then I pulled a breast and a thigh off of the chicken I roasted a couple of days ago, and diced up the meat. (As a side note, this makes meal #3 from that $4.40 chicken, and I still have the legs and wings left which will be a nice lunch for Pete at work.)

At this point I opened the oven and flipped the cabbage over, turning the heat up to 425* to get some browning action going on.

Then I added the chicken to the onions, which were now translucent and starting to brown, sprinkled in a generous amount of dark chili powder, S&P, and a can of diced tomatoes (with the juice - but there wasn't much juice). Stirred together, covered, reduced heat to medium low, and let heat together for 10 minutes.

To serve, I scooped a slice of cabbage onto the plate (arranging the wonderful crispy bits along the side), then the chicken mixture (using a slotted spoon so it wouldn't be runny), and topped it with a generous dollop of full fat sour cream which both balanced the spiciness of the chili powder and added some much-needed fat to the dish.

It was heavenly! The cabbage was tender but with some firmness to it, and so sweet from being roasted - you just don't get cabbage to sweeten up by boiling or frying! The outer leaves that came loose in the oven got dark brown and crispy, adding not only another texture, but also were even sweeter - they were like crispy candy! The slight spiciness of the chicken mixture blended with the sour cream just set off fireworks of pleasure in my mouth. I just can't begin to describe what a fantastic dish this was, and my husband is totally in awe of my skills in the kitchen - lol!

And, it was cheap. About $1.25 worth of leftover chicken, 59c for the can of tomatoes, half of a head of cabbage - or 50c worth, 35c worth of onion, and I'll add a generous 50c for the olive oil (maybe 4T in all?) and seasonings. This made 3 LARGE servings, and would easily serve 4. For about $3.20 TOTAL, plus maybe 25c worth of sour cream per serving.

THIS, ladies and gentleman, is what Cheap'n'Easy Low Carbing is about :).

Making #Lowcarb Flat #Breads (click title for #recipe)

I'm really sick with a nasty virus, and everything I do causes me to break out into a sweat and get all achy...but when you've gotta have 'em, you've gotta have 'em! However I just used up the last of my Wheat Protein Isolate 5000 and the last of my oat fiber. I'm down on almond flour too. So it's looking like I'll need to put in a netrition.com order soon - or else no more baking :(. Anyway, the ball of dough has been kneaded and is in the rising stage now. In the past I've always made about 16 six-inch flat breads but that is time-consuming and hard on my back. Today I think I will make 8 bigger ones, which should cut the rolling-out time in half if my math is correct :).

And now I am all stoked for a warm one, straight off the griddle, later tonight with melted butter, cinnamon, and a little splenda, then rolled up, with a good hot cup of (decaf) coffee! These are SO dreamy...

Bad News for the Grocery Budget! #lowcarb

This is a prime example of why I don't like going to the store too often. But as I've mentioned, I'm sick with a nasty miserable virus (the doc told me yesterday this one lasts THREE WEEKS! I'm on day 8, and was down with vertigo a couple of weeks ago) so I'm not doing the shopping/cooking like I usually would, depending on hubby who does a good job but not like I do it. And I'm over my $200 budget for the month already. I won't beat myself over the head about it, and some months - when I'm stocking up on a big meat sale, for example - I go over and don't give it a 2nd thought, and some months - like last month - I'm under budget. But this month it happened just because I didn't do a big shopping with my coupons or shop the sales, and this is the result. Hopefully you can at least learn from it :).

Sav-a-Lot (now that I've gone to Aldi's a few times, I'm really hating paying SaL's high prices!)

(3) pkgs shredded cheese @ $3.19 ea (4 oz smaller & $0.20c more than Aldi's)
(2) quarts half'n'half @ $1.99 ea ($0.20c more than Aldi's)
(2) lbs. butter @ $2.39 ea ($0.10 more than Aldi's)
(1) 4.54# whole chicken $4.40
(2) frozen pizzas (!) @ $1.79 ea
(1) 24 oz. fish $3.19
(100 ct.) sugar sub $1.19
(4) bags salad mix @ $0.29 each ($1 off each)
5# potatoes $2.29

TOTAL $34.34

TOTAL for month so far $207.24

A Delicious #Lowcarb Quiche! (& a couple more receipts...)

Whenever I slice my lowcarb bread it seems that I end up with a couple of slices that just aren't right. I dry these for breadcrumbs, or set them aside for another use. Tonight I used some of these pieces in my quiche.
I melted a half stick of butter in a 9" round pyrex baking dish, then I broke the bread into small pieces and put it in the dish to soak up the butter. While it was doing that I whisked together a half-dozen eggs with a half-cup of full fat ricotta cheese and a little S&P, and diced some ham into small dices, which I spread across the soaked bread. Then I sprinkled a few handfuls of frozen spinach (out of the big bag, it's pretty loose, like crumbles) on the ham, and poured the egg/ricotta mixture on top. Into a 350 oven for 30 minutes, at which time I removed it and sprinkled some shredded colby-jack cheese on top. After another 20 minutes in the oven it was lovely! And I do have to say that this is one of the best quiches I've ever made! Isn't it beautiful???

I've been sick all week, so today hubby went to the store to pick up a few things. Here are the receipts:

Walmart -
(1) rotisserie chicken $4.58
(1) Blue Bunny no sugar added ice cream $3.97
(because it would feel good on my swollen and painful throat)
(1) 20 ct. berry flavored teabags $2.38
TOTAL $12.16 (with tax)

Sav-a-Lot -
(1) lb butter $2.39
(1) box saltines $0.99
(1) 24 ct. decaf teabags $0.99
TOTAL $4.37

Then he stopped at Dollar General to pick up some Whales crackers for our grandson for another buck.

TOTAL today = $17.53

TOTAL for February so far $172.90

It really is a lot more expensive to go to the store more often and just buy a few things at a time! If nothing else, this month is evidence of that.

A Few More #Lowcarb Grocery Receipts

Seems like we're just going to nickel and dime our way through this month! That's what I get for not doing a "big shopping" to start with, I guess :).

Sav-a-Lot (Feb.5 - just found receipt):
(2) quarts half'n'half @ $1.99 ea
(2) frozen 14.34 oz. pizzas @ $1.79 ea
(4) packages SF pudding mix @ $0.50 ea.
(1) some kind of cheese on the receipt, don't remember now what exactly $1.49
TOTAL $11.05

Aldi (Feb.10)
(1) jar salsa $1.79
(1) 15 oz. sour cream $1.29
(4) quarts half'n'half @ $1.79 ea
(1) 11.3 oz can decaf coffee $2.79
(2) bags pork rinds @ $0.89 ea (They're $1.19 at Sav-a-Lot!!)
(1) pint carton liquid egg whites $1.89 (specifically for a recipe I want to try)
(2) cans diced tomatoes @ $0.59 ea.
(1) jar SF raspberry preserves $1.99
(1) jar peanut butter $2.29
(1) 3# bag of yellow onions $1.59
(2) 12 ct. large eggs @ $1.19 ea. (They're $2/dozen around here!!)
(2) cans tuna in water @ $0.59 ea. (They're $0.79 around here!!)
TOTAL $27.31

Then this morning before I got up my husband went to Walmart and got (4) frozen 9 oz. pizzas (!) @ $1.36 ea. and a 2# bag of popcorn for $1.48 - TOTAL = $6.92 (These were the small pizzas; for another $0.43 he could have gotten pizzas that were nearly 50% bigger, if he'd gone to Sav-a-Lot...which is also a lot closer, so less gas used...but he doesn't do things my way which doesn't make him wrong, just, well, more expensive :). )

So there are still 2 weeks left to the month and we've spent $155.37. Less than $45 left for the month in the budget (although I could spend more than that if I had to - I just do my best not to go over $200/mo.), I think we can do it...although since Pete bought popcorn, we'll be using more butter :).

Such a Yummy #Lowcarb Day! (How I Actually Use These Groceries!)

Before I forget, Pete ran to the store to pick up 3 bags of pork rinds, they were $1.19 each at Sav-a-Lot. (I will see what they are at Aldi, and perhaps stock up, the next time I'm in Saginaw.) So, adding $3.57 to our previous total, so far this month we've spent $113.66.

Today was so good! For late breakfast/early lunch I scrambled 4 eggs with full fat sour cream and a handful (about 1/4c) of shredded cheese; we had it with 2 sausage patties each. Late lunch/snack was pork rinds dipped in a mixture of salsa/sour cream; these are best if I first bake a layer of cheese onto the porkies but I was too hungry and didn't feel like it - and they were still really delicious!!

Supper - ooooh, supper...soooo good! I coated my tilapia fillets with a mixture of coconut flour and carbquik (2:1), and added some seafood seasoning and sea salt, then fried it in butter/olive oil until crisp outside and tender inside. Tilapia is great for this, it's thin enough to cook through quickly on higher heat so it can crisp up - high enough that the butter doesn't burn, but just barely. And I made the green beans we love (sauteed in butter/olive oil with sea salt and onion powder), and I have a bunch of 2c bags of cooked hubbard squash in the freezer - I got 4 hubbard squashes from friends this fall that I cooked and bagged - so we had one of those also, seasoned with butter, brown sugar sub, and cinnamon.

If I want a snack later I'll have some dark chocolate.

I'm going to get a pork roast out of the freezer tonight to roast tomorrow, and will make some fried cabbage with it. I'll make bacon for before church tomorrow, and will use some of the bacon fat, and some of the bacon, for the cabbage. I have 4 small potatoes left, so I'll bake those to go with it...

And Yet a Few More #Lowcarb Groceries

I didn't buy nearly what I wanted to get, but the prices were to outrageous, I will have to make do with what I got on Wednesday:

Sav-a-Lot:
4.54# chicken drumsticks $4.40
(3) 12 oz chubs ground turkey @ $1.00 ea
2# tilapia fillets $5.99
24 pack drinking water $2.99
(2) 16 oz boxes baking soda* @ $0.59 ea.
(3) 15 oz, cans tomato sauce $1.00
(1) gal. white vinegar* $2.29
(2) 20 oz. pkgs ham "ends & pieces" @ $0.99 ea
(3) 20 oz. pkgs turkey "ends & pieces" @ $0.99 ea.

*I use these more for cleaning than cooking, but including them anyway

TOTAL $25.80

Walmart:
(2) eggplants @ $1.64/lb - $3.49
(2) 16 oz frozen cauliflower @ $1.29 ea
(1) 14 oz. frozen brussels sprouts $1.68
(1) NSA apple juice (for grandson) $1.97
(2) frozen meals for Pete's lunches @ $1.00 ea
(1) spaghetti squash @ $0.69/lb - $1.33
(1) head of iceburg lettuce $0.94
(1) 24 oz cottage cheese (full fat) $2.68
(1) 24 oz sour cream (full fat) $2.08
(2) 15 oz whole-milk ricotta @ $1.59 ea

TOTAL - $21.91

TOTAL for the month so far $110.09 - and it's only the 10th! But my freezer and cupboards are pretty full, so I'll just fill in here and there for the rest of the month.

And what I've been eating:
Wednesday I prepared the entire package of chicken legs (seasoned well & roasted) for quick snacks, Pete's lunches, whatever. I had 4 chicken legs for a late lunch, then a steak with fauxtatoes (cauli, butter, sour cream mashed) for supper.

Thursday I had pork rinds dipped in sour cream and salsa for lunch; supper was lasagna using thin eggplant slices for noodles; also contained tomato sauce, seasonings, ground turkey, ½ onion, cottage, ricotta, and mozzarella cheeses, and an egg. I also had 4 squares of 82% cacao chocolate as a snack.

February #LowCarb Groceries #2

We were in Saginaw yesterday, didn't have a whole lot of time but managed a quick trip through Aldi's while we were there. I'm so excited to have rediscovered this gem! I used to shop there all the time when I lived in Lansing (they have TWO of them!) and have really missed it.

Anyway, here is what I bought:
(1) 16 oz. Mexican Shredded Cheese $2.99
(2) 16 oz. Shredded Mozzarella @ $3.49 ea.
(2) dark chocolate bars, 1 @ 99¢, 1 @ $1.49
(1) bag of chips (Hubby got for himself) $1.99
(1) 100 ct. saccharin sweetener packets $1.19 (I usually buy the bulk box which is MUCH cheaper, but we were out of it; it's best not to go to another store, where I buy more stuff than I need! I spend much less by paying a little more at a store I'm already at.)
(1) 33.9 oz can of coffee $5.49
(1) 11.3 oz can decaf coffee $2.79
(1) pint jar salsa $1.79
(1) box instant rice $1.35 (will use in potluck meals for church; ½c goes a long way in a casserole!)
(2) cans diced tomatoes 59¢ ea
(1) can parmesan cheese $2.39
(1) 16 oz pkg American cheese slices 99¢
(1) 16 oz pkg Swiss cheese slices $1.99
(1) bottle salad dressing $1.29
(4) quarts half'n'half @ $1.79 ea

TOTAL @ Aldi's was $42.05; total for the month so far $62.38. And I have to go pick up a few things today for meals through this next week: eggplant and ground sausage for lasagna (and I can use up that vile lowfat cottage cheese I picked up by mistake!), turnips, onions, cauliflower, brussels sprouts (hubby's favorite veggie), popcorn, broth, fish, SOS soap pads (I like these SO much better than Brillo!), dog food...and if there's any "red sticker" meat for a good price I might bring home some of that as well. I will be up near $100 within the first 10 days of the month but shouldn't need to spend more than another $100 before March - unless I have an opportunity to stock up on something for a great price :).