Dough Balls – sounds unappetizing, but they aren’t too bad

It has been a bit since I posted a recipe. But I thought I would try making some “dough balls”… I wasn’t too sure about it though.

I’ve seen a few recipes popping up and the last one looked decent. But I didn’t have the specific ingredients, and decided that I would alter the whole process.

So… while they are “doughy” when fresh out of the oven, they are tasty dipped in melted butter. Once they are completely cool they are more bread-like in consistency.

As I hate using just part of something in a recipe I used probably more cheese in this than necessary, but it still worked out.

Cheesy Dough Balls

Pre-heat oven to 350F, and line a pan with parchment paper.

Ingredients:

One 340 gram (or thereabouts) package of Mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup of butter

2 eggs

2 tbsp each of fresh herbs of your choice – I used chives and thyme. Add as many as you like. These hold up to strong flavours.

3/4 cup of coconut flour

2 tbsp psyllium husk powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp garlic powder

Directions:

1. Measure out the dry ingredients into a small bowl and combine.
2. Chop or shred the mozzarella into a microwave safe bowl and put in the microwave on high for 30 seconds or so. Take out and stir. Keep nuking it in 30 second bursts until it is completely melted.
3. Add the butter and herbs to the cheese and mix in as best you can. You might need to nuke for another burst.
4. Add the eggs and work in until reasonably mixed in.
5. Add all the dry ingredients and stir to combine as much as possible, then you need to start working it with your hands. Knead it as you have to work the dry into the cheese mixture really well. It will form a fairly even dough. This may take several minutes of kneading.
6. Pinch off the dough and roll into ping-pong ball sized balls. Line up on the parchment close together in a rectangle.
7. Bake at 350F for approximately 20 minutes – they should be browning on top.
8. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes.

I dipped them in melted butter to eat while warm. I then brushed melted butter over the remaining balls.

These are definitely better the second day!  The flavourings take over the coconut flour taste which make them much more tasty.

I think the next time I do this I will amp up the flavourings – more herbs, maybe pepper or other spicier things, maybe onions or green chillies. And maybe reduce the mozzarella bit and add in a strong cheese.

Also, it might work to wrap the dough around something – like a piece of cheese or meat, or an olive… would make a nice appetizer or snack.

 

 

Easy Ice Cream, literally – it is frozen cream

I really have missed ice cream.  But last week saw a recipe for Mason Jar Ice Cream so I tried it… O.M.G.  (Here is that recipe… Low Carb Chocolate Mason Jar Ice Cream)

I changed things a tad (of course) and used a quart jar instead of a pint, but I found the jar to be annoying to eat out of.

I substituted dissolved saccharine tablets for the sweetener called for.  This was the first time I used artificial sweetener in anything – I don’t get an aftertaste with saccharine, so decided to try.  I used too much so scaled it back a lot when I did this second version.

I decided to make a bigger batch and use a hand mixer, and to freeze in a container that was convenient to scoop out of!  I also changed the proportions of ingredients a bit to suit me.

So this is the way I made it today…

LCHF Chocolate Ice Cream

Put your bowl and the beaters in the freezer while you assemble your ingredients – you’ll get quicker results when you start beating!

You’ll need a lidded container of at least one quart capacity to freeze this in.

2 tsp vanilla extract

3 tbsp of SIFTED unsweetened cocoa (I will be increasing this for future batches to probably 1/3 to 1/2 a cup – I like rich dark chocolate.  But this batch was made with 3 tbsp.)

5 saccharine tablets completely dissolved in less than 1/2 tsp of BOILING water

2 cups of whipping cream (33% or higher m.f.)

Add all the ingredients to the cold bowl and beat with an electric hand mixer (or use a stand mixer.) Start low as the cocoa powder will want to fly around, once mixed in put on high and beat until it has doubled in volume and is stiff.  Add any extras at this time and mix just enough to blend through.

OPTIONS:  finely chopped 85% cocoa dark chocolate, toasted nuts, unsweetened peanut butter (drop into the cream in tiny bits), etc.  You could also skip the chocolate and use other flavour extracts or, if you aren’t worried about sugar content, you could add fruits.

Using a rubber spatula transfer to your quart container and smooth out the top, put on the lid and freeze for at least three hours.

You could also put into a popsicle mold to make fudgesicles!  That’s my next batch.

I’m not sure how long this keeps in the freezer… I haven’t let it stay in there long enough to figure out.

I don’t have an ice cream scoop so dug it out with a teaspoon and made a bit of a mess! Could have waited for it soften a bit… but, well…  I had it with one of my Chocolate Pecan Cupcakes that I made on Saturday.

YUM!

Chocolate Pecan Cupcakes! Oh yes I did!

It has been a while since I posted a recipe.  I do have a couple to share but will start with the cupcakes I made today!

As always… a recipe caught my eye, but I changed it a lot.  Added, removed, increased, etc. until it bears no resemblance to the original version.

The recipe that I saw was for a cake with walnuts… I hate walnuts.  Also, didn’t want a cake, cupcakes keep and store easier in the freezer.  I also don’t use powdered sugar substitutes.

Up until last week I wasn’t using ANY sugar substitutes at all, but I discovered that saccharine is available in the pill form here.  My granny used to use it and as kids we would try it… never had an aftertaste for me.  So… I bought a bottle of Hermesetas tablets.  The only thing I’ve used it in so far has been ice cream I made last week (I will post about that later!) and this recipe.

I just dissolve a few tablets in about 1/8 tsp of boiling water and add to the recipe for a touch of sweetness. Each pill is equal to a teaspoon of sugar.  I am not adding the amount called for in the recipes as I don’t need it to be really sweet, but felt the ice cream could use a some, and then this recipe was an experiment to see if it would work.  It did.

So here is the recipe I came up with today for Chocolate Pecan Cupcakes.

Chocolate Pecan Cupcakes – LCHF, Gluten Free, Sugar Free

Makes 6 large cupcakes (or one 8″ cake if you prefer.)

Pre-heat oven to 350F.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup cream cheese

1/4 cup coconut oil

3 eggs

4 saccharine tablets dissolved in 1/8 tsp of boiling water (you can substitute whatever sweetener you want and increase to make this more of a regular sweetness level.)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

1 cup almond flour

1 tbsp coconut flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup cream

1/4 cup of chopped pecans (or any kind of nut you like) – completely optional BTW.

Topping: Lindt 85% Cocoa Chocolate bar – 6 pieces.

Instructions:

1. Line a muffin tin with paper liners (or grease an 8″ cake pan in your preferred manner.)
2. Measure all the dry ingredients together and stir, except for the nuts.
3. Cream the coconut oil (I did not melt it first) and the cream cheese with an electric mixer, add the eggs one at a time, add the vanilla, and dissolved saccharine, and continue mixing on high.
4. Add the dry ingredients and the cream about a third at a time, alternating between additions.  If the batter is too thick add a little more cream.  It should be thick but pourable like regular cake batter.
5. Add the nuts and mix until combined.
6. Divided batter between the six cupcake liners.
7. Bake at 350F on the centre rack for 20-25 minutes.  They are done when a toothpick comes out clean. Ovens vary so it might take a few minutes more or less.
8. Take them out of the oven and immediately place a piece of the Lindt chocolate on top of each cupcake, when it has melted spread it around.
9. Let cool completely.

I like to freeze them once cool and eat them frozen!

I am very pleased with how these turned out!  Ate one and the rest are in the freezer. Tomorrow I am making more ice cream and intend to have cake and ice cream!  Who said you have to give up treats when you are a diabetic who follows LCHF/HP??? Not this girl!

 

 

Cake… Chocolate Cake… I’m in Heaven

I am sitting here trying NOT to have a third piece of my happy accident of a chocolate cake.

It actually started out as a recipe for Brownies – I saw a recipe for Almond Butter Brownies that was described as Paleo and I had the main ingredients so figured I’d throw it together as there was nothing really on television I was interested in.

Of course I left out the maple syrup that was in the original recipe (I don’t use any sweeteners) and then misread and used baking powder instead of baking soda, also added mascarpone cheese to add some level of sweetness.  I was also a bit short on the almond butter  so figured the cheese would compensate for that.

O.M.G.  I did not make brownies… I made a moist, tender, fluffy DELICIOUS chocolate cake!  When the toothpick came out clean I took it out – it had risen quite a bit more than I expected but I anticipated it would fall as it cooled.  It didn’t.

When I cut a piece to try, the texture was perfectly cake like, not brownie like at all. It was so good!  The mascarpone and the almond butter had a sweetness and the added 70% chocolate chips also added some.

LCHF Gluten Free Almond Butter & Mascarpone Chocolate Cake (UNSWEETENED)

Ingredients:

1 cup Almond Butter

1/3 cup Mascarpone Cheese or Cream Cheese

2 tbsp Coconut Oil or butter

1/2 cup Whipping Cream (33% fat)

3 eggs

1 tsp Vanilla

1/2 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

2 tsp Baking Powder

1/8 tsp Salt

1/2 cup Chopped Pecans or other nuts (optional)

1/2 cup 70-100% Cocoa Chocolate Chips or chopped up baking chocolate or Lindt bars etc. (optional)

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F
2. In a mixing bowl combine the Almond Butter,  Cheese, Coconut Oil/butter and cream them together till they are smooth.
3. Then add the Whipping Cream, Eggs and Vanilla and mix well with an electric hand mixer (if you don’t have one it can be done easily by hand too.)
4. Sift the Cocoa Powder, Baking Powder and Salt together, then add a bit at a time to the wet ingredients mixing well before adding more.
5. Continue to beat with the mixer for a minute, or whip with a hand whisk – ensure there are no lumps in the batter.
6. Stir in the Pecans and Chocolate Chips by hand.
7. Spray an 8×8″ baking pan with non-stick spray and dust with a little sifted cocoa powder, shake it around to coat the pan.
8. Scoop the batter into the pan and spread out evenly.
9. Put on the centre rack of the oven for approximately 15 minutes. I can usually tell it is done when the sides start to pull away from the pan, but check for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the centre, if it comes out clean it is done (remember… if the toothpick hits a chocolate chip it will have melted chocolate on it – be careful not to over bake.)
10. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

I didn’t top it with anything but I’m sure a drizzle of melted chocolate and/or whipped cream would be awesome.

p.s. It is great for breakfast too!

Low Carb Almond Flour Baking Powder Biscuits

I have mentioned, often, how disappointing low carb recipes for “bread” have been.  I gave up trying for the most part.  But I saw some recipes for baking powder biscuits that might be okay… and I still miss baked goods.

I had the ingredients so… what the heck.  Worse case I would have crumbs to use with other stuff to make a crust for a pizza (like I did with my crumbled waffles!)

I scoped out a bunch of different recipes… some had stuff in them I don’t use or want to use, others added sweeteners.  A lot used butter and seasonings to brush on top after they were baked which I didn’t think was needed.  Lots included cheese and garlic to replicate biscuits from a restaurant chain.

I just wanted plain old baking powder biscuits. I used to just whip them up in the old days – no recipe needed.  But for this first attempt I looked at several of the ones I found and took what I wanted out of them and left out the rest.  I adjusted the measurements a bit too (I see no point in leaving 1/4 tablespoon of left over something!)

As I had sour cream in the fridge I used that.  Some recipes I looked at used cream cheese instead.

Low Carb Almond Flour Baking Powder Biscuits

Preheat oven to 400F.

1 3/4 cups of almond flour (flour, not ground almonds)

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons (heaping) of baking powder (I use Magic Brand)

4 tablespoons of melted butter

2 large eggs, beaten

1/3 cup (heaping, not level) of sour cream

1. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl – mix them well, the almond flour can be clumpy.
2. In another dish beat the eggs and add the sour cream and melted butter.
3. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and stir until well blended.
4. Using two spoons, shape batter into loose “balls” and drop onto a parchment lined baking sheet. The batter is very light and once you drop onto the pan it is difficult to shape it. They will spread a bit so leave a fair amount of space.
5. Place baking sheet on the centre rack for 10-15 minutes.  Start checking at 10 minutes as ovens vary!  I like mine fairly browned so left them in for a longer time.

This recipe actually made ten decent sized biscuits. (I ate two before I took the photo – wasn’t sure if it was a photo worthy recipe!)

The came out pretty flat but OMG!!  They ARE baking powder biscuits!  Taste like them, act like them. I am so happy!  I didn’t bother slicing them open to eat, just slathered butter on top of the hot from the oven ones I ate.

They fit in the toaster perfectly and were great over the next four days!  Just put the toaster at the lowest setting – it is nut flour so it burns fast!

I ate them plain with butter; with an over-easy egg; with scrambled eggs and cheese; and with ham and mustard!  They held up great for a sandwich – didn’t crumble.

I am making a couple batches to freeze.  As they toast up so well that will be great to grab for a quick meal or snack!

I’m also going to try to make a larger “crust” out of this recipe to use for a pizza crust or maybe a pot pie topper?  Oh the possibilities!  I though about dumplings but don’t think it will stand up to the liquids.  I’ll post about what works out!

 

What the Fudge?

Last night I was having a craving for peanut butter cups.  I don’t often have cravings, and if I have one for something I usually just have one square of a Lindt 85% Cacao bar and that takes care of it.  But just smearing P.B. on the chocolate wasn’t doing it for me.

So I decided to see if I could make fudge.  I don’t use sweeteners and sugar substitutes by personal choice (no sugar due to my diabetes and no artificial sweeteners/replacements as I find them horrible – aftertastes, headaches, etc.)

I decided to use 85 & 88% chocolate bars, unsweetened peanut butter, butter and peanuts. Pretty simple.

I had Lindt and Purdy’s chocolate on-hand (a staple in my cupboard!) so broke them up into a microwave safe bowl, added 1/4 cup of butter and nuked on high for 35 seconds, then removed and stirred until the chocolate was almost completely melted.  I had to stick it back in for another 20 seconds to get the last of the lumps melted.  Then I stirred in 3/4 cup of peanut butter and stirred briskly until it was completely blended.  Then tossed in about a cup of roasted peanuts.

I poured in into a parchment lined square pan and put in the fridge overnight.

This morning I took it out and it sliced easily into small squares and tastes great!  I might increase the peanut butter ratio next time.

I can only eat one square at a time as a treat (to avoid blood sugar spikes) so I am storing in a sealed container in the cold part of my fridge.

Shannon’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Fudge

125 grams of dark chocolate (85-88% cacao – or whatever you prefer, any chocolate will work) broken up into small pieces

1/4 cup of butter

3/4 to 1 cup of unsweetened peanut butter

1 cup of roasted peanuts (optional, or use different nuts, or add dried cranberries!  There are lots of options)

1. Melt the chocolate and butter in a microwave safe bowl on high for about 35 seconds, remove from microwave and stir until it is melted – may need to put back in microwave for a few more seconds if the chocolate isn’t completely melted.
2. Stir in the peanut butter.  It needs to be completely blended in.
3. Add the nuts, stir.
4. Pour into a parchment or foil lined square pan, and refrigerate for a couple hours (overnight is good).
5. Remove from pan by lifting out the parchment or foil, and cut into pieces.  Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

The cauliflower experiment

In my search for interesting food to cook myself I’ve seen, and been sent, the recipes for cauliflower pizza crust, cauliflower garlic bread, etc.  Supposedly you use cauliflower as a substitute for the bread part.

Okay.

Thing is, I’ve become quite cynical about recipes that purport to make substitutes for carb based food.  I’ve been trying them and the results are:

1. Disgusting, inedible messes.  Like the “pancakes” using coconut flour and many eggs.
2. Don’t look anything remotely close to what appears in the photographs accompanying the recipes.
3. Descriptions and instructions do not jibe – what the recipe says is not what happens.
4. Recipes writers LIE!

I know how to follow recipes and to troubleshoot when something isn’t right.  I trained as a chef for a year right out of high school, and worked as a cook and a baker, so I know my way around an oven and food processor.  I’ve followed a lot of recipes in my life and they pretty much always turn out very well.  So you can imagine how I felt trying these recipes and experiencing such massive fails!

Nonetheless, this cauliflower thing was intriguing.  I like cauliflower.  So I spent a few weeks checking out the recipes that popped up on my Facebook feed, or that my sister and friends sent me.  Some were so involved that I lost interest part way through reading them.  Others spent 2000 words describing how great they were and how you couldn’t even tell it was cauliflower… really?  Now why don’t I believe that?

Several recipes described cooking the cauliflower then wringing it out in a towel to remove moisture, which seeing as they cooked it with water… made sense. But why would you bother cooking it with water to only have to wring it out?   Some said to grate the cauliflower into “rice” first, or after cooking.  I came across one that pureed the cauliflower and then microwaved it without water and didn’t wring it out, that made more sense.

I bought a cauliflower (putting my retirement at risk at the expense) so today was the day I tried this idea out.  Realizing, of course, that it was going to taste like, well, CAULIFLOWER!  What I wanted to end up with was a patty or fritter type thing.  Hopefully crunchy.

I started by chopping up a cauliflower head and processing it into a coarse grind in the food processor.

 

I did not puree it, it was a dry fine chop.  You could do it by hand too if you didn’t have a machine to do it.

Then I microwaved it for a total of 10 minutes on high – stopping at 5 minutes to stir it.

While it was cooking I grated up a hunk of parmesan and some mozzarella.

I decided to add bacon to my recipe – I always have real bacon bits in the fridge (I put that sh*t on everything!  LOL) and some spices.  This time I used ground white pepper, paprika, ground thyme, onion powder, garlic powder, chilli powder – I didn’t add salt as I figured the bacon and the parmesan would add enough.  And eggs to bind it together.

I let the cauliflower cool to room temperature and then mixed in the spices, then the bacon and cheeses.  I wanted to make sure they were well blended before adding the eggs.

Then added the eggs and mixed it up really well.

I had got three eggs out but thought two might be enough, but it did need the third one.

Then I put heaping spoonfuls on the parchment paper and pressed them flat and shaped the sides with the spoon.  One large head of cauliflower made enough for what’s in the photo.

They aren’t bad at all.  Next time (yes, I will do this again!) I am going to use a lot more spice and different stronger flavours.  And I am going to cook in oil on the stove – like potato pancakes – I want them crunchy!  These are firm, but not crisp.

CAULIFLOWER, BACON & CHEESE PATTIES

Preheat oven to 425F.  Cover baking sheet with parchment paper.

Ingredients used in this batch shown in the photos:

Large head of cauliflower

1 cup (by volume) grated parmesan (or other hard cheese)

1/2 cup (by volume) grated mozzarella (or other softer cheese)

1/4 cup chopped cooked bacon

Spices:  ground white pepper, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, chilli powder, ground thyme – less than 1/8 tsp of each.  Next time I would use a lot more!

3 large eggs

Directions:

Coarsely chop or grind cauliflower to an even consistency. Place in a microwave safe bowl or dish, cover with lid or plastic wrap, and microwave on high for a total of 10 minutes, stirring once at the 5 minute mark.

Remove cover, stir and let the cauliflower cool to room temperature.

Once the cauliflower is cool, stir in spices, bacon and cheeses.  Once well blended, add the eggs and mix until combined.

Scoop onto the parchment lined cookie sheet and shape into desired size/shape – flatten and even out the sides.

Bake in the centre of the 425F oven for a total of 25 minutes, rotating the sheets at the 15 minute mark.  Check for desired doneness as your oven may be hotter or cooler than mine. Edges should be dark brown and the top should be starting to brown.

Remove from oven and let cool before removing from tray.  It doesn’t take long.  These turned out to be firm and solid so are suitable to hold other things.

Eat as is, warm, with condiments of your choice – guacamole, sour cream, dijon mustard, more cheese, etc.  Or, make a sandwich with them like I did – guacamole and sliced turkey!

Store leftovers in the fridge wrapped tightly in plastic wrap (to avoid condensation in containers.)

This turned out well… and yes, this would work for a pizza crust very well.  HOWEVER, it is cauliflower and tastes like cauliflower but it is a neat way to eat it!