Pecan Crusted Tilapia

Needed a change from my normal chicken meals.  Tonight I was determined to fix fish.   I rarely cook fish.  It's always been so intimidating to fix, but it's not at all difficult.  It's all in my head.  I'm SO SO glad I chose to finally do it.  It was fabulous and will be rotated through my meal plans much more often.  I like this particular recipe because I can do it just for me or easily double or triple the batter if my family actually feels like eating fish. (which they didn't tonight)

Frozen Tilapia, defrost your filet

"batter" consists of: 1 egg, 2 Tbsp. heavy cream, 1 Tbsp.
coconut flour, squirt of Sriracha sauce, salt and pepper

batter and handful of pecans

dry Tilapia filet with paper towel, salt and pepper it, then dunk in batter,
afterwards sprinkle chopped pecans on the top and bottom of filet

I cut my filet into two longer pieces.  One side was thicker and
I figured it would need an extra minute or two to cook.
The thin piece needed almost 2 min./side, the thicker piece needed almost 3 min./side

ummm....yes, I started eating before remembering I needed
to take the final shot.  I also added extra sriracha sauce, because
you can NEVER have too much sriracha.  ;-) 

Italian Eggplant Lasagna

Last week I made myself a few slices of fried eggplant (with coconut flour) and now I need to use the last of the eggplant so I don't have to throw it away.  I hate when I buy veggies and end up having to compost it because I forgot about it in the crisper.  That happens WAY more often than I'd like to admit.  So....Italian night it is.  WOOT!

Brown 1 lb. ground beef, season with salt and pepper,
then add 1 chopped onion and 1 chopped link of
Italian sausage

add chopped bell peppers and seasonings I used Italian
seasoning, salt, red pepper flakes, fennel, and garlic powder

I added a large can of tomato sauce and one small can
of whole tomatoes. Let it simmer on med. about 30 min. then added
a few chopped banana peppers and minced garlic and turned off the heat

After the heat has been turned off I added 3/4 cup
heavy cream (just because I can)  YAY for LCHF!!!

While your sauce is cooking you want to slice your eggplant
into thin slices and lay them out on a paper towel.  Salt them well.
This helps draw out some moisture and will keep your dish from
becoming soggy.

Grease your dish and layer eggplant on bottom

Add the meat and veggies from the sauce, layer another
layer of eggplant  and  the rest of the sauce BEFORE the cheese

BUT as you can see I got overly excited about the cheese and
added it first. Mmmm....cheese  I also sprinkled on more
Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes.  I stuck it in a
375 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Italian Eggplant Casserole

Mexican Kale Chips

I've read so many posts about kale chips lately.  I figured it was high time I tried my hand at it.  I was looking for them to be sturdy enough to eat with guacamole.   Yeah, that's not gonna happen.  They are too brittle and crisp for that, but they were REALLY good.  I mean, like I could eat the whole pan by myself good!

I washed the kale and put it in the salad spinner to get off as much water as possible.  You could use a paper towel to squeeze out the water if you want to.

I mixed up a pinch of cumin, garlic powder, salt and Mexican oregano and put it in with the spoonful of coconut oil I was melting on the stove.  I didn't leave it in for long, just a minute or two to infuse the flavors of the spices into the oil.  Don't go overboard on the spices as the flavors will intensify as the kale shrinks and dries.

I laid them all out on a baking sheet at cooked at 170 degrees (as low as my oven would go) for one hour.  Flipped the kale over and made sure nothing was getting brown.  Left them in the warm oven to sit for 30 minutes.  Cooked them again at 170 degrees for another hour.

perfectly crispy kale chips

I just had to hold up a crispy piece of kale
to show how green it still is.  So pretty!

Radish "Potato" cakes

I'm back on the wagon again.   I've lost 13 pounds since the first of the year.  I'm happier and less grumpy and trying new things to keep my low carb life interesting, while feeding a family of 5 in the process.  I've recently heard rumors of radishes being used to replace potatoes in recipes.  Shut the front door!  How have I low carbed off and on for about 10 years now and NOT known this?!?!?  So, of course I had to try it for myself.  My boys were out camping with the boy scouts this weekend, so it was just the girls and I.  The girls were busy eating leftover waffles from Erin's birthday breakfast. So it was the perfect opportunity for me to play with a new recipe. The results were super-tasty, but not visually stunning.  In my world, tasty is what counts most. ;-)

peel radishes, the curly peel is cute, isn't it?

Boil the peeled radishes for about 5 min., don't boil too long or you will have mush.  Don't ask me how I know.

Grate the boiled radishes, season with salt and pepper

add shreds to hot coconut oil in skillet

Then flip.  As you can see this is where it all fell apart.  <SIGH>

BUT, in stirring them around almost all of them got crispy and crunchy.  Like those little Pik-Nik shoestring pototo sticks I had as a kid.  This isn't a total loss after all.  YAY!   They went perfectly with my eggs and hot sauce.  Crunchy, potato-y, not at all with the bite and flavor associated with radishes. 

crispy radish potato sticks and eggs for the win!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mini's

This is a prettied up version of a treat I have about once a week.  You know that nighttime in front of the television snack, when you just have to have something sweet.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mini's

2 tsp. raw cacao powder
2 tsp. natural peanut butter
2 tsp. heavy whipping cream
sweetner of your choice - to taste

Whip together in a bowl with a spoon, put in shot glasses and top with whipping cream and a sprinkle of cocoa.

If you like dark chocolate and peanut butter you will love this dessert!  If you're anything like me, it'll never make it to the shot glasses.

credits:  my daughter, Kayla took the above pic and my friend, Crystal blinged it out!

Rutabaga Fries with Chipotle-Lime Dipping Sauce

Today 2 of my 3 kids are sick, so they're wanting comfort food.  I'm wanting to stay on my diet plan.  To me, comfort foods consist of pancakes or homemade mac 'n cheese or even enchiladas.  Carb addict <<COUGH, COUGH>>  To them comfort foods include the beloved mashed potatoes or French fries.  Guess those apples didn't fall far from the tree, did they?  So I decided to make them baked chicken and French fries.  I've had some rutabagas in the fridge crisper for a week or so with the intention of doing something with them, so today is the day.

I have to admit I'd never eaten or even heard of a rutabaga until my first holiday with my new in-laws twentysomething years ago.  My mother-in-law made mashed rutagagas with butter, salt and pepper every Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I thought they were weird and they smelled a little turnip-y. They looked nice in her beautiful serving dishes though.  They looked like golden yellow, almost translucent mashed potatoes.  After tasting them I thought they were pretty darn good.  I wasn't gonna go out and make them or anything, but they were decent.  The next year rolled around and I liked them even better.

It's odd how you can go so long without eating something and forget how much you enjoy it.  When I started low-carbing years ago, I needed a substitution for the fries I was used to having in my diet.  This veggie does the trick, it even has some fiber and protein thrown in for good measure.  They brown up beautifully, but I have a hard time getting them crispy without burning them.  If you haven't tried rutabaga before you should give it a shot.  These are good for any low-carbers, whether you follow Atkins, or paleo, South Beach or whatever low carb plan floats your boat.  They're so good even my youngest enjoys them and she gives most veggies the skunk-eye.  You can find the carb count and nutritional value here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutabaga

aren't these homely lil' veggies?

peel the wax-coated skin off with a knife or vegetable peeler
cut into wedges

put into a bag and add:

• oil (I used coconut oil)
• salt
• chili powder
• paprika

close and shake to coat

before shake and coat

dump onto old, ugly baking sheet - okay, maybe that's just me

bake at 375 degrees
1 1/2 hours (flip them half-way through cooking time)
If you cut them into smaller "fries" I'm sure you can cut your baking time down.  My wedges were pretty thick.
*****************************************************
Chipotle-Lime Dipping Sauce

• 1 8 oz. container sour cream
• 3-4 chipotle peppers
• 1/4 lime juice (1 lime wedge)
• salt to taste

mix in blender or food processor
The kids prefer their "fries" with ranch dip or ketchup, but my husband and I love this dip.



Happy Birthday to my "baby"

A few weeks ago our youngest child had her 8th birthday.  Eight!  It's just not possible.  In my head, it was just yesterday that she was padding around in footed jammies and crawling into bed with me for a pre-breakfast cuddle.  She still does that some days, but it's getting to be less and less often.  I know this is normal, I know this is right, but it still makes me a little nostalgic for the baby days. 

 I  do think I enjoyed her babyhood the most out of all three of my kids.  With my first child I was nervous and paranoid about EVERYTHING.  You know, the whole sterilize the pacifier and the entire house type.   With my second, I was more relaxed and took more time to recognize and appreciate the special moments, but with a toddler and a baby I was simply exhausted.  With Erin, while still exhausted, I took time to cherish those 3 am feedings when our whole world was silent and it was just me and her and I could smell her sweet hair and just listen to her breathe.

I love looking through old pictures and remembering fondly all the sweet moments we've shared.  I also remember her sneakiness, like when she'd sneak snacks and hide the wrappers in the shower.  Do they think we'll not realize who left the trash there?  LOL  I do feel guilt though.....our first has 3 photo albums to flip through, our second has 1 or 2 photo albums and Erin has none.  WHAT?!?!  All of her pictures seem to be in digital format.  My goal for this year is to get some of those precious photos into an album that she can hold and be proud of.  So in honor of her birthday and her usually having to share any photo ops with her siblings I'm posting some of my favorite JUST Erin pics.


the famous boo-boo lip

napping at a lake in MN

one of my favorite pics ever!

at the San Antonio Zoo

before Pre-K

pouting after a haircut

taking a break from playing

at the Harry Potter party at the local library

Happy 8th Birthday Erin!

Pork Carnitas - Low Carb and Frugal

Carnitas. Sounds fancy doesn't it?  It's not at all fancy or complicated.  If I can do it anybody can do it.  It's just braised or slow cooked meat (generally pork, although I have done it with beef and antelope) that has been shredded and warmed up/crisped in a skillet.  It's one of the meals my family of five eats all the time.  Everybody in my house loves it and it lasts for days.  Unless of course we have company then it's usually gobbled up in a blink. It's low-carb friendly and it's a meal that can seriously stretch a dollar.

It can be:

• put into tacos (soft or crispy)
•  made into taquitos
• put on top of a salad
• in a lettuce wrap
• paired with roasted veggies
• cooked with shredded cabbage and onions
• cooked with scrambled eggs for an easy breakfast
• or just eaten with your fingers straight from the skillet

Not that I would know anything about that last suggestion. <blushing>  The uses are as limitless as your imagination.  I made some for my family yesterday and thought I'd share my general recipe.  For most of you that know me, my "recipes" are very loose and most things never get measured and the dishes turn out similar, but never exactly the same.  However, this dish is very forgiving and turns out consistently delicious every single time.  I've tweaked it until I have what I think is worthy of sharing.

Start with a 3-4 pound pork roast, I prefer it if it with the bone-in and with a good little slab of fat on the bottom, but you can find leaner cuts if that's your preference

wash and dry it with a paper towel, then rub a little oil over it.  You can use any oil, however, I am currently in love with coconut oil so that's what I use.  (So much so, that my friends and family actually make fun of me)
Then mix together the dry rub ingredients:

• 3 tsp. ground cumin
• 3 tsp. dried oregano
• 3 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp. dried jalapeno bits (or you can just chop up 1 whole fresh jalapeno, but I HATE dealing with the juices on my fingers, so I use the dried stuff)

Sprinkle and rub the dry ingredients all over the roast.  Put the roast in your crock pot (fat side down), set on high and get on with your day. I had gotten distracted yesterday morning when I started the meat and skipped a usual step. My husband asked if there should be onions or liquid or "something else" in the crock pot.  I said that "yes, I usually add a chopped onion or two and squeeze an orange or two over the meat".  So he very graciously did that step for me.  This is the meat after about 1 hour of cooking with the new ingredients added.

pork roast after 1 hr. in slow cooker

After about 5 hours on high, you take the meat out and shred it with two forks. It generally falls apart of it's own free will.  LOL

pork roast after 5 hours in slow cooker on high

shredding with two forks



after adding liquid from slow cooker and extra spices

Put the shredded meat in a skillet, add the liquid and melted onions from the crock pot.  Discard whatever is left of the oranges.  I also have discovered that this is the stage where I like to add more of the original seasonings.  I sprinkle in more of pretty much everything except salt.  I have also been known to add another orange and sqeeze the juice on the shredded meat. Then you just cook on med. to med. high until the extra liquid has cooked out and you're happy with it's flavorful golden-brown crispiness.