Like Flavor in Your Water?

If you are the one of many who find it easier to drink your water if it has a little flavor to it, check out the products by Stur. It's a liquid you can squirt into your beverage, but the great thing is, it is all natural, made with natural fruit flavors, color from fruit and vegetable juices, and sweetened with stevia.

And it's a family business, which I love to support. There are several varieties for you to check out. Here are a few for starters:



Try it and see what you think. I don't use it a lot, as I generally like my water or seltzer plain, but there are times when it makes whatever I am stirring into my water easier to swallow. I came across it pretty much by accident, so I thought I'd get the word out about this healthier alternative to the better known water flavoring drops.

Gay’s Low Carb New England Clam Chowder

This is an approximation, based on the chowder my mom used to make, though she used salt pork. And potatoes, of course! The radishes make a pretty darn good substitute. They lose their bite when cooked long enough.

I usually use the huge can of clams from the warehouse store and make enough for several meals. It stores well in the refrigerator for several days.

Ingredients 

1-2 T. bacon grease (Or cut up some bacon into small pieces and fry it, remove from fat and reserve to add later. Don’t have bacon? Use butter. My mom used a piece of salt pork.)

½ cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

½ cup zucchini or yellow summer squash, cubed

¾ cup radishes, cut into small pieces

¼ c. carrots, optional but add some nice color

1 clove garlic, minced or pressed

Paula Deen’s HouseSeasoning, or salt and pepper to taste

3 cans clams, 6.5 oz. each, juices drained and reserved

1 cup heavy cream, light cream, or half and half  (approximation)

Directions 

Saute the vegetables in the bacon grease or butter until almost tender. Season as you go with Paula or salt and pepper.

Open the cans of clams and add the clam juice. Simmer until the vegetables are done.

Add the clams and the cream or half and half. Stir in bacon if you have it. Taste and adjust seasonings. Don’t cook it further, just heat gently and serve when hot.

Item Recommendation:

I have two of these now: One to store bacon grease for future use, and one to store and reuse the mixture of grapeseed oil and chicken fat from my weekly batch of baked or oven-fried chicken thighs. The built-in strainer is a wonderful feature, and they fit nicely in the refrigerator. Very convenient and easy to use, and so much better than the old cans I made do with for years! It's a nice little item I am glad I acquired.

Baked Sour Cream Chicken

Makes about 8 servings

Ingredients:

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts
salt & pepper (or Paula Deen's House Seasoning, or your favorite seasoned salt or salt substitute)
1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Sauce Ingredients:

1 can cream of chicken soup (see below for a low carb version you can make)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup regular mayonnaise

1 T onion powder
1 T poultry seasoning
1 T fresh lemon juice (or equivalent True Lemon powder)
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Trim all visible fat and unwanted parts from chicken, then cut each into bite sized pieces.

Spray 9 x 13 inch glass or crockery casserole dish with nonstick spray and arrange chicken pieces in a single layer. Season chicken to taste.

Combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream,  mayo, onion powder, poultry seasoning, lemon juice, and 1 cup of grated cheese to make the sauce. Spread sauce mixture over the chicken, cover the pan with foil or a tight-fitting lid, and bake 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, use a fork to separate the chicken pieces so the sauce runs down between them, cover again, and bake for about 20 minutes more.

Then remove the foil, top with 1/2 cup reserved cheese and bake 15-20 minutes more, until cheese is melted and top is slightly browned. (You can use the broiler if you want to speed it up a little, but watch it carefully!)

Serve over cabbage noodles, spaghetti squash, French cut green beans, or another low carb vegetable of your choice.

Adapted by Gay Griffin from a recipe at KalynsKitchen.com.

Cream of Chicken Condensed Soup

makes a little over a cup, equivalent to one can of soup

3 tablespoons butter
½ t. Dixie Carb Counters Thick It Up Thickener
¾ cup chicken stock (or water with chicken base or bouillon)
¼ cup heavy cream = 1.68 g.
Salt and pepper 

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk the thickener into the liquids then add to the pan. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick. 

Remove from heat and season to taste with salt and pepper and any herbs you might like.

Muffin in a Minute: Cinnamon Flax Meal Muffin

I find many flax meal muffin in a minute recipes to be dry.  Most recipes only call for 1 teaspoon of butter, but encourage slathering butter on the muffin afterwards.  That seems to defeat the purpose of having a nice moist muffin.  I have solved that problem by increasing the butter to a whole tablespoon.  Beyond making the muffin nice and moist, it is easy to precut a stick of butter into tablespoon sized servings for future use.

I know that a full teaspoon of cinnamon seems like a lot, but it isn't too strong and helps add flavor to the flax.  The cinnamon flavor reminds me of the Lotus brand Biscoff cookie.  Biscoff is a European cookie that is delicious, but not very sweet.  They are great with coffee or tea.  Even my coworkers find them addicting.  Unfortunately, they are high in carbs!  I am hoping to create a low carb baked good that I can use as a substitute.

Muffin in a Minute: Cinnamon Flax Meal Muffin

Number of Servings: 1

Ingredients
3 Tbs. (1/4 cup) Flax seed meal
1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Splenda or sweetener of your choice
1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1 large egg
1 Tbs. Salted Butter

In a mug or small bowl  (a 1 cup sized bowl works perfectly), add the 1 Tbs. of butter and melt it in the microwave.  The time will differ with the strength of your microwave.  I have a 1200 watt machine, so it usually takes 20-30 seconds.

While the butter is being melted, put all the dry ingredients in a small bowl and stir together.
Make sure to break up any Baking Powder clumps.

Add the egg to the melted butter and stir together.  Next, add your dry ingredients and stir until the mixture is moist.  Microwave for 1 minute.

This makes a good sized muffin that is tasty and moist.  Enjoy!

Nutrition Info:
Calories 281
Fat 23.6 grams
Carbs 9.3 grams
Fiber 7.2 grams        Net Carbs 2.1 grams
Protein 10.6 grams

Swill

This is really good stuff. It's kind of like a deconstructed cabbage roll without the rice. Fiddle with the seasonings as you like. I'm sorry I don't have a source for the recipe I adapted this from. Swill is what their family called it! 

1 lb ground beef

1/2 lb bacon, cut into small pieces

1 28oz can diced tomatoes with liquid or stewed tomatoes, chopped up (original author said you can reduce this to 14 oz. for induction)

1/2 medium head of cabbage

salt & pepper to taste (or Paula Deen’s House Seasoning)

1/2 t. onion powder

1/2 t. garlic powder (or use garlic salt as part of your salt and pepper mix)

1/2 t. crumbled rosemary 

1/2 t. marjoram

a little sweetener to take the acidic edge off of the tomatoes 

Brown the ground beef and bacon in a large pot or dutch oven. Sprinkle with salt, pepper & onion powder and herbs. Cut up the cabbage and spread the pieces over the ground beef.  Pour the tomatoes with the liquid over the top of everything. Cover the pot and bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 45 min. to an hour. Give it a stir to mix everything together then simmer uncovered for 15-30 minutes more. The cabbage should be tender. 

6 servings approx 2 cups each

9 carbs

3 fiber

6 net carbs

with 15 oz can of tomatoes

7 carbs

2 fiber

5 net carbs

 
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