Low Carb Beef and Bacon Stuffing

Move over stove top! I'm giving your high carb stuffing a run for it's money. Sure my stuffing doesn't have dried old bread or sugar in it. Wait, I guess that makes mine better and healthier, not to mention more delicious than yours! Ha!

Directions:

2 lbs lean ground beef
1/2 lb bacon chopped
1 large or two medium stalks of celery, chopped
2 green onions including the green part, chopped
2 tbsp bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp dried sage
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp parsley
salt and pepper to taste


Directions:


1. In a large pan cook bacon until crispy. Drain and set aside.
2. In the same pan add ground beef and cook until browned, drain
3. Add the celery, onion, bell pepper, and bacon. Cook for 5 minutes or until veggies are soft.
4. Add poultry seasoning, sage, onion powder, and parsley. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
5. Add the chicken stock and cover. Cook for 10 minutes.
6. I like to bake my stuffing alongside the turkey, but you don't have to. I just think it gives it a better flavor and texture. You can also stuff your turkey with this stuffing mixture if you wish.
7. I placed the stuffing in a pan and covered with foil. Baked it for 40 minutes at 325.

This recipe yields 8 servings

0.5 Net carbs per serving

Low Carb Holiday Green Bean Casserole

I cheated a little bit preparing this casserole by using a canned soup. Unfortunately it is not induction friendly this way, but it is certainly acceptable for OWL. It was a very good casserole. I used caramelized onions on top instead of those french fried onions which are breaded and have corn syrup in them.  It was just as good or better than the "traditional" casserole!

Ingredients:

A 16 oz bag of cut frozen green beans, thawed and drained
1 can of Campbell's cream of chicken and mushroom soup (this soup has less carbs than the original cream of mushroom soup)
1 medium onion sliced in strips
4 oz can of mushrooms, drained
1 tsp olive oil


Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F
2. Mix the thawed and drained green beans with the mushrooms, and the soup. Pour into a small casserole dish.
3. In a small pan add the olive oil and onions and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes stirring constantly until caramelized.
4. Top the casserole with the caramelized onions and bake for 20 minutes until hot and bubbly.


*TIPS*

I don't normally use canned soup but I made an exception for Thanksgiving and it was still low carb and much healthier than the original.


This recipe yields 8 servings

5.96 Net carbs per serving

Holiday Cheesy Cauliflower

This cheesy casserole has a very mild cauliflower taste and a nice punch from the flavorful swiss and cheddar cheeses. Using fresh cauliflower and cooking it the night before helps the cauliflower flavor me nice and mild. The cheese sauce has a "secret" ingredient that helped it be thick and luxuriously velvety. It was the best cauliflower dish i've made!

Ingredients:

1 medium head of fresh cauliflower
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup swiss cheese, shredded
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1 tsp yellow mustard
1 tbsp butter
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp coconut flour
salt and pepper to taste


Directions:

1. I cooked the cauliflower the night before using it, as I find the strong cauliflower taste becomes milder. I just steamed it in a pan with a litttle water and salt for about 20 minutes, until soft.
2. Drain the cauliflower and place it back in the hot pan to dry a bit. Give it a rough mash with a vegetable smasher:

3. Let the cauliflower cool, then place in the refrigerator overnight until it is time to use it. (You can also use it right away, the same day if you wish)
4. Preheat the oven to 350 F
5. In a medium saucepan melt the butter, add the coconut flour and stir until dissolved. Add the mustard and stir for 30 seconds.
6. Add the heavy cream to the pan and whisk to combine. Let the cream come to a simmer and keep whisking. It will get nice and thick because of the coconut flour.
7. Lower the heat and add in 1 1/2 cups of the shredded cheeses a little bit at a time whisking continuously. Reserve the other half of cheese for the top.
The sauce should look like this:

8. Combine the sauce with the mashed cauliflower and place in an 8x8 baking pan.
9. Top with remaining 1/2 cup of shredded cheese and 1/4 cup of parmesan.
10. Bake uncovered in the oven for 20 minutes until hot and bubbly.

This dish is very hearty and a little goes a long way, however it's so delicious i'm sure everybody will want seconds!

This recipe yields 9 servings

4.57 Net carbs per serving

*TIPS*

This is the first time I use coconut flour as a thickener and it worked amazingly well!
Even though it is a small amount, it is enough to thicken the sauce properly.
You can not taste the coconut at all in the recipe.
Coconut flour is not induction friendly so perhaps you could leave it out or use a thickener like guar or xantham gum, or even half an ounce of cream cheese.

Herb Roasted Turkey Breast

Ok, I don't want to sound annoying but this was THE BEST turkey breast I have eaten in my entire life! And I have eaten at quite a few Thanksgiving dinners. It was moist, flavorful, and fall apart tender.  The secret is the herbed butter medallions placed inside the skin of the breast that baste it as it cooks.  You can certainly use this recipe for a full size turkey as well.

Ingredients:

A 6 lb bone-in turkey breast
1 stick of butter softened at room temperature
1 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning (the one I used had sage, rosemary, marjoram, black pepper, and thyme)
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste
plus extra poultry seasoning for sprinkling on top
1 medium ziploc bag

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F
2. Rinse the turkey breast and pat dry
3. In a small bowl mixt the softened butter, poultry seasoning, onion powder, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. It should look like this:

4. In the ziploc bag pour the sotened butter mixture and shape in to a log.

5. Freeze this herbed butter log for about 15 minutes until it is frozen hard.
6. Season the breast all over with salt and pepper, including inside the cavity and bottom and sides of the breast.
7. Slice the frozen log into medallions and stuff them under the skin of the breast. Make sure you slide as many medallions as you can under the skin to ensure all of it will be basted. If you have any leftover medallions place them inside the cavity of the breast. Sprinkle breast with extra poultry seasoning.
8. Bake uncovered in the oven for 2 hours. Oven temperatures vary, but my turkey came out perfectly cooked and juicy in two hours.
9. Let the breast rest for 10 minutes before you carve it so the juices can redistribute and you won't lose them as you slice.

*TIPS*
Make sure the turkey breast is not frozen when you place it in the oven or it won't cook evenly.
Thaw the turkey in the refrigerator the night before.
Letting it rest is part of the reason it stays so moist and juicy.


Only trace carbs per serving

Thanksgiving Is Here!

I just had the most AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS LOW CARB Thanksgiving feast!!!

Herb roasted turkey breast, beef and bacon stuffing, holiday cheesy cauliflower, low carb green bean casserole!

I'm going to be posting these recipes individually in just a moment.

I'm so happy because the food couldn't have been better and it was all low carb!

100 Thanksgiving Recipes

source

I would like to apologize to my readers for not posting in a while, but I have been a little sick. I think it's due to the change of weather here in Texas.
I'm sure everyone is busy planning and shopping for their Thanksgiving dinners. Hopefully most of you, like me, anticipate staying on plan this Thanksgiving.

I already have some recipes planned for Thanksgiving, including an herb roasted Turkey breast, beef and bacon stuffing, some form of cheesy cauliflower, green bean casserole, and possibly mini pecan pies or pumpkin pie.

In the meantime here's a helpful link with 100 low carb holiday recipes. enjoy!