Low Carb Kitchen Sink Crustless Quiche

I love to make quiche to use up leftovers. Serving a "crustless" quiche is great way to enjoy this recipe but still stay low carb. Since I have a lot of different veggies, meats and cheeses leftover from various recipes, I made a "kitchen sink" crust-less quiche. I used what I had on hand but you could easily swap the meat, cheese and veggies for something that you like better.

Kitchen Sink Crust-less Quiche

1/2 C. Cajun turkey breast deli meat, chopped - watch carbs!
3 deli sliced Swiss cheese
3/4 C. shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 C. steamed broccoli florets
1/4 C. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp black pepper
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp onion powder
red pepper flakes to your liking
4 eggs
1/4 C. heavy cream
1/4 C. water
1/4 C sour cream

Preheat oven to 350*

Spray a 9" or 10" pie pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Layer 1/2 of the meat into the pan leaving a space between the meat and the edge all the way around the pan.

Top the meat with1/2 of the cheddar cheese and 1 1/2 pieces of the Swiss cheese that has been torn into pieces.

Layer on all of the broccoli florets, cutting any of the big pieces into bite-size pieces.  Sprinkle mushrooms on top of the broccoli.

Shake seasonings over top of everything.

Repeat the layers of meat and cheese.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs, cream, water & sour cream until smooth and creamy. Pour the egg mixture into the pan, making sure the egg flows all the way to the edges of the pan. With a spoon, spread the meat, cheese and veggies out in the pan.

Bake for 35 - 40 minutes or until the center of the quiche is set and the top is light brown.

Let the quiche set for 15 before slicing.

Wedding Soup - the Low Carb Way

Who doesn't like soup on cold, dreary days? I know that I do.

I love Italian wedding soup. Unfortunately the original version of this soup is full of carbs. I found a recipe for a low carb version that is super delicious and very filling. The best part is that you can make this soup with little ingredients and little cooking time so that means you can have a hearty soup at any time. The aroma from this soup will make you want to eat dinner! MMM! I wish that you could smell it. I served cheese crisps to go with it...a nice replacement for bread or crackers. (recipe for crisps below)

Low Carb Italian Wedding Soup
taken from Saving Dinner the Low-Carb Way

serves 4 very small servings - more like 2 servings
in my opinion.

1/2 lb Italian sausage - casings removed - watch carbs!
I found a ground hot sausage with only 2 carbs and only
natural sugars - no sugars added
1 small onion, diced - I left it out
2 cloves garlic, pressed - I used 2 big tsp. minced garlic
2 C. kale, chopped and big stems removed
1 - 14 1/2 oz can chicken broth
2 baby zucchini, chopped
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp marjoram - I subbed 1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp salt - I left it out
dash red pepper flakes to taste

In a large, heavy sauce pan brown sausage over med. high heat. Stir in onion & garlic; cook and stir until soft, about 2 minutes. Add kale and cook another 3 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients; bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for about 8 - 10 minutes. Soup should be quite thick.

The recipes says to serve with a green salad. I had a bigger portion of soup and skipped the salad. I made small cheese crisps to go along with it and that was enough to fill me up.

Leftovers can be stored in the frig or frozen.

11 carbs - 6 dietary fiber = 5 usable carbs


Cheese Crisps

There are great examples of how to make cheese crisps on Linda's Low Carb Recipes & Menus. She posts instructions, along with many pictures. I used the stove top method to make my crisps today but I have had much success in the past using the microwave to make them.

They make a great substitute for breads, rolls or crackers. I can't wait to try them as a taco "shell" for a taco salad.

Low Carb & Family Menu Plan Monday

Last week was a menu plan nightmare. I don't think that I stuck to the menu at any time after Wednesday. I did stick to low carb eating, though. (Yay!)

Hopefully we will stick to this week's menu better. :)  I've been searching through some low carb recipe books that I picked up from the library last week. Between those books and the ones that I have here at home, I found several new recipes that I'm eager to try. Low carbing is even easier and more fun when you can look forward to trying new recipes!

One tip that I would like to offer on eating out at restaurants....

If you don't see anything low carb on the menu, don't be afraid to create a dish for yourself. As long as it's not too far out in left field, most places will accommodate you. For instance, this past Wednesday my husband wanted to try a new Mexican restaurant that just opened in the town next to us. There wasn't anything other than a garden salad on the regular menu so I asked them if they would make a steak salad for me. After explaining what type of meat I would like on it and what items I would like left out of the salad (guacamole, salsa and sour cream), they were more than happy to make it for me. Happy Happy!

On to this week's menu...

My Low Carb Menu

Monday - chicken salad

Tuesday - low carb wedding soup* - new recipe

Wednesday - crustless quiche* - new recipe

Thursday - puerto rican turkey* w/ sauteed spinach - new recipe

Friday - undetermined- we usually go out

Saturday - pork soulvaki & steamed cabbage

Sunday - Cauliflower Soup* with salad -new recipe 


Family Menu

Monday - grilled chicken, chicken rice and corn

Tuesday - chicken tortellini soup and corn bread

Wednesday - breakfast for dinner

Thursday - puerto rican turkey, potatoes and veggie

Friday - undetermined  - we usually go out

Saturday - pork soulvaki & spaetzles

Sunday - pasta & red sauce


For more inspiring recipes, check out Menu Plan Monday!

Low Carb Cheesey Bacon Chicken w/ Fauxtatoes

Lots of sadness in our house today because my husband's JETS were eliminated from the playoffs. He wanted comfort food in the form of pasta. That meant that I was on my own for dinner. I usually go grocery shopping on Sunday but with the playoffs, I put it off until tomorrow.

I had boneless chicken defrosting in the frig so I decided to use a piece of it for my dinner. I found a small chunk of "3 alarm cheddar cheese" - my new favorite cheese! It is very hot!- and some turkey bacon that I needed to use up. I'm happy that I'm not a picky eater and because of this, I like to mix things together. That's were I came up with this cheesy bacon chicken.

There was a head of cauliflower waiting to be eaten in there, too. I had been wanting to try a "fauxtatoes" recipe for a while so that's what I cooked to go along with the chicken.  "Fauxtatoes" are cooked, mashed cauliflower that really resembles mashed potatoes.

The entire meal was very delicious. I will definitely make this again.

Cheesey Bacon Chicken
1 serving

1 boneless chicken breast, thawed if frozen
2 strips of lowfat turkey bacon
1/4 C. of your favorite cheese - I used 3-alarm cheddar.
The hot peppers really added a great flavor to the chicken.
1 TBSP butter
onion powder
Montreal Steak seasoning

Add butter to frying pan. Melt on med-high heat. Add chicken to pan. Season with onion powder and steak seasoning. Do not add salt, there is plenty in the bacon. Fry on one side until light brown. Flip over and brown on the other side.

Add two pieces of turkey bacon to the pan. Turn the heat down to medium. Cover with a lid and continue to cook until the chicken is no longer pink in the middle. Remove the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels.

Once the chicken has finished cooking, turn off heat but leave the chicken in the pan. Lay the two strips of bacon on top of the chicken breast. Top the bacon with the cheese. Cover the pan with the lid, the cheese will melt over all of it.

Fauxtatoes
taken from "500 Low Carb Recipes" by Dana Carpender
Whole recipe makes 6 generous servings.

I halved the recipe and only ate half of it.
1 lg. head cauliflower - I used 1/2 of a lg. head
1/3 C. cream
4 oz. cream cheese - I used 2 oz.
1 TBSP butter - I used 1/2 TBSP in the mix and 1/2 for on top
salt and pepper

1. Simmer cauliflower in water with the cream added to it. (the cream keeps the cauliflower sweet and keeps it from turning an ugly gray color). Cook until really soft. Drain thoroughly.

2. Put the still warm cauliflower into a food processor with cream cheese, butter and salt & pepper to taste. Process until smooth.

This really does look like mashed potatoes. It doesn't taste like mashed potatoes like some claim, it still tastes like cauliflower...but that's ok because I love cauliflower. I'm sure adding cheese to it would be delicious, too!  It's very satisfying and filling.

6 grams of carbs - 2 grams of fiber = 4 grams of usable carbs per serving.

Chocolate Mint "Cookies"

These cookies have been a favorite of ours for several years. I make them at Christmastime to go along with our other cookies. They taste just like Girl Scout Thin Mints but the secret is that they are made using Ritz crackers for the "cookie". They also hold up great in lunch boxes.

Chocolate Mint "Cookies"

Chocolate Almond Bark
Mint Extract
Ritz Crackers

Cover a small baking sheet with foil and set aside.

I found it easiest to work with 4 blocks of chocolate at at time with this recipe. That way you don't have to keep melting the chocolate over and over.

Melt 4 blocks of chocolate in a double boiler or in a microwave-safe dish in the microwave. For convenience, I used the microwave. To melt the chocolate, cook chocolate on "high" for one minute at a time, stirring well after each minute, until the chocolate is completely melted.

For the extract, start by stirring  in 4 drops of mint extract into the chocolate. Do a taste test to see if the mint taste is strong enough for your liking. I added about 4 more drops of mint to our chocolate because we like it. Don't take my word for it, after the first 4 drops, stir in just two drops at a time until you are happy with it.

Dip one Ritz cracker at a time into the chocolate. Cover the cracker completely, scraping off excess chocolate and then lay on the foil. Once the tray is full, pop it into the freezer for a minute.

Remove the tray. Dip the crackers a second time, again laying the crackers back onto the tray. Place the tray back into the freezer for two minutes or until the chocolate is completely dry.

Store in a sealed plastic container. These cookies are best eaten within 2 days.