Although my full time job hasn’t closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and I’m not quarantined, I had a half day of work today! So naturally, I used it to make something sweet for you guys. Let me just say, holy moly, these have all the taste of the Samoas we know and love, but a lot fresher and keto friendly of course! Let’s dive into this recipe!
Ingredients for cookies:
2 Cups almond flour
1/2 Cup of confectioner’s monkfruit (I used Lakanto)
1/2 tsp of baking soda
1 egg
1 stick of unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
Ingredients for toppings:
keto friendly chocolate chips (a little bit of coconut oil too)
unsweetened coconut flakes
Walden Farms caramel dip (or you can make your own, but sometimes I like working smarter and not harder)
Instructions for cookies:
Preheat your oven to 350
add all cookie ingredients to a stand mixer, or a large mixing bowl and use a hand mixer. Mix until well combined.
use a cookie scoop and you should get 16-18 cookies, and place them on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
when you plop them on the paper, use the back of the scoop to flatten the cookies. (optional, but if you wish, use the end of a wooden spoon to put a hole in the middle of the cookies)
bake for 10-12 minutes
let cool completely!
Instructions for toppings:
add about a cup of your chocolate chips to a microwave safe bowl, and a plop of coconut oil and microwave in 30 second intervals until melted. (my microwave sucks, so I go old fashioned, and make a double boiler)
once cookies are completely cooled, start dipping the bottoms into the chocolate, just coating the bottom, and put them back on your parchment paper (as long as the pan isn’t still warm from earlier)
in a separate bowl, combine your desired amount of coconut flakes and caramel dip. I liked mine a little stiffer, so I used more coconut than dip. But, you can do what you like. Add that to the tops of the cookies.
then use a fork and drizzle some more of your melted chocolate on the tops, and let the cookies sit until all the chocolate sets, then ENJOY!
Here in a few days I’m going to be hitting five months into a low carb/keto lifestyle. Today, however, is my birthday! I am 27, and probably haven’t weighed what I weigh now in like 13 years. It is absolutely incredible, sometimes I forget exactly how far I’ve come in such a short amount of time. As of today I have lost 41 pounds since I started on August 20th, 2019.
I have had quite a few people ask me if I was going to have birthday cake on my birthday, and of course I said hell no! I figured I’d just treat myself to some Rebel Creamery ice cream or something. (which if you’ve never heard of or have had….OMG) Most of their flavors are under seven net carbs for a whole pint! My favorite flavor is the butter pecan. It is so decadent, and I know I said the whole pint has under seven grams of net carbs, but I have never been able to eat the whole thing in one entire sitting.
ANYWAY…I’m rambling, but did I mention my favorite dessert in the whole world is a yellow cake with vanilla buttercream icing and sprinkles on top? Well, that’s what I have on my birthday nearly every year. I got to brainstorming, and had to figure out how to recreate a birthday cake for myself. After searching on the internet for the perfect recipe, I had to wing it and combine parts from others’ recipes, along with some of my ideas. So here is what I put together! Enjoy!
Ingredients for Cake:
2 sticks of butter, softened
1 1/2 Cups of granulated sweetener of your choice (I used monkfruit)
6 eggs
2 Tsp of vanilla extract
2 Tsp of cake batter extract
2 Tbsp of grapeseed oil, (olive works too)
1 Cup of almond milk
1 Tsp of xanthan gum
4 Tsp of baking powder
1/2 Cup of coconut flour
4 Cups of almond flour
Ingredients for buttercream:
1 stick of butter, softened
1 block of cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup of Confectioner’s Swerve or equivalent
1 heaping Tsp of vanilla extract
3 Tbsp of heavy cream
Instructions for cake:
In a mixer, or mixing bowl, cream together butter and granulated sweetener until smooth.
Then add in your other wet ingredients, and after it’s lightly combined start slowly adding in your dry ingredients. (which if I haven’t mentioned before, SIFT your dry ingredients. It helps everything mix better and combine equally)
After it’s all combined, divide batter equally into two well greased, or parchment lined, 9″ round cake pans.
Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes depending on your oven. Always check doneness with a toothpick if you’re unsure! Set aside, and let cool completely before doing anything with them.
Instructions for buttercream:
While waiting on your cakes to cool, go ahead and make your frosting! It’s the easiest one I think I’ve ever made.
Most important thing here is to make sure your butter and cream cheese is completely room temperature, if they aren’t, pop them in the microwave for 20-30 seconds to soften them up.
Other than that, throw all of those ingredients in a stand up mixer, or a mixing bowl and whip the crud out of it! If you like your buttercream more stiff, you can add in more confectioners sweetener. I like mine a bit looser because it makes it easier to spread out, and will set up harder in the fridge later. Also, if you want to add some color to your cake add in your choice of food dye.
Instructions for stacking and/or decorating:
Once your cakes are cooled completely, you can get really fancy if you have a cake leveler, and level them out. I do not, so I just shaped each layer as flat and even as possible.
Put your first level on a cake stand or whatever you’re using to house it in, cover the top with a very thin layer of your buttercream. This keeps your top layer from falling or slipping off so easily.
Add on your top layer, scoop the rest of your buttercream on the top, and work it as even as you can get in on the top and the sides. Put love into it, and I promise you it will be gorg!
If you’re feeling like it needs a little pep in its step, you can add nuts, keto friendly chocolate chips, or keto friendly sprinkles like I did! I got them off amazon for like $5 give or take. There’s all sorts of different color combos, the possibilities are endless.
Here’s the finished product below, I hope you try it and enjoy it like I did! Happy Birthday to me!
Nutrition Info:
It’s hard to gauge because it depends on the size of your slices, the sweeteners you decide to use, the oil you pick, etc. I could probably get 10-14 pieces out of the cake depending on what my guests want. I wouldn’t estimate it being more than 7 net carbs for a good size piece? I’d suggest plugging the ingredients you use into a calorie/macro tracking app and see for yourself. Hope you enjoy, I know I am.
This little recipe I put together is so easy, quick, and delicious. Not to mention, it is beyond cheap. I made it as a main dish, but would also be a nice side dish next to some chicken paprikash, which I will be making soon! My mom’s maternal side of the family is Hungarian, so these are foods I am used to having. I was craving some the other day and realized that it would be super easy to make a low carb version. Normally this is served with dumplings or “noodles”, but I opted out and just made it with the good stuff.
Everything can be found at Aldi
Ingredients:
one head of cabbage
one package of kielbasa/smoked sausage
one small onion
6 Tbsp of butter
salt
pepper
Directions:
Begin by melting your butter in a large skillet or pot on low heat. While this is happening, start dicing an onion. Add it to the skillet, and begin prepping your cabbage. Easiest way to do this is to wash it, then cut out the core.
This is the core, get rid of that thing!Chop off what you can of it.Then with a smaller knife, cut around the core until it can be pulled out.Should look like this.
After the core is removed, cut the whole head in half. Then cut into one inch slices, then repeat on the other half. Then add it to your skillet with the onion.
Bump your heat up to medium, add in salt and pepper to your liking, give it a good stir to coat everything in the butter. Next, cover the skillet and let simmer a few minutes before stirring again. Let it get nice and steamy so you get the cabbage really tender.
While you’re waiting for this to happen, cut up your sausage into bite sized pieces, and add to a different skillet along with a drizzle of olive oil. Put it on a medium heat, and start browning your sausage. I don’t like too much of a char on mine, so i just waited until it got a little color.
Just continue to take turns stirring the different contents, and once your cabbage is nice and tender (about 10-15 minutes), drop it to low heat, taste test to adjust your seasonings if needed. Once your sausage is prepared to your liking, add it into the cabbage mixture, and saute for a few more minutes to let the flavors develop. Serve and enjoy!
The dreaded holidays are here. I love the holidays, don’t get me wrong, but as most of you know it’s hard to stay on track! This is the first time in my life I’ve been on a diet during the holidays instead of “taking a break” until they’re over. I made this excuse constantly, and looking back now, I realize I was just stuck in my comfort zone.
I would always want to start losing weight after summer, because of all the barbecues and cookouts were over with. So I’d usually start in September, but quit by October because my mom’s birthday was that month, and Halloween. Then I’d usually pick it back up for a bit at the beginning of November, take a break for Thanksgiving, then decide “there’s no use trying to keep this up until after Christmas”.
Then after Christmas, comes New Years, then my birthday in January. By then, the gyms are packed with everyone starting their New Years resolutions , that I didn’t want to go then either. The with February comes more friends birthdays, then with spring comes easter, then pretty soon we’re back in summer and those barbecues are back. A whole year wasted. Year after year of excuses.
When I started this journey, Labor Day was right around the corner. My grandma always has a big cookout, and this year I didn’t go. I figured my family would most likely be upset with me, but I knew if I went that I would be setting myself up for failure. “One little cookie” turns into four or five, and so on. That day, I went to the gym for an hour and went back home. Although, I felt bad for not making an appearance, that was the first holiday that I didn’t cheat.
Then came Halloween. I knew that I’d be passing out candy this year, and I knew I was going to be tempted, but I didn’t realize how much. When I went to the store to buy candy I made sure to pick out candy that wouldn’t tempt me. Whenever I got home, my grandpa bought some candy too, and when I opened the bag, there they were. Reese’s Cups, Snickers Bars, Kit Kats, and Twix. I wanted to have a Reese’s Cup SO bad. All this time, and I hadn’t been that tempted to cheat. I put one in my hand to open it, and I thought for a second. “Is this piece of candy worth everything that comes along with it?” NO. It wasn’t. So I resisted, barely. I thought about it all day.
At the start of November I went to my friends’ Halloween party, knowing full well I’d be tempted there as well. I knew there would be candy, drinks, and food I’d have to ignore. I made a point (because I turn into a garbage disposal when I drink) to pack alcoholic beverages that were keto friendly, and snacks and keto cookies that I could eat when I got to that point. I had the best time, I still didn’t cheat. In fact, I wasn’t even tempted to cheat. If I wanted snacks, I had my own. If I wanted alcohol, I had my own. No excuse to eat or drink anything else. I did indulge in some low carb Jell-O shots my friends made though! But once again, low carb friendly.
Now here we are, two days away from the biggest holiday for eating. THANKSGIVING. I’ve been dreading it a bit, because I know there’s gonna be people in my ear all day, “Treat yourself. Reward yourself. You’ve worked so hard just have a little bit. Just a bite won’t hurt.” Truth is, those to me, are the worst things to tell someone. Why would you want to convince me to fail? Everyone is different. Some people have success with cheating now and again, but I do not.
As soon as I fall off the wagon, there’s no getting back up. Also, I know how agonizing my first week on my diet was like. Withdrawing from carbs and sugar SUCKS. I had a headache every day, felt sick, tired, hungry. I don’t want to go through that again, plus to me, I know I call it a diet, but it is a lifestyle change. That’s the difference.
I will be bringing my own dessert to my grandma’s house Thursday. She always has plenty of food so can have like turkey, ham, salad, deviled eggs, veggies with dip, and she works at a meat place so she usually has some kind of beef too. Friday, I’m going to have my own Friendsgiving, and I’ll be cooking everything. Non keto, and keto friendly stuff for everyone. I am very excited to post my feast along with the recipes and pictures. Thanks for listening, and enjoy the holiday.
