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FOODIE HIGHLIGHTS – EPISODE 3 – KETO

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Yes, I’ve started a ketogenic diet. Please see my page with my health updates for the reasons, motivations and improvements in health.

What is a ketogenic diet? I suggest watching a few videos by Dr. Eric Berg for more information. There are many resources out there, but I consider Dr. Berg one of the most informative. Please note that I am not suggesting that this is necessarily suitable for everybody, and I am being monitored (remotely) by a medical doctor.

So what can’t I eat? Well, in short, I have eliminated all sugars and foods high in carbohydrates. This means no fruit (there are a few exceptions), honey, sugar, syrup, flour, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice, cereals, grains, etc. Of course, it is easy to eliminate the overt sugars, but most sauces, dressings and prepared foods contain at least some of these. Fortunately, I have been learning to make my own these last few months, so now it is just a question of finding the right recipe and improvising a little bit.

Typically my day looks like this:

Breakfast: Eggs with vegetables (spinach, veldkool, tomatoes, mushrooms), cheese and avocado. If I don’t have avocado, I would add a bit of cream cheese.

Mid-day Snack: Full Cream Plain Yogurt with toasted seeds and occasionally some strawberries or blueberries. Alternatively, some cheese and olives.

Late Lunch / Early Dinner (around 4 pm or 5 pm): Meat, vegetables, fats. I make my own dressing and sauces using fresh cream, cultured cream, yogurt, buttermilk, herbs and spices.

Veldkool is completely new to me, and I have only used it one way so far. I stir-fry it in coconut oil, only adding a bit of seasoning. It reminds me of asparagus. If you will excuse my lack of skill with photography, here is a picture of my first attempt (cheese omelette, veldkool and avocado). Sadly, the season for veldkool ends in September. I bought as much as I could find yesterday!

Here are some of the recipes I have tested and liked recently:

I realise that is a lot of stews, but our spring is very late and we’ve had a few severe cold spells. Also, I like stews and casseroles.

You might wonder what one might use instead of rice or mashed potatoes to “soak up the stew”. Well, apparently cauliflower rice. I’m all for it, but I’m not ready to make it. Grating a head of cauliflower without a food processor looks very messy. One day…

So, while we’re changing things up all over the place, I’ve decided to change my mindset: I don’t have to have a rice/pasta/potato/bread substitute. I thicken my sauces (using coconut flour) and do without. I can only speak for myself, but just enjoying the foods I can have in a whole new way instead of concentrating on replacing foods I can no longer have, makes this endeavour so much more fun. This does not feel like deprivation.

You don’t have to be keto to enjoy any of the recipes I’ve linked. Good food is good food! Let me know if you’ve tried any of them.

Bon appetit!

FOODIE HIGHLIGHTS – EPISODE 2

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I’ve been away for most of August, so I haven’t been cooking much. I did, however, have some really good meals.

I spent two weeks with a couple who have been in the restaurant industry for 30+ years. They both know their way around a kitchen, and my taste-buds were very happy. Memorable meals included barbecued brisket, lamb shanks in the oven, and the most delightful barbecued chicken skewers made with boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chunky bell peppers and lemon halves. The lady of the house also made very yummy mashed potatoes.

One night we had steak, also on the braai. I swear, these steaks were like doorstops. I was tutored to make the mushroom sauce. Here’s how to do it…

Mushroom Sauce

Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • 250 g mushrooms finely sliced
  • salt
  • pepper
  • ¼ cup brandy
  • ½-1 cup fresh cream
  • 2 sprigs fresh thyme stripped

Instructions
 

  • Sauté onions in olive oil until soft.
  • Add mushrooms and spices. Sauté until mushrooms are soft and browned, stirring occasionally. Add more olive oil if needed.
  • Add brandy and flambé. Carefully! You might want to watch a YouTube video first before trying this at home.
  • Add cream and thyme and bring to the boil, taking care not to burn the sauce.
  • Serve immediately.

I left there with a whole sheep – chopped up and frozen, of course. I spent a few days with my parents, and we used some of the mutton to make this gem of a recipe for Lemon & Rosemary Lamb Traybake. I highly recommend it.

We also made Beef Stew with Red Wine. Perfect for a cold and rainy day. To top it off, Mom made one of my favourite desserts, Caramel Apple Tart.

I came back two days ago, and lo and behold, there was one pack of meat that wouldn’t fit into the freezer, so I had to make stew again. This Tomato Bredie is an oldie, but definitely a goodie. I totally forgot to put in the Cultured Cream, though that might have been for the best, as I accompanied my stew with truly decadent Roasted Garlic and Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes. Cultured cream and buttermilk would have been overkill. I’m not a huge fan of potatoes, but I love this dish!

I will do a post about my health shortly, but the condensed version is that I have to make a concerted effort to eliminate my diabetes, get off all my medication, lose weight, regain some mobility and improve my overall quality of life. I’ve known for a while that the most effective way to do that would be through a Ketogenic Diet, and that it would have to be for life. So, this week I’m ending my sourdough starter, indulging in some favourite treats (fruit! pasta!) and using up all the stuff in my pantry that will no longer form part of my diet. Next week is my birthday, and the day after that I’m embarking on a new adventure. Most of my recipes can be adapted for Keto, so I will still be sharing my food.

Let me know if you’ve tried any of these recipes.

FOODIE HIGHLIGHTS – EPISODE 1

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Let me just start by saying that I am not scared of vampires after this week! Or the flu! There was a lot of garlic.

Speaking of garlic, have you heard of elephant garlic? Yeah, me neither, until I moved to the country. It’s big – big bulbs, big cloves, big flavour. I managed to score a bag at the very end of the season a few weeks ago, and have been generously using it in everything. Some people might figure that one clove of elephant garlic equals about 4 cloves of normal garlic and adjust accordingly. I am not some people.

I preserved the peeled cloves in a jar filled with white vinegar, stored in the fridge.

FOOD I COOKED MYSELF

Hands down the best meal I made this week was a chicken tray bake with lemons and garlic. This was sooooo good!

Ordinarily I would link to the recipe, but I honestly don’t know where I got this recipe from and my Google searches have been fruitless. So, I am going to have to post it here and apologise in advance to the original chef.

Chicken Tray Bake with Lemons and Garlic

Unknown
Print Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Resting Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 50 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 large whole chicken free range
  • 2 red onions peeled and cut into 6 pieces
  • 4-6 garlic cloves unpeeled
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 lemons sliced
  • 8 sprigs fresh thyme
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
 

  • Remove chicken from refrigerator about 30 minutes prior.
    Preheat oven to 200℃.
    Drip 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a roasting pan, add the onions, garlic and lemon slices and, with your hand, mix it all together until everything is coated with the oil.
    Move the vegetables to the side and add the chicken. Rub the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil into the chicken. Season well with salt and black pepper and arrange the vegetables around the chicken. Drape the sprigs of thyme over the chicken and vegetables.
    Roast the chicken for 1 hour. Don't be alarmed if the onion and lemons start crisping to black at the edges – it will all be worth it in the end!
    Once chicken is cooked through, remove from the oven. Cover with foil and let it all rest for 20 minutes. Don't skip this step!

There you have it. I had it with salad, and it was a very satisfying meal. I had no idea caramelised lemons could be so delicious.

I also cooked soup (we’re in the middle of a very cold spell). You can find the recipe here. I had to make some modifications, as I had no leeks or turnips. Instead I used more onions and I added some cubed sweet potatoes. I’m having some more for dinner in a bit…

Breakfast this morning was from one of my new favourite recipe sites, Spain on a Fork. While they are not exclusively vegetarian, they have a lot of vegetarian recipes. I had to use the mushrooms in my fridge, and the picture looked so good… Find the recipe here. Definitely making this again.

Of course, I baked some sourdough bread as well. In fact, I baked a loaf for a neighbour. Go me! I just heard him shouting for the dogs outside, so it seems he survived. I have a lot to say about my adventures with sourdough, so keep an eye out for a post in the near future.

FOOD FROM ELSEWHERE

While I cook most of what I eat, I did join my friend for dinner one evening and she made Spaghetti Aglio e Olio (garlic and olive oil in Italian – a simple pasta dish, but oh so delicious!) I had never had it before, because I thought it would be weird and oily. It was not. I will try this at home!

If you’ve read my progress page you’ll know that I am really watching my sugar intake in an effort to manage my Type 2 diabetes. My sweet tooth cries itself to sleep each night. But yesterday I bought some organic dark chocolate (70% cocoa) at The Foodie Hub. It’s not sugar-free (yet), so I’m limiting myself to one small square a day and it does the trick.

That’s it for the week that was. I have no clue what I’m making this coming week.

PS. I’m only sharing my successes. Nobody needs to hear about my kitchen calamities!