Life is chaos! But there’s always time for a danish!

Holy moly, spring is in full swing! It seems like everyone wants us to be here or there. Sheesh! I want a weekend at home to re-cooperate!

So weigh in day went ok…294.6! Can’t complain about that after such a big drop last week, and the fun weekend we had!

The last couple of days I’ve been well behaved; drinking all my water, eating clean and hovering around 1200 calories/25 grams of carbs or less, getting a walk in or moderate physical activity in. I feel like I should up my activity, maybe add some high intensity interval training to really maximize my workout time.

As I promised, here is the Cheese Danish recipe…trust me, and make this. It doesn’t taste like diet food at all. Creamy, cheesy, decadent breakfast pastry goodness that totally feels like a cheat and isn’t!

adapted from uplateanyway.com….such a great blog! This is a three step process that *looks* like hard work  but really, isn’t too bad and comes together super quickly.

Ingredients:

Dough

——-

1. 1 1/4 cup 2% mozzarella shredded cheese (140 grams) (this type of cheese is important; using other types of mozzarells alters the texture and adds starch, etc.)
2. 6 tbsp Almond Flour (42 grams) (I didn’t have almond flour, so I used soy flour instead…turned out just fine, but did alter the carb count from the original recipe)
3. 3 tbsp Coconut Flour (21 grams)
4. 4 tbsp sugar equivalent
5. 1/2 tsp baking powder
6. 1/2 tsp vanilla
7. 1 egg (large)

Filling

——

1. 6 oz cream cheese
2. 1 tsp lemon juice (I omitted this and it turned out fine)
3. 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
4. 1/4 cup sugar equivalent
5. 1 egg yolk

Glaze

——-

1. 3 tbsp powdered sweetener (she ground hers up in a coffee grinder, I just used regular Splenda in the giant bag; it was very thick though)
2. 2 tbsp heavy cream
3. 2 oz cream cheese
4. 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Filling

1. Soften cream cheese and combine with lemon juice, vanilla, and sweetener and egg yolk using a whisk or electric mixer. Set aside in the fridge until you are ready with the dough.

Dough

1. Measure out almond flour, coconut flour, and baking powder. Combine well with a whisk.
2. Melt 4 tbsp butter and add vanilla and sweetener. Stir.
3. Melt 1 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese in the microwave, working in 1 minute increments.
4. Combine all the ingredients and add an egg.
5. Stir until batter is combined and the cheese and dough are completely mixed. Use your hands or a spatula to press and fold the cheese and the batter together. Reheat for 10 seconds in the microwave. Press and fold some more until 99% of the dough is all one color. (Tip-this gets sticky and if you wet your hands a little it helps tremendously. The water from your hands will stop the stickiness on the outside of the dough making it very easy to roll out.)
6. Reheat dough for 10 seconds and roll out into a square the approximate length of a rolling pin and slice into four quarters with a pizza slicer. You could also make 6 danishes to stretch the recipe a bit further and cut the carbs down even more! They won’t be huge, but they will still hit the spot.
7. Fold the corners into the center repeating with all four squares.
8. Spoon the filling into the center of each danish.
9. Bake for 10-12 minutes. (Check on this at 10 minutes and make sure to remove it from the oven as soon as it has a deep golden brown color!)

Frosting

1. Soften cream cheese in the microwave and add powdered sweetener, heavy cream and vanilla. Mix well with a whisk and pour into a ziploc bag. Cut a tiny hole in the corner and pipe onto each danish.

These are divine little bits of heaven!!!

Hope you enjoy the recipe!

KK

Really starting to love low-carbing!

I asked hubby today if he felt deprived, missed carbs, had cravings, etc. Which led to a surprising discussion. We both are surprised by how much we enjoy this way of eating! I love how much more healthily we’re eating by incorporating more veggies. I have more energy, less tummy troubles, and just all around feel better, as does he. Hubby said he is only down 1 pound though since we started, which I think is odd…I guess everyone that has a “diet” that works for them, and maybe his isn’t low carbing. He really doesn’t need to lose much weight anyway, maybe 20 pounds tops. And YAY tomorrow is weigh-in day!

Anyway, enough of the tangent lol. Today was a great day. I’m at 25 net carbs and a smidge over 1000 calories…which means I get to have cheesecake tonight! LOL! I drank about a half gallon today…I need to keep my bottle by me at all times to make sure I get more water in. Exercise today was chasing baby girl around the backyard playing “soccer” haha. And a short walk this morning, but it was chilly so we only made it around the block once. I am thrilled that she loves being outside so much! …..Except when it’s time to come inside and she pitches a fit lol. Oh well.

So, about that recipe. This is one I’m way proud of. I was worried about the leftovers heating up well since there are so many veggies, and veggies tend to get…wet. Not an issue!! It tasted like I had just fried it up today! Color me surprised and wicked excited haha! So here ya go:

Chicken Fried Cauli-Rice

Ingredients

2 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, Trimmed of fat and cut into bite sized cubes

1 package frozen cut green beans (fresh would work too. Better probably!)

1 Small onion (I used red, it was what I had)

3 oz. baby carrots, shredded using the largest holes on a grater, or use a food processor

2 large eggs

1 medium-large head of Cauliflower “riced” using grater or food processor

6 Tablespoons low sodium Soy Sauce

2 Tablespoons sesame oil (butter or olive oil works just as well; sesame is just for the flavor)

Salt, Pepper, and Garlic powder to taste.

Directions

1) In a wok or *large* skillet, heat sesame oil over medium high heat. Add chicken and saute until lightly browned.

2) Add green beans and onion, and continue to saute until all the water added by the vegetables cooks out.

3) Add the eggs, break the yolks, then continue to saute the mixture until the eggs are scrambled.

4) Add the carrots and cauliflower, and saute for 2 minutes, stirring often.

5) Add the soy sauce, and continue to cook for 3-4 more minutes, allowing the “rice” to fry and any excess liquid to cook off.

Then Enjoy!! If you make it, let me know what you think! I welcome any feedback!

KK

A new found use for cauliflower…

Is it Wednesday yet? lol…so curious to see what my progress is. I physically feel as if I have stalled over the last few days (which makes sense if I purged several pounds of water in the first few days of low-carbing), but I def think I made some big strides. It’s really hard not to look to the scale for reassurance of progress!

I’m happy to say I drank more water today than I have in the last several days. A little more than 1/2 gallon, plus probably another 1/4 gallon of other liquids (coffee and tea, mostly lol…can’t be perfect all the time). I’m way under on calories (is it bad to count carb grams AND calories? I can find no research on this. Dr. Google FAIL). I’m just shy of the 1k mark, and my total carbs are under 20, with a net of 15ish? the last time I checked.

OMG Dinner though! I made fried “rice” using cauliflower…now, I am not usually a fan of cauliflower at all, but for the sake of low carbing, I have been making it a point to eat it at least once a week. So this fried “rice”….tasted NOTHING like cauliflower at all!! It was amazing! One quarter of the entire recipe was about 250 calories, with a net carb count of just 11! And trust me, you will not be hungry after the 1/4 serving. I love food that gives me generous portions with lots of sneaky veggies! I was so proud of the recipe, I submitted it to My Fitness Pal LOL! I’ll post it tomorrow when I have more time to type, but I’m running a bit late today….so here’s a picture to make you drool 😉

Ok, so maybe it’s not the tastiest looking picture, but I took it with my phone and I was so eager to get back to eating that I didn’t much care haha.

So anyway, exercise for the day…chased the munchkin around the park for an hour or so. Haven’t done the challenge moves yet, but I will while hubs and I are winding down for the day. So all in all, a pretty decent day! And I feel weirdly energetic, which I’m def not complaining about haha.

Time to get those exercises knocked out so I can have some tv time and hit the hay…until tomorrow!

KK

One week down!

And I hardly feel like I’m on a diet at all! Hubby agrees. It’s amazing. No bloat, no gassiness, no hunger pangs because I’m counting calories (although I do still aim for about 12-1300). It’s crazy! We had steak taco wraps for dinner, and both hubby and I were like “DAYUM we need to have this on the regular!” lol.

So today, munchkin and I did a couple laps of the block; nothing exciting. Plus started the challenge moves. I did 3 sets, because…well, at this point, it’s still pretty quick and easy, so why not? lol. I think I’ll start the step tracking tomorrow or sometime this week when I know the weather will be reliable enough to let me get outside daily. Water intake today was still pretty down…I def need to get back on that! Bad Kim for falling so far off the bandwagon so quickly and easily! Calories today are at 1500, net carbs are under 20 as of now. I might have some almonds or something later if I get snacky before bed.

As promised, a cheesecake recipe. Holy smokes, guys. It’s creamy. It’s sweet. It’s salty. It doesn’t have the same texture as a baked cheesecake, but as far as no bakes go, it’s probably one of the best I’ve ever had. Seriously. I want to make it for a party sometime, just so I can have an excuse to make it again! I made it in a large muffin pan to easily divvy it out to 6 servings. At 6 servings, it comes in around 325 calories and less than 2 net carbs (1.7, to be exact). If you decide to go with 4 servings instead, it’s 3.1 net carbs and about 490 calories.

Just trust me, and make it…you won’t be disappointed!! (taken from lowcarb-ology.com)

Ingredients

8 oz. regular cream cheese, warmed to room temp

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/8 teaspoon caramel extract (I actually used caramel syrup, the kind you would put in coffee. Sugar free. Torani Brand…about 2 teaspoons. I would up it to a whole tablespoon next time)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 Packets Stevia (or an equal amount of sweetener of choice)

1 cup of finely chopped pecans (I was lazy and didn’t chop mine “finely” and it was less like a crust and more of an upside down topping lol)

2 Tablespoons unsalted butter (or use salted butter and omit adding the salt, no big deal.)

Pinch of Salt (I actually used more than a pinch…maybe double? I never measure lol. But I wanted more of a “salted caramel” flavor. Salt to taste)

Instructions

1) In a stand mixer or using a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese, vanilla, caramel, and Stevia until blended well.

2) Add the cream, and once it is incorporated, up the speed to whip. Continue at this speed until you achieve a thick, creamy, dense texture. Check the taste at this point to make sure it is sweetened to your liking.

3) Melt the butter. Mix in the pecans and salt, and stir until well blended. Reserve a tablespoon or two for topping, then divide the rest into whatever pans/muffin tins/ custard cups you’re using for the cheesecake.

4) Spoon the cheesecake mixture on top. Smooth, then sprinkle the reserved nut mixture over the tops.

5) Chill for 3-4 hours, minimum.

then 6) ENJOY THE HECK OUT IF IT!!! lol 🙂

I suppose I should have taken a picture…oops. I’ll try to snap one tomorrow when the lighting is better!

Until then,

KK

On the mend…

Thank Goodness! Omg I could have crawled into a cave and died yesterday. Today I’m mostly better except for that darn tickle in the back of my throat and the remnants of that awful headache. Hopefully by the end of the weekend I’ll be 100% again!

So random, but I made spaghetti squash for the first time ever today…I AM NOW OBSESSED!!! I made a spaghetti/lasagna casserole with it and holy moly!! I’m already dreaming up other dishes I can use it with (Lo Mein, anyone? lol) and I’m definitely going to make sure it’s a regular on our menu. Went and got groceries today and more than half was fresh produce. I’m ashamed to admit I’ve never bought that much at once before. It was awesome though! Between all the veggies and some fruit for the munchkin, my kitchen practically could be a Farmer’s Market lol. Speaking of, only a couple weeks until it opens!! YAY! I love just walking around and seeing all the stuff, but I have a feeling I’ll be buying a lot more this year.

I also got some coconut flour and some flax seed meal to try baking with. I’m a baker at heart, ya’ll. My oven is screaming its displeasure at the lack of use. I might start experimenting with that and post the recipes here. But first on the agenda: Caramel Pecan Cheesecake. That’s the yum of next week! Doesn’t sound low carb?? It will be! 🙂

So anyway…I drank 3/4 of a gallon of water today, but I haven’t even eaten 1000 calories. Oops. I shopped as quickly as I could and parked at the back of the lot so I counted that as a brisk but short (15 min) walk, even though I was there for an hour. So not too shabby today. But I’ve got to get to 1200 calories so I might have some almonds later. I got some Blue Diamond Salted Caramel almonds today…4 net carbs pers serving! Sounds yummy to me!

I’m part of a curvy mom’s get fit page on Facebook. We are starting this challenge on Sunday.

I had also found a walking one I was interested in doing. It started at 5k steps per day, and by the end of the 30 days, you were up to 16K, but I can’t find it anywhere now!! Dang it!

Hmm…what else. Thinking about taking the kiddo to the zoo tomorrow, weather permitting. She’s been a grump the last couple of days so maybe it will cheer her up. I think she’s going through a growth spurt….poor kid is doomed to be tall like her mama and daddy 🙂

So I guess that’s about it for today. I can’t wait to get back on the scale. I def think I’m back in the 200’s. I’m wondering how quickly I will continue to lose after this first week or two of adjustment is over. Hopefully at a decent pace. I know I’ll hit a plateau; it’s inevitable. But I’d really like to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight (265) by Father’s Day. Then reassess and make a new goal from there!

Peace out!

KK

Keto flu?

Not sure if that’s what I have but omg do I feel like crap today!!! I have barely eaten or drank anything, I’ve been too nervous it would all come right back up! Add to that the hot and cold flashes, extreme headache, and sore throat…today has been miserable to say the least. I can barely stand to look at my computer screen! And since you know that I have been feeling cruddy all day, it’s a safe assumption to say that no, I didn’t exercise; no I didn’t drink enough water; and no, I haven’t eaten my requisite 1200 calories. And I don’t even have the energy to care.

No pithy banter today…just pray I feel better tomorrow…please, let me feel better tomorrow.

Finally Remembered

New Measurements:

Weight today 300.4 (holy crap, what a big jump in a day!! Probably partially getting rid of bloat from the weekend and partially the low carbing….still, not complaining!!! I kind of want to weigh tomorrow to see if I’m under 300, but I’ll wait until next Wednesday…maybe. HA!)

Neck: 15″ (-.25)

Biceps: 16.5″ (no change)

Bust: 47″ (-1.75)

Waist: 57″ (-1.25)

Hips: 59.25″ (-1)

Thighs: 31.5″ (-.5)

Calves: 17″ (-.25)

So that’s a total of five inches lost during Lent! Not a *huge* change considering where I am but I’m happy to see any change at all, so I’ll take it lol! Can’t wait to see even more inches come off in the coming weeks. 🙂

I think I’m coming down with a cold or something though. I’ve had a tickle in the back of my throat for two days now. Yesterday it was just an annoyance in the AM, by the evening it was bothersome. Today it’s down right heinous. Add to that the sneezing and you have one unhappy mama! And since I’m doing low carb at the moment…I can’t have cough drops lol. At least, not regular ones. If this persists tomorrow, I’ll have to invest in some sugar free ones.Hopefully it won’t be an issue?

Calories and carbs today were great! I haven’t even hit 10 net grams of carbs, although hubby and I are planning on having a few drinks after the munchkin hits the hay, so that will make it climb quite considerably. And I had to eat a second dinner to get *near* 1200 calories lol. I had a light lunch though, so that’s most of the problem. Can’t wait to go grocery shopping and stock up on some more snacks though!

I also drank about 3/4 of a gallon of water today. Plus my morning cup of coffee. I’ve read that going low carb can make you have to pee more frequently and I’ll be danged if that isn’t happening to me at the moment!! I swear, it’s like going back to the first week of my gallon challenge all over again!! Every hour I’m going lol. Can’t wait for that to be behind me!

So yeah, that’s it for today. Nothing new or exciting to report. Just trucking along! Hope you’re doing well with your endeavors!

KK

Day 2 LCHF

I felt pretty good today. We had taco wraps for dinner…gotta say, I actually kind of like tacos better with the lettuce wrap instead of a tortilla lol! Is that weird? Still have this little nagging voice in the back of my head that says “SUGAR!!!!” but it’s not nearly as bad as last night was. Holy moly, I’m not sure how my will power beat out the desire to eat all of my kiddo’s Easter candy!

I didn’t get any formal exercise today, but I did spend nap time cleaning and I worked up a decent sweat, so I’ll take it! Water was much better today; I got in more than half a gallon. While this may not be nearly as much as I’ve been drinking the last few weeks, the old me shudders to think of drinking that much water every day! So definitely an improvement.

My calories today are sitting around 1300, with 25 net grams of carbs (28 total). I really need to work on getting more fiber into my diet! I had no idea I was slacking on that so much. I love the charts in My Fitness Pal (I’m a nerd, I love pie charts!) that breaks everything down for you. Also the nutrition listed out is a big help, too. Glad I take a daily vitamin, I don’t seem to hit those goals very often.

I really need to find something that will satisfy my sweet tooth though. Maybe some sugar free popsicles or jello or something. I feel guilty considering having a protein shake, when it alone packs 10 grams of carbs per scoop. Maybe I can get hubby to split one with me haha. He’s usually good for that! But I feel comfortable aiming for the 25 grams or less daily. It’s restrictive, but not so much so that I have a hard time finding anything to eat. I really need to increase my low carb menu items in general. I tried to start on next week’s menu today and yeah…it was rough lol.

So that’s my update for today. OH! I almost forgot, I actually remembered to weigh in today…302.6. Apparently my scale really likes that number lol. But I’m also going to weigh tomorrow just so I can stick with the every Wednesday schedule. And will also be doing my measurements tomorrow since I just didn’t have the time today.

Fingers crossed for good news tomorrow!

KK

Life after Carbs…

I thought today went really well until about thirty minutes ago…holy crap I am craving something sweet like you would NOT believe!! So far today I’ve had 30 total grams of carbs, with a net of 23. Not too shabby for my first day, right? I told hubby I’d like to stay under 50 grams daily; I thought that would be generous enough for him to not feel deprived and he can still have his beloved milk lol. For myself, I’d like to stay under 20. I think tomorrow I’m going to whip up a batch of fat bombs and see if that doesn’t help curb this sweet tooth. I’m trying to stay strong, I really am!!

I forgot to weigh and do measurements today…oops!! I guess I’m used to the Wednesday morning gig now haha. So I’ll try to remember to do all that in the morning. I’m pretty sure I’m still awfully bloated from the weekend but meh.Oh well.

I fell off the water bandwagon today. Started off my day with a cup of coffee, then I think the rest of the day, if I’m being generous, I got in 4 cups of water. Bad Kim!! No exercise either…extra bad Kim!! It seriously felt wonderful to do as little as I could get away with today LOL. The weekend was so busy, I needed a mental rest day. Tomorrow, time to get to work! I’ve got to whip this house into shape, it’s starting to look like a pigsty! Plus it’s supposed to be super warm (compared to what it has been the last few days) and I know a little girl who just got some awesome new outside toys she’s waiting to break in.

What else…need to find some more low carb recipes. Going to be hard to meal plan when I only have a handful of recipes to choose from! We tried mashed cauliflower today. While it is certainly not the mashed potatoes we all know and love, it was a passable alternative. I made a twice baked variety that tasted ok; the texture was iffy, though. I think if I had perhaps ran it through the food processor a few more times it might have been a bit more smooth and creamy which is what I was really hoping for. Tomorrow we are slated to try a carrot souffle (potentially, I have to check the carb count again to make sure it’s ok), and I’d also like to make it to the store to pick up a few snack-y type foods; I really ran into issues today with knowing what to eat. I thought I was better prepared than I am!!

Calorie-wise for the day, I’m just a hair shy of 1200, so I’ll need to find myself a snack to make sure I hit that mark. If I don’t, the Pact app I use will charge me $5 and I don’t want that!!

Anyone have any good recipe or snack suggestions that are HFLC friendly? I’d sure appreciate it!

KK

Holy Moly, what a weekend!

Exactly that ^^^ lol. This weekend was crazy from beginning to end. I literally feel as if I didn’t stop moving from about 11 AM Friday until now. I love spending time with family and I super enjoy making cupcakes for profit but SHEESH I feel like I got ran over by a bus! I can’t wait to get the munchkin into bed so hubby and I can have some time to unwind. Tomorrow begins our 30 days of low carbs…well maybe; we have some leftovers in the fridge and I *hate* throwing food away. It’s literally money down the drain! So I might push it back to Tuesday but I’d like to stick with the plan of tomorrow.

In preparation for that, I totally carb binged this weekend. I’ll admit it. I’m nervous to weigh tomorrow because there isn’t a doubt in my mind that I’ll be up from Wednesday’s weigh in. And of course, the bloating from the binging will throw off my new measurements as well 😦 I’m tempted to wait until Wednesday again to re-weigh and re-measure but…I don’t know. Honesty is the best policy, right?  Own my transgressions and move on, that’s what I said I’d do.

I still need to find a new 30 day challenge…pinterest, here I come! lol. Definitely want to make sure hubby and I stick to it this time!

Anywho, that’s it for today. Drank almost no water (does beer count as water? It should haha…that’s one of my favorite things about hubby’s family; all the parties have plenty of booze and games, plus they’re for the most part all genuinely nice people. I was blessed with awesome in-laws!), consumed lots of calories, and didn’t really exercise but played plenty of bags and ping-pong so yeah, it was still a great day LOL!

HAPPY EASTER, EVERYONE!!

KK