Low Carb Snacks

Just a quick question to start a discussion....what do people do for low carb snacks on here?

For crunch instead of crisps It's pork crackling for me and others include a pot of antipasti from the deli counter filled with all sorts of stuffed olives,spicy peppers,feta cheese cubes and sun dried tomatoes,sometimes I grab a couple of corned beef slices out of the fridge and spread a bit of mustard on them and just eat them like that for a savoury hit,I sometimes buy a spicy Chorizo ring and cut some off when I fancy a 'Peperami' type snack and I do like celery dipped in peanut butter or some cold hard boiled eggs to munch on.

I think the secret with low carb snacks is preparation. Sure you can go to the fridge and take out cheese, ham, corned beef - or get a handful of macadaemia nuts or almonds out of the kitchen cupboard.

But what I find useful is to prepare a batch of good low carb food that you can keep in your fridge and just take out when you need it.

Things like sausages or sausages wrapped in bacon. I cook say 12 (or more) at a time eat some and once they have cooled keep some in the fridge.

Similarly things like frittata or crustless quiches can be cooked and kept for a few days in your fridge. Invest in the silicone type bake-ware, I find them a godsend.

Just make sure you have plenty of eggs in the house and when you make your frittata add things like grated cheese, ham, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, chorizo - anything savoury can be added to the egg mix.

I think there are a few recipes already on the Forum that can help .....

But I'm sure other members will be along to give their views. Well I hope they will.

Feel free to come back and ask any questions.  

All the best Jan

Crustless quiches and mini quiches have become a favourite with us and there are lots of great recipe idea variations. This recipe idea by Libby at 'Ditch The Carbs' blog is fantastic for lunch boxes, lunch time get togethers etc. Why not give them a try.

"I love making these little crustless mini quiche. They are so easy to do, and you can freeze a whole batch of them for school lunches. Add whatever vegetables or cheeses you fancy. How about some spinach at the bottom, a chunk of blue cheese, cream cheese, asparagus, mushrooms etc. They have only 1.2g carbs and high in fat to keep you full for longer. You can even use the same principle to make a crustless regular quiche. Line a regular quiche dish with bacon, crack eggs on top, add vegetables, cheese and seasoning. Add salmon, cream cheese and dill? That would be my favourite.

CRUSTLESS MINI QUICHE

PREP TIME
10 mins
COOK TIME
15 mins
TOTAL TIME
25 mins

INGREDIENTS
Serves 6
6 rashers bacon
6 eggs
6 cherry tomatoes
50g cheese grated
salt/pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS
Line each cupcake case with the bacon, making sure the sides and bottom are fully covered.
Crack an egg into each bacon lined case.
Place a cherry tomato into each egg, sprinkle with the grated cheese and finish off with salt and pepper to taste.
Place each cupcake case onto a baking tray and bake at 180C for 15 minutes."





Hope you enjoy them. Original recipe idea here

http://www.ditchthecarbs.com/2014/05/26/crustless-mini-quiche/

All the best Jan

Martin1 wrote:Just a quick question to start a discussion....what do people do for low carb snacks on here?

Hope you enjoy the mini quiches.

Now over to others for their thoughts and ideas

All the best Jan

seen the olives . make a low carb kebab . use peppers . olives . cheese squares . bits of ham . put on skewer . make a lot . cover and keep in fridge . can also put them in a air tight container . eat and then make some more .

Low Carb Kebabs ... good idea.

Or if I'm lazy just put some great low carb goodies on a small plate. Ham, Cheese, Macadaemia's etc there is a lot to choose from when you start thinking about it

All the best Jan

I did some nice low carb vegetarian kebabs on the BBQ the other week (Should have got a piccy D'oh) with chunks of Halloumi,chunks of red onion,red bell pepper and pitted queen olives all skewered together on wooden kebab sticks that were soaked in water to stop 'em burning and I slow cooked 'em until caramelised on the outside...Delicious!

Cheers

Paul

This is a lovely recipe idea from Ewelina ... who is a Type 1 Diabetic ...

here is the list of ingredients:
(makes 24 macaroons)
· 250g desiccated coconut
· 140 g xylitol
· 100 g coconut oil
· 2 egg whites
· 4 tbsp. milk

The carbohydrates and calories details:
Whole mixture 50g Carbohydrates 2847 Calories
1 macaroon 2g Carbohydrates 118 Calories

Now do please go over to Ewelina's blog to see how to make these tasty macaroons, the link is here
http://www.diabeticgoodbaking.com/2013/07/ihave-become-bit-obsessed-about-coconut.html

All the best Jan

Jan1 wrote:

Looking for a low carb biscuit snack?
How about these ...

This is a lovely recipe idea from Ewelina ... who is a Type 1 Diabetic ...

here is the list of ingredients:
(makes 24 macaroons)
· 250g desiccated coconut
· 140 g xylitol
· 100 g coconut oil
· 2 egg whites
· 4 tbsp. milk

The carbohydrates and calories details:
Whole mixture 50g Carbohydrates 2847 Calories
1 macaroon 2g Carbohydrates 118 Calories

Now do please go over to Ewelina's blog to see how to make these tasty macaroons, the link is here
http://www.diabeticgoodbaking.com/2013/07/ihave-become-bit-obsessed-about-coconut.html

All the best Jan

Thankyou Jan

Love these, I don't however substitute canderel for the xylitol, it may be in my mind but xylitol tastes like soap to me lol

these are soooooo simple to make, after a few times you could make them in your sleep and they are yumm

sounds daft but my favourite snack is simply cheese, when I'm on the road i buy the singles of cathedral and munch on them, i always have multipack in the fridge in the office for when I'm there, just plain old cheese, whoop whoop

I also cut cheese into strips when we are going out for the day and wrap it in ham, then foil and into the cool box

can't stand sweaty cheese though, it has to be cold

Andy12345 wrote:sounds daft but my favourite snack is simply cheese, when I'm on the road i buy the singles of cathedral and munch on them, i always have multipack in the fridge in the office for when I'm there, just plain old cheese, whoop whoop

I also cut cheese into strips when we are going out for the day and wrap it in ham, then foil and into the cool box

can't stand sweaty cheese though, it has to be cold

Not daft at all Andy I often snack on cheese, for me it's a way of keeping my calorie intake up:shock:

graham64 wrote:

Andy12345 wrote:sounds daft but my favourite snack is simply cheese, when I'm on the road i buy the singles of cathedral and munch on them, i always have multipack in the fridge in the office for when I'm there, just plain old cheese, whoop whoop

I also cut cheese into strips when we are going out for the day and wrap it in ham, then foil and into the cool box

can't stand sweaty cheese though, it has to be cold

Not daft at all Andy I often snack on cheese, for me it's a way of keeping my calorie intake up:shock:  

Cheese is a great low carb snack,but definitely not 'sweaty cheese'.
My favourite is cheddar, but I do sometimes get the babybel mini's for a change.

All the best Jan

This week, Wensleydale. I admit to having it on an oatcake but that's only 5 - 6g carbs and I need something to hold up the cheese and butter.

chris c wrote:This week, Wensleydale. I admit to having it on an oatcake but that's only 5 - 6g carbs and I need something to hold up the cheese and butter.

And I'll admit to having Cheddars cheese biscuits only 1.8g carbs three or four of these with my cheese makes for a good snack, they do have drawbacks though they are very flimsy and I need to ensure the butter is soft enough or else they break into pieces

I thought this recent blog post from Emily Maguire may be of interest ... Emily is "a qualified nutritionist (holding a BSc in nutrition) with an MSc in Obesity Science and Management. Her passion lies within all things nutrition, but particularly looking at alternative dietary options available specifically for the treatment of obesity and its co morbidities."



" One of the major questions that I get asked by clients when I am changing their dietary habits is what about snacking? This is a big area that is often debated with some people saying that you should not snack in between meals and those that say you should eat every 2-3 hours. Whilst it is great to try and give a blanket statement for most people to follow, I personally am not a fan of that approach. We as humans are all individuals in every sense and this should also remain true for your nutritional intake.  (if you are just looking for a list of low sugar snacks rather than the theory then skip right to the end of the post)

Even if you are following a similar dietary principle i.e. sugar free, LCHF etc. What your diet looks like for the day could and ultimately should look different from one person to the next. In an ideal world, snacking throughout the day should be kept to a minimum and used as and when the body needs. The problem with this of course is that there is a lot more involved than just simple hunger. This is where the difference betweebetween hedonic and homeostatic hunger comes into play.

Homeostatic hunger is the brains response to true hunger in that the body has a specific need for energy and proper nutrition. This is the stomach rumbling that we can often feel at certain times of the day when your body knows it normally gets food (NB this type of response can be very different in a keto adapted individual). Hedonic hunger is the brains drive to eat something purely to offer the body pleasure.  This is the feeling of wanting to eat, having a desire for something or finding yourself dwelling on a particular food.

The desire to eat can often be exacerbated with certain social situations or emotional states as well. For example, many people associate sitting down to watch a film with having some popcorn or a pick n mix. Or if you have had a bad day at work or an argument with your spouse, you may find comfort in some ice cream or a large cookie. Whatever the reason or the trigger, your brain is making you want to eat something for reasons other than pure nutritional hunger.

Now we can see the difference in where our drive to eat is coming from, it is easy to see how it can throw you off your healthy eating. This is why as a starting strategy I get people to have a clear out of any foods that they may normally reach for. This is because sometimes no amount of will power can over ride the brains desire to eat.

This brings us back to the question then of to snack or not to snack? Having a completely no snacking zone can cause people over time to succumb to what your brain is desiring rather than requiring for the body (the hedonic vs homeostatic response) to eat.  In order to work with the body though it is good to first establish what kind of hunger you are feeling, practice some short mindful strategies and then having a stock of low sugar snacks to hand should that not work.

When choosing your snacks, the best option will depend on your specific macronutrient goals so always be sure to check and add this in. If you are someone just following low refined sugar and grain principles, then all of these snacks are suitable. "

She lists 10 Low Sugar Sweet Snacks and 10 Low Sugar Savoury Snacks

Find out what they are - read more here
http://lowcarbgenesis.com/the-perfect-guide-to-low-sugar-snacking/

All the best Jan

Hazelnut Thumbprint Cookies

Following on from the post above ... I recently saw this recipe on Emily Maguires blog and thought it one to share ...

Words are Emily's

" This is a recipe that I developed a good few months ago which I am just getting round to posting now. The inspiration for this cookie recipe really came from finding new ways to get a cream cheese filling into a sweet treat without it being a cheesecake. These definitely fit the bill and go amazingly with either a cup of tea or a glass of milk. For those of you that cannot tolerate dairy, then having it alongside a glass of almond or coconut milk also works really well. You can also substitute the hazelnut butter for any other nut butter that you may prefer (keeping the same quantities). As always enjoy ...

Ingredients:
100g ground almonds
1 egg
20g butter
2tsp hazelnut butter
10 drops liquid stevia
½ tsp baking soda

For the middle:
50g cream cheese
3tbsp double cream
2tsp hazelnut butter
5 drops liquid stevia

Instructions: Makes 7 "

See step by step pictures and the instructions here:

http://lowcarbgenesis.com/hazelnut-thumbprint-cookies/

I know there are those (but not all) who enjoy a low carb biscuit with a mid-afternoon cuppa

All the best Jan

That would be good with half an avocado