The Low-Carb Diabetes Solution Cookbook (20 page)

1
/
2
to
3
/
4
cup (12 to 18 g) Splenda
*

3 tablespoons (45 ml) red wine vinegar or cider vinegar

12 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

*
Alternative Sweeteners

1
/
2
to
3
/
4
cup (24 to 36 g) Stevia in the Raw

1
/
2
to
3
/
4
teaspoon liquid stevia (plain)

1
/
4
to
1
/
3
teaspoon EZ-Sweetz Family Size

12 to 18 drops EZ-Sweetz Travel Size

YIELD:
8 servings 455 calories; 47 g fat; 10 g protein; 4 g carbohydrate; 2 g dietary fiber per serving

In a large bowl, combine the broccoli, cheese and onion. Combine the mayonnaise, Splenda, and vinegar; pour over the broccoli mixture and toss to coat. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Just before serving, stir in the bacon.

If you prefer, you can lightly steam the broccoli, then cool before adding the other ingredients. But don't go beyond tender-crisp.

The original version of this salad had too many vegetables for the HEAL Protocol. I adapted it, and it's still wonderful. It's easy to double or even triple—just grill a bigger steak. For that matter, in the unlikely event you should have leftover steak, this is a great way to turn it into a fresh meal.

6 ounces (170 g) sirloin steak, 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick

1 cup torn romaine lettuce

1 tablespoon (15 ml) vinaigrette—
French Vinaigrette
or
Italian Vinaigrette
would be good

2 tablespoons (16 g) minced red onion

2 tablespoons (16 g) crumbled blue cheese

1
/
4
large tomato, cut into wedges

YIELD:
1 serving 496 calories; 36 g fat; 36 g protein; 5 g carbohydrate; 2 g dietary fiber per serving

Preheat your grill or broiler and cook the steak to your liking—I'd go with medium-rare.

Meanwhile, toss the lettuce with the vinaigrette and arrange it on a plate.

When your steak is done, slice it medium-thin across the grain, and arrange it on the bed of lettuce. Scatter the onion and cheese over it, arrange the tomato wedges around it, and it's done.

S
oup is wonderful stuff—comforting, warming, filling. Sadly, most packaged soups include carb-laden ingredients, including noodles, rice, potatoes, barley, and cornstarch. Even generous quantities of the more carb-heavy vegetables can send soup past our 5-gram limit. Fortunately, homemade soup is not only easy but far tastier than the canned, powdered, or frozen types.

For super-nutritious soup, use homemade bone broth. This is easy and virtually free. Here's how I do it: I save all the bones from roast chicken, rotisserie chicken, chicken wings—all of them—in a plastic grocery sack in my freezer. No matter how clean the bones are picked, they still are great for broth. I also add onion, carrot, and celery trimmings, going easy on celery leaves, which can turn bitter. When I have enough to fill my big slow cooker, I dump them in, still frozen, and cover them with water. I add a tablespoon or two (15 to 28 ml) of cider or wine vinegar and a teaspoon of salt, cover the slow cooker, and let it cook for a good 24 hours. Once cooled and strained, it's ready to be used or frozen. A stash of good broth in the freezer is culinary gold.

However, good packaged broth or stock is worth keeping on hand. You'll want to read the labels. I like Kitchen Basics brand; it contains no junk, though it has a touch of honey. Between that and the vegetables used, it comes to 1 gram of carbohydrate per serving. Kitchen Basics comes in chicken, beef, and seafood varieties, which are all useful for us.

A quick and elegant first course. If you like curry, try adding
1
/
2
to 1 teaspoon or so of curry powder that you've cooked for just a minute or two in a tablespoon (14 g) of butter.

1 large or 2 small avocados, very ripe

1 quart (950 ml) hot chicken broth

YIELD:
6 appetizer-size servings 80 calories; 6 g fat; 4 g protein; 3 g carbohydrate; 1 g dietary fiber per serving

Pit and peel the avocado, and cut it into big chunks. Purée in the blender with the broth (use caution when blending hot liquids) until very smooth, and serve.

Olives are so good for you that you should be eating more of them! This makes a fine first course.

1 quart (950 ml) chicken broth, divided

1
/
2
teaspoon guar or xanthan

1 cup (100 g) minced black olives (you can buy cans of minced black olives)

1 cup (235 ml) heavy cream

1
/
4
cup (60 ml) dry sherry

Salt or Vege-Sal and ground black pepper, to taste

YIELD:
6 appetizer-size servings 189 calories; 17 g fat; 2 g protein; 3 g carbohydrate; 1 g dietary fiber per serving

Put
1
/
2
cup (120 ml) of the chicken broth in the blender with the guar and blend for a few seconds. Pour into a saucepan and add the remaining 3
1
/
2
cups (830 ml) broth and the olives.

Heat until simmering, then whisk in the cream. Bring back to a simmer, stir in the sherry, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

This soup is quick and easy, but filling, and it can practically save your life when you've got a cold. You don't have to use the guar, but it gives the broth the same rich quality that cornstarch-thickened Chinese broths have.

1 quart (950 ml) chicken broth, divided

1
/
4
teaspoon guar or xanthan (optional)

1 tablespoon (15 ml) soy sauce

1 tablespoon (15 ml) rice vinegar

1
/
2
teaspoon grated fresh ginger root

1 scallion, sliced

2 eggs

YIELD:
4 appetizer-size servings 75 calories; 4 g fat; 8 g protein; 2 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Put 1 cup (240 ml) or so of the chicken broth in your blender, turn it on low, and add the guar (if using). Let it blend for a second, then put it in a large saucepan with the remaining 3 cups (710 ml) broth. (If you're not using guar or xanthan, just put all the broth directly in a saucepan.)

Add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, and scallion. Over medium-high heat, bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes or so to let the flavors blend.

Beat your eggs in a glass measuring cup or small pitcher—something with a pouring lip. Use a fork to stir the surface of the soup in a slow circle and pour in about one-quarter of the eggs, stirring as they cook and turn into shreds (which will happen almost instantaneously). Repeat 3 more times, using up all the egg. That's it.

If you love egg drop soup, this is a fantastic twist on the original. Our tester Julie's son Austin calls it “the second best Dana recipe I've ever had!” (His favorite is the
Roasted Asparagus

2 quarts (2 L) chicken broth

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger root

1 pound (455 g) asparagus

2 eggs

1
1
/
2
tablespoons (22 ml) dry sherry

1 tablespoon (15 ml) soy sauce

2 teaspoons dark sesame oil

12 ounces (340 g) lump crabmeat, fresh or canned

YIELD:
4 servings 237 calories; 8 g fat; 31 g protein; 5 g carbohydrate; 1 g dietary fiber per serving

In a large, heavy saucepan, start the broth warming over medium heat. Stir in the ginger root.

Now snap the ends off of your asparagus where it wants to break naturally. Discard the ends, and slice the asparagus on the diagonal into
1
/
2
-inch (1 cm) pieces. When the soup is simmering, add the asparagus to it. Let it simmer for about 3 minutes.

While that's happening, beat the eggs until blended in a glass measuring cup. When the asparagus is just barely tender-crisp, take a fork in one hand and the cup of beaten egg in the other. Pour a stream of egg onto the surface of the soup, then stir with the fork. Repeat. It should take 3 or 4 additions to stir in all the egg. Now you have lovely egg drops!

Stir in the sherry, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Now add the crab, stir again, and cook for another 5 minutes or so before serving.

This is the Italian take on egg drop soup, and it's delightful. And it has the added nutrition of cheese!

1 quart (950 ml) chicken broth, divided

2 eggs

1
/
2
cup (50 g) grated Parmesan cheese

1
/
2
teaspoon lemon juice

Pinch of ground nutmeg

1
/
2
teaspoon dried marjoram

YIELD:
4 appetizer-size servings 117 calories; 7 g fat; 12 g protein; 2 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

Put
1
/
4
cup (60 ml) of the broth into a glass measuring cup or small pitcher. Pour the rest into a large saucepan over medium heat.

Add the eggs to the broth in the measuring cup and beat with a fork. Then add the Parmesan, lemon juice, and nutmeg, and beat with a fork until well blended.

When the broth in the saucepan is simmering, stir it with a fork as you add small amounts of the egg-and-cheese mixture, until it's all stirred in. (Don't expect this to form long shreds like Chinese egg drop soup; because of the Parmesan, it makes small, fluffy particles instead.)

Add the marjoram, crushing it a bit between your fingers, and simmer the soup for another minute or so before serving.

If you've only ever thought of mushroom soup as gooey stuff that comes in cans and is used in casseroles, you need to try this! It has a rich, earthy flavor. Even my mushroom-phobic husband liked it.

8 ounces (225 g) mushrooms, sliced

1
/
4
cup (40 g) chopped onion

2 tablespoons (28 g) butter

1 quart (950 ml) chicken broth

1
/
2
cup (120 ml) heavy cream

1
/
2
cup (115 g) sour cream

Salt and ground black pepper, to taste

Guar or xanthan (optional)

YIELD:
5 servings 217 calories; 19 g fat; 6 g protein; 5 g carbohydrate; 1 g dietary fiber per serving

In a big, heavy skillet, sauté the mushrooms and onion in the butter until the mushrooms soften and change color. Transfer them to your slow cooker. Add the broth. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 5 to 6 hours.

When the time's up, scoop out the vegetables with a slotted spoon and put them in your blender or food processor. Add enough broth to help them process easily and purée them finely. Pour the puréed vegetables back into the slow cooker, scraping out every last bit with a rubber scraper.

Now stir in the heavy cream and sour cream and season with salt and pepper to taste. Thicken a bit with guar or xanthan if you think it needs it. Serve immediately.

This simple Mexican soup takes no more than 25 minutes!

1
1
/
2
quarts (1.5 L) chicken broth, divided

1 pound (455 g) boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 chipotle chile canned in adobo

1 Hass avocado

4 scallions, sliced

Salt and ground black pepper, to taste

3
/
4
cup (85 g) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

YIELD:
6 servings 235 calories; 13 g fat; 26 g protein; 4 g carbohydrate; 2 g dietary fiber per serving

Pour the chicken broth into a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, reserving
1
/
2
cup (120 ml), and place it over medium-high heat. While it's heating, cut your chicken breast into thin strips or small cubes, then add to the broth. Let the whole thing simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.

Put the reserved chicken broth in your blender with the chipotle and blend until the chipotle is puréed. Pour this mixture into the soup and stir.

Split the avocado in half, remove the seed, peel it, and cut it into
1
/
2
-inch (1 cm) chunks. Add to the soup, along with the scallions, and salt and pepper to taste.

Ladle the soup into bowls and top each serving with shredded cheese.

My friend Chris, who has been coming to clean my house for a couple of decades now, sampled this soup and pronounced it the best she'd ever had. And it's so easy!

1
1
/
2
tablespoons (22 g) butter

1
/
4
cup (40 g) finely minced onion

1
/
4
cup (30 g) finely minced celery

2 cups (475 ml) heavy cream

1 can (14 ounces, or 390 g) salmon, drained

1
/
2
teaspoon dried thyme

YIELD:
4 servings 594 calories; 54 g fat; 23 g protein; 5 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber per serving

In a heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat and add the onion and celery. Sauté the vegetables for a few minutes, until the onion starts turning translucent.

Meanwhile, pour the cream into a glass 2-cup (475 ml) measure, or any other microwavable container similar in size with a pouring spout. Place it in the microwave and heat it at 50 percent power for 3 to 4 minutes. (This just cuts the time needed to heat the cream through—you can skip this step and simply heat the soup on the stove top for a little longer, if you prefer.)

Pour the cream into the saucepan and add the salmon and thyme. Break up the salmon as you stir the soup—I found my whisk to be ideal for breaking the salmon into fine pieces. Heat until simmering, and serve.

Quick, easy, and good. I admit that olive oil isn't Chinese, but it's better for you than the soybean oil typically found in cans of tuna.

1 quart (950 ml) chicken broth

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root

2 eggs

1 can (6 ounces, or 170 g) tuna packed in olive oil

1
1
/
2
cups (84 g) chopped fresh spinach

2 scallions, sliced thin

YIELD:
3 servings 216 calories; 9 g fat; 27 g protein; 3 g carbohydrate; 1 g dietary fiber per serving

In a big saucepan, combine the chicken broth with the soy sauce and ginger. Put it over medium-high heat, and bring it to a boil, then turn the heat down till the broth is just simmering.

While the broth is heating, break the eggs into a little glass measuring cup, or another container with a pouring lip. Beat 'em up with a fork. When your soup is simmering, pour one-third of the egg into the soup, wait just 1 or 2 seconds, then stir with a fork, drawing out the egg into strands. Repeat with the rest of the egg, in 2 or 3 more additions.

When you're done adding the egg, add the tuna and spinach. Heat through and serve with scallions on top.

Cheese soup with beer! Don't worry about the kids—the alcohol cooks off. Michelob Ultra, Miller Light, or Milwaukee's Best Light are the lowest in carbs.

1
1
/
2
quarts (1.5 L) chicken broth

1
/
4
cup (30 g) finely diced celery

1
/
4
cup (30 g) finely diced green bell pepper

1
/
4
cup (30 g) shredded carrot

1
/
4
cup (15 g) chopped fresh parsley

1
/
2
teaspoon ground black pepper

1 pound (455 g) sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded

12 ounces (355 ml) light beer

1
/
2
teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal

1
/
4
teaspoon hot pepper sauce