ROTD! (recipes, by me, "of the day!") Almond Flour Pancakes

Gluten Free, Low Carb Pancakes!

1.5 cups almond flour
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
 1/3 cup of water

Then add any of the following:
Blueberries
1 scoop of protein powder
Strawberries
Cinnamon (I am a huge fan of vanilla and cinnamon pancakes)

For a carbier pancake:
Bananas
Oats
Whatever your heart desires!

Whisk eggs, add vanilla, and water.  Once mixed, put in almond flour (and protein powder if you choose).   Mix together, then fold in any of the add in's.  Obviously, cinnamon could be added at the same time as almond flour and/or protein powder.

I think these pancakes could out perfectly for the likes of our household.  Not super fluffy, but definitely satisfies the need for pancakes.  I have even make them to hold a fried egg and bacon in between them for a breakfast sandwich.  Which, sound pretty good right now I may add.

Can I just talk about Swanson Vitamins again for a minute...

I LOVE this company, and no I am not getting paid to say this.

I love their vitamins, I love their prices, I love that I had questions about a supplement ingredient at 10:00 pm and there was an online chat person to help me.  A real, honest to goodness person, who answer my specific questions.

Seriously, if you need vitamins, supplements, coconut oils, natural shampoos, or essential oils, you must shop here.  And, there are always promo codes on the internet you can use for a bit more of a discount.

Do it...check them out...click here now!

ROTD! (Recipe of the day, all created by me)

I am a huge fan of almond flour.  Not only is it low in carbs, it is gluten free. So today's ROTD is...

Cocoa Almond Flour Cakes

In one bowl, comibine:

1/2 cup butter

2 large eggs

In another bowl, combine:

1 cup almond flour

1 cup sweetener(Splenda, Stevia)

3 tsp Cocoa Powder

Mix wet ingredients into dry, stir till mixed.  Then pour enough of mix to fill bottom of ramekin(makes 4), or fill bottom of muffin cups.  Cook at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. 

Makes for a really awesome, easy, chocolate-y dessert!

Microwave Cauli Pizza Crust...tried it, LOVED it!

I have a TON of food pics and recipes to get caught up on here...so let's get at it!

Ok, so I refuse to use my oven during the spring/summer hotness, and I was curious about how the heck am I going to continue to make my cauli pizza crusts...

So I tried it out, and it came out just as I had hoped!

Recipe:

• Half a head of Cauliflower, grated/food processor-ed
• To that, add 1 Egg
• 1/2 cup of Mozzarella(I also add a bit of Parmesan because I looooove it)
• Seasonings of choice, mine include: Oregano, Salt, Pepper, Garlic
• Mix all together in a bowl
• Spray or oil the microwaveable plate that this will be cooked on
• 'Plop' mixture onto plate and smooth down into an even, rounded shape
• Cook on high for about 8 minutes, at that point, check to see if the sides and middle are starting to appear dry and formed.  If not, cook another 2 minutes until this occurs.  (I think mine took 10 minutes for this to occur.)
• Grab some potholders, and pull plate out of microwave, and slap on the toppings. 
• Place back in microwave and cook for about another 2-3 minutes until cheese is melty.  Yes, melty, it's a word...at least on my blog it is :)
• Let sit to cool and set for a few minutes, and then slice away and eat!

Picture from the very first time I tried it in the microwave(my pepperoni was trying to make an escape). I love how it actually stays together like a slice!

Yea, ya know what? I think it's time I resurrect this blog.

*sigh*...

Yes, I am still doing low carb and gluten free, and still "lovin'" it.  I cannot say that the last two years of hiatus from this blog have been good to me, as far as totally staying on track and eating as I know I should, but it is about time I get my self back together.

I can't even begin to describe the stress and changes that have occurred in the recent past, and while I will not use that excuse as a crutch to 'wah wah' about as to why I am still not at/near my goal weight, I do understand that it is a part of why I am where I am. It is a fact that stress will cause your body to cling to fat, and because I have run a gamut of tests and changed medications and such to rule out other causes, I must accept it is stress, and find a way to grasp onto some peace and kick this fat to the curb!!

Although I was not eating out of control at any point, I have cleared up my eating significantly in the last 3 months to where I am faithfully low carb and gluten free 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and also something I am particularly proud of is that I dropped my cholesterol 20 points, down to 190!! Now that's something to be proud of :)

Soooo...on that positive note, let's start this freakin' journey again! :)

Chef serves gluten filled pasta to gluten-free requesting customers...

Terrible!

So this guy is a chef in a restaurant somewhere, some say in Colorado Springs, and he posts on his Facebook that he knowingly serves high gluten pasta to people who ask for the gluten free stuff...Why? Because he doesn't believe Celiac or Gluten Intolerance is real...

Seriously?!? I so hope you get fired, sued, or at least come down with a nasty case of a stomach virus that even somewhat mimicks what Celiac and Gluten Intolerance can do to ravage and screw up your GI tract, and whole body.

Unbelievable!

Here's the link to the idiots Facebook post...

Dukin Diet...what's up with that?

There has been LOTS of articles online about this diet recently, with word that it is what Kate Middleton's family does for weightloss. I was intrigued, I mean Kate is already pretty skinny so I wondered why the heck she would want to be on this, and what the heck is it all about? Well, here ya go, straight off www.dukindiet.com ...

PHASE 1 - ATTACK
The initial Attack phase consists of pure protein products and creates a stunning kick-start to the diet. During this phase, you can eat 72 high-protein foods enabling immediate and noticeable weight loss.

PHASE 2 – CRUISE
The Cruise phase will take you to your True Weight. During this phase you will gradually but steadily lose weight by alternating Pure Protein and Protein & Vegetables days. The average length of this phase is based on a schedule of 3 days for each pound you want to lose.

PHASE 3 – CONSOLIDATION
During this time you are at your most vulnerable stage when the body has a tendency to quickly regain lost pounds. Consolidation phase is designed to prevent the rebound effect by gradually returning previously forbidden foods and allowing for two “celebration” meals per week. This phase follows a strict timeline – 5 days per every pound lost in Phase 2.

PHASE 4 – PERMANENT STABILIZATION
This phase is the rest of your life! To keep your newly found body for the rest of your life you must follow these three simple but non-negotiable rules:

Eat three teaspoons of oat bran per day.
Choose to take the stairs whenever possible
Have one pure-protein (Phase 1) day per week.

Okay, so sounds KINDA like Low Carb because it promotes protein and veggie eating, but then in the last phase you can go back to eating the crap that made you overweight in the first place, and then eating one total protein day a week. Well, how does that promote a permanent life change? This diet, I'm sure, works great to drop weight fast, but I can't see believing in something that lets me go through all the phases, drop a bunch of weight, then go back to eating Twinkies and Sugary cereal bars in the last phase as long as I go a full day with just protein.

I think the key to any permanent "way of eating" is to 1) Practice it regularly. I mean if you are wanting to do it for life, it can't be done here and there. 2) In order to do it for life, IT HAS TO BE DOABLE. One cannot keep up a low cal/low fat diet because the body will go into starvation mode, and will force you to eat. That is why those diets work, but you most always will gain the weight back. You can do a Low Carb way of eating for life because you will feel fulfilled with all the food choices and not yearning for things you can't have...you can eat some fruits, some dark chocolate, nuts, veggies, meats, bacon, eggs, cheese, dairy, butter, and oils and the best part is that the foods that are the WORST for you, aren't allowed anyway, so NO MORE PROCESSED JUNK!!

Anyway...my thoughts on the Dukin Diet...Fine if you want to drop weight fast, which isn't very healthy, but it's not sustainable for life.

Plus, anything that you refer to as a "diet" is not going to last...it's gotta be a "way of eating", or it won't work :)