Keto Smoothie

I usually stick to my favorite breakfast of Chaffles with Avocado or Broccoli Quiche, but now I am on a new kick - Keto Smoothie!  I have been trying to increase my fiber intake, so I ordered Psyllium Husk from Amazon.  I also ordered Jay Robb's vanilla protein powder, which I think is very delicious!  Check out my Keto Smoothie Recipe below.

Keto Smoothie

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (increase to 1 1/2 cups if adding a full scoop of protein powder)

2 T. heavy whipping cream

2 ice cubes

1/4 cup mixed frozen berries (raspberries, blackberries, blueberries)

2-3 slices avocado (I use frozen)

2-3 t. psyllium husk

1/2-1 scoop Jay Robb Protein Powder (Vanilla)

Enjoy!

Taco Lettuce Wraps

When I am in the mood for tacos, these Taco Lettuce Wraps really taste great!  Some people like to use the low carb tortillas, but even though they taste good, they tend to give me a stomach ache.  Therefore, I use romaine or iceberg lettuce as my tortilla.  I also love using lettuce wraps for my Buffalo Chicken Wrap and Chicken Salad.  There are so many options for lettuce wraps!  When I make the taco lettuce wraps, I will usually eat 2-4 of them, depending on how hungry I am.  It's easier to not over-stuff them because they will fall apart.  

Taco Lettuce Wraps

Romaine or Iceberg lettuce

Taco Meat (see below for recipe)

Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Sour Cream

Avocado Slices or Guacamole

Salsa

Jalepenos (optional)

Directions:  Simply stuff your lettuce wrap with whatever taco toppings you like.  Fold or wrap as well as you can and dig in.  This does tend to be a messy dish, so be prepared with lots of napkins!

Taco Meat Recipe:

Cook the ground beef in a skillet and drain most of the fat out.  Sprinkle meat with salt, pepper, cumin, minced onion and chili powder.  I don't measure the seasonings out, but if I had to guess, I would say about 1/2 -1 tsp each, and then adjust as needed.

Big Greek Salad

I was in the mood for a big salad today, and this one really hit the spot!  I grilled boneless skinless chicken breasts with olive oil, salt, pepper and greek seasoning.  I thinly sliced one chicken breast to use for the salad.  

Here is how I made the salad:

Chopped iceberg lettuce and romaine lettuce

Sliced Greek Pepperochini

Sliced Black Olives

Shaved Parmesan Cheese

Thinly Sliced Red Onion

Sliced Cucumber

Ken's Simply Olive Oil & Vinegar Salad Dressing

Buffalo Chicken Wrap and Pizza Smothered Chicken

I often will grill a whole pack of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, and use them for a variety of things during the week.  Today I will share a couple of my favorite things to make with chicken breasts - Pizza Smothered Chicken and Buffalo Chicken Wraps!  

Pizza Smothered Chicken - I like to slice my cooked chicken breast in half horizontally to make two thinner pieces.  Then I top with some mozzarella cheese, pepperoni and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.  I put a little bit of marinara sauce (Rao's brand) on the side for dipping.  You can melt this in the microwave or in the oven.  It is delicious!

Buffalo Chicken Wraps - Slice the cooked chicken breast in half horizontally to make two thinner pieces.  Pour some Franks Hot Sauce on top of the chicken and warm it up in the microwave for about 30 seconds.  I use iceberg or romaine lettuce to create a wrap.  Layer the chicken (I use one half for each lettuce wrap), 1 slice of cheddar cheese, and 1 slice of bacon on top of the lettuce.  Then top with spicy ranch dressing (click here for the spicy ranch recipe).  Enjoy!

Salmon and Creamed Spinach

I was never a big fan of salmon until I started Keto.  

The recipe I am sharing today is one that I found on

Pinterest (thanks to "Simply Home Cooked") for sharing this recipe.  It uses the air fryer so it is very quick and easy.  I have tried both frozen and fresh salmon and I must say that fresh salmon is MUCH better than frozen.  I buy the wild caught (not farm raised) fresh salmon from the grocery store.  I also mix up my own tartar sauce (recipe below) which tastes delicious with this recipe.  Click here for the Air Fryer Keto Salmon recipe.    I make this recipe at least twice a month.  Please note:  The recipe does call for brown sugar, but if you are doing Keto just leave this out!

Carly's Simple Tarter Sauce

I don't measure out ingredients, so this is just a guesstimate!  

1 cup Kraft Real Mayo

1/2 cup dill pickle relish

1/2 tsp. dried dill weed

1/4 tsp. dried minced onion

1/2 tsp. yellow mustard (optional......sometimes I add this and sometimes I do not).

Creamed Spinach:

Another recipe that I make very often, and goes well with any seafood recipe, is creamed spinach.  Just like my tartar sauce recipe, I do not measure out the ingredients when I make this, I just eyeball it.  The recipe below is a guesstimate, so adjust as needed!  Keep in mind that fresh spinach wilts down a LOT when you cook it, so if your pan is overflowing with spinach at first don't worry a bit.  It cooks down within a couple of minutes.  

In my family, we call this recipe "Spinach Ala St. John" because when my parents took a trip to St.  John in the Virgin Islands, my Mom had a recipe like this.  She came home and recreated it for us and we all loved it!  Thanks Mom!  

Spinach ala St. John

1-2 T. olive oil

1-2 T. butter

1 container fresh spinach

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 -1 cup heavy whipping cream (start with 1/2 cup and add more if you would like)

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp. salt 

1/8 tsp. pepper

sprinkle of garlic salt (optional - I like Lawry's brand garlic salt)

Melt butter & olive oil in a pan over medium heat.  Add fresh spinach and cook for 3-5 minutes until it's wilted down.  Add the minced garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes.  Add the heavy whipping cream and simmer for 5-10 minutes.  Stir in the parmesan cheese and seasonings.  Enjoy!

My Favorite Vegetable Dip

A few weeks ago, I posted about the importance of prepping vegetables (click here for that post).  Just about every day, I will eat a baggie full of raw veggies to begin my lunch.  I often will dip veggies in my spicy ranch dip (click here for that recipe), but I also often make Cucumber Dill Dip.  I found this recipe on Pinterest about a year ago, and I make it very often.  It's definitely one of my favorite veggie dips!  During the school year, I will make this on the weekend and divide it up into small containers so they are ready to pack in my lunch box.  While it's called cucumber dill dip, it's excellent with all raw veggies.  My favorites are green peppers, cauliflower and broccoli.  

It is very important to have your veggies and dip ready ahead of time so that when you are hungry it's available.  It's so much better to grab this instead of a block of cheese and some lunch meat!  

Click here for the Cucumber Dill Dip Recipe!

I prepped baby cucumber and green pepper this morning so it's ready to eat after my morning tennis match!

It's ready in the fridge for me when I get home!  I know I will be starving, so I will eat this first!

Carb Face Verses Keto Face

I started Keto in late October of 2019.  In the last 20 months, I have lost 107 pounds.  It took me one year to lose 107 pounds and now I am maintaining.  Keto has totally changed my life.  I went from a size 18 (2X) to a size 6 (small/medium).  I feel very energetic, happy and healthy!  I never thought I could lose this much, but it really has not been difficult.  I love the foods I eat, and I never feel hungry or deprived.  It's a total win-win for me!

Here are some face shots from before and after Keto.   Shocking, right!?!?!?!