low carb mania

I feel like this blog is becoming an evolution of my diets…proof that they do work, if you stick with them. Also, proof that some diets are really hard to sustain and its all about finding a balance that works for you.

Last May, I discovered Paleo. The paleo diet fueled my desire to learn how to cook. I cooked so many things that I would have never tried before, including acorn squash and cabbage. The Paleo diet lasted one month. It was super time consuming and I found a full time 50+ hour a week job and was no longer able to spend hours in the kitchen.

Working 50+ hours a week and sitting on my butt for 45 of them was exhausting. I felt like my hips were widening, my legs were enlarging and I was just miserable. I quit my job. It was such a relief. I have been working freelance and looking for work that I really enjoy. In the meantime I am able to cook and yet again start another diet…I hope that this one will be more of a lifestyle change then a short term thing. I have a problem with commitment.

We are now experimenting with the Atkins diet…Phase 1, which we have been doing for almost 3 weeks now. There were a few not so good days, so we decided to extend it. As of now I have lost 5.1lbs! Pretty successful. The goal is to stay under 20 carbs a day. I think most days I am around 25. The biggest revelation I am having on this diet is how many carbs are in EVERYTHING! Breakfast is the simplest with eggs, bacon, sausage or low carb yogurt (which has 4 carbs…enough to make me wince) Lunch is even easier, we have always eaten salad for lunch. Salad is simple and quick and an easy way to force yourself to eat vegetables, especially when you are at work and trying to save money. Dinner the 2nd to hardest thing to make, but I have found some really great recipes that I need to blog about. I’ve been realizing that we are having the same things, like 10 items, in rotation, which isn’t too bad…especially since I discovered how to make cauliflower pizza!! (coming soon)

Now, onto the hardest part of the diet…besides resisting Yogurtland every time I drive by it (1oz = 5 carbs)…SNACKS! Snacks are tough. What do people usually eat as snacks, fruit; apples, bananas, oranges, crackers, chips, pretzels, popcorn, bread, frozen yogurt, granola bars, hostess snack cakes  Those are all things that have too many carbs to even enjoy.

So this diet has opened me up to a lot of new ideas; a world outside of bread and flour. I have experimented with homemade flour from almonds and soy and even surprised my boyfriend with how much he would grow to like veggie burgers and tofu nuggets. My new best friend to this diet is flax seed…flax seed flour. 1/4 cup of flax seed has 4 carbs, 3g of soluble and 1g of insoluble fiber….so I guess:

1/4 cup of flax seed flour = 1 net carb

So, finally to the point of this whole post. Today, I discovered a new snack, CRACKERS (with 5 carbs for an entire tray) I found this recipe on about.com. The whole start to end time is 25 minutes. 5 for prep and 20 to bake.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup flax seed meal
• 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated or powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder (or use garlic salt and eliminate the salt)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup water

Directions:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, spray with pam
• Mix all the ingredients together, spread approx. 1/8 inch thick onto baking sheet
• Bake for 15-20 minutes or until middle is no longer soft
• TIP: Before baking, make sure that the edges are not too thin so they don’t burn

 

Proof that low carb diets don’t have to suck! Crackers and cheese, yes please!