In the coming days and weeks Carolyn and I will be sharing some great menu planning ideas with our Groves devotees. What makes a forum great is the contributions of it's members. I encourage you to share your ideas for your favorite meals. Livin' La Vida Low Carb is a learning process and some of the most important learning we can do is from each other. I invite you to join us and check back often for menu planning ideas.

If you thought a breakfast like this one was a thing of the past, then think again. This is one of my favorite breakfasts "The Groves' Way".
Orange Pancakes, Bacon, a hand full of blueberries, what could be better. For those of you who are crunching the numbers this great meal weighs in at 345 calories, 24g fat, 12g carb, 5g fiber and 13g of protein. The ratios are about 63% fat, 14% carbs, 13% protein. Calculated on thedailyplate.com

There are a couple of specialty items involved here that can be found at many lowcarb sites on the net. Carbquik by Tova Industries is an enzyme modified wheat product much like Bisquick without the carbs and trans-fats. You could make the pancakes with just Carbquik, but I'm not a big fan of baked goods made with Carbquik only, as sometimes I can detect a slight aftertaste. I prefer to mix it 50/50 with almond meal. That tends to eliminate the problem and bump up the nutrition. 1/3 cup of Carbquik contains just 4 net grams of carbohydrate. I must add one note, those who are completely "purist" about the Groves' plan count complete carbs, not net. Using net carbs is my one "tweak" for the plan and seems to be working for me.

Almond flour or meal as it's sometimes called is more readily available. You should be able to find it locally wherever Bob's Red Mill products are sold, but it can be kind of pricey at 10.99 per lb. from Kroger. I don't use lbs. and lbs. of it, but I do pay the price as I find it to be a kitchen essential. Some health food stores grind their own and may be a better bargain. You can also grind your own from whole almonds, but I like the convenience and consistency of Bob's.

Here is the recipe. Enjoy!

Orange Pancakes

1/4 cup Carbquik
1/4 cup Almond Flour
1 egg yolk
1/4 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. Crystal Light Orange Drink, dry mix
water to make your favorite consistency for pancake batter.

Mix all dry ingredients together. Add egg yolk and water to make a nice batter consistency.

Heat a non-stick skillet or griddle to medium. Melt a little butter. Pour batter in to make 3 medium size pancakes. Be careful not to let the skillet get too hot as almond flour burns easily. Cook until bubbles form on top of pancakes (let it get a little more bubbly than a normal pancake) turn and cook until just brown on opposite side.

Calories and percentages above include 2 slices of bacon and 1/4 c fresh or frozen blueberries without sugar, just as pictured on the plate. Sugar Free syrup is nice on these too.

Melodie---this is great!! those pancakes look good----it's been ages since I ate panckes---my problem would be how heavy are they?---with my tiny pouch things like that sit uncomfortably-----but I'm sure others will love it

good to see Linda will contribute---I've been using her site for ages

I did a follow up post for my blog dealing with coconut oil---found some good recipes---I'm making a beef stir-fry tonight---that I found on tropical traditions website--Sautéed Vegetables with Beef ---I will be usinf a fatty cut of beef and no sugar of course-----but the rest of it goes real well for my eating plan---plus there will be tons of leftovers for me----

Thanks Bamgirl for the link. That looks good and would help with Chinese food cravings. You should give the pancakes a try. They are not as heavy as real pancakes. They are less floury tasting and a little more crispy.

I might have to give them a whirl one day when I cooking for my parents---1 small one would be the most I could eat at one time

Last night I had a 1-1/2 cups of the Linda's Cauliflower Bisque soup and a nice Caeser Salad (Dr. Eades dressing recipe) and 3 sliced up strawberries. It was 279 Calories; 13.9 Carbs; 9.5gms protein and 6.1 grams fiber. 13.6% Protein; 68.4% fat; 19.9% carbs

Although the carbs % was a bit high, it was evened out by the rest of the day.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this idea btw! I need so much help with ideas for "balanced" meals (I watch your journel BTW Melodie!)

Just to let you guys know...Trader Joe's sells Almond Meal for only $5.49 a pound in my area (So. CA). It's wonderful - I don't use grains and will make this recipe using all almond meal, plus another tweak or two.

I love almond meal. It's a delicious, healthy sub for flour. Amazingly, I've found I can substitute almond meal for carbquick, etc. in all my recipes, and they come out great.

Thanks paleogal. We have a Trader Joe's about 45 minutes from my house. I wanted to check it out. It might be worth the trip to stock up. Thanks!

Hey Yvonne,

How's the nausea thing going? Did you ever figure out what was happening? Your numbers are lookin' good!

It's pretty much gone. Not unlike when I first went back to LCing. It took about 2-3 wks for it to work it's way out of my system or something.

Glad to hear it.

Barry Breakfast

Total: 313
Fat: 21 185 62%
Sat: 8 69 23%
Poly: 3 29 10%
Mono: 8 74 25%
Carbs: 13 37 12%
Fiber: 3 0 0%
Protein: 19 76 25%
Alcohol: 0 0 0%

One cream cheese cinnamon roll (see recipe section)
2 slices of bacon, cooked
1 egg cooked anyway
1 cup of sliced strawberries

Another quick breakfast:

Total: 291
Fat: 21 189 62%
Sat: 0 0 0%
Poly: 0 0 0%
Mono: 0 0 0%
Carbs: 12 48 16%
Fiber: 0 0 0%
Protein: 17 68 22%
Alcohol: 0 0 0%

One flourless chocolate cake (see recipe section)
One Carbcount yogurt

You can even serve the yogurt as a topping for the cake in a cereal bowl..Add a touch more sweetner if you would like, too.

I was wondering about the flourless chocolate cake. That sounds great and flavor the yogurt with a little vanilla and sweetener and put over the cake. Yum! Thanks Carolyn.

If you see something you like, it might be a good idea to paste it over to word, print it and keep it in a note book for easy reference.

Ooooh - I luv this idea!!!! Keep em coming

Paleogal - I'm in australia and I can't find anything like carbquick so have been looking for something else. I already use almond meal but thought I would have to mix it with something else for a carbquick substitute. Do you sub almond meal 100% for carbquick and it turns out ok ?????

WOW! Recipes....love 'em. Today I had a breakfast "accident." I attempted to adapt a great French recipe for the microwave and had a minor explosion which pleased the dogs no end since they are OFFICIAL pre-wash puppies (floor, dishes, etc.)

Anyway, here is the actual recipe if you would like to give it a try. We love it SO we have been known to split a third one, don't tell anyone.

Eggs en Cocotte

2 cups water
2 tablespoons butter, softened
8 eggs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup cream
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 1/2 ounces prosciutto (about 4 slices), cut in 1/4-inch strips
2 tablespoons olive oil (or butter)
1 small onion, finely diced cial equipment: 4 (1-cup) capacity ramekins

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a small saucepan, bring 2 cups water to a boil.

Smear the bottom of each ramekin with the butter. For each serving, crack 2 eggs into a small bowl or dish, being careful not to break the yolks, then slide into a prepared ramekin. Season with the salt and pepper, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the cream, and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan. Set the ramekins into a medium-sized glass or ceramic baking pan, allowing at least 1 inch of space between dishes. Transfer to the bottom rack of the oven and pour the boiling water into the baking dish, being careful not to splash any hot water into the ramekins. Cover with a sheet of aluminum foil and bake 8 to 12 minutes, until the whites are set but the yolks are still soft and a bit runny.

While eggs are baking, brown prosciutto in oil or butter. WHen eggs are done, crumbled on top. Bacon can work, too.

That looks good. Might make a good weekend breakfast for me. Thanks Bronwen!

Hi guys,

My husband and I are nuts (seeds?) about this flax-based focaccia bread (recipe here: http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/breads/r/flaxbasicfoc.htm). Having some around really helps with the whole portability and convenience issue that is such a pain on most low-carb diets. Do you think something like this is compatible with the Groves plan? I tried looking for specific mentions of flax in my copy of NWL, but I couldn't find anything.

Thanks!

--Michelle

No problems whatsoever. It's mostly "good fats" and fiber. Thanks for sharing. Makes brown bagging a lot simpler.

Are there any flour substitutes like Carbquick that do not have wheat or soy in them? I can not eat wheat at all and I do not want to use soy. Does anyone have any recipes for a bisquick-type mixture?

kristi

Vee, I've tried coconut flour too. They will crumble with a mixture of coconut flour and almond flour. I have seen a recipe made with ricotta cheese and almond flour. I'll see if I can find it and post it for you.

Kristi, that's a tough one too. If you will go to expertfoods website, I think it's expertfoods.com they have a lot of low carb gluten free recipes. You might get some ideas from there.

Kristi,

Here's the link

http://www.expertfoods.com/

Vee,

Those may have been something I made myself. Try experimenting with ricotta, egg, vital wheat gluten, and almond flour. You can add the orange flavoring to it. I don't think you'll need much wheat gluten. The wheat gluten should help it to stick together along with the egg. When I get to the store next time I'll get some ricotta and try to come up with something for you.

Cricket's Almond Flour Muffins

http://www.lowcarbdiscussion.com/index.php...=ST&f=26&t=1033

There's the link..no wheat!

I have to run and grocery shop (and socialize at Starbucks@ LOL) , but I think I have a recipe in an older LC cookbook with a homemade SOY free baking mix that you can make a large batch of. I'll see if it meets your criteria and post the recipe in the recipe section if it does!

That would be great Yvonne. Poor Vee has a hard time getting the low carb stuff "Down Under".

Had to revise my recipe because I left in ingredients that do not belong. SOrry about that! Anyone besides me HATE pancakes? And, we used to have them every Saturday night when I was growing up.

Question: I am not sure about all these flours and such, like flax seed and spelt. How do they fit into the low carb life style?

That's a good idea Lindasue. I didn' think about flax seed. Thanks, I'm sure Vee can get that in Australia.

Bronwen - Spelt is not particurally low carb, so I probably wouldn't use it, however flax meal which is also high in omega 3 is also mostly fat and fiber which makes it perfect.

Hi Guys,

I do get flaxseed meal here - I made some of SJ's muffins with it and they were reallly nice. I added flax to the pancake batter and tried that, but it didn't cook up nice at all and the texture seemed wrong for pancakes - eeeewwww!!!

I found a site that has a recipe for a mock up Atkins Bake Mix - a soy version and one without. Here they are:-
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Atkins Bake Mix - No Soy

Ingredients:
1 cup almond flour
1 cup vital wheat gluten
1 cup unflavoured whey protein powder
4 packets Splenda
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Method:
Sift all together and store in a zip lock bag in the fridge. When a recipe
calls for bake mix, just measure according to the recipe.

Yield: 3 cups
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Atkins Bake Mix

Ingredients:
1 cup soy flour
2 cups wheat protein isolate
2 TBSP baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 TBSP Splenda

Method:
Sift all together and keep in an air tight container..
Use in place of Bake mix in Recipes.

Yield: 3 cups
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Questions: -

Are Atkins bake mix and carbquick interchangable?

With carbquick, do you use it as you would plain flour or does it have the raising agents already in it?

Do you use it part for part in recipes that call for flour? Ie - can you modify your own recipes by exchanging flour for carbquick or is it a bit more complicated than that???

Also, if I wanted to make the above non soy atkins mix non raising, would I just leave out the baking powder, soda and salt????

I might try to make the non soy mix with an egg and water to make some pancakes on the weekend. Thanks for offering to experiment for me Mel : )

Now I gotta run to the health store and buy some vital wheat gluten - please tell me that's the same thing as just plain old gluten?

Full of questions today!!!!!

This is so helpful... keep rolling them in!! Thanks

You're welcome Dena! How is it going for you?

Jimmyor Melodie, where is the recipe section? Is that on Jimmy's blog page? I want to check some of them out. I did look at Linda's recipe page. I have an excellent recipe book I bought when doing Protein Power and I will happily share its name and author. Her recipes are absolutely wonderful, all natural ingredients.

Is this Carbquick good? And, where is the cinnamon roll recipe?



Bronwen

Hi Bronwen,

Here is the recipe link: http://www.lowcarbdiscussion.com/index.php?act=SF&f=9&

Carbquik is O.K., but I mix it down because I detect a weird aftertaste sometimes.

How's it going?

Hey Haylan, I do post recipes at my blog, too. But our very own Linda does an excellent job keeping our recipe box quite full here with LOTS of new recipes in our special forum room. THANKS for sharing the link, Melodie.

Thanks, guys! We like recipes at our house. I am converting a boat load of people to low carb and, hopefully, getting everyone on the discussion board here for support. I believe we have a great group of people who are able to be honest with each other because we all know what it's like to struggle to find a way of eating that really fits with our body chemistry and life style. We cooks up some organic/nitrate free bacon for breakfast this morning with two eggs a piece. Jim had a slice of whole wheat toast and I passed on that. We are up and at it and going strong.

Thanks, Jimmy, for caring enough to keep going on low carb when others were willing to believe it was all a fad. Thanks, Melodie, for bringing me into this community!

Enjoy the bacon, and you're welcome!

Just wanted to add a link to my favorite of all time low car cookbook just in case someone does not have it yet:

The Low Carb Cookbook

The crispy chicken is great!
Mushroom soup, ditto.
Last night I made the pot de creme for dessert using a high quality 70% cocoa chocolate. Out of this world.

I've had this cookbook since it came out so have tried a lot of the recipes; they are truly inspired and I think we have a choice of better ingredients now that she had then. Like you Linda Sue, I prefer to make my own food.

Cheers,

Bronwen

Sounds like you are eating well. I'm going to have to take a look at that one. Right now I am so not hungry, I can't even think about eating. I had a N.Y. Strip last night, I couldn't finish it, and I'm still not hungry.

I went ahead and got a used copy at Amazon for $5.84 INCLUDING shipping. YEA!

Good idea Yvonne. I think I'll go on Ebay and take a look too. If anybody has some favorites from this or any cookbook and it works with Groves, please share. I'm going to start looking through some of my cookbooks and try some new things. I'll post the good ones! Thanks!

We used four ramekins for pot de creme and it was about right. No, no cream in it at all. Also, the crispy chicken never has turned out all that crispy but it tastes so darn good, it doesn't matter. Again, we have tried a number of recipes in this cookbook and they are all good. One thing it does, is really make you think about how to concoct recipes.

Bronwen, That's the thing I always get from cookbooks. I almost never make a recipe exactly as stated. I love to learn the different techniques for making things in a new way.

Has anyone tried the Dreamfield's Pasta selection?

Dreamfields is to die for..HOWEVER, many people gain on it. YMMV on the Dreamfields...However, if you are going to have some..make sure it is only
2 ounces, which is a serving size..Not alot!!

Hi Bronwen, I eat Dreamfields and I love it. I eat it about 1 or 2 times a week as a side dish. I second Carolyn's advise about not eating too much. 2 oz. will really fill you up if you eat it as a side the way the Italians do.