Monthly Archives: November 2014

low carb green bean casserole

Posted in LAP-BAND, recipe, weight loss by

hey guys!  just dropping in today with a quick recipe!  this one is one of my favorites and defintely makes an appearance at least once a week!  its also a PERFECT low-carb dish for thanksgiving tomorrow!  i plan to stay low-carb this thanksgiving, sticking with turkey, mashed cauliflower, and this green bean casserole.  i will have to stay away from my favorite: stuffing, but that’s the only food that is hard to resist for me this holiday.

so, this recipe is from my dad.  he doesn’t really have step-by-step recipes, just throws some stuff in a dish or pan and calls it good.  i’m finding out i’m the same way, so if your measurements don’t work out, its because i’m guesstimating here, but if its too soupy, just bake it a little longer (that always works for me 🙂 )

 

photo99

 

low carb green bean casserole

ingredients:

  • 2 cans of french cut green beans (can use different style, but these are my favorite)
  • 1 cup of heavy cream or half and half
  • 1 packet of Lipton Onion Soup Mix
  • 2 T butter
  • 1/2-1 cup of French’s Fried Onion Toppers

directions:

  1. pre-heat oven to ~375*.
  2. in a sauce pan, over medium/high heat, melt butter.
  3. once butter starts to melt, add Lipton Onion Soup Mix and whisk until combined with butter.
  4. add in heavy cream and whisk for about 2-3 minutes.  at this point, the mixture should start to become pretty thick, like a gravy.
  5. place green beans in a small casserole dish.
  6. add thickened mixture to green beans and mix well.
  7. bake for about 10-15 mins, or until green beans are heated through and no longer soupy.
  8. remove casserole from oven and top with fried onions, then place back in oven for about 3-5 minutes, or just long enough for them to get crispy.
  9. remove and enjoy!

 

hope you all like this recipe!  its a perfect addition to your thanksgiving dinner menu!  if you make it, let me know how you like it and tag me in your pictures on instagram!  i love seeing people make my dishes!

 

xoxo

 

easy mashed cauliflower recipe

Posted in clean eating, LAP-BAND, recipe, weight loss by

hey guys!  hope everything is going well! i wanted to pop in today with a quick recipe since, when i post pictures of my food, especially my mashed cauliflower, on my IG page (thesweatybetty) i get tons of questions of how i make it and what i top it with.

i may start doing this more often, since i can answer a lot of questions all at once, and its easier than being confined to an iphone screen!  so!  if you have any other recipes you would like me to share, let me know, and i’d be more than happy share!

mashed cauli23

ingredients:

  • 1 head of cauliflower
  • milk of choice (almond/skim/heavy cream)
  • laughing cow cheese OR butter OR both! (optional)
  • toppings of choice (more butter, blue cheese, cheddar cheese, bacon bits..)
  • salt & pepper to taste

directions:

  1. steam the whole head of cauliflower however you choose to steam it.  i have a pampered chef microwave steamer that works great for this purpose.
  2. while cauliflower is steaming, get out your blender, i use my vitamix, and add 2-3T of your milk and 1-2T of butter OR 1-2 wedges of laughing cow.  (i never add the same amount of anything, and i actually never measure my milk, i just know that a little goes a long way, since cauliflower has so much moisture)
  3. when cauliflower is done steaming and fork tender, add to the blender and blend away!  this is where i’ve realized a little liquid goes a long way.  many times, i’ve ended up with cauliflower soup, because i added too much liquid.  i recommend starting with a little bit, and working your way up, versus too much in the beginning!
  4. keep blending until desired consistency.  (i blended longer than i thought i should have a few times back, and ended up with the creamy, velvety cauliflower puree i cannot get enough of!)

the length of my blending depends, somewhat, on what i’m making with my cauliflower.  if i’m making my imitation ‘shrimp & grits’ i leave it a little less blended with less or no liquid, for a texture that closely resembles grits.  when i make it as a side to lamb chops (pictured below) or steak, i blend a little longer for a creamy texture that closely resembles creamy/mashed potatoes.

mashed cauli

the toppings are also endless!  i LOVE mine with blue cheese, or maybe i just love blue cheese? who cares. i love them with blue cheese.  you could also sprinkle some cheddar cheese if you’re not a blue cheese fan.  you could add a little extra butter if you want to.  bacon goes well with just about anything, so why not add it to this mash?  or add butter, sour cream, cheese, AND bacon for a load mashed potato which has a little less guilt, since you’re not eating the potatoes, or if you are following a ketogenic diet like me!

my main suggestion is to just play with it!  like i’ve said, i played with my measurements until i found a mixture that i loved.  it took quit a few cauliflower soups before i found out the ratios that i liked. start out less (milk/butter) and add more if you think it needs it, if it still seams chunky and dry, add a little more at a time, and blend longer than you think it needs!

if you have any of questions, let me know!  hopefully this helps some people!