Need to Simplify

Food
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My family (me: Type 3 and overweight; 14-year-old daughter with Type 1; 18-year-old “foster” daughter who is obese) have been trying to have dinners that are LCHF. I’m pretty LCHF the rest of the day, but I let my girls fend for themselves for lunch and snacks (neither one will eat breakfast). We have up until now been divvying up the cooking and dishwashing duties for dinners and using recipes from the New Atkins cookbook (one main [protein] dish plus one side [veggie] dish per dinner.) Doing this, I’ve lost 19 pounds pretty easily.

We’ve run into a few problems/issues, though:

  1. We are getting tired of these recipes. (If I have to eat another bite of that ground turkey meatloaf, I’ll go ballistic.)
  2. We are all so freaking busy. My 14-year-old always seems to be at practice (marching band season ended but Winter Guard season is starting), so she is often not home for dinner. Plus even a simple 2-dish New Atkins dinner takes her over 3 hours to prepare and by the time dinner is ready, the entire kitchen is somehow covered in a fine layer of olive oil and every dish, pot, pan, and cooking utensil is dirty.
  3. Foster daughter is a drama geek and is never home because she is either acting in, producing, directing, and/or costuming a high school production.
  4. Thanks to &!"$#%£!!! health insurers’ demands for excessive documentation and Prior Authorizations for even many generic medications, I work 12 to 14 hours daily and am exhausted by the time I get home. The thought of having to then cook dinner has started reducing me to tears.

As a result of the above, we have started falling off the wagon, I have regained about 7 pounds, and my daughter’s BGs are not as well-managed, especially overnight.

I’m thinking that a solution may be to get a crock pot or two, find a slew of one-dish LCHF slow-cooker dinner recipes, take turns making double batches on the weekends/days off (for the girls; days off are few and far between for me), and freezing them.

Can anyone suggest a cookbook or online source for one-pot slow cooker LCHF dinners?

Or does anyone have any suggestions on how we can get back on the LCHF “wagon” with our too-busy schedules? We need some serious help…

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I do not do well with elaborate meal preparations. I suffer from mustering any motivation – perhaps I use all of it on the D-gig. I’m also easily satisfied with a monotonous diet. Recently, I read Adam Brown’s diaTribe column about eating chia pudding for breakfast. The thing that really grabbed my attention is that he says he doesn’t mind eating this every day, it only takes a few minutes to prepare, leads to rock-solid post-meal blood sugar numbers, satisfies his appetite, is nutritious and can easily stick with him until lunch.

Well, I wrote down the simple recipe, bought the supplies, and really enjoyed the taste and texture of this dish. It’s had some immediately positive benefits digestion-wise and I could easily see this as my go-to breakfast. As for variety, I can add different berries and nuts for the toppings.

I know this is not a comprehensive suggestion that fully answers your request but it might be a small part of the solution.

Congrats, by the way, on your weight loss. It’s not that easy to do. You’re asking good questions – your ultimate solution will appear, I’m sure. Good luck!

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Your crockpot freezer idea is a good solution. The hardest part about eating this way is that it takes time to prepare and there are no good premade options.

I usually prepare up to 50% more main dish than I need for the meal I may freeze some or just use it over the next few days. I try to have easy snacks available. I will clean and prepare some veggies ahead of time and try to keep other things that can be quickly prepared. It just takes a little planning of supplies and a little bit of time to prepare. I have found that if I do not try to stay ahead of this I will end up not eating properly or in the time frame that I should.

And skipping breakfast, even if it is just something small and simple, is a real bad idea if you are trying for a healthy diet.

There are a lot of good low-carb recipes online. There is a lot more variety available then you might think when it comes to the foods that work well for you. It just takes some experimenting an understanding to figure out what works best for you.

.

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i make an ENORMOUS pot of hearty soup/stew that includes marinated pork (stays juicier than chicken), a small potato, carrots, leeks, onions, and any other veg that are in the fridge. i use two litres of water and two stock cubes, cooking wine, some spices and olive oil.
here in spain in the supermarkets, they sell all the veg for the soup packaged together so theres not even a thought necessary for picking it all out. the thing that takes the longest is the chopping up the veg.

i hate cooking but this is easy, as after putting all the ingredients in, it just simmers for a couple of hours and its done. i make it at weekends and it can last most of the week, though i am one person.

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try simple baked dishes - roast a chicken over root veggies or make “hamburger” pizza (use Italian spices in your ground beef as the thick “base” of the pizza in the pizza pan, then add some low carb pizza sauce, cheese and top with your favorite veggies).
this won’t be exactly like pizza but close enough or put a pot roast in the crock pot on the weekends with veggies - pork is pretty good this way…braised short ribs using a reduction of wine, broth, crushed tomato, onion, garlic, rosemary (that’s on the olive garden site). look for recipes that contain less than 8 or 9 ingredients that cook low and slow…you can get them ready in the AM put in fridge then first one home starts the oven…

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Hi,

I love this site:

http://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/?s=slow+cooker

I’ve linked you her slow cooker recipes.

I’m eating low carb, but I keep it disgustingly simple most of the time. Eggs and cheese. Foods I can prepare in like 15 minutes because by the time I get home from work I don’t want to cook.

I make a mean celery soup; celery, cream cheese, cream, butter, salt (could put bacon in it too). Chuck it all in the pot. Blend it. Consume. So much fat it’s a meal unto itself. Soups can easily be portioned for more than 1 meal.

Tonight I’m going to fry some garlic, spiralise a zucchini add to the garlic and cook it in some coconut cream, then stir in some shirataki noodles. Kids will be home late from afterschool activities - but there’s already food ready for them - left overs from lunch (they eat much higher carb than me). Cooked chicken (bought) make good sides and can go a couple of meals…

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I really like this book. When I bought it, I had to special order it from a bookshop in Johannesburg. Now it’s available on amazon.

I’m sorry, but not a big fan of Jimmy Moore’s books. He uses ingredients that are really hard for me to find online, and impossible in my town.

Also found this one on Amazon. I love it. Bacon & Butter.

Occasionally Costco has LCHF books. Found these ones:

Paleo Kitchen

Make it paleo

It’s just me and the dog a lot of the time, so I got Wolfgang Puck’s mini rice cooker. I really got burnt out of trying to cook for myself. Having this silly little rice cooker has helped me get out of that funk. Since you have more than 1 to cook for, get a good slow cooker or crock pot. Something that has a long keep warm feature. I used to use a slow cooker when I was a student and coming home to beef stew made the dorm smell great and my housemates drool. Nope, didn’t share. :smiling_imp:

Hope it helps.
SD :slight_smile:

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We don’t eat pork (or any “treif” protein for that matter :synagogue:), but we can substitute turkey “bacon”.

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Makes it tricky sometimes.

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Pretty much just echoing the general sense of this thread, but you’re on the right track in looking for ways to keep preparation as minimal as possible. Crockpot stuff is one of the good options.

For someone known far and wide to my friends as a foodie, most of my home meals are shockingly simple. Typical example: a sliced veggie (sweet red bell peppers are a favorite), and some kind of basic protein. Eggs, steak, sausage, chicken, etc. A typical breakfast would be a veggie and a sauteed chicken breast sliced and tossed with buffalo sauce. Or a cheddar-and-chorizo omelette. By varying the protein (I allow myself a wider range than you do) I can avoid eating the same thing for days at a time.

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I’ve found that I have to simplify in order to stick to the LCHF deal, partially because everything (except nuts and nut-flours) has to be refrigerated. And we’ve got a small refrigerator. Also, I actually eat something closer to Very-Low-Carb, high Protein, so YEMV. My go-tos are pretty straightforward:

  1. “Cobb” salad: salad (with spinach) mix, rotisserie chicken meat, blue-cheese dressing, blue-cheese crumbles, chopped boiled eggs, bacon crumbled up (optional), avocado (optional), sunflower seeds (optional).

  2. Chicken and veggie stir-fry: rotisserie or sauteed chicken, lots of spices (garlic, ginger, onion in moderation, chili, five-spice/cinnamon/cloves/etc., lemongrass, coriander, cilantro), broccoli, cauliflower, diced brussel sprouts, soy sauce, rice-wine vinegar, chicken stock, peanuts, finished with sriracha sauce.

  3. Chicken “noodle” soup: rotisserie chicken, chicken stock, carrots (in moderation), celery (including leaves, profusely), shiritake noodles.

  4. Chicken coconut curry soup: rotisserie or sauteed chicken, chicken stock, coconut milk (no carb from can), ginger, garlic, lemongrass, coriander, cilantro, lots of chili, turmeric, cauliflower, fish sauce (optional, but you really should try), cashew pieces (optional).

  5. Steak and veggies: self-explanatory. Also Pork (tenderloin, chops, etc.), Lamb (chops), etc. and veggies.

  6. Kofta: homemade tzatziki sauce (yogurt, cucumber, garlic, mint), ground lamb with spices in oven or on grill (leave out breadcrumbs, add an egg, low-carby goodness), serve over salad.

  7. Veggie sides that take little time: oven-roasted broccoli or cauliflower or brussel sprouts (chop veggies bite-size, toss them in olive oil, salt, and pepper, put them on a parchment papered baking tray in the oven at 400F for 20 minutes); cauliflower puree (steam cauliflower, put in a food processor with butter and heavy cream, salt and pepper); cauliflower bake (same as puree, but slightly rougher chop instead of smooth puree, mix with good cheese like gruyere, top with cheddar, bake in casserole dish for 15 minutes at 350F til top is golden brown…better than mashed potatoes); “Italian veggie back” (mix broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower with oregano, thyme, basil, olive oil, top with half mozzarella and half parmesan cheese, and then bake in 350F oven for 15 minutes); etc.

The other trick which I’ve found to be invaluable is to make my own chicken stock. I get two or three rotisserie chickens from Costco a week; I eat the meat off the carcass; I put one rotisserie chicken corpse in my stock pot, add an onion cut in half, two carrots cut in half, three stalks of celery cut in half (with leaves), four cloves of garlic smashed, thyme, salt, pepper, and then simmer on the stove-top covered for 2 hours. I then strain it through a colander to get all the bones and veggies out. Ends up something like 1g carbs per cup, high in protein (collagen from the bones and ligaments), moderate in fat. And TONS OF FLAVOR. Add it to everything. Everything. And eat chicken all day long.

Anyways, that’s how I do it. I sort of make stuff up as I go along. And I’ve largely given up on low-carb breads except on special occasions. They’re too calorie-dense to be useful unless its the only thing I eat all day. And they’re a pain in the ■■■ to make. And most recipes end up being creative ways to ruin eggs with almond flour. I’d rather just eat the eggs (I eat an enormous amounts of eggs). However, if you have to do bread, do the almond flour-egg “cloud bread.” Works a beaut, and here’s the recipe:

  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp Xanthan gum
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 cups ( 230g) almond flour
  • 3 extra large eggs

Preheat oven to 300F

Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl.

Beat the snot out of the eggs with a hand mixer or a whisk if you want to look like Arnold (in the forearms, anyways).

Beat the eggs some more, until they submit: fluffy, white, high volume, etc.

Mix the flour mixture into the eggs gently with a rubber spatula or alternative implement. No lumps, don’t overmix (want the air in those abused eggs to stay in there).

Put the dough in a greased loaf-pan and bake for 30-40 minutes or til the old toothpick is dry.

Let it cool, and realize that the damn thing is low in carbs but utterly, ridiculously calorie dense. I hate a quite modest-sized corned-beef reuben last night (corned beef, mayo, relish, mustard, cabbage, on cloud bread) that turned out to be about 1350 calories. Whoops.

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If you don’t already have a slow-cooker, consider getting one with both time and temperature controls. I find my crockpot tends to boil foods even on low after a few hours. :scream_cat:

Also, have you ever made meals in foil packets? Put protein, veg, seasonings, and a little olive oil on heavy foil, seal along the middle and edges, bake on a sheet tray (to contain any mess). Packets can be made in advance and refrigerated, then all one of your daughters has to do is preheat the oven at the designated time/temp and out 'em in to bake. Takes a bit of practice to get all items cooked at the same time but otherwise easy and tasty. :smile_cat:

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I eat lots of meals which are just salad or coleslaw with meat and/or cheese, basically its a chefs salad. If you cook the meat ahead of time this can be assembled very quickly. Variety is achieved by using various combinations of veggies, salad dressing and toppings like sunflower seeds and Parmesan cheese.

I tend to load up my smoker or electric roaster and then eat off that for most of the week.

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I get your busy schedule (Whew! Marching Band season is over…now Drumline and Colorguard is just starting.) Cooking LCHF is doable and there are plenty of recipes out there (and so nicely suggested by members). My strategy is to take a few minutes to plan and shop the week’s meals. On days off, I cook, prep, and freeze for the week. I often post the meals on the kitchen calendar, so that if i am gone, others can prep/start dinner. I also pack more food for my kid’s lunch when she stays at school for band rehearsals or that AP class. She can eat that extra lunch for dinner and snack when she gets home. My kid eats breakfast (eggs) though. She found that an A is easier to obtain with a full tummy containing proteins and fats than just cereal. She is not diabetic, but likes eating healthier.

This is off topic, but we have a student who is TD1 in our band. She manges her diabetes well, but has a dedicated booster parent assigned to carry her supplies at all times while marching as her parents are working often during events. I take care of another girl who has celiac disease by always having GF food on me at all times. Be sure to reach out, if needed. Band/Guard boosters are a dedicated and caring group! :blush:

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understood - got to have the right priorities in life :blush: So beef roast is good too!

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Two words: Instant Pot.

I have found the Instant Pot to be a lifesaver because I can toss in some random things in the morning, push some buttons, and then open it up for dinner and it magically becomes soup or cheesecake or whatever you can imagine. There’s only one pot to clean. And somehow having to not remember to stir makes even easy things like beans easier. Even hard-boiled eggs are just much better in the Instant Pot because they can be peeled so easily.

Other tips: Make a meal plan once a month, then once a week make two or three dishes on one day. Freeze as necessary or just put in the fridge. One good option is to make a boatload of burritos with a carb-cutting tortillas and then freeze em up.

Finally: It’s okay to let a 14-year-old and 18-year-old scrounge. We’ve found it useful to have carb-cutting tortillas and various nut butters around, as well as the Alvarado street bakery super sprouted flax bread, which is 6 grams per slice.

Other potentially low-carb/low calorie options I really like are Shabu Shabu/Hot pot. Get some stock or you can even get hotpot soup broth mix at any Asian grocery, get a hot plate/burner thingie, a giant pot and then toss in any raw meat/tofu/veggies of your choice, cook, and eat from the collective pot. People typically add in a ton of greens (mustard greens, cabbage, broccoli, bok choy), which makes it super filling and also pretty lean on calories. It feels like a feast but actually requires minimal cooking/preparation.

You can buy dipping sauces at Asian groceries but really just some soy sauce is usually good for me.

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Thanks to everyone for the great recipes and suggestions!

I’m feeling re-energized for cooking, also!

Best wishes to all

marty

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One other recipe we’ve liked which may not be quite super low carb but is pretty good:
1 to 2 medium eggplants
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 to 1 cup grated parmesan
1 large can crushed tomato
3 garlic cloves
1/4 cup olive oil

  1. thinly slice eggplant, salt and let them sweat, then mop up with a paper towel.
  2. dip in egg, then coat with grated parmesan
  3. Bake at 425 until it’s lightly browned on each side. Use parchment so you can reuse the dish. Can’t remember total time but I think it’s like 20 minutes.
  4. Toss some canned crushed tomato, a little olive oil and a few garlic cloves in the same dish, then layer the eggplant, tomato sauce, and mozzarella cheese. repeat for as many layers as you feel like
  5. Bake until cheese is bubbly.

Done right, this will take 5 utensils/dishes: bowl for “breading,” bowl for egg, cutting board, knife, and baking dish. And I guess can opener if you somehow wash yours every time. You can also bulk up with ground beef, which to me seems weird, but to each his own.

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For a “meal”, not breakfast, do you try to have a “protein” (such as steak, chicken, fish, pork…etc) with vegetables cooked with fats? I eat a good amount of vegetables. When I look at my plate, the vegetables take up the largest amount of space. Protein occupies less space on my plate than the green leafy vegetables (pork or chicken…etc.about 5 oz or more). I tend to want to eat more protein because it helps me feel not hungry.

If I am hungry could it be from insufficient fats? How do I know if I am having sufficient fats? I was under the impression that I need to count the carbs when following LCHF. It should not be necessary to “count” calories.

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It really depends on the goal! If you’re eating low-carb primarily to control your blood sugar, then you need to count carbs and protein so you can bolus correctly. Many people that are on LCHF for weight loss count net carbs only, and then some minimum amount of protein per day (to make sure you don’t lose muscle and bone mass).

I exercise a lot, and I don’t tolerate fats well, and I’m also prone to unwanted and uncontrollable weight loss. So I count everything. I’m also a bit of a control freak when it comes to things like diet… if I’m going to count carbs, why not count everything? So I follow a low-carb for weightlifters kind of regimen, which is pretty straightforward:

  • less than 30g net carbs per day, less than 50g gross carbs per day

  • a minimum of 90g of protein (but usually more) a day on non-workout days, and 150g of protein minimum on workout days (I actually aim for about 165g as my target)

  • I try to eat at least 2,300 calories on workout days, and at least 2,000 calories on “rest” days

  • I eat enough fats to make up “the difference” between calories from carbs + protein and my calorie goal for the day

In practice, that usually means I get about 35-40% of my calories from protein, about 55-60% of my calories from fats, and 5-7% of my calories from carbs. It isn’t necessary to count calories, but it works for my goals (maintain or build muscle, not lose weight, keep my blood sugar low).

As far as satiety, it’s sort of a two-tiered thing: eating protein makes you feel full immediately; eating fat makes you feel full an hour and more down the road. I tend to eat a lot of protein with every meal I eat (I usually skip breakfast entirely) and snacks. Typical snack is nuts (high fat, moderate protein, low carb) or cheese (50/50 protein and fat). I drink protein shakes and eat a protein bar on days I workout (those are high fiber, high protein, low fat). For dinner (and lunch), I often eat a salad with chicken, eggs, bacon, lettuce, cheese, homemade dressing, or meat and veggies (stir-fry, steak and veggies, etc.). I probably am the opposite of your portion size: I eat enough veggies to meat my carb limits for the day, but that is what determines my portion size in the evening. I eat as much protein as I feel hungry enough to eat. And occasionally I have to force myself to keep eating so I don’t lose weight.