Ketogenic diet

[Roadrunner]

I need help getting started on one. I need to eat high fat, low carb keto diet, but I really need to plan out weekly meals if I am to succeed. Do you recommend any easy to make recipes? Any good recipe books? What are some of your staple foods? I can't stand poultry, pork, or lamb, so in terms of meat I only tolerate fish and beef.

What do you do for occasional deserts?

[Greta]

I don't know what I'd do without Linda: http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/recipes.html

 

You'll see that her "main dishes" section is subdivided by type of meat (and meatless) so you'll be able to find plenty of beef and fish recipes. I use her dessert recipes too. Anything that she gives four or five stars to usually turns out excellent.

 

I just recently bought this cookbook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-ketogenic-cookbook-jimmy-moore/1120791682?ean=9781628600780 I've only made two recipes from it so far, but they were both delicious!

 

ETA: I'll come back tomorrow and post some of my go-to recipes and favorite foods.

[*lifeoftheparty*]

21 Day Sugar Detox- the regular book and the cookbook... that will get you started :)

 

I think the author is Diane Sanfillipo (sp?).

 

Vast majority of the recipes are really tasty, easy to make... it's real, clean food.

 

I've never felt as good as I have following her diet- gave me SO much energy!

[zoobie]

Lowcarbfriends forum

[wapiti]

FWIW, most of the dinners I make for my family involve a starch, a meat/fish, and a vegetable/salad.  I just don't eat the starch part (ok I confess to eating a little - it depends).  I don't do a lot of cooking that is particular to LCHF other than leaving out the big carb.  Lunch might be a leftover italian sausage, cut on a plate, maybe with some salad (I will eat a small amount of carb with lunch),followed by coffee with heavy cream.  For breakfast I drink coffee bulletproof-style, with nothing else.  I usually only cook something separate for myself when I order pizza for everyone else.

 

You are wise to plan ahead.  The first few weeks are challenging.  Don't forget a source for electrolytes, such as a supplement or broth.  People tend to use up electrolytes much faster in a state of nutritional ketosis.

 

When I first got started, there was a recipe on this forum for an avocado with bacon and balsamic dressing that was my lunch for days LOL

 

I found it helpful to track amounts very carefully in Myfitnesspal those first few weeks.

[Roadrunner]

I am starting to count carbs and shocked to find out how many some of my favorite foods (kefir!) contain. :(

 

Thank you for links! I need them. I gave been surviving on stuff fry with Shirataki carb free yam root noodles along with eggs and cheese, but I need variety.

 

Does it get easier?

[Guest]

FWIW, most of the dinners I make for my family involve a starch, a meat/fish, and a vegetable/salad. I just don't eat the starch part (ok I confess to eating a little - it depends). I don't do a lot of cooking that is particular to LCHF other than leaving out the big carb. Lunch might be a leftover italian sausage, cut on a plate, maybe with some salad (I will eat a small amount of carb with lunch),followed by coffee with heavy cream. For breakfast I drink coffee bulletproof-style, with nothing else. I usually only cook something separate for myself when I order pizza for everyone else.

 

You are wise to plan ahead. The first few weeks are challenging. Don't forget a source for electrolytes, such as a supplement or broth. People tend to use up electrolytes much faster in a state of nutritional ketosis.

 

When I first got started, there was a recipe on this forum for an avocado with bacon and balsamic dressing that was my lunch for days LOL

 

I found it helpful to track amounts very carefully in Myfitnesspal those first few weeks.

I ate that avacado thing so many times, the thought of eating it anymore makes me gag. But it was good while it lasted!!

[Roadrunner]

I don't know what I'd do without Linda: http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/recipes.html

 

You'll see that her "main dishes" section is subdivided by type of meat (and meatless) so you'll be able to find plenty of beef and fish recipes. I use her dessert recipes too. Anything that she gives four or five stars to usually turns out excellent.

.

Oh wow! I now believe I can actually nourish myself on keto.

[Greta]

Yes, it does get easier! The first week is the hardest and the first month is no picnic metabolically, but then it took me longer than that to get the general hang of it: to figure out that there is a bigger variety of foods available than I though, to learn how to stock my pantry, to not feel deprived or like I'm on a "diet". Then I did great for two years, and suddenly started having trouble with extremely painful muscle cramps, constipation, fatigue, and hair loss. All symptoms of too little sodium! So definitely take note when people say that you have to be more careful about your electrolyte intake on low-carb, because it's true. You need a lot more salt than you think!

 

Some things that I keep in my pantry that I didn't before: sugar-free flavored syrups (I buy Torani because that's what's most easily available to me, but Da Vinci is also good), almond flour, coconut flour, non-caloric sweeteners (stevia, Splenda, whatever you prefer), a variety of nuts and nut butters, vanilla whey protein.

 

For Breakfast

 

If you get tired of eggs and bacon, you do have other options. I make homemade crème fraîche. We eat so much of it that it's much cheaper to make it at home, and it's super easy. It's higher in fat and lower in carbs than yogurt, and thicker/heavier in texture, slightly less tart in flavor. If you'd like instructions just let me know. We eat it with fresh berries, or with "keto granola" which is just chopped nuts and unsweetened coconut flakes, either raw or toasted with a touch of butter and sweetener.

 

I like this Mock Danish recipe a lot: http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/mock_danish.html

 

LC pancakes made with whey protein: http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/better_than_boxed_pancakes.html

 

LC pancakes made with almond flour: http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/perfect_lc_pancakes.html

 

There are other pancake recipes at Linda's site, I'm just giving you those two because they are the ones I have tried and that I know are good. :)

 

Speaking of whey protein, you can always make a shake/smoothie for breakfast using that and some unsweetened almond milk (only 1 gram of carbs!) and some heavy whipping cream. I flavor mine with instant coffee, but of course there's no end to the flavoring options. Whey protein can also be used to make a variety of cakey/bready type things, so even though it's expensive, it's a good investment. We buy ours at Costco.

 

Also, here's a collection of LC breakfast cereal recipes: http://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/2015/02/25-delicious-low-carb-grain-free-cereal-recipes.html

 

For Lunch

 

I don't have much advice to offer here, and need to be *asking* for advice instead. I am pretty lazy when it comes to lunch. I cook breakfast and dinner every day, but at lunch time I just want to grab something out of the fridge and call it good. So I'm really happy when I have leftovers from dinner the night before! :) I also keep some deli meats on hand to make wraps with sliced cheese and whatever condiments I'm in the mood for. Instead of wrapping them in bread, I just wrap them in lettuce, or just wrap the meat and cheese together and dip it into Greek dressing or mustard or whatever.

 

Oh, another easy thing I sometimes do for lunch is egg salad. I'll boil the eggs at breakfast and let them chill in the fridge until lunch. I like my egg salad with diced pickled jalapeños in it, an idea I got from this cookbook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/p/primal-blueprint-quick-and-easy-meals-mark-sisson/1102409299/2672595948821?st=PLA&sid=BNB_DRS_Marketplace+Shopping+Books_00000000&2sid=Google_&sourceId=PLGoP3095&k_clickid=3x3095

 

For Dinner:

 

In a word: Linda's! That is my main source for ideas. Here are a few of our favorites involving fish or beef:

 

Fish

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/tuna_casserole_3.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/sweet_spicy_asian_fish.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/mock_crab_cake.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/crispy_fried_fish.html

 

Beef

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/atkins_meatloaf.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/bacon_cheeseburger_skillet.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/cheesy_hamburg_broccoli_cass.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/enchilada_bake_variation.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/italian_casserole.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/phillycheeseburger_skillet_dinner.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/thai_beef_skillet.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/sloppyjoe_stuffed_peppers.html

 

For Dessert

 

For an individual LC dessert, just for one, these are good:

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/3minute_flourless_chocolate_cake.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/mw_lava_cake.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/peanutbutter_3minutecake.html

 

For something with multiple servings:

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/pound_cake.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/raspberry_almond_crumb_cake.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/lemon_butter_cookies.html

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/magical_peanutbutter_cookies.html