Thursday, July 26, 2012

Bacon, Blue Cheese, Caramelized Onion Stuffed Mushrooms



Bacon, Blue Cheese, Caramelized Onion Stuffed Mushrooms
I know the title is a mouthful but so are these mushrooms... A mouth full of goodness. Here is a little tip for cooking these beauties.  Use a mini muffin tin to cook the mushrooms.  It will hold them snugly in place and keep them from falling over and losing their toppings..  Enjoy!


INGREDIENTS
1 lb. Cremini Mushrooms
2 Small Vidalia Onions
4 Slices Thick Cut Bacon
8 oz. Cream Cheese - Softened
1/2 Cup Blue Cheese Crumbles
1/4 Parmesan Cheese - Shredded
3 Tbs. Butter
2 Tbs. Garlic - Minced
(2 Tbs. Peace and Love)

DIRECTIONS
Thoroughly wash mushrooms and remove stems.  Finely chop the stems.

Thinly slice the onions.  Saute over medium heat in butter and garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Cook until onions are nice and caramelized - About 30 minutes.

While the onions are cooking, cook bacon until crispy and chop.

In a large mixing bowl, combine chopped mushroom stems, caramelized onions, chopped bacon, softened cream cheese, and blue cheese crumbles.  Mix until all ingredients are well combined.

Stuff each mushroom with the mixture.  Bake at 350* for 25 minutes.

Take mushrooms out of the oven and top each one with a little shredded Parmesan.  Bake 10 additional minutes.

SERVE AND ENJOY!!


Makes 4 servings:
Per Serving:
Calories -  245
Protein -  10.3 g
Carbs -   6.3 net g 
Fat -   18 g


***Nutritional info can vary greatly by brand.  Please be sure to check the labels of all of the ingredients you use***


Peace, Love, and Shrooms

The Girl Behind Peace, Love, and Low Carb

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Low Carb Teriyaki Beef Tips

 
Teriyaki Beef Tips
This teriyaki recipe is great as a sauce or a marinade and for just about any type of meat.  I was very pleased with how it turned out.  You can use soy sauce instead of the Bragg Liquid Aminos but I choose the Bragg's because it has a lot less sodium and has all natural ingredients. Also, you can omit the xanthan gum without losing any flavor.  However, the sauce will not be thick.  Omitting the Xanthan gum would be great for using this recipe as a marinade.  Let your meat marinate in the fridge over night before cooking..  ENJOY!!

INGREDIENTS
1 lb. Steak - You can use any cut you like.  Tastes best with a nice tender cut of meat
1/2 Cup Water  - Divided
1/4 Cup Bragg's Liquid Aminos - You can get it here - Bragg Liquid Aminos
1 Tbs. Rice Vinegar
1 Tbs. Brown Sugar Splenda - You can get it here - Splenda Brown Sugar Blend
2 Splenda Packets
1 Tbs. Garlic - Minced
1 tsp. Fresh Ginger - Grated
1 tsp. Xanthan Gum
(2 Tbs. Peace and Love)
***Optional garnish - toasted sesame seeds***

DIRECTIONS
Cut your steak into bite size pieces.  

In a non-stick pan, brown your meat slightly on both sides and remove from heat.  (You will finish cooking it later)

In a sauce pan, mix together 1/4 cup water, Bragg Liquid Aminos (or soy sauce), garlic, ginger, rice wine, brown sugar splenda, splenda packets - Stir and heat over medium-high heat.  

In a glass mix 1/4 cup water and Xanthan gum.  It will not dissolve.  It will look like white clumps swirling in the water.  

Pour the Xanthan gum slurry into the sauce.  Whisk constantly until you can no longer see any of the xanthan gum and the sauce has begun to thicken.

Reduce heat to low and allow to continue to thicken.  

Drain any excess juice from the meat pan so you do not dilute the sauce when you mix it in.

Mix meat and sauce and allow to cook on low 5-10 minutes more or until meat has reached desired temperature (rare, med-rare, etc.)

SERVE AND ENJOY!!

Makes 4 servings:
Per Serving:
Calories - 174
Protein -  26 g
Carbs -  3.2 net g 
Fat - 9  g


***Nutritional info can vary greatly by brand.  Please be sure to check the labels of all of the ingredients you use***


Peace, Love, and Teriyaki






Low Carb Teriyaki Beef Tips

Monday, July 23, 2012

5000 Fans Giveaway

In honor of reaching the 5000 fan milestone, I am holding a giveaway.  Don't miss your chance to win some great prizes from Peace, Love, And Low Carb, Muscles Are For Girls, Foundation Nutrition, Swerve Sweetener, and Run For Your Life...  There are lots of ways to enter.




a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Turkey Taco Burgers


Turkey Taco Burgers


INGREDIENTS
1 lb Lean Ground Turkey
1 Avocado
3 Mini Bell Peppers - I used one orange, yellow and red - Diced
1/2 Small Onion
1 Roma Tomato - Chopped
1/2 Cup Salsa
1/2 Cup Sour Cream
8 Black Olives - Sliced
4 oz. Sharp White Cheddar Cheese - Shredded - Divided
2 Tbs. Chili Powder
1 Tbs. Cumin
1 Tbs. Garlic Powder
1 Tbs. Onion Powder
1 tsp. Kosher Salt
1 tsp. Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1/2 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
(2 Tbs. Peace and Love)

DIRECTIONS
In a large mixing bowl combine ground turkey, seasonings, salsa, 2 oz. cheese, salsa, and diced peppers.  Use a microplane to grate the onion into the mixture.  Mix until all ingredients are well combined.  Score the mixture into 4 even portion and form into 4 patties.

Spray a grill pan with cooking spray and cook the patties over medium-high heat until they are cooked all the way through.  

Top each patty with cheese, avocado, tomato, sour cream and olives.

SERVE AND ENJOY!!

Makes 4 servings:
Per Serving:
Calories - 423
Protein -  30 g
Carbs -  7.5 net g 
Fat - 25.5  g


***Nutritional info can vary greatly by brand.  Please be sure to check the labels of all of the ingredients you use***


Peace, Love, and Taco Tuesdays!

Thursday, July 12, 2012

My experience with the Xyngular 8 Day Challenge...

***I would just like to begin this post by saying that I do not work for Xyngular.  I do not represent them in any way.  I am not trying to sell you anything.  I am not suggesting that you need to try it.  I was merely approached by a distributor of their product and asked if I would try their products and blog about my experience.  In the name of full disclosure I openly admit that these products were given to me for free in exchange for my review.  So here it is***
This first series of pictures was taken on Thanksgiving Day 2011.  Pre-feast I saw the biggest number on the scale staring back at me that I had ever seen.  I was not surprised by the number, nor was I discouraged.  I knew that it was a starting point and that my mind was finally in the right place to begin making permanent change.  This was not my first go round with practicing a low-carb lifestyle.  In fact, I have gained and lost 50 pounds on two separate occasions.  I would always go on a low carb "diet" and then once the weight was gone I started gorging on carbs again.  It wasn't until I banished the word "diet" from my mindset as well as my vocabulary that a permanent transformation began to take place.  I realized that low-carbing was not only a weight loss method for me but a permanent way of life.  





This second series of photos were taken on July 8th.  I am down 45 pounds.  I am proud of my losses but going from 40 pounds lost to 50 pounds lost has been challenging.  My determination has not withered but I have been overindulgent one too many times and for the last few months I have bounced around in the same 10 pound range.  There are my current stats:

Weight 215
Chest 41
Waist 37
Thigh 25.5
Arm 12.5
Hips 44



The products
The claim

Start weight 215
Day 1:  8:00 Xyng - 9:00 Coffee w/ cream 2 tbs and sf Vanilla
Day 2: 209.5 - Down 5.5 lbs.   Day 1 hungry but nothing unmanagemable.  Lots of natural energy.  Drank 140 oz. h20.  Ate like crap all weekend... about to start period so I expected a big loss.  Day 2 - really hungry.  
Morning of Day 3 206.5 - down 8.5 total lbs.

Lack of information regarding what to eat.  If i purchased it i would want more sample menus - examples

Day 3 lots of energy - less hunger

Morning of Day 4 - 206.5 - Started period - not a lot of energy but not hungry