Day Two - Low Carb Fast Menu Plan

We are assuming you are purchasing LOCALLY GROWN food products!





Breakfast

• 3 farm fresh, free-range, organically raised, Large Eggs with 1 cup organic spinach and 1 cup sliced raw mushrooms plus optional herbs and cheese.  Saute spinach and mushrooms.  Remove from pan and cook eggs as for omelet adding vegetables, herbs and cheese before folding over. You can also scramble the eggs directly into the spinach and mushrooms.    Serves ONE
• Cranberry Flax Muffin 

Snack

1 slice nitrate free deli ham and some cheese

Green Juice Smoothie

Lunch

• 3 cups chopped romaine or other dark green lettuce
• Tuna Walnut Salad

Snack

• 1/8 small cantaloupe or other melon (not watermelon) - Be sure you wash the melon very carefully before you cut it open.
• 1/2 cup cottage cheese, if you can do dairy

Supper

• Low Carb Pasta
• Green Salad with low-carb dressing

Lemon Dilly Chicken

Fresh lemon and dill create a quick Greek-inspired pan sauce for simple sautéed chicken breasts. Make it a meal: Serve with Herbed Quiona .  Adapted  from a recipe on Eating Well

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts and/or thighs, 
• Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil,  divided
• 4 tablespoons finely chopped onion
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons all-purpose gluten-free flour
• 2 heaping tablespoons chopped fresh dill, divided
• 3 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1. Make sure that your chicken pieces are approximately the same thickness.  If you need to pound them inside a zipper bag with a small skillet, do so until they are approximately the same size.
2. Season chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoon oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and sear until well browned on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to a plate and tent with foil.
3. Reduce heat to medium. Add the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoon oil to the pan. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Whisk broth, flour, 4 teaspoons dill and lemon juice in a measuring cup and add to pan. Cook, whisking, until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes.
4. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the pan; reduce heat to low and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a warmed platter. Season sauce with salt and pepper and spoon over the chicken. Garnish with the remaining  chopped fresh dill.

What to do with the left overs?

This recipe is easily halved to serve just two or you can dice the left-over chicken, add it to the left-over Herbed Quiona and you have instant Quinoa Primavera

Tomato Basil Soup

Easy Slow Cooker Recipe - makes 4 servings

1 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes, with juice
1/2 cup finely diced celery
1/2 cup finely diced carrots
1/2 cup finely diced onions
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp dried basil or 2 tablespoons fresh basil
2 cups chicken broth
½ bay leaf
1/4 cup gluten-free flour
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup butter
1 cups whole milk (or half and half for a richer soup)
3 ounces cream cheese, diced
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper

1. Add tomatoes, celery, carrots, chicken broth, onions, oregano, basil, and bay leaf to a slow cooker.
2. Cover and cook on LOW for 5-7 hours, until flavors are blended and vegetables are soft.
3. About 30 minutes before serving prepare a roux. Melt butter over low heat in a skillet and add flour. Stir constantly with a whisk for 5-7 minutes. Slowly stir in 1 cup hot soup. Add another 3 cups and stir until smooth. Add all back into the slow cooker. Stir and add the Parmesan cheese, warmed milk and cream cheese, salt and pepper. Add additional basil and oregano if needed (the slow cooker does a number on spices and they get bland over time, so don’t be afraid to always season to taste at the end).
4. Cover and cook on LOW for another 30 minutes or so until ready to serve.

Carrot Cucumber Salad

Sometimes simple is the best and this simple salad was always a favorite with our kids.

Serves 4

2 medium size cucumbers
2 medium size carrots
Creamy Dill Dressing

Peel the cucumbers and slice them in half lenght-wise. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon and discard them. Slice the cumbers into 1/4-inch thick slices. Peel the carrots and grate them. Mix the carrots and cucumbers together. Stir in the dressing.

Creamy Dill Dressing

1/2 cup yogurt
1/2 cup Mayonnaise or Salad Dressing
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon minced fresh dill (or half as much dried dill weed)

Planned Left-overs

We often do what I call "Planned Left-overs" at our house.  This consists of making several meals all at one time to put in the freezer for lunch or supper on a busy day.

Today my "Planned Left-overs" is TACO MEAT

Here's what I did:

I took 4 pounds grass-fed ground beef and 2 cups diced onions.  To that I added 1/2 cup Taco Seasoning Mix and 1 tablespoon salt.  This will be spicy so you can use less spice if you want.  Brown together until the meat is just turned from pink.

I removed 1/4th of the mixture and put in a crock pot.  To the crock-pot I put 1 can kidney beans, 1 can pinto beans, 1 can diced tomatoes with chiles, and a small can of sliced black olives, drained. Cook on low for 6 hours.  This TACO SOUP can be eaten as soup with grated cheese, sour cream and chopped green onions for garnish or eaten with scooped tortilla chips.

This recipe serves 6-8 so I froze half of this for another meal later.

THE REMAINDER OF THE TACO MEAT

was bagged into 8 zippered freezer bags, rolled up and frozen standing up in the door of my freezer.  These are for quick lunches in soft or hard shell tacos or in buns as sloppy joes with cheese, diced tomatoes and lettuce.

Lentil Chili

• 1 pound grass-fed ground beef or ground turkey if doing your Healthy Heart Tune-up
•  3 cups homemade chicken bone broth
• 2 cups lentils, rinsed
• 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
•  sea salt to taste

In a Dutch oven, cook turkey over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add the remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until lentils are tender.

This Weeks Menu

Here is my menu.  Now it's time to check my cupboards and make my grocery list.  Watch for some great recipes coming up!

Saturday:  Chicken Ala King over Angel Biscuits

Sunday: Grilled Steak, Baked Potatoes, Lemon Tarragon Asparagus

Monday:  Cheese Steak Calzones, Spinach Salad

Tuesday:  Spaghatti Squash with Beef Marinara (Spaghatti Sauce with beef), Super Salad

Wednesday: Beef Liver from grass-fed beef,  Green Beans, Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Thursday: Salmon Cakes, Wild Rice Casserole, Brocolli and Carrots

Friday:  Lentil Chili and Cornbread

Menu for Saturday through Next Friday

We get paid on Friday so I make my menus like this assuming I'm shopping on Friday.  This also allows me to prep all the veggies and other things for the week on Saturday.

Saturday:  Lamb Shephards Pie, Lime Dessert

Sunday:  Country Roast Chicken and Apple Pie

Monday: Salmon, Wild Rice Blend (I use Lundberg), Roasted Brocolli with Carrots

Tuesday:  Beef Stroganoff, Peas

Wednesday:  Beef Stew, Muffins

Thursday: Tuna Casserole

Friday:  Pizza

Noodless Chicken Soup

We have the crud at our house.  Nothing helps more than good old chicken soup.  Minus the noodles for us gluten-intolerant folks.  So add them if you can.  If you use gluten-free noodles go ahead.  Today I'm just going to enjoy the broth.

 

 

 

Ingredients:

• 8 cups water or 8 cups homemade chicken bone broth
• 1 cup carrot, cut into slices
• 1 cup celery, cut into slices
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• 4 teaspoons salt (to taste)
• ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper , to taste
• 1 roasting chicken

Directions:

Combine water, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper in crock-pot.

Place whole chicken on top of vegetables.

Cover with lid and cook on low setting 8 to 10 hours or on high 4-5 hours.

Transfer chicken to cutting board. Discard bay leaves. Remove and discard skin, fat and bones from chicken; shred meat.

Return chicken to soup and serve.