another LC cocktail

My first LC cocktail (which i think i've only mentioned in passing) was the Gimlet.  One packet of splenda mixed into an ounce of lime juice, to which is added three ounces of gin and ice.  It's crisp and sour and refreshing.  You can imagine the old days in India, sitting on the veranda sipping one while the seductive scent of curried lamb wafts from the kitchen....

Another favorite cocktail of mine is a bit more complex -- it's called the Twentieth Century.  In it, the lemon juice and white creme de cacao should be so well-balanced that you can taste both simultaneously.  My first attempts to lowcarbify it were less than stellar, but i had an idea this afternoon....  To my disappointment, "twenty-first century" is already taken for a cocktail.  :-(  So what can i call my improved version, perhaps the Savvy Twentieth Century, Tess's Twenty-first, the Atkins?  Whaddaya think?

• 1 1/2 oz. gin
• 3/4 oz. lemon juice
• 3/4 oz. Lillet Blanc
• 1-2 TEASPOON Torani White Chocolate Syrup (sugar-free, of course)

Shake with plenty of ice and strain into a cocktail glass.  L'CHAIM!

doing everything right and not losing....

Not me, thank the gods, but maybe worse -- my daughter.  :-(  We're having to start tweaking HER diet, because at 36 she's starting to get into the difficult-to-lose age.

She's comparatively new to the low-toxin-and-carb, higher-fat dietary plan.  In the past, she's lost weight with the CW technique, but i've convinced her that a real-food diet is important for herself as well as her kids.  Having eased into low-carb from low-calorie, L has even learned to add more good fats.  But for some yet-to-be-determined reason, the scales are resisting her.

So we're tweaking!  I've suggested that the first thing to do is drop dairy for a week and see what happens.  I think i'll suggest next that instead of her usual workout she try tabata sprints.

I also need to get her to use a tape-measure more than scales, now that i think of it!  I wouldn't be surprised to find that she's putting on muscle as fast as she's taking off fat, and therefore getting a "false negative" in the loss department.  ...I can hardly wait for L to get back from her lunch break so i can ask her some new questions!  :-D

gonna have to learn to be strong

I've remarked before about being relieved when i can get back to eating the way that makes me feel good.... I'm going to have to figure out how to eat the way i want to, all the time!

Don't get me wrong, it's fun to "misbehave" when i WANT to, but extremely vexing to "have to" eat wrongly when i don't.  If i don't feel like eating at all -- even something "innocent" -- it's annoying to be put into a position where i feel i should.  OTOH, i don't want to impose my unconventional patterns on my husband -- at least, not more than he's stuck with already!  ...So how am i going to manage, so that two independent-minded people can eat what/when they like?  It's not going to be TOO much longer before he decides to retire and be around a whole lot more.

Well, it's not only going to require keeping the right foods and drinks (yet to be determined) handy, but some research into MORE nearby restaurants with appropriate menu possibilities.  Sure one can get a low-carb meal almost anywhere, but one does get tired of the same ol' side-dishes to go with one's simple meat-entree, and i got burned-out on salads way back in the '70s!  I don't believe i've ever read many truly creative ways of making ordinary restaurants answer to our LCHF requirements -- i mean, i've been ordering sandwiches without the bread for YEARS, and more suggestions of that nature are pretty useless.

So anybody out there have unusual and brilliant ways of coping with the restaurant question?

flashback

Some of my readers (family and friends-i've-actually-met) may wonder why i read diabetic blogs, being a non-diabetic:  the answer is easy -- carbohydrates are not my buddies, any more than they are theirs!  Thus i pick up good information as well as recipe ideas and frequently get a good laugh -- especially at http://thelowcarbdiabetic.blogspot.com.  The guys there have a history of verbal tangling with the "Low-Carb Anti's" in diabetic forums, and i'm often well entertained by stories of the battles.  LCAs are LCAs, no matter what the forum!

Apparently, one of the main d-LCAs (ooh, sounds like a bad particle, doesn't it?) has just discovered the GLYCEMIC INDEX!!!  Too bad it's "old science" and pretty much discredited as well.  The great usefulness of this concept, to me, has been as a tool to show people that whole-wheat bread is more damaging to blood-glucose than table sugar.  But in composing his post, Eddie included a terrific video from Barry Groves that i want to share, along with an anecdote....

A few years ago i picked up the Montignac book du jour about using the GI to lose weight.  Pretty book -- lots of pictures.  A few darned good recipes, too.  I was excited to be able to use some cereals and pastas again, with his technique which would theoretically allow me to shed some pounds.  Talk about eating your cake and having it too!

Ya know how with almost ANY new diet you dump some pounds, even if it's only from a heightened metabolism that comes with enthusiasm and excitement?  Not this time.  A couple of weeks of the Montignac Method, and i gained.  The new Atkins he AIN'T.

yet another recipe

I've been meaning to add this one for some time, and keep neglecting to.  Back in the '80s there was some stupid book we all heard about called "Real Men Don't Eat Quiche" -- but that's a total crock!  MY real man eats it, and cooks it proudly; i ask him to do so every time we have houseguests.

J's BEST-I'VE-EVER-TASTED QUICHE

1/2 lb. bacon
2 eggs + 2 extra yolks
1 1/2 c. cream
1/2 c. water
1 c. finely grated swiss cheese
1/4 t. white pepper

Butter well a 9" deep pie/torte pan, and strew the grated cheese in the bottom, then the cooked bacon.  Beat the eggs, liquids, and seasonings together, and pour carefully over the other ingredients.  Bake at 375 F for about a half-hour, till the top is slightly browned and the custard thoroughly set.

energy improved!

I woke this morning before my husband and the dog.  Went down to the kitchen and started preparing an earlier-than-usual breakfast (for him a "slinger" -- i just had coffee w/cream).  Popped down to the basement and juggled laundry.

I'm feeling a little weary now that i'm sitting down again, but the spontaneous way i started moving this morning is a huge improvement over my usual experience!  I credit the pregnenolone, carnitine, and the epimedium i started using last week.

Sleeping well does hurt a bit, either!

new recipe

This may be a record for me -- three posts in one day!  :-)  But even my husband urged me to include the recipe for our supper's main dish (a low-carb-ified version of an old family favorite):

GROUND BEEF GRAND STYLE (AKA "fake stroganoff")

one onion, chopped
1 1/2 lb. ground beef
small can of mushrooms, chopped
8 oz. cream cheese
2 T. catsup (or 1 T. tomato paste)
1/3 c. or more of cream
1 t. worcestershire sauce
1/2 t. tabasco
2 t. or more of salt
pepper to taste

Brown the onions, mushrooms and beef together, drain the fat.  Add the cream cheese and warm over a low flame to soften.  Stir in the other ingredients and adjust the seasonings to taste and texture (should be pretty moist -- not too stiff -- add more cream as needed).  Spoon into a casserole and bake at 350 F till bubbly.  Serve with your favorite low-carb bread ("paleo biscuits" are perfect).