Low Carb Curried Shrimp on Mock Rice

So Mother Hubbard’s Cupboards are still a bit on the bare side and coming up with a meal is getting to be a bit challenging! To add to that, whatever I do make? It needs to be Low Carb. Now you have to understand that prior to January 31, 2012 I just cooked whatever I wanted: pasta, rice, potatoes…oh, Potato Soup and Bannock! Home made Mac and Cheese!  Spanish Rice with Enchiladas…Burritos and Mexi Fries! Carbs were not so much an issue but expanding waist lines were beginning to be.

I digress. But the point remains that I can cook up a high carb meal pretty easily because I still have heaps of ingredients in the cupboards and freezer.  And low carb is a whole new way of thinking for me too. I can no longer just think about what to make for dinner and head to the kitchen, thought processes ticking; now I rely on a recipe of some sort even if it just to follow basic guidelines.

Alright, so last night as I lay in bed I began thinking about what I was going to cook for dinner tonight (because that is how it works when the cupboards are bare and I am changing the way I cook) so I borrowed my iPad from my husband and started scanning for a low carb recipe using 1.5lbs of shrimp, because I had that in the freezer, and came across  Jennifer Eloff’s  Curried Shrimp recipe; as I read the recipe and each ingredient got a “Yup, got that” I was relieved to have part of the meal prepared. I had a look at Jennifer Eloff’s Mock Rice but didn’t like the looks of it alongside my lovely Curried Shrimp. I recalled seeing numerous posts about Jamie’s Mock Rice on Your Lighter Side and hopped over to Jamie’s recipe for Mock Fried Rice. The perfect accompaniment to the Curried Shrimp!

Low Carb Curried Shrimp on a bed of Mock Fried Rice
Low Carb Curried Shrimp on a bed of Mock Fried Rice

1.5 lbs Large Frozen Shrimp, pre-cooked
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 medium Onion, chopped
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 1/2 Tablespoons Curry Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
Dash of Pepper
1 teaspoon ground Cumin
1/2 teaspoon Chili Flakes
3/4 cup Coconut Milk

In colander thaw frozen shrimp under cold running water and drain completely; set aside.

In a saucepan heat oil over med-high heat and add onion, cooking until slightly softened; add garlic and continue cooking until onion is soft and translucent.
Stir in curry powder, ground cumin, chili flakes and salt and pepper.
Gradually add coconut milk, stirring constantly.
Bring to a boil, stirring often.
Add shrimp, continue stirring and cook until heated through.
Serves 4 – 6

Jamie’s Low Carb Fried Rice.

1 large head Cauliflower
2 cups Water
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 teaspoon Onion Powder
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Cook whole, large cauliflower in a pot with a tight fitting lid; bring to boil, reduce heat to med-high and continue cooking for about 10 minutes.
Remove from heat, drain and cover cauliflower with cold water; drain that off, repeat.
Fill pot again with cold water and let sit while preparing the Curry Sauce.
Once sauce is simmering (do not add the shrimp until 5 minutes before ready to serve.) come back to the cauliflower.
Drain cauliflower.
Cut into chunks that will fit into the feeder tube of your food processor.
With the grating attachment, put cauliflower through the processor.

Once all the cauliflower is processed, heat olive oil in a large pan over high – medium heat and add half the cauliflower.
Season with half the onion powder, some salt and pepper and cook for 6 – 8 minutes, stirring often.
Plate, the repeat with the second half of the cauliflower.

Serves 6

 

Pork Chops with Alfredo Sauce

I think that my Atkins dieting husband is really missing pasta and all the lovely sauces that go with them. I had a poke around google and found a lot of folks were pairing Pork Chops and Alfredo Sauce!  Now I know Pork Chops are a far cry from Pasta but it seems to have hit the spot. I reckon this is a recipe that will be in my rotation from now on. Lucky for me it is so incredibly easy to make too! The salad took the most effort to make!

Pork Chops with Alfredo Sauce
Pork Chops with Alfredo Sauce

I cooked the seasoned the pork chops with salt and pepper, a bit each of onion and garlic powder; just a hint of each. I was going to cook them in olive oil but the jar of bacon drippings on the counter caught my eye so I used about a tablespoon of that instead.
I cooked the chops in my electric frying pan at 350F  for 6 minutes, seasoned the second side,  flipped them over, put the lid on and continued cooking for another 6 minutes.

While that was cooking I melted about 8 ounces of cream cheese over medium-low heat, stirred in about 3/4 cup of heavy cream, stirring until smooth.
Next I added 2 ounces of grated fresh parmesan cheese and stirred some more, until smooth.
Finally I added a bit of salt, pepper and nutmeg.

Plate the pork chops, spoon alfredo sauce over top and garnish with chopped fresh parsley.

500gm Pork Chops, Boneless
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon each Garlic and Onion Powder

8 ounces Cream Cheese
3/4 cup Heavy Cream
2 ounces grated Fresh Parmesan Cheese
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Pinch of Nutmeg
Parsley, garnish

Salmon Pot Pie

It is time to go grocery shopping! I had a difficult time pulling together a dinner tonight! Thank goodness my mother cooked up a huge salmon yesterday and sent some home with us.
The men said that they loved the Salmon Pot Pie!

Salmon Pot Pie
Salmon Pot Pie

While sweet potatoes were cooking I pan fried an onion until softened, added about a half cup of cream cheese, the same amount of mayonnaise, stirring until it all melty. Added some salt, pepper, a bit of lemon juice, some dill (think I could have added a bit more of that) then stirred in about 1 lb of baked salmon.
I poured all of that into a 2l casserole dish, lightly sprayed with vegetable oil spray, topped the salmon layer with fresh spinach.
Drained cooked sweet potatoes, mashed them with a potato masher and smoothed over the salmon and spinach, tucking all bits of spinach under the mashed sweet potatoes.
Smoothed out the top, into a preheated 375F oven for 30 minutes.
Done deal.

1 kg Sweet Potato

1 Onion, chopped
1/2 cup Cream Cheese
1/2 cup Mayonnaise
S &P
Dill, to your liking
500gm Baked Salmon or Canned Salmon

3 cups fresh Spinach
 

Carrot Cake

I went to make a Carrot Cake this morning and do you think I could find my faded, tattered recipe in the recipe box? NO! So the search began: Did I tuck it into a cookbook? Is it by my computer in the stack of “To Be Entered” recipes? Did a search on my site, plus a search on my old site to no avail. Now I am pulling my hair out because Carrot Cake is one of the family favourites and we are celebrating three birthdays this weekend! Dejected I went down to the kitchen prepared to pull out my Better Crocker cookbook (though I suspect Carrot Cake is missing from there too as I think I tore it out and gave it to someone O.o) and lo and behold! Seems I made a Carrot Cake not too long ago because the tattered old recipe card was just chillin’ in the recipe holder my oldest daughter made for me a gazillion years ago!
Catastrophe averted but I think I am going to enter that recipe right NOW so I don’t have to go through this again!

4 Eggs, well beaten
2 cups Sugar
1 1/2 cups Vegetable Oil
2 cups Flour
2 teaspoons Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Salt
2 teaspoons Cinnamon
Pinch of Nutmeg
Pinch of Cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons Vanilla
3 cups Carrots, raw, grated
1 cup Raisins (optional)
1 cup Walnuts, chopped (optional)
Cream Cheese Frosting
1/2 cup soft butter
4 ounces Cream Cheese, softened
1 1/2 – 2 cups Icing Sugar, to right consistency
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 teaspoon Lemon Juice

Preheat oven to 350F.
Lightly spray a 9X13 (4l pan) with vegetable oil spray and line bottom only with baking paper.

Sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves together in a mixing bowl.
In large mixing bowl beat egg and sugar on low speed until combined then increase speed to medium and beat for a couple of minutes until smooth and foamy.
Stir in dry ingredients on low speed until all flour is incorporated then increase speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes.
On low speed, stir in grated carrots, vanilla and, if using, raisins and chopped walnuts.
Pour batter into prepared pan and bake in 350F oven for 30 – 40 minutes, until golden and a pick inserted in centre comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let sit, in pan, on cooling rack for 10 minutes.
Turn out onto wire rack, peel off baking paper and cool completely.

While cake is cooling prepare the Cream Cheese Frosting:
In large mixing bowl combine the cream cheese and butter; beat on medium speed until smooth.
Stir in icing sugar a cup at a time, adding vanilla and lemon juice after the first addition, then adding enough icing sugar to preferred consistency.

Frost Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting when cake is completely cooled.

*I split my cake in two, add a layer of custard or icing in the middle the frost all over and add a piped border.

 

 

Low Carb Greek Salad

Low Carb Greek Salad
Low Carb Greek Salad

I don’t usually measure this stuff…

1/2 cup  Olive Oil
1 clove Garlic, minced (why did I give away my Garlic Press? Oh yea, coz I want a    Pampered Chef one!
1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
a splash of Brine from the Kalamata Olives
Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper
1 teaspoon Oregano
1 teaspoon Basil

3 cups Spinach Leaves, washed and spun
1 Long English Cucumber, cut into chunks
1 each, Red Pepper, Orange, Yellow and Green Pepper, chopped
1/2 Red Onion, diced
4 ounces Feta, crumbled
Kalamata Olives
Grape Tomatoes, garnish

Measure all of the ingredients together in a resealable jar, screw on the lid and give it a good shake.

Toss together in a large bowl the spinach, cucumber, peppers and onion.

If serving all of it immediately, go ahead and toss in the feta, dressing and Kalamata olives.
If not serving all of it immediately, I like to just put a serving of the “Greens” in a large pasta bowl, top with a bit of crumbled feta, a few (lot) Kalamata olives and a generous drizzle of dressing.

Greek Salad doesn’t hold well which is why I don’t add the feta and dressing to a big bowl of prepared “Greens” thereby avoiding the soggy cucumber syndrome!

 

Welcome to my Kitchen where the most important ingredient is Love.