Thursday, November 15, 2018

Thanksgiving Turkey and Un-Dressing


Tis that time of year again!  and I've been playing in the kitchen making some low carb sides.  Here is one I did over the weekend that was really good.  Turkey and Un-Dressing.





It starts with a good cornbread.  This recipe is my go-to for cornbread.


It is on the internet everywhere called Green Onion Corn Bread. But for this, I don't use the green onion.  In fact, not sure I've ever made it with the green onion.

this is the regular amount ingredients, but this makes a very thin cornbread when you use an 8 x 8 pan.  So I always double the recipe.



  • 1 cup almond flour
  • 1-2 green onions, chopped (not necessary)
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted then cooled slightly
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until it is browning around the edges.  Will take a bit longer if you double the recipe.  When I bake this in a regular oven, it tends to not brown on top.  So I would hit it with a bit of broiler to brown it.  Now that I have a Power Air Fryer Oven, the top browns a little too well!  So I suggest covering it with foil for the first half of the cook time.  To bake this in the PAFO I used the "cake" preset button and added about 10 minutes to it.  I think the temperature is 320.  I need to double check that.

Now, if you can keep your fingers out of the corn bread, it's time to dry it out for the un-dressing.  I used the dehydrate setting on the PAFO and let it dry out for 4 hours.  All I did was crumble it onto parchment paper on the racks.  You could cube it, if you wanted to, for croutons.
Time to put the Un-Dressing together!

Ingredients for the Dressing

1 cup diced onion (more or less)
1 cup celery stalks sliced (more or less
1 quart chicken broth or stock
1 stick butter
3 or 4 cups diced turkey (or chicken)((the more chicken, the lower the carbs in a portion)
1 tablespoon of poultry seasoning
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 small can of diced water chestnuts (Optional but I like the crunch it gives it)
2 hard boiled eggs (optional but it's good! next time I think I'll add more eggs)
double recipe of the cornbread listed above crumbled up, or diced up.

Cook the onion and celery in the butter until it starts to get tender.  Add the broth and cook it a while.
Put the cornbread, turkey, seasonings and water chestnuts (if using) in a big bowl and stir it up.  Pour the hot broth and veggies over it and stir well.  You might need to let it sit a few minute and stir it a few times to get all the liquid to absorb.

Pour it into a prepared pan about 9 x 13.  The one I used in the picture was probably 4 x 7 or 8 but rather deep.  Maybe 3 inches.  And I had a little left over for a "side car".  

I baked it at 320 in the air fryer (350 in a conventional oven) for about 45 minutes.  I would suggest covering it in foil for the first half of the cook so it doesn't over brown the top of it.  Also, if it looks drier than you would want, add more chicken broth.

This could easily be made ahead of time and reheated later.

TIPS!!
you could add the giblets from your turkey to the liquid for more flavor. You just have to cook them longer and then remove before adding to the cornbread mixture.    That might be a southern thing.

Also, if you are serving this along side the Turkey and trimmings, you can leave the turkey out of this.  I thought about browning a half pound of sausage to add to it instead of the turkey.

Hope you try this and let me know how you like it.

Happy Turkey Time!

This blog is not being used as a revenue maker!  I do this for my own pleasure, not to make money.  And it helps me remember how I made something.  LOL

Sunday, May 6, 2018

Low Carb NOLA Gumbo




Most good gumbo's start with a roux of flour and some sort of oil.  This recipe leaves that out, but still gives you that hearty thick gumbo.  My friend Sam Paul gave me this recipe and I've made it many times. This is the one recipe I've not tried to change.  And if you know me, you know I can't leave well enough alone and always put my own spin on things.  But this is already perfect as it is.

Making this recipe today, is a "perfect storm".  LOL  Kroger had large shrimp on sale for $5 a pound, which is unheard of in our landlocked Tennessee.  Also, I had just made a fresh batch of chicken stock.  And I had just bought some summer sausage because it was on sale.  The only thing I had to make a trip to the store for was the green pepper, celery and frozen okra.

This recipe calls for frozen shrimp, but I've got this beautiful fresh stuff. The first pound of shrimp that you add is going to pretty much disintegrate. But it adds such great flavor.  Add the last pound of shrimp at the end of the cook.  It stays whole that way.

SO Lets get started!!!  Here is all my ingredients (except the onion) ready to go.   Of course I'm using my Papa Smurf!   I love him so much and I've almost worn him out.  He's getting a little temperamental.


I find it's a lot more fun to cook something if you prep everything ahead of time.  That way you know you have everything, and aren't rushing to try to chop or slice when it should have gone in the pot already.  Makes for a few more dishes to wash, but what do we have dishwashers for??  The picture above shows everything but the onion, cause I almost forgot it!  And there is another pound of shrimp waiting in the fridge.




First you sweat out the veggies, onion, bell pepper and celery. When they start getting soft, add the sliced sausage and let it brown up a bit, and let out some of the yummy fat.

Then add your chicken chunks and when they are about half cooked, add the chicken stock and the 2 bags of okra.  Oh, and the seasoning like it says in the directions.





  • Green pepper, diced

  • Medium onion diced

  • Celery, diced (about 3-4 stalks)

  • 2 TBSP butter

  • Smoked sausage (1 pack Johnsonville)

  • (3) Chicken breast, cut into chunks

  • Cajon Seasoning (to taste - I use about 1TBS of Tony's))

  • Shrimp, frozen (at least one pound)

  • Chicken stock (Approx. 3 - 16oz containers) I used 48 ounces of home made

  • Crab boil, liquid (I like this stuff...I use about 2 TBS) Zatarains is really good

  • Old Bay Seasoning (1/2 TBS)
  • A couple bay leaves

  • Tobasco (to taste)

  • Okra, frozen (2 - 16oz bags) or 3 bags (see my notes)

  • Shrimp, thawed (1 pound)
Steps

  1. In stock pot, sauté onions, peppers, and celery in butter. After that cooks down a little, add the sausage.

  2. Once it starts rendering fat, add the chicken. Season everything with Tony's seasoning. After the chicken has mostly cooked, add some frozen shrimp, if using. Let that cook for just a few minutes, and then add the chicken broth. To that, add Crab Boil (liquid) and Old Bay seasonings, more Tony's, bay leaves and tobasco.
  3. Once everything is simmering, add two bags of frozen okra. Let this simmer for at least an hour, until the   okra has totally broken down. About 10 minutes prior to serving, add the raw shrimp. You can turn the heat off at this point, as the residual heat will cook the shrimp.

  4. Note:  some people don't want to "see" the okra.  I happen to like it, so I add another bag towards the end, before the last pound of shrimp, and let it cook till done to my liking.

  5. I hope you try this, and let me know how you like it.

  6. Just so you know, I do not blog for profit.  The links in the recipe are only there to show you the product. I make no money off of the links.  I do this for fun and sharing only.

Wednesday, January 10, 2018

North Carolina Sweet 'n Spicy BBQ Sauce

Hi folks, been a while, huh? I thought I'd share my favorite BBQ Sauce with you My friend Sam Paul shared his original tweaked-for-low-carb recipe that he got from BBQ Brothers, and I tweaked it a bit further. Both are posted below. Sam likes a thinner sauce, and I kinda like it thicker which is why I let it cook for a long time on really low and let it reduce. When you let it reduce, it really concentrates the flavors so you may want to back off on the Red Peppers!! (ask me how I know that?) If you want, you can thicken it more with some Xanthan gum or other LC thickeners. I've done that once when I was in a hurry.
The recipe as I've tweaked it makes just shy of a quart of sauce, depending on how much you reduce it. It lasts quite a while in the fridge.
I have yet to find a Sugar Free BBQ sauce on the shelves of a grocery store thats any good, and I must say I prefer this one over any store bought one I've ever had. Next time I make some, I'll post some pictures.


NORTH CAROLINA BBQ SAUCE (BBQ BROS)

Given to me by Sam Paul, and I changed it up a little bit

Original Recipe:

1-1/2 CUP White Distilled Vinegar
1/2 Cup Sugar (I used White Ideal)
1/2 Cup of Ketchup (I used low-sugar Heinz)
3 TBS Louisiana Hot Sauce
3 TBS Honey (I used SF syrup)
1 TBS Salt
2 tsp of Red Pepper Flakes
2 tsp of Black Pepper
*I add a tblsp of liquid smoke mesquite
Sam’s Notes: Mix all together in sauce pan and allow to simmer for 20-25 minutes. This is a somewhat thin sauce, but it's very good! It's my favorite sauce right now.

My Tweaked version:

1 15 ounce can of tomato sauce

10 to 12 ounces white vinegar (I use the tomato sauce can and pour the vinegar in to clean it out, a trick my mom taught me)

½ can of water Using the can from the tomato sauce, about 3/4 cup

½ teaspoon of allspice (to replace some of the flavor in the ketchup I replaced)

¾ cup of SF Sweetener of choice (I’ve used Splenda, Whey Low, and Xylitol with good results)

Splash of Worcestershire sauce (replacing some of the stuff in ketchup again)

1/4 cup of Louisiana Hot Sauce or Hot Sauce of choice

1/4 cup of SF Maple Syrup (or SF brown sugar, or honey)

1 Tablespoons of salt

2 to 3 teaspoons Red Pepper Flakes (depending on the heat you want)

2 to 3 teaspoons Black Pepper

½ teaspoon Xanthan Gum or other thickener of choice. (Optional for thickening)

My Notes: Made my way, it makes about a quart of sauce and lasts quite a while in the fridge. I like to cook it very low and slow for a long time and let it reduce by about 1/3. Makes it nice and thick. And it also makes your house smell like a smoke house! In a good way.