Copy-Cat La Casita Chicken Salad

La Casita Mexican Restaurant has a delicious yet simple chicken salad that I have duplicated here.

I've posted earlier about one of my favorite Mexican restaurants in Springville, Utah, La Casita. The restaurant is a quaint hole in the wall but the food is great. I have often ordered this salad. It is a simple salad, yet I love it.

Here is a rare instance where I will use a commercially prepared salad dressing.

This salad is super easy to make at home. I like to gently poach a batch of chicken breasts and then chill them in their poaching liquid. Then the chicken is ready for quick meals later.

A trick for tasty poached chicken is to season your poaching liquid. You can even brine your chicken first in this liquid before cooking it.

Here is another post where I write about poaching chicken that you might like: On-The-Go Grilled Chicken Strips



Copy-Cat La Casita Chicken Salad Recipe:

Serves: 1

1 Poached skinless, boneless chicken breast
1/2 head Chopped romaine lettuce (or mixed greens)
1 Diced fresh tomato
1/2 c. Shredded Jack and Cheddar cheese
House Dressing (Kraft Zesty Italian dressing & marinade)
Black olive, as a garnish


Method:

To poach chicken breasts:

Place chicken breasts into a large pot and pour enough cool water to cover the chicken breasts by at least a couple of inches.

Season the water with some salt, black pepper, garlic powder and onion powder, to your liking.

Place the pot on the stove and turn the heat to medium and bring up to a boil. As soon as it comes to a boil, turn down to a gentle simmer and simmer just until the meat is tender and no longer pink inside. Do not cook the chicken in boiling water or your chicken will become tough.

Let the chicken cool down a little bit before placing meat in a storage container. Pour warm poaching liquid over the chicken in the storage container, until the meat is fully immersed. Cover tightly and chill completely.


To make the salad:

When it is time to make the salad, pull out 1 poached chicken breast and dice it into bite sized pieces.

Pile the lettuce on a serving plate. Top with the diced tomatoes and chicken. Top with cheese.

To serve, drizzle the salad with the house dressing and top with an olive.



Note: The House dressing listed on La Casita's menu now is Ranch. The house dressing they served a few years ago, is what I prefer, and it is Kraft's Zesty Italian.


Here's a secret: 

La Casita restaurant drizzles just a hint of Zesty Italian Salad dressing on all their tacos too. This adds an extra flavor dimension that most restaurants don't have, and it is delicious.



Our recent visit to La Casita below:

My husband Ordered a chimi.

I ordered Chicken Taquitos with verde sauce

My husband enjoyed his Chimi!

Chips and salsa for the road...

Enjoy,

Leila

The Best Sugar-Free Powdered Sugar (2 Versions) Homemade Copy-Cat Recipe

You can now make your own sugar-free Powdered Sugar. 

Granulated sweeteners do not work for making frostings and sweetened whipped cream. Sugar-free granular sweeteners are especially gritty and are harder to dissolve than regular cane sugar. Have you noticed?

We have provided 2 formulas for you: 

The first one uses resistant starch to facilitate grinding and to add fiber and reduce carbohydrates. We like to use this first version in chocolate frosting.

The second formula has the addition of coconut flour, which gives more body to the powdered sugar. We like to use this second formula for all flavors of frosting other than chocolate.

You can use this either of these powdered sugar blends in sweetened whipped cream, icings, cheesecake fillings and other sweet sauces too, or just dip fresh ripe strawberries in it!



Mom's Powdered Sugar Substitute Formula:

150 grams  xylitol
150 grams  erythritol
30 grams  Hi-Maize Resistant Starch
3 grams  White stevia powder, 80% to 90% strength (stevioside intense sweetener)


Method:

Mix the xylitol and  erythritol together and seal in an air-tight bag.

Place the bag in the freezer to chill before grinding.

Pour cold sweetener mix into a VitaMix blender.

Add the stevioside powder and the Hi-Maize starch to the blender. Secure lid tightly.

Start blending on low speed, turning up to grind to a fine texture.

Do not let the sugars heat up in the blender.

Let the dust settle before removing the lid.

For a very fine powdered sugar, repeat the freezing and grinding process 4 to 5 times, or until it is as fine as you'd like. (We like it very finely ground!)

Taste for sweetness, maybe adding a little more stevia if desired.

Store air-tight in your pantry.



Tips:

This blend tastes even better if you use Lakanto's white sugar substitute instead of plain erythritol. Use less stevia extract when using the Lakanto sweetener.

If you do not have Hi-Maize yet, you may use potato starch, tapioca starch, or non-GMO corn starch. It won't be a low-carb starch like Hi-Maize is, but you will still get the job done.

We like using Hi-Maize because then you are not eating so much sugar alcohols in one sitting, and it contributes fiber as well. Hi-Maize is very neutral tasting and smooth textured.

We do not add IMO powder to this powdered sugar blend. IMO is very hydroscopic and prone to clumping. Frosting made with IMO tends to soften and sort of melt down over time.

Freezing your sugars allows you to grind them longer before they heat up and start melting.


Note:

If the powdered sugar doesn't taste sweet enough to you, you may add up to a total of 5.0 grams of the 80%-90% pure stevioside powder to either of these powdered sugar formulas. 

Variation:

Measure all of the ingredients above as called for and then add:

10 grams of organic coconut flour

Process the powdered sugar in the same way, as above.

Use this coconut enriched powdered sugar when making a frosting without cocoa powder, because it gives more substance and body to the frosting that the cocoa powder would otherwise add.  This makes a delicious sugar-free cream cheese frosting or vanilla frosting.The added coconut flour adds more body to the frosting, so the frosting holds up better at room temperature.


Enjoy,

Leila & Nancy

Sweet Perfection Copy-Cat recipe (All-Natural Sugar Substitute)

This is an all-natural,  super simple sugar-free formula to make at home. 

IMO powder - A fabulous sugar substitute.

We like to make our own Sugar-Free sweeteners. We make several intense sweetener blends, bulking sugar blends and several mixtures combining both bulk sweeteners with added intense sweeteners. We make many different formulas for different applications. It gets complicated, but we love it.

We already have posted some sweetener blends on this blog that you can make yourself:

Stevia Glycerite (Now brand Copy-Cat)
Copy-Cat Truvia
Low-Carb Vanilla Sugar
Low-Carb Brown Sugar
Low -Carb Pancake Syrup #1

We love IMO powder and (IMO Syrup). We also love erythritol, and xylitol. We love using stevioside (stevia), although not usually alone. We also love monk fruit extract and citrus extract. There are more, but most of them are not available to the public. We would LOVE to introduce them to you, maybe with time, we will be able to be a source for you.

Make a small batch of sweetener at first and then try sweetening mild herbal tea with it or try it in a smoothie. It's easy to adjust. Its easier to add more IMO that it is to reduce the amount of stevia, obviously.

Look online for IMO powder, monk fruit extract, and pure, white stevioside extract.


Sweet Perfection contains:

99 % Oligofructose from chicory root fiber (a prebiotic fiber that doesn't increase blood sugar)

1 % Organic stevia

Serving size: 1 t. and contains 3 calories and 3 g fiber.
Each 20-ounce bag costs $22.95 and contains 3 cups.


To duplicate this I use:

99%   IMO powder (like VitaFiber from http://www.bioneutra.ca/faq.htm)
1%   95 to 98% pure stevioside powder (without maltodextrin or other bulking fillers)

Method:

Mix ingredients together Very well. Putting in a blender on very low speed works great.
Store air-tight and use as you would sugar.



A newer Sweet Perfection formula contains:

99.5% Oligofructose from chicory root fiber
Organic stevia
Monk fruit


To duplicate this I would try:

99.5%   IMO powder
0.5%   Combined intense sweeteners:
      0.3%   95% to 98% pure stevioside powder
      0.2%   Lo Han Guo (monk fruit) concentrate powder

Method: 

Premix your intense sweeteners.
Dilute a tiny amount in water and see if you like the ratio of stevia to monk fruit. Adjust as desired.
Mix VERY well with the IMO powder.
Store air-tight.
 

Note: IMO stands for isomalto-oligosaccharide

Sweet Perfection's label.

Have fun experimenting!

Leila & Nancy.

Copy-Cat Outshine Mango Frozen Fruit Bars or Full-O-Fruit Pops

These mango pops are SO yummy! 

You will love me this summer after you make these.

Copy-Cat Outshine Recipe.

In a health food store we often frequent, my daughter and I saw a box of frozen Mango Full-O-Fruit Pops. They were a bit pricey, but...

We bought them, we ate them, we loved them.

I then duplicated them!

This is the recipe I created and they taste just like the ones we bought. I can't find the brand in stores anymore, so I'm glad I can make them at home. Outshine brand is the closest thing I've found in the market now.


I originally used fresh mango to make these but Costco usually carries frozen mango chunks, and using the frozen mango saves time, is less messy and makes putting these popsicles together even easier. My kids beg me to make these and yours will too (Heck, I beg me to make these). Yeah, I just typed 'heck'. Wow.

Do not leave out the fresh lemon juice, it's the key to a balanced flavor.

Taste the mango mixture and adjust the tartness and sweetness to taste. Remember that frozen treats need to be sweeter than room temperature treats.

You can easily make these sugar free by using a combination of erythritol, xylitol, and a very few drops of stevia glycerite. I have not worked out the proportions yet. Using this blend of sugar-free sweeteners gives a more realistic effect.

I also added some extra nutritious ingredients to make these healthier, but all you taste is the yummy mango.





Mango Full-O-Fruit Pops Recipe:

Makes 12.

10.50 ounces  Filtered water
10 ounces  organic mango puree
4 ounces  (1/2 c.) organic evaporated cane juice (Costco carries)
2 to 2.80 ounces  (about 1 large lemon) organic fresh lemon juice
1 t.  Guar gum (a natural healthy fiber thickener)
1/4 t.  Xanthan gum (a natural healthy fiber thickener)
1 Pinch  Sea salt or BioSalt
1/8 t.  Tumeric powder (natural coloring high in anti-oxidants)
1 T.  Udo's Oil (balanced nutritional oil), optional
1 t.  Cal/Mag powder (calcium & magnesium powder), optional

Method:

In a high-powered blender, puree the mango with the water and lemon juice.
Add everything else, with the gums added last, and blend well.
Pour mixture into 12 large popsicle holders and freeze until solid.


Notes: 

The gums mix in better if you first pre-blend them with the other dry powder ingredients.

You may substitute Lakanto's golden zero-cal sweetener (erythritol based sweetener) for the sugar.





Enjoy!

Leila.

Copy-Cat TRUVIA Sugar Replacement Recipe

Copy-Cat Truvia Recipe (Sugar-Free Sweetener Substitute)

At way less than half of the cost of Truvia, it is well worth making your own! This is sweeter cup-for-cup than regular sugar, as this recipe is meant to mimic Truvia's sweetening profile.

Erythritol does not dissolve as easily as regular sugar, so you may need to help it along by heating it with the liquid you are putting it in and then stirring until completely dissolved. This blend is great for sweetening hot herbal teas for example.

Erythritol is extremely low in carbs and has a glycemic rating of almost zero, so it is great for low-carb diets. Nice.


Copy-Cat Truvia Recipe:

Yield: 1/2 cup (recipe easily multiplies)

1/2 c. granular erythritol *
1/4 t. pure white stevia extract powder **

Method:

Mix by shaking together very well in a sealed glass jar and store air-tight.


Tip: 

You can powder the erythritol with the stevia in a seed mill to get a finer textured sweetener. Just do not over-mix or the erythritol will start  to heat up, sticking to the seed mill's blades. A way to combat this sticking issue and still get a "powdered sugar", is to add about 10% tapioca starch before you grind it.

* You may also use Lakanto's White granular sweetener, which is erythritol enhanced with monk fruit.

** Like Carbohydrate-free NuStevia NoCarbs Blend (substitutes erythritol for the usual corn-based maltodextrin)


Have fun,

Leila

DIY Copy Cat Low Carb Brown Sugar Recipe - using Erythritol

Make your own EASY LOW CARB BROWN SUGAR 
(with 2 varitions)

There are some brown sugar imitations on the market, but maybe you are like me and want the convenience of being able to quickly make your own. Making your own saves you money too, always a good thing. Most Of the "brown sugar" replacements on the market use artificial sweeteners in them too. I don't know about you but I avoid artificial chemical sweeteners. I think sugar is better for me than those, but that's my own opinion...

Anyway, erythritol is the base I have chosen for this healthy, low carb brown sugar replacement. You could also use part xylitol if you want to. Xylitol is a lot sweeter that erythritol (about 90% as sweet as sugar) but isn't quite as low carb as erythritol. Another thing to note is that when you combine sweeteners, they are synergistic with each other, enhancing each others sweetness. SWEET!

You may also want to put in the tiniest amount of a high quality white stevioside powder (a high intensity natural sweetener) to up the sweetness of your blend. Just add the stevia very slowly and mix it together VERY well. Write down your formula so you can easily remake more.



LOW CARB BROWN SUGAR Recipe:

Difficulty level: Easy Peasy

1 to 2 c. Erythritol, granular
1 t. Blackstrap molasses


Method:

In a bowl of a food processor, thoroughly mix the blackstrap molasses into the granular erythritol.

Use immediately or store in an airtight container in your pantry for future use.

If you want a lighter brown sugar, just mix in more erythritol.

Remember to write down your proportions for future reference.


Lower Carb Variation:

2 c. Erythritol
2 t. Yacon syrup
A pinch stevioside powder, to taste



NOTES:

Traditional brown sugar has 276 calories per 1/2 cup (71.1 g carbs).
The Lower Carb Variation with yakon syrup has only 7 calories per 1/2 cup (2.8g carbs).

Blackstrap molasses is darker and more flavorful than regular molasses, so you need only half as much, which lowers the carb count of this sweetening blend even more.

Use a natural high intensity sweetener, or a blend of two (like stevia and luo han guo) to increase the sweetness level, if desired.

Erythritol has only 6% of the calories of regular sugar.

Erythritol has about 60 to 70% of the sweetness of regular sugar.

Erythritol is best used as a bulk sweetener in part of a sweetening blend.

Erythritol is not quite as soluble as sugar, it takes a little more heat to dissolve it.

Erythritol has a much higher gastric tolerance than any other sugar alcohol, up to 3.5% is safely used in beverages, for example.

Erythritol will not activate yeast in baking applications. Use a little additional fructose to activate and feed the yeast, and then your dough will rise normally.



Note: You could use Lakanto's golden granular zero-calorie sweetener instead of the plain erythritol for best flavor.



Future Project: I want to make a brown sugar blend that is as sweet as regular brown sugar using a combination of:

erythritol (bulking sugar)
oligosaccharides (inulin chicory root fiber) (bulking fiber)
stevia extract (high intensity sweetener)
luo han guo (monk fruit) (high intensity sweetener)
natural color (carob or cocoa powder)
natural flavor


I'm thinking about 70% erythritol, 20% inulin, and just a kiss of everything else.

I'm just thinking out loud... on paper, er, computer screen.



Have a great day,

Leila.

Home Made Spicy Indian Tamarind Chutney - To go with my Butter Chicken Recipe (Copy Cat)

Tangy-Sweet Indian Tamarind Chutney (Restaurant Copy Cat Recipe)

Homemade Spicy Tamarind Chutney

I love the tamarind chutney that Indian restaurants serve. The tangy-sweet contrast it gives to Indian food really appeals to me. Sometimes it is too sweet at the restaurants, or it isn't served with the meal at all . Sad. Anyway, I wanted to recreate it at home, since it is not readily available. 

Tamarind is sour on it's own and has a wonderful fruity complexity. It is used in refreshing beverages and also in many sauces like Worcestershire sauce. It is high in pectin so it thickens naturally as it simmers. Tamarind chutney is a wonderful way to discover tamarind, if you haven't already.

You can find tamarind paste at ethnic food markets. You can also make your own tamarind paste from tamarind concentrate or even from whole dried tamarind pods. Just simmer the tamarind in water until soft. Dilute with enough water so that you can strain it through a metal strainer, pressing the liquid from the seeds and pulp. I dilute the pulp a couple more times, straining and pressing the pulp to remove all the usable juices. Simmer gently to concentrate into a thick sauce, or paste.

I love serving this chutney drizzled over my Indian Butter chicken recipe posted on this blog, or on Vegetable curry (recipe coming soon)!



Tamarind Chutney Recipe:

1 c. tamarind paste
1/2 c. erythritol (or Lakanto's zero-cal sweetener)
1/2 c. xylitol
2 to 4 T. vegetable glycerine, to adjust sweetness
1/2 to 1 c. purified water, or more as needed
2 to 3 t. coriander seed powder, to taste
1 to 2 t. cumin powder, to taste
1 t. ancho chili powder
1 t. fennel seed powder
1 t. black pepper powder
1/2 t. cinnamon powder
1/4 to 1/2 t. cardamom powder, to taste
1/2 t. bioSalt or sea salt (recipe on this blog)


Method:

Grind the spices together in a seed mill until very fine.

Mix everything together in a small saucepan and gently simmer a few minutes to blend the flavors.

Thin with water if necessary to achieve the desired consistency.

Taste for sweetness and adjust the vegetable glycerine to taste.

Keep refrigerated. It thickens when cooled.

Serve with Indian food. YUM.



Note: The erythritol, xylitol, and vegetable glycerine replace 1 cup of regular sugar in this recipe.

Tip: Kitchen Cheetahs now has an original recipe for a Faux Tamarind Paste here.

An example of tamarind paste. This time I made my own paste however.

Simmer the chutney to thicken up a bit.

The Simmered chutney. You can see that the spices could be ground up finer, which I will do next time.

Finished Tamarind Chutney

Enjoy!

Leila

Chicken Masala - Copy Cat Indian Restaurant recipe

Crazy Good Indian Butter Chicken

(Murgh Makhani Masala)

I'm not kidding, this dish is amazing. For years I have wanted to duplicate Indian Masala dishes found at my favorite Indian restaurant, The Bombay House, in Utah. My girls and I ADORE masala. Nothing made at home ever came close, I never found good recipes in books or online.

Sigh...

I get stubborn about these things sometimes... I again did my research, and still did not find what I was looking for. BUT, I decided to start with a basic Indian gravy and work from there. I knew I wanted a creamy, buttery tomato base. I did not want to taste an over abundance of cumin, which most home made recipes have. I also did not want the sauce to be acidic tasting from the tomato, again, most home made sauces are too sour. I wanted a harmonious marriage of exotic Indian spices, peeking their way through, delighting the taste buds. The sauces I love also have a subtle sweetness to them too and I wanted to duplicate that.

I cooked and tasted carefully, adding more spices and "stuff" until the sauce "officially arrived".

The sauce turned out so rich and flavorful. The chicken was so moist and tender, with a touch of tang that perfectly complimented the decadent sauce. Served over basmati rice, and garnished with cilantro, it was perfect. We enjoyed it more than the version served at most Indian restaurants. I usually have to have tamarind chutney on the side to fully enjoy this dish, but this has such a nice flavor that I didn't need it at all. We fell into a blissful Indian food coma after this incredible meal. We were SO happy, just sayin'.

This is a sauce you can add any meat to, not just the marinated chicken recipe below. You can make it vegetarian, by adding Paneer (an Indian cheese). Oh, how I love paneer... I tried making it once - epic fail. I'll figure that one out too some time.

This makes enough sauce to serve about 8 people, or 2 meals of 4. I like to make the sauce ahead of time and store it in the fridge until needed. Restaurants also make their sauces in advance, in big batches, to save time. They will then customize it to order for their patrons. Marinating your meat ahead of time makes for quick meals come dinner time.

This recipe is surprisingly easy to prepare.  How great is that?

Serve with basmati rice for authenticity and true deliciousness. I like to garnish with fresh chopped cilantro too.

Garlic Naan is a natural to serve with Indian food, My recipe is not gluten-free (yet), so I will not share it with you here.

Here is my original prized recipe, I now present it to you...



Marinated Chicken:

3 to 4 fresh or thawed skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1/2 T. mashed garlic
1/2 T. grated fresh ginger
1 T. plain yogurt (Greek yogurt works too)
1 t. garahm masala powder (recipe on this blog)
1/2 t. tumeric powder
1/2 t. chili powder
1 t. BioSalt (recipe on this blog)


Method:

Mix the marinade with the chicken in a heavy duty Ziplock bag. Coat the chicken evenly.

Let marinate in your refrigerator for at least 4 hours, overnight is even better (you may store in your refrigerator up to 3 days this way).



Makhani Masala Sauce (a thick buttery tomato based sauce):

2 T. virgin coconut oil
1/2 c. pureed onion
1 T. fresh grated ginger (paste)
1 T. smashed garlic (paste)
1/2 to 1 T. kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves), optional to taste (Indian food stores)
1 1/2 t. Graham masala powder
1 t. Ancho red chili powder
1/2 t. plus 1/8 t. Saigon cinnamon
1/2 t. cardamom powder
1/2 t. tumeric powder, optional (I left it out this time)
1 pinch red hot pepper flakes
1 green chili, minced, optional (I left it out this time)
3 8-ounce cans tomato sauce
1 c. hot water
1 c. heavy cream (Dairy-Free Version: omit cream and water, add 2 cans full-fat coconut milk)
2 t. xylitol
1 1/2 t. BioSalt, to taste (recipe on this blog)
1 T. butter (omit if dairy-free version is desired)



Method:

Heat 2 T. coconut oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat..

Add ground onion  and saute until it starts looking translucent.

Add the ginger paste, garlic paste and kasuri methi, if using (I did not have any).

Saute until the mixture until it starts to sizzle and let it sizzle a few minutes. Don't let it burn.

Add a touch of water if you feel the onion is sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Add the graham masala, chili powder, cinnamon, cardamom, hot pepper flakes, and green chili.

Mix well in the pan. Add the tomato sauce and 1 c. hot water.

Turn the heat down to medium, cover and let cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add 1 c. heavy cream and 2 t. xylitol, stir and then bring up to a boil again, uncovered.

Add 1 1/2 t. BioSalt and 1 T. butter, stir in and remove from heat.

Taste for seasoning. It should have a subtle sweetness from the xylitol and sweet spices.

Use the sauce immediately or pour into a quart jar and store in your refrigerated until needed.

There is enough sauce to prepare 2 batches of the marinated chicken above.



To Prepare The Meal:

Prepare the basmati rice according to the directions for your rice cooker, using 3 cups rice, the amount of water called for, 1 T. butter and a heaping t. BioSalt.

In a large frying pan, heat the 2 T. coconut oil and fry the chicken pieces for about 3 minutes on each side, until starting to brown. don't over crowd the chicken in the pan.

Once the chicken is done, Add the prepared sauce, about 2 cups worth.

Stir together and gently heat through. Thin with a little water as needed.

Top with fresh chopped cilantro.

Serve over hot cooked basmati rice.



Notes: 

In the future I may puree the sauce to make it even more velvety.

I used our home made Garam Masala spice blend recipe found on this blog.



See pictures of the cooking process:

The sauce is the boss!

Sauce ready to put into the fridge.

The chicken is marinating...

Virgin coconut oil is perfect for this dish.

Coconut oil is melted in the pan and marinated chicken is placed inside...

Saute chicken until golden and flip over to brown the other side.

Pour in about half a jars worth of  prepared sauce.

Add a bit of water when the sauce gets too thick.

The finished chicken and sauce.

Served with Basmati rice and Naan.

Enjoy!!!

Leila.

Easy Homemade Gyoza Dipping Sauce - Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free

Gyoza (Pot Stickers) Dipping Sauce

So my daughter was preparing a pan of organic gyoza for our dinner tonight, when we discovered at the last minute that we had NO DIPPING SAUCE!

Yikes!

I looked online at a few different recipes. They all seemed to be too heavy on the soy sauce, and too vinegar-y too. I wrote down some ideas and then proceeded to prepare my own version of it, tasting it along the way.  I don't like using more soy sauce than vinegar. I don't like the vinegar without some sweetness added to balance it out. I like a touch of heat too. I added a little toasted sesame oil, not too much or it will overpower everything else. I love lots of fresh ginger, and a little fresh garlic, so I added that too.

I have posted the recipe I came up with, and it closely resembles the sauce that comes in those little packets that most bags of frozen gyoza contain. But this sauce is better.

This sauce is also sugar free and gluten free.

This is a super simple recipe. It's quick too. I researched it and made it, just as my daughter finished our gyoza for dinner. I am posting it because it is a delicious version of this sauce, and I have listed several ingredient options, so you can play with the sauce to suit your tastes.

In the stores, a bottle of this sauce will cost you about $5.00. It is much less expensive (and tastier) to make it yourself.


Gyoza Dipping Sauce Recipe:

1/3 c. rice vinegar (gluten free and sugar free)
1/4 c. tamari soy sauce (gluten free)
2 t. xylitol or Lakanto white granular zero-cal sweetener, to taste (sugar-free)
1 t. toasted sesame oil
Sriracha to taste (or 1/4 to 1/2 t. red chili flakes)
1 t. finely grated ginger
1 clove garlic, pressed or minced fine (up to 2 cloves)
1 scallion, finely sliced

Garnish with toasted sesame seeds, if desired


Method:

Mix the vinegar, tamari, and xylitol to taste. Stir well to dissolve the xylitol.

Add the sesame oil and Sriracha. If you plan on storing the sauce for longer than 2 weeks time, it's best to leave out the fresh ginger, garlic, and scallion until serving time.

At serving time add the ginger, garlic, and scallion to taste.

Use as a dipping sauce for prepared gyoza.


Tips:

You may use garlic chili oil or regular chili oil in place of the red chili flakes or sriracha.

You may add wasabi to the sauce if desired.


Enjoy,

Leila

Faux Brown Rice - Low Carb and DELICIOUS!

Baked "Brown Rice" Cauliflower

This is an amazing low carb side dish. You will love it. It's a great basic that you can serve with almost anything. It can even be made into fried rice, Spanish rice, curried rice, etc... We are currently working on a sweet rice pudding featuring cauliflower rice!

This is wonderful for those who are wanting to slim down, yet still enjoy eating fabulous food.

Cauliflower is naturally low carb, isn't that great? Now in this dish, it tastes great too!

Best of all, this is really easy to make...



Baked Cauliflower "Brown Rice" Style:

Wash and core a large cauliflower. Break off the flower clusters and cut off the stems. Do not use the stems, they ruin the rice-like texture we are after.

Break the flower clusters into small pieces, or roughly chop them.

Place cauliflower pieces into a food processor and pulse until you achieve a rice-like texture. Don't over do it.

Toss the processed cauliflower with about 1 T. onion powder (not onion salt!), to taste. This flavors and sweetens the cauliflower and also helps with browning.

Next, toss the cauliflower with melted salt-free fat or oil of choice: we used organic butter with a little bacon fat added. You could also use fat from a roast chicken - the leftover fat and bits (fond). Be generous with the fat or oil. You could also add about 1 T. almond, hazelnut, or pecan butter for a nuttier taste.

Spread the cauliflower inside a GREASED wide cake pan/dripper pan/pizza pan.

Bake in a 350 degree oven, on the top shelf, stirring every 20 minutes, until it is as tender and browned as you like. It took 1 hour in my oven.

Serve warm as you would rice, or use as a base for fried rice with egg, or as Spanish rice, even as a curried rice. Be creative with this faux brown rice.

Salt to taste when served.



Pictures for your viewing pleasure:

The raw cauliflower processed to a rice-like texture.

 This the texture you are after.

Finished Cauliflower brown "rice"

One of my dad's favorite low-carb  meals (Stick Meat recipe on this blog)


Enjoy!

Leila & Nancy.

Low-Carb Mashed "Potatoes" made with cauliflower - and they taste like potatoes!

REALLY GOOD Low Carb Mashed "Potatoes"

 (O.K., it's really cauliflower)

Delicious and guilt-free "Mashed Potatoes", at least that is what this tastes like... Cauliflower is the secret low-carb ingredient here!

Kitchen cheetahs has some secrets to share with you on how to prepare this dish. There may be some variations of mashed cauliflower out there, but our version is actually crave-worthy, good enough to serve to company and great for low-carb eating. You will not feel deprived eating this.


Low Carb Faux Mashed Potatoes:

2 pounds Cauliflower
1/2 c. Organic milk (or 1/2 c. organic half & half)
1 t. Onion powder (not onion salt)
1/4 t. garlic powder (not garlic salt)
2 ounces Neufchatel cheese (or light cream cheese, or vegan cream cheese)
2 T. Bamboo fiber (omit if you can't find)
1/8 t. to 1/4 t. gum blend  (ie. 50% Konjac + 50% Xanthan) (Don't over do it , or it will be gummy)
BioSalt or sea salt (recipe on this blog), to taste
White pepper, to taste


Method:

Wash the cauliflower and break off the flower clusters and cut off the stems.
Break the flower clusters into small pieces. Only use the flower clusters in this dish, not the stems.
Put cauliflower into microwave-safe dish with 1/2 c. milk or half & half.
Sprinkle with 1 t. onion powder and 1/4 t. garlic powder.
Microwave uncovered for about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.
If  you don't use the bamboo fiber, drain the liquid out of the cauliflower and reserve for another use.
Put the cauliflower and dairy mixture into a food processor and puree until smooth.
Add the 2 ounces Neufchatel cheese and puree until smooth.
Add the bamboo fiber, if using, and gum blend (starting with the smaller amount).
Puree the mixture until fluffy. Add salt and white pepper to taste.
Serve hot, with butter, if desired.


Notes:

You may add a pinch of psyllium fiber if you want to thicken the mashed cauliflower further.

Neufchatel cheese has 1/3rd the fat, and light cream cheese has 1/2 the fat of regular cream cheese.

A favorite brand

See photos of the process:

Core the cauliflower. Do not use the core in the mashed "potatoes"

Cut off the stems too, they don't give the texture we want

Processing the cauliflower until smooth

The finished "mashed potatoes"


YUMMY!


Enjoy<

Leila & Nancy.

Our Favorite Reduced Fat Sour Cream Blend - Plus a recipe for Strawberries Romanoff, a La Madeleine Restaurant Copy-Cat

Favorite Reduced Fat Sour Cream Blend

We love sour cream. We like yogurt. We love them mixed together. Using Greek yogurt results in a thicker "sour cream". You won't have to skimp anymore when dolloping your dishes with sour cream. You can use a low-carb Greek yogurt to make it even better for you. Greek yogurt alone is Not a replacement for sour cream, I don't care what anybody says. But this works!

We recommend this in a classic dessert called Strawberries Romanoff:  Our easy version of this recipe is to simply dollop our sour cream blend over fresh ripe strawberries and then sprinkle with Golden Lakanto powder (a healthy brown sugar substitute). O.K., I'll post a more complex recipe below...



FAVORITE REDUCED FAT SOUR CREAM BLEND Recipe:

2 pound container Greek yogurt
8 to 12 ounces organic sour cream (our favorite is "Green Valley Organics" Lactose Free sour cream)


Method:

Stir sour cream to make it a softer texture.
Add 1/2 cup of the Greek yogurt, and blend in well.
Add 1 more cup of the Greek yogurt, and blend in until smooth.
Add the rest of the Greek yogurt and blend until smooth and uniform in texture.
Scrape out into an air-tight storage container and chill to thicken.


Use as you would regular sour cream.



STRAWBERRIES ROMANOFF Recipe:

Total prep Time:  5 minutes

4 c. fresh strawberries, washed and de-stemmed, cut into bite-sized pieces if needed
1/2 c. Kitchen Cheetahs Reduced Fat Sour Cream Blend
3 T finely powdered brown Lakanto (natural brown sugar substitute)
1 T. real vanilla extract (or brandy flavoring, to taste)
1/2 c. heavy whipping cream (cold!)
1 T. finely powdered white Lakanto (natural white sugar substitute)
Stevia glycerite, a few drops to taste (stevia glycerite recipe on this blog, or use NOW brand's)


Method:

Put the prepared strawberries into a serving bowl or individual serving dishes.
In a bowl, mix together the "sour cream", brown Lakanto powder, and flavoring.
In a separate bowl, whip the cold whipping cream until about half-way thickened.
Add the 1 T. finely powdered white Lakanto sweetener and finish whipping until soft peaks form.
Sweeten to taste with a tiny amount of stevia glycerite, if desired.
Fold the whipped cream into the sour cream mixture until uniform.
Top the berries with the finished sour cream mixture and serve.


This more complex recipe is based on a recipe from La Madeleine Restaurant. I removed all the sugar and real brandy. The original recipe calls for 1 T. brandy, 3 T. brown sugar, and 3 T. white sugar.

Enjoy,

Leila

Copy-Cat Bragg's Ginger Spice Apple Cider Vinegar Drink Recipe (Sugar-Free)

My Copy-Cat version of Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar All Natural Drink 

- Ginger Spice flavor

This drink is for those of you who are health conscious. Because this drink is not like a diet Coke...I'm just sayin'.

A dear friend of mine came over to my house drinking this bottled beverage. Of course I was curious. She likes it and says it is a definite pick-me-up. I  tasted it, and when I heard how much a bottle of it cost, I looked at the ingredient list and then I told her I thought I could duplicate it. It costs pennies to make yourself. She left me the bottle with a bit of the drink left in it. I figured out how to make the drink at home the next day and sent her the recipe.

This drink is not for everyone, but it is strangely good. You may have already heard about the health benefits of drinking a little apple cider vinegar daily. We know that ginger is amazingly good for us too. The 2 together are an improvement for the vinegar, I must say. I like not having any sugar added and the stevia does a nice job of sweetening this beverage without calories.

When I set out to duplicate a recipe, I always look at the product's ingredient list. I write down the ingredients like you see below. I leave space for me to write in the recipe amounts. I do a sensory test of the product and take notes. I source my ingredients and then get to formulating. Just in case you were curious. Personally, I think it's fun to formulate.

This is the ingredient list on the Bragg Ginger Spice bottle:

Pure distilled water
Bragg organic apple cider vinegar
organic ginger
organic stevia extract

Here is my formula...

Ginger Spice Apple Cider Vinegar Drink Recipe:

Yield: 1 quart
Difficulty level: Easy Peasy

Ginger Water Concentrate:

2-inch piece of raw ginger root
2 c. distilled or purified water

Ginger Drink:

Ginger concentrate, to taste
1/4 c. raw apple cider vinegar (like Bragg's) (plus 1 T. more for a tarter version)
1/4 t. stevia glycerite (recipe on this blog, or use Now brand)
Water to make up a total of 1 quart


Method:

Grate or finely mince the ginger into a medium-sized pot.
Add 2 cups water and place on the stove.
Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer.
Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.
Take off heat and allow to steep. Let cool to room temperature.
Strain, pressing the pulp dry.
I like to add a bit more water to the spent ginger pulp and puree a bit in the blender and strain again.
Pour the desired amount of ginger concentrate into a 1-quart glass jar. (I pour in all of it!)
Add the vinegar and stevia glycerite. swirl to mix well.
Top off with water.
Taste and add more ginger or vinegar as desired.
Chill or serve over ice.


Variations:

Add 2 T. chia seeds
Add a pinch of tumeric powder
Add some real maple syrup, to taste (not sugar-free)


Some benefits of drinking apple cider vinegar: 

Contains antioxidants
Improves blood sugar levels
Antibacterial, so helpful for a sore throat

http://www.doctoroz.com/ says,
"Drinking apple cider vinegar before a high-carbohydrate meal improves insulin sensitivity—slowing the rate of blood sugar levels rising—in people who are insulin resistant (a prediabetes condition) or have type 2 diabetes, according to a 2004 study. The researchers note that vinegar may possess physiological effects similar to the anti-diabetes medications acarbose and metformin."
http://www.doctoroz.com/article/people-are-drinking-vinegar-should-you 

Enjoy,

Leila

Photos of the process (making a double batch):

I freeze my ginger and then grate the amount I want for my recipes.

Grate the ginger while it's still frozen. Here I have about 4 inches worth for a double batch.

Put the pot on the stove with 2 cups of water. Simmer covered, and then let steep.

The ginger has brewed and cooled somewhat and is ready for straining.

I use a fine mesh bag draped over a mason jar strainer to easily strain and then squeeze the ginger dry.

Pour ginger brew into fine mesh bag to strain.

Tightly squeeze the ginger dry.

Put the ginger root in a blender with 2 c. more water (for a double batch) and blend.

Yield: 4 cups ginger concentrate.

Now I am making my Ginger Spice Apple Cider Vinegar Drink. For my double batch I used the full 4 cups ginger concentrate.

Best served cold, over ice! Are you fighting off a cold? Add a pinch of cayenne and drink hot or cold. I like to add a little bit more ACV to make it more therapeutic. A touch more stevia added is fine too.

Author, Leila Wood.