1001 Low-Carb Recipes: Hundreds of Delicious Recipes From Dinner to Dessert That Let You Live Your Low-Carb Lifestyle and Never Look Back (46 page)

When the time’s up, scoop out the vegetables with a slotted spoon and put them in your blender or food processor. Add enough broth to help them process easily and purée them finely. Pour the puréed vegetables back into the slow cooker, scraping out every last bit with a rubber scraper. Now stir in the heavy cream and sour cream and add salt and pepper to taste. Thicken the sauce a bit with guar or xanthan if you think it needs it. Serve immediately.

Yield:
5 servings

Each with 6 g protein, 5 g carbohydrate, 1 g dietary fiber, 4 usable carbs.

You’ll be surprised by how much this tastes like Cream of Potato!

3 tablespoons (42 g) butter

¾ cup (120 g) diced onion

¾ cup (90 g) diced celery

1 quart (960 ml) chicken broth

1 package (10 ounces, or 280 g) frozen cauliflower

½ teaspoon guar or xanthan (optional)

½ cup (120 ml) heavy cream

Salt and pepper

Melt the butter over low heat and sauté the onion and celery in it until they’re limp. Combine this with the chicken broth and cauliflower in a large saucepan and simmer until the cauliflower is tender.

Use a slotted spoon to transfer the vegetables into a blender and then pour in as much of the broth as will fit. Add the guar or xanthan (if using) and purée the ingredients.

Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Stir in the cream and add salt and pepper to taste.

Yield:
4 servings

Each with 9 grams of carbohydrates and 3 grams of fiber, for a total of 6 grams of usable carbs and 7 grams of protein.

This was originally a potato-cheese soup, but it sure is good this way!

4 cups (600 g) cauliflower, diced small

1 tablespoon (10 g) finely chopped onion

2 tablespoons (20 g) finely chopped celery

1 tablespoon (7 g) grated carrot

3 cups (720 ml) chicken broth

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons white vinegar

1½ cups (360 ml) Carb Countdown dairy beverage or half-and-half

1½ cups (180 g) shredded cheddar cheese

Guar or xanthan (optional)

2 slices bacon, cooked and drained

1 tablespoon (6 g) minced scallion

Put the cauliflower, onion, celery, and carrot in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the chicken broth, salt, and vinegar; bring up to a simmer and let cook for 30 to 45 minutes.

Stir in the Carb Countdown or half-and-half and then whisk in the cheese a little at a time, giving each addition time to melt before adding more. Thicken it a little with guar or xanthan if you think it needs it.

Top each serving with a little crumbled bacon and minced scallions (though it’s also wonderful without them!).

Yield:
5 servings

Each with 17 g protein; 7 g carbohydrate; 2 g dietary fiber; 5 g usable carbs.

Maria’s family gave this raves. It’s easy, too!

6 cups (900 g) cauliflower florets, cut into ½-inch (1.3-cm) pieces

1 quart (960 ml) chicken broth

½ cup (80 g) minced red onion

5 ounces (140 g) bagged baby spinach leaves, pre-washed

¼ teaspoon cayenne

½ teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal

¼ teaspoon pepper

4 cloves garlic, crushed

3 cups (675 g) shredded smoked Gouda cheese

1 cup (240 ml) Carb Countdown dairy beverage

Guar or xanthan

In your slow cooker, combine the cauliflower, broth, onion, spinach, cayenne, salt or Vege-Sal, pepper, and garlic. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 6 hours or until the cauliflower is tender.

When the time’s up, stir in the Gouda, a little at a time, and then the Carb Countdown. Re-cover the slow cooker and cook for another 15 minutes or until the cheese has thoroughly melted. Thicken soup a little with guar or xanthan.

Yield:
8 servings

Each with 17 g protein, 7 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 5 g usable carbs.

1 quart (960 ml) beef broth

1 medium onion

½ cup (120 ml) heavy cream

½ cup (120 ml) Carb Countdown dairy beverage

1½ cups (180 g) shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Guar or xanthan (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

Pour the beef broth into a large saucepan and start it heating over a medium-high flame. Slice the onion paper-thin and add it to the broth. When the broth starts to boil, turn the heat to low and let the whole thing simmer for 1 hour. If you like, you can do this ahead of time; turn off the heat and let the whole thing cool, refrigerate it, and do the rest later. If you do this, bring the broth up to heat again before proceeding.

Gently stir in the cream and the Carb Countdown dairy beverage. Now stir in the cheese, a bit at a time, until it’s all melted in. Thicken a little if you want with guar or xanthan but stir with a ladle or spoon instead of a whisk—you don’t want to break up the strands of onion. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Yield:
4 servings

Each with 24 g protein; 8 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber; 8 g usable carbs.

I never cease to marvel at the versatility of cauliflower. This really does taste like potato soup.

1 quart (960 ml) chicken broth

½ head cauliflower, chunked

½ cup (50 g) chopped onion

½ cup (50 g) Ketatoes mix

½ cup (120 ml) heavy cream

½ cup (120 ml) Carb Countdown dairy beverage

Guar or xanthan (optional)

5 scallions, sliced

Put the broth, cauliflower, and onion in your slow cooker. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 4 to 5 hours.

I use a hand blender to purée my soup right in the slow cooker, but you may transfer the cauliflower and onion, along with 1 cup (240 ml) of broth, into your blender or food processor instead. Either way, purée until completely smooth and then blend in the Ketatoes. If you have removed the cauliflower from the slow cooker to purée, pour the purée back in and whisk it into the remaining broth.

Stir in the cream and Carb Countdown. Thicken it a bit further with guar or xanthan if you feel it needs it. Add salt and pepper to taste and stir in the sliced scallions. Serve hot right away or chill and serve as vichyssoise.

Yield:
6 servings

Each with 12 g protein, 13 g carbohydrate, 6 g dietary fiber, 7 g usable carbs.

This is worth the time you spend cutting things up! It’s hearty and filling.

1 head cauliflower, chunked

2 stalks celery, sliced

1 medium onion, chopped

8 ounces (225 g) smoked sausage, sliced

1 tablespoon (15 ml) oil

4 cups (960 ml) beef broth, divided

2 tablespoons (30 ml) vinegar

1 tablespoon (1.5 g) Splenda

¼ teaspoon celery seed

½ teaspoon dry mustard

¼ teaspoon pepper

2 cups (240 g) bagged coleslaw mix

Place the cauliflower, celery, and onion in your slow cooker.

In a big, heavy skillet, brown the sausage a bit in the oil. Transfer the sausage to the slow cooker.

Pour 1 cup (240 ml) of the broth into the skillet and stir it around a bit to dissolve the flavorful bits. Pour it into the slow cooker.

In a bowl, combine the rest of the broth with the vinegar, Splenda, celery seed, dry mustard, and pepper. Pour over the vegetables and sausage. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 8 hours.

When the time’s up, stir in the coleslaw mix and let it cook for another 20 to 30 minutes.

Yield:
4 servings

Each with 20 g protein, 17 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 15 g usable carbs.

This soup is a great way to use up leftovers—just substitute 1 cup (110 g) of leftover chicken for the chicken breast called for in the ingredients list.

6 cups (1.4 L) chicken broth

1 can (6½ ounces, or 185 g) mushrooms

1 can (6½ ounces, or 185 g) cut asparagus

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced into small cubes

¼ cup (60 ml) dry sherry

1 tablespoon (15 ml) soy sauce

Pepper

Sliced scallions

Combine the broth, mushrooms, asparagus, chicken, sherry, and soy sauce in a pot and heat. If you’re using raw chicken, let it cook for 5 to 10 minutes (that’s all it should take to cook small cubes of chicken through). Add pepper to taste and serve with a scattering of scallions on top.

Yield:
4 servings

Depending on the broth you use, this should have no more than about 17 grams of usable carbs in the whole pot, plus about 0.5 gram for the little bit of scallion you put on top of each bowl. Figure each serving has 6 grams of carbohydrates and 2 grams of fiber, for a total of 4 grams of usable carbs and 23 grams of protein.

If you’re feeling ambitious, there’s no reason you couldn’t make this with fresh mushrooms and fresh asparagus; you’ll just have to simmer it a little longer. As it is, though, this soup is practically instantaneous!

Here’s a decarbed version of the Italian favorite. You’ll never miss the pasta!

3 slices bacon, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2 medium turnips, cut into ½-inch (1.3-cm) cubes

1 medium carrot, thinly sliced

2 small zucchini, quartered and sliced

2 stalks celery, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons (45 ml) olive oil

1½ quarts (1.4 L) chicken broth

1½ pounds (700 g) skinless chicken thighs, boned and cubed

1 tablespoon (3.9 g) Italian seasoning

1 can (14½ ounces, or 410 g) diced tomatoes, undrained

1 can (15 ounces, or 425 g) black soybeans

Salt and pepper

Spray a big, heavy skillet with nonstick cooking spray and start the bacon frying over medium heat. As some grease cooks out of the bacon, add as many of the vegetables as will fit in the skillet and sauté them until they soften just a bit. Transfer the vegetables to your slow cooker and continue sautéing the rest of the vegetables, adding oil as needed, until all the vegetables are softened a bit and in the slow cooker.

Place the broth, chicken, Italian seasoning, tomatoes, soybeans, and salt and pepper to taste in the slow cooker. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 7 to 8 hours.

Yield:
6 servings

Each with 21 g protein, 18 g carbohydrate, 6 g dietary fiber, 12 g usable carbs.