Turkey Carcass in a Crockpot Soup

INGREDIENTS:

meat of 1 turkey carcass  4 quarts chicken or turkey stock (I used bullion cubes w water.) 6 small potatoes, diced 4 large carrots, diced 2 stalks celery, diced 1 large onion, diced 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon dried parsley 1 teaspoon dried basil 1 bay leaf 1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper 1/4 teaspoon paprika 1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning 1 pinch dried thyme Throw it all in the crock pot and cook it till the smell drives you nuts.  Add some noodles if that's your thing. I'm going to go without the added carbs this time.

Corn Casserole

Ingredients

• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk
• 3 tablespoons melted butter or margarine, divided (optional)
• 2 (15.25 ounce) cans whole kernel corn, drained
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 cup crushed butter-flavored crackers, divided

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, milk, 2 tablespoons butter, corn, cheese and 1/2 cup cracker crumbs. Spoon into a greased 11-in. x 7-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Toss the remaining crumbs and butter; sprinkle over corn mixture. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until edges are bubbly.

Gramma's Turkey Stuffing

Ingredients

• 1 stick butter
• 3 cups diced onions
• 3 cups diced celery
• 2 tubes sage breakfast sausage (3 cups crumbles and cooked)
• 25 slices bread
• 3 tablespoons poultry seasoning
• 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 1/2 cups turkey stock

Directions

In a large frying pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Saute the onions and celery for 5 minutes. Next, add the sausage and cook until browned, about 10 more minutes, stirring frequently. Meanwhile, break up the bread slices by hand into medium-small pieces into a large bowl. Add the seasonings and mix well. Then add the cooked vegetables and sausage and mix again. Finally, add the turkey stock and mix well. There will be enough stuffing for a 10 to 15-pound bird and an 8 by 8-inch pan.

Gramma's Horseradish Dip

Ingredients

• 2 (3 ounce) package cream cheese - room temperature
• 3 tablespoons sweet pickle juice
• 2 tablespoon onion pulp/juice (about 1/2 med onion)
• 2 teaspoon prepared horseradish
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic salt

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients well. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 1 hour before serving.

Taco Seasoning

I use this exclusively now for tacos.


3/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons paprika
6 tablespoons cumin
2 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoon pepper


Use as much as you want mixed with water.

Rosemary Apple Butter Pork Loin

serves 6

2 pounds pork loin roast
3 tablespoons lard
1 tablespoon dried rosemary, crushed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
1/2 small yellow onion, peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons lard or butter
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
1 cup apple butter, no sugar added

Preheat the oven to 350º F.

Mix the rosemary, salt and pepper together in a small bowl and rub over the surface of the pork; set aside.

Melt the 2 tablespoons of lard (or butter) in a small skillet over medium heat; add the onion and cook until golden brown, about 7 minutes. Increase the heat and add the wine; heat to boiling. Add the mustard, pepper and apple butter; stir well and remove from heat. Set aside.

Melt the 3 tablespoons lard in a large, heavy Dutch oven over high heat; sear the pork until golden brown on all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove from heat.

Smear 1/4 of the apple butter mixture over the pork loin roast; cover and place in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes; turn the roast and spoon another 1/4 of the apple butter mixture over the pork. Return to the oven. Repeat, basting the pork with 1/4 of the apple butter mixture, and bake for another 20 minutes or until the pork has reached an internal temperature of 140 degrees.

Remove the pork loin roast from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Warm the remaining apple butter mixture; spoon over the sliced pork and serve.

Nutrition (per serving): 436 calories, 30g total fat, 105.4mg cholesterol, 453.7mg sodium, 603.9mg potassium, 6.2g carbohydrates, <1g fiber, 4.3g sugar, 30.3g protein.

Bacon Wrapped Sweet Potato Wedges

Ingredients:

• good quality bacon
• sweet potatoes – peeled and chopped (fairly chunky)
• a dash or two of Cajun spice
• some sea salt

Prep:

• start by peeling and chopping the sweet potatoes into wedges (chunky style) and place in a bowl
• sprinkle with Cajun spice and mix thoroughly
• then take the sweet potato wedges and wrap them with slices of bacon (if bacon is too wide, you can slice length-wise…it really depends on the cut!)
• line a baking sheet with some tin foil and then arrange bacon-wrapped wedges evenly on the pan
• preheat oven to approx. 325-350 degrees and cook until bacon becomes crispy (40-ish minutes depending on oven)
• if you wish to make them ‘extra-crispy’…turn the oven to broil for the remaining 5-10 minutes
• plate and sprinkle with coarse sea salt

Chicken with Sun Dried Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 whole chicken breasts, bone-less;
• 1 ½ cups heavy cream (use coconut milk as an alternative);
• Good quality steak seasoning, optional;
• 4 fresh thyme sprigs;
• ½ cup homemade chicken stock;
• 10-12 sun-dried tomatoes, purred in a blender or food processor;
• ½ tsp fresh thyme leaves
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste;

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
2. Season the chicken breasts all over with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Optionally, also season them with a good quality steak seasoning. Look in your local health food store for a brand that is gluten-free and doesn’t contain any vegetable seed oil.
3. Place them in a baking dish, place a sprig of fresh thyme on top of each and place in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, until the juices run clear.
4. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over a medium-low heat, bring the cream or coconut milk and the two remaining thyme sprigs to a light boil.
5. Once boiling, lower heat and let simmer. Allow the cream or coconut milk to reduce by approximately 1/3 of its volume. This should take close to 10 minutes.
6. Remove the cream or coconut milk from the heat and allow it to sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Do not  remove from skillet.
7. Remove the thyme sprigs and return to heat. Add the chicken stock and allow to simmer for another 5 minutes.
8. Add the purred sun-dried tomatoes, season with salt and pepper to taste and the fresh thyme leaves.
9. Pour on top of the cooked chicken breasts and enjoy!

Cinnamon Chicken

Ingredients

• 1 3lbs chicken, cut into 8 pieces (breasts, drumsticks, thighs and wings);
• ½ tsp sea salt;
• ½ tsp black pepper;
• 2/3 tsp cinnamon;
• 2 cloves garlic, minced;
• ½ tsp paprika;
• 1 onion, sliced;
• 1 cup water or chicken stock

Preparation

1. Preheat your oven to 400 F.
2. In a small bowl, combine the salt, pepper, garlic and cinnamon. Rub the chicken pieces with this mixture and allow it to sit for about 30 minutes at room temperature.
3. Place the chicken pieces in a large roasting pan, sprinkle the meat all over with the paprika and add the onion slices to the pan.
4. Cook for 35 minutes and then reduce the heat to 350 F.
5. Stir in a cup of water to the roasting pan and continue cooking for another 50 minutes.
6. Serve and use the juices from the pan as a sauce.

Hungarian Goulash

Ingredients

• 2 lbs stew meat
• 1 can tomato paste
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 c. dry red wine
• 2 tsp. Herbs de Provence 
• 4 tbsp Hungarian paprika
• 2 c. beef broth
• 2 potatoes, peeled and cut in chunks
• salt to taste

Method

1. Sear the meat chunks briefly in a hot skillet. Do not cook or puncture, simply brown quickly on all sides. Place in pot.
2. Put rest of ingredients in the crockpot, set on low 6-8 hours. 
3. Add the potatoes in the last 2 hours of cooking.  

Bacon and Leek Souffle

5 slices bacon, thinly sliced crosswise
2 medium leeks, light green and white part only
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ cup low carb milk* or ¼ cup cream plus ¼ cup water
5 ounces cream cheese, cut into cubes
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
5 large eggs, separated
1 large egg white
½ teaspoon cream of tartar (omit if beating egg whites in a copper bowl)


Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease an 8- by 8-inch baking pan. Chop the leeks; you should have about 2 cups, chopped.


Cook the bacon in a medium skillet until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer bacon to a large bowl with a slotted spoon. Add the leeks to the skillet, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 4 minutes or until softened. Place leeks in bowl with bacon and stir in the thyme, salt, and pepper.


Gently warm the milk or milk substitute in the skillet on medium-low heat. Stir in the cream cheese and Parmesan and whisk until melted and smooth. Add the milk and cheese mixture to the bowl with the bacon and leeks and stir together. Let cool until just warm. Gently stir in the egg yolks and set aside.


In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar, if using, with an electric mixer to medium-stiff peaks. With a large spatula, carefully fold the egg whites into the leek and bacon mixture. Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and bake until puffed and golden brown on top 22 to 24 minutes. Serve immediately.  (It took a little longer in my oven. If it is still soupy in the middle, put it back in the over for another 5 minutes or so.)


For each of 6 servings: Net Carbohydrates: 4.2; Fiber 0.4; Calories: 329; Protein: 12.4; Fat: 29.4