Paleo snack attack: Salami & Avocado

If I were to pretty these up, I might leave the salami flat and sprinkle some minced red onion or chives on top of the avocado, but this plate was born of desperation! Two hours to dinner and I'm starting to get low-blood-sugar-stupid. So I rummaged around in the fridge, and this is what I came up with: a bit of creamy avocado spread over some organic salami and folded over into a mini "taco". Yeah, it's a bit of a cultural mish-mash, but if the salami is sugar-free, you've got a Whole30 compliant, Paleo-friendly, super-quick snack!

Cornmeal-flaxseed pancakes with maple berry sauce

Quick to whip up, wheat-free, gluten-free, sugar-free -- and still delicious! I've been making these for months, but just now got around to posting them. I'm trying life wheat-free for a while, and these are a great substitute for traditional wheat flour pancakes.

This recipe came about when I tried this recipe for Blueberry Flax Microwave Muffines via Spark People, I loved the ease, nutrition, and flavor of the original recipe, but the grainy texture just didn't seem right for a muffin.

So that actually became my inspiration. It reminded me of the texture of cornbread, and I LOVE cornbread! It's one of the things I missed the most when I went low-carb. When my kids were little (before I went low-carb), we would sometimes have cornmeal pancakes for dinner. Just swap out cornmeal for half the flour, and you've got a pancake with a texture somewhere between pancakes and cornbread. Soaked in melted butter and maple syrup; mmm...! Replacing some of the maple syrup with berries adds vitamins and fiber; a small nudge toward healthier fare.

But back to these wheat-free pancakes... Another drawback was that putting frozen blueberries in the muffins made them pretty ugly. Trust me: they looked NOTHING like the picture! Also, egg in the microwave has a super-fine line between undercooked and rubbery.

So to solve all these shortcomings but keep them quick and easy, I...

• Replaced half the flaxmeal with corn meal
• Turned them into pancakes, made stove-top
• Took the blueberries out of the mix and served them on top as a sauce/syrup (I use whatever berries I have on hand: raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, or a mix.)

Result? Quick, easy, tasty breakfast!

IMPORTANT NOTE: The dry ingredient amounts below make a batch of dry mix, which you then use a little at a time to make 1 or 2 servings. The mix is enough to make four single batches.

Cornmeal-flax pancakes with maple berry sauce

Dry mix:
1/2 c. flaxseed, freshly ground
1/4 c. + 2 T. cornmeal (gluten-free, if necessary)
2 tsp. baking soda
4 pinches salt
Combine and store in airtight container, at room temp or in fridge. Makes four single batches.

Single batch:
1 egg
1 T. coconut milk (or other milk of your choice)
3.5 T.  dry mix (recipe above)
1-2 T. butter

Whisk the egg and the coconut milk, then whisk in the dry mixture. Stir till well combined.

Cook as you would pancakes. Heat a non-stick frying pan. (You know it's the right temp when splattered droplets of water immediately skittle across the surface.) Melt the butter in the pan; pour the excess into a small bowl and set aside for later.

Pour batter into the pan to make one large, two medium, or three small pancakes. It starts out pretty runny; you may need to nudge the edges in a little with your spatula, especially on the smaller cakes.

When the edges look puffy and dry-ish, and bubbles coming to the surface slow down in frequency, flip them over and cook a little less time on the second side. They should be just slightly golden-brown on both sides.

Use the leftover melted butter and brush or spread it on both sides of the finished pancakes, then plate them and pour on the berry syrup. Syrup recipe below.

Makes three mini pancakes, two medium, or one large.

Maple-berry syrup 

4 single-batch servings

1-1/3  c. fresh or frozen berries
2-1/2  to  3 T. real maple syrup

Combine and heat briefly in microwave or on stovetop.
------------
Nutrition info, via myfitnesspal. Serving equals one whole single batch:

Nutrition Facts
Servings 1.0
Amount Per Serving
calories 397
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 28 g	43 %
Saturated Fat 15 g	73 %
Monounsaturated Fat 6 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 6 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 240 mg	80 %
Sodium 730 mg	30 %
Potassium 221 mg	6 %
Total Carbohydrate 31 g	10 %
Dietary Fiber 8 g	31 %
Sugars 10 g
Protein 8 g	16 %
Vitamin A	13 %
Vitamin C	18 %
Calcium	9 %
Iron	17 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

60-Second Strawberry "Shortcake"

We'll get to this easy peasy snack how-to in a minute, but first, let's talk strawberry shortcake.

If you think of strawberry shortcake as Twinkie-like spongecake topped with super-red strawberries in a goopy glaze, then I'm sorry, my friend, but you have been misled.

Imagine warm, fresh from the oven, slightly-sweet/slightly-salty biscuits: think scones. Perfectly crunchy on the outside, broken open so that the tender, steamy shortcake inside can soak up the sweet sauce that results from macerating berries in sugar for an hour or so. Drizzle over that a little half & half -- just enough to moisten the biscuits a bit more -- then top it with a generous blob or two of vanilla whipped cream! Mmm... the contrast of salty and sweet, crunchy and creamy. Seriously!

I live a pretty low-carb life, but this is the one food that I will never pass up, and will eat till the strawberries are all gone, or my stomach hurts, whichever comes first! Oh, who am I kidding?! If there are still strawberries and shortcake, I'll keep eating!

And for that very reason, I don't make it too often. 

But the other day, I had some lovely strawberries on hand -- just a few -- and was trying to figure out how I could make a satisfying snack out of them. Then, inspiration!

I had a few whole-wheat crackers on hand. Store-brand Wheat Thins, if you must know. That will stand in nicely for the shortcake, I thought. And some vanilla yogurt in the fridge. A dollop of that on a cracker, and a slice of strawberry on top. How easy is that?! And pretty healthy, really.

But easy and healthy are no good if it doesn't taste good. This does! The crunchiness of the cracker simulates the shortbread crust and flavor; the vanilla yogurt is a pretty good stand-in for its more fat-laden cousin.

It's also good with a sweetened cream cheese spread -- though that knocks the health factor down a notch.

Sure, in a head-to-head battle with real strawberry shortcake, it comes up short. (Ha! Sorry!) But for a 60-second snack, it'll do just fine. Just fine! And with a lot less guilt.

BLT's -- without the bread

Once locally grown tomatoes are in season in Kansas, I always start craving BLT's! (Bacon-lettuce-tomato sandwich, for any poor souls who are unacquainted with this little bite of summer.)

I made some homemade bread last week just for this. Added some smoked turkey to punch up the protein. But to keep my carbs and proteins (sort of) in balance, I limit myself to one piece of bread per meal. After devouring one delicious BLT -- ripe, sweet juiciness of the tomato contrasting with the salty crunch of the bacon -- I wanted more! Looking hungrily at the remaining tomatoes and bacon, I wondered if the bread were really necessary.

So I took a bit of romaine, smeared it with a little mayo, and topped it with tomato and bacon. Added a slice of avocado to some of them. Oh yeah! It's all the best flavors and textures of a BLT, without the carbs! Perfect for the gluten free, low carb, Paleo or Whole30 diet. They'd make a great snack or appetizer, too.

A couple notes to make them healthier: choose nitrate/nitrite-free bacon; look for a mayo that contains no corn syrup. Or make your own! I like this super-easy 4-ingredient mayo recipe.

10 snacks you thought were healthy -- but aren't

Bon Appetit recently published a list of snacks that have a "health food aura" about them, but are either not all that great for you, or are downright unhealthy.

Granola. Eye the ingredients, and pay attention to the carb-protein ratio, and the amount of fiber. Some of these are really no better than sugar-coated cereal.

Smoothies. If not made at home with wholesome ingredients, these are usually sugar- and calorie-bombs.

Low-fat cheese. This is interesting: a study out of Harvard has identified a natural substance in dairy fat -- yes, fat -- that may substantially reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Fat-free salad dressing. These are almost always crammed with extra sugar and/or corn syrup to make up for the texture and flavor lost to fat. Once you make your own salad dressings, you'll be amazed at how easy it is and you'll never go back to store-bought! A few of my faves:
- Creamy balsamic vinaigrette (This page also includes the easiest recipe ever: 1-2-3 Dressing.)
- Ginger-peanut dressing
- Almost-Panera's Asian dressing
- Easy Tex-Mex: equal amounts of Greek yogurt and salsa, then a bit of taco seasoning - easy and delish! See my make-ahead Tex-Mex salad.

Rice cakes. Fairly void of any decent nutrients, they're really just empty calories. Chocolate or cinnamon ones are just empty calories with sugar added.

Pretzels. Proof that "fat free" doesn't equal healthy. They're basically white bread with an egg wash and a bunch of salt.

Veggie burgers. They sound inherently healthy, but frozen veggie burgers can contain more processed filler ingredients and sodium than actual vegetables or beans.

Diet sodas. Sweeteners may increase sugar or carbohydrate cravings, and if consumed in great quantity, may actually impact weight gain.

Others on the list: Bran muffin. Whole-wheat wrap. (See the original article.)

See my lists of ways to sneak healthier choices into your snacks and meals.

Protein-packed snacks

TheKitchn posted a helpful list: 10 ways to get some mid-day protein. And here's a more extensive list from SheKnows.

A few words of caution, to keep out sneaky carbs: make sure your yogurt and PB or other nut butters are sugar free, and use fresh veggies, not pita chips, for dipping hummus.

Pizza bites - gluten free, low carb, tasty!

Earlier this week, I made myself Kalyn's Grilled Zucchini Pizza Slices for lunch. Yum! But I wanted to experiment with the broiler method she suggested, since not everyone can or wants to grill. Also, I thought it would be kinda cute to make bite-sized versions.

I went with summer squash rather than zucchini. They're close cousins and nutritionally about the same, but I thought the yellow color might be more attractive to people who would be scared off by the green of zucchini. I want to set realistic expectations: no one is going to think they're eating pizza crust; the texture is completely different. But all the flavors are there, and it's a quite satisfying snack.

I made some with pizza sauce and pepperoni, and I made some with pesto and grape tomatoes. I slightly prefer the pepperoni version, because there's a little more punch to the flavor, but they're both really good. And if you or your guests are vegetarian, the tomato option is a nice alternative.

I love how they came out! They are cute, but they're also the perfect size to pop in your mouth whole. Which would also be perfect finger food, for say, super-bowl. I haven't tested the method, but if you wanted to make a large quantity for a party, I bet you could make them ahead of time, up to and including the toppings, then cover and refrigerate them till serving time, and run them under the broiler for a minute or two.

Low-carb Gluten-free Pizza Bites

I'm not listing amounts, because this is one you can totally just wing.

summer squash
olive oil
shredded mozzarella
for the pepperoni version:
    spaghetti sauce (preferably sugar-free)
    pepperoni (turkey, if you like)
for the veggie version:
    pesto
    grape tomatoes

Preheat your oven to 450. Place the rack in the center.

Slice the squash into 1/2" slices. If using tomatoes, slice them about 1/4" thick and set aside.

Drizzle a bit of olive oil over the squash and toss. You just want enough for all the pieces to have a thin coat of oil.

Line a baking sheet with parchment and lay the squash slices out on it. You can place them closer together than what I'm showing here. Bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes. Remove the pan and inspect the underside of the squash. It should just be a bit brown in places. Return it to the oven for a minute or two if it's not yet there.

Switch your oven setting to broil. Top the squash slices with your choice of toppings. I used the larger diameter slices for pepperoni, the smaller for tomato. I put the sauce or pesto on first, then the pepperoni or tomato, then sprinkled a small mound of cheese on top of each one.

Move the oven rack up so it's about 4" under the broiler. Return the pan to the oven and broil until the cheese is melted and done to your preference of golden-brown-ness. This will probably be somewhere around 3 to 5 minutes, but watch it closely.

Let them cool somewhat before serving; that tomato sauce will be hot!

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Garlic herb cheese spread/dip - low carb!

This is such a simple dip, I keep some in the fridge almost constantly. I'm not sure I'd go so far as to call it a knock-off or copy, but it's kinda like Alouette.

It's tasty spread on just about any cracker, but for a low carb, gluten free snack, try it with celery or romaine dippers. These are simply the small end of a heart-of-romaine leaf. When I'm chopping romaine for a salad, I always leave the last 4 to 5" and stash them in the fridge for just this purpose! They've got a perfect dipping shape, and I like them so much better than celery; no stringy stuff!

Garlic herb cream cheese spread or dip

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 T. sour cream OR Greek yogurt
1/2 t. granulated garlic
1/2 t. granulated onion
1 heaping t. dried oregano
1/4 to 1/2 t. freshly ground black pepper, to your taste
1/4 t. salt (if serving with veggies)

Stir together the cream cheese and sour cream (or yogurt) until pretty evenly combined. Add the other ingredients and stir till well mixed. Refrigerate for at least two hours.

Note: if you are serving this with crackers that are salted, you may leave out the salt.

Tomorrow: What to do with the rest of the romaine -- Almost-Panera's Asian Chicken Salad!

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