Part 9 (1/2)

Yield: 4 to 5 servings 4 to 5 servings a.s.suming 4 servings, each will have 32 g protein; 18 g carbohydrate; 8 g dietary fiber; 10 g usable carbs.

Ham and Cheese Puff This dish reheats particularly well, making it the perfect leftover meal.

pound (115 g) ham pound (115 g) cheddar cheese 1 green pepper 1 can (4 ounces, or 115 g) mushrooms, well drained 5 eggs 3 tablespoons (15 g) soy powder or (24 g) unflavored protein powder teaspoon baking powder teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal 1 cup (225 g) small-curd cottage cheese 2 tablespoons (30 g) grated horseradish Preheat the oven to 350F (180C, or gas mark 4). Spray a 6-cup (1.4-L) ca.s.serole dish with nonstick cooking spray or b.u.t.ter it generously.

Use a food processor with the S-blade in place to grind the ham, cheddar, green pepper, and mushrooms together until finely chopped (no chunks of pepper or ham should be bigger than a -inch [1.3-cm] cube).

In a large bowl, beat the eggs well. Add the soy or protein powder, baking powder, and salt and beat well again.

Beat in the cottage cheese and horseradish and then add the chopped ham mixture.

Pour the egg mixture into the prepared ca.s.serole dish. Bake for about 40 minutes or until it is puffy and set but still jiggles a bit in the middle when you shake it.

Yield: 4 servings 4 servings Each with 10 grams of carbohydrates and 2 grams of fiber, for a total of 8 grams of usable carbohydrates and 29 grams of protein.

The carb a.n.a.lysis of your recipe may vary from mine, depending on the ham, cheddar, and cottage cheese you use. As always, you can trim this carb count by using the lowest-carbohydrate ingredients you can find. And watch out when you buy your horseradish: I had to read a lot of labels to find one that didn't add sugar.

Turkey Club Puff Disguise your Friday-after-Thanksgiving leftovers in this delicious puff.

5 eggs cup (20 g) soy powder or (32 g) unflavored protein powder teaspoon salt teaspoon baking powder 1 cup (225 g) cottage cheese pound (225 g) Swiss cheese, cubed cup (120 ml) melted b.u.t.ter cup (130 g) cubed cooked turkey 6 slices bacon, cooked until crisp Preheat the oven to 350F (180C, or gas mark 4). Spray a 6-cup (1.4-L) ca.s.serole dish with nonstick cooking spray or b.u.t.ter generously.

Break the eggs into a bowl and beat them with a whisk. Whisk in the soy powder, salt, and baking powder, mixing very well.

Beat in the cottage cheese, Swiss cheese, melted b.u.t.ter, cubed turkey, and crumbled bacon. Pour the whole thing into the prepared ca.s.serole dish. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until set.

Yield: 5 servings 5 servings Each with 5 grams of carbohydrates, a trace of fiber, and 33 grams of protein.

Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Bake 1 pound (455 g) pork sausage (hot or mild, as you prefer) cup (75 g) diced green pepper cup (80 g) diced onion 8 eggs teaspoon pepper 1 cup (120 g) shredded cheddar cheese 1 cup (110 g) shredded Swiss cheese Preheat the oven to 350F (180C, or gas mark 4).

In a large, heavy, oven-proof skillet, start browning and crumbling the sausage over medium heat.

When some grease has cooked out of the sausage, add the green pepper and the onion and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the sausage is no longer pink.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and pepper together and stir in the cheddar and Swiss cheeses.

Spread the sausage and vegetables evenly on the bottom of the skillet and pour the egg and cheese mixture over it. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until mostly firm but still just a little soft in the center.

Yield: 6 servings 6 servings Each with 4 grams of carbohydrates, a trace of fiber, and 26 grams of protein.

Quiche Lorraine Quiche has somehow acquired a reputation for being foofy, girly food-but it's entirely made of stuff men love! So tell your husband this is ”Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Pie” and watch him it down.

1 Pie Crust, unbaked (page 520) 8 ounces (225 g) Gruyere cheese 12 slices bacon 5 eggs cup (120 ml) Carb Countdown dairy beverage cup (120 ml) heavy cream, or you can use 1 cup (240 ml) half-and-half in place of the Carb Countdown and the cream 1 pinch ground nutmeg 1 tablespoon (15 ml) dry vermouth teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal teaspoon pepper Have your crust ready in the pan and standing by. Preheat oven to 350F (180C, or gas mark 4).

Shred your cheese and cook and drain your bacon-I microwave my bacon, and I find that 1 minute per slice on high is about right, but your microwave may be a little different.

First put the cheese in the pie sh.e.l.l, covering the bottom evenly. Crumble the bacon evenly over the cheese.

Now whisk together the eggs, Carb Countdown dairy beverage, cream, nutmeg, vermouth, salt, and pepper. Pour this over the cheese and bacon. Bake for 45 minutes and then cool. It's actually traditional to serve Quiche Lorraine at room temperature, but you certainly may warm it if you like.

Yield: 8 servings 8 servings Each with 32 g protein; 4 g carbohydrate; 1 g dietary fiber; 3 g usable carbs.

Spinach Mushroom Quiche Almond-Parmesan Crust, prebaked (page 136) 8 ounces (225 g) sliced mushrooms cup (80 g) chopped onion 2 tablespoons (30 g) b.u.t.ter 10 ounces (280 g) frozen chopped spinach, thawed 3 eggs cup (175 ml) heavy cream cup (175 ml) Carb Countdown dairy beverage 2 tablespoons (30 ml) dry vermouth teaspoon salt teaspoon pepper 1 cups (180 g) shredded Monterey Jack cheese Have your crust ready first. Preheat oven to 325F (170C, or gas mark 3).

In a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat, saute the mushrooms and onion in the b.u.t.ter until the onion is translucent and the mushrooms are limp. Transfer the mixture into a large mixing bowl, preferably one with a pouring lip.

Dump your thawed spinach into a strainer and using clean hands, squeeze all the moisture out of it you can. Add it to the mushroom mixture.

Now add the eggs, cream, and Carb Countdown dairy beverage. Whisk the whole thing up until well combined. Whisk in the vermouth, salt, and pepper.

Cover the bottom of the Almond-Parmesan Crust with the Monterey Jack and put it in the oven for a couple of minutes until the cheese just starts to melt. Take it out of the oven and pour in the egg-vegetable mixture-your quiche will be very full! Very carefully place it back in the oven. It's a good idea to place a flat pan under it, on the floor of the oven, to catch any drips.

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until just set in the center. Let cool. Quiche is traditionally served at room temperature, but if you like it warm, it's better to make this ahead, let it cool, chill it, and then cut slices and warm them for a minute or two on 70 percent power in your microwave, rather than serving it right out of the oven.

Yield: 8 servings 8 servings Each with 17 g protein; 10 g carbohydrate; 4 g dietary fiber; 6 g usable carbs.

Broccoli-Bacon-Colby Quiche This crustless quiche is wonderful, but feel free to make any quiche recipe you've got, minus the crust, in the same way. For this recipe, I use broccoli cuts that are bigger than chopped broccoli but smaller than florets, and I think they're ideal.

2 cups (500 g) frozen broccoli florets, thawed and coa.r.s.ely chopped, or a bag of broccoli cuts 2 cups (225 g) shredded Colby cheese 6 slices cooked bacon 4 eggs 2 cups (475 ml) Carb Countdown dairy beverage 1 teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal 1 teaspoon dry mustard 2 teaspoons prepared horseradish teaspoon pepper Spray a 1-quart (1.4-L) gla.s.s ca.s.serole dish (make sure it fits inside your slow cooker) with nonstick cooking spray.

Put the broccoli in the bottom of the ca.s.serole dish. Spread the cheese evenly on top of the broccoli and crumble the bacon evenly over the cheese.

In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, Carb Countdown, salt or Vege-Sal, dry mustard, horseradish, and pepper and pour it over the broccoli in the ca.s.serole dish.

Place the ca.s.serole dish in your slow cooker and carefully pour water around the ca.s.serole dish to within 1 inch (2.5 cm) of the rim. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 4 hours.

Turn off the slow cooker, uncover it, and let the water cool until you can remove the ca.s.serole dish without risk of scalding your fingers. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Yield: 6 servings 6 servings Each with 20 g protein, 6 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 4 g usable carbs.

Eggs Fu Yong This can be made on the stove top, is quick and cheap to make, uses up any sort of leftover meat, is high in protein and low in carbohydrates, needs no side dishes, is infinitely variable, and tastes good to boot! How much more can you ask from a recipe? Because this recipe can be varied so much, what I've given you is more a guideline than hard and fast rules.

4 eggs 2 teaspoons dry sherry 1 tablespoon (15 ml) soy sauce Peanut oil, or other bland oil for frying teaspoon grated ginger 2 to 3 ounces (50 to 90 g) leftover cooked meat, cut into small strips,* or canned chunk turkey, chicken, or ham, or canned shrimp or crabmeat 1 cup (75 g) Napa cabbage or green cabbage, finely shredded, or bagged coleslaw mix, or 1 cup (50 g) bean sprouts, or some combination of the two cup (30 g) mushrooms, canned or fresh, finely chopped cup (40 g) onion or scallions, finely minced cup (30 g) bamboo shoots, cut into matchstick strips Beat the eggs with the sherry and the soy sauce. Set aside. In a large skillet, heat a few tablespoons of oil over high heat. Add the ginger, then the meat and remaining ingredients. Stir-fry until the onion is translucent and the cabbage or bean sprouts are tender-crisp. Stir the meat and vegetables into the seasoned eggs. Add another few tablespoons of oil to the skillet and heat.

Ladle about cup (120 ml) of the egg mixture at a time into the skillet and fry on both sides until the egg is set.

You can cook this in a wok if you want to be authentic, but I actually find that a skillet is a lot easier for this recipe.

Yield: 2 servings 2 servings The carb count will vary a little, but each serving will have close to 6 grams of carbohydrates and 2 grams of fiber, for a total of 4 grams of usable carbs and 26 grams of protein.

* Use ham, pork, turkey, chicken, or shrimp- whatever you've got. If they're little bitty shrimp, leave 'em whole. If they're great big shrimp, chop them coa.r.s.ely.

Vedgeree Kedgeree is a traditional dish made with rice, flaked smoked mackerel or halibut, and hardboiled eggs. I wanted to decarb it, but smoked mackerel and halibut are hard to come by, and I refuse to include impossible-to-find ingredients. Then I found a recipe for ”Vedgeree,” a vegetarian take-off, so I decarbed it, and it was yummy. This recipe will make a satisfying one-dish meal out of a couple of hard-boiled eggs. You do keep hard-boiled eggs in the fridge, don't you?

head cauliflower cup (75 g) frozen cross-cut green beans cup (30 g) chopped onion 1 cup (100 g) sliced mushrooms tablespoon b.u.t.ter 2 hard-boiled eggs Salt and pepper Run the cauliflower through the shredding blade of a food processor. Put the cauliflower in a microwaveable dish, put the frozen green beans on top, add a couple of tablespoons of water, cover, and microwave on high for 7 minutes.

While the cauliflower and beans are cooking, saute the onion and mushrooms in the b.u.t.ter until the onions are limp and translucent and the mushrooms have turned dark. Peel the eggs, quarter them lengthwise, and set them aside.