Low Carb to Lenient Carb & Refining Recipes

Starting on this journey of eating Keto in February, my favorite and least favorite challenge of eating high fat, low carb was calculating the macros and balancing the ratios. I love math, in fact at one point I wanted to be a math teacher, but I soon realized this way of eating is definitely a labor of love. Now it can be done simply by eating the same meals over and over again to take the guess work out of it, but I love cooking and eating I knew that was not how I wanted to approach Keto. For a newbie or someone who does not enjoy cooking, I definitely recommend keeping it simple to avoid tearing your hair out and/or giving up before you even begin. This is also one of the keys when doing meal prep in general, no matter what style of eating you follow, keep it simple. As I mentioned in a previous post my favorite step of P.R.E.P. is refine. I was inspired and created recipes based off some of my favorite meals: stroganoff, fried rice, spaghetti, Vietnamese vermacelli, tacos, lasagna, etc. I found ways to make them low carb, mostly through substituting vegetables for starches (rice & pasta) and buying ingredients like Miracle Noodles and grain free flours like almond flour . As with anything, once you do something long enough it becomes easier and takes less effort AND sometimes you simply get burnt out. That is how I transitioned from strict low carb under 25g/day to what I would call lenient low carb under 50g/day, most days. Just as I refine recipes, I also refine my lifestyle. I felt great eating low carb, but the amount of time it was taking to create recipes and calculate marcos and ratios was sucking the fun out of what I loved to do most, cook. I had a few staple meals, but when I wanted to let the creativity fly I didn’t want to have to count how much broccoli I could have to keep under my carb count for the meal. So here are some lessons I learned:  Try new things and adapt them to fit your needs. Don’t allow anything or anyone stifle your passion or creativity.

What are some lessons you have learned from trying something new?

Recipe for Keto Vietnamese Vermacelli Bowl (2 servings)

1 package Angel Hair Miracle Noodles  rinsed and heated in a dry pan (no oil) to evaporate excess moisture

Veggies: 2 cups romaine lettuce, 1/2 bell pepper, 1/2 carrot, 1/2 cup bean sprouts, 1-2 radishes, 6oz protein chicken thighs or grass fed beef, 1/4 cup chopped macadamia nuts, basil or Thai basil.

Dressing: 1/2 lime juiced. 1 tbsp rice vinegar, chili paste to taste, 1 tsp Red Boat fish sauce, 1 tsp Swerve Sweetener, 1/4 cup water, 2 cloves grated garlic, 4 tbsp avocado oil, shake to blend.