Low-carb support thread 2016 Part 2

Try Spanish Style Chocken Bake

I substitute mushrooms for potatoes. It's flavoursome but wouldn't call it spicy. And I always use boneless, free range chicken thighs so not dry.

There are lots of nice chicken recipes in the Hairy Dieters book - the Old Fashioned Chicken Stew is another one you might enjoy.

Plenty of good fish recipes in that book too around too but you might have to start experimenting. This is a nice salmon stir fry but not low carb from the Sainsbury's magazine. Most guests seem to love this.

I am doing a veg stir fry tonight (chinese cabbage, courgette, broccoli, ginger) to go woth spicy pork chops. What would you use for the stir fry that avoids sugar, honey, soy? I had wondered about something like raz al hanout and balsamic, but could do with some inspiration. The spice rub for the chops is cumin, chilli, fennel seeds etc.

I just use soy sauce with a little ginger and chilli. Mamie
We have just had a stir fry with peppers,cabbage,courgettes and mushrooms. Ours was chicken though. We have grown round courgettes this year. I have stuffed them with the mixture from the Hairy Biker's stuffed peppers. Then baked in the oven. Really very tasty.

We have courgettes coming out of our ears. I picked 5 this morning that I swear were not there yesterday.
So I can make courgette cake, ratatouille. Stuffed courgette, and have even found a recipe for courgette icecream.
Anyone got any other ideas please ?

Courgette dauphinoise and agrodolce (raisins, pinenuts, balsamic) are regulars. Tonight I did garlic, sliced courgettes, sliced tomatoes, baked in the oven in a splash of wine and oil, with a parmesan crust. Worked very well with posh sausages.

Grow less!!

There are only 3 plants. I think the fairies come in the night Anya I'll be telling them to P--s off ??

Hello all - I'm back.

Started this diet in the new year as I was thinking of having knee replacement and had to lose 4 stones.

Did quite well until end of February when life and family problems got in the way and I put on everything I had lost.

Saw GP s few weeks ago as my life was unravelling and was at tipping point because of family problems. She kindly told me not to worry about weight gain and put me on some pills. I am now beginning to feel better (more like myself) have decided I don't like the odds for knee replacement surgery as my pain is controlled by medication and if I lose weight I should be more mobile. Only have problems with getting up and down stairs and on and off floor really so not too bad.

So as from today I'm starting again. I go away in 10 weeks time so hope to have lost at least one roll of fat by then!!

Onward and upward! Good Luck.

Welcome back NewgranGill. Let us know how we can help.
We are just getting back to normal after family visits; still eating lots from the vegetable garden. Tonight is roast chicken, roast squash and broccoli.

Hello NewgranGill. I was motivated to lose weight because of pre diabetes, but lately with family problems I too have relapsed a bit. Only to the tune of a few pounds but am very keen to get back on track because apart from the benefits of diminishing the risk of diabetes, a major bonus for me has been less arthritic pain in knees and hips. Just a stone lighter has made so much difference to my use of pain killers. This thread really helps to support motivation. Good luck.

Hello Lazigirl, I to am hoping that the arthritis will become easier . Well done.

Does anyone know how to cook beetroot - I'm assuming I can eat it but it just keeps coming from the allotment and I have no intention of pickling again as preserves just don't get eaten here.

www.deliaonline.com/ingredient/beetroot

Hope you find this link useful.

Yes, just cut the top off (leave any roots) but don't cut into the beet itself. Leave about 1cm (1/2 " in real money) of leaf sticking up. Bung them into a pan, add enough water to cover, or nearly cover, bring to boil, put lid on and simmer for about an hour (more if huge, less if tiny).

Drain, run under cold water and the skin etc. will just rub off.

When cold, slice about 1cm think, add an equal round of goats cheese and grill till golden. Lovely.

PS they do contain quite a few carbs (beer;sugar) but I always feel the benefits re vits & minerals make it a worthwhile trade off.

I've said this before a high carb diet causes GERD ( acid reflux/heartburn

DH is away this week and so I've been 'treating' myself (!) to toast in the mornings, Bad idea! I've now had awful heartburn, something I never, ever have while on a low carb diet.

So rather than just assume that my deductions were correct I've been reading up about this. The perceived wisdom is that a high fact diet and/or spicy food causes GERD. Well not for me, I eat lots of fats normally and love my curries, but I avoid rice and naam bread. I long ago realised that orange juice was a trigger for me (high carb of course).

Anyway here's the result of my trawling the internet. I've found loads of studies to back up my theory but this is the most scientifically sound. If you want to skip all the stats then just jump to the conclusion. Very interesting.

Carbs cause acid reflux

I quite agree Anya The share price on Gaviscon must have plummeted when DH and I went low carb.
Had a Samosa as a treat yesterday. Last night ' acid reflux ' ?

Agree with that and far less acid indigestion here too. We had a dodgy meal with friends the other evening (tuna) and OH has had a bad bout of IBS ever since. He has bifidus yoghurt every day, but am wondering about making sauerkraut. He finds Buscopan works well but we can't get it in France and stocks are low. ?

Sauerkraut is easy to make.

The thing with acid reflux is that it starts in the stomach whereas other digestive problems (those that might be helped by improved gut bacteria - hence probiotics) tend to be centred in the intestines. Both need addressing for healthy digestion, though there is evidence that excess gas in the intestine may put upward pressure on the stomach.

Then there's the issue of hiatus hernia, which is often a condition of older age, which can cause reflux as the valve at the top of the stomach becomes weaker.

It's a case of managing all these factors together. Not easy!

In OH's case his IBS seems to be made worse by tiredness and long car journeys. It originally followed a bad bout of food poisoning from a bought tuna sandwich several years ago. He has long stretches when it is fine but then it comes back.
Think I will try cavolo nero sauerkraut.
We have an amazing year for tomatoes here. The other day we roasted cherry tomatoes, cooked them in an omelette which we had with a green salad.. Zero food miles too. ?

Well we are back from our cruise. We managed to eat very well and not put on a lb. I did surcumb to fish and chips one evening and boy did I suffer all night.
So back to reality now. Hope all you harvesting get a good haul.

Very good harvest, thanks BB. Tons of tomatoes and peppers and great aubergines; we are having moussaka tonight. Managed to stay pretty low-carb on holiday and also had fish et frites (sic) on the way home. It was delicious. ?

Just posting to see where this goes as the Dieting and Exercise forum seems to have gone AWOL.

I should ask GN where it is. Must be a mistake on their part.

Have reported. Cold foggy start to what should be a lovely day later. OH is making an enormous ratatouille, all from the garden. Will barbecue sausages (merguez, pork and camembert) with it this evening.

I made a lamb tagine for supper tonight. DH has always turned his nose up at the suggestion before. So I didn't tell him. It got his highest praise " I'd have that again" Then he asked what it was. We both laughed "I thought it was a spicy casserole" he said. Well it is really I suppose