Keto Beef Stew

 

Looks like a regular beef stew, doesn't it?

It tastes like a delicious, comforting, beef stew but it is keto friendly! How? Well, we left out the potatoes and put in a few turnips instead. You could also use daikon if you have it. We used a little xanthan gum as a thickener instead of flour as well so as well as being low carb it is also gluten free!

I love making stew when the cold weather sets in. It only takes about 15 minutes of prep and then it bubbles on the stove top for a couple of hours making your house smell amazing! 

Keto Beef Stew

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs beef, cut in small chunks

1 tsp salt

1 Tbsp oil

4 1/2 cups beef broth

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

2 Tbsp tomato paste

1 Tbsp Worcestershire

1 bay leaf

1 lb turnip, cut in chunks

2 medium carrots, cut in chunks

1 onion, diced fairly large

1 celery stalk, diced

2 cloves garlic, chopped fine

1/2 tsp xanthan gum

1 Tbsp parsley, garnish

Directions

First step - chop all your veggies. 

In a large pot, cook the beef and salt in the oil until browned over medium heat. Remove the beef and set aside. 

Deglaze the pan with 1/2 cup of the beef broth. Add in the red wine vinegar, tomato paste, Worcestershire, and bay leaf. Stir well. Pour in the remaining beef broth. Place the beef back in the pot and let simmer on low heat for an hour. 

After an hour, add in all your vegetables. 

Remove 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid and whisk in the xanthan gum. Stir this into the stew.

Continue to simmer for another hour or so - until nice and thick and veggies are tender.

Remove bay leaf and discard. 

Serve hot, sprinkled with a little parsley. 

The recipe, as written, makes 6 servings. According to MyFitnessPal the counts are: 341 calories, 20 fat, 9 carbs, 3 fiber, and 31 protein. So 6 net carbs per serving. 

This is one of those meals that no one will notice isn't "normal" stew. I promise. 

My mother insists on having barley in all her soups and stews so I just boiled her up a little bit in a separate pot and added it to hers when I served it and she was none the wiser. 

Big Batch Bacon and Kielbasa Mac And Cheese With Mediterranean Cabbage Salad

I am never making another macaroni and cheese recipe again. This is the one!

It has the most amazing flavor. You know how most mac & cheese is just "meh"... like, not terrible but not *jazz hands*. This is super *jazz hands* with a little *razzle dazzle* thrown in for good measure. 

It is a big batch - like it makes about 20+ cups of mac and cheese. I developed it for a meal program I was running. For a smaller, family sized amount I would maybe just make 1/4 of it. The size here is perfect for a potluck or if you want to make up some meals to share with extended family/friends. 

The Mediterranean Cabbage Salad is the perfect accompaniment. It is light and refreshing and helps add a few veggies to an otherwise carb-heavy meal! 

First up the salad:

Mediterranean Cabbage Salad with Garlic Vinaigrette 

Ingredients

4 cups cabbage, shredded (or thinly slices)

4 large tomatoes, sliced and seeded

2 English cucumbers, sliced

1/4 cup fresh parsley

1 tsp dried dill

1/2 red onion, sliced

garlic vinaigrette (I use Simply Natural Organic Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette)

Directions

Place all ingredients, except vinaigrette, in a large bowl.

Drizzle on a little of the vinaigrette and toss gently. 

Cover and chill until ready to serve. 

When ready to serve: serve with more vinaigrette and add as needed.

On to the main course!

Big Batch Bacon and Kielbasa Mac and Cheese

Ingredients

2 lbs macaroni, cooked

1 lb bacon, cooked and crumbled

2 pkgs kielbasa sausage

1/2 cup BBQ sauce

3/4 cup butter

2 onions, diced

3/4 cup flour

8 cups milk, warmed

1 16 oz brick aged cheddar

1 16 oz brick Monterey Jack cheese

2 cups parmesan, shredded (divided)

4 oz cream cheese

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp dry mustard powder

2 Tbsp fresh parsley

Directions

Before starting: boil your macaroni and set it aside and cook your bacon and set aside as well. 

Prepare the kielbasa sausage: place sliced sausage onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with a little BBQ sauce. Place under broiler until it starts to brown. Flip the pieces over and broil another 3 - 4 minutes - until browned. Set aside.

Prepare mac and cheese - In a LARGE pot (I use a canning pot), melt the butter and add in the onions. Let cook for a minute. Add in the flour and cook another minute, until thickened. 

Very gradually add in the milk, stirring in between additions until smooth. Cook about 5 minutes until thickened. Reduce the heat and add in all the cheeses (reserve 1 cup of Parmesan for sprinkling on top). Stir until melted.

Add in the spices and stir well.

Lastly, stir in the cooked sausage, bacon, and macaroni.

Let heat through and then serve. 

Don't forget to sprinkle generously with the reserved parmesan cheese.

Don't you want to just crawl right in there? 

Best mac and cheese EVER! 

I got 10 very large servings out of this (2 + cups of macaroni and 1+ cup of salad). If you were bringing this as a side dish to a potluck you would get 20 - 1 cup servings quite easily. 

You can half or quarter this recipe with no problem for smaller amounts. 

The macaroni is so flavorful. 4 cheeses and the smoky sausage and bacon make for the best macaroni EVER!

Salty Pirate Monkey Cocktail

 

The toughest part of creating a new recipe is coming up with a name. I am TERRIBLE at naming recipes. I either go with way too much information in the title and it ends up being 4 paragraphs long, or I try to be all clever and completely miss the mark. 

This time I went to my friends on Facebook and had them help me out! 

My friends are all geniuses, in case you were wondering! They came up with names like "Bananas Faster (like bananas foster but with coffee)", "the boozy monkey", "the drunken monkey", "caramel banana dalgona", "spiked caramel banana split", and so many more great ideas. 

My friend Melissa came up with The Salty Pirate Monkey and I'm sticking with it. So fun, right? It has hints about what's in the drink and at the same time is just super fun to say. 

Let's make the Salty Pirate Monkey the new viral cocktail. It's half dessert, half drink and aaaaallll deliciousness! Recipe, as written, makes 1 large boozy milkshake cocktail but can easily be doubled or tripled. If you are a fan of boozy milkshakes then it is juuuuust the right size! 

The Salty Pirate Monkey Cocktail

Ingredients

Dalgona Coffee Whip

1 Tbsp instant coffee

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp very hot water

Banana Bailey's Milkshake

1 frozen banana

1/2 cup milk

1/3 cup salted caramel Baileys

2 Tbsp dark rum

ice

Directions

Prepare the dalgona coffee whip - in a small bowl, whisk (or use beaters) the instant coffee, brown sugar, and hot water until super foamy. This takes a few minutes and should resemble whipped cream when ready. 

Prepare the milkshake - place frozen banana, milk, Salted Caramel Baileys, rum, and ice into a blender and blend until smooth. If you like it thick then add more ice. I usually add 2 good sized handfuls of ice. 

Pour the milkshake into a large glass and top with the whipped coffee topping.

I like to serve it like that as it looks pretty impressive BUT when you go to drink it you definitely want to give it a good stir. 

The coffee whip is very strong so a mouthful of it right out of the gate will shock you. Make sure you mix it up well. 

Still looks pretty. 

And tastes soooooo good! Salted Caramel Baileys and rum, banana milkshake with a coffee twist. Everything you didn't know you needed.