Help me eat! Need recipes and meal ideas for a rather specialized diet
October 3, 2018 11:33 AM Subscribe
I cannot eat gluten, mammals, or more than 20 carbs (net) a day.
I am looking for recipes and meal ideas primarily, but also good websites or books focused on recipes that might work for me.
I have celiac disease and absolutely cannot have any gluten. Small amounts of cross contamination (“made in a factory that also processes wheat”) is enough to make me very sick. I recently developed an an alpha-gal allergy. I did not even see the tick that gave it to me! But I do not seem to have a reaction from small amounts of cross contamination. I am also starting on the MAD diet soon, which is basically a ketogenic diet with a bit more protein.
Obviously I will be meeting with a dietician soon to work on this, but when I've worked with dieticians in the past, I was not always excited about the recipes or often got bored with them quickly. It was helpful to be able to use their meal plan as a framework and modify and branch out.
I like a lot of variety in my diet. I enjoy cooking and am quite competent in the kitchen, but have limited time and energy to cook. Things that can be made in large batches or quickly are especially welcome, but not required.
Please do not give me advice about health or your personal opinions on ketogenic diets, etc. Assume that my doctors know more about my body and conditions than you do.
I have celiac disease and absolutely cannot have any gluten. Small amounts of cross contamination (“made in a factory that also processes wheat”) is enough to make me very sick. I recently developed an an alpha-gal allergy. I did not even see the tick that gave it to me! But I do not seem to have a reaction from small amounts of cross contamination. I am also starting on the MAD diet soon, which is basically a ketogenic diet with a bit more protein.
Obviously I will be meeting with a dietician soon to work on this, but when I've worked with dieticians in the past, I was not always excited about the recipes or often got bored with them quickly. It was helpful to be able to use their meal plan as a framework and modify and branch out.
I like a lot of variety in my diet. I enjoy cooking and am quite competent in the kitchen, but have limited time and energy to cook. Things that can be made in large batches or quickly are especially welcome, but not required.
Please do not give me advice about health or your personal opinions on ketogenic diets, etc. Assume that my doctors know more about my body and conditions than you do.
Under 20 carbs a day is basic old-school Atkins, which is what Keto was adapted from. There are vast numbers of old school Atkins cookbooks.
posted by DarlingBri at 11:44 AM on October 3, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by DarlingBri at 11:44 AM on October 3, 2018 [4 favorites]
I also came to recommend the keto subReddits. I ate keto for years within your restrictions and didn't have a problem with it at all. Most of my protein came from poultry, seafood, eggs, nuts, and cheese and I ate a lot of veggies. I got lots of ideas from the boards and reading about what others were making. I also liked some of the recipe ideas from I Breathe, I'm Hungry.
posted by quince at 12:32 PM on October 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by quince at 12:32 PM on October 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
Under 20 carbs a day is basic old-school Atkins, which is what Keto was adapted from. There are vast numbers of old school Atkins cookbooks.
Seconded. This phase of Atkins is called "induction" (aka the first phase before you start adding back in more carbs) and you'll find a lot of search results for recipes using that term.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 1:20 PM on October 3, 2018 [3 favorites]
Seconded. This phase of Atkins is called "induction" (aka the first phase before you start adding back in more carbs) and you'll find a lot of search results for recipes using that term.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 1:20 PM on October 3, 2018 [3 favorites]
Best answer: I made this mole verde with chicken yesterday. I did not use the Knorr bouillon, but boiled my chicken and used the stock from that (you actually need very little, and can use water instead). I saved the rest of my chicken stock in containers for a future use.
It uses toasted pumpkin and sesame seeds to thicken the broth, and tomatillos, jalapenos (or serranos), spinach, and cilantro to flavor it. I omitted the masa harina. I did add some dried oregano, and roasted my peppers, adding 3 fresh poblanos, 2 jalapenos, and 2 serranos, roasted at 425 F for 20-25 minutes, then left in a bowl with a plate on top until cool. Then I took the peel off the peppers, leaving the seeds in the hot peppers, because I like spicy food. I put about 5 cloves of garlic and a small onion in with my seed puree, so you can adjust that however you like.
I also added some baby Romaine leaves to the green mix, because I've seen recipes that include them, and I had a package of Romaine mix in the fridge. I pulsed the roasted peppers and tomatillos, then added fresh spinach, then pureed some more, then more spinach and some Romaine and cilantro. I used dried oregano because I don't have Mexican oregano, and added small amount of fresh mint leaves, because I don't have epazote.
I set the cooked chicken on a sheet tray and allowed it to cool. While the verde sauce was bubbling away, I stripped the meat, and used that in bowls with the sauce. I also used a red beans and rice mix, ymmv as to whether that is safe for you, but you could use plain black or red beans to fill out your bowl.
A squeeze of lime and a check for salt at the end helps a lot. I had an avocado so I put some avocado chunks on top of my bowl o' food. It's very tasty! Think chicken is okay for you, right? And nuts and seeds and veg? Hope this gives you some inspiration and ideas.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 2:04 PM on October 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
It uses toasted pumpkin and sesame seeds to thicken the broth, and tomatillos, jalapenos (or serranos), spinach, and cilantro to flavor it. I omitted the masa harina. I did add some dried oregano, and roasted my peppers, adding 3 fresh poblanos, 2 jalapenos, and 2 serranos, roasted at 425 F for 20-25 minutes, then left in a bowl with a plate on top until cool. Then I took the peel off the peppers, leaving the seeds in the hot peppers, because I like spicy food. I put about 5 cloves of garlic and a small onion in with my seed puree, so you can adjust that however you like.
I also added some baby Romaine leaves to the green mix, because I've seen recipes that include them, and I had a package of Romaine mix in the fridge. I pulsed the roasted peppers and tomatillos, then added fresh spinach, then pureed some more, then more spinach and some Romaine and cilantro. I used dried oregano because I don't have Mexican oregano, and added small amount of fresh mint leaves, because I don't have epazote.
I set the cooked chicken on a sheet tray and allowed it to cool. While the verde sauce was bubbling away, I stripped the meat, and used that in bowls with the sauce. I also used a red beans and rice mix, ymmv as to whether that is safe for you, but you could use plain black or red beans to fill out your bowl.
A squeeze of lime and a check for salt at the end helps a lot. I had an avocado so I put some avocado chunks on top of my bowl o' food. It's very tasty! Think chicken is okay for you, right? And nuts and seeds and veg? Hope this gives you some inspiration and ideas.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 2:04 PM on October 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Ruled.me is my favorite recipe source, especially for side dishes. The mains are meat-heavy (because keto) but plenty of the beef/pork items could be swapped out for whole or ground chicken, duck, or turkey. They give nutritional (including net carbs) breakdowns for whole recipe and per serving, which is useful.
Some people get very into making fat bombs as meal replacements or snacks, but I've never really had the space to try making them until recently. They seem very convenient and adaptable to personal tastes.
Stuff I always keep on hand:
Snacking: almonds, olives, pepperoni, meat sticks (the turkey ones from Aldi), pickles of various kinds, spicy pork rinds (Aldi again), celery, sour cream, cream cheese, hard-boiled eggs, cheeses of every sort.
Breakfast: coffee and heavy cream. I'm not usually hungry at breakfast, but if I am, I'll either have a snack of a few different things from the list above, leftovers, or make a simple chia pudding.
Lunch: basically a salad every day. Fresh greens, meat/chicken salad/egg salad, cheese, low-carb vegetables, avocado, low-carb dressing. Some days I don't eat lunch because keto suppresses my appetite.
Dinner: Usually a casserole, stir-fry, "pasta" or noodle soup/pho using shirataki/konjac noodles (I do boil twice and rinse twice). I also do a lot of pre-cooking for the meats I use during the week, like doing a pot full of poached chicken for eating by itself or on salads or in casseroles. Spices do need a bit of an eye (garlic onion powder, for example, are both carby). Freezer is always stocked with bags of frozen cauliflower and broccoli. Thankfully you can get premade cauliflower "rice" a lot more easily these days, which makes stir-fries and curries that much easier to serve. I eat a fair amount of tofu when I get a little bored of Meats, and Trader Joe's Beefless Ground Beef has (I think) 3 net carbs per serving, and because it contains no gristle, I almost prefer it to actual beef. Soups are also a nice change of pace; broccoli cheddar, egg drop
Sweets: strawberries, blueberries, watermelon (but not every day). Sugarfree jello, into which I sometimes whisk heavy cream right before it starts to set. Homemade custards, puddings, and chia puddings. Almonds coated in cocoa and sugar-free sweetener. Almond biscotti.
posted by notquitemaryann at 2:26 PM on October 3, 2018 [2 favorites]
Some people get very into making fat bombs as meal replacements or snacks, but I've never really had the space to try making them until recently. They seem very convenient and adaptable to personal tastes.
Stuff I always keep on hand:
Snacking: almonds, olives, pepperoni, meat sticks (the turkey ones from Aldi), pickles of various kinds, spicy pork rinds (Aldi again), celery, sour cream, cream cheese, hard-boiled eggs, cheeses of every sort.
Breakfast: coffee and heavy cream. I'm not usually hungry at breakfast, but if I am, I'll either have a snack of a few different things from the list above, leftovers, or make a simple chia pudding.
Lunch: basically a salad every day. Fresh greens, meat/chicken salad/egg salad, cheese, low-carb vegetables, avocado, low-carb dressing. Some days I don't eat lunch because keto suppresses my appetite.
Dinner: Usually a casserole, stir-fry, "pasta" or noodle soup/pho using shirataki/konjac noodles (I do boil twice and rinse twice). I also do a lot of pre-cooking for the meats I use during the week, like doing a pot full of poached chicken for eating by itself or on salads or in casseroles. Spices do need a bit of an eye (garlic onion powder, for example, are both carby). Freezer is always stocked with bags of frozen cauliflower and broccoli. Thankfully you can get premade cauliflower "rice" a lot more easily these days, which makes stir-fries and curries that much easier to serve. I eat a fair amount of tofu when I get a little bored of Meats, and Trader Joe's Beefless Ground Beef has (I think) 3 net carbs per serving, and because it contains no gristle, I almost prefer it to actual beef. Soups are also a nice change of pace; broccoli cheddar, egg drop
Sweets: strawberries, blueberries, watermelon (but not every day). Sugarfree jello, into which I sometimes whisk heavy cream right before it starts to set. Homemade custards, puddings, and chia puddings. Almonds coated in cocoa and sugar-free sweetener. Almond biscotti.
posted by notquitemaryann at 2:26 PM on October 3, 2018 [2 favorites]
scratch that, TJ's beefless beef isn't gluten free. But their soy chorizo is!
posted by notquitemaryann at 2:30 PM on October 3, 2018
posted by notquitemaryann at 2:30 PM on October 3, 2018
The website Two Sleevers has a great selection of keto recipes - and the recipe index lets you filter by multiple categories like gluten-free, vegetarian, or chicken.
posted by Jaclyn at 3:33 PM on October 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Jaclyn at 3:33 PM on October 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
Being on the Keto diet without eating meat or gluten means... you'll be eating salads with lots of eggs and cheese. And nuts, if you can eat nuts. I would be looking at the induction Atkins recipes and substitute eggs and fish for meat. This is going to be a really hard diet, because on Atkins you should be eating a lot of fat for energy. Usually, that's in the meat. Maybe make some rich dressings with lots of olive oil or mayo?
posted by xammerboy at 8:59 PM on October 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by xammerboy at 8:59 PM on October 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by heigh-hothederryo at 11:35 AM on October 3, 2018 [2 favorites]