One of the misconceptions about eating a low-carb, high-fat diet is that it is all meat and fat. Though fat makes up a huge portion of one’s calories, protein quantities should remain moderate on this eating plan. That is because the goal is to keep your insulin levels very low by reducing the amount of glucose that the body needs to remove from the bloodstream – and the body can turn protein into glucose should it choose to.
I don’t eat any more protein now than I have ever eaten. A few eggs at breakfast, perhaps a small portion of leftovers at lunch and 3-6 oz of meat with dinner is not high protein, it is adequate protein.
This diet is not low on veg either, should one be concerned. 2 cups of salad greens and one cup of cooked veg is 4-5 servings, 2 more than the average north american gets, and that is a pretty strict LCHF quantity. People who can tolerate more carb can eat more vegetables.
The somewhat trickier part of the LCHF diet is getting great nutrition from your veggies while still keeping your carb count low (especially very low). Lets face it, salad greens, even the dark leafy ones, are not exactly high in the nutrient category and in order to get a wide range of nutrients we all know we need to get a wide variety of veggies from across the colour spectrum.
For us, the summer garden has meant a bunch of cabbage and other cruciferous greens. Most above ground/leafy veggies are low in carbohydrate meaning they are a safe go to for a low carb lifestyle. Since I have a bunch of kale, collards and cabbage in the garden this year, they have definitely filled the side dish niche for the summer. Luckily everyone likes cauliflower and broccoli as well and they have pretty regularly been on the rotation.
What everyone doesn’t like is brussels sprouts (actually I like all food, but I’m alone in that department in our house). Steve has never liked brussels sprouts, which has never made sense to me since they are really pretty much tiny cabbages. I think it stems from improper cooking. Boil a brussels sprout and they not only stink up your house but they also taste yucky. Roast one and they turn into caramel goodness.
As we near Thanksgiving the sprouts are beginning to loom large in the grocery stores and I found a lovely bag of small ones at my last trip to Costco.
Though I didn’t roast these ones, the next best thing to make any veggie taste fab? Bacon and butter.
After a quick steam, these little sprouts were tossed into a hot pan of bacon and butter, sprinkled with a bit of seasoning and allowed to heat up and cook through. With a little extra time (the lamb was already done and resting) they would have caramelized a bit too.
Finished with a few dollops of Vital Greens organic creme fraiche, even Steve ate them.
Brussels Sprouts with Bacon
Ingredients
- 400 g brussels sprouts
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 3 Slices bacon cut into lardons (small squarish pieces)
- Salt and Pepper
- Dried thyme or other herbs as desired
- 1/4 C Creme fraiche
Instructions
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Steam brussels sprouts for 5 minutes until just tender (microwaving would work as well), cut sprouts in half
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In a heavy sauté pan melt the butter and add the bacon pieces and cook over medium heat until crispy
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Add sprouts to the pan and stir gently to coat with butter and bacon
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Season as desired with salt, pepper and dried thyme or other herbs
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Heat through or allow to caramelize if desired
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Serve with a dollop or two of creme fraiche
Recipe Notes
Parsley or sage would work well with this dish in place of, or in addition to, the thyme
Adapted from The Real Food Revolution
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