Tag: Paleo

Frozen Chocolate Kisses – Low Carb

Frozen Chocolate Kisses
These Low Carb Frozen Chocolate Kisses taste just like Hershey’s Kisses, except they are frozen. Photo Credit: jos delightfultastebuds.com

Frozen Chocolate Kisses

One would think that I’m addicted to au chocolat based on my previous posts, here, here, and here! But really, I’m more of a lemon lover, as you can see here, here, and here! Still, that doesn’t mean I don’t love something as tasty as low carb frozen chocolate kisses.

Honestly, when I was a kid, there was always room for a some chocolate truffles and milk chocolate bars! My favorites? Fannie Farmer truffles, and Hershey’s. Anything Hershey’s!

Now for special occasions, like when I was sick, I always loved truffles. Not the pig snorting type. No, I’m talking chocolate. The milkier the better!

So, when I was down with the flu -Most definitely a special occasion for treats – I’d always ask Mom for a box of milk chocolate truffles from Fannie Farmer. Then, I would hide them in my sock drawer where nobody else would find them. There was no way anybody going to get my truffles!! I would then savor each one until I declared myself better. Yes, I had total control over my truffles. They were all mine!

Picture of Fanny Farmer Candy Box
Fanny Farmer Truffles were my special treat!

Chocolate truffles-the perfect medicine! My own ‘Spoon Full of Sugar’!

A Chocolate Lover’s Dream Come True For A Kid:

Hershey’s chocolate. I mean, who didn’t love Hershey’s chocolate  when I grew up!

Well, back in the 70’s my parents packed us all up, like sardines, into our station wagon, for a trip to the Florida sunshine.  It was spring break and we were getting out of the cold, like many a Bostonian did.

Yup, six of us in a station wagon!

Ok, that part is not part of the dream come true!

No. The most fun part of the trip was our visit to the Hershey’s Chocolate factory in Hershey Pennsylvania, where they chose our family to be special taste testers.

My job? To be a ‘Secret Chocolate Agent’ for the day. It was like being in the Willy Wonka Factory!

My mission-and you better believe that I accepted it- was to eat chocolate, drink chocolate, and basically live by chocolate for the entire afternoon. Oh,  and then answer a series of questions for some kind of secret chocolate research they were doing!

Who knows what the questions were, and who cared, really. I was eating and breathing Hershey’s Chocolate like a Diva!

Could it be that I helped shape the world of Hershey’s for generations to come? Of course I’d like to believe, that in the name of chocolate, I was helping all of humankind. At least those humans who ate chocolate.

So, what was my favorite Hershey’s chocolate ? The Hershey Kiss.

I loved the way they fit perfectly on the roof of your mouth, and slowly turned into that silky, sweet, chocolatey goo. I can still remember that sweet taste and texture!

My Healthy Version Of Frozen Chocolate Kisses

If you’re looking to recreate those halcyon days of eating Hershey’s kisses, but you want a healthier version, you’ve stopped at the right place. Because after popping one of my frozen Frozen Chocolate Kisses into your mouth you too will swear that you’ve just eaten a Hershey Kiss…except mine is just a little bit colder!

And if you’ve never tried a Hershey Kiss, trust me, you won’t have to. This healthy version will do the trick.

So go ahead and try my Low Carb Frozen Chocolate Kisses. But I dare you to try and eat just one.

Alas, let’s start baking!

Frozen Chocolate Kisses - Low Carb
 
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A low carb creamy chocolate frozen treat that melts in your mouth, and tastes just like a Hershey's Kiss!
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Primal
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • Ingredients:
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 7 Tbsp coconut milk
  • 6 gr (approx 1 Tbsp) whey protein powder whey protein powder
  • 10 grams (approx 2 tbsp) unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 Tbsp eryhtritol (or 2 packets Splenda or to taste, and omit the powdered stevia) eryhtritol
  • ¼ tsp powdered stevia powdered stevia
  • pinch of ground sea salt
  • 4 tsp coconut oil
Instructions
  1. Whisk an egg yolk and 1 Tbsp of coconut milk in a small dish.
  2. In another deep small bowl mix 5 or 6 gr of a whey powder, 8 grams of cocoa powder, stevia and splenda mix or whatever you happen to use, and a pinch of finely ground sea salt. whisk that all up!
  3. Then, with a rubber spatula mix the egg yolk mixture into the cocoa mixture and blend it all up. It's hard not to lick the spoon and just eat that. But stop yourself so you can indulge in the real goodness that is to come!!
  4. Then, in a small saucepan heat 6 tbsp of coconut milk until just simmering and small bubbles appear on the sides.
  5. Remove from stove and begin tempering the chocolate with the milk by adding 1 tbsp of the milk into the cocoa mixture and mixing vigorously as you do that, combining it all. Then continue to do this tbsp by tbsp, until it's all combined.
  6. Then, with the rubber spatula transfer that all back into the saucepan.
  7. Now here is where you need to be super vigilant! Reduce heat to low and put saucepan back on stove. But making sure to stir stir stir that cocoa mixture. It will seem like nothing is happening. But in 30 seconds to 1 minute it will start to thicken and you will see streaks of the pan on the bottom.
  8. Make sure to continue moving that spatula around the corners of the pan. At the 1 minute mark or slightly less you will see small curds start to form. Immediately lift the pan 4-6 inches off the stove top, but continue stirring the mixture around the pan, getting in all areas as it thickens up.
  9. It may start looking dry on the edges and you don't want this, so lift the pan higher and make sure that the flame is low.
  10. Once those curds start forming at the beginning, when you first start to lift the pan off the stovetop, you only need to do that mixing for about 1.5 minutes. I used a timer at the beginning , but eventually you will know when to stop.
  11. So now, take the pan off the stove and place on counter. Add in the coconut oil or butter, only adding in TWO tsp at a time, and mix it all in before adding in the next 2 tsp. It will be nice and shiny and glossy. Take a whiff. It will smell like a Hershey Kiss.
  12. Put it into a small tupperware, or Tbsp rubber kiss shaped ice cube molds (I didn't have any, and metal molds will work just fine t00), and put it in the freezer for 20 minutes or longer, depending on how hard you want your chocolate gelato. It will be very soft gelato at the 20 minute mark. I actually let it sit in there until it's hard, then let it soften a bit, and eat it like fudge. It literally melts in your mouth, like how Hershey Kisses do, or did, when we were kids.
Notes
You can also put this pudding into the baked nut crust, and put it into the freezer for about 20 minutes, for a frozen tart.
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 2 Calories: 237.5 Fat: 23 Carbohydrates: 3.5 Fiber: 1 Protein: 6

 

Low Carb Chocolate Protein Pudding

Chocolate pudding
Warm and creamy protein pudding, before being turned into ‘gelato’

Hello Your Fit Day Friends!

I’ve always loved rich creamy pudding type foods. They don’t even have to be deserts. I’ll make just about anything into a thick gloppy mush and eat it! This one just happens to a be creamy, sweet and chocolatey low carb chocolate protein pudding! And each serving has 6 grams of  protein. Great for a little afternoon protein boost.

I came up with this recipe because I had some extra room in the day for my fat and protein macros, and I was experimenting with making pudding. So I kind of just threw things together following a couple different recipes for pudding and lemon curd.

What’s not to like about a warm and creamy chocolate pudding. And what’s not to like about your pudding going a.k.a. as gelato, chocolate sauce, or a ganache for your cakes and muffins!

Well, this Chocolate Protein Pudding can be all that. It just depends on what type of self control you have the moment it comes off the stove!

And I’m not going to lie! I had to maintain a lot of self control not to spoon all of this goodness into my mouth instead of those little glass dishes. It was a challenge, let me tell you.

As I was pouring the pudding into the dishes I just happened to very intently swiped my finger through the stream of chocolate and touch the tip of my tongue with it, and suddenly my olfactory memories transported me back to my mother’s kitchen, baking chocolate chip cookies, and dissolving Hershey Kisses in my mouth.

And that’s exactly what this pudding tastes like (to me, anyway!). A bowl of melted Hershey Kisses.

And if you love Hershey Kisses you will definitely become addicted to this pudding. I’m not even a chocolate lover and I’m hooked!

It’s super quick and easy to make, and takes all of about 6 minutes from prep to fridge. (Of course you then have to wait for the pudding to firm up in the fridge!)

So go ahead and whip some of this goodness up. But I’m warning you now, you may not be able to wait the 20-30 minutes for it to firm up! Let me know how far you got…. 🙂

Alas, let’s get baking!

chocolate pudding in two glass jars

Chocolate Protein Pudding
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Whisk an egg yolk and 1 Tbsp of coconut milk in a small dish.
  2. In another deep small bowl mix the 5 or 6 gr of a whey powder (about a tbsp), 8-10 grams of cocoa powder( about 2 tbsp), the stevia and erythritol mix ( or whatever sweetener pleases your fancy), a pinch of salt together. Whisk that all up!
  3. Then, with a rubber spatula, mix the egg yolk mixture into the cocoa mixture and blend it all up. It's hard not to lick the spoon and just eat that. But stop yourself so you can indulge in the real goodness that is to come!! If it's not sweet enough then sweeten to taste.
  4. Then, in a small saucepan heat 6 tbsp of coconut milk until just simmering and small bubbles appear on the sides.
  5. Remove from stove and begin tempering the chocolate with the milk by adding 1 tbsp of the milk into the cocoa mixture and mixing vigorously as you do that, combining it all, and then continue to do this tbsp by tbsp until it's all combined.
  6. Then, with the rubber spatula transfer that all back into the saucepan.
  7. Now here is where you need to be super vigilant! Reduce heat to low and put saucepan back on stove. But making sure to stir stir stir that cocoa mixture. It will seem like nothing is happening. But in 30 seconds to 1 minute it will start to thicken and you will see streaks of the pan on the bottom.
  8. Make sure to continue moving that spatula around the corners of the pan. At this 1 minute mark or slightly less you will see small curds start to form. Immediately lift the pan 4-6 inches off the stove top, but continue stirring the mixture around the pan getting in all areas as it thickens up.
  9. It may start looking dry on the edges and you don't want this, so lift the pan higher and make sure that the flame is low.
  10. Once those curds start forming at the beginning, when you first start to lift the pan off the stovetop, you only need to do that mixing for about 1.5 minutes. I used a timer at the beginning , but eventually you will know when to stop.
  11. So now, take the pan off the stove and place on counter. Add in 4 tsp of coconut oil or butter, TWO tsp at a time, and mix it all in before adding in the next 2 tsp. It will be nice and shiny and glossy. Take a whiff and sweeten to taste if necessary. It will smell and taste like a Hershey Kiss.
  12. Divide evenly into 2 small shallow dishes
  13. Place in refrigerator for 20-30 minutes or desired consistency is reached. I don't put plastic on top of the pudding, but if you care about a film that may form you may do so to prevent it.
  14. Or, eat warm from the dish or serve on top of some of my other delicious treats!
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 2 Calories: 237.5 Fat: 23 Carbohydrates: 3.5 Fiber: 1 Protein: 6

Gluten-Free Rice Flour Pumpkin Skillet Biscuits

Crisp on the outside...sweet and creamy like porridge on the inside.
Crisp on the outside…sweet and creamy on the inside.

Hello Your Fit Day Friends!

I want to let you in on a secret. Carbs are not evil. Really. They’re not. And neither are my Gluten-free Rice Flour Pumpkin Skillet Biscuits. Trust me on this one! It’s more about which carbs you choose, how you cycle them into your diet, and how to make them work for you.

If you haven’t read my last post, where I talk about why I’m using the Carbnite® Solution Plan, stop and click here first. That should explain it all. Well, a lot anyway.

Now, I’m all about helping you stay lean and fit, so some of the best times to indulge in my starchy treats would be:

  1. After a weight training session, preferably in the evening.
  2. When you’re on a Low Carb High Fat ‘diet’, where a re-feed of starches will help boost your metabolism. (Low Carb diets are typically low calorie, due to the satiating effects of fat. You are eating more fat, aren’t you?!!)
  3. Anytime,  because you really don’t care about all this carb timing stuff; you’re here mostly for the yummy gluten-free and sugar-free recipes, high carb or low carb; and because you want to impress someone with your gluten-free, sugar-free baking skills instead of serving them bricks. I know, I’ve had my share of them too!

So, I’ve decided to travel outside the box of my post-workout-world staples of straight-up sweet potatoes and kabocha squash, and get creative in the kitchen. And I’ll be delivering them to you one bite at a time, all gluten-free and sugar-free!

First, I thought I’d give my hand a try at making some biscuits. You know, those light, fluffy, flaky shortcakes, that catapult you into a state of carb-coma euphoria.

But when I was searching the web for “gluten free rice flour biscuits” I hit a stumbling block: I could only find super high-fat and sugar laden recipes, most of which included slow carb flours from grains and legumes. Not exactly what we’re looking for post-workout, or for a program like Carbnite®, which you read about here.

So after some searching and tweaking of recipes, I think I came up with a pretty good gluten-free, sugar-free, low fat biscuit. Sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it?

Ah ha! But it’s not! And to prove it, below is my modified version of a skillet biscuit I found over at The Daily Diatribe. I replaced most of the fat, and all of the applesauce (fructose), with Japanese pumpkin (Kabocha squash); and I used stevia instead as the sweetener, instead of the maple syrup.

You could use any type of dense starchy winter squash if you don’t have Japanese Kabocha pumpkins. Or you could use canned pumpkin. However, I can’t vouch for the canned pumpkin because I haven’t tried it yet. But I’m sure it would work. Although, I wouldn’t add any extra water to make a mash, since canned pumpkin is already the right consistency. If you do try it please let me know how they turn out in the comments below.

Mind you my version didn’t end up exactly light and fluffy, like regular biscuits.  Instead they are a bit flatter, crispy on the outside, with a creamy and sweet, baked porridge-like texture on the inside; and very carb-coma worthy!

I also saved out two 1/4 cup portions of the batter and baked them at 400 degrees F for about 30 minutes until the tops were a deep golden brown. They save you a bit of fat and I think they are just as crunchy and creamy and delicious.

I find both ways rather addicting.

For some extra added comfort I drizzled a few swirls of my homemade lemon-blueberry compote on top…Divine! (Recipe coming soon)

Some Variations to try:

Bacon Skillet Biscuit (I have not tried this as of yet, but I imagined it to be yummy?): Cook 4 strips of bacon until crisp. Cut each slice in half, so that you have eight pieces.  Crumble each 1/2 strip.  Gently press each 1/2 crumbled strip into each 1/4 cup of scooped batter before ladling onto skillet. Cook per directions.

Blueberry Skillet Biscuit (I have tried this and it is yummy!): Wash and pat dry 8 oz of organic blueberries. Divide into eight separate one ounce servings. Dust each ounce serving with rice flour. Add one ounce of blueberries to each 1/4 cup of scooped batter. Cook per directions.

Chocolate chip variation (I have not tried this yet, but chocolate with everything, including bacon, is yummy!): Measure out eight 1 oz servings of gluten free dark chocolate chips. Add one ounce of chips to each 1/4 cup of scooped batter. Cook per directions.

Savory Chive and Herb (I have tried this with my Ultra Low Carb biscuits-recipe coming soon-and they are Yum Yummy!): For savory biscuits you can fold in some fresh chives, or your favorite blend of fresh or dried herbs, to the mixed batter. Cook per directions

I hope you like them as much as I do. Please let me know in your comments below.

And don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter, in the above right hand corner, so you don’t miss out on the fun!

Biscuits that melt in your mouth
Biscuits that melt in your mouth…drool!
Gluten Free Rice Flour Pumpkin Skillet Biscuit
 
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A sweet and savory biscuit with a hint of vanilla. Lightly cooked in coconut oil on your skillet makes for a crisp savory crust with a sweet creamy inside, similar to a thick griddle cake. You can also try baking these biscuits too.
Author:
Recipe type: Appetiser
Cuisine: Gluten Free
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 1 cup non-dairy milk (I used Whole Foods 365 Almond milk unsweetened)
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1⅓ cups white rice flour (not sweet white rice flour or brown rice flour)
  • ¾ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
  • 4 tablespoons sweet potato mash (4 tbsp baked kabocha squash* with 1-3 tbsp of water to make puree the consistency of applesauce. This is important. This will depend on the moisture content of your winter squash. You will end up with slightly more puree than 4 tbsp. I usually add it all since it's just a little bit more)
  • ¼-1 tsp liquid stevia, to taste. Start with small amount as it's very potent.
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • * You can also use winter squash such as acorn, butternut.
  • * You can also use canned pumpkin, but you don’t need to add any extra liquid to make it a puree, since it's already the right consistency.
Instructions
  1. Stir together the milk and apple cider vinegar and set aside to curdle. Begin heating a skillet on medium to allow it to get nice and hot.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.
  3. Add the oil, kabocha mash puree and vanilla to the milk and stir.(If making savory biscuits then omit vanilla and instead add your favorite spices, maybe onion powder, garlic, red pepper flakes, to flour mixture). These are still savory-sweet, if you stick to original recipe.
  4. Make a well in the center of your dry ingredients, pour in the wet ingredients, and stir together just until completely mixed.
  5. Add oil to your skillet(I just coat the pan), then scoop the batter into the skillet, using a ¼ measuring cup per biscuit. Try and shape the biscuits so they are high when you scoop them out of the measuring cup. (Actually, I whacked the pan to get them out; or you can be more civilized and use a spoon).
  6. Cook for 4 minutes, then flip. Immediately cover the skillet with it's lid (or find something to cover it with) and cook for another 4 minutes.
  7. I didn't have a top so mine were a bit flat, but they still puffed up.
  8. Remove from skillet and let cool about 5 minutes before serving.
  9. If they are not crispy for your liking, or you prefer the centers to be a bit more baked, you can put them into an oven at 350 for a few minutes to crisp them up.
  10. Best eaten warm.
Notes
You can also bake the biscuits in a pre heated 400 degree F oven for about 30 minutes, or until the tops are a deep golden brown. I kept biting into mine to see if they were done. After about 30 minutes of taste testing, and not much biscuit left, I proclaimed them to be delicious!

These freeze well in a zip lock bag. To reheat simply thaw and bake for about 5-8 minutes in a 300 degree oven or until crispy and crunchy again.


Nutrition Info for the Variations
Per Biscuit

Bacon: Fat:8.5grams; Protein: 6.5grams ; Carbs same as original

Blueberry: Carbs:29grams ; Fat and Protein same as original

Chocolate Chips(Enjoy Life Brand): Fat:13 grams ; Carbs:41grams ; Protein:5
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 8 Fat: 4 Carbohydrates: 23 Protein: 2
Crunchy on the outside, creamy on the inside!
Crunchy on the outside, creamy on the inside!

 

Low Carb Nutty Pie Crust

HI Your Fit Day Friends!

Paleo Pie Crust
This is basically a big nut cookie!

I’d been pondering a while on what would be the best low carb pie crust for my first pumpkin pie – while also being suitable for Ultra Low Carb meals, including the Carbnite Solution Diet Plan and Carb Backloading program.

Since giving up grains about 15 years ago, my Mom’s sweet, light and flaky, cinnamon-y pastry flour pie crust was no longer an option. I remember helping her in the kitchen, learning how to roll out the dough and laying the dough dipped pin over the pie plate. But the best part of pie making for me was collecting the falling waves of cut and crimped dough into my powdery hands, dousing them with cinnamon and sugar, and baking them until tender and flaky into my ‘pie crisp cookies’. They were little drops of buttery flakes that melted on my tongue like snowflakes. But my tummy, digestion and skin are so much better for giving up gluten and grains ( I do eat rice on my Carbnite!).

So my quest was to make a crust that was as alluring as a traditional one, which would also pleasing to the Paleo pallete!

To stay gluten free and low carb, coconut flour was certainly option.  But I decided I wanted to make this crust with nuts only. To bind it together I would need a fat. Yum yum, fat!

My options were butter, lard, coconut oil…and maybe some of DebbyK’s coconut butter. Well, since I don’t eat dairy butter was not really an option for this crust (but don’t let me stop your grass fed butter dipping addictions!).

And straight lard in a nut crust just didn’t seem appealing to me with pumpkin pie.

I thought coconut butter, since it’s so thick, might seize up and make the nuts harder to spread, which would result in using a lot more coconut butter – quite possibly my entire jar. And truth be told I’d rather eat DebbyK’s Coconut Butter straight out of the jar than dump most of the jar into my pie crust. I confess, I’m an addict.  Although, I do intend to try using the coconut butter in my next pie crust, so stay tuned!

Since this was my first pie crust I hopped to the web to get some inspirations and see what others, who are gluten free and primarily primal, had cooked up. Although the tart crust from Elenas Pantry was inspiring and looked tasty, I decided to exclude the egg, make it a nut medley, and throw in all the nuts I had in my fridge instead of using only almond flour.

The first crust I ended up with (without cinnamon because I forgot to add it in-oops!) sent wafts of sweet nuttiness through my small apartment. It was so hard not to eat it up right then. But I was thinking of you, so I didn’t. Which was the right thing to do, because if I had eaten that crust/cookie I’d be stuck without a crust for my Perfect Paleo Pumpkin Pie, which I hope you are making right now for Thanksgiving. And when I added the cinnamon in a second testing the crust came out even better: sweet nuttiness! That’s the one you’ll find below.

Really I could eat this pie crust alone as a giant cookie it, tastes that yummy!

As a side: I got even more creative with another crust for my tartlettes which I made from the leftover pie batter, and I added in 1/2 tsp ginger as well. Feel free to add a 1/4 tsp to the recipe below if you wish, and maybe even 1/4  tsp of nutmeg to marry the crust and pie together even more. If you do, let me know how it comes out.

Anyway, you’ll get to taste the tartlettes soon enough!

Here is my Low Carb Nutty Crust:

Nutty Pie Crust
 
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A sweet nutty crust that tastes just as good as a giant cookie!!
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: American/Paleo
Serves: 16
Ingredients
  • 1 Cup walnuts
  • ½ Cup almonds
  • ½ Cup almond flour (blanched)
  • ½ Cup hazelnut flour
  • 2 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 2 Tsp cinnamon
  • Optional:
  • ½ tsp ginger
  • ¼ tsp nutmeg
Instructions
  1. In a blender or food processor ( I only have a blender) add all pie crust ingredients.
  2. Pulse until nuts start to get crumbly. Be careful as to not allow nuts to start forming a butter.
  3. Continue to pulse until mixture forms a crumbly meal and comes together when pinched. Make sure you don't grind too much, you don't want nut nut butter! Stop to scrape down sides as needed.
  4. Scrape out into mound in center of pie pan or dish
  5. Starting from middle work the pie crust out and up sides of pie tin. This part of pie making reminds me of hand building a bowl or plate out of clay! Allow for thicker crust up the sides. Bottom can be thinner.
  6. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until it just starts to brown. Do not over bake!
  7. Remove and let completely cool before filling
  8. Pie crust can be made day ahead and stored in refrigerator
  9. To keep carb count low I slice my pies into 16ths.
  10. Feel free to make this 8 servings but account for your daily net carbs.
  11. Remember: If this crust is for a pie stay focused, think PIE, and Do Not eat this as a cookie!
Notes
This crust has been known to disguise itself as a cookie, so beware! It's highly addicting. It can also be used as a crumble for muffin and cake toppings. Be creative!!
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 1/16 Calories: 125 Fat: 12 Saturated fat: 2 Carbohydrates: 3 Sodium: 38 Fiber: 1.63 Protein: 3

Paleo Pie Crust
This is basically a big nut cookie!

 

 

 

The Healing Benefits of Coconut Butter

Coconut Butter
“Oil that is, coconut oi, liquid gold”

Hey Your Fit Day Friends!

You’re probably asking ”Hey, hey, where’s  DebbyK ?” Well, if you’re  getting my newsletters then your in the know.

What? Not subscribed? What the…? Get your crazy self over to my sidebar and click on that link so I can bug you with my my fitness and fat loss tips, and coming to you soon, my yummy recipes.

Kay now!… that’s settled…and thanks for subscribing.

So, here’s the four one one on why I’ve been out of touch with my fitness blogging and updates: For those of you who just recently subscribed I’ve had 2 major surgeries in the past year. For the first one I traveled far far away to the beautiful land of India for my hip resurfacing surgery, where they put a shiny new cobalt ball in my hip. That was last October.  The 4th to be exact. It’s been a year already, OMG!

Well, thank god I’m not in pain anymore. But I’ll tell you it’s been a big freakin deal trying to get my body feeling normal again. And after a year I”m not nearly as in shape as I was. But that’s because when I got back I had to have another freakin surgery.  It’s like I’m under construction from the bottom up. Now I know how Michelangelo felt painting the Sistine Chapel.  It’s that painstakingly slow to rehab. So don’t sweat it if you have a bad day with your program. It’s all cumulative. Just keep pluggin’ away. K?

So, first surgery’s down, and then seven months later I had to go under the knife again for shoulder surgery. That’s only five months ago. Have you had shoulder surgery? Well, don’t. It was a BIGGER pain in the A#$ than the first one!  Don’t ever get it. Because it feels like somebody’s pounding and drilling into your shoulder with a hammer, incessantly, minute after minute for at least six weeks. Not that I’ve ever had that happen to me, but if I did…hmmm…actually, come to think of it…well, you get the point.  OK! I know…not much of an excuse for not blogging.

But don’t worry, while I was gone I was thinking all about you and what would make you feel warm and fuzzy. And considering my condition ( since it’s really hard for me to do fitness videos for you like I promised-and I’m really sorry for not having kept my word- even if I were to make workout videos, seriously, if you did some of the exercises like how I’m doing them now you’d be exercising like a one winged flamingo) I thought it would be in your best interest to wait a bit longer for the kick butt workout videos. So instead, I’m going to make you some yummy stuff to eat.

Well, not actually make you dinner and desert, as in you coming over to my place and having tea and all…

Rather,  put many of my yummy healing treats and foods that have helped me keep this body happy, healthy, fit (considering) and lean for the past 30 years – not to mention during my surgeries – here on my blog. No Reservations Required!

Yummy stuff… like savory meals, and gluten free sweets, muffins, pies, cakes and butters.

Yup, you read that right….

And because I’ve been getting so many requests for DebbyK’s Coconut Butter recipes (I have many yummy flavors)  I’ve decided to share one of my addictions basic recipes with you.  My liquid gold.

Why Butter? Why Not Butter! Yum…

So while I was recovering after my shoulder surgery I began to research more about healing through nature and how our hormones play a big role in regulating our recovery. I knew that good fats, such as Omega 3’s, are vital in our body’s defense against aging and inflammation.  But just as important as Omega 3’s are saturated fats. If I wanted to give my body the best chance at a strong recovery I would need more FAT.

… Actually, more saturated fats.

Wait, I know what you’re thinking, that fat’s not good for you, and it will make you..well… fat. Or drop dead. Or both. Especially saturated fat. I’ll die of a heart attack THIS SECOND, right?!

Now that’s ridiculous. I mean our paleolithic friends ate tons of fat… in meat, nuts and seeds. And they weren’t fat.  But of course they weren’t sitting at their computers all day checking Facebook, reading blogs and munching on chips (Put those down and keep reading).

Well, that’s another blog altogether. In the meantime a good place to learn about fats, healing, and optimal health through diet is over at  Robb Wolf’s website where you can also read up on why we need more of these good fats in our diets. And while you’re there make sure to read up on the the ‘Paleo Lifestyle’.

OkeeDoKee! Back to the fats. Fats such as coconut oil, red palm oil, grass fed butter and ghee, and coconut butter-a saturated fat- are all really good for you and should be the bulk of the fats and oils you use when cooking.

So you’re probably wondering what this here coconut butter has to do with my yummy healthy recipes that I’m putting together for you. Well for one, it’s become my go-to staple fat for much of my baking. And snacking…I don’t lie.

But coconut butter is so delicious that I don’t only use it for most of my general cooking like I’d use butter, plain virgin coconut oil and red palm oil for stuff like stir fry, soups, etc. That would be like melting gold to make one nail and then  pounding it somewhere into the frame of your house.  You don’t get the real beauty of it. A waste. No Can Do.

Nope.. I eat it by the spoonful…straight from the jar. I want the full sensation of this liquid gold.

Coconut butter
This doesn’t last long in my house!

But the best is when I warm it up in a double boiler before I dip my spoon into the jar, and wait til it becomes really smooth and silky. And then, as my lips wrap around the spoon and the fat molecules explode in a crescendo of gooey goodness on my tongue, it warms my senses and brings back memories of sticking my fingers into Mom’s gigantic blue-ringed ceramic mixing bowl filled with cake batter…which makes me dip my spoon in for more.

Come to think of it maybe I am an addict.

Oh, I digress…when you make my recipe, coming up in my next blog post, you’ll know what I’m talking about. It really is like eating cake batter or vanilla frosting or even cookie dough. And there are endless other ways to melt into a blissful state while eating this treat: like putting a dollop in tea or coffee; dipping with fruit; or icing cookies, cakes and pies. OH MY!

And not only does it taste good it has many healthy and healing qualities.

Ninja of Oils

Coconut oil is the ninja of oils. Aside from tasting like heaven,  check out this laundry list of it’s super duper qualities:

Weight Loss:

Coconut oil is an MCT (medium chain triglyceride). Instead of storing it as fat you burn it as energy. It’s like eating a piece of candy that won’t stick to your thighs. How’s that for liquid gold?  It’s a super-food which will make you feel energized after eating it. So don’t be surprised if you start running sprints up and down your office hallways.

Coconut oil stimulates your metabolism, so it helps with energy levels and may help you to burn more calories each day.

Coconut oil, and it side kick the creamy butter, is a key nutrient that has helped many of my clients, including myself, to lose body fat while using the Carb Backloading  and/or The Carb Nite Solution: The Physicist’s Guide to Power Dieting (Please not that I will receive a small commission from the sales of these books).

Boost Your Immunity:

Coconut oil has been shown to boost your immunity as well as kill harmful bacteria and viruses. Flu seasons coming, so stock up!

Coconut oil has been shown to kill the Candida Albicans yeast with it’s anti fungal properties.

Healthy Skin:

Coconut oil boosts moisture and elasticity in your skin. I would even consider that an anti aging remedy. Now I’m definitely down for stocking up!

Heart Health:

Coconut oil has been shown to reduce cholesterol and heart disease.

So, Eat Up America! This is one saturated fat you don’t want to miss out on.

Click HERE to get the recipe to my Liquid Gold Creamy Coconut Butter

Enjoy, and and make it Your Fit Day with DebbyK!