SSBB Muffins (Succulent Sausage Bacon Brussels Muffins)

Excellent grab-n-go food. I like making things that are simple for portion control. Doesn’t hurt that they taste amazing!

Succulent Sausage Bacon Brussels Muffins

Ingredients

• 24oz frozen brussels sprouts
• 12 slices thick cut bacon
• 4 oz mayonnaise
• 2 tsp hidden valley ranch dry dips mix
• 8 fully cooked turkey sausage links
• 6 servings all whites 100% liquid egg whites, or 6 egg whites
• 4 oz sour cream
• 6 oz shredded cheddar jack

Directions

1. Dice bacon into small pieces and fry up to make bacon bits, remove from grease and then dice up the sausage links and fry until crispy. Grease muffin tins (18) and divide the bacon and sausage evenly between the 18 muffin cups.
2. Cook Brussels sprouts according to package then slice into quarters and divide evenly over the muffin tins on top of the sausage and bacon, approximately 3 brussels in each cup.
3. Combine the egg whites, mayo, sour cream and ranch seasoning, blending really well then stir in cheese. Top each cup with the cheese/egg mixture, dividing as evenly as possible over the top of each of the 18 muffin cups then push the ingredients down to pack them slightly. Place in a 375 degree oven for 25 minutes until golden brown.

Makes 18 muffins 3.03 net carbs per muffin, 2.22 coming from veggies.

Loaded Baked Broccoli

This recipe was a huge success and an enormous hit with everyone! I think it may be my new favorite food. So tasty.

Ingredients

• 36 oz frozen chopped broccoli
• 10 oz real mayonnaise
• 6 oz sour cream
• 12 slices thick cut Maple bacon
• 12 oz shredded colby & monterey jack cheese, divided into 8 oz & 4 oz
• 4 servings all whites 100% liquid egg whites, or 4 egg whites whisked until no more strings remain at all.
• 18 oz onions, 3 med/small onions

Directions

1. Cook broccoli in a deep pan, with water added only up to about halfway through the broccoli until tender about 10 minutes and drain. Mix Mayo, sour cream, egg whites, and cracked black pepper until thoroughly blended, pour over broccoli and add most of the cheese and mix really well. Pour into a casserole dish 9×13″ that is sprayed with cooking spray and spread out evenly. Top with addition 4 oz of cheese and bake in a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes.
2. While the broccoli is baking, Dice bacon and fry until crispy, remove from grease and set aside. Dice onions and cook in the leftover bacon grease until tender, remove from pan, set aside.
3. After casserole is done baking, top evenly with the bacon and onions.

Makes 12 servings, 5.98 net carbs per serving with 4.83 coming from veggies. To reduce the amount of net carbs in this recipe you can reduce the amount of onions used, but I love the flavor of the caramelized onions on this dish.

Cheesy Cauliflower Risotto

Ingredients

• 24 oz frozen cauliflower
• 2 oz cream cheese
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 cup shaved parmesan cheese
• 1 cup shredded cheese (such as a colby jack or cheddar jack combo)
• 2 Tbsp heavy cream
• 4 Tbsp butter
• Fresh cracked black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Place cauliflower in a pan, add water just until 1/2 way up the veggies, cover and boil until very tender, drain.
2. In mixer bowl of a stand mixer (or large bowl for use with hand mixer) put the butter, cream cheese and heavy cream then add the drained cauliflower and mix very well, leaving it chunky. Add the cheeses and spices and continue to mix until cheese is melted and creamy. This won’t be super smooth and it shouldn’t be. It’s not a mash, you want chunks.

This recipe makes 6 good sized servings with 5.71 net carbs per serving, 4 of those are veggie net carbs.

Eggplant Lasagna Casserole

I wrote this recipe 3 years ago and do not have a photo right now, but I plan on making this again and will photograph it at that time, but until then… here ya go! It’s an awesome dish.

The Ingredients:

3 med. Eggplants, cubed (36 oz)

1/2 lg. Onion, diced (6.7 oz)

3 Tbsp Olive Oil

15 oz Ricotta cheese

2 lg. Eggs

1/2 c. Parmesan, grated

1 tsp Basil, dried

1 tsp Oregano, dried

1 tsp Garlic Powder

16 oz. Mozzarella, shredded, I used the Kraft Mozzarella with a touch of Philly

2 jars Mezzetta Homestyle Marinara sauce

What to do:

After cubing the eggplants, place in a large bowl and cover with salt and water to leech the bitterness from them, set this aside and let soak.

In a high sided saute pan, heat olive oil over med. to med-high heat, add onions, season with a little salt and saute for about 5 minutes until tender. Add the marinara sauce and stir well to combine, set aside.

Combine Ricotta, eggs, Parmesan, basil, oregano, and garlic powder until well combined.

Drain and rinse Eggplant cubes.

In a very large baking dish, place 1/3 of the sauce in the bottom of the dish, top with 1/2 of the eggplant cubes.  Spread the ricotta mixture evenly over eggplant and top with another 1/3 of the sauce. Spread the second half of the eggplant cubes over the sauce and ricotta and then top that with the last of the sauce.

Cover entire dish with mozzarella, spreading evenly and cover with foil.

Bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 45 minutes, uncover and bake for another 15 until cheese is nicely browned.

Makes 14 servings

If you have your own home-made tomato sauce, just adjust the nutrition info provided to reflect the numbers for your sauce. This made more than I could fit into any one casserole dish that I own, so I had to split this into 2 casserole dishes when I made it. This does freeze well.

Nutritional Information:

Sodium: 716 mg     Fat: 20.68 g     Total Carbs: 11.52 g     Fiber: 3.5 g                        Net Carbs: 8.02 g     Veggie Net Carbs: 6.01 g     Protein: 14.63g     Calories: 302

Ratios:     Carbs: 15%     Fat: 62%     Protein: 23%

Asian Cabbage Soup

The Ingredients:

1 small-med head of Cabbage, sliced or chopped (23.7 oz)

4 stalks Celery, diced (7.2 oz)

2 med. Zucchini, diced (14 oz)

4 clumps of Oyster Mushrooms, woody stems removed (7.6 oz)

7 Green Onions/Scallions, sliced (2.8 oz)

10 c. Chicken Stock

2 Tbsp Sesame Oil

1 tsp Minced Garlic

1 tsp. Ground ginger Paste

1 Tbsp Soy Sauce

What to Do:

Bring Chicken Stock, garlic, ginger, sesame oil to a boil over high heat in a large pot.

Add celery, cover, reduce heat to med-high and cook for about 4 minutes.

Add Zucchini and mushrooms, cover, return to boil and cook for 2 minutes.

Add Cabbage and scallions, cover, return to boil and cook for 10-15 minutes.

Remove from heat, stir in soy sauce and serve.

Makes 10 servings.

Nutritional Information:

Sodium: 638 mg      Fat: 3.02 g     Total Carbs: 8.88 g     Fiber: 3.1 g     NetCarbs: 5.78 g     Veggie Net carbs: 4.6 g     Protein: 6.55 g     Calories: 81

 

Turnip Au Gratin

The Ingredients:

3-4 Turnips (25 oz) tops &bottoms cut off, peeled and sliced thinly

3.2 oz Shiitake Mushrooms, stems removed, sliced

6 oz. sweet Onions, sliced, about 1/2 a large onion

3/4 c. Heavy Whipping Cream

1 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp. White Pepper

1/4 tsp. Nutmeg

6 Tbsp Butter

4 Tbsp Cream Cheese, softened

8 oz. Le Gruyère cheese, shredded

8 oz. Sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded

What to Do:

Melt butter in decent sized pan over medium heat. Add onions, salt, pepper and nutmeg and saute for about 10 minutes until very soft. Add the mushrooms and cook for about another 5 minutes until they are tender.

Add cream cheese to mushrooms and onions and stir to combine. Add cream and stir well, remove from heat.

Mix both cheeses together in a large bowl until well mixed.

Place sliced turnips in a 9X13″ casserole dish distributing as evenly as possible over bottom of dish, evenly cover with 1/2 of the cheeses.

Spread the mushroom and onion mixture as evenly as possible over the top of the turnips and cheese and top that with the remaining cheese, spreading it as evenly as possible again.

Cover the casserole dish with foil, bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 30 minutes, then remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes until cheese is nicely browned.

Makes 10 servings

This reheats really well, but gets oily.

Nutritional information:

Sodium: 531 mg     Fat: 29.92 g     Total Carbs: 7.38 g     Fiber: 1.6 g                         Net Carbs: 5.78 g     Veggie Net Carbs: 4.62 g     Protein: 13.99 g     Calories: 354

Ratios:     Carbs: 8%     Fat: 76%     Protein: 16%

Zucchini Fritters

The Ingredients:

14 oz. Zucchini, shredded (2 medium)

2 Eggs, large, whisked very well

2 Tbsp. Coconut Flour

1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1/4 tsp. White Pepper

1/2 tsp. Salt

4 Tbsp. Butter for frying

What To Do:

Combine all ingredients, except butter, set batter aside.

Melt butter in non stick saute pan over medium to med-high heat, drop batter by spoonful into hot pan and cook for about 3-4 minutes per side.

Makes 4 servings/8 patties, 2 per serving.

Nutritional Information:     Sodium: 435 mg     Fat: 14.668 g     Total Carbs: 5.79 g Fiber: 2.4 g     Net Carbs: 3.39 g     Veggie Net Carbs: 2.23 g     Protein: 4.98 g     Calories: 170

Ratios:     Carbs: 13%     Fat: 78%     Protein: 9%

Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

Salad Ingredients:

1 oz. Romaine lettuce

1 oz. Spinach leaves, fresh

1 oz. sliced Red Onion

1/2 oz. Feta, crumbled

1 1/2 oz. Strawberries, sliced

1/2 oz. Almonds, sliced

1 1/2 oz. sliced Chicken Breast

Poppy Seed Dressing Ingredients:

8 oz. Mayonnaise

8 oz. Almond Milk, unsweetened, original

1/4 c. Splenda, granulated

2 Tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tbsp. Poppy Seeds

Mix all dressing ingredients and blend well, I use a shaker.

Based on 8 servings of dressing here are the stats for the dressing alone:

Sodium: 199mg     Fat: 20.8g      Fiber: 0.2g      Net Carbs: 0.97     Protein: 0.32g     Calories: 194

Ratios: Carbohydrate: 3%     Fat: 96%     Protein: 1%

For the salad with 1 serving of dressing these are the numbers using the measurements I posted for the salad ingredients:

Sodium: 410 mg     Fat: 31.88g     Fiber: 4.4g     Net Carbs: 8.25g     VeggieNetCarbs:  3.23g     Protein: 16.86g      Calories: 398

Ratios: Carbohydrate: 13%    Fat:  72%   Protein: 15%

Cauliflower & Ham Au Gratin

The Ingredients:

19 oz Ham, chopped or cubed

4 links Bistro Sensations Spinach & Mozzarella Chicken Sausages

5.8 oz. Leeks (3 med) tops & bottoms trimmed, halved & thinly sliced and rinsed

4 cloves Garlic, Pressed

40 oz. Cauliflower (about 1 1/2 heads) chopped

8 oz. Velveeta, cubed

8 oz. Mozzarella, shredded

4 Tbsp. Butter

1 c. Heavy Whipping cream

pepper to taste

What to do:

Cook cauliflower until soft, drain, mash coarsely and set aside.

Melt butter in large pot over med to med-high heat, add leeks and pressed garlic, saute until slightly softened about 3 minutes, add ham and sausage and stir until heated through.

Stir in Velveeta cubes, mozzarella and heavy cream and stir until melted and creamy. Add cauliflower to pot and combine well.

Pour into a sprayed 9 x 13″ casserole pan and bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes until bubbly and slightly browned.

Makes 12 servings and freezes well.

Nutritional info per serving:

Sodium: 1117mg     Fat: 21.82g     Fiber: 3g     Net Carbs: 8.54g          VeggieNetCarbs: 4.64g     Protein: 23.13g     Calories: 334

Ratios: Carbohydrates: 14%     Fat: 59%     Protein: 27%

For anyone with an aversion to Velveeta or just cannot take that sodium amount, substitute it with a cheese of your choice.  For example, and I am going to try this next, use 4 ounces cream cheese with 4 ounces of creamy Havarti instead of Velveeta to get that wonderful creaminess that make this dish so yummy.

Green Beans with Bacon & Walnuts

The Ingredients:

8 oz. bag of French Green/String Beans, fresh (there was 8.9 oz in my bag)

4 sliced Bacon, cut into 1/2″ pieces

1 oz. chopped Walnuts

What to Do:

Bring 1 c. water to boil in a med pot add pinch of salt.

Cut beans into thirds and add to boiling water, cover and cook 6 minutes, drain well.

Fry bacon until crisp over med to med-high heat, stir in drained beans and walnuts and toss well to coat.

Makes 3 servings

Sodium: 297mg     Fat: 22.01g     Fiber: 3.5g     Net Carbs: 4.02g          VeggieNetCarbs: 3.13g     Protein: 7.03g     Calories: 248

Ratios:  Carbohydrate: 12%     Fat: 80%     Protein: 8%