Kale/Vegetable crisps

I'm a pretty sociable person, I like going out, having a good meal, a good drink and a good time. That's why when you're on something like Pronokal it can be a little difficult fitting it - especially when you're out with people you've just met. Just such an occasion is happening tomorrow - Halloween! I LOVE Halloween but this year I'm in a new environment with new people who have asked those invited to bring food and films. I don't want to isolate myself by not eating so instead I decided to make crisps.

A vegetable that often seems to get turned into crisps is kale, I first came across the concept when reading what Jennifer Aniston ate whilst getting in shape for 'We're the Millers'. So I bought a giant bag, decided the many, many recipes I looked at were simple enough, adapted them for pronokal and off I went.


What you'll need: Kale, salt (I like rock salt best), olive oil, 1 cal olive oil spray, baking tray, aluminium paper 

• Pre-heat the oven to 250 

• Line the baking tray with foil

• Spray the foil with the olive oil spray until it's been covered - 4/5 should do at most

• Prepare the kale. I bought a ready washed bag from Tesco so all I had to do was break the leaves into bite sized pieces and if there was a big stem piece then I threw it away.

• load the kale onto the foil

• If using rock salt, crush it. Just put the salt on a chopping board or plate; take a glass and grind it until the salt is in very small pieces. 

• Put one tablespoon of olive oil on the kale and add the salt. 

• Massage the mixture together, apparently massaging the oil into the kale will take away the bitterness. 

• Stick the tray in the oven and cook for about 10 minutes. Keep a close eye on it though; depending upon your oven it could cook quicker.  

Finally, enjoy. Eat it straight away or store it in an air tight container. I'm taking this batch (what's left after my hallmates and I attacked it) to the party so I can join in the munching. 

For the others at the party, I also made beetroot and carrot crisps. Same premise though they need to be in the oven longer (about 45 mins then flip, they'll turn crispy when they cool a little and if not then back in the oven for another 20 mins)  - just slice as thinly and consistently as possible (or use a mandolin if you have one) and add a little more oil than you would with the kale. For the carrots I also added coriander and pepper as extra seasoning.

Happy Halloween!

Roast beef (medium/medium rare)

There's not much required for this recipe, no oil and no carb veggies. A roast can be very healthy - you just need to be careful of your side dishes. 

All you'll need is: one big lump of beef, salt, pepper, garlic powder, dried coriander (substitute spices to your own preference), tin foil, baking dish & one sharp knife. 

• First, line the baking dish with foil - use a lot because you're going to be covering the whole roast with it.
• Trim the fat off the roast. Not all of it as you don't want the roast to dry out but at least half or if it seems particularly lean then just use your judgement. Take the rest off when it's cooked before you eat it though.  
• Next, rub the spices all over the roast and place it in the foil fatty side up. Leave it out for a half hour or until it reaches room temp. Pre-heat the oven and switch it to a high heat (250/300).
• Cover the roast with tin foil but leave a little room at the top for steam and pop it in the oven. 
• Keep it at the high heat for 20 minutes then put it on 150/200 for about 50 minutes. Less if you want it rare & more if well done. 
• I don't have a meat thermometer so if I want to check then I just make a small incision in the middle of the roast to see how far along it is - again, this is all to personal taste so just use your judgement. 
• Carve and enjoy :)

As a side note I don't really like the meat juice, I feel that's it's mostly fat but if I'm keeping a lot of meat for a later time then I keep the juice in a plastic container with the carved meat so that it doesn't dry out or loose its flavour. Then when I want to heat up the meat I take a very little and put it with the meat that I'm heating up so it won't dry out and will retain all its meaty goodness. 

Mushroom/whatever vegetables you want soup

I’m afraid I have no pictures to accompany this recipe as my meals are more centred around meat now that I’m allowed it. Those of you on Pronokal may wonder why I made my own when they have soups available so to put it quite simply – I didn’t like them (or the chocolate cake – trust me, the chocolate cake sucks!).

This recipe is beyond simple, and requires none of your daily olive oil allowance or your B list carb veggies so you can have 1 full tablespoon/100g at your other meal and it’s really warming with winter quickly approaching – winter is coming! (Yes, I went there – whatcha gonna do?). All you need is three hundred grams of mushrooms and some powdered/dried spices of your choice. I personally like chili, dried coriander, onion and garlic.

• ·         Chop the mushrooms into slices (you can also buy pre-sliced mushrooms if you want to be even lazier ;) ), put them in a saucepan and add water till they’re a little more than covered then add your spices.
• 
  
• ·         Bring the mixture to boil for a minute or so then turn it down to a medium/low heat for 10 or so minutes. Voila! Mushroom soup with no stock but lots of flavour.
• 
  
• ·         If you’d like you can blend the mixture for a smoother texture and eat it with the melba toast so that you really can eat your crispy bread with the soup.

This could easily be done with other vegetables as well – throw some courgette into the mixture and some celery! try the same with broccoli, blend it and then add 50g of canned tomatoes to make it even thicker! Whatever it takes to make it sound more appealing to you. 

Well, since I'm clearly going to be neglecting my work for the night (which I can't afford to do - oops) I'll bore you, and myself, with the limitations of my diet and you can see how it fits into your own.

First let me say that I do not advise this diet without medical supervision! I meet with a doctor myself every few weeks and have had three blood tests to date. Doctor good/alone bad - say it with me! Moving on swiftly...

I'm on a specific ketosis diet called pronokal which is a low carbohydrate; no sugar (including fruit...and alcohol :'( not easy for a uni student); high protein diet. At the start of this diet you have protein meal replacements and vegetables but I have moved onto the next phase where I now have proper meat/eggs/fish twice a day instead of the replacements. I have replaced the replacements :P Well, at least I can amuse myself.

I am meant to have three hundred grams, at both lunch and dinner, of any of these vegetables, known as 'Group A':
Spinach
Lettuce
Gherkins
Green pepper
Beansprouts
Cauliflower
Broccoli
Courgette
Cucumber
Radishes
Celery
Brussel sprouts? I think...

and I can't remember the rest right now

'Group B' is higher in carbohydrate content so I am only allowed one hundred grams a day:
Tomatoes
Ochre
Green beans
Aubergine/eggplant
Red pepper (raw only)

and again, I can't remember the rest right now. Meh, it'll come to me later.

I like to play around with these amounts slightly as you'll see. Every day I have 1 mandatory tablespoon full of extra virgin olive oil and am also allowed a limited amount of red wine vinegar; dijon mustard; and lemon juice. Unlike other ketosis diets the olive oil is my only fat so no butter will be used in my recipes, or avocado and I love avocado :'(

If you want to learn more about pronokal this is the website - http://metodo.pronokal.com/ukn/

Until next time,
Ellie

Hello, my name is...

Hello everyone/anyone?

I'm going to start with a little bit about me as I hope I'll get the chance to learn about any others who may come across this blog.
I'm 22, have been on a ketosis diet for about 4 months, and have lost over 30 kilos now. During this time I've grown to really enjoy cooking instead of taking the lazy way out (take-aways & pasta) as I did for my BA which is when I gained the majority of my weight. This blog will primarily be dedicated to recipes that I've created/found & adapted to make suitable for a strict ketosis diet and I hope you enjoy them whether you're on a ketosis diet or not.

Thanks,
Ellie