Keto Clarity: Your Definitive Guide to the Benefits of a Low-Carb, High-Fat Diet (60 page)

Keto Skordalia (Greek Garlic Dip)
by Maria Emmerich (
mariamindbodyhealth.com
)

Author of
Keto-Adapted: Your Guide to Accelerated Weight Loss and Healthy Healing
and
The Art of Healthy Eating—Savory: Grain Free Low Carb Reinvented

Serves
: 12
Prep time
: 10 minutes
Cook time
: 40 minutes to 1 hour to roast the garlic

Note from Maria:
Years ago, my husband, Craig, and I were at a Greek restaurant called Shish on Grand Avenue in St. Paul, Minnesota. Craig had the kebabs with a fantastic garlic dip. It was full of flavor, and I decided to make it myself at home. When I looked it up, I discovered it was made with potatoes, so I decided to create a keto-friendly version with lots of healthy fats and very few carbohydrates.

Roasted garlic gives the dish a sweeter and milder garlic profile, but you can use raw garlic, too.

Ingredients

1 head garlic

¾ cup MCT oil

½ teaspoon sea salt

2 large ripe avocados, peeled, halved, and pitted

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon coconut vinegar or apple cider vinegar

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
   
2. Place the head of garlic on a baking sheet and sprinkle with a dash of MCT oil. Bake for 40 minutes to 1 hour; when the garlic is soft and squeezable, it is ready. Remove the garlic from the oven and let cool, then remove the cloves. Eight cloves will be used in this recipe; reserve the rest for later use.
   
3. Place 8 garlic cloves and the salt in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Add the avocados and puree.
   
4. Gradually add the MCT oil, lemon juice, and vinegar, rotating between the three and pureeing in between. Add the pepper and use a fork to mix briskly until very smooth.
   
5. Serve with kebabs or sliced bell peppers. The dip will keep in the refrigerator for about 1 week. Bring to room temperature several hours before serving.
   

Healthified Keto “Refried Beans”
by Maria Emmerich (
mariamindbodyhealth.com
)

Author of
Keto-Adapted: Your Guide to Accelerated Weight Loss and Healthy Healing
and
The Art of Healthy Eating—Savory: Grain Free Low Carb Reinvented

Serves
: 4
Prep time
: 10 minutes
Cook time
: 25 to 30 minutes

Note from Maria:
Refried beans are traditionally made with pinto beans, but beans are high in carbohydrates and can be counterproductive for people who want to get into ketosis. Plus, the refried beans you purchase at the grocery store can have some iffy ingredients, so it’s good to have an alternative. This “refried beans” recipe is low in starch and grain- and bean-free. I know it sounds crazy, but this dish is so good! So many people have told me that their spouses had no clue it wasn’t real refried beans.

If you’re a vegetarian, you can omit the bacon and smoke the eggplant instead for a natural bacon flavor: Peel and slice the eggplant, wrap it in tinfoil, and place it in a wood smoker for 2 hours. Then cube the eggplant and skip the stir-fry instructions, going straight to pureeing the eggplant instead.

Ingredients

1 eggplant or zucchini, peeled and cubed (about 4 cups)

4 slices bacon

1 cup chopped yellow onions

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon minced, seeded jalapeño pepper

1 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon sea salt

Pinch of cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon chopped oregano

½ cup grated queso blanco or cheddar cheese, for garnish (optional)

¼ cup minced fresh cilantro, for garnish (optional)

1. In a skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat, stir-fry the eggplant and bacon until the bacon is fried and the eggplant is very soft, about 10 minutes. Reserve the bacon fat. Transfer the eggplant and bacon to a food processor and puree until smooth.
   
2. In a large, heavy skillet, heat the reserved bacon fat over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring continuously, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, jalapeño, chili powder, cumin, salt, and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring continuously, until fragrant, about 45 seconds to 1 minute. Add the eggplant puree and the oregano, and stir to combine.
   
3. Cook, stirring continuously with a heavy wooden spoon, until the mixture forms a thick paste, about 5 to 10 minutes, adding water 1 tablespoon at a time to keep it from getting dry. Garnish with the cheese and cilantro, and serve.
   

Jimmy Moore’s Bacon-Wrapped Salmon

Serves
: 2
Prep time
: 5 to 10 minutes
Cook time
: 20 to 25 minutes

My wife, Christine, absolutely loves salmon. I usually cook it for her at least once a week. One night I decided to do something a little bit different and wrapped some bacon around the salmon before placing it in the skillet. I think she died and went to heaven when she saw this meal that she already loved become even better with bacon. It’s a fatty, yummy way to make you a ketone-burning machine!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons grass-fed butter

6 thick slices bacon (don’t get the thinner kind; it won’t work)

2 fillets wild Alaskan salmon

4 tablespoons sour cream

Garlic salt

1. In a skillet over medium heat, add the butter. While it is melting, wrap 3 slices of thick bacon around each salmon fillet, completely covering it. The bacon should hold to the salmon pretty well.
   
2. Carefully place the bacon-wrapped salmon fillets into the skillet and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, until brown and crispy. Flip the salmon and splash the hot butter up along the sides to help evenly cook the bacon and salmon.
   
3. Mix the sour cream with garlic salt to taste, divide into two equal portions, and serve with the salmon.
   

Gary the Primal Guy’s Keto Chocolate
by Gary Collins (
PrimalPowerMethod.com
)

Yield: 6 to 8 ounces
Serves
: 2 to 4
Cook time
: 15 minutes, plus 15 to 30 minutes to chill

Note from Gary:
This healthy chocolate recipe has very little sugar compared to store-bought chocolate, and it’s far more nutritious. It’s loaded with healthy fats and contains no dairy or grains at all, and it’s completely gluten-free. Of course it is primal, ketogenic, low-carb, and Paleo-approved.

Cacao butter and cacao powder, the key ingredients, are the less-refined versions of cocoa products. They can be found in most health-food stores. It may take a couple of batches of experimenting with the amounts of cacao butter and cacao powder to get your preferred flavor.

Use as small a pan as possible—the smaller the pan, the easier it is to keep the ingredients well mixed.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons coconut oil

2 heaping tablespoons cacao butter

3 tablespoons cacao powder

3 to 4 tablespoons coconut milk or almond milk (optional)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Pinch of sea salt

Stevia

1. In a skillet over very low heat, melt the coconut oil and cacao butter. Do not allow to boil; the slower they melt, the better. Once the mixture is completely melted, turn off the heat and mix in the cacao powder. Melted homemade chocolate is runnier than store-bought chocolate, but it should look dark and somewhat creamy.
   
2. Mix in the coconut milk if you want more of a milk chocolate flavor. Add the vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt, and add stevia to taste. Stir well to combine.
   
3. Allow the chocolate mixture to cool in the pan until it reaches room temperature. Once at room temperature, taste and adjust the seasoning as preferred. Stir well once more, cover, and put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or the freezer for 15 minutes, until it becomes solid. If you refrigerate it, check it every 5 or 10 minutes and mix it with a spoon two to three times until it starts to solidify, as the oils tend to separate. (This step isn’t necessary if you freeze it.)
   
4. Once the chocolate is solid, break it apart and put in a glass container. Real chocolate has a lower melting temperature than store-bought chocolate, so store it in the refrigerator.
   

Skinny Keto Pizza
by Bob Montgomery (
NotSoFastFood.com
)

Owner and operator of the Not So Fast! food truck in San Diego, California

Serves
: 4
Prep time
: 15 minutes
Cook time
: 45 minutes

Note from Bob:
When I lived in Dallas, Texas, from 2006 to 2008, I really got into bodybuilding and what I thought was healthy eating. In reality, I was on a terrible diet that led to weight gain and lethargy. My search for an alternative eventually led me to a low-carb, high-fat, ketogenic way of eating. When I started getting lean and gaining strength by eating this way, I felt fantastic, but I have to admit, I missed pizza. I found a keto-friendly recipe online that used pork rinds for the crust and cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, and Parmesan cheese for toppings. Since my body doesn’t respond well to dairy except for a little bit of grass-fed, raw milk cheese, I decided to rework the recipe to make it good for someone like me. This is by far one of my favorite recipes ever. Feel free to add more cheese if your body can handle it, and add any keto-friendly toppings—I like Applegate Farms uncured pepperoni, chicken thighs, or roasted bone marrow. Enjoy!

Ingredients

½ cup ground pork skins or rinds

¾ cup ground chicken skins

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon garlic powder

4 large brown eggs

Butter or ghee, to grease the baking sheet

½ cup marinara sauce, BBQ sauce, or other sauce

½ cup raw milk Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 335˚F.
   
2. In a medium bowl, combine the ground pork skins, ground chicken skins, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder. In a separate large bowl, beat the eggs. Stir the dry ingredients into the eggs to form pizza dough. Flatten the dough by hand or roll it out to the desired size.
   
3. Grease a baking sheet with butter or ghee, spread the pizza dough on the sheet, and bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until the crust turns golden-brown and crispy. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes.
   
4. Spread the sauce over the crust and add your toppings of choice. Return to the oven and bake until the cheese is melted, about 12 to 15 minutes. Devour.
   

Keto Beef Stroganoff
by Freda Mooncotch (
Keto-Coach.com
)

Author of
Defying Age with Food: Reclaim Your Health, Energy & Vitality!

Serves
: 4
Prep time
: 10 minutes
Cook time
: 20 to 30 minutes

Freda, whose inspiring story appeared in chapter 13, has created a nostalgic, keto-friendly recipe for those of us who grew up on Hamburger Helper. I used to cook for our family when I was a kid, and Hamburger Helper Stroganoff was a staple in our house. But since I don’t want to feed my body pasta or artificial ingredients anymore, this recipe from a bona fide ketogenic success story is perfect—it has all the taste that I love and remember without any ketone-busting ingredients.

For a more nutrient-dense version, add 3 ounces of grated, frozen grass-fed liver to the ground beef. No one will ever know!

Ingredients

1 tablespoon grass-fed butter

1 medium onion, chopped

2 to 3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 pound grass-fed ground beef

2 to 3 ounces cheddar or another hard cheese, shredded

2 tablespoons cream

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 bunches fresh spinach or other greens, to serve

1. Add the butter to a heated cast iron pan over medium-high heat. When it has melted, add the onion and garlic and cook until translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes.
   
2. Add the ground beef and cook to desired doneness, breaking up the beef as it cooks. Reduce heat to low, add the cheese, and gently melt.
   
3. Turn off the heat. Add cream until the desired texture is achieved. Salt and pepper to taste and stir well.
   
4. Serve on a bed of spinach and enjoy!
   

Jimmy Moore’s Homemade Really Real Keto Mayo