I was planning a stuffed mushroom dish for Monday's tea. It's Portobello mushrooms stuffed with more mushroom, pine nuts, parmesan, fresh herbs, olive oil and chilli flakes. Normally breadcrumbs too but obs I'll leave those out. Does that sound ok? Wasn't sure about the pine nuts.
Strictly speaking, pine nuts wouldn't be allowed in the first two weeks of Bootcamp - however, I've checked Sainsbury's website, and they're only 4g carbs per 100g, so in this instance (and assuming you're not using hundreds of grams of them!) I'd say it's fine - especially as you're not having breadcrumbs. Anchovies are fine.
My local farm shop offers "gluten free" sausages and burgers. Are they likely to be low-carb, do you think?
Very probably - this would suggest that they're very high meat content - but if there's no published nutritional data I'd still be wary. And with burgers, no need to buy them - the best burgers I've had/made have simply been with high fat mince, salt and pepper!
Is Quorn mince ok? I'm also trying to cook more meat-free meals (which seems may be tricky when trying to eat low-carb and trying to feed a fussy family)
Sadly no - not for Bootcamp. As well as containing carbs (4.5g per 100g), it's also a highly processed food, and we're trying to avoid these. Here are the ingredients of Quorn mince:
Ingredients
Mycoprotein™ (92%), Rehydrated Free Range Egg White, Natural Caramelised Sugar, Firming Agents: Calcium Chloride, Calcium Acetate, Gluten Free Barley Malt Extract
Is a chicken curry with cauliflower rice ok?
Well it depends what you put in the curry! But as long as you're not using flour or any other thickener, and the veg you're using in it are low carb, then this would be perfect. One tip - if you replace any onions with shallots it will be lower in carbs - onions are 7.9g carbs per 100g whereas shallots are only 3.3g. (Buy the echallion or banana shallots - they're bigger so much easier to peel!)
Can I have hallomi? I love it
Absolutely!
When I'm allowed gin again, is Fevertree Light tonic ok or does it have sugar?
After the first two weeks of Bootcamp you can introduce alcohol - in moderation! and clear spirits like gin, rum and whisky are all carb-free. However, the dilemma you have here is the tonic. Fevertree Light contains sugar, and each 150ml can contains 5.7g carbs. Alternatively you could have Schweppes Slimline tonic which is carb-free - but this contains artificial sweeteners, and we're really trying to avoid those on Bootcamp!
Am I really going to lose weight and not be hungry? That seems to good to be true.
Yes! I can guarantee this - assuming that you follow the rules! One of the great benefits of a low carb diet is that your blood sugars will be much more even, which means that you won't be hungry. In the Western world, your hunger isn't to do with having an empty stomach - it's actually controlled by the interaction/balance of three key hormones - insulin, grehlin and leptin. If you keep your carbs low, it helps to keep these balanced, which will mean you're less likely to feel hungry between meals.
In addition, this is a high fat way of eating - you will be eating high fat, medium protein and low carb - which means it's very satiating - helping you to feel full for longer between meals.
And all the other Bootcampers over the last 7 years or so since I started doing it will testify to the fact that you will lose weight, but will also be able to enjoy lovely food.
