Feb '24 Low Carb Bootcamp - Week 5 (and I'm off!)

[BIWI]

Morning all!

My last day before jetting off to sunnier climes. I'm leaving you in the more than capable hands of @prettybird

As ever, here's the spreadsheet

The challenge for this week - should you choose to accept it - is to create a great low carb dinner party menu. Bonus points for not raiding the recipe section for ideas!

DH and I are great fans of The Great British Menu, and for the last couple or so of series, the starter course has to be vegan - I'd love it if they insisted that one (or more!) of their courses had to be low carb, which inspired this thought.

Look forward to what you come up with

Just copying this over from the last thread:

Morning all, very excited to report 1.4lb off which takes me to my lowest weight of this year AND last year!!! Just over 12lb off since Jan 1 which, considering my underactive thyroid makes it really hard to lose, is nothing short of a miracle. I've just kept going day after day and am thrilled that it's finally paying off. I've got a long way to go but today, for the first time, it feels like it might just be possible for me to do this. Thank you to everyone on this thread for posting, letting me waffle and generally keeping me on track.

Really well done @AllTheBlackCoffee! Very glad to see that your persistence has paid/is paying off!

Thanks @BIWI, have a great trip. No spreadsheet for me, but I am weighing most days and posting weight on Mondays. I am down 1.2lb on last Monday (but was a couple of lb lower on Friday am, a weekend away plus birthday celebrations at the start of the week has proved challenging but hoping for a bit of a whoosh again now I'm back at work. Overall only 3lb down so far this BC but I know I haven't been totally compliant with the WOE and at least it's in the right direction. We have had three birthdays in our house so far this year which hasn't helped but no more for ages now.

Have a great trip @biwi. I am bouncing up and down the same pound but at least I am not putting on weight. I have had a few carby events so I know the reason why. Just put a roast chicken in the oven on the timer for tonight’s dinner so back on plan.
Well done @alltheblackcoffee

@BIWI Happy Holidays and thank you for everything. @prettybird let's hope you won't have to wield the big stick! I'm still at 150lb this morning so still got a way to go to meet my goal but reading @AllTheBlackCoffee post this morning has cheered me. I'm planning to up my activity this week as well as sticking to LC. Hope everyone has a good week.

Ooh @BIWI That's the kind of challenge I love 😂. Hope you have a fabulous holiday!

Looking forward to not having to wield the Big Stick too much

Have a wonderful holiday @BIWI

Morning all. I'm back to my pre emotional wobble weight, lowest in at least 18 months. I'm thinking I need to knock off alcohol as there's a distinct slowing in weight loss when I'm on the wine at the weekends.

Loving the dinner party challenge, I'll be back later with my thoughts.

Have a lovely holiday @BIWI

Have a lovely holiday @BIWI, I loved last week's GBM (won't say too much in case of spoilers for people who haven't caught up!)

Morning all, I go completely MIA over the weekends usually but it's not that I'm not sticking to plan (well, I drank wine on Saturday but that's all) its more that 8 year old has requested less screentime for us all and DH and I are trying to consciously remove our phones form our hands while we're with the kids.

Weighing in at bang on 12 stone today, that's 5lbs off over the few weeks which I'm happy to take. 17 days until my weekend away with friends (which I'm an emotional wreck about as I've never been away from the kids for this long!) and would like to knock another 4 off in that time.

Dinner Party menu:

Starter
Caprese salad
Slices of tomatoes, good quality mozzarella and avocado arranged like the Italian flag, drizzled with good quality EVOO and a squoosh of lemon juice. Tear over some basil and season

I had just been thinking last night that I hadn't had this in a long time and should do so soon

Main Course
Fillet of beef rolled in herbs
Fillet of beef semi-roasted, semi-braised in a quarter bottle of red wine and a quarter bottle of Madeira (from memory, 15 minutes per 500g plus 15 minutes, basting occasionally, then switch the oven off, open the door slightly and leave for 20 minutes). Baste one final time then roll the fillet in a generous amount of chopped thyme, parsley and chives. Slice into rounds and serve with some of the wine/Madeira mixture, reduced with butter whisked in.
Accompaniments: celeriac rösti, french beans with butter and chopped garlic and roasted aspargus.

Dessert
Spoilt for choice (as I added most of the desserts to the thread, I don't need to refer to it ), but I'll go with
Chocolate and Cardamom Pots
Recipe in recipe thread

I'm logging the low point of my week (2ibs down) and drawing a veil over the rest! Don't know why I'm finding it so tough to stick to this time

4.2lb down this week which I'm delighted about - that's half a stone in a fortnight which is crazy. Obviously I won't be able to keep up that rate of loss for much longer, but the next time I hit a plateau I know it's worth ploughing on.

But that's for later. I'm on a sofa day with one of my twins feeling sorry for ourselves, but she's good company at least

Most recent dinner party (lunch party) was Swedish themed. Starter was meatballs (using this recipe replacing the breadcrumbs with a little almond flour). But instead of serving them hot with gravy, I served them cold with a radish salad and a dill and sour cream dip (sour cream, mayonnaise, chopped cornichons, chopped capers, lots of fresh dill).

Then smoked salmon and spinach gratin I added some green beans and little broccoli florets to the veg layer. It was very easy, and there was bread for the carby-folk to mop up the creamy sauce (I just ate mine with a spoon).

Desert was lingonberry cheesecake. A swedish baked cheesecake that has no biscuit base and is essentially cottage cheese, double cream, eggs, almond flour, flavoured with cardamom and cinnamon and then (once cooled) topped with fresh berries.

It's cold a rainy here today so my fantasy dinner menu is wintery.

Starter: celeriac soup with cream and lots of pepper
Main: slab of spiced (cunin amd five spice) belly pork on a bed of buttered cabbage with green beans and tenderstem broccoli on the side
Dessert: individual cranachans with flaked almonds instead of oats

Have a great trip @BIWI and thanks again for everything you do to make the bootcamp work.

I’ve dropped 2lb this week which I’m delighted about as it takes me (just) under 12 st. Plan to keep on with this WOE as it seems to be working and even if it’s slow it’s in the right direction.

Happy Holidays, @BIWI. One pound down and back in the land of under 200lbs, hurrah. Reading all the dinner party recipes with interest as I have a birthday this week 😁. I have given strict instructions for no cake but shall indulge in a little fizz and chocolate. Next target is to beat my current all time LC low of 89.1kg.

Have a fab trip BIWI!
I have STS. No surprise after Saturdays trip out. Although was mostly good

On it for this week though.

A wonky week here - crazy running round and late nights with work and two separate birthday celebrations for one of dcs. I think lack of sleep and lack of water have affected things so I’m up 1.2 - have been cycling round the same two pounds for a few weeks now so hoping if I’m strict and sleep/ drink well this week I will have a whoosh.

have a fab holiday @BIWI and I am another one pleased to hear persistence pays off @AllTheBlackCoffee

Feels like spring is in the air so I’m hoping this will be a week filled with getting stuff done. Hope everyone else has a good one.

I'm inspired by the beautiful weather we have today so my dinner party menu is a little spring like!

Starter whole burrata drizzled with basil oil served with prosciutto or speck ham, pickled cucumbers and celeriac remoulade or sauerkraut

Main salmon fillets topped with home made tapenade, served with steamed green beans and asparagus and a rocket and tomato salad

Optional Cheese course 🧀😂 with low carb cheese and almond flour crackers

Pudding. Low carb lemon and almond sponge with thick pouring cream and raspberries.

Without the bread for low carbers of course! We had this recently in a restaurant so it's on my list to make this week for dinner.

Hmmm my dinner parties were always quite carby back in the day! This is tricky...

Maybe grilled goats cheese or halloumi wrapped in Parma ham ad
and baked til crispy for a starter with a nice green salad and olive oil drizzle.

For a main, its cold and wet here tonight so a nice warming stew would hit the mark - maybe a low carb beef bourginion with celeriac mash and buttered tender stem broccoli.

Dessert would have to be my fave DD LC choc cake, served warm with raspberries and clotted cream.

Finally a cheese board with a gooey Brie, a salty Stilton and one of those super mature cheddars with the crunchy bits. Served with very salty butter and seed crackers.

God, I'm starving just thinking about that.

Byeee!

Be good while I'm away. (I will probably be checking in every now and then 🕶)

Looks like you're very definitely off duty now @BIWI

I'm now picking up the Big Stick

Happy holidays BIWI, have a great time