Week 4 (or is it 3?!) Jan '25 Low Carb Bootcamp

[BIWI]

Morning all.

Whether it's 3 or 4, this is the point that you can switch to Bootcamp Light if you wish - which means allowing fruit (some - mainly berries), nuts and seeds (just be careful with the carb counts - check the spreadsheet/back of packet) and chocolate (some - at least 70% cocoa). But still no alcohol. Sorry!

As ever, Here's the spreadsheet

I was trawling for something different to cook this week, and there was a great recipe in The Guardian's Feast magazine on Saturday, for pork chops, with manzanilla-braised leeks. It's 100ml manzanilla between 4 people, and obviously the alcohol will cook out, so I think I might try that. (I was trying to find a link, but for some reason the recipe isn't online).

Anyone else cooking something new/different this week?

I've just finished some broccoli and stilton soup that I made yesterday using stock from turkey giblets/gizzards that had been in the freezer since Christmas.

Some aspect of the giblets/gizzards gave the stock an incredibly strong flavour that I had to mask with Worcester Sauce. It did make me a little bit worried yesterday that it might be a sign that something was bad. But I didn't get ill so decided to try it again today.

I wonder what component of the giblets/gizzards created such an overpowering note to the stock.

The actual broccoli and stilton aspect was lovely. It is strange that this particular veg and cheese combination works well for soup when you don't tend to see any other veg and cheese soups. Perhaps there are similar cheese and veg soup recipes that I haven't spotted?

Celery and Stilton soup is a classic

Re turkey giblet stock - I think it is really strong which is part of the reason o never get round to making it with the giblets that I stick in the freezer . I usually have so much ham stock from the water my green bacon was boiled in to make a ham that I have a freezer full of stock!

Well apparently my liver is completely normal , a small amount of fat in line with my age / weight and she said it will continue to improve if I carry on losing weight . I asked about the med / high fat diet and she said if I’m still losing weight it’s fine.

That's good news - you must be very relieved

@BIWI indeed , thank you .

Been busy and finding it hard to post, but just caught up with the chat. It was my weigh in day this morning and I have now lost 7lb since the start. Hooray!

Today I have been so busy I haven't eaten since breakfast, which firstly NEVER happens to me as I would usually be starving by lunchtime, and secondly I know is not allowed. I am hoping I don't just binge this evening.

On the health checks, recently found out high cholesterol runs in my family, but am being a wimp and not getting it checked unless a HCP tells me to. Stupid, I know. I want to lose weight first.

Loving the electrolyte songs 😁 the lemon and lime ones are delicious. They taste like lemon squash which was a childhood favourite but obviously illegal now!

On a training course today and tomorrow. The catering is pastries, biscuits, sandwiches. I had my suspicions so bought a bag of mini saucisson at Waitrose on my way in which I ate furtively (no matter how effective it is as a diet, you do get odd looks chomping through a salami in a lobby). Home now and am knackered so am roasting myself a cauliflower. No culinary masterpieces on offer tonight.

However, no single bread product has passed my lips! Desperate for a glass of wine though.

Great news FloralNomad. I had a much better conversation with the nurse than I was expecting, losing the excess weight will be far better for my cholesterol than anything else and not too much to worry about phew! Next on my list is chasing up my mammogram which is probably in the ether as the wrong address is in the system for me despite moving 2 years ago and definitely updating it at least twice that I can remember 🙄. Treated myself to lunch today - was billed as tomato and n'duja stew bug when I opened the bag also came with rice and foccacia!!!! Picked the stew out and left the bread - good job I don't actually have much of an appetite.
Also craving a glass of wine as it's my Friday but resisting

Good for you.
That's determination

Talked earlier on this thread about interesting veg and cheese soup combinations and have just come across this, so naturally thought of you lot

Roasted celeriac, walnut and Stilton soup Only 8g carbs per serving - bug at least that comes from veg (and the walnuts)

@RockyRogue1001 thank you! I read your comment just as I was ploughing through my sad cauliflower and it strengthened my resolve. Love this group!

Well done this week everyone! I was getting a bit fed up with the scales and thought I'd focus on exercise/strength this week, and now I've move just into the next stone down. So inspired to keep going longer term. Thank you all!

The celeriac, walnut and Stilton soup recipe looks fab @prettybird. Thank you. I started using nuts again today (toasted almonds in my modified version of cauliflower rice) so the timing is good too.

The combination of flavours in that soup will be really interesting. I'm starting to realise that I need to give myself more flavour and variety -- it seems to help me feel better fed and cared for, so that I am less likely to snack afterwards

Courgette and Boursin soup is amazing too!

I’ve added a couple of Brazilian nuts to my FFGY , as I just need a crunch ( still miss toast ! )

DH was out tonight , so I had a Korean pork ( just needed to cook for 25 mins in airfryer ) with some roast cauliflower and buttery fine beans , it was really nice quite spicy . I’ll take a photo tomorrow
then , stupidly because I was on my own , 3 of my seeded biscuits and cheese
I started crocheting then , to keep myself busy

Cheesy soup is one of my favourites , I like leek and Red Leicester , cauliflower and Stilton , and I’m planning on working out a tomato , basil and feta variety , as I think that will work well

Korean pork

@BusyFrizzyLizzie one of the things I like about this woe is that it is uncompromising. Faced with a carb-loaded lunch, there is only one answer - no. I find that so much easier than any low calorie diet of the past, trying to guess what was in the sandwich filling, yet knowing that I'd had so many more calories that I'd estimated. Good that you knew in advance and could prepare - in the past I have taken an egg mayonnaise sandwich and tried to hide away somewhere to discretely lick the filling off the pieces of bread! tbh it would have been better to have a mini fast! And that's another thing I like, my capacity to miss meals is so much better, so faced with truly awful choices I can just say no, and wait till later - so much less of the ravenous grab-some-crisps-and some chocolate feeling.

I've eaten too much (on plan but shite) crap food this week. I was in training, miles from anywhere with no food. Had to have things like nuts etc. or starve.

Oh well, back to lovely fresh food tomorrow.

'On plan but shite' sounds like a good hashtag @MrsTerryPratchett
Glad you survived.

2lb blip upwards this morning weight wise.

A reminder that I didn't drink nearly enough water yesterday

Awake since the smalls with the wind, thoughts to all those in the red, hope everyone keeps safe . Shopping day for me and need lots as have been trying to run down the fridge and freezer, its a carb-heavy list as DH needs cereal and cereal bars, dad needs pies and potatoes but thsnkfully I dont actually like any of them much so won't be tempted 🤣. Definitely going to look at electrolytes too.

Making a version of adobo in the slow cooker today - I'm fairly sure it's not authentic but the pork shoulder has been marinated in soy, vinegar, garlic, chilli, lime juice and a small amount of honey so will see how that turns out. Likely to be a porky week as I've got monce in the freezer that I bought as yellow sticker with no clue how to use it! Am thinking meatloaf but maybe with a Mediterranean feel and adding the stuffing ingredients from @prettybird's chicken.

Onwards and upwards, have a good day all!

I think there's a recipe that uses pork mince on one of the recipe threads. Will go and have a look.

I made the pork chops in manzanilla with braised leeks (from The Guardian's Feast magazine) last night, and I was disappointed, to be honest. It was pleasant, but that's about all I can say for it. And the quantities were all wrong - the recipe called for 8 small leeks, so I used 4 large ones (which is all that I had, and I wasn't going to buy more!), but the volume of sauce was simply too much.

So I was a bit irritated that I'd gone out to buy a bottle of sherry specifically for the recipe.

Here you go @TheOnlyMrsW:

Thai-Style Meatballs with Peanut Sauce
(serves 4)

This is another one from the Idiot Proof Diet recipe book:

1 small onion (I used 2 echalion/banana shallots instead)
1 clove of garlic crushed (I used 2 - I like my garlic!)
1 fat fresh red chilli
1 stick of lemongrass
stalks from a bunch of fresh coriander (I just used half of a packet - leaves and all)
juice of 1 lime
500g pork mince
1 rounded tablespoon peanut butter*
1 heaped teaspoon unsweetened desiccated coconut
1 teaspoon fish sauce
2 teaspoons tamari soy sauce
groundnut oil for frying

• put the peeled onion, garlic, chilli, lemongrass, coriander and half the lime juice into a food processor and blitz to a paste
• add the mince and process again till it's all amalgamated
• leave in the fridge for a couple of hours (if you haven't got this time, leave it at room temperature for around 30 minutes)
• make the peanut sauce by mixing the peanut butter, remaining lime juice, coconut, fish sauce and tamari.
• add sufficient boiling water (about a tablespoon) to make a runny consistency
• leave to stand until the mince is ready to cook, then stir and add a little more water (it will thicken on standing. I like to heat this sauce, which will thicken it as well)
• make walnut-sized balls out of the mince mixture and then fry till browned and cooked through. (This will take around 10 minutes)

*make sure you check the carb count as different brands of peanut butter vary hugely

That's a shame @BIWI

...although I do have an open bottle of fino sherry that I could use , and reduce the amount of the sauce, as per your experience.