Week 2 - January ’26 Low Carb Bootcamp

[BIWI]

Morning all! Spreadsheet as per:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gsWvWpGzTSJld1avBi9-uLJveFZes9Qa2ORKthPMl8E/edit?gid=1415293539#gid=1415293539

Very glad to see that there are some great results already!
On the last thread, there was mention of pulled pork - there’s a really good recipe in one of the Fast 800 books, which I shall search out. I may already have posted it in one of the recipe threads, so I’ll check that too.

Just heated up the last portion of the IPD moussaka for lunch - I have a family dinner in a few weeks and am contemplating serving this - it is absolutely delicious, and I reckon most people wouldn't have a clue you were serving them a low carb meal.

Hi @Clomid1 I did this recipe. I wasn’t sure how the curry powder and salt would work but it kind of countered and softened the celeriac taste - they were yummy and actually quite chip like. Could be worth a try.

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/celeriac-oven-chips

@SprinklesofRain the duck sounds lovely, will add it to my list of not boring and meh meals for next week! I have a very full work day tomorrow of calls where I have very little to actually add but need to be there an on camera all the time so will be using that time to work out a meal plan and write a shopping list!

@CointreauVersial I used savoy cabbage for the laksa and cut into really fine slices then microwaved for a few minutes before adding so it was less crunchy, worked well. I also de-seeded my chilli so will experiment next time

I used a creamy celeriac soup recipe but actually substituted half a celeriac with half a swede due to what we had on the fridge. The one slice of bacon fried and chopped at the begging really made it I think.

@Clomid1 I sprinkle smoked paprika on my celeriac chips.

@Clomid1 how are you cooking your celeriac?

I make ‘chips’ with it too, but don’t bother with blanching. I just cut the celeriac into chips, into an oven dish with a lot of olive oil, and season well with salt and pepper. Sometimes I add chilli flakes. Roast for around 40 minutes - they eventually go nice and brown, and become really quite sweet. (They’ll never go crisp like potatoes would, though)

I also make mash with it - but have found that if I also add a couple of leeks, which I’ve sliced and fried in butter, that it makes it taste a bit more like potato mash.

And there’s a recipe on one of the threads for celeriac with chorizo, which I seem to remember was very tasty.

Here you go:

Celeriac with chorizo
(should be enough to serve 3-4 as a side dish)

1 medium to large celeriac
2 echalion shallots
100g chorizo
butter/olive oil
s+p

• peel the celeriac and then chop into smallish chunks - about 1.5cm square
• peel, halve and slice the shallots
• peel the papery outside from the chorizo (if you're using the sausage type), and cut into small chunks
• boil the celeriac in salted water till nicely soft - around 15 minutes, depending on the size of your chunks; when you pierce the chunks with the tip of a small knife you don't want to feel any resistance - so it should be soft enough as if you were going to mash it
• drain in a colander/sieve, and leave to steam dry for a few minutes
• while it's drying, melt a good knob of butter in a large frying pan and add some olive oil to this (this stops the butter from burning)
• gently sauté the shallots and chorizo until the fat starts to render from the sausage and the shallots are softened, then tip the celeriac in to the pan, stir so it takes on the lovely, orangey juices and then season to taste with salt and pepper; the celeriac should be soft enough that when you stir it together, it starts to disintegrate a little

Every Xmas I do a celeriac dauphinoise ( and eat most of it myself) - finely sliced celeriac, loads of garlic, seasoning and cream. It's even better the next day.

So I won't be eating the brocolli/cauliflower cheese for dinner, simply not hungry (but it won't hurt me not to eat! Can I be frozen as is (just cream and cheddar added in) or would I be better to add some shallot and stock and make it into soup first?

It can be frozen - it will taste just as good, but the texture of the sauce might go a little bit grainy.

DD1 is home for a couple of nights, and has been charged with sorting tonight's dinner for herself and me. She is an excellent cook but is NOT the biggest supporter of my low-carb eating ("body positivity, eat what you want, at your age does it matter if you're a bit overweight?" blah blah...) so I'm firmly steering her away from the chickpeas and pasta.

In fact, all of my DCs give the eye-roll when I mention low-carbing - they don't understand how much better this WOE makes me feel, and how sluggish, wobbly and dumpy I feel if I don't follow it. I told DD1 to get back to me when she hits menopause and can't fit into her clothes anymore.....

Tonight’s dinner - cheeseburger pie and green salad with Basque dressing

(Although for some reason the photo won’t attach!)

Could you keep it chilled and eat it later in the week @TheOnlyMrsW , it might retain the sauce texture a bit better?

It sounds like celeriac needs to be my next vegetable now that I've made a good dent in the spinach. I like the idea both of dauohinoise and the chorizo recipe. Shredded brussels sprouts with chorizo is popular in our house and I wonder what that would be like with celeriac dauphinoise instead of the macaroni cheese that the others would usually have with it.

Cheeseburger pie and green salad with Basque dressing

Pan fried salmon with creamy leeks and kale for dinner

Challenging night , as DH goes out and I usually tuck into a bottle of white and chocolate biscuits , not tonight though ( looks unhappily at glass of sparkling water ) but remains steadfast

Unfortunately it's been in the fridge a couple of days already and we're away after tomorrow so need to put up or shut up!!!

I also really like celeriac and forget about it - have done chips before and love the sound of the dauphinoise - will ponder when I pull together the meal-plan

That looks amazing. Come back and update on how it tasted

I've been out on the road with busy days at work last couple of days but have stuck to plan. Prepared Tuna & Avo salad to take with me. Going to meal plan tomorrow to switch it up a bit for next week.
Whenever it feels boring I just think to myself - "well I'm also bored of being overweight so get over it" 🤣

My soup made from the leftover laksa broth and cauliflower rice was tasty and made a pleasant lunch. I had college tonight so I haven’t had dinner yet, I’ll raid the cheese stash shortly. I grabbed a HB egg on my way out the door. I’ve found it useful boiling up half a dozen at once so they’re ready to grab.

Not one but two yoga classes today! Of course it’s Sod’s Law they’d be on the same day. I feel proud though and very calm after a few days of slight anxiety. Hopefully it will turn into good sleep too.
Lunch at school was two sausages and salad and dinner was cold salmon with romaine lettuce, Caesar dressing and the final bit of leftover tzatziki and pickled cabbage. Apart from the fact I was so cold all day that I could have murdered a hot comforting stew instead, it was very good. Bit crap on the water again, tbf I am managing 2.5l pretty consistently, it’s just that I’m aiming for 3.5l 😬 yesterday’s food was hm minestrone (no beans or pasta!) for lunch and pork fillet in chorizo cream sauce with spinach and ts broccoli.

I made the laksa last night, taking on board all the suggestions, adding more chilli and more lime, and pre-cooking the cabbage. I chopped up the salmon and mixed it through rather than leaving it as a whole fillet and also added some prawns. Delicious. Dh had noodles, mine was fine with the cabbage.

Tonight I'm making the Jamie Oliver mushroom curry. https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetables/mushroom-curry/ You dry fry the mushrooms so they are nutty and tasty, not slimy. Lunch is salad with a sort of sardine pate (sardines mashed with mayo, tabasco and worcestershire sauce).

I have received my shopping and I’ve put in a cheeky treat for next week. 85% dark chocolate.

Not too bad on the carbs.

Cheeseburger pie is a Bootcamp classic, @Clomid1! Definitely worth a try - it’s one that DH and DC really enjoy too. And the salad/dressing really sets it off well.

Re the chocolate, this is my go to:

https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/sainsburys-ugandan-90-dark-chocolate-taste-the-difference-100g

90% cocoa, deliciously smooth. 2 squares a day, if I’m having any, and it’s really satisfying.

Was feeling really flabby yesterday- everything was bulging everywhere. The good news is I had a bit of a whoosh overnight, so it must have been the 'squishy fat' thing where your fat cells take up water. Lost a couple of pounds and everything is a little less flabby this morning.

On the run so just had egg bites and a creamy coffee this morning. May make some burgers or try the cheeseburger pie tonight. It looks delicious and I'm a bit anaemic, so good to get in the red meat!