So confused!

#41

You may find this interesting

(Laurie) #42

I saw the microwave ones on Amazon.ca, $20 for a 1.75 ounce (50 gram) bag. I pay $3 for 100 grams at the convenience store for good, ready-made ones, just pork rinds and lard.
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(Susan) #43

Interesting indeed! Thank you for the post Saphire.
I have spent most of my life trying to avoid it like the plague. My child psychiatrist suggested it as something to avoid with my “hyperactivity”. Avoiding it never helped it or my migraines so I will revisit it.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #44

Do you eat tomatoes, cheese, broccoli, or cabbage?

(Joey) #45

Candy aisle? Interesting. Around here I find 100% cacao dark chocolate bars in the baking goods aisle.

Somehow all those nearby high sugar/carb items in baking aren’t alluring given how much assembly would be required.

(Susan) #46

No tomatoes of any kind but yes to the rest.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #47

So that’s plenty of monosodium glutamate, right there.

(Bob M) #48

True, but I personally can’t stomach those. In fact, I’ve gone to lower percentage bars, as I think most of them above about 80% taste like dirt (to me).

I’ve been trying to make my own, adding more cacao butter to up the saturated fat and cut down on oxalates, and lower the carb content via fake sugars. I haven’t figured out the correct ratios of everything yet.

#49

First, try the free app, Carb Manager. It will help you track what you’re eating. Initially, you’re going to have to track all of your food, because Keto can be extremely counter-intuitive (especially since we have all been raised to believe that fat is bad and carbs are good).

Here are ways that I get in fat: I put butter on and in everything. I buy good quality, grass fed butter when at all possible. I put full fat sour cream in everything and on everything that I don’t put butter in or on (sometimes I do both). Be careful with dairy - you need to measure and watch the carbs. An ounce of butter is a LOT of butter. An ounce of sour cream - not so much. I eat 1-2 ounces of macadamia nuts every day. BE CAREFUL WITH NUTS - some of them, like cashews, are high carb. Full fat Greek-style yogurt is another good one. 4 ounces is a good serving. I often eat 4 ounces of yogurt with 1.5 ounces of macadamia nuts and 2 ounces of blackberries mixed in. I add salt and some liquid stevia. Liquid stevia is the only artificial sweetener that I use, and I buy it from Amazon. I do not use much of it, but I have not found any problems using it.

Utz’s pork rinds are a staple for me. I buy them at Costco in these enormous barrels. I eat 2-3 ounces of them daily. I use them as “toast” and I use them as “chips”. I do not eat before 1 pm and I try not to eat after 8 pm. I might poach 3 eggs. I’ll put them in a bowl with 1 ounce of butter, some salt and some nutritional yeast. I then stir in an ounce of pork rinds. LOVE IT! So delish and very Keto friendly.

The only fruits that I eat are berries (blackberries are the lowest carbs) and tomatoes (also low carb). I eat full fat cheese daily. I like to take 3 ounces of Manchego cheese, chop it up, melt it in the microwave and then eat it with arugula on top of it. Sometimes I eat that with pork rinds, sometimes just by itself. I get the Manchego cheese at Costco as well.

Of course, all meat are a good choice - the fattier the better. I also like to make canned salmon salad with real mayo. I don’t like to do too much mayo because it’s not the best oil, but I do use it to up my fat when needed.

I use predominately ghee, butter and beef tallow as my cooking oils. I might eat a fresh red pepper or a cucumber with a bit of olive oil and some apple cider vinegar on it. I use ACV exclusively now as my acid. I don’t want to waste carbs on lemons and limes. I have cut WAAAAY down on my veggies and try to limit it to things that grow above the ground, which are lower in carbs (peppers, cukes, asparagus, lettuce, arugula, etc.). Be sure you track your veggie intake - lots of carbs there if you’re not careful.

I hope this helps! Good luck!

(Joey) #50

Okay then… Here’s a home-tailored recipe you might enjoy for chocolate/nut treats:

  1. Hershey’s 100% Unsweetened Cacao powder (don’t inhale :wink: )
  2. Coconut oil (organic, i.e., hard white “paste” when sitting at room temp)
  3. Stevia (pure liquid extract - no other ingredients besides alcohol)
    (Optional: shredded almonds, unsweetened coconut flakes, walnuts?)

I spoon in several big dollops of coconut oil in a pan (small pot, e.g., like for boiling eggs), melt it down at a low temp (takes just a few minutes to become liquid), then I stir in cacao powder to dissolve. Finally, I squirt in some Stevia to taste. (Careful on the tongue while it’s hot - note: for some reason it seems to taste “less sweet” while hot, so better to “under-sweeten” it at this stage than to overdo it with the stevia).

Then I pour the warm mix into mini-muffin tins lined with those tiny paper muffin things. You can also just pour it into a flat pan/cookie sheet, perhaps on parchment paper, and make a thin brick for breaking up later. Often I’ll also toss in either a few sliced almonds or coconut flakes at this stage, too.

To firm it all up, chill in the fridge for a short while. And bingo - a really nice “sweet” treat for dessert, with coffee, red wine, etc.

They store nicely in the fridge in a tupperware type container once you collect them out of the muffin tins or flat cookie sheet.

Another add-on: sometimes I mix in almond butter (or peanut butter) into the hot mix … gives kind of a “Reese’s cup” vibe to the final product.

Let us know if you give this a try! :yum:

#51

70% for me and not dirt but cocoa powder :smiley: I don’t want to eat something that tastes cocoa powder…
I don’t want to eat added sugar either (or just extremely rarely in some very special treat) and chocolate uses a ton anyway, I can’t enjoy that (well there is the amount of black coffee that helps…).

The ratios are surely individual. I use very different ones for mine (that I don’t really like anymore since carnivore broke this in me somehow) and for my SO who prefers less fat and more cocoa powder (among other differences). It took a few tries to figure out our preferences and sometimes we did it again as our taste changed (especially regarding the required sweetness).

#52

No such part, fat fills in the gaps of what’s left. Increase fat is typically a result of not being afraid of it anymore, but not because you’re intentionally adding it to stuff just for the sake of doing it. You’re in ketosis from lack of carbs, not because of increased fat.

Not really, but the re-learn takes a while. Best / easiest way is to watch some of the never ending keto grocery hall videos on youtube for ideas.

(Robin) #53

Plus, most dairy aisles for cheese and eggs etc are in the middle where I shop.

(Joey) #54

I appreciate the CA vs US dollar conversion issue. But still, perhaps some confusion on what you’d be buying at that price? … I see the boxes on Amazon currently listed for US $13.48 … yes, each pouch is 1.75 oz. But there are 18 packets in the box. Perhaps I’m missing something about the oz <–> gram conversion. At the current price, these work out to US$0.75 a bag.

(Laurie) #55

Hi Joey. They’re on sale now, for CAD 17.88. That is for one bag. It even says, “(CDN$ 10.22 / ounce).”

I’m posting the page for your amusement. I don’t know whether you’ll be able to see it (they might show you a US page instead).

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #56

I also notice with enough frequency to be pleasantly amused that online prices (Amazon and others) are ridiculously high. Plus, in many instances additional shipping charges can double or triple the price.

Walmart carries pork rinds: example and example. I still think pork rinds are overpriced and overrated. But each to his/her own. :slightly_smiling_face:

(Laurie) #57

Yup, I buy them at Walmart and at the local store (same price). As my kitchen use is limited, they are convenient for me. They’re also supposed to be a source of Type III collagen.

(Joey) #58

Yikes! :face_with_raised_eyebrow:That’s c-r-a-z-y … I could see the CA offering. Perhaps you can see this one south of the border…

Basically, US $0.43 per ounce. Quite a difference. :thinking:

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #59

@SomeGuy Yes, we can see the US offering here in Canada - but this is what we see:

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(Joey) #60

Very strange. These cross-border prices/listings are a puzzle. Perhaps the pandemic is still complicating shipments and delivery?

BTW, my wife and I made a point of driving up a few times to visit (Alberta, BC) back when our fearful leader was building walls to our own south. We figured it was a matter of time until our Canadian friends thought better of letting us in. :shushing_face: