snack help (crispy and crunchy)

nikoba

This is my second true attempt at low carb. I followed Atkins a few years ago with success, but due to some life events and my laziness, I went back to old ways and gained back all the weight.
Learning from my past mistakes, I'm ready to make this a real lifestyle adjustment and know that one of my pitfalls last time was snack cravings. I love me some tortilla chips, pretzels, all those crunchy delights. In my experience, I find it's hard to fulfill those salty/crispy cravings with low carb. I usually fell back to pork rinds, but was wondering what your favorite crispy replacement is?

dtobio

I made these cheese crisps and they are great http://www.joyfulabode.com/low-carb-snacks-homemade-baked-cheese-crisps-recipe/

nikoba

Thank you...I've tried making something similar but never had success at them turning out to look like a "cracker". I'm happy to read that I maybe just need to use parchment next time.

dtobio

You're welcome! I tried to make these years ago but didn't really heed the parchment paper warning. Parchment paper makes ALL the difference.

KarlaYP

I made them and will again! My family, and I, loved them!

wabmester

Did somebody say snacks? I say nuts to that!

I also say toasted coconut flakes. My new best friend.

pkroyle

I make balsamic kale chips.....so good!

http://www.motherthyme.com/2012/01/roasted-balsamic-kale-chips.html

nikoba

Yea! I'm loving this...keep 'em coming. I'm excited to give some a try this week!

Dragonwolf

Salty + crispy = bacon.

Just sayin'

Fat4Fuel2

Have you tried the flavored pork rinds? BBQ and Red Hot are my favorites.

BringingSherriBack

chili lime pork rinds are the bomb

dtobio

I'm going to try these this weekend, they're crackers made from flax seeds, Parmesan cheese, eggs, rosemary and sea salt. They have 34g carbs and 32g fiber for the whole batch so 2 net carbs for the batch.
http://www.ibreatheimhungry.com/2012/01/low-carb-rosemary-sea-salt-flax.html

Sajyana

I really missed crunchy, crispy things too. I second dragonwolf. Bacon. Crisp it, crunch it, love it.

Jbarnes1210

Pepperoni chips......line pepperoni on a paper towel in a single layer and microwave until crispy....crunches just like a chip....

kirkor

Just to round out your options, also consider cutting down on snacking in general, and making your meals bigger. A lot of snacking and craving urges are mental not physical, so if you find a LC sub for a former favorite snack, you are still "feeding the monkey" so to speak.

shai74

dtobio wrote: »

I made these cheese crisps and they are great http://www.joyfulabode.com/low-carb-snacks-homemade-baked-cheese-crisps-recipe/

These. But ... make them in a 12 x muffin pan. Lightly oil or nonstick pan, put a little grated cheese in the bottom of each hole (I add some chili powder). Bake until bubbly and let cool. You'll have nice round "cheese crackers". If they're chewy or floppy you didn't cook them long enough.

nikoba

I totally agree kirkor, my craving for crunch is totally a mental thing and not so much that I'm actually hungry. Case in point, last night I went a bit over board and had some pork rinds/salsa, I made genaw/Linda's crunchy thai salad and had about a cup of that, and then went and made some (8) pepperoni 'chips' that were suggested above. I'm trying to stay at 20 carbs a day until I fall below 200lbs, and yesterday's snacking took me to 32

But it's still nice to have these options for instances like this weekend, where I'll be at a get together at a friend's house and if I don't bring some snacks that I can eat, then the temptation will be very strong to graze on all the unfriendly food. But yes, I think I will have to save these types of things as treats and not a daily staple. Thank you all again, by the way...this whole LC group is awesome.

KarlaYP

If you like avocado, make an avocado mayo garlic dip for all of the above "crisps". Salt and pepper pork rinds dipped in this is the bomb! Watch the carb counts on the garlic, but super easy, and good! The recipe is the name of it. Can't make it enough for my hubby!

teedge21

Radish chips... slice them and bake them (you can Google for the exact details)... They are amazing served with spinach dip!

samko1976

I think this has been mentioned before but baked parmesan courgette (zucchini!) are the best and are easy to make.
This is a two ingredient recipe. http://www.fivehearthome.com/2014/06/21/baked-parmesan-zucchini-rounds/
I add a bit of onion powder. Also, I don't add the parmesan one teaspoon at a time but add courgette to a bowl with the parmesan mixture and shake around.
The website mentioned is a long blog post with crying baby and lots of entertaining talk before the recipe at the end

AreteAndWhimsy

Bite-sized sheets of roasted nori, either in pre-cut snack size or cut up from sushi sheets. The best brands are salty and toasty and unctuous with a huge crunch and are a far cry from the bland, generic types. You may have to audition several brands before you find a good one, but good indicators are more texture rather than less, a darker colour that's more black than green, and visible salt crystals. These cut up to 12-16 "chips" per sheet and average about 1 carb per sheet, but it's all fiber, so it works well if you're tracking net carbs.