Surviving Xmas
Options
DietPrada
Posts: 1,171 Member
It's possible to survive the perils of Xmas unscathed and without missing out - just takes a little planning and some careful choices.
We went out to Xmas lunch with hubby's family yesterday - it was an all you can eat buffet type thing. One full wall of desserts and lots of battered and pastried and rice and pasta foods. You know, the stuff that's cheap and yummy and filling - so they make money. They did also have some salmon in a creamy sauce, a big tray of bacon, roast beef/pork/lamb and some green salad and slices of avocado. While I did eat more than I normally would I managed not to eat anything I would regret later. Up 400g this morning but still in ketosis.
Tonight I have my work Xmas dinner. I've had a look at the menu and decided on a Caesar salad (lettuce, egg, parmesan, bacon, anchovies in a creamy dressing) add grilled chicken and hold the croutons. I can't drink as it's almost an hour from my home and I'm driving.
Next Saturday night we're having a bbq at my sister in law's house - easy. Some meat and green salad.
Xmas day the kids are coming over. So I'm cooking. Also easy - ham, turkey, prawns, salad, cheeses and olives. I've also found a recipe in Pinterest for a choc chip cookie dough low carb cheesecake slice - awfully decadent and very low carb.
I'll allow myself a few glasses of wine over the period (likely more than a few :P) but I won't stress about it. I plan to come out on the 26th in tact and with no harm done - just like I did last year (but did not manage the year before).
We went out to Xmas lunch with hubby's family yesterday - it was an all you can eat buffet type thing. One full wall of desserts and lots of battered and pastried and rice and pasta foods. You know, the stuff that's cheap and yummy and filling - so they make money. They did also have some salmon in a creamy sauce, a big tray of bacon, roast beef/pork/lamb and some green salad and slices of avocado. While I did eat more than I normally would I managed not to eat anything I would regret later. Up 400g this morning but still in ketosis.
Tonight I have my work Xmas dinner. I've had a look at the menu and decided on a Caesar salad (lettuce, egg, parmesan, bacon, anchovies in a creamy dressing) add grilled chicken and hold the croutons. I can't drink as it's almost an hour from my home and I'm driving.
Next Saturday night we're having a bbq at my sister in law's house - easy. Some meat and green salad.
Xmas day the kids are coming over. So I'm cooking. Also easy - ham, turkey, prawns, salad, cheeses and olives. I've also found a recipe in Pinterest for a choc chip cookie dough low carb cheesecake slice - awfully decadent and very low carb.
I'll allow myself a few glasses of wine over the period (likely more than a few :P) but I won't stress about it. I plan to come out on the 26th in tact and with no harm done - just like I did last year (but did not manage the year before).
5
Replies
-
I found a low carb website I love that helps me get through this holiday season:
www.alldayidreamaboutfood.com
It has ALL kinds of foods from desserts, snacks, drinks, breakfast, lunch, or dinner. You can even search the site if you're looking for something specific. Try it out-- you will love it!!2 -
My family loves a turkey dressing which we call "pigs" (don't know why, it came from my SIL) Seasoned sausage meat, made into balls about the size of golf balls, normally rolled in flour but we will use something else this year, put loosely in the turkey. (The bits that cannot get inside sit between the legs and crisp up, yummm) Stick a thermometer through to the stuffing. When your sausage is done for pork, your turkey is cooked. And the meat bastes the turk from the inside. Lots of fat for keto gravy too. Bread stuffing does not get a look in at our feasts. Easy and yummy. We are all looking forward to it! Keto, low carb, gluten free and regulars alike.
Just finished some petticoat style shortbread cookies using almond flour, coconut flour, hemp hearts, sweetener and, of course, butter. Looks good. Hopeful tastes fine too. And my SIL is bringing a homemade artichoke dip which she says in low carb and delicious.
All good here!5 -
I'm making all keto dishes, thanksgiving worked out pretty good so Christmas dinner should be good too1
-
Yes! It's totally doable
We're going out for dinner on Christmas Eve before going to see Scrooge on stage and I'm getting a goat cheese and rocket salad starter, lamb chops for my main entree (not eating the potato cake) and a cheese platter for dessert (skipping the oat cakes and chutney).
And on Christmas Day I'm making a chateaubriand with asparagus and mushrooms and for dessert, just some berries and clotted cream.
Even if you're not in control of your own meal, nearly everyone is serving some type of roast and you can always offer to bring the veg or a salad to make sure you have a low carb side to go with your meat.2 -
fyi...someone told me that crunched up pork rinds make a great breadcrumb substitute for just about any recipe...1
-
I'm intrigued by the "Pigs". Hmmm. I wonder, is there a recipe out there? @dasher602014 140
-
@ChoiceNotChance , been doing them for 40 odd years and came from a British War Bride to Canada, I believe. There are now 16 different families that do "pigs".
In Canada, Pure pork sausage comes in a red and white plastic roll from Maple Leaf, I think. In Oz, I asked for pork mince from the butcher. 500grams does a 5-7kg turkey.
The cavity of the bird needs to be dry. Paper towels work well.
Roll the meat into golf ball sizes rounds and roll or dust in/on the flour. You need to dust the 'pigs' in some sort of flour so that the balls keep separate. And I put salt and pepper on the flour. (I am Gluten intolerant so I use soy flour now.) Not much flour, just a dusting or they get gummy.
Pack loosely in the turkey cavity. (We put bread stuffing for anyone who wants into the neck cavity and if you are doing this, do the neck cavity first and skewer this end shut because you cannot move the turkey around after the 'pigs' are in or they fall out.)
Cook bird (I use deep pan to catch the fat, with a tent of foil until the last hour so that it browns) and as I said earlier, if you put your thermometer through the ribs and into the center of your pigs, and cook until the temperature is right for pork, you know the whole thing is cooked.
We all enjoy the 'pigs' that sit in the opening because they get crispy and brown. We started using another dish once to get more browned bits, but they did not get the turkey flavour. So we went back to original plan.
I also ran into sausage meat and turkey in another family who packed the neck with minced pork and then carved slices. It was good but not 'pigs'.
Enjoy!2 -
Thank you!0
-
It's been on my mind to cheat on Christmas. I even put candy in my bag for the stockings. Today, I took those out and divided them in others bags. I'm doing so good. Why ruin it!
My stocking is going to have beef jerky, beef sticks, nuts, Chocolate fudge, Peanut Butter Fudge (fat bombs).
Christmas Dinner:
Appetizers - Jalapenos stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped in bacon, Smoked Salmon Rosettes, Boiled shrimp with cocktail sauce.
Dinner: Ham with just like sugar brown sugar. Dutch oven Cauliflower, green beans with bacon, Dill pickles, olives, deviled eggs, celery, Homemade eggnog, grapefuit La croix sparkling water.
Desserts: Homemade triple pie: Cheesecake, pumpkin, pecan, homemade whipped cream.
I'm also having store bought pumpkin pies and rolls for all the non- LCHF. I haven't had bread or sweets in so long, I don't even desire it.
This is do-able!5 -
@akroach7 Triple pie? That sounds nice. Do you have a recipe or site you could point me at? I've been assigned dessert for our family potluck this year but I tend to go too low sugar to the point where most people no longer like my baking. LOL My home is gluten free so making baking that people like is already a challenge.
0 -
I'm also having store bought pumpkin pies and rolls for all the non- LCHF.
Get the pumpkin pie from Costco if you can --- it's only like $6, is big so it's perfect for parties huge and actually tastes like homemade. I think it might be because they keep it refrigerated whereas a lot of grocery store pies have addition ingredients so they're shelf stable.
1 -
found a recipe for the triple pie, but it's not low carb, however, it does sound super delicious...
http://www.parsleysagesweet.com/2011/11/15/11750/
0 -
For many low carbers, the harm is not what you eat on Xmas day - the real harm is what can happen when you go out of Ketosis and all of those food cravings and hunger return. I just remember how hard it was in the early days to get my hunger and eating under control without caving and going off plan. I'll probably consume a few more calories than I should on Xmas day but I am not going to put myself through the misery and stress of eating too many carbs.6
-
tcunbeliever wrote: »found a recipe for the triple pie, but it's not low carb, however, it does sound super delicious...
http://www.parsleysagesweet.com/2011/11/15/11750/
ooh wow. I could LCHF that recipe, I think. Thanks!EbonyDahlia wrote: »For many low carbers, the harm is not what you eat on Xmas day - the real harm is what can happen when you go out of Ketosis and all of those food cravings and hunger return. I just remember how hard it was in the early days to get my hunger and eating under control without caving and going off plan. I'll probably consume a few more calories than I should on Xmas day but I am not going to put myself through the misery and stress of eating too many carbs.
So true!
Going off track seems like an appropriate phrase if you think in terms of trains... steam engines... 100+ years ago. Getting one of those things back on track was tough. It feels similar trying to get back into the groove of this woe. Plus the initial excitement about a new woe is gone, and that seems to make it a bit tougher too.1 -
Was searching for a recipe (that I could eat) for our holiday office party on Friday (grinch themed) so they wanted us to bring green food which was hard enough but then they changed it to a breakfast party since we might get to leave early so green breakfast food is even harder. Can you imagine how many green eggs and ham we'll have? Came across this recipe and thought it looked and sounded delicious and looks pretty low carb to me, so thought I'd share it just in case anyone else agrees.
http://hostthetoast.com/zucchini-feta-spinach-fritters-garlic-tzatziki/
0
