Keto Ramblings

One of the things I've been looking at lately is my food budget!  As you've probably noticed, the United States (and the world) is experiencing a lot of rising costs this year.  The consumer price index went up 7.5% in 2021, and is up 9.8% so far in 2022.  This means that many of us are dealing with the difficulties of getting less for our money, both at the grocery store and at the gas pump! So I've started taking a closer look at what I'm spending on food.  A few years ago I could easily spend $300 or less per month on groceries.  Last month I had spent that much halfway through the month.  I've been replacing breakfast and lunch with protein shakes for convenience but I've started wondering whether this is costing me more than they're worth.  Since I've also reached my weight loss goal, I'm considering how I can add more calories back into my diet and having real meals might just do the trick. I typically have my morning coffee with a pre-made box...

Frank's Red Hot sauce is amazing!  I've never been a 'hot wings' kind of person, so maybe that's how I've gotten this far in life without realizing how much I love this stuff.  I'm officially obsessed!   I've been trying out new recipes lately for meatloaf and meatballs... goes along well with my keto diet, and they're easy to portion and freeze for meal planning.  I've done the Southwest Mini-Meatloaves, and Pesto Meatloaves.  Yesterday I made Buffalo Chicken Meatballs (pictured above), and today I had to make more sauce so I could put it over some leftover meatloaf (pictured on the right).  I may have ended up just eating a few spoonfuls of sauce after dinner 👀. And now I'm looking up what else I can make with the hot sauce!   I'm still planning to make some changes to the recipe for next time, but here's what I did... Chicken Meatballs 1 lb ground chicken 2 slices of (keto friendly) bread, pulsed in food processor into crumbs 1 T....

I've been craving a grilled cheese the past week, so today I decided to go for it!   1 Head of Cauliflower 1/4th of a yellow onion Preheat oven to 425 F.  Grate these first two ingredients in a food processor or box grater, and put into a microwave-safe bowl.   Microwave a total of 15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes to make sure it cooks evenly.  It should be soft and tender, but drying out by the end of the 15 minutes. 1 Egg 2/3 cup Parmesan Cheese 1 Tbsp. Italian Seasoning Combine these ingredients into the cooked cauliflower to form the dough.   On a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, use a 1/2 cup measure to scoop the cauliflower dough out.  Pat each scoop into 1/2 inch thick pieces of "bread".   Bake at 425 until golden brown - about 15-17 minutes then let cool for 5 minutes.   Loosen the bread from the parchment paper using a spatula.  Top a slice of bread with ham and cheese, then set a second piece of ...

Fear gets to the best of us, whether it is fear of failure, fear of success or even fear of fear. All of us have experienced fear at some point in our lives and it can be a real stumbling block that holds us back from being truly successful. Fear can’t hold you back forever, if you don’t let it. There are several ways to overcome fear, here are my top 9: 1. SEPARATE REALITY FROM PERCEPTION Ask yourself what is really going on, locate the facts and place them over your feelings. 2. IDENTIFY THE TRIGGER Figure out what it is in a situation that triggers you. Learning to identify it will help you learn to combat it. 3. KNOW WHERE FEAR LIVES IN YOUR BODY A lot of times, fear takes over physically. It affects different people different ways. Identify if/how it affects your physical body and do the work to take care of your body. Ex: if you hold stress in your back, you can learn stretches, foam rolling, etc. to avoid the pain. 4. PRACTICE GRATITUDE Everyday, list out 1-3 things you are than...

Curious to know what my full day on Keto looks like?  Here it is! Breakfast: To start my day, I have three cups of decaf coffee , using a full Atkins protein shake divided between them as the creamer/flavoring.  I'm visiting at a friend's house, so I'm using single-pod coffee from Double Donut Shop .  Since I drink decaf it's usually easier to find fancy ones online.  At home I just drink the store-brand coffee grounds.  Then I added an Atkin's Caramel flavor shake - delicious!  I've included links to Amazon.  Buying the Atkin's in bulk on Amazon is cheaper than buying at my local Walmart, but compare prices and see what works best for you! Also in the morning, I take a few supplements including collagen , biotin, and a DHT blocker .  Today I'm having these with a glass of Califina Magic which is green-apple flavored, and delicious - however, they've discontinued this product so when I use up my supply I'll have to find a new supergreens drink!...

I recently published this whimsical book called: A Dog a Day Keeps the Blues Away, which is filled with motivational personal affirmations.   We could all use a little cheering up from time to time, and who better to remind us how amazing we are than our favorite furry friends. Man (and Woman)'s best friend... Our dogs! Positive affirmations are little reminders to help brighten your day and improve your mindset. Our thoughts have a significant impact on our overall success and happiness.   This book of daily affirmations provide a little boost of confidence. You can think of them as messages from your favorite furry pup, who loves you more than you can imagine! A Dog a Day is free with your Kindle Unlimited membership, or just $2.99 without!  Check it out on Amazon:

Recipe This has been one of my favorite keto meals lately.  I even made it while visiting my parents and they enjoyed it as well.  This recipe is easy to adjust based on what you have on hand, so feel free to get creative! The recipe makes 6 servings, so I typically serve up one helping for dinner, then divide the rest into meal-prep containers and freeze them for later.  Printable Recipe Instructions The main ingredient is ground turkey... or you can use ground beef, or pork!  Use what you have on hand, or whatever is on sale this week.  Today I'm using a frozen roll of ground turkey, but the previous times I've made this recipe I used ground beef.  If your meat is frozen, be sure to thaw completely and then dump it into a medium size mixing bowl. Next you'll add about 1/2 cup of ground up pork rinds (optional).  I threw some into a bag and smashed them by hand.  This batch had a few extra-hard pieces so I used the back of a spoon to crush those ...