Deadliest Words in the English Language

So tonite was the first meeting of the year for the Denver Low Carb Living Meetup support group...I've been crazy busy since the holidays, and travelling a lot too. We had 8 members participating, and it was great to see some new faces as well as some familiar favorites. The subject was Re-Motivating...I needed it bad. Went to Australia for 3 weeks in October with my friend Britt...ate everything put in front of me and more...walked a lot, but couldn't keep up with the carb loading. Then the holidays...managed not to do too much more damage, and drop a little Aussie weight since I'd have to be on the beach soon...but then went to Mexico in January. The deadliest words in the English language: All You Can Eat Buffet. I did okay the first couple of days...meat in savory sauces, cheese, a little low glycemic fruit...but they had absolutely no low carb mixers for alcohol, so I was on the vodka and sodawater program. Starting to feel a little deprived, I moved to vodka and sodawater with a splash of the nasty sugar pina colada mix. That was it...all bets were off...a couple of these on the beach or by the pool and I had no resistance at the devil buffet...so the last four days were "all you can eat" (and I can eat a lot) no holds barred. Yikes. So since the end of January I've been "kinda good" and "kinda bad"...mostly bad...I can't seem to shake the All You Can Eat Buffet feeling that's washed over me the last month or so. Seriously, getting together with the group tonite was so cleansing...there are so many people there who are so inspiring and supportive...It's just what I needed. So back to being good to myself...I miss the high energy, steady mood and lack of hunger I feel when I'm living the good life...the low carb life...I'm ready to step away from the buffet and get back on track for good. There's a reason I've lived this way for 8 years...I feel better, look better, work better, play better...well, you get the point.

Been awhile

Been awhile since I've posted, but business is good. I've got a couple of great regular weekly clients, and June was packed every weekend with special events....whew. I'm doing a four-hour "Jumpstart" package now, to get people started or re-motivated on the Low Carb/Low Glycemic lifestyle, complete with cooking lessons and recipes converting their favorite "cravings" into acceptable options. That's going really well, and I get so excited when others get psyched about living this way. Check out my website for details...

We also managed to get in a meetup of our Low Carb Lifestyle Support Group and had a great dinner at BD's Mongolian BBQ. We've just scheduled another one...plans for a potluck BBQ in the works, check it out. I also posted my Romanian Summer Slaw Recipe here: Summer Slaw...one I've never given out before...everyone loves it, as it's low carb, low calorie and low fat...a little something for everyone! (I've been told it tastes like crunchy lemonade)

Butter Cookie Recipe

So today was our first Meetup...a luncheon for members of our Low Carb Lifestyle Meetup. I met two great people...Mary (who's lost 150 lbs in 2 years) and Tony (who eats low carb so he can enjoy the foods he loves without gaining weight). The lunch was really fun...it's so great to be able to connect with people who are passionate and love food as much as I do. We shared a lot of hints, tips, and coping strategies, as well as re-affirmed our beliefs in the lifestyle. Such interesting people with so much to offer...I think we're all looking forward to getting together more often in the future! See here http://atkinsdiet.meetup.com/173/ for info on our Denver area Meetup. I also gave attendees a little Valentine's Day prezzie...some of my famous butter cookies, some spiced snack chips made from low carb wraps and my favorite Dove low carb chocolates. I'm including my butter cookie recipe here for anyone to try, I'm constantly trying new things in the kitchen, and perfecting the perfect low carb cookie is a lifetime pursuit...these ones are good!

Bridget's Budda Cookies
1/2 c. butter, softened
4 oz. full fat cream cheese or ricotta
1/4 c. splenda or liquid sweetener equivilent
1/2 c. vanilla soy protein powder (available at Whole foods or GNC, check label for sugar additives, should have 0 carbs)
1 egg
1/2 c. almond meal/flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp xanthum gum (binder/thickener available at whole foods or on line)

Chocolate topping:Melt your favorite low-carb chocolate bar (i like Dove individual meltaways in regular, mint or raspberry chocolate flavor) and drizzle on top of cookies, or dip tops of cookies in melted mixture. Melt chocolate bars in the microwave on half power for 1 minute at a time until soft and "stir-able". Add appropriate carb counts for the type and quantity of chocolate you use...a little goes a long way flavor-wise.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cream butter and cream cheese or ricotta with splenda. Add beaten egg to butter mixture and combine well until light. Sift together protein powder, almond meal baking powder and xanthum gum...sift well to distribute/combine evenly, then mix into butter/egg batter. Roll small portions of dough into balls, then "squish" flat onto baking sheet with your thumb (you can press in a whole almond, pecan or walnut now to decorate/flavor). Alternatively, you can use a pastry bag and large tip to pipe out shapes, or a cookie press with this dough. Cookies do not rise or spread, so they can be placed close, and the shape will remain the same once baked. Bake until lightly browning (start checking after 12 minutes) cookies will remain firm, but soft. Storage in an airtight container will make cookies soft, open air storage keeps them crispier. Yields approx. 2.5 doz. cookies 1.5 inches in diameter or so. Recipe without additions yields a total of 20.5 grams of carb, calculate individual servings according to portion size.

Low Carb Lifestyle Meetup Denver

So we've got our first meeting set for Monday, February 12...check it out here: http://atkinsdiet.meetup.com/173/ it should be a lot of fun, always good to meet new people who have such an amazing thing in common. It's a lunch, and everyone in the Denver area is welcome (just make sure you join our meetup and rsvp). I'll be making my killer Moroccan chicken salad and a few choice appetizers (gorganzola and hot italian sausage stuffed olives anyone?) then wrapping up with a lesson on low carb cheesecake varieties (oh, you know, some drizzled with chocolate, some with strawberry coulis, mint chocolate...the usual) so no one will go home hungry! Everyone will, however, go home with recipes...and I'll post a few here too...

Low Carb Meetup Group

So the meetup group I just joined for low carbers in the Denver area has lost it's leader. (Check out http://www.meetup.com to see all about this cool way to meet people who have common interests) I think a group like this would be great for support and sharing, and I'm thinking about taking the plunge and heading the group...it's a lot of work, though, and costs some money. I was hoping this would be a great way to rally some low carbers where I live, we'll have to see...maybe with a co-organizer I can swing it.