What's cookin', good lookin'? Part II

[gracie920101]

So here's a really stupid question.

I've been wondering for a long time what "one carb, three carbs" and such mean. You post it a lot and I don't get how you can know that something is one carb and how such a thing can even exist? Is it the same as grams and ounces or cups and liters? I don't understand it. What does it mean?

Okay, you asked.

I'm sure you've seen this on packaged foods.
In the US and other countries, manufacturers are required to label foods with nutrition information. A certain basic amount of info is required, Serving size, Calories, and sugar, sodium, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, carbohydrates contents among others is listed in grams.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nutrition_facts_label

For years everyone was taught to count calories to control weight. Over the past few years, it has proven more effective for folks to limit carbohydrates for weight loss.

Simply put:
A calorie is used for the unit of measurement of energy contained in food.
A carbohydrate is the source of energy we put into our body.

It makes more sense to limit the amount put in since excess amounts are stored as fat (a relic from past eons where we needed it in case of famine) rather than limit oneself to foods with reduced energy output.

I can eat a food that is considered low calorie but it may have massive amounts of carbs which my body really doesn't need at the moment so it will store it as fat for later use. But like most modern persons, that famine stage never occurs so my body just stores more and more fat.

We have "Lean Cuisine" frozen meals here. A meal of butternut squash ravioli contains only 290 calories. Hey! That's great, less than 300 calories for a meal! Uh, no. It contains 49 grams of carbs and when I only have 120-150 carbs per day, I can't afford something that high in Carb count.

We have to be careful of so-called healthy vegetables and fruits. Some have massive amounts of carbs for the little fiber contained in them so they are considered fat inducing. There are other veggies and fruits that are lower in carbs so you have to learn to make smart choices. There is definitely a learning curve to that!

On the other hand, I can eat as much meat, cheese and eggs as I want. They are so low in carb count and the body uses them more efficiently. However, some meats are higher than others and you have to be vigilant. I made a mistake with pork early on before I realized that.

There are a lot of people on a "keto diet". This diet tries to put the body as close to ketoacidosis as possible. I don't feel it's a sustainable diet as the body does need a certain amount of carbs to function. Low carbs isn't a diet, its actually a lifestyle so adjustments have to be made and it becomes the new normal. I feel a lot of other countries do low carbs a lot easier than US citizens as we live in the land of excess.

Sorry if I rambled on too long, its late here now and past my bedtime. I'll probably cringe if I read this again tomorrow

 

[seela]

Okay, you asked.

I'm sure you've seen this on packaged foods.
In the US and other countries, manufacturers are required to label foods with nutrition information. A certain basic amount of info is required, Serving size, Calories, and sugar, sodium, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, carbohydrates contents among others is listed in grams.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nutrition_facts_label

For years everyone was taught to count calories to control weight. Over the past few years, it has proven more effective for folks to limit carbohydrates for weight loss.

Simply put:
A calorie is used for the unit of measurement of energy contained in food.
A carbohydrate is the source of energy we put into our body.

It makes more sense to limit the amount put in since excess amounts are stored as fat (a relic from past eons where we needed it in case of famine) rather than limit oneself to foods with reduced energy output.

I can eat a food that is considered low calorie but it may have massive amounts of carbs which my body really doesn't need at the moment so it will store it as fat for later use. But like most modern persons, that famine stage never occurs so my body just stores more and more fat.

We have "Lean Cuisine" frozen meals here. A meal of butternut squash ravioli contains only 290 calories. Hey! That's great, less than 300 calories for a meal! Uh, no. It contains 49 grams of carbs and when I only have 120-150 carbs per day, I can't afford something that high in Carb count.

We have to be careful of so-called healthy vegetables and fruits. Some have massive amounts of carbs for the little fiber contained in them so they are considered fat inducing. There are other veggies and fruits that are lower in carbs so you have to learn to make smart choices. There is definitely a learning curve to that!

On the other hand, I can eat as much meat, cheese and eggs as I want. They are so low in carb count and the body uses them more efficiently. However, some meats are higher than others and you have to be vigilant. I made a mistake with pork early on before I realized that.

There are a lot of people on a "keto diet". This diet tries to put the body as close to ketoacidosis as possible. I don't feel it's a sustainable diet as the body does need a certain amount of carbs to function. Low carbs isn't a diet, its actually a lifestyle so adjustments have to be made and it becomes the new normal. I feel a lot of other countries do low carbs a lot easier than US citizens as we live in the land of excess.

Sorry if I rambled on too long, its late here now and past my bedtime. I'll probably cringe if I read this again tomorrow

So when you say one carb it means one gram of carbs? That's the part I've always been confused by, you using "carb" as a unit.

 

[gracie920101]

So when you say one carb it means one gram of carbs? That's the part I've always been confused by, you using "carb" as a unit.

Yes, that is the unit of measurement used on labels but you'll never hear people stating that here. The labels are confusing to most as the breakdown is listed as a portion of a typical 2,000 calorie meal. Since I'm not a nutritionist, I don't know how they arrive at the breakdown of each food but its definitely a handy guideline for ways to track intake of certain components.

BTW, I was right. My previous post is quite cringe worthy this morning.

 

[seela]

Yes, that is the unit of measurement used on labels but you'll never hear people stating that here. The labels are confusing to most as the breakdown is listed as a portion of a typical 2,000 calorie meal. Since I'm not a nutritionist, I don't know how they arrive at the breakdown of each food but its definitely a handy guideline for ways to track intake of certain components.

BTW, I was right. My previous post is quite cringe worthy this morning.

Interesting. Based on a quick search, here people who care about carbs seem to use "grams of carbs" and never just say 1 carb etc.

Here the breakdown is for "per 100 grams" of said thing but some products also seem to provide a number "per portion" and then these two are listed as percentages of some sort of daily intake. I don't really know, I pay way too little attention on what I eat.

 

[seela]

Today's lunch was more of the quiche from last night's dinner. Dinner will be beer, I think.

 

[Deleted member 3041612]

A Crockpot vegetable soup mixed with potatoes:
Minced garlic
Celery
Corn cut from the cob
Sweet peas
String beans
Small red potatoes
Vidalia onions thinly sliced
Tomato and basil pasta sauce
Cajun blackening seasoning


Steamed broccoli and string beans:
With butter, very little water, boullion seasoning, pepper

Lemon cake

I forgot the bay leaves for the soup...dang!

 

[FurryFury]

Veggie Baked Ziti

 

[seela]

Roasted celeriac soup with candy caps* on top.




*Gracie, it's a mushroom, I'll save you a google!

 

[gracie920101]

Roasted celeriac soup with candy caps* on top.




*Gracie, it's a mushroom, I'll save you a google!

Much appreciated!

Still googled so I can see what they look like. LOL

Pretty!

 

[TANSTAAFL58]

Yesterday's Star of the Thanksgiving dinner: Smoked Turkey Breasts

https://i.imgur.com/VpjEzvU.jpg

(Pumpkin Pie for Scale, three of them came to almost five pounds raw)

 

[seela]

Yesterday's Star of the Thanksgiving dinner: Smoked Turkey Breasts

https://i.imgur.com/VpjEzvU.jpg

(Pumpkin Pie for Scale, three of them came to almost five pounds raw)

Happy Thanksgiving, albeit a little late!

 

[seela]

Much appreciated!

Still googled so I can see what they look like. LOL

Pretty!

My weird ingredients are almost always a mushroom.

 

[soltiera]

My weird ingredients are almost always a mushroom.

Mine too! Today I made a Shaggy Mane risotto. Absolutely amazing. However, Roasted Celeriac soup with candy caps sounds delicious!

 

[seela]

Mine too! Today I made a Shaggy Mane risotto. Absolutely amazing. However, Roasted Celeriac soup with candy caps sounds delicious!

I always have to google mushroom names in English to make sure I'm speaking or the right mushroom. They have such weird names (in every language, it seems) that I always have to double check.

Shaggy manes are excellent! Sadly I haven't found many this year.

I was able to leave work early yesterday and the weather was beautiful, so I went mushroom picking. I found said candy caps, as well as a some more sheep polypore, two porcini and these mushrooms that apparently don't have a name in English, or at least I didn't find one quickly. It's a a fun mushroom, too. Tastes kinda like fresh peas.

 

[seela]

Currently baking a lingonberry pie. Nom nom.

 

[gracie920101]

Currently baking a lingonberry pie. Nom nom.

Jealous of your pie. We'll make a pecan pie next month.

Finally found a small(ish) quantity of xanthan gum so I'm going to attempt low carb linguini noodles today. Fingers crossed we will finally have a pasta substitute.

 

[seela]

Jealous of your pie. We'll make a pecan pie next month.

Finally found a small(ish) quantity of xanthan gum so I'm going to attempt low carb linguini noodles today. Fingers crossed we will finally have a pasta substitute.

Let us know how it turns out! Have you used xanthan before?

 

[MeekMe]

Jealous of your pie. We'll make a pecan pie next month.

Finally found a small(ish) quantity of xanthan gum so I'm going to attempt low carb linguini noodles today. Fingers crossed we will finally have a pasta substitute.

Dietary restrictions can be difficult to work with (I’ve been through weird dietary scenarios). Have you tried Shirataki or konnyaku (konjac root) as a possible stand in? The texture is quite chewy though. Maybe tofu noodles? I haven’t tried tofu noodles but I imagine they’re far less chewy.

 

[gracie920101]

Let us know how it turns out! Have you used xanthan before?

Never. But the recipe I'm going to use only has 3-4 ingredients (cheese is optional) so I don't think I can screw it up. I'll post a pic of the farfalle if it turns out. The dough is sauteed in olive oil rather than boiled.

Dietary restrictions can be difficult to work with (I’ve been through weird dietary scenarios). Have you tried Shirataki or konnyaku (konjac root) as a possible stand in? The texture is quite chewy though. Maybe tofu noodles? I haven’t tried tofu noodles but I imagine they’re far less chewy.

We tried the konjac root noodles. While my stomach rebelled, J just couldn't get past the texture so that was a fail. I haven't tried tofu noodles as it has konjac in it also.

 

[FurryFury]

Veggie soup!

 

[seela]

Vendace*, Hasselback potatoes**, leeks and chanterelles. Lingonberry pie from yesterday for dessert.

*) gracie, it's a tiny fish
**) gracie, it's a whole potato thinly sliced a bit over half way through so that it stays still together but fans out and then it's baked in the oven

 

[TANSTAAFL58]

Vendace*, Hasselback potatoes**, leeks and chanterelles. Lingonberry pie from yesterday for dessert.

*) gracie, it's a tiny fish
**) gracie, it's a whole potato thinly sliced a bit over half way through so that it stays still together but fans out and then it's baked in the oven

You forgot to add that Hasselback potatoes are highly addictive. Tonight: an old-school roast beef, garlic mashed potatoes (four boiled russets, one head of garlic)and maple syrup turnips. Pumpkin pie for dessert.

 

[gracie920101]

Vendace*, Hasselback potatoes**, leeks and chanterelles. Lingonberry pie from yesterday for dessert.

*) gracie, it's a tiny fish
**) gracie, it's a whole potato thinly sliced a bit over half way through so that it stays still together but fans out and then it's baked in the oven

* I had to go see what they looked like. Where I grew up we'd just call that bait.
** Hasselback is one of my favorite methods for potatoes.

 

[gracie920101]

You forgot to add that Hasselback potatoes are highly addictive. Tonight: an old-school roast beef, garlic mashed potatoes (four boiled russets, one head of garlic)and maple syrup turnips. Pumpkin pie for dessert.

Tell us more about maple syrup turnips.

 

[ultramarineblue]

I've made some bread and I'm trying to think of what else I'd like to cook today. Maybe baked chicken with various sides.