Starting weight (7/15/08):  279.8
Yesterday:  264.0  Today:  264.8
Change today:  -0.2   Loss-so-far: 15.0 lbs.

In yesterday’s comment, rach asked me to post the recipes for the Cheddar Bay biscuits and the broccoli casserole.  This is such an unfamiliar place for me because I generally do not cook, therefore nobody ever asks me for a recipe, ever!  It’s pretty cool! 

Okay, I got both the recipes from Linda’s Low Carb site, but I made little adjustments, so I’ll go ahead and post the recipes here.  Besides, it’s just really fun for me because the novelty hasn’t worn off yet.  =D 

Broccoli Cheese Casserole

1 batch Dottie’s Cream of Mushroom Soup (below)
24 ounces frozen broccoli florets
8 ounces cheddar cheese

Cook the broccoli until not quite tender; drain well. Mix all of the ingredients and bake at 350º 30 minutes until hot and bubbly.   Do not freeze.

Dottie’s Cream of Mushroom Soup

8 small mushrooms, chopped, 3 ounces
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 tablespoons onion, chopped, about 1 ounce
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper, to taste
Xanthan gum, optional 

In a medium skillet, sauté the mushrooms, celery and onion in the butter until soft. Add the broth and cream. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat a bit and cook until reduced and thickened, stirring frequently and watching closely so it doesn’t boil over. Season to taste.   Makes about 1 cup.  Do not freeze.

Okay, here’s my input:  8 oz. is a lot of cheese (2 cups)!  Look at the packages of cheese at the grocery store and find a medium or sharp cheese with zero carbs – and grate/shred it yourself!  All the pre-shredded ones that I found were about 1g carb per ¼ cup.  (I think they add some kind of preservative to it to keep the shredded cheese from getting mushy or lumpy.)  Kraft sells an 8 oz block of unshredded cheese that has zero carbs.  (I figure every little carb helps!)

Also… I don’t like mushrooms, so I left ‘em out (woohoo there’s almost 3 carbs deleted right there, hehe).  I used fresh broccoli instead of frozen (and cooked it first until it was almost tender).  I didn’t have Xanthan gum, so since it said optional, I didn’t worry about it – and I probably didn’t let the sauce reduce long enough, so my casserole was a bit soupy (but yummy nevertheless).  Also, I had some bacon on hand, so I tore up 4 thin slices (ready-made-microwave-slices) and threw that in there too (only added 0.3g carbs).  Oh, and I love almonds so I decorated the top with a few slivered almonds.

OMG do I sound like I know what I’m doing or what?!?!  ROFL!!!!

Okay, so made my way, here are the nutritional values for the broccoli cheese casserole: 

1 serving = 1/6 of recipe

Calories: 224 / Fat: 20.3g (Sat 12.3 Poly 1.0 Mono 6.0) / Protein: 7.2 / Carbs: 4.2g / Fiber: 1.3 / Net Carbs: 2.9

Cheddar Bay Biscuits (like the ones they serve at Red Lobster) 

2 cups Carbquik
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup cold butter, cut in small pieces
2 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup water 

Toss the Carbquik with the garlic powder. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry blender (or two knives) until it looks like coarse meal. Add the cheese. Very briefly and gently stir in the liquid just until the dough comes together. Do not overwork the dough. Drop by large mounded spoonfuls onto a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake at 450º 10-12 minutes until golden brown. 

Makes 12 biscuits - Can be frozen

These are best reheated (so the cheese melts again!).  Oven, toaster oven, or a few seconds in the microwave brings them back to delicious!

Per biscuit:

Calories: 157 / Fat: 14.5g (Sat 7.0 Poly 0.4 Mono 3.0) / Protein: 4.9 / Carbs: 6.3g / Fiber: 4.0 / Net Carbs: 2.3

Enjoy!

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