Quick low carb meal ideas?

[Saeleofu]

So kind of a follow-up of the healthy living thread. The more I read the more I want to do low-carb, but a sustainable low-carb. I have plenty of lunch/dinner and even snack ideas, but I'm really failing on breakfast ideas.

I haven't officially started yet, but I have been trying to just eat less carbs the last few days. Today for dinner I had salad with cheese and tuna and a pickle (my mom made noodle soup with bread on the side and then complained that my dad ate too much bread and should have eaten more noodles *sigh*). For lunch I had some cheese and a pickle (wasn't really hungry).

But breakfast? I don't have time to cook in the morning. I *might* be able to get away with popping something in the microwave to heat up, but that's it. I'm not a fan of eggs, but I can force down a cold hard-boiled egg once in a while, and I like cooked-to-death scrambled eggs...but not cold. I'd really rather not eat breakfast, but I have to eat with my meds. Right now it's usually a granola bar or an Ensure or something like that.




ETA: Also for those of you who eat low-carb, how many carbs do you eat in a day?

 

[CaliTerp07]

My breakfast is almost always fruit & yogurt. I'll grab a banana to eat in the car on the way to work, and then around 9:30/10:00 I'll grab the yogurt out of my lunch and it will tide me over until lunch time. The yoplait delights and whips are deeeeeeelicious. Red velvet cake and chocolate mousse are my favorites.

 

[Saeleofu]

My breakfast is almost always fruit & yogurt. I'll grab a banana to eat in the car on the way to work, and then around 9:30/10:00 I'll grab the yogurt out of my lunch and it will tide me over until lunch time. The yoplait delights and whips are deeeeeeelicious. Red velvet cake and chocolate mousse are my favorites.

Well that's another breakfast I'd generally have, but it's not really low-carb.

 

[CaliTerp07]

Well that's another breakfast I'd generally have, but it's not really low-carb.

Oh Shows what I know. Carbs = bread to me. I guess I should do better research.

 

[Saeleofu]

A banana has about 27 grams of carbs (3 of which are fiber), and Yoplait red velvet (my favorite also lol) has 19 grams. I'm pretty sure 46 grams is more than you should get in a day, let alone a meal.

I did find some Carbwatch yogurt at the store that has 4g of carbs, though. I forgot to look what sweeteners it had.

 

[Dreeza]

greek, unflavored yogurt is much more lo-carb. If I eat it, i mix in flavored protein powder for flavor (otherwise everything else pretty much adds carbs)

Now I make crockpot eggs...eggs + spinach + ground beef (with seasonings that you would put in if you were to make breakfast sausage). You can add whatever you like...and you can cook the eggs really overdone if thats how you like them. I make enough for like 2 weeks & freeze half. Then I just scoop some out (from the refrigerated portion) & pop it in the microwave for a minute in the mornings, so it is super quick.

 

[Romy]

If you can make time for an omelet, scrambled eggs with fresh spinach and feta is pretty delicious.

BACON.

Fish fillet. Like swai or trout pan fried. You could cook them ahead of time and then microwave them for breakfast if you don't have time to cook. You could also throw a little salsa on for veggies and flavor, but I like them plain.

 

[Saeleofu]

Bacon, I don't know why I didn't think of that lol. I generally buy the pre-cooked and eat it cold anyway lol

 

[Dekka]

Bacon is good. You can can also cook ahead.

oopsie bread (just google to find recipes) isn't very bread like but it is delicious and low carb. I made them in a little muffin tin and they look like they would last a few days (if you didn't eat them all) Frittatas can also be made in muffin tins to eat on the go.

I found since I started adding a dollop of heavy cream to my tea I am not hungry at breakfast. So on days where I am out the door early (like for school) I eat my first food at 11am and its often lunch.

 

[dignity]

Breakfast idea for you

Spray 1 12oz or larger mug with cooking spray
Mix in mug until well blended
2 eggs (or egg substitute) and 2Tbsp milk
Put in microwave for 45 seconds
Top with 2Tbsp cheese, dash of salt and pepper if desired

 

[release the hounds]

smoothie

coconut milk
fresh or frozen berries
raw eggs (free range organic)
a scoop or two of nut butter
a little vanilla

if using fresh berries, use a cube or two if ice, if frozen, skip the ice.

add good protein powder, but check labels. Most have garbage in them that kind of defeats the purpose of using them so I usually avoid them.

 

[Miakoda]

I'm always rushed in the mornings as well. Because of this, I will make a smoothie the night before and freeze it (make sure the cup, etc. is freezable). As soon as I get up, I remove it from the freezer. By the time I'm on my way out the door (1 1/2 hrs later) it's ready for eating/drinking.

For what it's worth, my mom has always made scrambled eggs in the microwave. I'm not a big egg person so I only cook them for my boys (the texture gets me).

When I do eat eggs, I'll make a patty thingy and take a slice of precooked Canadian bacon and a slice if cheese and heat it up. Then I just add that to the egg and eat it. Kinda like an Egg McMuffin without the muffin.

But other than that......I dunno know. In college, a dietary analysis I had to do on myself for 5 months showed then that 77% of my diet was carbs, 13% was protein, and 10% was fat. Of course I was playing soccer and working out/practicing an average of 6 hours a day, but still. Lol. I had 10% body fat and weighed 105 lbs. Alas, tis no more.

 

[Saeleofu]

I only have 15 minutes from the time I get up to the time I'm out the door, and another 15 minutes driving

I did make some oopsie bread tonight. First batch was not that great - doable, but dry. I didn't have a muffin tin so I made them "cookie style" lol. The next batch I made double recipe and poured it all into a cookie sheet, and added an extra egg (our chickens aren't laying quite full-sized large eggs yet). I also added a tad bit more splenda and they're AMAZING. I just cut the entire thing into 12 pieces. It's much more moist, almost cheesecake-like but not as strong of a flavor. Mmmmmm!

I ate 44 carbs today, which is MUCH MUCH MUCH less than usual, and without even trying too hard (I made my own dinner since we just had reheated "soup from last night" - I made fish and steamed vegetables, my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE <3).

raw eggs (free range organic)

We have our own chickens and thus our own eggs, but there's still no way I'm going to eat/drink raw eggs. Ewwwwwieeeeeeeeeeeeeee

 

[release the hounds]

you're missing out on an almost perfect drink that is very good tasting. Really it is tasty and with coconut milk and some good almond butter, it's a smooth tasty way to start a day, or lunch, or dinner. My wife wouldn't drink them knowing they're in there either, so I make them when she's in the shower. She doesn't have a clue.

I gotta ask why the hesitance to use a raw egg, but no problem adding extra splenda? a chemical additive from the family of chemicals shown to decrease GI flora, lower metablolic rates, lower core body temps, stimulate hunger, cause an overall increase in calorie consumption throughout the day, overall weight gain, fat percentage increase and pretty much the opposite of what they market it to be?

 

[Miakoda]

I never figured out why it's ok to drink raw eggs but not eat the raw cookie dough.......

Lol

 

[smkie]

My breakfast is almost always fruit & yogurt. I'll grab a banana to eat in the car on the way to work, and then around 9:30/10:00 I'll grab the yogurt out of my lunch and it will tide me over until lunch time. The yoplait delights and whips are deeeeeeelicious. Red velvet cake and chocolate mousse are my favorites.

We eat a lot of those. Hyia loves the chocolate mouse and I am a fan of the rich and creamy. I like to put a couple dark chocolate bits and some pecans into the boston cream and stir it up.
Yogurt is good stuff.

 

[Renee750il]

you're missing out on an almost perfect drink that is very good tasting. Really it is tasty and with coconut milk and some good almond butter, it's a smooth tasty way to start a day, or lunch, or dinner. My wife wouldn't drink them knowing they're in there either, so I make them when she's in the shower. She doesn't have a clue.

I gotta ask why the hesitance to use a raw egg, but no problem adding extra splenda? a chemical additive from the family of chemicals shown to decrease GI flora, lower metablolic rates, lower core body temps, stimulate hunger, cause an overall increase in calorie consumption throughout the day, overall weight gain, fat percentage increase and pretty much the opposite of what they market it to be?

Gotta agree with you, but most people won't touch raw eggs for fear of salmonella. When I was bodybuilding I probably averaged about 3 dozen eggs every two weeks -- most of them raw in some sort of blended shake.

With people telling me I was going to die of salmonella on a constant basis.

 

[Dekka]

I have eaten cookie dough all my life (I am not a fan of cookies, but cookie dough rocks) and never gotten sick.

You can get pasturized raw egg in a carton.

The science on splenda is varied. The newer stuff says that sucralose does NOT raise insulin levels and only encourages some people to eat more calories. (as some studies show it increases people's desire for sweet things, and others show that it satisfies cravings so they eat less) Over on r/keto it seems that most people can have sucralose and stay in ketosis and not crave sweet things, but some can't. It kicks some people out of keto as well as there are those who find it kicks of cravings.

Luckily I am one of those people who can use sucalose to satisfy the desire for sweet and it doesn't' kick me out of keto. That said I don't use splenda as it tastes weird compared to straight sucralose, and the filler is full of carbs.

 

[Dekka]

We eat a lot of those. Hyia loves the chocolate mouse and I am a fan of the rich and creamy. I like to put a couple dark chocolate bits and some pecans into the boston cream and stir it up.
Yogurt is good stuff.

Its good stuff if you aren't trying to go low carb. Sadly its one of the foods I have had to give up till I am at a happy weight. Though it is one of the foods I will be reintroducing on occasion once I am done. Though not as much as before.

 

[Doberluv]

Most of my breakfasts are a smoothie that I make in my Vita mix which may contain as an example...items vary a little bit:

about 1/4 raw beet,
a carrot or two,
1/4 yellow squash,
1/4 red pepper,
few florets of cauliflower or broccoli or cabbage,
large handful of spinach or kale,
a banana,
an apple,
maybe an apricot,
blue berries or strawberries,
little almond milk or vanilla yogurt,
couple big tsp crushed flax seed,
protein powder.

It makes two tall smoothies and I'll save one for another time. Because there's enough fruit in it, you don't even know there are veggies in there other than it's sometimes a little pithy. lol. But that doesn't bother me. If I add more almond milk or soy milk, it makes it less so. It tastes almost like a fruity milk shake but I'm getting all kinds of veggies too. Those and the fruits are loaded with healthy antioxidants and vitamins etc. It's not all about carbs to me, personally. It's about other nutrients and health benefits.

a couple times a week I might make a couple eggs, possibly a small slice of cheese and no toast anymore with that usually. I often add some red or green pepper, a bit of onion and maybe some tomatoes or salsa, although that usually has a lot of sodium. Once in a while for a treat, a piece of toast with peanut or almond butter.

Lunch and dinners might be some homemade soup I already have made. I make a bunch and freeze it. Soups are usually pea, some other kind of bean soup with a lot of veggies in it, turkey soup, lentil soup sometimes. I might have a piece of salmon or some other kind of fish, but more often salmon. I try to get oily fish 3 times a week. Always more veggies with that. Always cooked rather plainly...not much into sauces or creamy stuff and steamed, not boiled! Chicken, pork...again, cooked without fatty, greasy sauces. And about the size of a deck of cards. I love stir fry veggies (not too high heat) with some chicken or shrimp, pork in it. No noodles usually...just once in a while for a treat. The bean type soups I often use a ham shank for making good stock and the meat is yummy, although smoked meats are full of carcinogens... nitrates etc...very bad for you. But I use them once in a while anyhow.

Snacks might include a handful of nuts or an apple, carrots or celery, cauliflower. No dip. Brazil nuts and coconut have selenium which we tend to be deficient in easily. Sometimes a few thin slices of cheese or peanut butter in a celery stalk. I love peanut butter. It's so bad, but it's so good. lol.

I take fish oil a few times a day along with some other supplements, extra vit D.

These are just examples. But since the holidays began and even before, I've been so rotten, eating all kinds of terrible things. I think I gained about 5 or 7 lbs. And I'm soooo p.o'd! Now I must get back to what it was that made me lose weight and feel great! lol.

There may be some carbs but I am not about to cut out all carbs or stop eating fruit…don’t believe in extremes or eliminating something natural that I think my body needs or that is healthy and enjoyable in other ways. But I do cut out the kind that come from breads, rice, noodles, pastries, cookies, cakes…stuff like that other than for a special treat once in a while.

I don't know how quick these things are, now that I look at it. But most of these things you can prep ahead of time. Even the ingredients for the smoothies one could cut up and put in an air tight container, then blend up later. The soups of course can be made ahead, frozen and thawed and re-heated in a jiffy. Stir fry takes a while because I don't like to use high heat for most things but the chopping can be done ahead of time.