Dark Wings, Dark Words, Light Meat

It's Back!! Winter is Coming and it Came... and went... and with it, Spring... and a new season of Game of Thrones.

So after the Red Wedding...

And the Mother of Dragons liberating the slaves of Mereen...

It's time for Mysha and I to feed our children... and prepare for the premiere tonight!

As Mereen seems like a combination of Africa, Morocco, and the Middle East, a little flavor is in order. (We're not into mutton here, so chicken is going to suffice!)

Myhsa's Pyramid Chicken
Set crockpot on high for 30 mins and added:
juice of half lime (other half for slaw dressing)
juice of half an orange
rind from most of orange in large sections
1/2 c wine (yes, WINE... the water of Westeros and Essos across the Narrow Sea.)
1/2 c chicken broth
1/4 c Xylitol... Splenda or sugar if you like
Allow to heat up, stir.

Browned package of bone in chicken thighs, using sesame oil

 Turn and brown both sides

 Turned and crisped the chicken

Then added to crockpot, setting to low for 6 hours

Dothraki Sea Grass Slaw
Assembled a coarse slaw, using a broccoli slaw mix and red peppers, diced
Dressing:
1/2 c mayo (or other)
1/2 c leftover low carb teriyaki sauce (could use regular bottled)
juice of half a lime
1/4 diced cilantro
2 pkts Splenda

Whisk and then toss with slaw, refrigerate until later.

Now Dessert....Second Son Daario's Gift... also known as these other 2 are, ahem, short lived for the series

This part is fun and easy.... get some pikes...because you gotta have pikes!

 Get some strawberries

 Spike them. (I used a heavy glass candle holder with a chunk of styrofoam to hold the berries in place.

 Melt some chocolate (micro at 50% power in 30 second increments)
Then dip and put in fridge to chill/set.

Once chicken is done cooking/crockpot dings/you just can't take it any longer - remove chicken and peppers to platter.

 Turn crockpot up to high and add half a block of cream cheese, cut into chunks. Curse the gods, old and new and even the drowned god, because the picture LOOKS oriented correctly in preview, loads to blogger sideways. Even save anew.

 Ser Barristan mislikes this breach in formalities.

Sprinkle on 1TBSP guar guam and whisk until thick and creamy.

 Drizzle sauce over chicken

 Pour a little wine or Targaryen "Fire and Blood" ale (from World Market)

 Fit for a queen, no royal testers needed!

The Cold War is Over...

Red meat....and crockpot heat

Combine:
2 C beef broth
Sprinkle generous amounts of garlic powder and seasoning like Bouquet Garni
2+lbs of stew meat, or other cut up into chunks

Set on high for 4 hours, time enough to engage in some international espionage

Once back in the mother country, add either 1 TBSP guar gum (0 carb) or a cornstarch slurry (carbs)

This thickens the juices into gravy...

... then add 1 C cream cheese and 1 C sour cream... stir....

into creamy goodness....

Make up some faux taters.... chop up a head of cauliflower, steam for 8 mins on high.

Once soft, mash using an immersion blender (or mash/mixer - whatever tools you have)

 With noodles (carbs)..... and with faux tatoes (low net carbs)...

and remember, cauli taters are as Russian as Ahnold

Austrian Style Goulash

I pay no attention whatever to anybody's praise or blame. I simply follow my own feelings.- Mozart

Let's cook something with some Austrian flair

Goulash (slow cooked beef with paprika)

I mixed one small can tomato sauce
2 cups beef broth
4 pkts sweetener (stevia in this case)
1 small onion, sliced
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp ground pepper (black or color blend fine)
3 TBSP Paprika... I used Hungarian... because that is what I have.
Whisk into a slurry in the crockpot

Add in sliced onion and beef (I used stew beef, 2 @1+lb packages)

Set crockpot for HIGH for 4 hours, rock away

Once it was done cooking, I added 1TBSP guar gum to thicken. You could use a corn starch slurry instead. Serve with noodles, rice, spaetzle... in a low carb house, it's broccoli.

Everyone has a critic.... 2 out of my 3 critics gave it a thumbs up... I think it just didn't harmonize with that one's box of pop tarts before dinner.... 

Pack leftovers into lunch sized containers for "Grab and Go" mornings

Don't Badger Me Right Now

New Year, New Direction... for both myself and my blog. I've decided to go back on a low carb diet/lifestyle/penance: Choose your label, but since I do the cooking -

The bf is on board...

...the kids, die hard carnivores to be sure, are not convinced.

There's been talk of a "secret", carb-tastic stash for them hidden in the house... but I fear this would be a bad idea... I am weak.

Italian Beef - start with a cheap roast (as cheap as red meat is these days!)

Add 2 cups beef broth, liberal amounts of italian seasoning and pepper. I've always used a pkt of Italian seasoning - it adds the salt too. Optional is part of a jar of pepperoncini or pepper rings and some of the juice. Adds some warmth and tang.

Cook on high for 4 hours, then low for 4. Shred and serve sprinkled with cheese. Sorry for lack of photos. My camera got a new memory card for Christmas...

Steak tacos - I grab cheap, clearance steaks for this one.

Slice 2 green peppers into strips

Layer steaks in pressure cooker or crock pot, sprinkle liberally with southwest or Adobo seasoning, garlic powder, and onion powder.

 Add sliced green peppers

Add 3 cups of water to pressure cooker and set for 30 mins on high (1-2 cups in crockpot, set on high for 4 hours). Once cooked, shred. For us non carbers, we layered the meat and peppers on beds of romaine and iceberg lettuces with cheese, sour cream, and salsa. There was a tense moment when the boys got out the tortillas, but I was able to convince the bf it would be ok...

Disclaimer: I am not advocating for the low carb lifestyle, nor am I healthcare professional of any kind. I've done low carb before with great success, fell off the wagon and have been dragging behind that wagon for the last 18 mos.

My jeans are tight and I'm crabby.... I'm still all about my crockpot, prepping more than one meal at a time, and keeping dinner time important.