It is Labor Day, and you are low carbing. What do you do? Well, it depends if you have the Labor Day party in your backyard (lots of work but total control over the eats) or if you go slouch at a friend’s backyard (less work but little control over the eats.) Since your proclivities may vary from year to year, I’ll help you out with both situations.
Having It In Your Backyard
The trick to having a great Labor Day party is to think, grilling. What cooks on the grill? Meat, like chicken, hamburgers, hot dogs, bratwursts, kabobs, even fish. Try some of these spices to grill. What else? Veggies, like zucchini with butter and spices! If you do this, no one will even know that you are low carbing! You can also buy lots of naturally low carbohydrate food, which cuts down on the prep time. Some food can be made ahead, which saves your sanity on the day of the event.
Food that can be purchased:
Low Carb Tortilla Chips (Trader Joe’s or Deliciously Slim has the best!)
Fresh Marinated Mozzarella Balls (I love the huge 3 lb. Formaggio tub at Costco for about $11.)
Low Carb Crackers (Cheeters and CarboSave are two brands)
Assorted Cheeses (pub cheese, cheddar cheese, pepper jack cheese, limitless selection!)
Assorted Nuts
Black Olives
Marinated Mushrooms
Dishes that can be made ahead:
Low Carb 7-Layer Mexican Dip can be made the night before and lettuce, tomatoes added the day of the event.
Low Carb Pasta Salad, just use Dreamfield's or Mueller's with some salad dressing and some sliced pepper, etc.
Caesar Salad -- just wait to add the dressing, Cardini's is great! and naturally low carb!
Home grown tomatoes sliced thin and sprinkled with garlic salt and fresh parsley flakes, then refrigerated for an hour. Delicious!
Assorted Veggies: Cucumbers, Cauliflower, Peppers, and Mushrooms for a Crudités
Low Carb Salad Dressings for the Crudités
Desserts that can be made ahead.
How about berries? They are in season. Just add some whipped cream. (Made with Splenda, not sugar.)
And a little watermelon won't hurt either.
Drinks:
Have some regular beer, but also some Michelob Ultra or other low carb beer on hand. White wine or red wine is just fine. If you want a mixed drink, try some Fuze Slenderize or Tropicana Light Lemonade mixed with vodka or rum. Tastes like it has a million calories. You can even fool the girls or the guys with this one! Let them have a taste, and they will want one of their own.
Result:
No one is going to know that you are on a low carb diet! You can further enhance the charade by having some regular crackers and tortilla chips to serve for your guests. People will eat both, but you will know to only eat the non-white versions – the versions with the fiber.
Slouching in a Friend’s Backyard
OK, you have accepted an invitation at a friend’s house. You suspect that there is going to be lots of tempting high carb food. First order of business, ask the host what he or she will be serving so you can bring an appropriate dish. (This will give you insight as to how much food you need to bring or how full you need to be before you go.)
Second order of business, buy some pre-packaged low carb but appropriate snacks to bring as the housewarming gift. (Yes, you are supposed to bring a gift if you are invited to a party. Only this time try to make it one that you could use during the occasion!) For example, macadamia nuts and a Hickory Farm beef stick in a little bag might be nice. (Hopefully the host gets the hint to serve them right away!)
Third order of business, bring some wine or some low carb beer (You can bring some light beers if you don’t want to bring one specifically labeled low carb. For example, Miller Lite has 3.2 carbs per beer.)
Fourth order of business, choose one of the recipes above that you really like and bring that for the host to serve!
If you follow the above advice, you should be able to eat at least three or four things and also have a few drinks without blowing your diet and having your blood sugar soar.
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