Is This Too Good To Be True? Low Carb Bisquick?

I haven't used regular flour in years. In the past I had purchased Atkins baking mix and other low carb baking mixes to make pancakes, but the taste was so bad I have since moved exclusively to nut flours and given up on making pancakes. Every once in a while, my husband gets some Bisquick and makes pancakes for the kids. Well, I'm off on a great adventure, I'm going to try some Carbquick Bake Mix from netrition.com. They are having a sale this week where a 3 lb. box is only $9.99.

I still wouldn't have purchased it, except I did go through the hundreds of posts on a bulletin board (but not all of them) and didn't find a report that people had gained weight after using it. (Always, always, watch your own scale! Everyone is different!)

That same bulletin board has a ton of Carbquick recipes for the stuff. Normally, I would try the product before talking about it, but the sale stops next Friday, and that $1 off can go towards flat fee of $4.95 to ship any size order.

I've also read that it makes a great roux! Now, I've used Thick'nThin Not Starch in the past, but this sounds as though it works much better. (You can't use too much Thick'n Thin or it dulls the flavor of whatever you are cooking.) For those of you who don't know, you make a roux to make sauces or thicken stews, etc.

So, I'm buying Carbquick (click here if you want to try Carbquick) and I'll give a full report. If my son can eat lower carb pancakes or I can make a good roux*, I'll be happy.

If I can make a real chicken pot pie or a streussel (sometimes), I'll be in heaven! If you try it, please let me know your results!

*(A roux is used to thicken gravies, soups, and sauces. You use equal parts fat (I use butter) to equal parts flour and cook over medium heat until it thickens. To make a sauce, you add the cool liquid to the roux. If you already have a hot soup, then allow the roux to cool and then add it to the hot liquid. And if it gets too many lumps, always dump it into the Cuisinart, it may work wonders!) 

Caray, a reader who always gives insightful comments, had this to say:

I have tried the carbquik.  It's ok. It doesn't taste exactly like
bisquick, so if people are looking for that, be aware. But how many truly
low carb alternatives do? However, I have found the taste of some of the
things I've made to be acceptable.

I didn't care for the pancakes I made with it, or the pizza crust (recipes
on the box) but others I've talked to did like it, so it could just be a
matter of differing tastes.  I found the "cheddar bay biscuits" I made with
it were pretty good... again, not exactly the same, but pretty good.

It will be interesting to find out if my kids like the pancakes! If anyone else has tried it, please comment as well!

Comments

[Caray]

I have tried the carbquik. It's ok. It doesn't taste exactly like bisquick, so if people are looking for that, be aware. But how many truly low carb alternatives do? However, I have found the taste of some of the things I've made to be acceptable.

I didn't care for the pancakes I made with it, or the pizza crust (recipes on the box) but others I've talked to did like it, so it could just be a matter of differing tastes. I found the "cheddar bay biscuits" I made with it were pretty good... again, not exactly the same, but pretty good.

[Bruce]

Just passing through. Here's a simple recipe for low carb pancakes.

2 egg yolks
2 egg whites
4 oz cream cheese.

Mix the yolks and cream cheese together. Whip the egg whites until peaks start to form and fold them into the other mixture. Fry in butter. Watch them carefully because they brown very quickly. These make very fluffy pancakes. If you want to make them more substantial, you can add 1/3 cup of wheat protein isolate to the yolk/cheese mixture.

I try to avoid low carb products whenever possible. This is the only recipe I have that optionally uses wpi. I think you'll like it. If you'd like to see some of my recipes, my site is: http://www.geocities.com/recipesbybruce/Recipes_By_Bruce.html

[Nancy Beck]

I've been using Carbquik for quite a while now. I'm very pleased with it. I've been converting Bisquick recipes to be used with Carbquik, and most of them come out very nice. Yes, there have been a few things that haven't been that good. I'm not very happy with the cut biscuits I've tried, but the Cheddar Bay Biscuits come out very nice. Desserts seem to come out great with a few tweaks. Carbquik seems to require more butter than a similar Bisquick recipe or the end product can be a bit too dry so that's something to think about when using it. I've also found that Carbquik can be a bit salty, so I generally use unsalted butter when using it in a recipe. I've tried thickening gravy with it but didn't have great success. I think it's real strong point is for baking purposes, just like the Bisquick that it's copying.

One last thing...I've had no problem with weight gain while using Carbquik.

[Daryl Harris]

I tried Carbquick a few months ago. I agree that is not exactly like Bisquick, but for me it is very close. I really like the recipes that are on the box and the website. I like the chocolate chip cookies, cheddar cheese biscuits, pizza dough (I used it to make a quiche and stuffed pizza breadsticks), waffles, cinnamon buns and pancakes. I did not like the brownies. There are several people doing low carb where I work, and so I take samples in. The cookies are an unqualified success. The cinnamon buns were well received. In all fairness I must report that while I like the product, my wife finds that everything made with it has an unpleasant aftertaste. Still, I highly recommend trying Carbquick. It seems to be a very versitile and useful product.

Oh yeah, I have seen slight weight gain while using it. (I suppose I should not eat the entire 40+ cookies I make with it in one sitting!) If I am reasonable and actually watch the carbs, it seems to have little to no effect on my weight.

[get lost]

This is the dumbest recipe ever. Horrible, nice and fluffy? Yeah right.....