Low Carb Freedom

I blew my low carb diet...

My dad went into the hospital last week, and I reverted to eating carbs for the last 3 days. I feel lousy. I had headaches. And I'm tired.

Back on the wagon tomorrow. I have way too much to do to let this go on any longer. This is the key... get back on your normal eating habits.

My dad is going to be OK as far as what ailed him. However, three days in the hospital killed what little ability to walk he had left. He is 78.

Trader Joe's Indian Fare Palak Paneer

Like the TasbyBite Indian Vegetable packet, this Trader Joe's Indian Veggie dish is nice to have in the cupboard for those times when the fresh veggies you thought you had in the refrigerator have gone bad.

I won't quote what my husband said about this product when it came out of the packet. Let's just say that most Americans are not used to seeing this bright green spinach chopped up so much and having a sort of cream consistency -- at least the Americans living in this house. If you know the scene that Linda Blair, the actress, is famous for, you might get what he was aiming at.

I liked it. He said it was edible too. Not a bad comment after the shock of what came out of the package. Give it a shot and let me know what you think.

Again, like the TastyBite, most Indian Fare products from Trader Joe's have far too many carbs for Atkins' followers and the nutritional information is for half the package.

	Trader Joe's Indian Fare Palak Paneer
Serving Size	1/2 pack 150g.
Calories	160
Total Fat	12g
Saturated Fat	3g
Cholesterol	15mg
Sodium	860mg
Total Carbohydrates	7g
Dietary Fiber	1g
Sugar	0g
Protein	6g
Ingredients	Spinach, onions, paneer (whole milk, citric acid), tomatoes, cottonseed oil, green chili, ginger, garlic, salt, light cream, cumin, coriander, black pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, clove

TastyBite Jaipur Vegetables a once in a while treat

I have a lot of reviews to write about products that I have found at Trader Joe's recently, but TastyBite products are also available at lots of places like Albertson's, Whole Foods, etc.

They are interesting because they have a checklist on all the packages with the following facts: vegetarian, vegan, contain no gluten, no msg added, no preservatives, kosher, no refrigeration, 18 month shelf life. This particular product, the Jaipur Vegetables, is everything except vegan. I tell you, for something that lasts 18 months without refrigeration, this just proves that packaging and science is taking food processing to a whole new level. I'm sure the astronauts would be thrilled with these products.

Anyhow, all I had to do to heat this product was to throw the enclosed package into boiling water for 5 minutes. You can also nuke it, but you have to take it out of the package and put it into another container. I have a gas stovetop so it is just easier for me to heat up the water in a snap and put it in.

If you look at the ingredient list there are some things in this product that you shouldn't eat on Atkins in large quantities, but, by looking a the total carb count, you can see that they aren't present in great quantities: potatoes, green peas and carrots. And for a spicy treat, I would say that this would be OK to have once a week or so -- especially if you don't have any fresh veggies available or you want to eat some different types of veggies at work to heat up in the microwave quickly and easily.  It might have too high of a fat count for South Beach, depending on how you are following it. Just remember, the nutritional information below is for half the bag and not the whole bag.

Unfortunately, most of the TastyBite products are much higher in carbs and also come with rice. This was the best out of the bunch that I saw that my Trader Joe's carried.

	TastyBite Jaipur Vegetables Navratan Korma
Serving Size	1/2 pack 5 oz.
Calories	169
Total Fat	11g
Saturated Fat	3g
Cholesterol	3mg
Sodium	372mg
Total Carbohydrates	10g
Dietary Fiber	4g
Sugar	3g
Protein	7g
Ingredients	Water, tomatoes, potatoes, green peas, carrots, paneer cheese, french beans, cashewnuts, watermelon seeds, onions, sunflower oil, raisins, cream, salt, chiles, gingner, garlic, herbs & spices

Children on Low Carb Diets

Wow, a long, long time ago I was interviewed for a story about low carb kids and I just saw that it was published today, Dieting just for grown-ups? (I'm sure it had to do with the news that Clinton was putting out a program to fight childhood obesity... or maybe not.)

Anyhow, some of the facts are a little old. One, there are no more low carb Oreos, and two, the kids now eat the South Beach Carbwell Cereal Bars. Plus, we do eat Dreamfield's Pasta. Besides that-- it is a pretty good job of depicting what is actually happening when this parent put her kids on low carb.  (Some other little changes include the fact that the kids now prefer the Pepperidge Farm Carbstyle bread; I also put Sugar-Free Jello in the son's lunch and things like that.)

However, it doesn't state that I am doing a MUCH better job with my daughter than with my son. My daughter wants to listen and my son lives for white bread and everything that is unhealthy, and I give in too much. However, in case I am sounding too strict to some new people, please read this post "Is Low Carb Bad for Kids" for a full explanation!

And remember, if you are new to reading this site and you have an overweight child, the low sugar cereal put out by the major food companies doesn't help anyone! To read all of my low carb kids posts, click here and scroll down.

Great Barbecue in South Carolina

The barbecue sauce could have fewer carbs, but the best barbecue I have ever had is at The Pink Pig in the middle of nowhere in South Carolina near the Georgia border with Savannah. This barbecue is first rate and so reasonably priced that I could go vacationing in South Carolina just to visit this place. It actually beats the Yankee Smokehouse in NH. (And, no, I won't turn this into the war between the north and south!)

One room is bright, bright pink and has flying pink pigs hanging from the ceiling. Another room is bright, bright blue, but I didn't eat in that one so I couldn't pick out any distinguishable features, just the color. The place was immaculate!

1/2 lb. of ribs is $9, 1/2 bbq chicken is $6, and chopped bbq pork was $7. (I'm sure that prices are subject to change.) This comes with coleslaw, Brunswick Stew, and a roll. Some other platters come with hush puppies.

Just don't eat the roll or the hush puppies, of course!

The Pink Pig
Bryan's Pink Pig Bar-B-Que
Hwy. 170A Levy, South Carolina
843-784-3635

Eating Low Carb Ice Cream Out in Hilton Head and Around the Country

OK, I went on vacation in Hilton Head, and I had the pleasure to find an ice cream shop that served 92 flavors of ice cream -- and SIX of those flavors are always low carb! We were in Hilton Head for a week and my kids' favorite thing to do was go to the Frozen Moo in Coligny Plaza in Hilton Head. We even took pictures of kids in the store because they were so thrilled. (OK, OK, they were on vacation so I let them pick any flavor, but I could still eat low carb and splurge!)

The flavors that I got to try were:

• Chocolate Turtle (scrumptious!)
• Maui Coconut (Good)
• and I think Coffee Chip (scrumptious)

What is more, The Frozen Moo gets their ice cream from The Ice Cream Club. They supply ice cream shops all over the country, including California and Nebraska (none in Massachusetts though! (sigh)) Check here for the list of Ice Cream Club Stores.

The carb count varies by type of ice cream, of course. The ice cream is flavored with Splenda and has some sugar alcohols, polydextrose and glycerin, but for a treat, I'll take 'em! And if you could find a store that carried all of their flavors, you would get to choose one of these low carb ice cream flavors every time you went:

ALMOND JOY	COFFEE	MOCHA ALMOND FUDGE
AMARETTO ALMOND	COFFEE CHIP	PEANUT BUTTER
BANANA WALNUT	DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CHIP	PISTACHIO
BUTTER PECAN	FLORIDA ORANGE	STRAWBERRY
CARAMEL PECAN TWIST	MAPLE WALNUT	STRAWBERRY CHEESECAKE
CHOCOLATE	MAUI COCONUT	VANILLA
CHOCOLATE ALMOND	MINT CHIP	VANILLA FUDGE
CHOCOLATE CHIP	MISSISSIPPI MUD	VANILLA RASPBERRY CHIP

I've been away!

Folks,

I'm back! I've been away and had just too much to do lately. I'll be posting like mad over the next few days though.

Katherine