Baked or Grilled Garlic Asparagus

In the summertime, one of the best vegetable side dishes you can serve with a steak is grilled asparagus. It's so easy to cook, and when done right, tastes so delicious. This simple recipe all pair wonderfully with your favourite slow carb recipes, especially steak or chicken recipes. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Ingredients

• Asparagus stalks (bend them near the root end, and where they naturally crack, you can cut and dispose of the bottoms)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• a few cloves of garlic (to taste)
• 2 tsp dried rosemary
• salt and pepper (to taste)

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 F.
2. Crush/dice the garlic.
3. Mix the seasonings and garlic into the olive oil in a small bowl.
4. Place the asparagus on a baking tray, and spoon the olive oil mixture over it. Move around to try to coat as much as possible.
5. Cover the baking tray with a lid or aluminum foil, and bake for about 10 minutes. This will help steam the asparagus.
6. After 10 minutes, remove the lid/foil and continue baking for another 5-10 minutes to crisp the edges of the asparagus and garlic. For faster browning, you can try using the broiler for a few minutes, but pay close attention to it!

Options and recommendations

As an alternative to baking in the oven (especially in the hot summer weather!), I love cooking my asparagus on the grill alongside my steaks. You can toss the vegetables with the olive oil mixture ahead of time, and then place the stalks individually on a cooler section of the BBQ. If you do this method, you might also want to consider using an oil with a higher smoke point, as olive oil tends to burn at the high temps of your grill. Try a bit of canola oil or grapeseed oil if you wish!

Slow Carb Breakfast Burrito Recipe

When you're trying your best to stick to an honest slow carb diet, sometimes you get into a groove of repeated the same recipes over and over, and they end up getting boring.  In the worst case, they make it easier for you to be less diligent on your diet, and you may cave in and eat something you shouldn't.  To avoid this, sometimes it is a good idea to change things up.

Slow Carb Chicken Strips

Being on a slow carb diet doesn't necessarily mean that you have to give up some of your favorite comfort foods!  Sometimes, we have craving for sweets or deep-fried goodness that don't at all feel like they deserve a place in any diet plan.  But, that doesn't have to be the case!  With a few smart tweaks to conventional recipes, you can prepare dishes that will still be within the rules of your diet and will satisfy your craving.  As a bonus, this recipe will even be loved by your kids, so you can stick to your diet and satisfy them at the same time!  This recipe for slow carb chicken strips that I have here I found on the Slow Carb Foodie website.  The crunch of these chicken tenders will totally hit the spot, and when paired with other slow carb diet foods, such as black beans and broccoli, or this low calorie edamame and carrot salad, you'll have a wonderful meal that you won't feel guilty about eating!

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts, skinless and boneless, cut into strips
• 1 cup almond flour
• 1 egg
• sea salt
• black pepper
• your preferred seasoning (e.g. chili powder, paprika, oregano, cumin... whatever you like!)

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven's broiler on it's high setting.
2. Cut the large chicken breasts into appropriately sized fingers / strips.
3. Add and mix the almond flour, sea salt, black pepper, and other seasonings (use as much or as little as you like!) to a large dish or Ziplock bag.  Use something that has enough room to shake / move things around.  Don't use a small bowl or you will make a mess!
4. Break the egg into a bowl and beat it.
5. Dip the chicken strips into the beaten egg to coat it well.
6. Transfer the chicken to the seasoning bag or container, and shake or mix to coat it well with the seasoning mixture.
7. Place the chicken on a pan, and then put the pan in the oven beneath the broiler.
8. Broil for 10 minutes, then remove the pan, flip the chicken, and broil for another 5 minutes or so.  The chicken is done when the coating begins to brown nicely.
9. Remove from the oven and serve with your favorite dipping sauces or condiments (slow carb friendly, of course!)

Options and Recommendations:

Almond flour works well for this recipe, but feel free to try any other nut flour to replace the regular flour or cornstarch that you would normally use.

Lentils with Kale and Chicken

Here's a new recipe for your slow carb cookbook that was passed to me for slow carb lentils with kale and chicken that is perfect for a slow carb diet. It only has a few ingredients, but it still makes for a delicious and satisfying slow carb meal.

Chicken and Romano Beans

This recipe is a simple one, but a wonderful one.  Basically throw everything in the pan, and let it cook...  doesn't get any simpler than that!  This recipe for Chicken and Romano Beans is perfect for a slow carb diet, will leave you feeling full and satisfied after the meal, and doesn't take that long to prepare!

Slow Carb Chicken and Black Beans

This slow carb recipe is one of the simplest I've made.  All you need are onions, beans, and chicken, and a couple of different spices.  High in protein from the chicken, the caloric bulk from the black beans gives you plenty of energy, and the fiber from the beans won't leave you craving more (junk) food an hour later.