Low Carb Cheese Stuffed Meat Loaf

I’ve made various keto and low-carb meat loafs over the years. This recipe represents a combination of my favorite elements of the many recipes I’ve tried. Bacon topped? Fresh mozzarella stuffed? Yes and yes, please! Sauteed mushrooms and shallots help keep the loaf moist. Give it a try and let me know how you like it!

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon olive oil

• 1 cup diced mushrooms (white or baby bella)

• 2 medium shallots, diced

• 1 tablespoon diced garlic

• 3/4 pound 85% lean ground beef

• 3/4 pound ground sausage (spicy, if you like!)

• 3/4 cup low-carb flour (I use: Bob’s Red Mill Paleo Flour)

• 1/2 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

• 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning (or make your own mix with of some or all of the following: dried basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme, sage)

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

• 2 eggs

• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

• 8 oz. package fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese (I use: BelGioioso Cheese Mozzarella Fresh Sliced)

• 12 oz. package center cut bacon

• Sugar Free Marinara Sauce

How to Make It

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 8x8 baking dish.

2. Saute mushrooms, shallots and garlic until soft (5-8 minutes).

3. Mix together the ground beef, pork, Parmesan cheese and dry ingredients. Use your hands — they really are the best tool for this step!

4. Mix in the eggs and Worcestershire sauce.

5. Layer as follows into a meatloaf pan or 9x9 baking dish: spread half the meat mixture in the pan, add a layer of sliced mozzarella, cover the cheese with remaining meat mixture, and top with a layer of sliced bacon.

6. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 70-80 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160 degrees.

7. Warm marinara sauce (microwave or stove top) while loaf cools for five minutes.

8. Cut the loaf into 6 or 9 servings, depending how hungry ya’ll are. And pour sauce over. Enjoy!

Roasted Asparagus with Red Pepper Puree

This so easy roasted asparagus with red pepper puree is incredibly delicious! I promise you it is truly one of the best side dishes ever! Please give it a try and bring your comments.

How to Make It

Toss asparagus with fresh minced garlic in olive oil and roast in the oven at 400 (f) for about 15 minutes, turning occasionally. For the red pepper puree, I used my emersion blender to blend about 1 cup of roasted red peppers, 1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic and salt to taste. This will definitely be a regular dish in our household!

Garlic & Herb Butter Roasted Chicken

Winter Sunday (football) night Garlic & Herb Butter Roasted Chicken. I love how the smell fills the house — feels a bit festive as we enter into the holiday week. Happy Holidays, everyone!

Ingredients

• 6 lb. Whole Chicken

• 1 medium yellow onion

• 1 stick butter, softened

• 1 tablespoon minced garlic

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh Italian parsley

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh basil

• 1 Teaspoon finely chopped fresh oregano

• 1/2 lemon

• About 2 cups of room temp water

How to Make It

1. Preheat oven to 375%

2. Throw out the giblets, etc. and thoroughly rinse the chicken with child water. Pat dry with paper towels. Tuck the wings under the bird and, using cooking twine, tie the legs together.

3. Peel the onion and cut into quarters. Loosley separate and divide around the bottom of the baking dish.

4. Mix together the butter, garlic and herbs. Using a spoon, carefully separate the skin from the meat and spread half of the butter mixture between the skin and meat. Spread the remaining mixture over the skin — inside and out all over the bird.

5. Squeeze the half lemon over the bird. Cut in half and add to the bottom of the baking dish.

6. Roast the chicken for 40 minutes. Then add a half cup of water to the dish and continue roasting for another 20 minutes.

7. My bird started to brown a bit too much at that point, so I added an aluminum foil tent over the bird and continued to cook another 20 minutes.

8. Remove the chicken when a thermometer registers 160 degrees. It should go up to 165 as you let it rest for 20 minutes.

Carve it up and chow down! I’m making low-carb chicken potpies with the leftovers for dinner tomorrow night. :)

The "Everything" Open Melt Roast Beef Sando

I’ve been making these open melt sandwiches for Michael as we continue to work from home and they sure are perfect for a winter in Tahoe. I mix up the flavors, but this one is Michael’s favorite. That blend of… well, everything-ness… is quite yummy!

Ingredients:

• Sliced Sour Dough

• Garlic Herb Spreadable Cheese (I used President Rondele from Safeway)

• 1/4 to 1/3 lb. deli fresh roast beef

• Thinly sliced white or yellow onion — I used about 2 tablespoons very thinly sliced

• half ripe avocado, sliced

• 3 slices crispy bacon, halved

• 4 slices of sharp cheddar cheese

Layer as follows:

1. Spread bottom layer of sliced sour dough with Garlic & Herb Cheese Spread

2. Layer fresh deli roast beef, then…

3. Layer thinly sliced onion over the beef, and then…

4. Layer the onions with avocado slices…

5. Top with crispy bacon, and…

6. Finally, layer slices of sharp cheddar cheese!

Oh… and I drizzle a little olive oil over the top slice of bread. Place these in the oven on a cookie tray on the low setting of “broil” for about 3-4 minutes (or just “broil” and watch closely if your oven doesn’t have a “low” and “high” setting). Enjoy!

Audibles Onion Rings

Ok. Every now and then — it’s splurge time. Check out these oh so good fried onion rings! Audibles is our favorite Tahoe sports bar. And they have great food! These rings are the best!!