Menu Planning

Spring is a magical season. It feels fresh and new and like rebirth. Spring is filled with possibilities and motivation and a sense of anticipation. In Texas, spring is just a glorious three-day precursor to a miserable nine month extravaganza inside the humid oven we Texans like to lovingly call the Texas Gulf Coast. Join Susie T. Gibbs as she shares her top 10 tips for keeping your Spring meals low carb, light, and satisfying!

Spring radishes are a delicious vegetable to snack upon, should the afternoon munchies hit. They provide great crunch, especially if you clean them and store them in an ice-water bath in the fridge. This is a no-brainer “recipe” if you can call it that. The peppery bite of the radishes, along with the creamy sweetness of the butter and tang from the sea salt, makes this a very satisfying, wholly ketogenic!

The important point remains that whatever you eat first in the day must be low-carb and a good source of protein. This sets you up for a dramatically reduced appetite for the rest of the day. If you are, indeed, intermittently fasting, this is even more important since a reduced appetite makes the fast far more comfortable.

One of my earliest memories is of my mother planning menus. She'd sit down with the sales circulars from the nearby groceries and see what was on sale, chiefly checking to see what meats were cheap. Sometimes this meant we got something great like her Swedish meatballs, chicken teriyaki, or even steaks. Sometimes it meant we were stuck eating fish balls, or An Experiment Whose Name Must Not Be Mentioned.

Dana Carpender comes to the rescue with over 200 low-carb recipes perfect for backyard picnics and barbecues, from meats and side dishes to cocktails and desserts. This book also features all-new recipes for condiments, sauces, and marinades that can replace the sugar-laden store-bought varieties and allow the low-carber to enjoy previously forbidden foods. Over 200 Recipes for the Grill and Picnic Table.

For a long time, my tipple of choice has been dry red wine–Cabernet, Shiraz, Malbec, and the like, the dryer the better. Also, the occasional quality tequila sipped slowly. However, pleasant though they may be, neither of these falls into the “long, cool drink” category. I have, as the weather warmed up, found myself drawn back to the good, old-fashioned highball–a shot of liquor and a mixer over ice. I have come up with a few I enjoy tremendously, and thought I would share.