Carbohydrates

  • Breakfast, Food

    A protein start to the day

    They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I look to get the best start possible in the easiest way possible. I have the same thing every week day so I do not have to think about what I am doing (I am not the best as early rising and mostly brain dead until coffee). I am following Tim Ferris’s slow carb diet in which he states you should look to consume 30g protein within 30 minutes of rising. He states 30 in 30 is easy to remember and the protein will leave you feeling full. Google slow carb diet to find his blog post.

    day

    To achieve 30 in 30 I use 60g of Braham And Murray Natural Hemp Protein Powder and 26g of It Works Chocolate Protein Powder to compensate for the bitter taste of the hemp protein. This provides 45g of complete protein which leaves me feeling full until lunchtime. A protein is considered complete when it includes all the essential amino acids. The shake also contains over 12g of fibre to keep the body in running order and as discussed in a previous post is a source of Omega 3 with a ratio to Omega 6 as (Omega6 3:1 Omega 3)

    Both shakes are vegan with the It Works Chocolate Protein Powder made from Pea Protein and Brown Rice Protein.

    In terms of calories, it breaks down as 208 k/cals from the Hemp Protein Powder and 105 k/cals from the It Works Chocolate Protein Powder giving a total of 313 k/cals.

     

    The calories breakdown looks like:
    60g Braham And Murray Natural Hemp Protein Powder – 208 k/cals
    26g It Works Chocolate Protein Powder – 105 k/cals
    Total – 313 k/cals.

    The carb breakdown looks like:
    60g Braham And Murray Natural Hemp Protein Powder – 15g with 3.2g sugar
    26g It Works Chocolate Protein Powder  – 5g with no sugar
    Total – 20g

    Although I cannot find the exact amounts, the Hemp Protein Powder also contains magnesium, potassium, calcium and iron to boost mineral intake making it an excellent start to the day.

  • Food

    Keto & Low Carb Bread

    But Bread is off limits, isn’t it?

    Yes, you would be right, standard bread is too high in carbohydrates if you are following a Ketogenic diet and it might be something you are choosing to avoid or having in moderation if you are following a low carb diet, but that doesn’t mean that you have to miss out on things like sandwiches, English Muffins or toast, because guess what? Help is here!

    keto bread

    Do I need many ingredients and is it hard?

    You do need a few specialised ingredients in and if you’re new to low carb or keto then they might not be something you have in your cupboards, but the good news is once you get them in stock it’s something you will always have, which makes this recipe super easy to whip up in just a few minutes. All you need is the ingredients and a microwave and it is that simple! Now, onto the ingredients and the recipe!

    keto bread

    Ingredients:

    • 3 tbsp of Almond Flour (but finely ground almonds works a treat, is are much cheaper too).
    • 1/2 tbsp of Coconut Flour.
    • 1 tbsp of Grass fed butter (We use Kerrygold unsalted).
    • 1 Egg (You can use the whole egg or just the egg white – with the yolk you’ll end up with bread more yellow in colour).
    • A pinch of pink Himalayan salt.
    •  1/2 tsp of gluten free baking powder (sometimes hard to find but this is always a good option).

     

    Method:

    1. Melt butter in microwaveable mug for 30 seconds.
    2. Add remaining ingredients and whisk until smooth.
    3. Let sit for a moment in the mug, to thicken.
    4. Microwave for 2 minutes.
    5. Turn out onto a plate.

    I then always like to slice my bread into small rounds and toast on a low heat setting or pop it under the grill.

     

    This has the taste and texture of normal bread and is very low carb too, so it works with both a ketogenic and low carb diet.