P3 Green Bean Casserole

GBC is one of my favorite side dishes. Heck, I could just eat it as my meal and be happy. I never liked the mushrooms that came along in the cream of mushroom soup, though. Between wanting to avoid both mushrooms and canned cream-of-anything soup, I started making my own GBC from scratch a few years ago. The first time was for Thanksgiving, and I successfully made a GBC that was totally gluten-free. But this year I wanted it to also be low-carb. It wasn't hard at all and I am so happy with how it turned out.

P3 Green Bean Casserole

First, prepare the onions:

3 medium or 2 large Onions, sliced thinly
1/3 cup Almond Flour
1 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Refined Coconut Oil (soft or liquid)

Combine all ingredients and spread in a baking dish. Bake at 475 for about 15 minutes, stirring once or twice during baking so they cook evenly. Set aside when done.

Next, prepare the green beans:

Steam 1-1.5 lbs green beans until just tender, then rinse with cold water to stop them cooking.

Make up the creamy sauce:

3 T Butter
3 T Oat Fiber
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
1/2 cup Stock or Broth (chicken, beef, vegetable)
1 tsp Glucomannan, Xanthan Gum, or half of each
1 clove Garlic, minced
1 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Pepper

Melt butter on medium-heat. (At this point, if you are a mushroom person, you could add chopped mushrooms and saute them in the butter until done.) Add oat fiber. Add cream and broth, whisking quickly. Sprinkle gum/gluccie very slowly, whisking well to incorporate it. Let it come to a bubble and it'll thicken up. Add garlic, salt and pepper, whisk for a minute more, then remove from heat.

Combine the green beans with the cream sauce, and add half of the onions. Spread into a 13x9 pan. Top with remaining onions. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes and serve.

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Cauliflower "Rice"

This is such a good alternative to rice! I love it with stir-fry and don't even miss my once-beloved white rice when I have that meal.

Grate or finely chop a whole head of cauliflower - a food processor comes in very handy for this job, but you can also use a manual grater.

Saute for 4-5 minutes in a wok with a bit of olive oil and garlic. Serve.

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P3 Creamy Coleslaw

Coleslaw has been on my list of things to figure out for HCG Phase 3, because so many of the traditional recipes call for sugar.  Once again, liquid stevia comes through for me as a great sugar substitute. My husband even loved this coleslaw, and he isn't a big fan of it in general. Score!

Creamy Coleslaw

3 Tbsp Mayo (with no sugar)
2 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
8-10 drops Liquid Stevia
1/4 tsp Celery Salt
1/2 - 1 tsp Poppy Seeds
1 large head Cabbage, shredded

Mix all ingredients except cabbage together, and then toss with cabbage.  I recommend starting with half of the dressing, and then adding and mixing, so you don't end up with too much dressing.

On HCG Phase 2, if you do well using mayo in place of your milk allowance, you could make a side of this coleslaw on P2.

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P2 Chicken Apple Slaw

This was totally different from what I usually eat and I loved it!  It's almost a honey mustard flavor slaw, with the sweetness of apple and the protein included as well.  A great one-dish meal for the warmer weather.

Chicken Apple Slaw

1.5 cups Cabbage, shredded
3.5 oz Chicken, cooked and diced
1 Apple, diced
1 tsp Mustard
1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
5 drops Liquid Stevia

Mix mustard, ACV and stevia in a container large enough to hold the other ingredients.  Add cabbage, apple and chicken and toss to coat.  Eat immediately or refrigerate for later.

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P3 Grilled Squash

Fall means grilling season in Florida is back!  Grilling squash so easy and absolutely delicious, and totally HCG Phase 3 friendly.

Slice zucchini and/or yellow squash the long way.  Brush with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and grill until done.

Sprinkly shredded cheese on top if desired.

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P2 Cucumber Salad

Cucumber Salad

2 Cucumbers, peeled
1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 tsp Salt
10 drops Liquid Stevia

Mix vinegar, salt and stevia together. Thinly slice cucumbers and marinate. The longer this sits, the better it gets.

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