Make Your Own Low-Carb Hot Chocolate Mix

Personally, I'm a coffee guy, so I have my two cups every morning, my wife on the other hand is a hot chocolate kind of gal. While coffee can be low carb if you exchange the sugar for sweetener, hot chocolate, not so much. Commercially prepared hot chocolate mixes are notoriously high in calories and carbohydrates. For example, Walmart's great value brand of hot chocolate mix contains 30 grams of carbohydrates per serving, definitely a low carbohydrate diet killer. Now there is no way to make hot chocolate carbohydrate free as 100% cocoa contains some net carbohydrates (2 per tablespoon), but we can create a low carbohydrate hot chocolate mix that is compatible with our low carbohydrate high fat (LCHF) lifestyle, and keep the chocolate lover in your home happy.

In this article, I am going to show you how to make your own diabetic friendly, LCHF hot chocolate mix so that you and your family can still enjoy the pleasure of drinking hot chocolate without it wrecking your low carbohydrate goals or raising your blood sugars. A cup of hot chocolate made with this recipe using 2 teaspoons of out LCHF hot chocolate mix only contains 2 grams of carbohydrates, and if you use a whole tablespoon, it only has 2.58 grams. Now that's what I call low carbohydrate diabetic friendly deliciousness.

LCHF Hot Chocolate Mix

This hot chocolate mix is quick and easy to make and is quite delicious. What you have to keep in mind when making this mix is that the 8 ounce container of Nestle Toll House cocoa that I use has more volume than one 8 ounce cup. Rather the container is 8 ounces by weight not volume, by volume it is approximately 2.8 cups. To simplify, the ratio of cocoa to Splenda in this recipe should be (1:1), that's equal parts per volume of cocoa to Splenda. So if you want to make a smaller batch of this recipe, say two cups total, then use one cup (per volume) of each ingredient (cocoa and Splenda) and decrease the salt to 1/3 teaspoon.

1 8 ounce container cocoa (45 tablespoons)

1 8 ounce container of Splenda (45 Tablespoons)

1 teaspoon salt

Take the 8 ounce (by weight) container of Toll House 100% cocoa and dump it into a large plastic or glass container, then take the empty cocoa container and fill it with Splenda low-calorie sweetener and add the Splenda to the container along with the salt and shake the container until it is throughly mixed. Now it is ready to use, it's that simple.

To make hot chocolate, add 2 to 3 teaspoons (3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon) of the hot chocolate mix to your mug, then add 2 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream and then pour in the hot water, stir with a spoon and enjoy.

Chef's Note: Adding salt to your hot chocolate mix sounds kind of crazy, but adding a small amount of salt helps to cut the bitterness of cocoa just as it does with coffee. In addition, it is said to “smooths out the stale taste of tank-stored water”. I am not sure about that as we have a fresh water well here on the homestead. The amount of salt in this recipe isn’t really enough to taste, but it does the trick in countering the bitterness of the cocoa. “Surprisingly, salt suppresses bitterness better than sugar” (Chang, 2009).

Total Recipe Hot Chocolate Mix (about 90 tablespoons)

Calories – 945, protein 45 grams, fat 22.5 grams, carbohydrates 157.5 grams

1 Tablespoon – Calories 10.5, protein 0.5 grams, fat 0.25 grams, carbohydrates 1.75 grams

1 Teaspoon – Calories 3.5, protein 0.16 grams, fat 0.08 grams, carbohydrates 0.58 grams

Prepared LCHF Hot Chocolate (8oz Cup) 2 teaspoons mix, and 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Per Serving – Calories 109, protein 0.94 grams, fat 11.3 grams, carbohydrates 2 grams

Prepared LCHF Hot Chocolate (8oz Cup) 1 tablespoon mix, and 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Per Serving – Calories 113, protein 1.1 grams, fat 11.5 grams, carbohydrates 2.58 grams

So what happens if you do not want to make a whole batch of hot chocolate mix and you only want one cup? Simply take 1 teaspoon of cocoa and mix it with 1 teaspoon of splenda add the heavy cream and then the hot water, stir and enjoy. The nutritional values are the same as this recipe is one part cocoa and 1 part splenda.

Brand Comparison

So how does this LCHF recipe compare with those hot chocolate mixes that you find on your supermarket shelves? I think you will surprised how many carbohydrates (primarily from sugar) that many of these mixes contain. I have listed the three most popular brands of hot chocolate mixes found at my local Walmart along side the homemade LCHF hot chocolate mix. Take a quick look at the numbers and you can see just how bad these pre-made mixes are for you. Like any good LCHF recipe we have traded the carbohydrates for good fats, in this case heavy cream as opposed to highly processed milk solids found in commercial mixes.

LCHF Hot Chocolate (2 teaspoons LCHF Hot Chocolate mix, and 2 tablespoons heavy cream)

Per Serving – Calories 109, protein 0.94 grams, fat 11.3 grams, carbohydrates 2 grams

Great Value Hot Chocolate

1 Serving – Calories 140, protein 2 grams, fat 1.5 grams, carbohydrates 30 grams

Nestle Hot Chocolate

1 Packet – Calories 80, protein 0.6 grams, fat 3 grams, carbohydrates 14.2 grams

Swiss Miss Classic Hot Chocolate

1 Packet – Calories 90, protein 1 grams, fat 2 grams, carbohydrates 16 grams

Even the no-sugar added varieties contain more carbohydrates than our homemade LCHF hot chocolate mix. Swiss Miss no-added sugar still contains 10 grams of carbohydrates and the Nestle 5 grams of carbohydrates compared to the 2 grams of carbohydrates in the homemade mix made with 2 teaspoons of hot chocolate mix and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream. That's almost 5 times more carbs for the Swiss Miss, and more than double the carbs for the Nestle.

Swiss Miss No-Sugar Added Hot Chocolate

1 Packet – Calories 60, protein 2 grams, fat 1 grams, carbohydrates 10 grams

Nestle No-Sugar Added Hot Chocolate

1 Packet – Calories 20, protein 1 gram, fat 0 grams, carbohydrates 5 grams

Nutritional Information

Because I see so many LCHF recipes on the internet that do not list the ingredients or their nutritional value, I have included my numbers so that you can double check them. Here is a quick run down of how the nutritional information was figured for this recipe of homemade LCHF hot chocolate mix.

Nestle Toll House Cocoa

1 Container (45 tablespoons) Calories – 675, protein 45 grams, fat 22.5 grams, carbohydrates 90 grams

1 Tablespoon – Calories 15, protein 1 gram, fat 0.5 grams, carbohydrates 2 grams

Splenda

1 Container (45 tablespoons) Calories 270, protein 0 grams, fat 0 grams, carbohydrates 67.5

1 Tablespoon – Calories 6, protein 0 grams, fat 0 grams, carbohydrates 1.5 grams

Total Recipe Hot Chocolate Mix (90 tablespoons)

Calories – 945, protein 45 grams, fat 22.5 grams, carbohydrates 157.5 grams

1 Tablespoon – Calories 10.5, protein 0.5 grams, fat 0.25 grams, carbohydrates 1.75 grams

1 Teaspoon – Calories 3.5, protein 0.16 grams, fat 0.08 grams, carbohydrates 0.58 grams

Heavy Whipping Cream

1 Tablespoon – Calories 51, protein 0.31 grams, fat 5.51 grams, carbohydrates 0.42 grams

Cost Analysis

Now, you can use any brand of cocoa you want in this recipe, the important thing is to make sure what you are buying is 100% cocoa. We purchase the Nestle Toll House brand simply because it is the least expensive $2.60 for 8 ounces (that's per weight not volume). One cup of Great Value low-calorie sweetener (Splenda) weighs 0.9 ounces. It sells for $0.37 per ounce so the cost of the Splenda is $0.33. That makes the total cost of our homemade LCHF hot chocolate mix $2.93 ($2.60 + $0.33 = $2.93).

But wait, we are not done yet as we have to add in the cost of the heavy cream to get the total cost of our cup of hot chocolate. Great Value heavy cream is $4.14 per quart or $0.064 per tablespoon, therefore the cost of 2 tablespoons in our prepared hot chocolate is $0.13. This makes our total cost for one serving of hot chocolate $0.15 if we use 2 teaspoons of the mix, and $0.16 per serving if we use 1 tablespoon of the mix. The reality is that we do not save any money by making our own hot chocolate mix, in fact it costs $0.02 more per serving than the Nestle or Swiss Miss, and is the same cost as the Great Value Hot Chocolate. A small price to pay in my opinion in order to minimize the carbohydrate intake and allow me to continue to drink hot chocolate on a cold winter's morning.

Homemade LCHF Hot Chocolate Mix $2.93 ($0.021 per 2 teaspoons, $0.032 per 1 tablespoon)

LCHF with heavy cream ($0.021 + $0.13 = $0.15 per serving with 2 teaspoons of mix)

LCHF with heavy cream ($0.032 + $0.13 = $0.16 per serving with 1 tablespoon of mix)

Great Value Hot Chocolate (20 ounce container) $2.48 ($0.16 per serving)

Nestle Hot Chocolate (27.7 ounce container) $4.98 ($0.13 per serving)

Swiss Miss Classic Hot Chocolate (30 ct) $4.07 ($0.13 per serving)

The biggest surprise for me was that Walmart's 'Great Value' brand hot chocolate mix was not only more expensive than the Nestle or Swiss Miss at $0.16 per serving, but it has twice the carbohydrates. Not exactly what I would call a great value!

Conclusion

Yes, you can have hot chocolate while enjoying a LCHF lifestyle, you just have to make your own. The great news is that as you have seen making your own LCHF hot chocolate mix takes less than 5 minutes and you do not have to bust your food budget to enjoy it. As I mentioned, we use the less expensive Nestle Toll House cocoa, but you can use any cocoa you desire. I will be honest I have tried other more expensive brands of plain 100% cocoa and I personally cannot taste the difference. But if you like the taste of dark chocolate, then try one of the 'special dark' blended 100% cocoa's, just keep in mind they cost a little more, but the carbohydrate count is the same. As always, if you have found this information helpful and informative we ask that you share it with your friends and family. Don't forget to send us a friend request on our new 'CulinaryYou' Facebook page, or add use to your circle on Google+ so that you don't miss any of our new articles.

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Make Your Own LCHF Starbucks Frappuccino

Resources:

Chang, Kenneth, Salt Trumps Bitter, New York Times, January 7, 2009.

Ghirardelli Chocolate, accessed October 20, 2016.

Hershey's Kitchen's: Cocoa For Baking, accessed October 24, 2016.

Nestle Toll House Baking Cocoa, accessed October 24, 2016.

Make Your Own Starbuck's Frappuccino

Everyone likes Starbucks chilled frappuccino right? You know the little glass bottles sold at just about every convenience store and supermarket here in the United States. I have only two small problems with these flavored coffee drinks. First, they are expensive, sometimes up to $1.89 if sold individually. Second, they contain 33 carbohydrates per serving. Heck, at my current goal rate that's more than my whole carbohydrate intake for the whole day. Not exactly what you would call low carbohydrate friendly. My mother-in-law loves these things, and my wife who is not a hot coffee drinker likes them as well, so it was up to me to find a way to make a more LCHF friendly version of Starbucks frappuccino so that my wife could enjoy this treat.

My nephew and his beautiful family came to visit us about a week ago and we were taking about how my wife and I have gone on a low carbohydrate high fat (LCHF) eating plan. Calan pulled out a Starbucks frappuccino and commented on the carbohydrate count of 33 grams. He playfully told his wife “you cannot have any, it has two many carbs.” We all laughed and I told him how I was making my own frappuccino at home and it only has 2.8 carbohydrates per 9.5 ounce serving. So I decided, that it was time to share my recipe for my version of 'Starbucks Mocha frappuccino' for those of you who are diabetic or just wanting to go low carb.

Low Carb Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino (Yield 44 ounces)

The following recipe is for a mocha flavored frappuccino style chilled coffee. This of course means that it has a 'zero calorie' flavored chocolate syrup made from sucralose. Torani makes quite a variety of sugar-free flavored syrups (36 in total last time I checked) that can be used in the recipe making a variety of different flavors. The one thing that some may not like about the Torani syrups is that they do contain quite a bit of preservatives (see ingredient section), however they are hugely popular. If you do not like the idea of the syrups, then simply omit them. A variation that I sometimes make is substituting the chocolate syrup for 1 to 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. Just keep in mind that vanilla extract is concentrated and a little goes a long way.

8 cups fresh brewed coffee

½ cup heavy whipping cream

¼ cup Torani chocolate sugar free syrup

1/3 cup Splenda

Add coffee to your drip coffee maker according to your personal tastes. Then add 8 cups of water to your coffee maker. Add the chocolate syrup and Splenda to your carafe or coffee pot and hit to start button. After the coffee has brewed, add the heavy cream to the carafe or coffee pot and stir throughly. Fill bottles of your choice and place in the refrigerator.

Chef's Note: If you are going to use plastic bottles, it would probably be best to wait until the coffee has cooled to room temperature to keep the plastic from melting. As we wash and reuse the glass Starbucks jars that my mother-in-law purchases, I fill them while the coffee is still hot. Once they cool, I place the lids on and place the bottles in the refrigerator. I drink the small bit of leftover frappuccino while it is still hot, a small treat for the cook.

Total Recipe Calories – 443, protein 2.44 grams, fat 44 grams, carbohydrates 11.2 grams

Per (9.5oz) Serving Calories – 111, protein 0.61 grams, fat 11 grams, carbohydrates 2.8 grams

Starbucks (9.5 ounces)

Calories – 180, protein 6 grams, fat 3 grams, carbohydrates 33 grams

What's great about the nutritional content of this recipe is that it actually contains 39% less calories and 92% less carbohydrates than Starbucks. It does however contain 73% more saturated fat from heavy cream, but we are on a LCHF diet so it's right where we need it.

The Ingredients

Not many surprises here. Our homemade frappuccino definitely has no real objectionable ingredients until you add the Torani sugar-free syrup. The ingredients in Starbucks frappuccino's are not to terribly problematic, with the exception of the sugar which is where it gets it's 33 grams of carbohydrates from, but I have listed them here anyway.

Homemade Mocha Frappuccino – Water, coffee, heavy cream, sucrolose, dextrose, and Torani sugar-free syrup (water natural flavors, caramel color, sodium benzonate and potassium sorbate, citric acid, xantham gum, sucralose, acesulfame potassium).

Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino – Water, Coffee, reduced fat milk, skim milk, sugar, maltodextrin, cream, natural and artificial flavor, pectin, and ascorbic acid.

As you can see, all the additives in the homemade frappuccino come from the Torani sugar-free flavored syrup. If you make your own chilled frappuccino without using any of the various flavored Torani syrups, then you can cut back on the artificial preservatives.

Cost Analysis

I usually do not take the time to show a cost analysis for every LCHF recipe I make as the primary focus on such recipes is to lower the amount of carbohydrates in the recipe, not price. However, making your own frappuccino's at home really knocks both of these goals right out of the park. Not only does this recipe have 84% less carbohydrates than store bought, it costs 75% less to make your own frappuccino at home.

Homemade Frappuccino 4-pack assorted flavors $1.40, ($0.35 each)

Starbucks Frappuccino 4-pack assorted flavors at Walmart $5.44 ($1.36 each)

Folgers coffee purchased on sale is $0.21 per ounce, I use 0.5 ounces to make 8 cups of coffee making the cost for coffee $0.11 ($0.21 x 0.5 = $0.11). Heavy Cream costs $0.13 per ounce, and we are using 4 ounces making the total of heavy cream $0.52, ($0.13 x 4 = $0.52). A one-third cup of Splenda weighs 0.2 ounces, Splenda costs $0.37 per ounce so the cost for the Splenda $0.07 ($0.37 x 0.2 = 0.074). Torani Sugar-Free chocolate syrup $0.35 per ounce so the cost of the chocolate syrup is $0.70 ($0.35 x 2 = $0.70). Therefore making the total cost of your 4-pack of homemade frappuccino $1.40 or $0.35 per bottle. That's an amazing 75% savings in cost. Let me rephrase that, you can make 12 bottles of your own frappuccino at home for the cost of 4 bottles of the Starbucks brand frappuccino.

Conclusion

So there you have it, a LCHF, diabetic, and food budget friendly version of the popular Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino. This recipe will not only save you money, but will allow you to enjoy an LCHF treat that will not destroy your dietary goals. So make some bottles up ahead and throw them in your cooler and take them to work or to the gym for when you need a little coffee fix in the afternoon or after a workout for a treat that tastes like a cheat, but it's not. As always, we ask that if you have found this article informative and helpful that you share it with your friends. Don't forget to send us a friend request on Facebook or add us to your circle on Google+ so that you can receive our latest article.

Chipotle's Honey Vinaigrette Dressing

Once we started down the path of the low carbohydrate high fat (LCHF) lifestyle, salads became an important part of or eating program. So much so that we have at least one salad a day for as a meal. This means that we try and make a whole bunch of our own salad dressings. In fact, salad dressings have become one of the condiments I make most often in addition to my own mayonnaise and ketchup.

If you have read my previous article 'Making Your Own Vinaigrettes' then you will know just how quick, easy, and low carbohydrate they can be. Chipotle restaurants has long been a favorite of ours, and now that we are eating LCHF, I have turned in my chicken burritos for their burrito bowl. I have really enjoyed their chipotle honey vinaigrette and decided it was time to try and make my own LCHF at home. In article I will teach you how to make my LCHF version of Chipotle restaurants 'Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette' dressing.

So what exactly is a chipotle pepper? A chipotle pepper is a red jalapeno that has been smoked and canned in a spicy sauce called adobo. The adobo sauce is made with vinegar, tomatoes, paprika, salt, soybean oil, and spices. They can generally be found in most of your local Walmart Supercenter's in the aisle that contains the Hispanic foods. Use whatever brand you can find, I have never noticed any difference in the flavors, I generally purchase La Costina brand which my local Walmart carries.

Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette

The original recipe calls for the use of honey, hence the name 'Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette'. You can go ahead and use 1 tablespoon of honey if you wish for this recipe in place of the Splenda, but it doubles the carbohydrate count from 0.56 grams to 1.25 grams per tablespoon. So if you are trying to follow a strict LCHF diet, then you are better off using Splenda or another low-calorie sweetener of your choice. Using one chipotle chile makes this recipe is somewhat mild, so if you like your dressing to have a little more heat then go for 2 chipotle chilies.

¾ cup canola oil

¼ cup red wine vinegar

1 - 2 chipotle pepper's

2 – 3 teaspoons Splenda

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon adobo sauce

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process to puree chipotle pepper and combine all the ingredients. With the food processor still running drizzle in the oil until the salad dressing becomes an emulsion.

Chef's Note: I actually process all the ingredients in a small 1 ½ cup food processor and once the chipotle pepper is throughly processed, I pour the contents into a 16 ounce Mason jar, add the canola oil, place a lid on the container and shake the contents until an emulsion is formed (about 30 seconds). This recipe has about 1/2 the salt of chipotle's dressing.

Total Recipe (Splenda) – Calories 131, fat 11 grams, protein 0.7 grams, carbohydrates 9 grams

1 Tablespoon (Splenda) – Calories 8.1, fat 0.68 grams, protein 0.04 grams, carbohydrates 0.56 grams

Total Recipe (Honey) – Calorie 189, fat 11 grams, protein 0.7 grams, carbohydrates 17 grams

1 Tablespoon (Honey) – Calorie 11.8, fat 0.68 grams, protein 0.04 grams, carbohydrates 1.25 grams

Your Choice Of Oil

Chipotle restaurant currently uses rice bran oil in all their recipes that require oil. Before making the change to rice bran oil they used soybean oil as their oil of choice. Rice bran oil can be quite expensive and I have found that canola oil is a good substitute for me, however vegetable oil is the closest nutritional option as they are very similar in composition. Below I have included the nutritional values for canola, rice bran, and vegetable oil all which are suitable for this dressing

Canola Oil

1 Cup – Calories 1984, Total fat 224 grams, Sat fat 16 grams, Poly fat 62.4 grams, Mono fat 144 grams

1 Tablespoon – Calories 120, Total fat 14 grams, Sat fat 1 grams, Poly fat 3.9 grams, Mono fat 9 grams

Rice Bran Oil

1 Cup – Calories 1920, Total fat 224 grams, Sat fat 43.2 grams, Poly fat 76.8 grams, Mono fat 80 grams

1 Tablespoon – Calories 120, Total fat 14 grams, Sat fat 2.7 grams, Poly fat 4.8 grams, Mono fat 5 grams

Vegetable Oil

1 Cup – Calories 1984, Total fat 224 grams, Sat fat 32 grams, Poly fat 73.6 grams, Mono fat 112 grams

1 Tablespoon – Calories 124, Total fat 14 grams, Sat fat 2 grams, Poly fat 4.6 grams, Mono fat 7 grams

Conclusion

So there you have it, my version of Chipotle's 'Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette'. I really like this dressing, but I will be honest, I have not brought any of the restaurant's dressing home to compare it with. Maybe I will do this in the future, but I am happy with the flavor and seasoning of this dressing. Making it with one chipotle makes it more wife friendly, as my wife does not care for too much heat, and she thinks Chiptole's version is a little hot. Personally, I like it made either way. That's the great thing about making your own dressings and condiments, it gives you total control to use the type and amount of ingredients you wish. As always, we ask that if you have found this article to be interesting and of use to please share it with your friends. Don't forget to send us a friend request on Facebook, or add us to your circle on Google+ so that you will be notified when new articles have been posted to our blog.

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Low-Calorie Sweeteners

Scientific research has shown that all carbohydrates will eventually be turned to sugar when processed by the human body. In fact, the American Diabetic Association (ADA) states that for each gram of carbohydrate a diabetic consumes blood sugars may rise 3 to 5 points. This is the primary reason that the ADA promotes the theory of blood sugar management and weight loss through the practice of 'carb counting'. By reducing the amount of carbohydrates you consume you can effectively lower your blood sugar to some extent without the use of medications. This is one of the primary reasons that 'no-calorie' and 'low-calorie' sweeteners were developed.

Like myself, many diabetics turn to no-calorie or low-calorie sweeteners as a way to cut down on their sugar intake in order to help lower their blood sugars and be more compliant with their doctor's wishes. If you search the internet, you will find a wide variety of sugar substitutes. Prices for these sugar substitutes can vary quite a bit as well, with some being quite expensive. What I am going to discuss in this article is the most common types of sugar substitutes that you will find on your local supermarket shelves, Sweet & Low, Equal, Splenda, Truvia, and Stevia In The Raw. These are the sugar substitutes that most diabetics turn to when they are told to cut back on their sugar intake by their physician and or diabetic educator. First, however we are going to look at the glycemic index and how it was created as it is often used to rank sugar substitutes as well as other foods.

The Glycemic Index (GI)

In the mid 1980's Dr. David Jenkins and his colleagues at the University of Toronto began to experiment with the concept that certain foods had slower digestion and absorption rates which usually lead to lower insulin levels. While in general this concept is true, it is not always the case. Over time they developed a method of comparing various foods using glucose as the gold standard (which they rated as 100) to determine how it effects insulin production and blood sugars levels in the blood stream after the consumption of food which they called the glycemic index.

According to the ADA, “The glycemic index (GI) is a ranking of carbohydrates on a scale from 0 to 100 according to the extent to which they raise blood sugar levels after eating. Foods with a high GI are those which are rapidly digested and absorbed and result in marked fluctuations in blood sugar levels. Low-GI foods, by virtue of their slow digestion and absorption, produce gradual rises in blood sugar and insulin levels, and have proven benefits for health. Low GI diets have been shown to improve both glucose and lipid levels in people with diabetes (type 1 and type 2). They have benefits for weight control because they help control appetite and delay hunger. Low GI diets also reduce insulin levels and insulin resistance”.

When it comes to artificial sweeteners and the glycemic index, there are a few variables that have to be taken into consideration. Many of the zero-calorie or low-calorie sweeteners that most of us find on our supermarket shelves indicate that they have a low glycemic index, but they still contain ingredients (dextrose – GI 100, maltdextrin- 110) that have carbohydrates and are high on the glycemic index. So what we find is that the glycemic index for sugar substitutes is a function of three things: 1) the amount of carbohydrate present, 2) the type of carbohydrate present, and 3) the presence of other substances such as soluble fiber that slow metabolism of carbohydrates. In many respects, we have to take the manufacturers word for it. Kinda scary I know. Anyway, let's look at the sweeteners most of use are familiar with and find readily available on our supermarket shelves.

Sweet'n Low Low Calorie Sweetener

First introduced in 1957, Sweet'n Low was one of the first commercially produced sugar substitutes mass marketed in the United States. Sweet'n Low gets it primary sweetness from granulated saccharin, but it also contains some dextrose. Diabetics have been using the “pink stuff” as many call it because of it's pink packaging for years. In 1977, research in laboratory rats indicated that saccharin caused cancer, but this research was later determined to be faulty. Having said that, Sweet'n Low has over time has lost market share and is rapidly becoming replaced by other sugar substitutes such as Equal, Splenda, and now Stevia extracts. You can however still find it in just about every restaurant table, and it still has a large presence on local supermarket shelves. According to the company website, 3 packets of Sweet'n Low is 1 tablespoon, and while it has no calories, each packet contains 1 gram of carbohydrates.

Sweet'n Low (saccharin, dextrose)

1 Tablespoon – Calories 0, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 3 grams

While saccharin is listed as having a GI of 0, it does contain dextrose as a bulking agent. Whether the calories come from the dextrose or the actual saccharin itself is unknown, but we do know that Sweet'n Low contains dextrose as one of it's ingredients. So while Sweet'n Low contains no calories, it does contain 3 grams of carbohydrates. Quite a bit less than granulated table sugar, but still 1 carbohydrate per package, or three grams per tablespoon.

Equal Low Calorie Sweetener (aka NutraSweet)

Developed back in the early 1980's, before there was Splenda, and Stevia, Equal low calorie sweetener was introduced to America. It quickly became the number one artificial sweetener used by millions of Americans who formerly used 'Sweet & Low' low calorie sweetener. Aspartame is the primary sweetening agent used in Equal. Like many low calorie sweeteners, dextrose and maltdextrin are added as “bulking agents” to help dilute the sweetening effect and make it easier to measure.

Equal (dextrose, maltdextrin and aspartame)

1 Tablespoon – Calories 39, fat 0 grams, protein 0.3 grams, carbohydrates 9.3 grams

While aspartame has a GI: 0, it is difficult to determine the actual glycemic index if Equal as it contains both dextrose and maltdextrin as bulking agents which have considerably high GI values. What we do know is that Equal contains 9.3 grams of carbohydrates per tablespoon, or 3.1 grams of carbohydrates per teaspoon. Almost as many calories and carbohydrates per tablespoon as table sugar (48 calories and 12 grams of carbohydrates). Not exactly a good low calorie or low carbohydrate choice when compared to sugar.

Splenda Low Calorie Sweetener

Splenda contains sucralose that does have a glycemic index (GI) of 0, but it also contains maltdextrin which has a glycemic of 105, so is Splenda really good for diabetics? Well maybe, but in order to answer this question we have to look at both sucralose and maltdextrin.

Sucralose

1 Tablespoon – Calories 0, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 0 grams

Maltdextrin

1 Tablespoon – Calories 45, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 11.43 grams

Splenda (sucroalose and maltdextrin)

1 Tablespoon – Calories 6, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 1.5 grams

So how do we know how much maltdextrin is in Splenda brand sweetener. Well, if 1 tablespoon of sucralose contains 0 calories, and 1 tablespoon of maltdextrin contains 45 calories, and 1 tablespoon of Splenda contains 6 calories, then we simply divide 6 by 45 to get the percentage ( 6 / 45 = 0.133). To check our math, let's multiply 0.133 to the maltdextrin to see what we get.

Calories = 45 x 0.133 = 5.985 or 6

Carbohydrates = 11.43 x 0.133 = 1.52

So we see from simple math that Splenda low calorie sweetener contains 86.7% sucralose and 13.3% maltdextrin. So if the glycemic index of sucralose is 0, then maltdextrin is the sole contributer for the GI for Splenda. Since we now know that Splenda contains 13.3% maltdextrin, we can figure the GI for Splenda low calorie brand sweetener. Based on these calculations, Splenda should have an overall GI of 14.6 which is considered a low on the glycemic scale. We figure that by taking the glycemic index of maltdextrin (110) and multiplying it by 13.3%. (110 x 0.133 = 14.6).

So is Splenda really good for diabetics? Well, the verdict is out on this one, but as a diabetic, I use Splenda everyday as part of my low carbohydrate high fat (LCHF) lifestyle. It is not a zero-calorie sweetener as 1 tablespoon has 6 calories, but it is low carb, as 1 tablespoon only has 1.5 grams of carbohydrates.

Personal Note: I use the Great Value Low Calorie Sweetener (Splenda clone) at home. I am using the name Splenda, but all the information comes from the package of the Great Value Low Calorie sweetener. I have read that the use of Splenda will cause your blood sugar to spike, I have not seen my blood sugars rise significantly with the use of Splenda, in fact, I have not seen them increase at all but your results however may vary.

Truvia Zero Calorie Sweetener

Another popular zero-calorie sweetener that you will find on your supermarket shelves which infers that it is Stevia, but it really is not. It is in fact made of erythritol, rebiana, and natural flavors. I will be honest, when this was given to me by my parents, I thought it was Stevia, but surprise it is not, it is mostly erythritol. The following are the nutritional facts according the to container. Note that on the nutritional label all of the carbohydrates come from erythritol (3 grams in ¾ teaspoon).

Truvia (erythritol, rebiana)

¾ Teaspoon – Calories 0, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 3 grams

So if we do the math we get the following estimated numbers.

Truvia

1 Teaspoon – Calories 0, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 4 grams

1 Tablespoon – Calories 0, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 12 grams

In theory, erythritol is supposed to have a GI of 0, however 1 teaspoon contains 4 grams of carbohydrates, all derived from erythritol. While it is true that Truvia is a 'zero calorie' sweetener, as a diabetic and some one on a LCHF eating plan, I have concerns as to whether erythritol really has such a low GI, when it has a carbohydrate count of 4 grams per teaspoon. So yes, Truvia is zero-calorie, but it is definitely not carbohydrate free.

Stevia In The Raw

Another popular zero-calorie sweetener that you will find on your supermarket shelves which includes the name Stevia in it's name. The primary ingredient however is dextrose. In fact the nutritional label lists the ingredients as dextrose and Stevia leaf extract in that order. While rebiana is the part of the Stevia plant that imparts it sweetness, it is not listed as an ingredient. I have no certain idea what they mean by 'Stevia leaf extract', but my best guess is that it is rebiana. The box in which the packets comes in states “Each packet contains less than 4 calories per serving which the FDA considers dietetically zero.” According to the company website 1 ½ packets are equal to 1 tablespoon of sugar.

Stevia In The Raw (dextrose, Stevia leaf extract)

½ Teaspoon – Calories 0, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates < 1 grams

Stevia In The Raw (dextrose, Stevia leaf extract)

1 Packet – Calories < 4, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates < 1 gram

Stevia In The Raw (dextrose, Stevia leaf extract)

1 Tablespoon (estimated) – Calories 11 - 12, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 2.5 - 3 grams

Using the same math as we did for Sweet'n Low (3 packets equal the same bulk amount as 1 tablespoon) we are going to estimate the calorie and carbohydrate content. It should be noted however that the manufacturer states that Stevia In The Raw is quite a bit sweeter than sugar. Keep in mind that individual tastes vary. The 'Stevia In The Raw' container lists < 1 carbohydrates per packet, however, if dextrose is the main ingredient, and dextrose contains not only calories, but carbohydrates as well, my concern is to how accurately their claims are.

Side By Side Comparison

To make it easier to examine your sugar substitute options I have listed them all here side by side so that you can look at the nutritional data you help with your decision as to which sugar substitute you may want to use if any. Granulated table sugar is listed first for reference, all the sugar substitutes are listed alphabetically, i.e. not in any particular order based on my personal opinions or preferences.

Granulated Table Sugar

1 Tablespoon – Calories 48, fat 0 grams, protein 0.3 grams, carbohydrates 12.6 grams

Equal (dextrose, maltdextrin and aspartame)

1 Tablespoon – Calories 39, fat 0 grams, protein 0.3 grams, carbohydrates 9.3 grams

Splenda (sucroalose and maltdextrin)

1 Tablespoon – Calories 6, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 1.5 grams

Sweet'n Low

1 Tablespoon – Calories 0, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 3 grams

Stevia In The Raw (dextrose, Stevia leaf extract)

1 Tablespoon (estimated) – Calories 11 - 12, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 2.5 - 3 grams

Truvia (erythritol, rebiana)

1 Tablespoon – Calories 0, fat 0 grams, protein 0 grams, carbohydrates 12 grams

I have done my best to keep this information as accurate and unbiased as possible. The goal of this article was to help you make the best choice regarding readily available sugar substitutes available at your local grocery store that will not destroy your food budget. I am not saying these are the best alternatives, just the ones that most of use have available locally.

Are Sugar Substitutes Safe?

There are a number of blogs and websites that tout numerous articles advising you to beware of alleged hidden dangers "artificial sweeteners" and that you should avoid all of these substances at all costs. Many of them typically offer lengthy discussions and or anecdotes to back up their claims, or they quote previous research that has been determined to have been faulty, and our the results have not been able to be replicated, or in some cases simply been proved untrue.

On their website the Mayo Clinic has this to say about artificial sweeteners “according to the National Cancer Institute and other health agencies, there's no sound scientific evidence that any of the artificial sweeteners approved for use in the U.S. cause cancer or other serious health problems. And numerous research studies confirm that artificial sweeteners are generally safe in limited quantities, even for pregnant women”.

Do not take my word for it, after all I am just another blogger as well and I encourage you to do your own research. However, when evaluating such claims it should be noted that numerous research studies have confirmed that artificial sweeteners are generally safe sugar substitutes when used in approved limited quantities. In addition, the National Cancer Institute as well as many other health agencies have concluded that in fact there is no sound scientific evidence that any of the artificial sweeteners approved for use in the United States causes cancer and or any other serious health problems.

Conclusion

The bottom line, most researchers believe that we would all be better off if we could cut sugar completely out of our diet. The reality of it is that most of us never will. The focus of this article was not to convince you that any particular low calorie sweetener is better than the other. Let's face it, they all have their detractors, rather the goal of this article was to you give you the necessary information to make an informed decision about what is best for you and your family.

Just keep in mind that low-calorie or zero-calorie does not mean zero carbohydrates. Truvia has just as many carbohydrates as sugar 12, and Equal has 9.6 carbohydrates. Of all the low-calorie sweeteners, the Great Value Low Calorie (Splenda clone) has the lowest amount of carbohydrates a 1.5 carbs per tablespoon.

I will be honest, I have been using the Great Value Low Calorie Sweetener (Splenda clone) for several years after I was first diagnosed with diabetes. It works for me and I like it, I have tried the others and at this point, I keep going back to Splenda. I hope you have found this article to be informative and helpful and if so we ask that you share it with your friends. Don't forget to send us a friend request on Facebook, or add us to your groups on Google+.

References:

Burani, Johanna MS,RD, CDE, Practical Use Of The GI, American Diabetes Association, 2006.

Mayo Clinic, Artificial Sweeteners and Other Sugar Substitutes, accessed September 2016.

National Cancer Institute, Artificial Sweeteners and Cancer, accessed September 2016.

Stevia In The Raw,accessed October 2016.

LCHF Thousand Island Dressing

Salads are on of the first foods that most people think of when they hear the word 'diet' or lifestyle change. Salads can be a good way for you to add beneficial greens (spinach, kale, arugula, swiss chard) to your diet. The primary problem with salads and the low carbohydrate high fat (LCHF) lifestyle is not the salad itself, but the dressings that most people put on them. Yes, I know there are some vegetables found in salads are higher in carbohydrates than others, however the one item that increases the carbohydrate count of the salad you are eating is the dressing you use.

According to a survey done by 'Statista' in 2014 through 2015, almost 29,000 American households were surveyed to determine the types of salad dressings that Americans consumed. I have listed the top five dressings in their survey. The most obvious was Ranch (47.23%), Italian (18.71%), Thousand Island (14.42%), Vinaigrettes (13.16%), and Caesar (13.02%).

LCHF Thousand Island Dressing (Yield: 20 Tablespoons)

¾ cup homemade LCHF mayonnaise or Hellman's mayonnaise
¼ cup LCHF ketchup
2 tablespoons dill pickle relish
1 large hard-boiled egg, peeled and mashed

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon minced fresh chives (optional)

1 teaspoon pimentos, minced

1 teaspoon Splenda or other low calorie sweetener (optional)

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon onion powder

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon paprika

1/8 teaspoon white or black pepper

Dice the hard boiled egg into small pieces and then place in a small bowl and mash with a fork into small pieces.

Combine all the ingredients (except the heavy cream) into a medium sized bowl and mix with a wire whisk until throughly combined. Then add the minced/mashed egg and mix again until throughly combined.

Check the seasonings and adjust the salt, pepper, and Splenda to meet your individual tastes. Place the dressing in the fridge for 12 to 24 hours before serving. The dressing is good for 7 – 10 days depending on the ingredients that you used to make it.

Chef's Note: In the restaurant we would run the egg through a food mill or ricer. If you have a ricer or food mill you could run the egg through one of these, but for home use I feel the clean up is not worth the trouble. An alternative would be to press the egg through a strainer or fine sieve, but I like my dressing to have small chunks of egg in it. The choice is of course up to you.

Total Recipe - Calories 1352, fat 142 grams, protein 8.53 grams, carbohydrates 10.7 grams

Per Tablespoon – Calories 67.6, fat 7.1 grams, protein 0.4, carbohydrates 0.53 grams

Kraft Thousand Island

Per Tablespoon – Calories 40, fat 3 grams, protein 0, carbohydrates 1.5 grams

The Diabetic Factor

Let's face it, the primary carbohydrate culprit in Thousand Island dressing as with most dressings and other condiments is sugar. Almost always high fructose corn sugar to be specific. This is a problem for those of us who are diabetic. Now if you only used 1 – 2 tablespoons of a commercially prepared Thousand Island dressing then you would only be consuming an additional 1.5 – 3 grams of carbohydrates with your salad. But don't kid yourself, most people put ¼ cup (4 tablespoons) or more of dressing on their salad just because they are not good at judging volume.

By eliminating the high fructose corn sugars found in ketchup by making your own LCHF ketchup you can reduce the overall carbohydrate count of Thousand Island dressing to 0.6 grams per tablespoon. That's a 60% reduction in the number of carbohydrates per tablespoon of dressing. So if you put a little extra dressing on your salad, say 3 tablespoons you are only adding 1.8 grams of carbohydrates. Almost the same amount of carbohydrates as in 1 tablespoon of Kraft Thousand Island Dressing.

The Ingredients

So why go to all the trouble of making your own version of Thousand Island dressing? I mean the commercial prepared dressings are convenient to use, and they taste good. Other than the carbohydrate count, the major concern for me is the ingredients that makeup most commercial dressings. Let's face it, Kraft Thousand Island dressing has way to many preservatives and artificial flavorings. Yes, commercial dressings are shelf stable and will last for quite some time in your pantry, but at what cost? Making your own Thousand Island dressing gives you total control of what you consume. So let's examine the ingredients in both dressings.

Kraft Thousand Island Dressing – Soybean oil, tomato puree (tomato paste, water) vinegar, sugar, water, chopped pickles, egg yolks, salt, natural flavors, contains 2% or less of the following (mustard flour, dried onions, xanthan gum, dried red bell peppers, citric acid, paprika, turmeric, potassium sorbate, calcium disodium EDTA).

Homemade Thousand Island Dressing – LCHF Mayonnaise, heavy whipping cream, vinegar, chives, chopped pickles, chopped pimentos, onions, salt, eggs (including yolks), Splenda, white pepper, and paprika.

I know which dressing I would rather feed to my family. Anyway, just in case you want to experiment with some additional ingredients or change up the ratios, I have included the basic nutritional information for all the ingredients that are or can be used to make your own LCHF Thousand Island dressing

Hellman's Mayonnaise (1 Cup) – Calories 960, protein 0, fat 160, carbs 0 grams

Per Tablespoon – Calories 90, protein 0, fat 10 grams, carbs 0 grams

LCHF Mayonnaise (1 Cup) – Calories 1633, protein 2.2 grams, fat 183 grams, carbohydrates 1.1 grams

Per Tablespoon – Calories 102, protein 0.14 grams, fat 11.4 grams, carbs 0.06 grams

LCHF Ketchup

1 Cup – Calories 97, fat 0 grams, protein 2.1 grams, 16 carbohydrates

Per Tablespoon – Calories 6, fat 0 grams, protein 0.13 grams, carbs 1 gram

Dill Pickle Relish

Per Tablespoon – Calories 0, fat 0, protein 0, carbohydrates 0.1 grams

Sweet Pickle Relish

Per Tablespoon – Calories 10, fat 0, protein 0, carbohydrates 3 grams

Conclusion

In my earlier articles 'Making Your Own LCHF Condiments' and 'Vinaigrettes, The Original No Carb Dressings' I talked about how hidden carbohydrates can really derail your low carbohydrate lifestyle. This is especially true if you are trying to keep your body in a state of ketosis so that your body burns fat rather than carbohydrates. The use of salad dressings is one of those items that can jump up and totally derail your low carb lifestyle if you are not careful. One of the best ways to eliminate this threat to your dietary regimen is to make your own low carbohydrate salad dressings.

Let's be honest, salads are one of the first items that most people who begin on a diet or lifestyle change add to their eating plan. And while the addition of a good salad with lot's of beneficial greens can be a stabilizing factor in a person's dietary changes, all these benefits can be eliminated with the overuse of high carbohydrate salad dressings. If you really want to be successful with your low carbohydrate lifestyle and you enjoy eating salads, then I encourage you to experiment and make your own LCHF salad dressings. As always, we ask that if you have found this article to be interesting and of use to please share it with your friends. Don't forget to send us a friend request on Facebook, or add us to your circle on Google+ so that you will be notified when new articles have been posted to our blog.

Similar Articles On Our Blog:

LCHF Ranch Dressing

Making Your Own LCHF Condiments

Vinaigrettes, The Original No Carb Dressings

Resources:

U.S. Households: Which Flavors Of Prepared Salad Dressing Do You Use Most Often? Statista: The Statistics Portal, accessed October 10, 2016.

Kraft Foods: Thousand Island Dressing

Compound Butters

Natural fats are an important part of the low carbohydrate high fat diet (LCHF). It is the addition of natural fats such as butter, lard, duck fat (and other animal fats), olive oil, coconut oil, peanut oil, and avocado oil to your diet that helps you feel full and decreases those urges for you to binge eat or crave certain foods. Of all these fats the one that is most commonly used is butter. Butter is a star in the LCHF community as it is a good fat that is easily digested by the human body. Because of it's flavor, butter is the preferred cooking fat for most purposes, and it has no equal when it comes to sauce making.

Butter has been a mainstay in the culinary world ever since Auguste Escoffier wrote the first culinary textbook 'Le Guide Culinaire'. Not only used as a sauce itself, butter is used to enrich the flavor and mouth feel of sauces in traditional French cooking. As an integral part of French culinary cuisine, I learned more about butter when I was in culinary school that I thought was possible. One of the things we used to do every evening before the restaurant shut down for the night was make compound butters to be used for the next days service.

Compound butters, are butters that are flavored or seasoned and then rolled into a log in plastic wrap or wax paper and then placed in the fridge to cool. This butter was then sliced and not only used as a condiment for cooked meats or vegetables and finishing sauces, but as a cooking fat for more delicate items such as shrimp and other seafood. It used to be that no restaurant of any caliber would be caught without having a few compound butters in their fridge, but in the early to mid 1970's butter became the scourge of the health industry and compound butters began to fall out of favor. Fast forward 40 years and we see that a large amount of medical and dietary research has revealed that butter is not the cause of cardiovascular problems that it was once thought to be. Modern research has shown that butter is actually safe and is a vital component of a healthy diet. Go figure.

Anyway the purpose of this article is to teach you how to make your own compound butters at home in order to give you some additional flavoring options to use in your recipes. Compound butters allow you to add unique flavor profiles to meats, fish, and vegetables without increasing the carbohydrate count. In addition to the classic 'Maitre d' Hotel Butter', I have included some additional recipes for some unique compound butters.

Types Of Butter

Before we get to the recipes, lets quickly talk about the butter most of you will find on your supermarket shelves. Fresh butter consists of about 80 percent milk fat. Here in the United States you will find two distinct types of butter on your supermarket shelves: salted and unsalted.

Salted Butter – Technically this butter is only lightly salted. Regulated by the USDA here in the states, salted butter can only have a maximum of 2% salt. It generally has a slightly better shelf life than unsalted butter.

Unsalted Butter – Is butter without the salt. It has a fresher, slightly sweeter taste that salted butter, but it is also more perishable. Unsalted butter is the workhorse of the fat world in the kitchen. It;s neutral slightly sweet flavor is exactly what you want when making sauces, compound butters, and clarified butters. Personally I only buy unsalted butter. Usually we buy 2 – 3 boxes at a time and freeze the butter giving it an almost unlimited shelf life.

Compound Butters

As I mentioned earlier, compound butters, are simply unsalted butters that are flavored or seasoned with herbs, and spices and then refrigerated until ready to use. Most of these recipes can be made in the bowl of your mixer using the paddle attachment in just a few minutes. You can mix your compound butters by hand, but you will need to make sure your butter is softened for best results (at room temperature). Of all of the compound butters, Maitre d' Hotel Butter, was the most common type of compound butter that we made and used on a regular basis in the restaurant. It was the first compound butter that all aspiring chef's had to learn to make. This all-purpose compound butter goes great with veggies, meats, seafood and can be used to finish a sauce, although I prefer to use plain butter in my soups and sauces.

Maitre d' Hotel Butter

1lb unsalted butter

4 teaspoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons dried parsley or 2 ounces chopped fresh parsley

2 teaspoons salt

pinch of white pepper

Place your stick of butter into a bowl and allow to softened to room temperature, then add the remaining ingredients and using a spoon or spatula mix all the ingredients into the butter until they are throughly combined and the butter is smooth and creamy.

Chef's Note: In a pinch you can add cold butter to the bowl of your stand mixer and using the paddle attachment of your mixer, beat the butter at low speed until smooth and creamy. Add the remaining ingredients and continue to beat until the butter is completely mixed.

Remove to butter from the bowl and place on a sheet of parchment paper, wax paper or plastic wrap and roll the butter into a cylinder about 1 inch in diameter. Then place in the fridge and chilled and firm. To use cut slices of the ¼ to ½ inch thick and place on broiled or grilled meat, seafood, or vegetables just before serving.

Chef's Note: A technique that I learned when making garlic and onion butters, was to add the onions, shallots and or garlic for your compound butter in a small saucepan and heat just until the butter melts and simmer for 30 to 60 minutes to allow all of the flavors to permeate the butter. Remove from the heat, strain out the solids, then add any herbs, spices or liquids of your choice and allow to cool. Once the butter has re-solidified, but is still soft, place it on plastic wrap and roll into a log and refrigerate overnight. For the home chef, this technique is a bit much, but I just wanted to share it with you.

Variations

There are lots of recipes for compound butters, I have included the basic recipes for some of the more popular ones that we used to make the restaurant, and a few that I make at home. These recipes can be combined to form different flavors, or you can add ingredients to come up with you own unique flavor profiles. All of these are easily made by adding the following ingredients to 1 pound of unsalted butter. If you use salted butter, omit the salt.

Anchovy Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus 2 – 3 anchovy fillets, mashed to a paste.

Chipotle Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus 1 chipotle pepper (smoked jalapeño) minced with seeds removed, plus 1 teaspoons adobo sauce.

Curry Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus 4 – 6 teaspoons curry powder heated gently with 1 ounce of butter, then cool and add to the remaining butter and mix.

Garlic Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus.1 tablespoon garlic, mashed to a paste..

Escargot Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus 2 – 3 anchovy fillets, mashed to a paste.

Herbed Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus 1 teaspoon each dried thyme, dried parsley, and dried rosemary.

Jalapeño Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus 1 – 2 jalapeños minced seeds removed.

Mustard Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus 2 – 3 tablespoons Dijon-style mustard.

Scallion or Shallot Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus ¼ cup minced scallions or shallots.

Shrimp Butter – Add 2 teaspoons salt, plus ½ lb cooked shrimp and shells ground very fine. Then force shrimp butter through a fine sieve to remove the pieces of shells.

Conclusion

Compound butters can add a unique flavor to veggies, meats, soups and sauces. They are easy to make and use and butter is one of the best healthy fats to use for cooking. One thing you must keep in mind when making compound butters is that some of the ingredients that you use may contain a trace amount of carbohydrates, so if you are on a strict LCHF diet the use of a lot of compound butters may add up over the day, but for most people this is not an issue. As always, if you have found the information in the article interesting or useful, we ask that you share it with your friends. Don't forget to send us a friend request on Facebook or add us to your circle on Google+.

References:

Child, Julia, Beck Simone, Mastering the Art Of French Cooking, New York, Alfred Knopf, 1978.

Gisslen, Wayne, Profession Cooking, 7^th Edition: College Edition, Hoboken, New Jersey 2011, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2011.

Labensky, Sarah, Hause, Alan, On Cooking 2^nd Edition: A Textbook Of Culinary Fundamentals, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 1999.