There’s something truly mouth-watering about succulent roast pork, topped with a thick crunchy layer of crackling. This is winter ‘comfort food’ at its very best; just the thing to eat in front of a roaring fire when all outside is icy & unforgiving.

During these long, cold & dark evenings, food fulfils a greater role than sustenance alone. The heart and soul both crave a break from the grey monotony; and food provides this – it satisfies and nurtures, keeping the chill at bay and bringing a sense of warmth to more than just the stomach alone! And the cook is the provider of this relief. There’s a great joy in the hearty fare of winter, and preparing food like this is a way of showing love and care for friends & family. The appreciation & gratitude it receives is more than ample reward; as are the empty plates, scraped clean in indication that ‘you’ve done well’ and your efforts were worthwhile!

On a low-carb diet however, food can sometimes lack this feeling of filling, substantial warmth. All too often, the dieter will fall back on quick dishes of green vegetables and salad; both delicious in their own right, but ill-suited to the ravages of winter and the simple, robust fare it requires!

On a ketogenic diet, fat provides the principal sense of satiety, so pork-crackling can be tucked into without guilt or fear of piling on the pounds! Diabetics and those on a paleo-regime can equally reap these rewards, as can those with an intolerance to gluten, because this dish contains no wheat or carbohydrate beyond the natural fibre-based cellular-carbs in the celeriac itself.

Start by bringing the pork to room temperature on a plate in the kitchen for an hour or so before cooking. Pat the surface of the meat dry and season the skin liberally with rock salt and black pepper. Place a heavy-based pan on the hob and heat a little butter and oil until it’s good and hot, then add your pork, skin-side down, enjoying its splutter of protest as the meat hits the pan.

Continue to seal this on the hob for a few minutes on each side until all is golden and brown; then add a roughly chopped onion and a couple of cloves of crushed garlic. Once these have had a couple of minutes of high heat, pour on a glug of white wine or dry vermouth to lift the flavour from the bottom of the pan, then top up the liquid with chicken stock (or water and stock-cubes) until the meat sits waist-high in liquid. Now simply transfer the pan to a hot oven to roast for an hour or so, until the skin is deliciously crisp and caramelised.

Whilst this is in the oven, prepare your celeriac. Peel ‘the big ugly’, then dice it into 1cm chunks. In a sauté-pan heat a little more butter and oil and add finely sliced onion and a roughly chopped leek. Cook these until translucent, then tumble in your diced celeriac & crushed garlic, stirring well to prevent it sticking. Cover the pan’s contents with chicken stock and leave  to reduce, stirring occasionally until the liquid has all but evaporated.

At this point, lift out a piece of celeriac and (giving it a good blow) test the vegetables for tenderness and seasoning. We want it so that the celeriac is ‘melt in the mouth’ and tenderly soft. If there is still resistance, add more water and continue to reduce as before until the desired texture is reached.

Once the texture is as we want it, take your pork out of the oven to allow it to ‘rest’. Cover the joint with a double layer of tinfoil to prevent it getting cold, then you can start on your spinach.

Rinse this well, then add it to the pan, retaining whatever water is still clinging to the leaves. Stir this in, then allow to cook for a further 5 minutes until the spinach has wilted thoroughly and all water is staved off. I never cease to be amazed at how much spinach shrinks down in volume. My only point of comparison is my food budget at the end of the month! It’s always equally surprising how that diminishes so quickly; leaving me with a mere fraction of what I started with!

When all is cooked, stir a knob of butter through the vegetables and grate on a fine shaving of parmesan cheese to add a salty counterpoint to the richness of chicken-stock and leeks. Serve up your pork onto a pre-heated plate and spoon the vegetables to one side, garnishing the lot with freshly chopped herbs.

Cut the cracking into chunks and eat with your fingers, enjoying each crunch as it comes! Truly delectable in every way!

Browse this and other recipes by picture on my pinterest page: country walks in ketosis pinterest.

Thanks for reading and bon ap!

Adam.

It’s amazing how a small twist on a classic recipe can give a ‘once familiar dish’ a whole new lease of life & take it to new heights! Well this reinterpretation of cauliflower cheese is one such example.  The addition of wasabi-paste to a simple cheese-sauce completely revamps an already delicious recipe; but one that can sometimes verge on the bland and unexciting…

The hot peppery taste of wasabi goes brilliantly with lamb. It serves to cut through the richness and lift the flavour, the same reason why lamb is often served with a vinegary mint-sauce. I wouldn’t team wasabi with many roast meats; but lamb has a depth of flavour which is strong enough to carry it off. Chicken or pork would risk becoming ‘lost’ when faced with such a powerful bedfellow; but lamb is more than up to the challenge, and for this reason, I salute it!

The other strong advantage to lamb is that it’s at its best when simply left to do its own thing. You can leave it all day in a low oven and it just gets better and better! The meat becomes unctuously soft and melts off the bone at the merest suggestion of a nudge with a wooden spoon. The kitchen is also filled with the rich savoury aroma of roasting meat, which is truly mouthwatering! Amidst the cold of winter, we need food like this! Food that is filling, substantial and robust (a thing which low-carb recipes can often lack!).

Cauliflower is brilliant on a low-carb diet however. With only 1.5g net carbs per 100g, there’ll be no insulin-spiking or raise in blood-sugar levels, which makes it perfect for diabetics or those on a ketogenic-plan. It’s paleo-friendly and gluten-free, so its deliciousness and versatility can also be enjoyed by coeliacs. For this reason it’s become a firm favourite of my low-carb kitchen and I cannot recommend it highly enough!

Start by seasoning your piece of lamb on all sides and sealing the meat in a mix of butter & oil on a high heat in a heavy-bottomed pan. Once the joint is coloured and golden on all sides, tumble in chopped onion, leeks & a couple of cloves of crushed garlic, and continue to sauté these until the vegetables turn soft to the touch with a wooden-spoon.

At this point, stop stirring the mix and allow the heat to build up. After a minute or two, deglaze the pan with a good glug of port or red wine and crumble in a stock-cube or two for background flavour. Then pour on water until the pan’s contents are ‘waist-deep’ in liquid. Add a couple of bay-leaves and some dried herbs, then transfer the pan to a slow oven (circa 140-150°c) for 3-4 hours until the meat is soft, tender and succulent. If you have concerns that the meat may dry out, place a lid on the pan and turn down the heat slightly – every cooker is different; I have an aga so there’s none of the risk of air-scorching the meat which can sometimes occur in a fan-oven.

If you take the ‘lid-on approach’, remove the lid for the final half-hour of cooking. This means that the lamb will develop a crisp, delicious crust on top – delightful in every way! When ready, remove the pan from the oven and cover with the lid or tinfoil to allow the meat to ‘rest’ for 20 minutes. This should be done for all roasted meats, which would otherwise lack that ‘melt in the mouth’ quality if eaten straight from the oven.

An hour before you’re ready to eat, bring a large saucepan of water to the boil, filled to a couple of inches depth. Place in your cauliflower, then steam it through with the lid on until a knife goes in with a slight resistance. In this instance I left the cauliflower head whole, but you can equally cut this into florets if you wish to save time or want more or a ‘gratin effect’. Once cooked, drain the water from the pan and place to one side.

In a second heavy saucepan, add a cup and a half of double cream to the pan and place this onto a low heat. Grate a good whack of cheese and sprinkle a generous handful into the cream, to melt slowly. Season the sauce, then spoon a half-dessertspoonful of wasabi paste into the mix. If you prefer things a little less intense, feel free to add less; simply taste the sauce, adding the wasabi at intervals until you get to a flavour-strength that’s right for you. Leave the sauce on the hob, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes or until the cream has thickened to the texture of a rich custard.

Now simply ladle your sauce over the pre-cooked cauliflower and top the lot with your remaining grated cheese. Dust the top with a sprinkle of dried herbs, then into a medium oven it goes for circa 30 minutes until the surface is golden brown and bubbling.

Hey presto, your dinner is ready! Rush both lamb and cauliflower to the table and dig in with aplomb! Few dishes can be more delicious than this. If you have guests, it’s nice not to tell them about the wasabi-sauce – you can then watch their faces transform with wonder and surprise at the unexpected intensity of this wolf in sheep’s clothing!

Browse this and other recipes by picture on my pinterest page: country walks in ketosis pinterest.

Thanks for reading and bon ap!

Adam.

In Winter, food should be satisfying, filling and plentiful! When it’s cold outside, the heart & soul crave something with substance; and this dish is the perfect thing to ward off the chill! It’s robust in flavour, yet quick and easy to prepare; plus has that ‘added bonus’ of being a ‘one-pot-dish’, so you won’t be standing over the sink for hours or juggling 10 different pans at once! It’s one of those dishes which can simply be ‘left on the hob’ for 20 minutes, whilst you get on with something else (like write a blog…).

There’s truly a wonderful affinity between sausages and cabbage. It’s a combination that can only be described as ‘hearty’, both in texture and taste! The flavoursome ‘warmth’ of leeks and bacon provides a delicious background depth; all topped by a generous sprinkle of parmesan cheese, which melts in slowly & adds a delicious salty ‘tang’. This is definitely one of those dishes to ladle into bowls and eat curled up on the sofa in front of a favourite film. As such, it’s the perfect dinner for a cold Winter’s evening, when all you want is honest, rustic comfort-food!

Because savoy cabbage is wonderfully low in carbs (1.57g per 100) this dish is great for a ketogenic-diet or those on a paleo-plan. There’s no gluten, so coeliacs can tuck in without qualms; as can diabetics, who won’t experience any impact to blood-sugars or have to ramp up their insulin-levels to account for it! My one word of advice concerns the sausages. Read the packet carefully, as many sausages contain breadcrumbs. Most supermarkets stock a gluten-free variant however, or ask your butcher who’ll be more than obliging! Low-carb sausages are in no way difficult to find, you just have to check before you buy that what you’re buying is right! It’s important to remember the net-cabs rule too (see here for details).

Start by cutting your smoked-bacon into a fine dice. If you can get pre-cut lardons, all the better! Place a heavy-bottomed pan onto the hob and melt in a little butter and a dash of oil to stop it burning. Then tumble in your bacon and seal this on a high heat for 2 to 3 minutes.

Roughly slice your leek and add this to the pan, along with your sausages. Continue to cook these for circa 5 minutes, until the sausages start to brown slightly and the leeks begin to collapse with the press of a wooden-spoon.

Meanwhile, thinly slice your savoy cabbage and give it a good rinse. Once the sausages begin to colour, deglaze the pan with a little port or red-wine, then stir-in your cabbage. Crumble in a chicken stock-cube and sprinkle over a good teaspoon of paprika. Follow this with a generous sprinkle of dried herbs (sage, oregano or thyme are perfect) and a dessert-spoonful of Dijon mustard. Depending on how much water was left on the cabbage, pour in boiling-water until you have circa 1/2 a centimetre’s depth, then place the lid firmly on the pan and simmer for 10 minutes until the cabbage wilts down and turns tender. Then remove the lid and continue to cook on a low heat until the liquid is all but evaporated.

Once the water is staved off, stir well and check for seasoning. Sprinkle a generous handful of freshly grated parmesan over the top and tear over some basil leaves to garnish.

Then simply ladle into bowls and enjoy… delicious!

Browse this and other recipes by picture on my pinterest page: country walks in ketosis pinterest.

Thanks for reading and bon ap!

Adam.

In January, local game is in plentiful supply. Pheasants, pigeons & partridges have had a joyous time, feeding off the rich Autumn harvest for three long months. The fruit of the fields & hedgerows has developed in them a fine deep flavour, plus contributed an insulating layer of fat. This lends them succulence & tenderness in the pot, which game-birds bagged earlier in the season tend to lack. This is truly ‘free range food’ at its best, and nature’s wildness can be tasted in every mouthful!

When all is cold and grey outside; the kitchen becomes a place of sanctuary. Its warm oven & bubbling pans make it the perfect haven to ward off the season’s bitter chill. In January, we need satisfying comfort food like this dish, to nurture us through the dark months and break the monotony of food which often seems to lose its vibrancy.

Pheasant can have a tendency to be on the dry side; as such it requires careful cooking. This doesn’t mean that it’s difficult or fiddly to cook; simply that it needs plenty of liquid and sumptuous lashings of butter to bring out its best! Here I’ve paired it with buttered broccoli & celeriac ‘forestière’. Forestière is a traditional French dish, taking its name from the woodlands where mushrooms are grown & foraged. The recipe traditionally also uses bacon, onions, herbs and garlic. This makes it deeply rich in flavour, with a ‘taste of the wild’ which compliments our pheasant perfectly! This dish can also be adapted to the more classical usage of chicken – but I feel we can go one better than that!

The use of celeriac makes this recipe wonderfully low in carbohydrate. With a net-carb value of circa 5.5g per 100; it’s a vegetable which can be enjoyed by ketogenic-dieters, diabetics, paleo-fans or simply anyone just wishing to avoid the stodge of potatoes! They’ll be no impact to your blood-sugar and none of the ‘bloat’ which classically accompanies a high-carb meal. The flavour of celeriac is also absolutely delicious, with a sweet, nutty taste that enriches stocks, sauces and even salads when eaten raw. The low-carb kitchen can’t get enough of it, so put it on your weekly shopping list!

Start by liberally seasoning your pheasant. Place a heavy bottomed pan on the hob and melt in a knob of butter and a little oil. Once this is piping hot, seal the pheasant, turning after a minute or two on each side until all is golden.

Now add diced bacon lardons to the pan and a finely sliced onion. Once the onion has softened and turned translucent, crush in a clove or two of garlic and chopped mushrooms. I used chestnut mushrooms and a small handful of dried porcinis. If you’re lucky enough to have morels, then I envy you, as these makethe perfect dish! Sauté all for a further couple of minutes to build up the heat. Now deglaze the pan with a generous glug of port (I advise placing your nose into the whooshing cloud of steam. You’ll be rewarded with a richly alcoholic ‘sigh’ – the cook’s true perk, and one which should never be passed up).

Once the port has reduced by half in volume, add diced celeriac (chopped to cubes of circa 1cm) and pour on chicken stock (or water and two stock cubes) to a depth that is ‘waist-high’ to the pan’s contents. Sprinkle in fresh or dried herbs and give the pan a good stir. I opted for thyme and sage because of their warmth of flavour. I always feel however that herbs are a matter of personal preferance – use what you like and you can’t go wrong! Then into a hot oven it goes for circa one hour, making sure to turn the pheasant over half-way through to brown the topside.

Once cooked remove from the oven and check for seasoning. Cover the pan with tinfoil and leave the pheasant to ‘rest’ for ten minutes, so that the meat can ‘relax’. Meanwhile bring a centimetre of water to the boil in a pan and steam your chopped broccoli for a couple of minutes until tender, but still retaining its bite. Drain this and top with a generous spoonful of butter. Placing a lid on the pan and giving it a good shake will ensure that the vegetables are all finely coated.

Then simply transfer your pheasant to a pre-heated serving dish and ladle the sauce all around. Pile your broccoli to one side and dig in! January comfort-food doesn’t get any better or more delicious than this! Hearty, satisfying warmth – truly food for the soul!

Browse this and other recipes by picture on my pinterest page: country walks in ketosis pinterest.

Thanks for reading and bon ap!

Adam.

Some dishes are just so delicious there won’t be a scrap left on the plate. So much so, you’ll want to cook them time and time again. Well this recipe is certainly one of those! Crispy spiced duck with cauliflower-rice, studded and jewelled with almonds and saffron.  Quite simply sublime!

Duck is a particularly succulent meat, with a strong rich flavour. When cooked in the right way, the skin goes ‘cracklingly’ crisp, whilst the meat below remains tender and meltingly soft. There’s also a wonderful sense of pride when you carry a plump golden bird to the table. It’s majestic in its finery and remains one of those rare dishes which truly feels like a special treat. The cook’s reward is an army of empty plates, scraped ‘clean as a whistle’ – strong testament indeed that the meal was both appreciated and expertly cooked!

This dish may sound complicated, but is actually incredibly easy to do. All you need is a little time and a good hot oven. This simplicity is echoed in the cauliflower-rice, which is every bit as tasty as the duck itself. The delicate scent of saffron perfectly complements the robust flavours of the duck, and the rice looks truly beautiful when studded with almonds and bright coloured peppers.

Orange-flower water and zest add to the dish’s aromatic profundity; indeed duck and orange is a flavour-partnership which has endured for centuries! All the above is elegantly lifted by the lightest whisper of chilli, which serves to cut through the richness and balance the flavour… a veritable ‘symphony of taste’!

Duck is perfect for a ketogenic diet. Low carb dishes can sometimes lack that satisfying ‘filling’ quality, but this delivers on all levels! There’s no gluten, so those with an intolerance to wheat will be fine; as will diabetics and those on a paleo-regime because there’s no dairy. Everyone is welcome at the table – the more the merrier!

Start by preparing your duck. Make sure it’s at room temperature, then dust the skin lightly with a mix of equal-quantities of garlic-salt and smoked paprika. Season all over and then leave to sit for 20 minutes to develop in flavour. You can leave this over-night if you like, but I’m impatient! Once rested, season all over then sprinkle a little dried oregano over the skin. Place the bird breast-side down into an oven-dish, then into a hot oven it goes for 40 minutes to an hour, until the skin on the underside goes crisp.

Roasting the duck upside down at first will mean that all the fat and juices sink down into the breast, preventing it from being dry. Once golden and brown on the underside, turn the bird over and re-season the top, making sure to provide enough salt that the skin crisps up and turns a fine, succulent bronze. This will take a further half hour to 45 minutes.

Once the duck has been turned, you’re ready to start on the cauliflower-rice. Cut the cauliflower into florets and pulse these in a food-processor until the texture is as per rice grains. It’s best doing this is batches, so that the food-processor doesn’t turn the lot into purée!

Once chopped, place a wok or wide-bottomed pan onto the hob and add in butter & a little olive-oil (so the butter doesn’t burn). Sauté a finely sliced onion and garlic for around four minutes, then add chopped chillies and a small sprinkle of cumin (quantity subject to preference for both). We don’t want this to be too overpowering, so tread lightly (I used a de-seeded green chilli, finely sliced and half a teaspoon of spice). Thinly slice half a green, red and yellow pepper and add these at the same time as the chilli.

Cook the vegetables through for a couple of minutes, then pour in your cauliflower-rice. Stir authoritatively, so that the whole lot is well-coated in butter, then sprinkle on grated orange zest and your saffron strands. Follow this with a couple of chicken stock-cubes for background flavour, and a small capful of orangeflower-water. If you don’t have this, the orange-zest should suffice. I use it because it provides a delicate ‘floral’ note, which adds to the exotic, aromatic quality of the dish.

Whilst this is cooking through, toast a handful of flaked almonds under the grill until they start to char and smoke around the edges. The aroma from this is mouthwatering. For some reason it always reminds me of Christmas & hot roasted chestnuts!

Meanwhile, take your duck out of the oven and cover well with tinfoil to rest for circa 15-20 minutes. It should be richly bronzed, and slightly red from the paprika. The aroma should speak for itself; there’s no need to describe to you how good this will be!

Taste the rice to adjust the seasoning and check that the cauliflower is cooked through. We’re looking for tender, but still keeping its bite. Sprinkle the toasted almonds on top and remove the pan from the heat.

Transfer the duck to a pre-heated serving platter and pile your rice all around. Garnish with a final flourish of toasted almonds, chopped herbs and few strands of orange-zest for colour.

Carry to the table with pride and ‘dig in’ whilst the duck is still piping hot! Delicious!

Browse this and other recipes by picture on my pinterest page: country walks in ketosis pinterest.

Thanks for reading and bon ap!

Adam.

Anyone who says that a low carb diet is difficult to follow is obviously not doing it properly! Take this dish for example… Generous chunks of 30-day matured beef, sautéed in butter then slowly simmered in red wine with garlic, mushrooms and herbs. Few things could be more delicious or more appetising! There’s a reason that this dish has been so universally celebrated for so long… quite simply, it’s perfection itself!

Because it’s very low in carbs, this dish is ideal for diabetics and ketogenic-dieters alike. You never know, paleo-fans or gluten-intolerants may want to give it a go too. The more the merrier!

The name bouguignon takes its roots from the French red wine of Burgundy, where the dish originates. The wine is soft, velvety smooth and rich in flavour (most definitely my favourite!). Without this, purists would argue that it can’t be called a bourguignon. In all honesty however, any good French red will yield equally pleasing results; they’ll just lack the authenticity and a bit of the smoothness of the original.

Don’t be put off by thinking this may be too complicated. The dish itself couldn’t be simpler. All you need is good quality ingredients and a reliable heavy-based casserole. When people refer to French cookery, they don’t mean a list of complex ingredients or fiddly, time-consuming recipes. They’re actually referencing a way of cooking. French cuisine is a methodology; a time-honoured discipline, designed to bring the best out of ingredients. When the French refer to the ‘art of cookery’; art in French means type or style. The ‘French-style’ requires the mastery of a few basic techniques which, once learnt; will deliver consistently outstanding results.

One of these competencies is the classic French method of cooking meat. There’s a stately ritualism to this process, which is almost comforting in its cadences. The succulent sealing-in & caramelisation of the meat is followed by the slow softening of shallots & garlic; then deglazing the pan with a magnificent whooshing ‘sigh’, as wine hits the thirsty metal-surface of the pan. As the kitchen fills with the delicious aroma of melting butter, fresh herbs and pan-seared meats, you’ll begin to feel like an alchemist creating pure gold from the very simplest of ingredients. It’s truly an art worth learning!

Start by sealing your beef. This must be room temperature and dry to the touch.  Heat a metal-lined sauté-pan on the hob (non-stick doesn’t deglaze with pleasing results) and throw in a knob of salted butter followed by a dash of oil. The sizzle should be a rewarding sensation in itself, as should the aroma.

Add your beef to the pan and seal on each side until it’s golden brown and deliciously caramelised. You must excuse me for constantly repeating myself, but it needs to be said…! Do not fuss around with the meat in the pan or move it until it’s good and ready. No-one likes to be mothered; why do it to your dinner?! When the beef is ready to be turned, it will release itself of its own accord in response to the merest touch with finger or wooden-spoon. If it sticks, it’s not ready. We want the meat to caramelise and brown; not steam! And do not crowd it in the pan or the same will happen!

Once the meat is beautifully golden on each side, lift out of the pan and tip in sliced shallots & chopped garlic. Soften these until translucent and just starting to brown, then add sliced mushrooms and simmer these until coloured. Once done, crank up the heat as high as you can. This is not some obscure act of retribution, you simply want the pan to be as hot as possible for when you pour in the wine. That way, you’ll deglaze with the maximum effectiveness, lifting all the caramelised flavours straight off the bottom of the pan.

Once it’s good and hot pour in a large glass full of red wine, making sure to stand over the pan and enjoy the cloud of sweet, alcoholic steam which billows beautifully out into the kitchen! Once the liquid has all but evaporated, place your beef back into the pan and pour in a enough beef stock (or water and stock cubes) to ensure that the meat is just submerged. Dissolve a small teaspoon of Dijon mustard into the pan and add a bay-leaf or two for warmth. Simmer for 10 minutes then stir in a good handful of chopped parsley, place the lid onto the pan and put the casserole into a medium oven for 1-2 hours (the slower the better!).

In the last hour of cooking, prepare your celeriac. Peel ‘the big ugly’ and dice into 1cm chunks. Add a spoonful of butter to a broad pan and sauté the celeriac for a couple of minutes on a medium heat. Finely slice an onion and a clove of garlic then add these to the pan and cook for a couple more minutes until the onion starts to soften. At this point, pour in chicken stock (or water and some stock cubes) until the liquid just covers the vegetables. Season well and simmer for circa 40 minutes more until the liquid had reduced and the celeriac starts to break down when pressed with a wooden spoon. If you like, you can add a handful of grated cheese. Cheddar, emmental or gruyere would be perfect. Take the pan off the heat and garnish with a sprinkle of herbs.

Remove the casserole from the oven and place onto the hob on a very low heat. In a mixing bowl, add one small teaspoon of cornflour and whisk in enough water to form a thin ‘pourable’ paste. Make sure to whisk sufficiently to avoid any lumps. These will ruin the sauce and be unpleasant to eat. You may wonder at the addition of flour for a low carb diet. Cornflour is an incredibly potent thickener. The amount you’re using will provide only a tiny quantity of carbs, circa 5-10g for the whole dish. Per portion it will only be a couple of grammes! If you’d rather leave it out, I’d quite understand, but as everything else is very low in carbohydrate, I don’t see this small sacrifice as a problem – the results will be worth it! Stir the cornflour paste into the beef and simmer for a minute or two until the sauce thickens.

All that remains is to ladle the bourguignon into bowls and spoon on your celeriac mix. Few dishes could be more luxurious and resplendently rich than this one. Be sure to enjoy every last mouthful. We certainly did!

Browse this and other recipes by picture on my pinterest page: country walks in ketosis pinterest.

Thanks for reading and bon ap!

Adam.

Anyone on a ketogenic diet will soon learn to appreciate courgettes as a delicious, reliable staple. They’re incredibly adaptable and can be used in an infinite number of dishes: zoodles, roulade, rosti, or equally a simple weeknight recipe such as this; courgette & mozzarella bake.

Courgettes pick up the favour of anything they’re cooked with, so garlic and bacon form the perfect backdrop for this rich and velvety smooth dish. The zucchini turn buttery soft in the oven, and baked mozzarella complements this wonderfully. Melted cheese is mouthwatering at the best of times – here it blends into the cream to form a decadent, indulgent sauce which is truly delicious!

Because the gratin is so smooth in texture, I’ve teamed it with roasted pork belly. This goes wonderfully crisp in the oven, and serves to contrast and counterpoint the softened courgettes and cream. The combination is incredibly moreish – we had no leftovers whatsoever, all plates were scraped clean! This is music to any cook’s ears; as such, this dish comes highly recommended.

The carb-count is very low, so diabetics and ketogenic-dieters need have no concerns over impact to blood-sugars. There’s no gluten, so those with an intolerance needn’t worry also. Above all however, it is quick and easy to prepare, so can be done any night of the week. In this cold wintry weather, we all crave comfort-food, and it couldn’t get more comforting than this! Give it a go and make sure to tell me how you got on…

Start by sautéing diced bacon in a thick-bottomed gratin-dish or casserole. I used butter and a drizzle of oil to prevent the butter from burning. Add a finely sliced onion and cook until this starts to turn translucent. At this point add chopped garlic and 2 large sliced courgettes (one per person). Continue to cook these on the hob for 5 minutes or so, until the courgettes start to brown and soften.

Meanwhile heavily season your pork belly strips and place onto a baking tray. Oven bake these at the top of the oven until they go crisp and succulent. This should take circa 30-40 minutes in a hot oven.

Once the pork has gone in to roast, crumble a couple of chicken stock-cubes into your sautéing courgette mix for background flavour.  Then stir in double cream until the whole lot is just submerged. Dice mozzarella and mix this in so that it’s evenly distributed throughout. Season well and top the lot with a large handful of grated hard cheese such as cheddar or parmesan. This gives the dish that delicious brown ‘crispness’ on top. A quick sprinkle of dried herbs, then into the oven it goes for circa half an hour until the top is golden and bubbling.

Once all is ready, serve up the lot whilst still piping hot. You can also serve salad or green vegetables alongside if you like, but one thing is definite: big hearty bowlfuls are a must! There’s no better way to enjoy comfort food like this, so huddle up warm and dig in!

Browse this and other recipes by picture on my pinterest page: country walks in ketosis pinterest.

Thanks for reading and bon ap!

Adam.