Low Carb Comfort Foods: Comfort Beyond Breads and Pasta

Comfort food. No matter who we are, we all have those delicious foods that make everything better. Macaroni and cheese. Mashed potatoes and gravy. Doughnuts, cookies, pies and cakes. Fresh bread dripping with melted butter. Gooey cinnamon rolls. Chicken noodle soup. For many people, these food encompass warmth, comfort and security. And for all people they encompass carbs. So what's a low carber to do? How do you find your own comfort foods on a cold winter's night and feel satisfied and not deprived? With a few true low carbs foods and a few makeover recipes, you can stay on your diet and enjoy your comforts guilt free!

Meats. Low carb means high protein and oftentimes the protein comes from a meat source. Comfort foods are often Sunday roasts of all kinds and this is one area where low carb comfort food shines. Roast a turkey and make your whole house smell like a holiday. Put together a Dijon mustard, black peppercorn and olive oil rub and apple to a beef top round roast. Bake a ham with a mustard sauce. Roast a prime rib or a strip roast. Marinate and bake a pork tenderloin. Grill up a flank steak. Roast a pair of chickens or a few Cornish game hens. Make lots of extras so you can have leftovers throughout the week. Set your table with the sliced carved meat and add a few delicious low carb side dishes for a weekend comfort meal that has no equal!

Eggs. Eggs are a fantastic source of protein and a delicious way to warm yourself up. Start your day with a delicious omelet, using leftovers from your Sunday roasts, fresh veggies and cheese. Crumble pork sausage together with cheese, eggs, cream and vegetables and bake for a decadent and comforting breakfast casserole. Add cream, bacon, swiss cheese and onion for a delicious quiche lorraine. Be creative with leftovers and produce and create frittatas, omelets, casseroles and more!

Vegetables. Lots of vegetables are allowed on the low carb and others can be consumed in moderation. But it's the potatoes and corn that most low carbers really miss. Substitute cauliflower for an amazing and comforting alternative to mashed potatoes and you won't even miss the original. Steam the cauliflower, drain, and then add cream, butter and shredded cheese. Mash together and serve alongside your main dish. Dice up some of your leftover beef roast, add a jar of beef gravy and serve over the cauliflower mash. Add diced green onion and crisp bacon for "loaded baked potato" mashed cauliflower. Take other low carb veggies and create hot and fresh stir frys. Heat up alfredo or cheddar cheese sauce and serve over steamed broccoli, asparagus and more. Stir chopped vegetables into beef broth with leftover meat to create a delicious and warming beef vegetable soup. Take broccoli, chicken broth, cheese and cream to make a decadent broccoli cheese soup. Enjoy simple steamed veggies with real creamery butter. The sky is the limit!

Casseroles. Make up your favorite chili recipe without beans and using low sugar tomato sauce. Whip together a lasagna with a pepperoni layer where the noodles would be. Keep the meat, ricotta cheese layers and melted mozzarella and watch the sugar content on your spaghetti sauce for a casserole you won't believe!

Desserts. Enjoy your sweets by whipping together heavy cream, Spenda and a little sugar free chocolate pudding mix to create an amazing mousse. Mix whipped cream, Spenda and cream cheese for a no bake cheesecake. Pour diet soda over a tablespoon of heavy cream and enjoy a diet soda float. Switch out Splenda for sugar in most cheesecake recipes and bake up a traditional New York cheesecake that you can enjoy with no guilt. Sugar free doesn't mean no sweets and every comfort food meal needs a little dessert!

Utilize the foods you can eat with impunity on low carb and create your own comfort foods. You'll never miss the starches and carbs you used to turn to before.