Low Carb Diet Holiday Menu: Recipes and Tips

The holidays are tough for anyone trying to lose weight, but they can be nearly impossible for low carb dieters, who don't have the luxury of saying "oh, just one cookie won't hurt." Special holiday foods are usually loaded with sugar, which is completely forbidden on low carb diets. However, with a little planning, low carb dieters can have a wonderful holiday meal (including dessert!) that is entirely diet friendly. Here's a menu!

Appetizer - Low Carb Stuffed Mushrooms

1 pound (approximately 16-20) large mushrooms (brown or white), hollowed out, stems reserved

8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

8 oz. Italian sausage (hot or sweet)

1 small shallot, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 t. each dry basil and parsley (or 1 T. each chopped fresh)

4 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded

Parmesan cheese for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush the mushrooms with oil and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, until they release some of their liquid. Drain, pat dry and set aside. Break up the sausage into small pieces and brown over medium in a large skillet. Remove from skillet and add shallot to the fat in the pan. Saute 2-3 minutes over medium heat, then add garlic and sauté one minute more. Add the chopped mushrooms, season well with salt and pepper and sauté until the mushrooms have given up their liquid and mixture is dry, about 7-10 minutes. Add herbs, cream cheese and sausage and remove from heat. Stir to combine all ingredients (the heat from the sausage and mushrooms will melt the cheese). Spoon filling into mushrooms, heaping the filling as necessary. Top with mozzarella and parmesan cheese and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, then place under a broiler for 2-3 minutes to brown the tops. Approximately 2g carbohydrate per mushroom.

Salad - Low Carb Caesar Salad with Fennel and Red Pepper

1 large head Romaine lettuce

1 large bulb fennel, trimmed and sliced very thinly

1 large sweet red bell pepper, sliced very thinly

Bottled Caesar salad dressing, to taste (check label to ensure no more than one gram carb per serving)

Lemon juice and shaved parmesan cheese, to taste

Toss all salad ingredients and dress as desired. If no suitably low carb Caesar dressing is available, dress with a mixture of mayonnaise, lemon juice, sour cream, parmesan cheese, black pepper and anchovy fillets. Serves six with approximately 5-6g carbohydrate per serving.

Vegetables - Low Carb Twice Baked "Faux-tatoes"

1 large head cauliflower (or 2 lb. bag frozen cauliflower)

3 cloves garlic

4 oz. cream cheese, softened (more or less to taste)

4 oz. sour cream

1 t. onion powder

Butter and paprika for topping

Cut cauliflower into small pieces and place in large stockpot with garlic and enough water to cover generously. Bring to a boil and cook until cauliflower is extremely soft, approximately 25 minutes. Drain well and place in blender. Add onion powder, sour cream and cream cheese and blend until completely smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Place mixture in a shallow baking dish, dot with butter and sprinkle with paprika. Bake at 350 degrees until top is golden, approximately 20 minutes. Serves six with approximately 6-7g carbohydrate per serving.

Main Course - Standing Rib Roast

Meat is a mainstay of any low carb diet plan, so you could substitute any roasted meat here. However, a standing rib roast makes a beautiful, impressive presentation that will dress up your holiday table considerably.

1 3-rib standing rib roast (larger if desired)

Salt, pepper and dry herbs as desired

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rub roast with vegetable oil, then season as desired. Insert an oven safe probe thermometer into the thickest part of the roast . Place roast fat side up on a rack in a roasting pan, place in oven and roast until thermometer reads 125 degrees for rare, 140-145 for medium. Remove from oven and allow to rest at least 20 minutes before carving (roast will continue to cook as it rests). Serves six with ZERO carbs!

Dessert - Low Carb Pumpkin Cheesecake Mousse

1 15 oz. can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

12 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

8 oz. whipping cream, whipped to stiff peaks

1 t. vanilla extract

2 t. pumpkin pie spice (or cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and allspice to taste)

Artificial sweetener (Splenda, Equal, xylitol or liquid sucralose) to taste, enough to equal the sweetness of 1/2 c. sugar

Place the cream cheese in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until the cheese is completely soft and fluffy, 4-5 minutes. Add the pumpkin, spices. sweetener and vanilla and beat well. Taste for sweetness and add more sweetener as necessary. Gently fold in whipping cream, maintaining as much volume as possible. Spoon mixture into ramekins and refrigerate. Serve cold. Makes 6-8 servings, approximately 5-10g carbohydrate depending on the type of artificial sweetener used and serving size.