Dining with Atkins
By Lee Williams
Knight Ridder News Services
| • | The Atkins diet, step by step
The Atkins diet is based on a four-phase eating plan, regular exercise and the use of vitamin and mineral supplements. The four phases: Induction: Dieters are expected to limit their carbohydrates to 20 grams a day for at least two weeks. That means no fruit, no bread, no pasta, no grains, no alcohol. At the same time, they are asked to eat foods high in proteins and fats, such as meat, along with salad greens and nonstarchy vegetables, such as broccoli. Ongoing weight loss: Dieters are allowed to increase their carb intake to 25 grams per day during the first week, then 30 grams per day during the next week. When weight loss stops, dieters should reduce their carbs by 5 grams per day. Protein and fat are still the key ingredients in this phase. Pre-maintenance: Dieters are allowed to increase their carb intake by 10 grams per day (each week) as long as weight loss continues. Lifetime maintenance: Dieters are expected to stick with the low-carb approach, staying away from items such as white flour and sugar. Occasional fruits and starches are OK. Fresh fish, meat, vegetables and nuts are the staples of the Atkins lifestyle. Source: "The Atkins Journal" |
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French bread.
Crusty on the outside, soft and warm in the middle. Smeared with butter and dipped in marinara sauce, nothing is better.
Sadly, it's a pleasure of my past.
This is Week 6 of the low-carbohydrate, high-protein Atkins diet, and bread — the good kind — is forbidden.
And that presents my biggest challenge as I prepare to throw a dinner party Atkins-style.
How can you have a dinner party without bread?
"You can have bread," says Stephanie Nathanson, food editor for Atkins Nutritionals Inc.
She described a ready-to-eat sliced bread made by Atkins, brushed with garlic-flavored olive oil, toasted in the oven, then cut into triangles.
"And we actually have a bread mix," Nathanson says, noting that with a breadmaking machine, "you can make white bread."
But not French bread.
"Maybe next year," she says.
These days, it's hard not to know someone who's following the Atkins Nutritional Approach or some other low-carb weight-loss plan, such as the South Beach Diet.
The most recent explosion in the Atkins craze was fueled by an article in the New England Journal of Medicine that reported that people on the Atkins diet lost twice as much weight during six months as those on the standard low-fat diet.
The diet is especially gratifying during the induction period, in which dieters are encouraged to consume fat and restrict carbs. Pounds fly off, waistlines shrink, heads turn. One false step, however, and it's back to step one.
Industry watchers say up to 30 million people in the United States are on low-carb, high-protein diets. Atkins provides research that says 25.4 million have tried or are on the Atkins plan.
On USA Today's Top 150 best-selling books list, four of the top 40 are from Atkins.
Don't think that marketers haven't noticed. Low-carb speciality shops are popping up nationwide. And restaurants are offering low-carb menu items.
Back to the dinner party
Pork rinds are probably my favorite Atkins-approved snack, and although they may work fine for an afternoon of football and beer, they don't meet appetizer standards for a dinner party.
Not a problem, says Debbie Meyer, author of "Good Friends, Great Tastes," which tells all about throwing a dinner party.
Her suggestion: Sausage/cream cheese-stuffed mushrooms. All protein, all the time.
"Great food is one of the keys to a great dinner party," says Meyer, who books cooking shows for Market Street, a United Supermarkets Grocery store in Colleyville, Texas.
"And while your guests will be happy to know that it's a low-carb menu, don't limit your guest list. Interesting people make for good dinner parties," Meyer says.
I took Meyer's advice and prepared the stuffed mushrooms, along with deviled eggs topped with bacon — an Atkins staple.
Cheese and olives offered guests more variety in the pre-dinner nibbles.
But no bread, no crackers, no chips.
Once seated, we started with lobster bisque, tweaked with sherry.
Next, a spinach salad, with strawberries, cinnamon-dusted pecans and blue cheese dressing. (Note: This has too many carbs for the induction phase, but it's fine for the ongoing weight loss and pre-maintenance phases.)
Then came the main course, a variation of a dish served at Chinois, Wolfgang Puck's restaurant in Santa Monica, Calif.
My wife and I visited Chinois for our 10th wedding anniversary and ordered lamb chops with an odd-looking green sauce. After one taste, we were begging the waiter for the recipe. In a few minutes, he returned with a sticky note bearing words of culinary wisdom.
"Fresh cilantro, watercress, mint, roasted peanut oil, egg yolk, salt and pepper to taste. Puree. I substitute yogurt for the egg yolk and add a jalape–o to give the algae-looking sauce some zing."
It's got everything you want in an Atkins-type meal: taste, texture, color and low carbs.
For dessert, we had coffee with cream.
"Dessert is not as important as the main course and appetizer. Sometimes a cup of nice coffee is just right," Meyer says.
Sage-sausage-stuffed mushrooms
Makes 40 pieces
- 40 mushrooms, stems removed
- 1/3 cup butter, melted
- 10 ounces bulk sausage
- 1 tablespoon chopped green onions
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
- 8 ounces cream cheese
Place mushrooms in shallow baking dish. Brush with melted butter. Brown sausage, onions and garlic in skillet. Drain. Mix in pepper, parsley and cream cheese. Heat to blend all ingredients and melt cheese. Stuff mushrooms with filling. Bake about 25 minutes at 325 degrees. These can be prepped a day ahead and baked just before the dinner party.
Nutritional analysis per mushroom: 68 calories, 6 grams fat, 1 gram carbohydrates, 2 grams protein, 15 milligrams cholesterol, 80 milligrams sodium, 84 percent of calories from fat.
From "Good Friends, Great Tastes: A Celebration of Life, Food and Friendship" by Debbie Meyer (Debbie Meyer, $22.99).
Bacon deviled eggs
Serves 6
- 6 hard-boiled eggs, halved
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon mustard
- 1 teaspoon horseradish
- 4 slices bacon, crumbled
- Salt and pepper to taste
Scoop the yolk from the egg halves and put into bowl. Smash yolks with mayonnaise, mustard and horseradish. Stir until creamy. Stir in bacon; add salt and pepper. Spoon into egg halves. Serve chilled.
Nutritional analysis per serving: 142 calories, 12 grams fat, 1 gram carbohydrates, 7 grams protein, 193 milligrams cholesterol, 196 milligrams sodium, 78 percent of calories from fat.
Sherried lobster bisque
Serves 4
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 6 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 1/3 cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch, dissolved in cold water
- 1 1/3 cups half-and-half
- 1 pound lobster meat, cooked
- 2 tablespoons dry sherry
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon sweet red bell pepper slivers
In a large pan, melt the butter. Add celery, onion, thyme, red pepper flakes and lemon zest. Cook until vegetables are softened, about 20 minutes.
Gradually stir in broth and half-and-half. When warm, stir in cornstarch. Heat on medium until bubbly and thick, about 10 minutes.
Add the cooked lobster, sherry, salt and pepper. Garnish with strips of bell pepper.
Nutritional analysis per serving: 342 calories, 19 grams fat, 13 grams carbohydrates, 26 grams protein, 161 milligrams cholesterol, 765 milligrams sodium,53 percent of calories from fat.
Adapted from "The Food Lover's Guide to Soups" by Advantage Publishers Group (Thunder Bay Press, 2000).
Strawberry and spinach salad
Serves 6
- 4 cups raw baby spinach, washed
- 2 cups fresh strawberries, quartered
- Handful of butter-roasted pecans
- Chunky blue cheese dressing
Place spinach in salad bowl; sprinkle with strawberries and butter-roasted pecans. Add dressing after serving.
Nutritional analysis per serving, using 2 tablespoons dressing per serving: 204 calories, 19 grams fat, 7 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein, 18 milligrams cholesterol, 351 milligrams sodium, 81 percent of calories from fat.
Lamb chops with Puck's sauce
Serves 4
- 12 lamb chops, cut from rack of lamb
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Pepper-flavored olive oil
- Big handful of watercress
- Big handful of cilantro
- Big handful of mint
- 1 jalape–o, seeded and chopped
- Small handful of peanuts or cashews
- 1/4 cup roasted peanut oil
- 1/4 cup plain yogurt
Have the butcher cut the chops from the rack of lamb. This allows your guests to eat with their hands, which makes the small chops dish easy to eat. Salt and pepper the chops and coat lightly with pepper-flavored olive oil.
Place the watercress, cilantro, mint, jalape–o, nuts, peanut oil and yogurt in a blender or food processor and mix until a smooth — but not runny — sauce is formed. Sauce can be made a day in advance and refrigerated.
Grill the lamb chops over hot coals, being careful not to overcook. Slather chops with sauce.
Nutritional analysis per serving: 727 calories, 40 grams fat, 8 grams carbohydrates, 81 grams protein, 240 milligrams cholesterol, 279 milligrams sodium, 51 percent of calories from fat.
Adapted from a dish served at Wolfgang Puck's restaurant Chinois.
