Carlshead Pizza - my riff on our beloved keto-friendly Fat Head Pizza

If you've been following a low-carb or ketogenic diet you may already know about Fat Head Pizza. This is a low-carb, gluten-free pizza crust made popular by the movie Fat Head that has taken the keto world by storm. This is my tweak of the recipe, which I particularly love.

First, let me say that there's nothing at all wrong with the original recipe. I've just found a way to (I think) improve it a little bit.

The main tweak is to omit the egg. Why? Well, I was making it one day, and got to the step where you are supposed to add the egg, and it seemed like the "dough" was already perfect. Adding the egg added extra moisture, but I wanted a crispier crust. Turns out, that's exactly what it did. The crust was really crispy, but I had to watch more carefully so as not to overcook it. Too much heat and this crust turns into bone-dry crackers.

There are other mods, though. I now use almond FLOUR instead of almond MEAL. Meal is more course and includes the brown almond skins. That's fine, I suppose, but the flour makes a better crust in my opinion.

Also, rather than baking the crust on a cold cookie sheet, I use a pizza stone that's already hot. That gives the bottom a nice pizzaria style crust. I also brush a little olive oil on the bottom when I cook the toppings.

So, nuff said! Here's the modified recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 tbsp cream cheese
• 3/4 cup almond flour
• garlic salt
• pizza stone or pre-heated cookie sheet
• parchment paper
• rolling pin

Method:

Place pizza stone or cookie sheet on the middle rack of your oven and preheat to 500 degrees.

Place mozz and cream cheese in a microwave-safe bowl and cook on high for 15 seconds.

Remove, stir with a fork until blended.

If you see water, it's ruined. Throw it away and start over.

If not yet soft and blended, put back in microwave for another 15 seconds.

Repeat until melted just enough so it sticks together.

Add almond flour and stir well until completely incorporated

Allow to cool for a minute until you can work it with your hands

Pick up the dough, kneed it for 60 seconds, and shape into a round ball with your hands

Place on a piece of parchment paper, and flatten down to an inch thick

Place another piece of parchment on top and roll with rolling pin until 12" in diameter. Experiment with sizes and thicknesses. Too thin and it might turn into a cracker crust.

Remove top parchment and set aside

Sprinkle the top with garlic salt and place (including bottom parchment) directly onto the pizza stone or cookie sheet

Bake under watchful eye for 2-4 minutes or until edges get brown

Remove from oven by holding the parchment at the edges

Pierce bubbles with a fork or knife

Flip over onto second piece of parchment

Brush top (which should be golden brown) with olive oil

Add pre-cooked toppings, cheese, herbs, etc.

Place back in oven for another 5-8 minutes or until toppings have cooked and/or cheese melted

Remove and enjoy

Quick Keto Ice Cream

This is gonna be a quick and dirty recipe, because a) I haven't perfected it yet, and b) it's quick and easy to do. The idea is to make ice cream without an ice cream freezer. This blog post will chronicle my various attempts at it and I won't stop until I've cracked the code!

Attempt #1. Simple. Maybe too simple

For my first attempt I toasted some pecans (about a cup and a half) in a cast-iron skillet with 2 tbsp of butter and 1 tsp salt. I heated up 1.5 pints of heavy cream in a saucepan with added sweetener to taste (I used Xylitol), a little vanilla extract, and some Rum flavoring (because I couldn't find imitation butter or butter flavoring that day in the supermarket). I heated it until all the sweetener crystals had dissolved, and then left it in the pan to cool for 15 minutes.

I then poured the mixture into a metal mixing bowl, and half-filled a slightly larger bowl with ice water, to which I added 1/4 cup of kosher salt. After carefully placing the mixture bowl into the ice bath bowl, I stirred with a spoon until the mixture became slightly cool. At this point I started whipping the snot out of it. Perhaps I went a bit too far. My thought was if it was REALLY thick, it would taste good frozen (foreshadowing). 

After mixing to what I thought was the right level of thick, I mixed in the pecans, spooned the goop into a plastic storage bin and set it in the freezer. A couple hours later it tasted like... slightly sweet frozen whipped butter with peacans in it. Not good.

For my next attempt, I plan to add a bit of whole milk, maybe 1/2 a cup, and a bit of guar gum. I also intend to not whooop it, but merely whip it.

Stay Tuned for Part 2

Keto Chinese Roast Pork

When I was in my 20s, I worked at a software company in Pelham, NY. I remember walking into a Chinese restaurant nearby at lunch-time. I said "what's good today?" The nice man said "Chinese Roast Pork." I naturally said, "well, I'll have some of that!" It wasn't the little bits you find in fried rice. This was big red chunks of pork, marinated in that sweet crimson sauce that contains who-knows-what. I don't think I have had anything that comes close to that. Until now, that is.

I found this recipe online, and it seemed from the ingredients that it would be close. Of course, I had to substitue the sugary stuff with something else, but that was not as hard as I thought it would be.

Everything is the same, except for the contents of the marinade, which I have outlined here:

• 3 tablespoons xylitol (or other sweetener)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon five spice powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• ¼ teaspoon white (or black) pepper
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1 tablespoon sherry
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon hoisin sauce (careful of carbs!)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon hot water
• red food coloring (optional)

The recipe calls for 3 pounds of pork shoulder meat cut into approximately 3/4 pound chunks. You'll need to marinade the pork overnight in a vaccuum-sealed bag for best results.

Simply mix up the marinade, set about 1/4 cup of it aside (and refrigerate) and completely coat the pork with the marinade. Seal in a vaccuum-sealed bag and refrigerate overnight.

When it comes cooking time, place the oven rack on the second-highest position. Pre-heat the oven to 475 F. Line a rimmed cookie sheet with foil, and place a metal rack on top. Add 1/2 cup of water to bottom of pan. Place the pork (with as much space between chunks as possible) on the rack.

Bake at 475 for 25-30 minutes. Flip the meat and add more water if necessary. Bake for another 25-30 minutes. Then, turn the oven to broil and watch it carefully. You don't want it to burn, just crisp up. A convection broiler will work well here.

Take meat out, let rest for a couple minutes, slice, and serve!

Slow-Cooked Pork Butt

I love slow-cooked pork, and this recipe is my go-to for pork shoulder (or butt). You'll need about 5 and a half hours to get it done. Not only do you get very flavorful fork-tender pork, but the sauce will keep you coming back for more.

Ingredients:

• 7 pound (ish) picnic pork shoulder
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup kosher salt
• 6 or 7 sprigs of fresh oregano (leaves only)
• 20 cloves (or so) of garlic, peeled
• 1 tbsp cumin seeds
• 1 pint of mirepoix (diced celery, onions, and carrots)
• 3 tbsp butter
• Sprinkle of Adobo powder
• 1/2 cup to 1 cup of heavy cream

Method:

Preheat the oven to 275 F. Pat the roast with paper towels so it's completely dry. coat thoroughly with olive oil and salt. In a food processor, combine garlic, oregano leaves and cumin seeds. Spread the paste evenly all over the roast, except for the fat cap, or the skin on the top of the roast. Place in a large oven bag (available at the grocery store near the aluminum foil) skin side up. Close the bag with a twist tie and place in a roasting pan with a rack, skin side up. Cook for 5 hours.

Place butter and mirepoix in a saucepan, and sauté on low for about 15 minutes, until translucent. Take the roast out the oven, and increase temp to 400 F. With scissors, cut off a bottom corner of the bag and drain the liquid into the saucepan over the mirepoix. Turn up heat to reduce for a total of 15 minutes during next steps.

Take the rack out of the roasting pan, take the roast out of the bag, and place it into the roasting pan. Carefully remove the top skin layer from the roast. Sprinkle some Adobo or other seasoning on top of the roast where the skin was. Salt and cumin powder will do in a pinch.

Return both the roast and the skin back to the oven at 400 F. If they both fit in the roasting pan, great. I use my toaster oven tray for the skin. Take the roast out after 15 minutes. Cover with a foil tent to rest.

Leave the skin in for another 15 or until crispy brown. Remove the skin and use a pizza cutter or big knife to cut it into bite size pieces to be served on the side.

Put enough of the liquid and mirepoix to constitute a sauce into a blender (3 or 4 cups, perhaps). Add heavy cream, a little at a time while blending to taste. The cream will thicken the sauce and also dial down the salt. You'll know when you have it just right. Continue blending until thick and creamy.

Serve and enjoy!

Critical Research in Support of the Ketogenic Diet

I am often asked for links to particular resources when talking about the benefits of a ketogenic diet to general health and well-being. So, I've collected what I consider the critical list here for your perusal.

Ketogenic Diet, Ketones and Ketosis

What is the Ketogenic Diet

Study: Long-term (24wk) effects of a ketogenic diet in obese patients

Keto Flu: flu-like symptoms that appear after a week or two

Electrolytes flushed by kidneys on ketogenic diet and fasting

2 Keto Dudes Eating Patterns show: Changes you can expect over time

Theraputic uses of ketogenic diets for a variety of diseases

The Ketogenic Diet and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Prolong Survival in Mice with Systemic Metastatic Cancer

BOOK: The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living

Three types of Ketones

2 Keto Dudes Ketones show

Fatty Liver Disease

Diabetes and Eye Problems

Dietary Fat, Cholesterol, and Heart Disease

2014 Meta-study of 76 obeservational and randomized controlled studies disproving eating saturated fat leads to heart disease

Triglyceride over HDL ratio

BOOK: Nina Teicholz: The Big Fat Surprise

2 Keto Dudes Interview with Nina Teicholz

The Diet Heart Hypothesis by Ancel Keys and the Seven Countries Study

Minnesota Coronary Survey buried for 16 years

Re-evaluation of the traditional diet-heart hypothesis: analysis of recovered data from Minnesota Coronary Experiment (1968-73)

BOOK: Jimmy Moore - Cholesterol Clarity

2 Keto Dudes Cholesterol show

Coronary Calcium Scan

The Widowmaker: Science behind the real causes of heart disease

2 Keto Dudes Heart Disease show

VIDEO: Reason for LDL increase for some on a low carb diet

All about fat adaptation

Carrie Thompson does keto for 18 years: 2 Keto Dudes Ketophobia episode.

Statins have never been proven to prevent heart disease.

VIDEO: Malcom Kendrick; The cholesterol hypothesis is wrong

Fasting

BOOK: Dr. Jason Fung - The Obesity Code

2 Keto Dudes Fasting show

Study: Fasting for 3 days regenerates your immune system.

Jason Fung Fasting FAQ

Man fasts for 382 days!

Exercise

Peter Attia - swimmer/athelete turned keto

Metabolic characteristics of keto-adapted ultra-endurance runners

Humans became dominant because of sweat and endless ability to outrun animals

Recipes

Fathead Pizza

Shrimp Scampi Pizza

Keto Tacos

Oopsie Bread

Sugar and Sweeteners

2 Keto Dudes Sweeteners show

VIDEO: Sugar: The Bitter Truth (Robert Lustig)

Protein

The Keto Calculator

2 Keto Dudes Protein show

Misc

"Show Me The Science!" T-shirts