DESSERTS FOR YOUR KETOGENIC DIET - By Kendall Lou Schmidt

Giving up carbs to get lean?  Odds are you’re battling some serious cravings. Achieving a state of Ketosis requires you to give up all those sugary treats you have grown to love, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a little sweetness in your life. I’ve selected 3 recipes from The Ultimate Bodybuilding Cookbook that will satisfy your sweet tooth and keep you on track to your goals. Simple enough for the most novice chef and fast enough to whip up in a hurry when your feeling “hangry”, these recipes will work right into your new low-carb lifestyle.

Blackstone Labs 3-Whey Strawberry Cheesecake Shake

SERVES 1 /  PREP TIME: 3 MINUTES

Creamy and delicious, this shake brims with sweet strawberry flavor perfectly balanced with the smooth tang of Greek Yogurt. I slightly shifted the recipe found in my book and brought the carbs down even lower with the help of Blackstone Lab 3-Whey Protein Powder.

1 scoop Blackstone Lab 3-Whey Protein Powder in Strawberry Cheesecake

3 frozen strawberries

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

⅓ cup nonfat Greek yogurt

Ice as needed

1. In a blender, blend the whey protein, frozen strawberries, unsweetened vanilla almond milk Greek yogurt, and ice until smooth.
2. Pour into a glass and enjoy.

Per Serving (1 shake): Calories 225 / Carbohydrates 9g / Fat 6g / Protein 33g

Coconut Macaroons

MAKES 16 MACAROONS / PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES

COOK TIME: 20 MINUTES / TOTAL TIME: 40 MINUTES

These macaroon could not be easier to make! What a delicious way to work the super-healthy benefits of coconut into your diet.

3 egg whites

½ cup granulated stevia

1½ teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon salt

2 cups reduced-fat unsweetened coconut flakes or shredded coconut

Ingredient tips: Unsweetened coconut flakes of normal fat content also work great. This will obviously raise the fat and calorie content slightly, but it is still a healthy fat. You can use either shredded coconut or coconut flakes. Shredded coconut will have finer coconut pieces, giving the macaroon a softer consistency. Flakes will come in larger pieces and be a bit chewier.

Use egg whites from whole eggs. They will hold the macaroon together better than pasteurized egg whites in a carton.

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg whites until foamy.
4. Add the stevia, vanilla extract, and salt, and whisk well.
5. Put the coconut in a medium bowl. Add the egg white mixture, a little at a time, to the coconut. You may not need all the mixture. You want to add just enough to hold the coconut together, but not so much that the egg white mixture is pooling at the bottom of the bowl. The macaroon mixture should feel a little sticky, making it possible to shape the macaroons.
6. With wet hands, make 16 balls (about the size of golf balls) from the coconut mixture, and place them on the prepared baking sheet.
7. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until some of the flakes look toasted and are no longer sticky to the touch.
8. Cool for 5 minutes and serve or store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Per Serving (1 macaroon): Calories 38 / Carbohydrates 2g / Fat 3g / Protein 1.2g

Sugar- and Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies

MAKES 16 COOKIES / PREP TIME: 10 MINUTES / COOK TIME: 10 MINUTES

Cookies and healthy fats in your diet? Yes! Of course, as with all healthy fats, they are nutrient-dense and have calories equivalent to the fats they provide, so watch your portions. Think of these as a serving of nut butter, swap in a cookie instead without throwing off your macros.

1 egg white

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon milled flaxseed

1 cup natural creamy peanut butter

1 cup granulated stevia

Ingredient tip: Use a natural peanut butter. The only ingredients should be dry-roasted peanuts and salt, if it is salted. Salted peanut butter will give a saltier cookie, unsalted a sweeter cookie.

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet.
3. In a small bowl, mix the egg white, vanilla and flaxseed. Set aside to rest.
4. If any oil had separated from the peanut butter, mix together until smooth.
5. In a large bowl, mix together the peanut butter and stevia. Add the egg white mixture, and mix until smooth with no visible stevia granules.
6. Scoop out about 1 tablespoon of dough. And roll it into a ball; you should have about 16 even balls. Place the balls on the prepared sheet. Using a fork, make a crosshatch by gently pressing down in one direction, then again in another, making a crisscross pattern.
7. Bake for 8 to 12 minutes. Less time will give a softer cookie, more time will give a crispier cookie.
8. Cool for a few minutes before removing the cookies from the baking sheet and serving.

Per Serving (1 cookie): Calories 98 / Carbohydrates 3.6g / Fat 8g / Protein 4.3g

Recipes provided by Kendall Lou Schmidt and The Ultimate Bodybuilding Cookbook

Photos and text are the intellectual property of Kendall Lou Schmidt.