Low carb waffles with zucchini and cheese

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Have you ever tried making low carb waffles? After more than two years following a keto (ketogenic, or low carb) diet, I don't miss sweet waffles drenched in syrup. Instead, I have become a huge fan of savory waffles, with almond flour and eggs as the base, shredded vegetables and onions for flavor, and cheese holding the whole thing together in the most delicious way.

I use a mixture of almond flour and a little bit of coconut flour for these savory keto waffles, plus two or three kinds of cheese. Zucchini throws off a lot of liquid, so there's no need to add milk or water - the zucchini provides all the moisture you need.

I serve these low carb zucchini waffles as a side dish with roast chicken or steak, but I can tell you from experience that leftover zucchini and cheese waffles are extremely tasty for breakfast with a fried egg on top. Scroll down for the recipe....

More favorite low carb recipes:
Paleo fried chicken with an almond flour crust
Cheeseburger stuffed mushrooms
Low carb stuffed peppers

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Low carb waffles with zucchini and cheese

by Erika Kerekes February-11-2018

Serve these savory low carb waffles with shredded zucchini and cheddar cheese as a side dish with roast chicken or steak, or top them with a fried egg for breakfast. Perfect for keto diets!

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup almond flour
• 2 Tablespoons coconut flour
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 cups raw zucchini, shredded or spiralized
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 1 cup cheddar cheese (or cheddar/jack combination)

Instructions

1. Heat your waffle iron.2. Crack the eggs into a medium-sized bowl and beat them with a fork. Add the almond flour, coconut flour, parmesan, salt, pepper and baking powder, and combine well. The mixture will be very thick.3. Add the zucchini and onions to the egg mixture and combine well. Let sit 10 minutes, then stir again. The salt will draw out some of the water from the zucchini, making the mixture looser. Add the cheddar cheese and mix again.4. Spray your waffle iron with nonstick cooking spray. Use about 1/3 cup mixture for each waffle, or adjust based on the size of your waffle iron. Let the waffles cook until medium-brown, about 5 minutes - these low carb waffles will take a bit longer than traditional waffles, so don't be impatient or they'll fall apart. You need the extra time for the eggs and cheese to do their bonding work.5. As you take the waffles out of the waffle iron, put them in a single layer on a rack set over a baking sheet. Keep warm in the oven until you finish the whole batch. Serve immediately.LEFTOVERS: Reheat in the oven or toaster oven for best results. The microwave will make them mushy.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 30 mins Yield: 12 waffles

Keto mushroom quiche with zucchini blossoms {low carb}

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When I decided to switch to a ketogenic, low carb diet to control my type 2 diabetes, one of the things I thought I would never be able to eat again was quiche. "Crustless" didn't appeal to me as a genre. How to make a keto quiche without that traditional flaky crust? Could it be done?

After a year of experimenting, I'm here to tell you that low carb quiche made with this almond flour crust is really, really good.

The crust is so easy: You mix almond flour, grated parmesan cheese, an egg, salt and pepper, and some olive oil with a fork until it comes together. Then you press it into your pie pan or tart pan, fill it, and bake.

For quiche, I look for leftovers. Any chopped cooked vegetables will do. This quiche includes sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onions and zucchini flowers. Delicate yellow zucchini blossoms are readily available at the farmers market during the summer; farmers pick the male flowers (the ones that don't turn into zucchini) to keep the plants productive.

Most restaurants serve zucchini blossoms stuffed, battered and deep-fried, but I like to chop them and use them in zucchini flower quesadillas, pasta or scrambled eggs. In the quiche they have a very faint zucchini flavor with a tiny peppery bite. And they're gorgeous!

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Keto low carb mushroom quiche with zucchini blossoms

by Erika Kerekes August-8-2017

In this ketogenic quiche, a low carb crust made with almond flour cradles a rich savory custard dotted with mushrooms, caramelized onions and zucchini blossoms. Serve for breakfast, lunch or a light supper.

Ingredients

• 2 cups almond flour (fine)
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 7 eggs, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided
• 1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 cups mushrooms, sliced or chopped
• 1 cup onions, chopped
• 3/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
• 10 zucchini blossoms, stems removed, roughly chopped
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Instructions

Make the crust: Using a fork, mix together the almond flour, grated parmesan cheese, 1 egg, 1/8 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and 1/2 cup olive oil in a large bowl. When the mixture comes together, turn it into a large pie plate or square baking dish, making sure the dough covers the bottom of the baking dish evenly and goes up the sides at least an inch. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.Cook the vegetables: Put remaining 2 Tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and onions and cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms have released all their liquid and both the mushrooms and onions are softened and starting to turn brown around the edges. Remove from the heat and let cool 5 minutes.Scatter the grated cheddar cheese over the bottom of the crust. Top with the cooked mushrooms and onions, then the chopped zucchini blossoms.In a bowl, whisk together the remaining 6 eggs, heavy cream, remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt, remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and mustard until smooth. Pour the cream mixture over the vegetables.Place the baking dish on top of a baking sheet lined with foil (just in case anything bubbles over). Slide the baking sheet into the oven. Bake about 45 minutes, until the center is just set - you'll be able to tell when you shake the pan and the center no longer wiggles - and the quiche is starting to brown around the edges.Remove the quiche from the oven and let cool. Do not cut into the quiche until it has reached room temperature - you want the custard to set fully.Serve at room temperature for best flavor.

Details

Prep time: 20 mins Cook time: 45 mins Total time: 1 hour 5 mins Yield: 8-10 servings

Chocolate zucchini muffins

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Muffins are always a hit in my house. My younger son prefers my banana chocolate chip muffins, and I have to say those are pretty good. But both boys like zucchini muffins, and I get a perverse thrill out of making sweets with vegetables. I normally make zucchini muffins with wheat germ, but sometimes I change it up and add the chocolate. No surprise - they prefer the chocolate version.

Two notes: I use coconut sugar for this recipe because it brings a dark, rich flavor you can't get from white sugar. And I prefer olive oil in this recipe. I think it works well with the chocolate. However, feel free to use canola, grapeseed or another more neutral vegetable oil if you think the olive overtones would bother you.

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Chocolate zucchini muffins

by Erika Kerekes September-20-2010

These chocolate zucchini muffins are easy to make and good for you - I put them in my kids' lunchboxes without guilt.

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups sugar (I prefer coconut sugar)
• 1 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup dark cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups zucchini, grated
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, olive oil, cocoa powder and vanilla until well blended. Add the zucchini and mix to incorporate.In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Add all at once to the egg mixture and fold with a rubber spatula until the flour is mostly incorporated. Be careful not to mix too aggressively - this will make your muffins tough. Fold in the chocolate chips.Line a 24-cup muffin tin with paper liners. Using a spring-loaded ice cream disher, fill each muffin cup about 3/4 full. Bake about 25 minutes, until the muffins spring back when you touch them and a toothpick comes out clean (except for the melted chocolate chips, which you're bound to hit when testing). As soon as you can touch them, remove the muffins from the pan and cool on a wire rack.Note: I put one dozen in the freezer immediately so I have something left for the boys' lunchboxes. If I left the whole batch on the counter, they'd be gone in a day.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 25 mins Total time: 35 mins Yield: 24 muffins

Quinoa zucchini casserole

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For years now I've been making a very simple casserole using leftover cooked rice, shredded zucchini, shredded cheese, green onions, and sometimes a quick bechamel cream sauce as a binder.

If my family liked zucchini more, this is exactly the kind of side dish they'd gobble down - starchy, cheesy, not over-the-top healthy but with a whiff of vegetable. As it happens, they're not zucchini fans. But I love zucchini. So I make this casserole for myself. (And for parties and potlucks.)

Recently I tried using leftover cooked quinoa instead of rice, and I think it's even better. The top layer of the casserole gets crunchier and the whole dish has a finer texture.

I'm swimming in quinoa these days thanks to my friends at Alter Eco Foods. They chose my recipe for salmon quinoa cakes with dill-caper sauce as a semi-finalist in their recent recipe contest, and now I'm getting quinoa care packages once a month for a year. Rice, take a rest. It's quinoa time!

What's your favorite way to eat quinoa? Leave a comment below with a link to your favorite quinoa recipe.

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Quinoa zucchini casserole

by Erika Kerekes October-1-2013

A simple side dish casserole with cooked quinoa, shredded zucchini, cheese, and green onions, all bound together in a light cream sauce. Serve as a vegetarian main course or as a side with grilled chicken or fish.

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 2 cups cooked quinoa (measure after cooking; prepare according to package directions)
• 1 pound zucchini, grated (2 large or 5 small)
• 1 1/2 cups grated cheese (mozzarella, Monterey jack, gruyere, cheddar, etc.)
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a medium-sized casserole dish with cooking spray.Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the flour and stir 1 minute to make a paste. Add the milk, whisking constantly, and bring to a simmer. The mixture will thicken as it heats up. Remove it from the heat, season with salt and pepper, and set it aside to cool a bit.In a large bowl, mix together the quinoa, zucchini, grated cheese and green onions. Add the cream sauce and stir to combine. Turn the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Bake the casserole for about 45 minutes; the edges should be bubbling and the top golden brown. Serve hot.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 45 mins Total time: 55 mins Yield: 8 servings

Zucchini scrambled eggs with feta cheese

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A few years ago I realized that if I eat vegetables for breakfast, I'm more likely to satisfy my daily vegetable requirement.

My personal goal is "5 by 5" - that is, five servings of fruits or vegetables by 5pm.

Why 5pm? Because I'm often so tired by the end of the day that all I want is a bowl of cereal.

To that end, I have come up with a million ways to include veggies in my morning meal. This simple scramble uses up a lot of zucchini - a note for those of you with enthusiastic gardens.

Click here for more about "5 by 5"

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Zucchini scrambled eggs with feta

by Erika Kerekes June-25-2013

This vegetarian scramble gets your day off to a healthy start. My version goes heavy on the zucchini and light on the cheese, but feel free to add more cheese if you prefer.

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups fresh zucchini, grated
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, zucchini, and green onions, and cook about 10 minutes, until the zucchini is soft, has released its water, and is starting to brown. If there is still excess liquid in the zucchini, pour it off before the next step.Add the garlic to the zucchini mixture and cook another 2 minutes. Pour in the eggs and cook, scrambling the mixture in the pan with a spatula or wooden spoon. When the eggs are almost set, add the feta cheese and cook until the cheese is melting and the eggs are cooked to your liking. Remember that the moisture in the zucchini will keep the eggs looking somewhat wet even after they're actually done.Tip the scramble onto a plate and season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 15 mins Total time: 25 mins Yield: 1 serving

Zucchini potato frittata

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Still drowning in zucchini? Me too. Here's a way to use up two normal-sized zucchini. If you've let things go in the garden and have baseball bats to deal with, I can't help you.

This is a variation on the classic Spanish frittata, an omelette with potatoes and onions often served at room temperature. In the summer, everything's better with a little zucchini thrown in.

Although I normally hate multi-step recipes, in this case you do need to cook the zucchini down first to get rid of some of its water. And you need to fry the potatoes before adding in the eggs. If you happen to have leftover oven-roasted potatoes, this is an excellent way to recycle them.

Serve this frittata with a salad for a light lunch or dinner.

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Zucchini potato frittata

by Erika Penzer Kerekes August-12-2012

A summertime variation on the traditional Spanish frittata. This egg and potato omelette with shredded zucchini is a great way to use up the ever-present pile of summer squash.

Ingredients

• 6 Tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1/2 pound potatoes, scrubbed, unpeeled, cut into small chunks
• about 1/2 tsp sea salt, divided
• freshly ground pepper
• 2 medium zucchini, washed and grated
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 6 eggs

Instructions

Preheat the broiler. Set the oven rack about 4 inches below the broiler.In an ovenproof nonstick skillet, heat 2 Tbsp of the olive oil over medium heat. Add the potatoes, a healthy pinch of salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Fry the potatoes, shaking the pan often, until they are cooked through and golden brown around the edges. Remove the potatoes to a plate and set aside.Add another 2 Tbsp olive oil to the skillet, then put in the zucchini and onion, adding another pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Cook the vegetables about 8 minutes, until the zucchini is wilted and the onion is softened and starting to brown around the edges. Remove the zucchini mixture to the plate holding the potatoes. Wipe out the skillet with a paper towel.Put the skillet back on the stove and add the last 2 Tbsp olive oil. Crack the eggs into a mixing bowl and beat them lightly with a fork. Stir the potatoes and zucchini mixture into the eggs, then add the whole mess to the skillet. As the eggs start to set, lift up the edges with a spatula and let the uncooked egg run underneath. Cook the frittata another 2-3 minutes, until it is golden brown and set on the bottom (lift up an edge with a spatula to check). Put the skillet into the oven under the broiler to cook the top. Start checking after about 4 minutes; you need the top to cook through and brown, but it can go from "browning" to "burning" very quickly. Be alert.When the frittata is done, slide it out of the pan onto a cutting board. Let cool to room temperature before slicing into wedges and serving.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 30 mins Yield: 6-8 servings

Zucchini frittata with herbs and feta

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When the zucchini plants take over the summer garden, cooks must get creative.

If you're looking for a zucchini recipe that uses up a lot of zucchini all at once, this is it. It's also a light lunch, a delicious breakfast, a quick dinner, and a healthy snack.

If you don't like zucchini (hello, husband), you will not like this. If you like zucchini, it will become your new best friend.

Note: This is not so different from a traditional Persian kuku, a vegetable-heavy omelette or frittata. Zucchini is just one possible option for kuku; there are many other variations using eggplant, spinach and green herbs.

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Zucchini frittata with herbs and feta

by Erika Kerekes July-2-2012

This omelette with zucchini and green herbs is a great way to use up an abundance of garden zucchini. Serve it with very cold white wine for a refreshing summer lunch.

Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 1 cup mixed fresh herbs, chopped finely (basil, parsley, mint, chives, cilantro, dill, etc.)
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 cups zucchini, shredded or grated
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Instructions

Preheat the broiler. Put a large ovenproof nonstick skillet on the stove over medium heat.Crack the eggs into a medium-sized bowl and beat with a fork. Add the chopped herbs, a good pinch of salt, and a generous amount of freshly ground pepper.Add the olive oil to the skillet and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the zucchini and cook about 5 minutes, until the zucchini is wilted and most of the water has evaporated. Add the egg mixture and cook about 5 minutes more, lifting up the edges of the frittata with a spatula and tilting the pan to let the uncooked egg run underneath.When the frittata is mostly set but still wet on top, scatter the feta cheese over the top of the frittata and stick the pan under the broiler. Check after 2 minutes; it will probably take 3 minutes for the top of the frittata to brown and for the cheese to melt. Remove the pan from the oven and slide the frittata out onto a cutting board. You may need to slide the spatula under the bottom of the frittata to loosen it from the pan before turning it out.Let the frittata rest at least 10 minutes before cutting into wedges. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Details

Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 15 mins Total time: 30 mins Yield: 4-6 servings