banting guru october 2015

Build me up, butter cupThe easiest butter coffee recipe on 4

Why you should be nuts about nuts Page 4

Stuart Dawes tells us about the difference Banting has made in his life Page 6

Six easy LCHF recipesPages 16 to 21

Banting and your brain Page 10

FREEIssue: 1 Volume: 1 October 2015

All you need to know about the LCHF lifestyle TM

2 Banting Guru October 2015

The information contained in Banting Guru should not be considered as medical advice. The articles and any information is meant as a guide and anyone following the suggested eating plan, or recipes contained herein is advised to seek the opinion of a medical professional before embarking on this or any new eating plan or diet. Shiva Media (which publishes Banting Guru), its affiliates, employees and contractors will not be held liable for the use of any information contained in this magazine and it will not be held responsible for the views expressed in this magazine.

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CONTENTS

10 things about BantingPage 5

A doctor explains how Banting affects your brainPage 10

Six easy recipes fom popular bloggersPages 16 to 21

Stuart Dawes takes us on his Banting journeyPage 6

The last word: Hang in there2

A perfectly nutty, quick snack idea Page 4

Banting Guru October 2015 3

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I realised I might have a self-confidence problem when I had a fight with the chief photographer of the Mail & Guardian over which photos should be

used for my feature story about Adventure Boot Camp.

We fought because I wanted him to use photos in which I was barely visible and he wanted to use photos of me in all my fat glory.

Our conversation went something like this:CP (chief photographer): I like this photo.Me: I don’t.CP: Why?Me: I’m in it.CP: Huh?Me: Let’s use the group shots or the ones of the athletic-looking lady next to me.CP: We have to use a photo of you with the story.Me: Why?CP: Because the feature is all about your experience of boot camp. We have to have a photo of you.Me: Well, I’d rather you didn’t, or maybe that fuzzy one.CP: You’re being ridiculous now!

I mean, we might as well just use a pic of one of my dogs if we’re not using pics of you.Me: I’m ok with that. Your Huskies are gorgeous.

Our argument was getting quite heated, so he walked away at that point and didn’t realise that I was serious about him using the photos of his dogs over the photos of me.

Luckily, the photographer who shot the photos is a friend and she then spent a considerable

amount of time going through all the photos she had shot to find ones that appeased her boss, the chief photographer, and me, the fussy writer.

I have always hated photos of myself, not just because I’m fat, but also because I can’t be both-ered to contort my face into an expression that doesn’t make me look like a disinterested dork.

I was toying with the idea of not using a byline photo for this editorial column, but I decided to use the one above in the hope

that you’ll be distracted by the beautiful sunset behind me.

Were you hoping for an editorial based on what’s in the first edition of the

Banting Guru magazine? Ha ha, sorry for you!

But seriously, I want you, the reader, to understand that I’m one of you and that I continue to struggle with weight loss, but most importantly, I want you to know that I believe in the low-carb high-fat lifestyle and I will share as much information about Banting with you as possible. Why? Because it is the only diet, out of the 99 diets I’ve tried, which actually works, which doesn’t leave me feeling constantly hungry and which has prevented me from ending up in the kitchen in the dead of night (again) wondering whether or not dog biscuits are palatable.

Banting Guru Editor, Sukasha Singh (To share your success story, funny experience or recipes, email [email protected])

‘Use the pic of the dog’E

dit

ori

al


Quick snack ideaIf you’re eating a sufficient amount of fats, you will not need to snack between meals.

However, sometimes, life happens and you will find yourself stranded with nothing to eat, except for evil, processed carbs.

If you think your day might entail any drama that could result in you having to skip a meal, put the following into a few small containers and leave it in your car, or your handbag, or your man-bag.

o Cashews (only a few);o Almonds;o Walnuts;o Brazil nuts;o Pecan nuts;o Macadamia nutso A few blocks of full-fat cheese.o Biltong (but please don’t leave this in your car for too long)

Fast fact Some days, you may even get away with eating this snack as a meal and you

might not feel hungry until the next meal

Be nuts about nuts

Photo: Jeshu John


1 The most important rule about Banting is to eat real food, not pre-packaged, food-like

substances kept fresh by preservatives.

2 Embrace fat, especially good, healthy fats such as butter, olive oil, avocados and lard.

3 Banting is not a high protein diet. It’s high on good fats and veggies with a moderate amount

of protein and it’s very low on carbs.

4 Understand the difference between good carbs (such as carb-rich vegetables like sweet

potatoes and pumpkin) and bad carbs (such as potatoes and processed food like bread, pasta and white flour). And don’t eat grains or seed oils.

5 Dairy products are good as long as they are full fat, however, understand that all food

contains some amount of carbs and high-fat dairy is especially carb-rich, so if your goal is to lose

weight, limit your dairy intake.

6 Do not drink fruit juices, fruit concentrates and fizzy soft drinks such as Coke.

7 If you’re reluctant about some of the rules, the one rule to follow is to stop eating sugar and

to educate yourself about hidden sugar in low-fat products and ubiquitous items such as bread.

8 Don’t eat too much fruit, especially fruit high in sugar. Occasionally, you can have low-carb,

low-sugar fruit such as strawberries, blueberries, gooseberries and other similar fruit.

9 Don’t be dismayed if you’re not losing weight as quickly as others. Take it at your own pace.

10 Try not to snack. Eat until you’re full and don’t eat if you’re not hungry. If you’re

getting enough fat with your meals, you won’t need more than three meals a day.

10 things about Banting

Photo: Jeshu John


My Banting

My Banting journey started on February 1 2014 and I decided to

do it 100%.I had been following the low-

fat high-carb regime with a lot of fruit, fat-free yogurts, whole grain bread, granola et cetera and I kept putting on weight.

I worked hard in the gym three times a week, but it was a battle that I was losing and my weight quickly got up to 132kg!

My blood pressure was up and I had non-alcoholic fatty liver dis-ease (NAFLD) and was possibly heading towards type 2 diabetes (T2DM)

I also have suffered form gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (Gerd), or acid reflux since I was a teenager.

When my daughter told me that she had The Real Meal Revolution book and had started the low-carb high-fat Banting lifestyle, and that she could now fit into shorts that she couldn’t fit into two months earlier, I knew it was time to read it.

Basically, it said that: “If, despite what you do, you continue to gain weight, you could be car-bohydrate intolerant or insulin resistant and heading for diabetes,

heart disease and many more nas-ties!”

That’s why I decided in two weeks to do it 100%.

Why wait? It’s a life-changing decision and I had to get my head around the concept to under-stand it.

I know I am weak and if I thought it was ok to cheat, I would fail before I even started.

Either do it properly or not at all.

Cutting down to two cups of watermelon a day, which was my total carbs of 25g, was torture so I gave it up and after one week, I had lost the fruit craving. After all, it is a lot of sugar and sugar equals carbs.

Apart from vitamin C, you can get all you need from vegetables, dairy and protein.

I said when I lost 20kg, which I achieved in four months, I might have a chip or a scone and now,

Stuart Dawes, who runs one of the biggest Banting Facebook groups, tells us why he loves the LCHF lifestyle

Stuart Dawes before starting the LCHF lifestyle.


journey

19 months later, I have had nei-ther. I don’t even steal a chip off someone else’s plate!

I have retrained my brain and now have no desire to eat any-thing that is not “real food”.

It is easier than you think! Think of it as a lifestyle change as it’s for life!

As Tim Noakes says, this diet might not be for everyone, but it is for me.

Friends have been asking what

I have been doing and wondering if I should start a separate Face-book page where we could share tips and pics etc.

Well, now the facebook group, Banting (Tim Noakes Diet), has more than 87,000 great members who also want to share their stories and inspire others all over the world.

There is a tsunami coming and it’s a Banting tsunami!

I was used to having low-fat fruit

yogurt and toast every morning, and I found it hard to change to bacon, egg and tomato with no toast, but now I’m used to it.

I fry the chopped bacon and tomato in olive or coconut oil and I add two eggs to mix it up and it’s an easy way to eat.

Don’t forget the Himalayan salt as when we stop eating processed foods, we must add good salt.

I used to have two spoons sugars in my coffee and now, I have none and that’s quite a big change for me.

Start the day properly and you are set up because good fat will satiate you for longer.

I do not eat any breads, biscuits, pastries, pasta, rice and potatoes. You are allowed limited sweet potatoes and carrots (from the orange list in The Real Meal Revolu-tion), but these have carbs.

No grains, as most are genetically modified (GM) and as Noakes says, “If you eat GM grains, you will get sick.”

We cook with olive oil, coconut oil, butter, dripping and lard.

For your main meal of the day, 70% of your plate should be vege-tables, 30% protein — and of that, 30% should be fat such as chicken skin, or fat on a chop, or even the fat you cooked your food in.

Avoid all toxic vegetable and seed cooking oils such as canola oil.

I was a huge chocoholic/sweet fan and I stopped immediately.

To Page 8.

And after. Photos: Courtesy Stuart Dawes


From Page 7.I used to also eat a lot of fruit,

which is so high in sugar, and I have stopped that as well.

Snack foods for me are biltong (with fat), baby tomatoes, cheese, nuts (not too many), boiled eggs, olives and seed crackers.

We were out for lunch the other day and I had a curry and said “no rice please, I’ll have the stir fry vegetables instead”, and it was great.

If I can do it, so can you.Do not mix this diet with carbs

as you will fall off the wall in a big way, just like Humpty Dumpty.

There are three valuable pages in The Real Meal Revolution: The Green List, which tells you what you can eat; The Orange List, which you should eat in limited quantities; and The Red List, which must be avoided.

If you go out to dinner and don’t want to offend someone who is serving lasagne or such, take a small portion and lots of salad or vegetables. It can be done, don’t

make excuses.Just to let you know that I am

no specialist regarding Banting and only speak with passion about Noakes, his team and The Real Meal Revolution because I know it works.

Apart from having a fried breakfast, we eat as we used to with a few things left out and a lot

more vegetables added. A roast is still a roast, but with-

out the potato. Fish and chips is now grilled fish

with salad or vegetables. So no special recipes for us, just

real food done real good. For lunch, we have either soup

or salad. Leave home too early to cook

in the morning? Make a plan and prepare the night before. Hard-boiled eggs have to be the most perfect food.

Being a sweet and chocolate addict, my wife made me sweet

puddings, which helped get my mind around the loss I felt, but I survived and got over it, and gradually, I wanted sweet things less and less.

Do not torture yourself by rewarding your progress because the craving will pass.

Banting bread was also made for me and it helped me a great deal as old ways die hard. Toast under an egg is how it should be? Wrong!

Again, not cheating, I found I used bread less and it stays in the freezer as I don’t think of it anymore.

It’s all about a mindset and what an incredible high it is to retrain your brain to crave real food and not things from the toxic past.

This is my story today and I hope it helps some of you.

My blood pressure is now in the good range, my liver markers are back to normal and my acid reflux is almost a thing of the past. My hearing has also improved and I no longer need my TV glasses. n

Stuart shows viewers how to make simple dishes such as this stir fry with zucchini noodles.


Stu’s Kitchen is a platform where people can learn how to follow the LCHF Banting lifestyle and enjoy years of healthy living.

I show you how easy it is to prepare and cook simple, healthy Banting meals with my fun and friendly cooking demo videos, which are filled with useful tips, so be sure to watch the fun out-takes (my mistakes), at the end of each video.

The online store stocks some-times hard to find Banting prod-ucts to help you on your Banting journey.

I was often asked when I would start my own business because I am so passionate about the Banting lifestyle and so, here we are. Luckily for me (and you), I have a deep love of cooking that was inspired by my dear mom.

Finding a way to combine my love of cooking, making videos and sharing the joy of feeling happy and healthy through the Banting lifestyle has accumulated

in the creation of Stu’s Kitchen. I believe that it’s all about a

mindset and what an incredible high it is to retrain your brain to desire real food and not things from your toxic past.

The first three videos were intended to give you the basics to help you on your Banting way:

o How to make your own inexpensive lard and have a tasty snack as well. https://youtu.be/FubevxgwfJ0

o Instead of rice or mashed

potato, you must try cauliflower rice or mash as it’s truly amazing. https://youtu.be/Q8NvjUjRuQc

o Or how about having the best zucchini noodles out, which are much nicer than pasta noo-dles? https://youtu.be/W28kyBOFAOk

I will also be having guests on the programme and my first one was Jonno Proudfoot who inspired the The Real Meal Revo-lution and Raising Superheroes books.

Join me here so you don’t miss the latest cooking videos. https://www.facebook.com/stuskitchensa

You can also follow me on Twitter @stuskitchensa, on YouTube, www.youtube.com/stuskitchensa and on the website, www.stuskitchen.co.za n

Inside Stu’s Kitchen

Stuart during a shoot in his kitchen.


Your brain

on fatis healthy

Photo: Pixabay


Eat fat. Your brain needs it. Live with that discovery or choose a strong pos-sibility of de-

mentia. One in three seniors are likely to get it and most will be women. That is the finding of the famous Mayo Clinic, which ambiv-alently promotes fat consumption to prevent Alzheimer’s and other neuro-degenerative brain diseases, but falls short of promoting this habit with equal ardour in a gen-eral diet. Someone is reading from a different Bible.

I remember the early tastes of my childhood at The Florian — my father’s landmark restaurant in Hillbrow. Every table had its large fresh butter dish, the contents of which were added liberally to a variety of meals. Thick, clotted cream on strawberries was de ri-geur as were saturated fatty meat dishes. Weaned on this fare, I have not paid a cardiovascular price.

Low-fat diets swept in with potency in the 1970s and so did brain disorders. The United States

had the greatest influence on dietary habits and with pseudo wisdom demanded low-fat every-thing. That wisdom was codified with the US Department of Agri-culture (USDA) happily promoting its vested interests.

The US is said to control more than half of the world’s grain exports — a serious contribution to its economy. Its famous carbo-loaded food pyramid led to 66.3% of its population being obese. It cut the fat and cholesterol, and doubled the risk of heart attacks. It baulks at stem cell research to save lives on ethical grounds, but has no difficulty using its entire population in a nutritional ex-periment, the results of which it continues to ignore. People are

exercising more, but cardiovas-cular and neuro-degenerative diseases are rising exponentially. Diabetes has increased 166%.

I guess the low-fat mantra lies squarely at the feet of Dr Ancel Keys (1977) who pursue his own Ripley’s Believe It Or Not theory

about cardiovascular health fuelled by, dare I say, attractive multimillion-dollar funding from the US government. His flawed study is the stuff of legend. He cherry-picked his study popula-tion from convenient countries, ignoring France among others with its high saturated fat diet and low levels of heart disease. Too late, he discovered the fatty Mediterranean fare.

Nina Teicholz, author of the must read The Big Fat Surprise is caustic. “The low-fat crusaders first make bullet holes and then draw the target circles around them to support their theories. What research is that?”

Your brain works better on fat. To Page 12

Dr Denise Bjorkman is a neuroscience field researcher with special interests in nutrition. Post-doctoral studies in neuroscience have focused her attention on health, longevity, education, memory and political behaviour.

She currently lectures in 16 countries on neuroscience and Prof Candace Pert’s research on neuro peptides and Molecules of Emotion. She also does neuroscience-related commentary on political elections for global broadcasting networks.

Her work includes forensic profiling in major criminal trials and global terrorism on which she is an authority. She is a co-owner of a Wellness Clinic specialising in mental health.

Your brain works better on fat. Fatty diets are recom-mended to prevent seizures. A fatty diet has a positive impact on mental disorders such as Alzheimers’, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia


From Page 11Fatty diets are recommended to

prevent seizures. A fatty diet has a positive impact on mental disor-ders such as Alzheimer’s, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. High glucose on the other hand (read carbs) has a lower seizure thresh-old.

Alzheimer’s disease was identi-fied more than 100 years ago, but only today, it is a major killer. Its 5.3-million cases cost the US $225-billion a year, but the role of wheat and gluten is ignored.

Famous neurologist Dr David Perlmutter will tell you “there is a direct correlation be-tween gluten, inflam-

mation and brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s.” Clearly one silo is not talking to the other. As the US low-fat gurus “Cocacolonise” the world, other countries are fast catching up.

Inflammation is cited in a range of preventable diseases as a killer. Forget about the misinformed sci-entists who fall in love with their own propaganda and are leading the US into their worst health crisis ever, and read the deluge of literature emerging globally on the value of fat and its positive impact on the brain.

Eggs are in. An egg contains 185mg of cholesterol. The Mayo Clinic hastens to tell you that dietary cholesterol should be reduced and, of course, that in-cludes eggs. Your body is a choles-terol manufacturing machine so don’t add more cholesterol from dietary sources. But the choles-terol you get from eggs appears to have very little impact on the level of cholesterol in your blood. The more you eat the less your body produces.

“Your body’s cholesterol ther-

Eggs contain choline, which is essential for brain as well as cardiovascular health. They also contain zinc, folate, thiamine, B6, B12, iron phosphorous, calcium, pantothenic acid and iron

mostat or ‘set point’”, according to nutritional biochemist Dr John Berardi “is more likely to be deter-mined by your genetics, exercise habits and stress.”

Eggs contain choline, which is es-sential for brain as well as cardio-vascular health. They also contain zinc, folate, thiamine, B6, B12, iron phosphorous, calcium, pantothenic acid and iron. To that, add heart and brain healthy Omega-3 fatty acids.

Fat and correlated Omega 3 fatty acid deficiencies in the diet has now been directly linked to depression, mood swings, schizo-phrenia, learning disorders, hyper-activity and behavioural problems. The introduction of these sources of fat and essential nutrients into prison diets was accompanied by a 40% reduction in correctional centre violence.

But correctional centres are more concerned about tight budgets than reducing violence

through better meals. The relation-ship between nutritional deficiency, psychopathology and crime is well established. As prison policy is unlikely to allow for nutritional supplements, food sources are the next best option.

A diet high in fat and low in carbs can produce ketosis. Ketosis is a natural condition from which su-per fuel is produced for the brain. Gary Taubes describe it as “nor-mal state of human metabolism when we are not eating the car-bohydrates that didn’t exist in our diets for 99.9% of human history. The brain functions far better on ketones than blood sugar. Some brain tumours only use glucose as fuel.” Glutathione is a master antioxidant and it contributes to energy via the mitochondria —


Fat and correlated Omega 3 fatty acid deficiencies in the diet has now been directly linked to depression, mood swings, schizophrenia, learning disorders, hyperactiv-ity and behavioural problems

the body’s energy factory. Babies are born keto-adaptive. Diabetics should exercise caution.

Visceral, not dietary fat, is the one to watch and a high-carb diet and accompanying triglycerides is driving an unstoppable inflam-matory pathway to the brain and body. Obese people are more likely to get neuro-generative brain disorders. “Armed and dan-gerous, it is a predator behind a tree” says Perlmutter.

Controversial doctor and sci-entist Tim Noakes relies on peer reviewed research, not the pres-sures of processed food manufac-turers who drive the fatwa against fat because of vested economic interests. His string of degrees outstrips the BSc nutritionists who so avidly wish to scupper his evidence-based theories in the courts and question his integrity.

Salem all over again. The PhD (pull him down) syndrome is active. “Banting can simply no longer be ignored in medicine and dietet-ics,” says Noakes.

So the once vilified fat is be-coming less of a mortal enemy to health. A study of 1000 adults showed that individuals who ate the most carbs had a 90% chance of becoming mentally impaired. Those who ate the saturated fat diet had a 36% reduction in mental infirmities. I run a mental health clinic in a large business park and I’ve promoted Noakes’ Banting diet. In a year, at least 400kg of weight have been collec-tively lost with previously intrac-table cases. They report improved mental acuity.

Now it’s a case of mind over matter. If you value your mind, rethink the matter. n

Photo: Pixabay


Build me up,Why?

Butter coffee, or bulletproof coffee, was created by American

tech entrepreneur Dave Asprey, who lost his way in the Himalayas and then stumbled across an inn where he was

given yak-butter tea, which completely rejuvenated him. He then developed

bulletproof coffee and a lifestyle, which is similar to Banting in

many ways.

What will I need?

– 1 Cup of good coffee, preferably filter coffee

– 2 Tbsp butter from grass-fed cows– 1 Tbsp MCT oil

– 1 to 2 Tbsp Coconut oil– A hand blender is an absolute

must!

Photo: Padarariu Alexandru


butter cupHow?

After you make the black cof-fee (we use a large French press in

the office, so you can get by without an expensive coffee machine), throw all the ingredients into a blender and blend

until everything is properly combined. You can also use a hand blender, but do not stir with a spoon and

expect it to be drinkable be-cause it won’t be.

Benefits? It’s a quick breakfast that, if done

correctly, will keep you full till lunch-time.

It’s also a good way to encourage intermittent fasting as you would have

had dinner before 7.30pm with the next meal being lunch at about noon. It’s also a fantastic way to

get a good daily dose of coconut oil.Are there

popular variations? You can use black tea.

Some people add an egg while others add a tablespoon of whey protein,

but we’re not happy to try the whey due to the chemicals

and preservatives in the powder.


Recipes These recipes are courtesy of Dalene Crafford of The Banting Warehouse. Check the site (www.bantingwarehouse.co.za) for more content

BeeF, Cheddar and Chive Mini MeaTBalls

Only three ingredients are need-ed to make these magnificent mini meatballs. If you have beef mince, grated cheddar and chopped chives, you can get rolling right now. Oh yes, and there’s another vital ingredient: you’ll need a non-stick frying pan as the cheese is bound to stick if using an ordinary pan.Make these little meatballs for your family’s LCHF meals and for the kids’ (and adults’) lunchboxes.

My recipe makes 14 mini meat-balls, but you can easily double up if you want more of these delight-ful little meatballs.

What you will need:– 250 g beef mince– 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese (I prefer to use mature cheddar for this recipe.)– 2 tablespoons chopped chives– Olive oil or avocado oil to fry– Himalayan pink salt to serve– Whole chives to garnish

instructions:1. Place the mince, cheddar cheese and chives in a mix-ing bowl. Mix well and use your hands. Do not add any salt as the cheddar is salty.2. Roll into 14 mini balls.3. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan. It is very important to use a non-stick pan. In an ordinary pan, the melting cheese will stick during cooking, caus-ing the meatballs to break up. Fry the meatballs over medium

heat (the cheese will brown too quickly over higher heat) until just cooked. Shake the pan often and turn the meatballs frequently.4. Remove the meatballs from the pan. Serve (preferably) imme-diately with Himalayan pink salt. Garnish with whole chives.

dalene’s tips:– You can replace the chives with chopped Italian (flat leaf) parsley.– Serve the mini meatballs with devilled mushrooms. For a more filling meal, add stir-fried cauli-flower rice. Top with creamed spinach, seasoned with white pep-per and a touch of nutmeg.– Twirl marinated “zoodles” into a nest shape. Spoon a small amount of fried chopped onion, green pepper and tomato, seasoned with a little garlic, chilli and thyme,

into the nest. Arrange the mini meatballs on top. Garnish with sprigs of thyme.– These small meatballs are per-fect party fare. Serve them (hot or cold) on a bed of rocket with cherry tomatoes, black and green olives, cucumber fingers and celery sticks. Add a dip made of crème fraîche, mixed with lots of ground black pepper.– Pack mini meatballs into your family’s lunchboxes, together with avocado wedges, whole walnuts and a few strawberries. Add a small salad of thinly shredded red or green cabbage, mixed with a little mustard.– Any mini meatballs left over from last night? Well then, eat them as breakfast balls on the go with thick slices of tomato and paper-thin slices of cucumber.


Zero PreP BanTing PlaTTer

I have created this super speedy banting platter for those occasions when you need to put something together in a few minutes.

Zero preparation is required. When you start off with excellent quality ingredients, there is no need to have a large variety of ingredients on your platter. A small selection of superb ingredients is all that is required. (I only used four ingredients on my platter.)

I hope this platter will inspire you to make your own beautiful creation for your family and friends. Or for yourself.

What you will need:

– cabanossi– dried beef sausage (a South African favourite)– a wedge of blue cheese– fresh strawberries– lavender to garnish

instructions:1. There are no real instructions for this one. Simply arrange all your Banting-friendly ingredients on a rustic wooden board or platter. Lavishly garnish it with lavender.2. Now enjoy looking at it and eating it.

dalene’s tips:– You can use any cured sausages such as salami and chorizo, as long as they come from a reliable sup-plier who does not use cereals, sugar et cetera in the sausages. If preferred, use any other cold meats such as ham or pastrami.

Just ensure that they are Banting-friendly. – Use any cheese you like, such as a round of camembert. If you have a few minutes to spare, make my camembert with Raspberry and Black Pepper Glaze (on ). Other firm favourites on my bant-ing platters are vintage cheddar and gouda with caraway or cumin seeds.– Any fresh berries such as blue-berries, raspberries or youngber-ries can be used. If you do not have fresh berries, use cucumber ribbons, baby tomatoes on the vine and pimento-stuffed green olives. Maybe also add some rad-ishes to nibble on.– No lavender in the garden to use as garnish? No problem. Any fresh herbs such as rosemary, thyme, marjoram, sage, mint or whole chives will make an impres-sion.


BaBy savoy CaBBage WiTh BaCon and WalnuTs

I buy my baby Savoy cabbages, four in a tray, from Woolworths. I cut them in half and slowly braise them in olive oil and butter (the olive oil will prevent the butter from burning).

Some of the outer leaves will come off during cooking and become delicate and crispy and slightly burnt. Delectable! What a great way to enjoy one’s Banting greens.

These braised baby cabbages can be served with lamb, beef, pork, chicken or fish. But to do justice to them, I prefer to serve them on their own, as a meal, often topped with Parmesan shavings.If you can’t find baby Savoy cab-bages, you can successfully use ordinary coarsely shredded cab-bage or brussel sprouts to create an equally delicious LCHF dish.

What you will need:– 2 tablespoons olive oil or maca-damia oil

– 2 tablespoons butter– 2 tablespoons water– 4 rashers of streaky bacon, coarsely chopped– 4 baby Savoy cabbages (about 200g to 250g), cut in half– ground nutmeg to taste (Never overdo nutmeg. Nutmeg can very easily overpower a whole dish. Start off by adding just a small pinch. Taste and add more if need be.)– white pepper to taste (don’t hold back)– 12 walnuts, broken in half

instructions:1. Heat the olive oil or macadamia oil and butter in a medium-sized or large non-stick frying pan until the butter has melted. Add the water and bacon and give it a quick stir. Place the baby cabbage halves cut side down in the pan. Cover the pan with a lid (my pans don’t have lids, so I use a large lid from one of my pots).2. Braise the cabbages covered for about 15 minutes over medium heat until they are tender, but still firm. Gently turn the cabbage halves from time to time. Take care that they do not burn — the

cut sides might brown quickly.3. Add the walnuts 3 to 4 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Ensure that the nuts are coated by the oil and butter in the pan. Cover the pan again with the lid and complete the cooking process.4. Season with a little nutmeg and lots of white pepper. The but-ter and bacon will make the dish salty, so no need to add extra salt. Transfer to a platter and serve immediately.

dalene’s tips:– You can make this dish with or-dinary cabbage too, but you won’t be braising; you’ll be stir-frying. – The bacon-walnut flavour com-bination also works very well with Brussels sprouts. First steam or boil the Brussels sprouts until just tender, but still firm. Drain and set aside. Heat olive oil and butter in a frying pan. Add coarsely chopped streaky bacon and fry for a few minutes. Stir in walnuts (broken in half) and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the Brussels sprouts and heat through while stirring. Sea-son with just a little nutmeg. Add white pepper and salt to taste.


CaMeMBerT WiTh rasPBerry and BlaCk PePPer glaZe

This raspberry glaze is thick enough to stay on top of the cheese. If you are using a firm (not a runny) camembert, it can be cut into wedges and eaten with the fingers. However, one does not always know whether a camembert is firm or runny until you cut it, so best to have side plates and cake forks on standby in case this pièce de résistance is too runny to be eaten by hand.

Camembert works very well with crackers. Therefore one would think that low-carb seed crackers would also work with this glaze-topped camembert. But I’ve tried it and it doesn’t work at all! The seed crackers totally detract from the combined rich taste of the camembert and the piquant, tart taste of the glaze. So definitely serve this one without crackers.I developed this recipe with fro-zen raspberries so that you (and I) can make it any time of year.

Frozen berries such as blackber-ries, youngberries or blueberries can also be used.

What you will need:– 1/2 cup (50 g) frozen raspberries– 1/2 teaspoon red balsamic vinegar– 1 teaspoon Xylitol– 1/8 teaspoon milled black pepper– 125 g camembert cheese at room temperature– extra milled black pepper to garnish (I used milled mixed colour pepper.)

instructions:1. In a small saucepan or small fry-ing pan, mix the frozen raspber-ries, red balsamic vinegar, Xylitol and black pepper. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat and sim-mer uncovered for 3 minutes. Stir all the time. Remove from the heat and cool for 10 minutes. The glaze will be quite thick.2. Place the camembert on a serving plate. (I used a marble pot stand in the photo below.)

Spoon the berry glaze on top of the cheese. Sprinkle with the extra pepper. Serve with a small sharp knife to cut the cheese into wedges.

dalene’s tips:– Arrange whole walnuts around the camembert. They’ll match the flavour profile of the glazed cheese perfectly.– Should you ever get tired of serving this berry glaze on a round of camembert, try it on a wedge of blue cheese. Add a generous sprinkling of chopped crispy bacon.– How about a novel idea for a tiny starter or dessert with loads of attitude? Serve cream cheese balls topped with this berry glaze on individual spoons. Use a high fat, firm cream cheese such as Philadelphia and roll into bite-size balls. Keep the balls in the fridge until almost ready to serve. Place each ball on an antique dessert spoon, top with a little berry glaze and a grind of black pepper. Arrange the spoons on a long platter and serve.


Recipes These recipes are courtesy of The Banting Chef. Check the site (www.thebantingchef.co.za) for more content

Flax and CoConuT Flour roTi

Preparation time: 10 minsFrying time: VariesServes: 2Category: BreadsPosted by: Vibha SukramPhoto by: Vibha Sukram

ingredients– 1 cup flaxseed Flour– 1/4 cup coconut Flour– As required: water– 1 Tbs butter or ghee– As needed: salt– For toasting: butter or ghee

Method1. Boil water in a kettle.

2. Measure a cup full of water, add salt and butter/ghee and mix.3. Mix the two flours together, then gradually add the water mixture to the flours, mixing with a spoon, then knead to a smooth dough. If the dough is sticky add a little more coconut flour. If it is dry add a little water then let it rest for 5 mins.4. Heat a tava or frying pan.5. Make medium sized balls.6. Lay a Ziploc bag or cling wrap flat down and rub a little ghee/butter on the underneath to keep it flat. Next place your dough ball, then place another ziploc bag or cling wrap on top. Roll your dough out between the two bag or cling wrap, as it will stop the dough from getting stuck to the rolling pin.7. Gently take the roti out and place it on the hot tava. Cook on both sides, applying ghee/butter when turning and toasting.8. Serve warm with the curry of your choice!


yoghurT CheeseCake

Preparation time: 15 minsBaking time: 20 minsSetting time: 2 hoursPosted by: Carin KotzePhoto by: Carin Kotze

ingredientsBASE:– 250ml almond flour– 100ml desiccated coconut– 60ml butter, melted

FILLING:– 500ml plain yoghurt– 250ml cottage cheese– 100ml xylitol– 60ml lemon juice

– 2 eggs– 20ml gelatine

Method1. Preheat the oven to 180C.

2. BASE: Mix all the ingredients together, and press down into your dish. Be sure to use a medium sized glass or Pyrex dish, as a baking pan will be too big and the ingredients will create a very flat cake.

3. FILLING: Melt the gelatine in a cup with 20ml of lukewarm water. Blend all the ingredients together with a blender. Pour the filling over the base slowly then place in the oven and bake for 20 mins.4. Switch off the oven and let the cheesecake cool down with the oven door open. Remove it from the oven and place it in the fridge to set for a further 2 hours.


Photo: Daniel Roe

The last wordhang in thereBanting is not a diet. It’s a lifestyle. You transform the way you perceive food and the way you consume it.Most importantly, Banting is about educating yourself about what you’re putting in your mouth. Don’t leave this responsibility up to others and don’t be lazy about it. Learn to do your own research about this lifestyle and you will be successful.

Be patient because not everyone is going to lose weight at the same pace and don’t throw in the towel if you don’t lose weight as quickly as you would like to.There are several benefits to this lifestyle and I hope that by reading Banting Guru, you will come to realise why this particular way of life is so beneficial.

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banting guru october 2015

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