This made for such FUN discussion on Facebook, so I wanted to share it with you here too โ and get your take, or hear YOUR preferences.
There is no right or wrong, just interesting differences. ๐
Iโll share a super easy (delicious!) low carb meal ideal with you too, since weโre talking groceries. Iโm all for FAST easy meals!
Iโve been ordering my groceries online for pickup or delivery since I first started my 14-day quarantine in early March, and through my continued self-isolation as we get through this unexpected life shift due to the coronavirus.
I think this is week 7 Iโve been home now. ๐ค
Iโm doing fine with that, but Iโm having to get a little creative in the kitchen given Iโm used to traveling and dining out and eating on the go so much. ๐
I donโt mind to admit, I miss beautiful restaurant meals like this:
Ordering groceries online was a bit of a learning curve, but itโs SO convenient. I donโt think Iโll ever go back to any other way!
I live in a small rural town, but three grocery stores here offer curbside pickup, and I can get delivery from Kroger through an app called Instacart.
I did figure out that itโs best to go ahead and select ideal replacements for foods that may be out of stock, and to add notes/preferences to your selections just in case โ to make sure you get exactly what you want.
This Apple Chicken Sausage ๐๐ is a great (?) exampleโฆ
It was a replacement for another chicken sausage I ordered.
I couldnโt see the ingredients or nutrition facts from that page, and to be honest: I didnโt bother opening a new tab to look it up. ๐คทโโ๏ธโฃ
It looked good, going by the front of the package (interesting, potentially delicious, I mean). So I pulled it out of the freezer to make the other day..
What you see above is pretty much all I could see when I accepted it as a replacement, so I was a little surprised to turn it over and see that the links were FIVE carbs each.
Although I didnโt expect it to be super low or anything, given they were โmade with real apples.โ
It had a few more ingredients than I expected too, some that I personally think were totally unnecessary โ but they were obviously in VERY small amounts, listed under the โless than 2% ofโ bit.
I did one of those head-tilt โHmmmโฆโ looks: ๐ค๐
But I decided to make it and eat it anyway, which is what prompted this great discussion. ๐ Iโll tell you why, and also what I thought of them!
* * * * *
โก๏ธ Do Ingredients Matterโฆ or Just Carb Count?
(for you personally)
No judgment, just curious!
What matters most to you about the foods you eat:โฃโฃ
1. carb count onlyโฃโฃ
2. ingredients onlyโฃโฃ
3. both carbs & ingredientsโฃโฃ
4. neither as long as it doesnโt knock me out of ketosisโฃ
5. other: _____โฃ
And would YOU have eaten the Apple Chicken Sausage?
๐๐
I think itโs a very individual thing with a combination of personal preferences, health issues, carb tolerance, bio-individuality, your reactions to certain ingredients, etc.
Hereโs my stanceโฆ
For the most part I eat pretty simple, very plain actually: raw pecans, eggs & cheese, meat & greens ๐ฅฉ๐ฅฆ etc โ very few ingredients.โฃ
That works best for my body, plus itโs just less mess & less fuss. ๐โฃ
Personally I donโt get worked up over a couple of extra carbs or even โsketchyโ ingredients (in very small amounts like this case) or when itโs something Iโm going to have once, or rarely.
โ with a few exceptions of course. ๐
I do make it a priority to stay in nutritional ketosis though so I test foods on myself and see what I can or canโt enjoy โ like certain low carb bars or keto sweets, Starbucks orders or even a sweet potato, etcโฆโฃ
๐โโ๏ธ Iโm all for having the widest range of foods for both nutrition AND enjoyment. โโฃ
That said I donโt make it a habit to constantly push the limits, and I do otherwise eat ridiculously simple.โฃ
But Iโm not so restrictive with my diet (food choices) that I wonโt enjoy something that sounds good (like this!) and at least test it for myself.โฃ
Being too strict or rigid just makes me nutty ๐คช and want to binge.โฃ
BUT, Ingredients DO Matter
There are some ingredients and some foods I personally can NOT eat, either because they knock me out of ketosis or I have a negative reaction to them.
Thatโs the key: to figure out which ingredients YOU can and cannot eat (and why), not just because someone told you they were โbadโ โ but because you have a specific reaction or response to those ingredients that you have identified through testing it for and on yourself.
I use a Keto Mojo Blood Glucose & Ketone Testing Meter to see what spikes my blood sugar, what affects my ketone levels (or knocks me out of ketosis), and what does NOT affect me negatively โ that I can safely enjoy.
Since weโre all unique, itโs been a GREAT tool to help ME eliminate things that were bothering me, and ENJOY things I might have otherwise been afraid to eat.
We have a 15% off discount coded into my affiliate link here.
They have really good short videos on their website at that link if you want to check it out and see how it works. I love mine! ๐
Back to the Apple Chicken Sausageโฆ
I was still around 20 net carbs total for the day when I ate that. I only had one big plump link because I had it with cheesy cauliflower rice medley.โฃ
The sausages are already fully cooked, so I just seared them in the skillet a bit to heat them through and brown them up a bit.
The cheesy cauliflower rice is a personal favorite. It makes a great base for any low carb meal, or a simple keto side you can whip up super fast.
I really like the Green Giant Cauliflower Rice Medley (but plain cauli rice is fine too) and add 2 TBSP of butter, salt to taste, and 4 TBSP of palmetto pimento cheese.
That makes for a creamy, cheesy texture with a nice flavor kick!
As for the Johnsonville Apple Chicken Sausage ๐๐ It has less apple than I expected, more spicy than sweet โ but a great flavor combo, and very plump & juicy!โฃโฃ
The links are a generous size too. ๐ฏ
I did enjoy them but going forward Iโll stick to my usual Spinach Feta Chicken Sausage โ which is also delicious, but MUCH lower in carbs. โโฃ
I wouldnโt buy it again knowing now theyโre 5 carbs each and have added sugar.
I would eat them again if you put them in front me though. ๐โฃ
Whatโs your take? ๐๐
Iโm curious whatโs most important to you: macros, ingredients, ketosis, weight loss, food enjoyment & flavor, a combination of some or all? ๐โฃ
Iโm kind of an โall of the aboveโ person. Iโm not an ingredient snob or overly restrictive, but I do prefer clean ingredients & plain foods.
I liked that they used real apple, did NOT like the (unnecessary) corn syrupโฆ but I *did* eat them anyway. ๐
Iโm also not one for wasting food in lockdown either, though. ๐
Otherwiseโฆ Simple is good! ๐
I tend to stick to the same foods a lot, and usually around 3 ingredients max per meal or plate โ like my usual cheesy eggs, which is a great meal any time of day!
If youโd like to see what other people had to say, hereโs the discussion on Facebook.
I look forward to hearing YOUR thoughts. ๐
My final word on it is this: I wouldnโt have bought the chicken sausage if I had been standing in the grocery store looking AT the label myself, and wonโt order it again.
Mostly because Iโm carb stingy, to be totally honest. ๐
But it was good, delicious actually.
Andโฆ I definitely wasnโt going to throw good food (a few questionable ingredients or not) in the trash can in the middle of a global pandemic. โ
But all that aside, it brought up such a GREAT discussion!
I love hearing everyoneโs unique approach and personal preferences, what works for them, and what doesnโt โ and why. Itโs a great way to learn from each other, and also to understand why different people make different choices.
It almost always inspires me to try something new, or test something on myself, and it also gives me this FEELGOOD experience about how we can all be so unique and so differentโฆ yet make up such an amazing community as a whole at the same time. ๐
My only regret? I wish I had tested it! I threw dinner together pretty quick though, and just didnโt think about it. I only ate one link though, and didnโt โfeelโ any adverse effects that night or the next day, soโฆ ๐คทโโ๏ธ
In my next post Iโm going to share some DELICIOUS healthy whole foods โ with NO sketchy ingredients ๐ โ that will help you strengthen your immune system and feel your BESTโฆ
Stay tuned for that!
Iโll also (finally) share with you a new supplement I started taking from the start of the SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus pandemic, which Iโve been hesitant to mention or discussโฆ but Iโll explain why in the next post. โ *cheers*
Best,
Lynn Terry,
aka @LowCarbTraveler




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Discount Code: LOWCARBTRAVELER

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Yeah, I wouldnโt have eaten the Apple Sausage. 5 carbs for a meat is too much for me to digest (no pun intended). 3 carbs are pushing it for meโฆfor meats. As for the ingredients list, it depends on what Iโm eatingโฆif I see any type of โrealโ sugar (like cane sugar or whatever) added to a product, I wonโt eat it. Sketchy ingredientsโฆI let some pass. As long as I hit my fat.carb/protein ratio, I am happy.
I feel the same way, Yona. Like I said, had I been standing in the store looking at the label, I wouldnโt have bought it โ for both the carb count and the ingredients.
But I definitely wasnโt going to throw away food given the current circumstances ๐ and it still fit within my carb count and macro ratio for the day, soโฆ no sweat for a one time swap & lesson learned.
I actually think this sausage would be even better with cleaner ingredients. I would have been willing to overlook the 5 carb count bit more if there was more โreal appleโ and no added sugar. ๐