5 Low Carb Replacement Ideas for Holiday Meals
Don’t miss out on your favorite holiday foods
The hardest part of the holidays is staying on track with your keto plans. But Kai’s Baking Studio is happy to let you know that you CAN have your favorite dishes this holiday season, with a few simple tweaks to make them low-carb-friendly without taking away from the taste!
Everyone’s favorite holiday dishes done low-carb
If trying to resist those holiday side dishes and desserts that you love feels like torture, now you can simply make low-carb replacements for these 5-holiday favorites. Best of all, no one else will know these have healthier swaps because they’re so delicious!
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Cranberry Sauce
First up, everyone’s favorite saucy side, cranberry sauce gets a low-carb makeover to make it keto-friendly. You’ll only need a bag of fresh cranberries, water, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar-free sweetener (we like powdered erythritol/monk fruit for this recipe). It simmers up in 10 to 15 minutes for a splendid side that gives you only 4 net carbs per ¼ cup serving, which comes from the cranberries and not the sweetener.
Watch how to make low-carb cranberry sauce!
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Cornbread
Cornbread is usually a big “NO” for keto dieters. That is until you try this keto-safe recipe that will let you indulge in that sweet and delicious flavor without the corn to trip up your good intentions. Made without any corn, you won’t miss a kernel with this flavorful recipe that lets you dress up your corn-less cornbread with heat from jalapeno, added cheese, or even bacon. Even those that don’t avoid carbs will want to eat every last morsel of this divine not-so-cornbread. It comes together quickly and the results are so good, everyone is going to want the recipe.
How does it taste so much like cornbread? Simple! We use a combination of almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, and xanthan gum with butter, eggs, salt, and erythritol/monk fruit sweetener that comes together to recreate the taste in a way that makes it keto compliant.
Watch how to make not-so-cornbread!
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Cornbread Dressing
Is dressing your favorite part of the holiday meal? If you’re tired of wistfully watching as everyone loads their plate up with savory holiday dressing, then tell the family you’ll be bringing this not-so-cornbread dressing to share this year. Simply make that not-so-cornbread recipe and cut it into smaller pieces. You’ll add broth or stock, poultry seasoning, rubbed sage, celery, onions, and bell peppers. You can also add some meat if you like. Dark meat from the turkey works beautifully though you can add your favorite keto-friendly sausage to it to really enhance the taste. It only takes 30 to 45 minutes to bake up this amazing low-carb holiday side that will go fast so make sure you get a serving first!
Watch how to make cornbread dressing!
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Mac & Cheese
If you popped into just about any house across the country for Thanksgiving dinner, you’re likely to find a bubbling casserole dish filled with luscious mac & cheese. Made with pasta though, it’s something a keto dieter must stay away from or else risk falling out of ketosis. However, if you let cauliflower come to the rescue, you’ll have a delicious mac & cheese to share that lends more healthful benefits thanks to this versatile veggie.
It takes a head of cauliflower and 3 kinds of cheese – Velveeta, shredded gouda, and extra sharp cheddar. You can (and should!) add Colby jack too if you want to make it even cheesier. Butter, an egg, and heavy whipping cream round out the ingredients. You can use milk if you prefer, though the cream gives it that rich and delightful finish that will have this side dish gobbled up faster than you can say, “Happy Thanksgiving!” Adding bacon bits is optional but absolutely recommended to make everyone completely forget that this side is totally low-carb!
Watch how to make keto-friendly mac & cheese!
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Pumpkin Pie
And finally, everyone’s favorite dessert for Thanksgiving (Christmas too!) is pumpkin pie. It’s the dessert that we all save room for, that special indulgence. But you don’t want to throw out all that work you’ve done on your keto diet, do you? That’s why you should make this keto-friendly pumpkin pie.
The flavors are the same that you love from the original with a few low-carb tweaks that make it safe for you to enjoy a slice and even a second slice without getting knocked out of ketosis. It all starts with the crust which you’ll make from almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, melted butter, egg, and kosher salt. The filling is made with pumpkin puree, but the most important part here is to choose something with low sugar content. Don’t mistake it for pumpkin pie in a can which is NOT keto-friendly.
This filling also uses heavy whipping cream, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, and your favorite keto-friendly sweetener. Brown or golden varieties will work best in this recipe. In just about an hour, you’ll have a homemade from-scratch keto pumpkin pie that you can share with anyone and everyone.
Watch how to make pumpkin pie the keto way!
Stay in ketosis for the holidays
With these 5 recipe swaps that make your favorite dishes low-carb, you’ll be able to get through the holidays without falling off track. Then you can move into the New Year and on to summer looking and feeling amazing. A good keto diet lets you enjoy the foods you love with a little creativity to make them work for you and your keto lifestyle. Happy Holidays!
