Carbquik Baking Flour

[lscoop]

Hmmmm, just did some online research and found Wheat Protein Isolate. It's a bit like Vital Wheat Gluten, but has almost ALL carbs removed so it's almost all protein. Here are the nutrition facts per ounce of each:

Wheat Protein Isolate: 110 cal, 1.5g fat, 1g carb, 24g protein
Vital Wheat Gluten: 109 cal, 0 fat, 9.3g carb, 15.5g protein

Guess I'll have to get myself some WPI to use. Thanks for introducing yet another great product! Now I have to check to see whether they have it here at Netrition or if I'll have to go elsewhere.....

Thanks!

[rgoodwin]

Just made a half batch of "sugar cookies" from Alton Brown's "Cookie Clause" episode of Good Eats.

The dough wasn't "pulling away" from the sides of the bowl when I had the ingredients in, so I added more CQ, then added another egg and more CQ (I got a little frazzled :-)).

Long story short, my cookies didn't come out crumbly like before, but DID puff up really big ;-) So Richard may have learned his very first real world lesson about baking, wherein whole eggs add VOLUME to baked goods

Now that I have my 3lb box of CQ, I don't mind experimenting and I think I may get the hang of this baking thing

[rgoodwin]

Originally posted by lscoop
[b]Hmmmm, just did some online research and found Wheat Protein Isolate. It's a bit like Vital Wheat Gluten, but has almost ALL carbs removed so it's almost all protein.

If I have VWG () and don't mind the carbs, does it equal WPI (roughly?). What purpose does it serve in the recipe? I actually bought some thinking it would help my cookie dough become more "stretchy" like gluten but completely forgot to try it tonight.

[NulloModo]

I'm sure you could use VWG instead, in fact, it might even work better. I just can't use VWG because the carb content/starch in it stalls me out flat. Ugh, I am too sensitive to some stuff.

[rgoodwin]

So if I have a "stock" let's say cookie recipe, just toss in a Tbsp of VWG and it should impart some "strength" to the dough? (don't know if that's the right way to express it)

[NulloModo]

I might use a little more VWG than a tablespoon, and make sure you cut down on some of the other dry ingredients a bit to make up for the extra bulk. I haven't done a whole lot of cookie baking, so, it would be a good idea to experiment some. The thing about VWG and WPI though is that they need some kneading to 'wake up' the gluten. If you don't knead you cookie dough (and for some reason I don't think cookie dough gets kneaded) it might not do anything worthwhile. The chewiness of cookies usually comes from sugar, so we are back to SAs or polydextrose again.

BTW - Merry Christmas everyone.

[lscoop]

Does that mean you did or did not knead the batter before baking the cookies? Maybe an extra egg or a bit of baking powder would work better than WPI or VWG if you want puffier cookies?

[lscoop]

I'm on maintenance (but was trying to lose 4 lbs that I gained between Thanksgiving and all of the early company x-mas parties). I've been eating CarbQuik every day and have lost the 4 lbs while eating it with no reduction in calories! I can vouch for this wholeheartedly.

I can't say the same for Dreamfield's pasta, where, at a minimum, I put on weight (possibly water weight from these carbs) each time I eat even 2 ounces of it...it comes off in a couple of days but that tells me I need to use it sparingly.

[rgoodwin]

Any ideas for why my dough never came together originally (pulled away from the sides)? I guess maybe mix was too wet? I guess I could have halved the egg and tbsp mix to have it come out a little more dry...

[rgoodwin]

Originally posted by lscoop
Does that mean you did or did not knead the batter before baking the cookies? Maybe an extra egg or a bit of baking powder would work better than WPI or VWG if you want puffier cookies?

Actually I did add an extra egg, and got more puff than desired :-) I was trying to mimic the packaged mix that I made for the rest of the fam earlier that evening. The "real" ones were splendid sugar cookies, slightly crunchy outside and minimally chewy inside.

Mine were more like sweet biscuits :-)

[lscoop]

Ahh, ok, sounds like less egg is better then. And you might want to flatten out the individual cookies before baking as much as possible and check oven settings if you want a more crunchy outside....a slightly drier dough would probably do that better. In all honesty, I love the soft cookies so I probably would have been happy with those chocolate chip "biscuits"!

[lscoop]

Well, I made my first pie crust using Chef Greg's recipe from earlier on in this thread. I only made 1/2 batch for one pie, and refrigerated it for a couple of hours. When I removed it it was cold and not pliable in terms of rolling, so I hand-pressed it into the pie shell, trying to get it fairly even and thin all over. I baked it at 375 until it started to get golden, then turned off the oven....since it was still a bit too soft for my taste, I let it sit in the turned-off oven for another 15 minutes and then the texture was just right! Oh.....I added some sugar to the batter, because this was for a sweet pie and CarbQuik has a naturally slightly salty taste which wouldn't have worked. I used less than an ounce of powdered maltitol. Tonight I will enjoy my first pie in a flour (as opposed to nut) crust in a couple of years. Can't wait!

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

What kind of pie, and let us know how it turns out. Thanks.

[lscoop]

It turned out BEAUTIFULLY! I'm thrilled!
Well you saw how I made the crust. After I took the crust out of the oven I started on the filling. I adapted it from a couple of high-carb recipes that I found. Here's what I did:

Ingredients:

3 oz Xylitol (or whatever sweetener you like to use)
2 oz Erythritol (or whatever sweetener you like to use)
1.5 oz Powdered Maltitol (or other powdered equivalent or splenda)
Pinch of Cream of Tartar
3 large eggs, separated
1/4 Cup (27.5 grams) CarbQuik
12 oz Carb Countdown 2% Milk
2 oz Heavy Cream
1 3/4 Cups (4 oz) finely flaked unsweetened coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
I also added an ounce of sugar free coconut syrup, but you can either use a bit of coconut extract or omit entirely.

Whisk the first 2 sugars (5 oz) with the egg yolks and CarbQuik in a medium bowl. Bring the milk, cream and coconut to simmer in medium saucepan over medium heat. Gradually add hot mixture to the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Return to saucepan. Cook until the mixture thickens and simmers, stirring constantly, 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and add extracts. Pour into crust (already prepared with CarbQuik, see message above) and refrigerate. A bit later, when the pie is almost chilled, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and use a beater to beat up the 3 egg whites, pinch of cream of tartar and the 1.5 oz of powdered sweetener until stiff peaks form. Put the meringue on top of the pie and immediately place in the hot oven for 5-10 minutes until meringue starts to brown on top. Cool and serve.
Delish! I served it to a bunch of friends tonite (none of them low carb except me) and none of them knew the difference. It was very rich and the sweetness was impeccable!

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

O,K, Remember when I said I made the Chocolate Chip Cookies from CarolynF's recipe and they were all crumbly. Well, today, I crumbled them all up, not hard to do, and made a p[ie crust with them. then made up some Chocolate pudding and poured it in, then I'm , gonna add a dollup of whipped cream on top. Voila, Chocolate Chip Chocolate Cream Pie. I'll let you know. although I can't see why it wouldn't be great, as the cookies are great, and the pudding is great. HUMMMMM

[Wine2]

You know the CQ creamcheese cookies with jam in the center that are kinda crumbly, but delicious, well...I reduced the butter called for in them and they didn't fall apart this time! Yummmy! I think CarolynF posted that recipe and it's a keeper!

[showgirl]

hey you may be on to something. how much butter did you cut out?

[lgpars]

Originally posted by Wine2
You know the CQ creamcheese cookies with jam in the center that are kinda crumbly, but delicious, well...I reduced the butter called for in them and they didn't fall apart this time! Yummmy! I think CarolynF posted that recipe and it's a keeper!

Hummmm, that's weird. I had no trouble with Carolyn's recipe when I made this cookie but I just made sure it was a normal cookie texture dough before baking them. But they stayed together very well for me.

[Lee140]

Mine weren't crumbly, but they were very tender. The taste was delicious! I also have made them and added unsweetened cocoa, extra sweetener (malitol, because it's chocolate) and topped with a pecan halve. Those were wonderful too, but were a little more soft than the regular recipe.

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

Oh my gosh, Per the above post, I mad a crust out of the cookies and chocolate pudding with a little whipped cream. It was out of this world. It certainly did not taste like low carb. j This is a keeper. I cut in about a fourth stick of butter, and baked it for a little bit, like 10-15 minutes, then poured in the Pudding and refrigerated. I'm gonna make this again.

[CarolynF]

Last night I made the most delicious Chicken Pot Pie..

I used Chefgreg's Pate au Choux recipe..halved it..and plopped
it on top of my chicken, sauce, veggie mixture..I spread it out
and baked it for 25 to 30 minutes at 400..It was wonderfully rich..

Here is the recipe for the crust:

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup CQ
2 eggs

In a saucepan heat the butter and water until hot and melted..
Then lower the temp on the stove and quickly add the CQ and stir like crazy until it's smooth and pulls away from the pan..Remove from heat, keep stirring then add one egg at a time..
stirring until incorporated..Use a whisk or a large fork..I did return
it to the stove a minute or two and kept stirring until it was like a cream puff mixture..Plop over chicken pie or beef pie and spread it out..and bake..

[Lee140]

You're going to be a very loved woman, Carolyn. Everyone's been looking for a way to make good pot pies! I have leftover turkey in the freezer that has "pot pie" written all over it!

[Motts Landing]

Originally posted by CarolynF
Last night I made the most delicious Chicken Pot Pie..

I used Chefgreg's Pate au Choux recipe..halved it..and plopped
it on top of my chicken, sauce, veggie mixture..I spread it out
and baked it for 25 to 30 minutes at 400..It was wonderfully rich..

okay...this sounds too good BUT..I have never ever made a pot pie. So....do tell....how do you make the chicken pie "filling"? Anyone have carb counts for a completed pot pie using the crust this way? Thanks! Happy New Year!!
Julie

[lscoop]

There are lots of ways to make fillings. I just get creative and use what I have. You can use chicken, turkey, or beef leftovers. I would usually make a roux with butter and CarbQuik in equal amounts (a good rule of thumb would be 1 tablespoon of each for each cup of milk to be added--you can always mix heavy cream and water in equal amounts and use that instead of milk), then add low-carb milk and cook slowly until the mixture thickens, adding seasonings or boullion flakes to get the flavor you want. Mix the meat, creamy sauce and any veggies (if they're cooked or at least al dente when added that's best) and it's ready to go in the oven. You can use veggies such as broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, squash, etc. cut up into bite sizes (the meat needs to also be in bite-sized bits).

The way I would make a pot pie may be different from other people....I like crust on all sides of my pot pie, so I would make a simple crust first......just CarbQuik and water (you can cut it with butter if you like, but I try to avoid the extra calories and found that butter is NOT necessary with CarbQuik to make a nice crust!). It's not necessary to roll out this dough first....just press it along the bottom and sides of the pot pie pan that you're going to use....get the dough nice and flat and thin, because it will puff up some. If you have extra set it aside and use it towards the upper crust (see below).

Put the crust in the oven (350-400) until golden....then let it sit until cooled. Then put your pot pie mixture (above) into the crust, and then make another smaller crust to lay on top of the pot pie (using leftovers from your lower crust if you have any). Then bake at 350 until center is hot and top is golden. If your center ingredients are already warm or hot, the timing will work better. If you have let them get cold, I'd warm them up first. You don't want a crust that is golden on top with a center that is still cold. It probably won't take more than 15 minutes or so to get the upper crust cooked.

Have fun.....get creative! Happy New Year! Laurie

[CarolynF]

Thanks for explaining the pot pie, Laurie..

What I did was to use 3 Tbs. butter, melted and 3 Tbs. CQ..and
cook it in a saucepan until thick..I added canned chicken broth and
a little half and half to it...cooked until thickish..add cooked veggies and your cooked chicken..You might also use some cream of chicken soup for your liquid..

Obviously my pot pie only had only a top..but the flavor was fabulously rich..not biscuity or doughy at all..

Carolyn

[lscoop]

That sounds wonderful, Carolyn. See how easy it is? This is making me lust after another one. I just finished baking a cake and have a rib roast ready to cook this weekend, so I'll probably have to wait a week but am just anticipating the taste of the next one....Yum! Happy New Year! Laurie

[griffin]

is aNYONE STILL HAVING PROBLEMS WITH SALTY TASTE? I JUST WONDEr if its my box.i still have the same one at the time everyone was saying how salty it was. i have another but havent opened it thanks