Keto Coconut Cream Panna Cotta

I've made this as non-keto and so I decided to just tweak it into a keto version. See the video for a perfectly jiggly panna cotta. 

Coconut Cream Panna Cotta 

1 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon unflavored powdered gelatin

1 cup  whipping cream

1 can coconut cream
1/3 cup Lakanto monk fruit
pinch of salt

1. Pour the coconut milk into a bowl or pot and sprinkle gelatin evenly and thinly over the milk (make sure the bowl/pot is cold by placing the bowl/pot in the refrigerator for a few minutes before you start making the Panna Cotta). Let stand for 5 minutes to soften the gelatin.
2. Pour the milk into the saucepan/pot and place over medium heat on the stove. Heat this mixture until it is hot, but not boiling, about five minutes. (I whisk it a few times at this stage).
3. Next, add the creams, Lakanto, and pinch of salt. Making sure the mixture doesn't boil, continue to heat and stir occasionally until the Lakanto has dissolved, 5-7 minutes.
4. Remove from heat, allow it to sit for a few minutes to cool slightly. Then pour into the glass or ramekin.
5. Refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight. Serve from ramekins or turn out on plates, To turn out, run a knife around the edge of the panna cotta. Place a hot rag around the ramekin for a few seconds and then flip the ramekin onto a plate to release the panna cotta. Add garnishes and serve.

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The importance of electrolytes on keto

Keto flu is a real thing for people coming from a very carby/sugary diet to keto. When your body is transitioning from sugar burning to fat burning, it is going through some changes on how to get its energy. You are going through carb withdrawals and will get symptoms such as headaches and muscle cramps. 

When a body transitions to keto there is often a noticeable increase in dehydration. That's because the body releases more water and electrolytes due to the reduction of carbs and salts. You'll notice more peeing, which means you need to increase your water intake. More peeing means you are washing out electrolytes.

Replacing these electrolytes is important to mitigating keto flu symptoms. The three most important to replace are: sodium, magnesium, and potassium.

Sodium should be replaced by taking in Himalayan pink salts. Himalayan salts are not just sodium, but include many other minerals as well. Pink Himalayan salt contains over 84 minerals and trace elements, including calcium, magnesium, potassium, copper and iron. You can definitely add it to food, but I find that in order to get enough, it's easier for me to down it like pills. I grab a pinch full of the rocky crystals and swallow it down both first thing in the morning, then again before bed. 

Many people complain of muscle cramps when they transition to keto. This is often due to a depletion in magnesium. While it is possible to take magnesium pills, it also happens to be an element that can be absorbed through the skin.  It's often more efficient and easier for people to absorb through skin than through their stomachs. You can buy magnesium oil sprays such as shown above. 

My favorite way is through epsom salt soaks. You can take an epsom salt bath, or you can soak your feet. Who doesn't enjoy a foot soak after being on their feet all day?

Potassium is pretty easy to get enough of if you eat the recommended keto foods of avocados, salmon, and spinach. You shouldn't take potassium supplements too often because you can actually overdose on potassium. Hyperkalemia is when you have too much potassium in your blood and that can lead to heart issue such as irregular heartbeats. I will take a potassium supplement every few days if I have not been eating potassium rich foods. But if you follow the avocado a day keto rule, you should be fine. 

I also like to drink electrolyte water so I can get both water and electrolytes in at the same time. I recommend Ultima powders. They have different flavors and even single serving packs to add to a bottle of water.  

You may find a need to add additional nutrients depending on your needs. I found out that adding a Vitamin B Complex supplement really helped me out as far as energy.

If you drink a lot of water and take your electrolytes regularly, you'll find your keto journey easier. 

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Bulletproof Cacao - Cuz I don't drink coffee!

One of the mainstays of the keto diet is Bulletproof Coffee. For those unfamiliar with this trendy breakfast beverage, it's coffee that has grass-fed butter and coconut oil blended into it. That's the basics, but people will also add some cream, spices,  or sweetener as well. It's the fats that are important.

Why add all that fat? The idea is that the fat will do two things: it will keep you feeling satiated/full so that you won't crave food, and it will help prolong the effects of the caffeine. In regard to the caffeine, it just means that instead of having a fast caffeine peak and then crash, the effects will be more constant and even over a longer period of time. 

I have never drunk coffee. I never acquired a taste for it and I didn't really feel a need for the caffeine. My hot drink of preference has always been hot chocolate. That's why, when I discovered brewed cacao, I became hooked on that. 

I discovered brewing cacao at the Fancy Food Show where a new company, Crio Bru, was introducing their new product. Thankfully, they sent me some samples and thus won a new customer. I won't get into depth on the health benefits of it because I already wrote about it on my other blog. Please read about the antioxidants and the benefits of theobromine in my Munchie Musings post on Loving Crio Bru. 

You brew Crio Bru EXACTLY like you do coffee. At the time I was not keto and so I was loving that I could have hot chocolate, so to speak, with a quarter of the calories of traditional hot chocolate. Instead of a 380 calorie traditional, I could have a 50 calorie Crio Bru version. 

On keto calories are not the focus - fat is. So by putting 1 tablespoon of butter and another of coconut oil (minimum) into your drink, you have a good fat start to your day. 

This is MY concoction. Everyone has their own.

Brewed Crio Bru with a pinch of salt
1 T butter
1 scoop of Perfect Keto MCT oil powder OR 2 T coconut oil
1 scoop of Perfect Keto collagen
some stevia or monk fruit drops for sweetener
1/4 cinnamon or chai spice
a quick pour (2 T?) of heavy whipping cream

It's important to use a blender! People who try to do bulletproof without blending will be confronted with a hot grease slick on the top of their beverage. Good luck downing that! By blending everything, it becomes nice and frothy like a latte.

Why the pinch of salt? Salt will cut bitterness. It's a good addition to coffee as well.

And the Perfect Keto products? Just a preference. I like to use the chocolate MCT oil because it adds the refined oil from the coconuts with an added boost of chocolate flavor. And the vanilla collagen adds some vanilla flavoring.

If you are a non-coffee drinker and want to get your bulletproof game going on, then dry Bulletproof Cacao instead!

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