Low Carb Margarita Experiment - Take 4 & 5 and Compare with Skinny Girl Margarita

I'm just about margarita-ed out, folks...

So, let's talk about the flurry of weekend margarita experimentation that occurred over the past two days.

To the left, you can see a photo of the margarita fixings that I assembled on Friday.  We made two versions out of these fixings:

Margarita version 1.4 was a variation on the Laura Dolson margarita base that I have been using time and time again.  Except, instead of fake sugar, we substituted 1 tablespoon of Thai coconut palm sugar paste (jaggery) and made a simple syrup out of it, which we combined with lime juice, tequila, and orange extract.  This added about 3 carbs to the net carbohydrate count, but also significant sweetness without a fake sugar aftertaste.  Here's the recipe:

• 1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) water
• 1 tbsp jaggery
• 1 jigger (1.5 oz) tequila
• 2 Tablespoons (1 oz) fresh lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon orange extract
• Ice - small handful
• Margarita salt or kosher salt

Directions

1. Pour water into a microwave safe container, and microwave on high for 60 seconds, until steamy.  Add jaggery to hot water and mix until the jaggery is dissolved.
2. Combine all the ingredients (minus the salt), and stir stir stir until fully incorporated and the liquid is icy cold.
3. Serve in a salt-lined glass if you wish.  I like mine without salt, on the rocks.  Or... if you like it frozen, just dump the margarita and rocks into a blender and let it whir, baby.

Review: I really liked Margarita version 1.4.  It is a bit cloudier than the others because jaggery is an unrefined sweetener and is brown in color.  For me, this was a really good margarita.  For my husband, it was his least favorite.  I understand why: jaggery has a slight caramel flavor that does not hide in the flavor background.  It is not flavor-neutral.  For me, the 3 additional net carbs on this drink were worth it.  It was just sweet enough for me.  I would give this one a 3.5 out of 5.

Margarita version 1.5 was, again, a variation on the Laura Dolson margarita base.  Here, we made a simple syrup with the hot water, 1/2 tablespoon of jaggery and 1/2 tablespoon of Truvia.  The goal was to have some natural sweetness from the jaggery to offset the fake sugar taste of the Truvia, but not so much truvia that the aftertaste would bring me to me knees.  

• 1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) water
• 1/2 tbsp jaggery
• 1/2 tbsp Truvia
• 1 jigger (1.5 oz) tequila
• 2 Tablespoons (1 oz) fresh lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon orange extract
• Ice - small handful
• Margarita salt or kosher salt

Directions

1. Pour water into a microwave safe container, and microwave on high for 60 seconds, until steamy.  Add jaggery and Truvia to hot water and mix until the jaggery is dissolved.
2. Combine all the ingredients (minus the salt), and stir stir stir until fully incorporated and the liquid is icy cold.
3. Serve in a salt-lined glass if you wish.  I like mine without salt, on the rocks.  Or... if you like it frozen, just dump the margarita and rocks into a blender and let it whir, baby.

Review: Going half and half with the jaggery and Truvia brought the carb count down 1.5 grams from margarita version 1.4.  This version (margarita 1.5) is my favorite to date.  Peter liked it, despite the addition of some jaggery to round out the taste of the artificial sweetener.  This is a low carb margarita that I would feel fine serving to anyone, low carber and carboholics alike :)  I gave it a 4.25 out of 5 (notably, the "5" is the full sugar amazing margarita that I just can't drink anymore; on this scale, 4.25 is a damn tasty drink).

Notably, I decided, after sampling margarita 1.5, that I had maybe reached my max tequila consumption for the week.  So, I combined the margarita that I had left from my sampling (about 1.5 ounces) with about 4 ounces of orange-flavored seltzer water.  It was actually quite delicious, and still pretty potent.  I would definitely do this again, especially in the summer when you want a drink that's refreshing and tangy, but is not going to knock your socks off quite that quickly. 

SKINNY GIRL

Everyone who knows about my low carb margarita experiment has been yammering away at me about Skinny Girl Margaritas.  So, when I happened to come across a bottle of it at the liquor store, and checked the nutrition label (a 4 ounce serving has about 4 grams of net carbs, and has about 12.7% alcohol/volume), I thought that I would pick up a bottle.  A 750 ml bottle, containing 7 x 4 ounce servings cost me about $15. 

I bought it, brought it home, chilled it, and then Pete and I had a taste test.  Here are my thoughts:

Taste: My margaritas are robustly lime-y.  They are not shy.  You know that you are drinking a margarita.  The lime is fresh.  This margarita packs a zesty punch but has a delicate citrus scent.  They are good.  They are lipsmacking.  One of them will make you tipsy, and a second will knock you on your kiester.

By way of contrast, Skinny Girl tastes watered down and is only vaguely citrus-y.  It would be as if you made my margarita with bottled lime juice, then diluted the whole mix at least 50-50 with water (and I'm being generous here, because I did water mine down with seltzer water, and it still packed more punch than Skinny Girl).  You can tell the difference between my margaritas and Skinny Girl's just by looking at them: Skinny Girl is a thin, watery beverage.  Mine has body and, by God, texture (love that lime pulp).  There is just no comparison.  Honestly, I didn't even finish the Skinny Girl.  I passed it to the hubby.  If I am going to drink carbs, I'm going to get the max out them.  Skinny Girl was a limp dishrag of a margarita, and just not worth it.

Price: Considering that the bottle of El Espolon tequila that I bought for my recipes cost just around $22 for a 750 ml bottle, and that this bottle will make approximately 16 x 6 ounce margaritas and change (each containing 1.5 ounces of tequila), it became immediately clear that my homemade versions were waaaay less expensive than Skinny Girl.  In fact, I did the math, and I figured out that each of my 6 ounce margaritas cost around $1.50, while the 4 ounce Skinny Girls cost just over $2 each.  So, mine rang in at about 25 cents per ounce, while Skinny Girl cost about 50 cents per ounce. 

That math is not 100% accurate, but it is pretty close.  In fact, I would consider my math to be downright generous, considering that Skinny Girl is so watered down, that my recipe, mixed 50-50 with water, is still more potent and tasty, and my watered down version would cost only about 12.5 cents per ounce.

Rating: Skinny Girl weighs in at a skinny 2 out of 5, but only if you want a boring, vaguely lime-y drink that won't even stand up to the spicy mexican food that you pair it with.  Disappointing!

CONCLUSIONS from the peanut gallery:

If you can get your hands on jaggery, give Margarita version 1.5 a try.  It is really good.  If you can't find jaggery, use just Truvia instead.  You'll be a happy camper.

Don't waste your money on Skinny Girl.  If you love margaritas, then take the time to make your own margaritas.  They are cheaper and tastier.  If you want a watered down margarita, then eschew Skinny Girl, and just modify your own hooch to suit.  Your taste buds and your wallet will thank me for this!

Low Carb Margarita Experiment - 3rd Time's the Charm?

You may wonder: will she ever get tired of margaritas?  I'm not sure what the answer to that question is in the long run, but for now, I'm hanging in there.

Here's quick recap of what's happened to date with our Low Carb Margarita Experiment: our first attempt at a low carb margarita got 3 out of 5 stars, mostly because I can't stand the aftertaste of liquid Splenda, but my husband thought the cocktail was spot on.   The second attempt at a low carb margarita got 3.5 out of 5 stars because, although the taste with Truvia was better than with liquid Splenda, there was still a hint of aftertaste that bugged me, but was not an obstacle to me finishing the drink on my own; I also wasn't crazy about the extra step of making the microwave simple syrup with the Truvia.

Our third attempt is something that my husband didn't actually get to sample.  You see, I came home very late last night after a City meeting, and Pete was already in bed.  It was that kind of a night, so I thought I would enjoy a small night cap.  That nightcap was a margarita.  Here's what I came up with on take three.

(Once again, I'm using Laura Dolson's original recipe as my base.)

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) water
• 1 jigger (1.5 oz) tequila
• 2 Tablespoons (1 oz) lime juice - bottled more convenient, fresh tastes a lot better
• 1/4 teaspoon orange extract
• 1 oz of pomegranate juice
• 1 packet of Truvia
• Ice - small handful
• Margarita salt or kosher salt

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients (minus the salt), and stir stir stir until fully incorporated and the liquid is icy cold.
2. Serve in a salt-lined glass if you wish.  I like mine without salt, on the rocks.  Or... if you like it frozen, just dump the margarita and rocks into a blender and let it whir, baby.

Here was my thought process: I hypothesized that the pomegranate juice would sweeten up the margarita just enough without destroying the carb count.  So, I put one ounce of the juice in (which added about 3 grams of net carb to the drink), and took a sip before I added any artificial sweetener.  It was WAY too tart, so I added the packet of Truvia.

So, the carb count was about 5.5 grams per large serving.  However, the pomegranate juice didn't really add that much sweetness or pomegranate flavor, although it did turn the margarita pleasantly pink.  The Truvia didn't dissolve completely, but I didn't notice that until I looked at the bottom of the glass and saw a few crystals clinging to the bottom.

Honestly, this wasn't a bad margarita, but I'm going to give it 3 out of 5 stars because, for the extra 3 grams of carbohydrate, there wasn't any noticeable improvement in flavor.

My next experiment will involve Thai coconut palm sugar paste (jaggery), which is a natural, less refined form of sugar that has 3 grams of net carbohydrate per tablespoon.  I just have to grab some at Whole Foods today.  Onwards!!

Low Carb Margarita Experiment - Take 2

Last night, me and the hubby were at it again.  Making low carb margaritas, that is. 

Our first attempt got a 3 out of 5 stars.  I didn't like the aftertaste of the liquid Splenda in the cocktail, but thought that the initial sip and the scent of the margarita were pretty good.  My husband thought that it was spot on. 

Recognizing that I've never been a fan of the flavor of liquid Splenda, I thought we'd use Laura Dolson's original recipe as our base, once again, and just tweak it a bit. 

Here's what we did:

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) water
• 1/2 - 3/4 tbsp Truvia 
• 1 jigger (1.5 oz) tequila
• 2 Tablespoons (1 oz) lime juice - bottled more convenient, fresh tastes a lot better
• 1/4 teaspoon orange extract
• Ice - small handful
• Margarita salt or kosher salt

Directions

1. Measure the water into a large microwave proof glass, and add the Truvia.  Microwave on high for 30 seconds, then remove from the microwave, and stir until Truvia is completely dissolved in the water.
2. Add the remainder of the ingredients (minus the salt), and stir stir stir until fully incorporated and the liquid is icy cold.
3. Serve in a salt-lined glass if you wish.  I like mine without salt, on the rocks.  Or... if you like it frozen, just dump the margarita and rocks into a blender and let it whir, baby.

I liked this margarita better than the first version.  The net carb count is right there at 2.5 grams, as well.  There was a slight fake sugar aftertaste, but it was not offensive, and I hardly even noticed (and I'm sensitive to the stuff).  I drank the margarita all by myself :)

I have a plan for margarita #3, but you're just going to have to wait for it! 

Low Carb Margarita Experiment - Stage 1

On Sunday, my family went out for dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant, in honor of my husband's birthday.  I had a frozen key lime margarita.  I KNOW!  It was undeniably full of sugar, and a real treat for me, as I hadn't had a margarita (my favorite icy cocktail) in nearly a year. 

As good as that one was, I decided that I would look into making a guilt-free version, one that I could imbibe on this WOE. 

There are a number of sugar-free margarita drink mixes out there.  Some are liquid mixes that come in huge bottles, and some, cleverly, are little single-serve packets of powdered margarita mix, that you can add to your glass of tequila and water on the rocks at a restaurant, if you wish.

Since these options are a little pricey, I googled "low carb margarita recipes" and found this one, created by Laura Dolson:

• 1 jigger (1.5 oz) tequila
• 2 Tablespoons (1 oz) lime juice - bottled more convenient, fresh tastes a lot better
• 1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) water
• 1/4 teaspoon orange extract
• 1 Tablespoon's worth artificial sweetener (I like to use liquid, carb-free types)
• Ice - small handful
• Margarita salt or kosher salt

Basically, you take these ingredients, minus the salt, combine and stir or shake until really cold.  Alternately, you can blend them up and serve the margarita frozen.  This recipe makes one sizeable margarita, weighing in at about 2.5 grams of net carbohydrate per serving.

So, last night Pete and I mixed one of these up.  The smell of the margarita was right on.  Lime-y and delicious.  The first sip tasted pretty good too, until I hit the artificial sweetener aftertaste that I dislike so much.  My husband didn't even notice the aftertaste, but complained about the tartness.  So, I added some more artificial sweetener.  He loved it, so he finished the cocktail.

I should have known that the liquid Splenda would bother me, as the aftertaste is bothersome in baked goods, and now I use erithritol or Truvia.

I am going to try this recipe again, but use Truvia instead of liquid Splenda.    I will report back!

Do you have any good, low carb cocktail recipes you'd like to share?

Caught Red Handed - 6 pounds of water weight

This weekend, I made some bad choices.  Oh, how the mighty have fallen! 



On Saturday, I made a lower carb chocolate chip cookie, substituting coconut flour for regular flour and erithritol and sugar free pancake syrup for white and brown sugar.  The result was a delicious little cookie (2 dozen of them, in fact) that weighed in at about 2.5 net carbs each.  The recipe was an amazing success.  However, I ate the entire batch by myself - 1 dozen on Saturday and 1 dozen on Sunday. 

 

These cookies are totally induction friendly, as long as you limit yourself to a reasonable serving size.  Learn a lesson from me, though, and avoid this treat if you can't stop at just one or two.  We all have a diet "kryptonite" that is bound to sabotage us if we have it in the house and think to indulge.  My kryptonite appears to be chocolate chip cookies.  This splurge accounted for approximately 62.5 net grams of carbs, spread out over two days.  Not good. 

This mass cookie consumption coincided with "date night in", which we celebrated at home on Saturday evening.  My husband and I split a bottle of prosecco, which resulted in me drinking four flutes of prosecco.  Ouch.  Figure that is another 12-15 grams of carbs added into Saturday's carb count.



Not mine.  Mine was more "rustic".

The next day, I woke up and made 8 pounds of royal icing for my family's annual Gingerbread House Contest, a tradition whereby old and young gather, decorate gingerbread, eat and smack talk for 4 hours.  It is a load of fun.  However, when you consider how much icing I licked off my fingers during that period... eesh. 



I didn't even have the will to do Fitday calculations for Saturday and Sunday.  I could tell by yesterday evening that I was completely bloated by the way that my jeans felt around my middle.  Not so hot.  Recognizing this, I had a cobb salad with chicken for dinner.  A good choice that did nothing to rectify the sins of the weekend.  Oh well, here's to not making things worse!  Hurrah.

Weekly Measurements Are Important

Numbers don't lie.  It is sooo true!

However, it has to be said that I have some say in what those numbers look like, depending on when I take my measurements. 

I've stopped taking official weight and measurements on Sunday mornings, because that is just too depressing. 

Oftentimes, I weigh more on a Sunday than I will on the following Tuesday, because the effects of the debauchery I've engaged in on Friday and Saturday take a day or two to disappear.  This weekend - for example - I went out for dinner on both Friday and Saturday nights, alcohol included.  I totally overdid it on Friday, including my first REAL cheat since January, in the form of the full-sized Reese's Nightmare sundae at my local ice cream parlor.  Talk about a carb nightmare for yours truly!

Also, it has to be pointed out that my weight fluctuates daily (and if you are a woman, there's a good chance that yours does as well), and throughout a given day, as well.  Most of this has to do with water weight gain and loss, which can be significant. 

I am a little addicted to daily weighing, which is not advisable (too easy to be discouraged).  Don't follow my bad example in this regard.  ((Note: for some people, especially those prone to regular swelling and those with cardiac issues, daily weighing can be critical to knowing when you've packed on too much water.  We learned this the hard way with my dad and his several bouts with congestive heart failure.  I'm not a doctor, and in no way qualified to give medical advice, so talk to your doctor about this issue!!))

The best thing to do is pick the same day, each week, to do your weigh in and measurements.  Weigh and measure yourself in the morning, naked, after you've used the loo and before you've had anything to eat or drink (including meds, vitamins and the water you guzzle them with), preferably when your hair is dry!  If you have your period, feel free to skip weigh in that week, as that can be horrifying.

Just - whatever you do - don't forget to measure yourself regularly.  It can be the only thing that keeps you sane when your weight has plateaued.  Frankly, I think that measurements are more important than weighing, as a general rule.  Back in the Spring of this year, I was stuck at the same weight - up one pound, then down one pound - for weeks!!  At the time, I was hitting the gym a lot.  Measurements showed me that even though my weight wasn't changing, I was still getting slimmer and healthier as my size decreased. 

Navigating the Pitfalls of the Party Circuit

Disaster!  Okay.  Here's the deal.  I am very involved in State and local politics, and this is municipal election season, as well as preseason for a number of federal candidates who are going to be seeking endorsements in 2012.  In short, this is fundraiser season, and I have 2-3 functions per week to attend for the next month and a half.  It is causing problems, y'all.

Just last week, I whined about being so close to my milestone of 200 pounds.  Three social events later, and my weight this morning was up to 207.5 pounds.  At least half of that 6 pound weight gain is water and other stuff that will be passed.  The rest of it is comprised of something a bit more insidious, I fear! 

Mid-week weighing produces surprising results.

So, today I did a little mid-week weighing, and I am down to 218!  Finally, downward movement on the scale!  Yahoo!  I am so happy to be out of the 220's - let's keep it that way....forever.  Hot damn. 

Maybe it really is appropriate to blame it on the alcohol. (And by "it", I mean my weight plateau).

End of week eight - weigh in 3/20/11

I so wanted to hit 217 pounds today.  That is the number I’ve been looking for, for
WEEKS!  Instead, my weight remains unchanged, though my measurements continue to shrink.  Am I building LBM and losing fat simultaneously?  This is a possibility.   I am ready for a 4 pound weight loss.  Ugh!!  I can’t get out of the 220s, and it is really getting on my nerves!  From last week, I lost .25 inches around my neck, .5 inches from my bust, .5 inches from my waist, and .5 inches from my hips.  My clothes fit better.  Slow and steady… too slow and steady!!   All that I can say is…thank God I’ve been doing the measurements.  I would be so disappointed by this point without them showing, at least, some fat loss every week.  Maybe I need to get a device that measures BMI.  Some calipers?  Ugh!!

What's the deal?  I'm in ketosis all the time.  I eat low carb.  I exercise regularly.  My only folly is that I have the occasional glass or two of wine when I go out.  Is that enough to mess with my weight loss? 

This week, alcohol free for me.

They say its your birthday...happy birthday to ya! Weigh in...

I did not design this schedule, such that I would end up weighing in on this, my thirty-first birthday.  That was just happenstance.  I am up .5 pounds, which I believe to be a product of having my birthday party last night.  My food was all strictly low carb (love that BBQ joint), but I did indulge in some wine with dinner, and champagne later at night with just me and hubby.  It was so good.  I am a little mealy mouthed today.  Gonna weigh in again tomorrow and see if there is a correlation between bad weigh ins and "the day after".  (Note: I already know the correlation between “the day after” and gastro discomfort...a little binding…)

This was a good weekend for me…despite the fact that Friday evening started out stressful, with an angry call from a loony relative, which I met with my own brand of ferocious, righteous anger (little did he know, I was still nurturing a little "evil Kate" in my bones, to which I gave full force and effect).  That incident aside, Saturday was a good birthday weekend kickoff for me.  Family and I painted our own pottery at a local studio, home for lunch (and a failed attempt at “skillet” cauliflower pizza), then mommy went to the spa for a facial and massage.  Ah, sweet, sweet bliss!  I left that place  with legs like wet noodles.  It was just what the b-day called for, a little self-indulgence. 

Now, dehydrated and somewhat disgusting, I am going to suck down some H20 and get my booty to the gym for some “back to reality” (as if daylight savings time wasn’t enough of that).  Luckily, I have really been excited to get back to the gym after my freak, "club kid" knee injury.

Oh happy happy day (of my birth)!!

3/8/11 - tired and injured. blame it on the ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ahl-co-hol

Exercise: I am tired today.  I hurt my knee on Saturday, and it does not feel good still.  I am a little bummed because I really want to keep up with the schedule for the Race training program that I’m on, but I’m not stupid and realize that I don’t want to really hurt myself in the process.  So, patience.  I have to go pick up the Rx my MD called in for me for some extra strength naprosyn, that should hopefully help out.  On the upside, I truly want to go to the gym.  I hate it when I’m there, but a part of me really likes that I’m getting my ass in gear and actually going on a regular basis.

Diet and Alcohol Consumption: Well, my “food” is all strictly low carb.  However, this weekend and last night I drank some alcohol.  Although I had relatively low carb beverages (wine and some martinis), alcohol is definitely not allowed on Atkins or I&N.  The Spanish ketogenic diet allows red wine, but I’m not on that diet, and I’m not really into fish enough to want to get on it.  So, I hope that doesn’t muck things up.  My weight was down on Sunday from the week prior despite my night of drinking on Saturday, but… I really exercised and busted my hump dancing on Saturday night, so I wonder if I would have had a greater weight loss on Sunday had I not had the alcohol.  There is a lot of discussion online that alcohol can really delay the weight loss process on a low carb diet.  However, I have been testing and I’m still in ketosis, which is a good thing.  

Ketosis: In fact, I’ve been in ketosis for… is it really three weeks??  Let me check… Yes.  I’ve been officially in ketosis since 2/17 (which is when I began testing), although I was probably in ketosis on 2/15, when I first started noticing the metallic taste in my mouth.  It is March 8^th.  That’s 21 days, or exactly 3 weeks.  Yikes. 

Notes: I clearly have to input into my food journal everyday, or I forget what I ate and have to put “I can’t remember” into the journal.  Jeez.  When did my memory get so bad?  You know what it is…I’m just not as into food as I used to be.  I think that I’m starting to make the transition into “eating to survive” instead of “eating for pleasure”.  Because, while I certainly find food pleasant and enjoyable, I’m definitely not into it like I was before.  Don’t get me wrong, I really wanted to eat that birthday cake on Sunday, and the brownies at brunch on Saturday, and the pasta on Sunday, but it wasn’t really a big deal to avoid it.  I did feel a little awkward on Sunday, though, eating a troth of lettuce and chicken (4 thighs…how embarrassing!!) and having to field questions about why I’m not eating pasta or cake.  My answer: “I’m eating gluten-free these days”.  Why do people pay attention to this stuff?  Generally, I fess up to low carb with family or friends (at some point, they figure it out themselves anyway, and at some point, you get invited to an event, and you need to make sure of what’s for dinner, so that you can bring your own or augment as necessary), but sometimes you just don’t want to hear people criticize the diet.  Worse, is when people tell you that it is okay for you to cheat “just this once”.  I actually looked at the diabetic uncle who carelessly made this suggestion on Sunday, pointed to his massive slice of deep chocolate cake with peanut butter cream filling, buttercream frosting, chocolate ganache and huge pieces of chocolate artfully sticking out of the top like a delicious version of a hedgehog (a truly beautiful, gourmet, designer cake), and said “Uncle John, that cake on your plate probably has at least 300 grams of pure sugar in it.  Neither one of us should be eating it.”  He was suitably chastened, and reminded that it is not pleasant to be told, in public, what you can and cannot (or should or should not) eat.  I walked into another room, had a glass of water, and watched some tube until they were done with the cake. 

Weigh In, 3/6/11, end of week 6

The end of week 6 is nigh! 

Weigh In: well, I finally hit my 220 milestone.  It is good news :)  My measurements didn't change so dramatically this week, which is kind of a bummer. Maybe it is one of those things.... lose weight or lose inches, but not both at the same time?  Who knows?  Anyway, I'm glad for the weight reduction.

This weekend: was fun, and a little wild.  Saturday started off soooo healthy.  First thing in the morning, I hit the gym, did week 1 day 1 of the race training program and the full weight training circuit.  To the grocery store for some healthy food items, home to prepare a bunch of low carb stuff for the week.  Later, however, I went out with the girls for my aunt's birthday.  We did dinner and went to a club for dancing and a show.  The food was good....shrimp cocktail, strip steak, asparagus, oh my.  Delicious.  However, I did drink alcohol: 2 glasses of cabernet sauvignon and 2 vodka martinis with extra lime.  Sinfully good.  I danced all night.  I'm definitely feeling it today, with my tired, old lady knees (holy crap they hurt), my scratchy man voice, and a good dose of cottonmouth.

I will post more later, after the hangover dissipates.  Ugh.