4 Cookbooks to Help With Your Keto Journey
Almost six months ago Adam and I started following the keto diet (low carb, high fat). You can read all of the science-y stuff here, but basically it’s no grains, sugar, or anything that I previously loved. Honestly, I never would have thought that I’d last this long (give me all the tacos and ice cream), but it’s been easier than I thought it would be. I’m down almost 20 pounds and I’m so close to hitting my goal weight! That’s been a huge motivator, but honestly, I just feel so much better and have so much more energy.
We do more of a lazy/dirty keto, which just means that we don’t actively count our macros. I pretty much know what I should and shouldn’t eat, so I just stick to that. If I had to track all of my food every day, I would have given up by now. That’s just not my jam. We also cheat occasionally and pretty much every time we travel it’s a carb free for all (we drank so much beer in Portland last week). For some people that might totally throw them off and make it almost impossible to get back on track, but for us, it keeps this sustainable. We try to make sure any cheats are a conscious decision and not just a lack of will power in the lunch line.
One of the main reasons I’ve been able to stick with keto is thanks to the huge amount of resources and products available to support a low-carb lifestyle. A couple months ago I shared my list of 10 keto-friendly store bought products, but today I want to talk about keto cookbooks. Cooking your own meals is the key to keto success! We still eat out on the weekends and buy pre-made products, but it’s so much easier to manage ingredients and macros when you make something yourself.
These cookbooks have helped us find delicious new recipes, proved to us that keto meals don’t have to be bland, and provided new ways to make old favorites, so you don’t feel like you’re missing out completely. I love searching for recipes on Pinterest too, but something about flipping through a cookbook makes my heart happy.
*This post contains some affiliate links. I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no additional cost to you. However, I paid for all of these cookbooks with my own money and this post is not sponsored.
Simply Keto
Simply Keto was the first keto cookbook that I tried. I borrowed it from the library when we first started keto and it really helped us get on the right track. I ended up buying a copy of this book after returning my library copy and I’m so glad I did. Pretty much all of the recipes we’ve tried have been delicious and this book has a lot of great recipes if you’re missing your favorite carbilicious food – keto pizza crust, cheese shell tacos, biscuits and gravy.
Favorite Recipes:
Cheese Shell Tacos
Pesto Shrimp Kabobs
Caprese Salad with Avocado
Keto Chili
The Everyday Ketogenic Kitchen
I ordered The Everyday Ketogenic Kitchen after trying a few of the recipes on All Day I Dream About Food. I figured if the recipes on her blog are that good, her cookbook must be amazing…and it is. All of the recipes that I’ve made have been good and the one for Easy Taco Pie (topped with fresh guacamole) is in heavy rotation in our house. It’s super easy to make and we always have enough leftovers for a couple lunches. Also, the Vanilla Ice Cream recipe is pure heaven. It’s SO creamy and I always sneak a few spoonfuls as it’s churning.
Favorite Recipes:
Teriyaki Sauce
Easy Taco Pie
Sauteed Green Beans with Crispy Prosciutto
Super Simple Vanilla Ice Cream
Easy Keto Desserts
Carolyn also recently released an Easy Keto Desserts cookbook! I’ve only tried a couple recipes from this one so far, but both have been delicious and were exactly what my sweet tooth needed. Honestly, still being able to eat dessert is another reason I’ve been able to stick with keto as long as I have, so this book is perfect for me!
Favorite Recipes:
Raspberry Fool
Whipped Cream
The Keto Instant Pot Cookbook
I got an Instant Pot for Christmas last year, so I bought this Keto Instant Pot Cookbook to force myself to actually use my IP and not just let it get dusty on the shelf. One of the reviews said that it’s worth buying the book just for the Now and Later Butter Chicken recipe. I haven’t tried yet because I keep forgetting to buy turmeric, but it’s on my grocery list this week! This book is under $10 in paperback or you can read it for free if you have Kindle Unlimited!
Favorite Recipes:
Mexican-Style Chicken with Red Salsa
Smoky Ribs
Do you still buy cookbooks or do you find all of your new recipes online?
I haven't tried any Keto foods, but these sound like good resources. I've seen some good recipes and they sound good, along the lines of foods I would like. I'll have to check these out, since we have friends on the Keto diet.
ReplyDeleteA lot of the recipes would be good even if you aren't on keto, especially the recipe for Instant Pot ribs! It's so quick and easy!
DeleteI dabble in Keto accidentally because my own diet crosses over with so many things, but my boyfriend wants to jump back in fully and my brother just started. I'm definitely going to check out a couple of these. The Instant Pot cookbook in particular looks great!
ReplyDeleteThe Instant Pot one is definitely a good one. There's a lot of recipes in there for staples too (like hardboiled eggs), so it's the perfect push to use my Instant Pot more often!
DeleteCongrats on your weight loss! I love your approach to a ketogenic diet. All of the tracking, etc., really discouraged me from even considering it.
ReplyDeleteI would have probably hit my goal weight by now if I tracked everything more closely, but for me, that's just not sustainable. Actually, I might not even be doing keto anymore if it took that much effort, so maybe I wouldn't be at my goal weight...
DeleteWith fall coming, I'm going to have to check out the Keto Crockpot one!
ReplyDeleteThere's a lot of soup recipes in there and I'm so excited for the weather to start cooling down, so I can start trying all of them!
Deletei need to cut out carbs and sugar, def when school starts back up for my kids! And get in the GYM!
ReplyDeleteGoing to the gym is on my list too!
DeleteA lot of my friends are on this diet. In fact my best friend and her husband just started it 2 weeks ago and she lost 7lbs and her hubby 9lbs. So, I definitely need to tell em about these books
ReplyDeleteThat's great! Wishing them continued success!
DeleteThose Cheese Shell Tacos from the Simply Keto cookbook sound delicious. I still have yet to attempt the Keto diet.
ReplyDeleteThey're SO good! I think I'm going to make them next week for Taco Tuesday!
DeleteThat is so awesome. I have not tried the keto diet yet. But we are huge fans of healthy eating and trying new things. Who knows maybe we might give it a try.
ReplyDeleteEating healthy is so important no matter what "diet" you follow!
DeleteCongrats on your success! I definitely feel like finding your "sweet" spot with what works for you is key.
ReplyDeleteThank you! That's so true! Finding that sweet spot is definitely the key to sticking with anything!
DeleteI'm not one to stick to a diet regimen, but these cookbooks are helpful for those dedicated to Keto!
ReplyDelete