When I discovered the chaffle, I started making all of my favorite sandwiches that I hadn’t had in ages. It’s definitely been a game-changer. If you me to recreate a recipe for your favorite regional sandwich, let me know! I can probably pull off everything but Primanti Brothers, as I have yet to find a decent keto french fry recipe. Today’s recipe is yet another famous sandwich–the Cuban.
A Cuban sandwich is a grilled panini-style sandwich consisting of roast pork, ham, Swiss cheese, mustard, and pickles on grilled bread–most often a baguette. A chaffle is a perfectly good substitute, because you get that nice crunchy texture from it. If you’re making this for non-keto family members, definitely use a baguette and a weight or a panini press to grill it, so it smashes nice and flat.
For the roast pork, I used my Sous vide Cuban pork tenderloin, but you can use any pork recipe you want. Even a simple crock pot or Instant Pot shredded pork will work, as long as you drain it thoroughly so it’s not super liquidy. You’ll also want deli ham without added sugar or honey, both sliced and shredded Swiss cheese, pickle slices, and Dijon mustard.
To make the chaffle, start out by preheating your Dash mini-waffle iron. While it heats, beat one large egg with a tablespoon of almond flour, a tablespoon of full-fat Greek yogurt, and 1/8 teaspoon of baking powder. You’ll recognize this as a variation of the Wonder Bread chaffle recipe, but this one uses Greek yogurt so the flavor is more reminiscent of a sourdough. If you don’t want to deal with buying yogurt just for this, then go ahead and use the Wonder Bread recipe, or just use a plain beaten egg with no fillers. Measure out 1/4 cup of shredded Swiss cheese and divide it into 4 equal piles. Sprinkle one of the piles on the surface of the Dash, pour half the egg mixture onto it, then sprinkle with another pile of cheese. Close the Dash and cook for 3-5 minutes, until it’s golden brown and crispy. Repeat with the rest of the ingredients.
While the chaffles cook, prepare the inside of the sandwich. Put 3 ounces of cooked roast pork on the bottom of a round microwave-safe bowl. I use these Gladware containers because they’re also very useful for meal prep. Top the pork with 2 ounces of deli ham, then top the ham with a slice of Swiss cheese. Microwave the whole thing for 40-50 seconds, a bit longer if your pork is also cold.
To assemble the sandwich, figure out which bun you want to be your top bun. Usually my chaffles have a pretty side and an ugly side–the ugly side is the top side when it’s cooking. On the ugly side, spread some Dijon mustard and put some pickle slices on the mustard. Invert the pork, ham, and cheese so the cheese is touching the pickles, then put the bottom bun on top of the pork and invert it to serve.
Keto Chaffle Cuban Sandwich
A Florida favorite, the Cuban sandwich gets a keto makeover with sourdough chaffle buns.
Beat together the egg, almond flour, yogurt, and baking powder in a small bowl.
Sprinkle 1/4 of the shredded Swiss directly on the preheated waffle iron. Top with half of the beaten egg mixture, then add another 1/4 of the Swiss on top. Close the Dash and cook for 3-5 minutes, until golden brown and crispy.
Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
For the Sandwich Fillings
Layer the pork, ham, and slice of Swiss cheese in that order in a small microwaveable bowl. Microwave for 40-50 seconds, until the cheese melts.
Spread the inside of one chaffle with the mustard, then top with the pickles. Invert the bowl onto the top chaffle so that the melted Swiss is touching the pickles. Place the bottom chaffle onto the roast pork and invert the sandwich so that the pork side is down and the mustard side is up.
Macros per serving: 522 calories, 4 grams net carbs, 46 grams protein, 33 grams fat.
Keyword chaffles, Cuban, high protein, keto, lchf, low carb, sandwich
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This was one of those throw-together recipes that was borne from my general laziness. I was planning on making something with spinach last Thursday, but was so exhausted that I made it a breakfast for dinner day instead. That led to me never actually making the thing I was going to make with spinach. I had some pork chops in the freezer that I wanted to use for another recipe, but I was only going to use half of them. So I needed to come up with something using pork chops and spinach. I still had several tomatoes from our garden that needed to find a home as well. Add some basil pesto and some cream, and an idea was born.
This is a really simple recipe, which is nice for a Sunday night after I’ve been cooking all day and stressing over the Bills game. It only has a few ingredients and comes together in less than 20 minutes. It goes perfectly over frozen mashed cauliflower, so you don’t need to worry about sides. And finally, it’s only 4 net carbs per serving, with really high protein, so it’ll fit well into pretty much any macros.
Start with a stainless steel skillet. I like stainless here because it promotes browning, which is important since the chops have a fairly short cook time at first. Heat it up to medium to medium-high heat and use 1/4 cup of whatever oil you like, as most of it will end up getting poured off before the next step. I used olive oil and butter for flavor. Be careful not to hit the smoke point if you do that, because it can quickly go from delicious to gross. Err on the side of lower heat. For an easier time, use avocado oil. Salt and pepper two pork loin chops (about 1/2 pound total) and fry them in the oil for 3 minutes per side. You should be just developing a nice brown crust on both sides. When the chops are browned, remove them from the pan and pour out the cooking oil.
Return the pan to the heat and add 5 ounces of baby spinach, along with about 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Toss the spinach until it’s just wilted, then add 1/4 cup of heavy cream and 2 tablespoons of prepared basil pesto. Stir it until the pesto and cream combine. When the sauce starts to bubble, turn it down to a simmer and add the pork chops back to the pan, with the ugliest side down. Top each chop with 1 slice of provolone cheese, then put a lid on the pan for three minutes to melt the cheese. I use this awesome vented universal lid for my pans, since it fits everything from 7 to 12 inches in diameter.
The pork chops after the cheese has melted.
To serve, put a serving of mashed cauliflower on the plate, then spoon the sauce evenly around it. Place the pork chop on top of the cauliflower, then top with tomato slices or chopped tomatoes. I used slices because I had two Roma tomatoes that I needed to use up, but if you don’t have Romas, one medium chopped tomato should be good for two pork chops. Top with more salt and pepper and you’re good to go.
Caprese Smothered Pork Chops
Pork chops in a creamy basil pesto spinach sauce covered with cheese and tomatoes, on your plate in 20 minutes.
Heat the oil in a stainless steel skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Salt and pepper the pork chops, then cook them for approximately 3 minutes per side, until a brown crust begins to develop on both sides. Remove the pork chops to a plate and discard the remaining cooking oil.
Return the pan to the heat and add the spinach and a couple of pinches of salt. Toss the spinach until it's just wilted, then add the cream and pesto. Stir until it's fully mixed and the sauce begins to bubble, then reduce the heat and return the pork chops to the pan. Cover each chop with a slice of provolone cheese, cover, and cook for another 3 minutes, until the cheese melts.
To serve, divide the sauce evenly and top each pork chop with three tomato slices.
Macros per serving: 500 calories, 4 grams net carbs, 35 grams protein, 37 grams fat.
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Sometimes you make things that just aren’t all that photogenic. I try to beautify things as much as possible without going too far into staging, but there are times when this is a bit of a Sisyphean effort. This particular recipe is one of those times. It’s sloppy and unkempt, like the culinary equivalent of a hung-over businessman showing up to work on Monday with his shirt half-untucked and his tie askew. You know what I mean. Or maybe you don’t, and this is just me making use of my English major. The good news is that it’s easy and tastes good, and while I can’t figure out a way to appropriately extend that metaphor, what I can do is make food that’s yummy and that you’ll eat. Plus, it’s a fat bomb of a meal, which is nice.
Start with two packages of smoked sausage, the pre-cooked U-shaped variety that you can get at the grocery store. We’re not going fancy here today. Make sure to check the label, because some varieties might have hidden carbs. Slice them on the bias, approximately as thick as your index finger. In a large Dutch oven or similar, over medium-high heat, brown them until they’re nice and crispy on each side, then remove them and put them in a bowl. Into the same Dutch oven, dump a 16-ounce bag of pre-shredded coleslaw (just the cabbage and carrots, NOT the prepared kind!) and pour over 1/2 cup of chicken broth. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until most of the chicken broth has evaporated. Break up or cube 4 ounces of cream cheese and stir it into the cabbage, allowing it to begin to melt. Add 1/2 cup of heavy cream and 2 tablespoons of a spicy mustard. I used the Dijon from Trader Joe’s because it has a nice strong horseradish kick to it, but spicy brown or stadium-style mustard would also work. Just don’t use the yellow mustard, because it tastes more like vinegar than anything else. Stir it around until it’s all melted together, then throw the sausage back in and let it warm back up while the sauce thickens. Once it’s thickened, taste it for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste. I added 1/2 teaspoon of salt, but I like things REALLY salty, so you might want to add less. The more pepper the better, though.
This one is a bit high in calories. If you can’t eat that much, just do a single package of sausage. It’ll cut the calories considerably. Otherwise, enjoy your lunch for the week. It’ll get you to dinner without feeling the least bit hungry. This would be a great recipe for IFers, if you’re into that sort of thing.
Smoked Sausage with Mustard Creamed Cabbage
A quick and easy meal-prep recipe that's great for intermittent fasters.
Slice the sausage into approximately 3/4 inch thick pieces. Fry them in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until they're crispy and browned on both sides. Remove and set aside.
Empty the bag of coleslaw into the pot and reduce the heat to medium. Add the chicken broth into the pot and cook until the broth is mostly gone. Add the cream cheese in chunks and stir until they begin to melt, then add the cream and mustard. Stir until the cream cheese is completely melted, then add the sausage back into the pot and simmer until the sauce thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste, then serve or put into meal-prep containers.
Macros per serving: 677 calories, 5 grams net carbs, 25 grams protein, 59 grams fat.
Keyword keto, low carb, make ahead, meal prep, pork, sausage
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