ABOUT VOLUME 1 

Low-Carbing Among Friends, as its name suggests, is a collaborative cookbook with five recipe authors,  two well-known active, and knowledgeable cheerleaders, and four highly qualified, experienced medical Dr's. That's a GOLD MEDAL team of 11 stars in the low-carb world!  In fact, this team spans all age groups and all regions of the low-carb world. 100% of the recipes are strictly low-carb and all low-carbers will love this book, as there are so many eligible recipes! From Induction to OWL (ongoing weight loss) and even some for moderate low-carbing; all recipes are less than 10 grams of carbohydrate per serving and most are less than 5 grams of carbohydrate per serving. But, there's more ... low-carbers who are either intolerant of gluten or have Celiac Disease, or who follow Paleo, will be thankful for this enormous resource for gluten-free low-carb recipes. Most of the recipes are suitable for all low-carb diets, with many suitable for even the very selective, popular new Paleo version of the low-carb diet, and as the subtitle suggests, 100% of its recipes are also Wheat-free and Gluten-Free! It is the most inclusive low-carb book there is, in all respects, and that's exactly what it is intended to be! These recipes are Sugar-Free. One person simply cannot write a book this professional and varied, with 325 top-notch recipes, but 11 people sure can ... and did!

Just $20 buys you this book, and as you sit down in your armchair, you will be inspired by Dana and Jimmy, and you will get expert medical advice from Dr. Su, Dr. Eenfeldt, Dr. Briffa and Dr. Parker. Then, into your kitchen, where you will get wonderful recipes, tips and techniques from your own personal, low-carb expert cooking and baking coaches, Jennifer, Maria, Carolyn, Lisa and Kent - in fact, Kent will join you there via YouTube, showing you how it's done, and you can interact with all of the authors via their blogs or via Facebook. It is also our goal to have color photos of each recipe for you to look at. We already have many photos for you to look at right here - right now. Coming soon - Kindle & Nook versions. Or you can spend $20 to order a pizza for your family, which may suffice for one hour and do no lasting good, or put the $20 towards just one visit to your doctor.

Try as we may, we have not had one superstar emerge in the low-carb world, and we have simply had to change our strategies. It was time for teamwork! That is what Dr. Atkins eventually would have wanted for us anyway, as he retired from his star role and became our coach instead. All the people in this book fall into that category, or else they would have (and some did) declined to be part of the team, wanting to still try to be superstars all on their own. More than a year ago, I had this divinely-inspired idea (I�m not that smart on my own) also influenced by my having been a member of the XV Winter Olympic organizing committee, which staged the most fun and the most profitable Olympics ever (think Jamaican Bobsled team, �Cool Runnings�) � and now this team effort is reality! It�s teamwork that makes it all possible and teamwork is what is going to make low-carbing a mainstream lifestyle again. �United we stand, divided we fall� - we know, as for a while after Dr. Atkins died, we all had our backs against the wall! So we did our homework, started the selection process and purposely formed a squad of exactly 11 key players in the low-carb world. We call this team the �Aurum group� (that�s Latin for GOLD) as they have competed fairly, and won the gold medal � being first! We are trying to show that this is how the low-carbing world should proceed, with cooperation, teamwork and mutual support. We�re not each other�s enemies! Using the Olympic analogy, we are part of the same �nation.� We need to compete against the other �nations,� those other diets/lifestyles being touted as �the best there is.� Why? Diabetes has reached new highs, even amongst teens, obesity is epidemic, cancer is devastating families, heart disease and stroke are rampant and huge amounts of money are being wasted on health care. The last two generations, those of us in middle age and those in their teens, will be the first in a long time to not live as long as their parents' generations. Why? Manufactured, refined, bleached, carb-laden, high fructose and trans fat-laced foods is the reason!

As Hippocrates (460BC - 370BC) the father of modern medicine said:
 �Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food."

Hippocrates lived to be over 90 and there were no factory foods back then! Contrast that with the current generation, and the preceding ones from the 60's, 70's and beyond that will be very lucky to see age 70 - if they keep believing the lies that the foods that Hippocrates and our grandparents ate are "unhealthy," while the modern, highly-refined, slickly-packaged and marketed, carb-laden, high fructose-sweetened, trans fat-laced (or devoid of all fat) foods, are somehow "healthier"? The track record of all the generations that came before us, contradicts that claim, whilst the dismal track record of current generations confirms the opposite of that claim!

Taking the USA alone, the ADA�s own statistics show they have failed miserably in their long struggle. There are 18.8 million diagnosed diabetics, 7.0 million more are undiagnosed diabetics, and an estimated 79 million people have pre-diabetes. That�s 105 million people in the USA - so how they can tell us they are winning this battle and do not need a radical course correction, is beyond belief! Several of us on this team are or were in one of those categories, myself included. Contrast that with statistics from less than one century ago when diabetes was a rare disease and all of these other modern plagues were much less prevalent. Something has changed folks, and we low-carbers know exactly what it is: easy, cheap, highly refined, slickly-packaged, well-marketed and widely-distributed carbohydrates, substituted for the foods our grandparents enjoyed without all the guilt attached to them today. Foods like bacon, eggs, butter, cheese, cream, lard, meat, nuts and seeds, berries, vegetables, and salads. Our society has been duped, and we are worse off for it! Not convinced? Well, let's just let our eyes and taste buds talk.

Personally, I think �Vegan� is really just an ancient word meaning �lousy hunter,� and I marvel at how mean, bitter and twisted they can be around low-carbers - but then it's probably because they see that lovely, sizzling New York steak on a platter in front of us, with a dollop of herb butter on top, or that bacon-wrapped fillet, with blue cheese on top. Really, who can blame them? They have to settle for a baked potato - with no sour-cream, no butter and no bacon bits! No steak! Of course they have reason to be bitter and twisted! I'm really being a bit cruel here, but not to low-carbers! You see we  can eat all of these foods (OK, scratch "baked potato" - but we have a few  acceptable alternatives) while staying trim and healthy! For 1,000's of  years, humans have been hunter-gatherers, not grain & potato farmers or Cereal & Twinky munchers. Human genetics is tuned to diets like Low-Carb & Paleo.

Every member of the team can show you statistics that show their health improved.

Is it a mere coincidence that alloxan, a chemical found in bleached and refined wheat flour, is also used to purposely and quickly make lab rats diabetic for diabetes research? Society has become hopelessly addicted to processed, highly refined flours and sugars, a recent trend in human history, which has had disastrous consequences! Even we low-carbers are so addicted to grain products, especially wheat-based products, that we overlooked any other flaws and simply said �remove all carbs and give us what�s left.� So it was refined even more, until almost all that was left was the proteins, one of those being gluten! Now we are finding out, to our chagrin, that even that�s bad for many of us! Granted, not everyone has gluten intolerance, but very many of us do ... and I�m one of them.

Low-Carbing in general (and gluten-free living in particular) has been a tough sell! People are addicted to cheap, simple carbs. There�s also a strong, vested interest in keeping them buying these easy-to-produce and profitable-to-sell foods. So what to do? Well, to show you just how open-minded we low-carbers really are, let us borrow a proven winning strategy, that of a famous vegetarian: �First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win� � this is the advice of a dedicated, patient, famous man, Mahatma Gandi. His strategy was sound, and we are in that second last stage - but let them waste their energy fighting us (it helps others notice us anyway) while we just continue on, peacefully, simply presenting proven facts and shattering myths. In the end, whether they like it or not, we win by adopting these sensible ideas for ourselves and our families. It may surprise you to know that we low-carbers really do agree with the low-fat community - that fat is indeed bad for you ... when combined with oodles of sugar, white flour, high- ructose corn syrup, margarine  and MSG,  but then even if you remove all of the fat completely, you are left with a toxic mess, something akin to "sawdust", that will definitely kill you! We just prefer to remove most everything BUT the fat & protein - you know, the real tasty stuff, and "Wala" ... what's left  tastes good, satiates well and provides ample energy without harming our health! Disagree? Well, please be patient, keep reading. We are not obliged to borrow any advice that doesn�t work, but we should be willing to adopt strategies and ideas from other diets that have proven helpful. In this book, we all do that rather well! Case in point, the Mediterranean diet - now also "proudly low-carb!"

Well it�s time for me introduce you to the Gold Medal team on the podium, and I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank them for being part of the team, and to tell them how proud we all are of them and all they have done! These are indeed key players in the low-carb world, some old experienced players, some rising stars, but all dedicated individuals, passionate about what they do! And here they all are ... first authors, then contributing authors, ladies first, then alphabetical:

Jennifer Eloff, Maria Emmerich, Carolyn Ketchum, Lisa Marshall, Kent Altena, Dana Carpender, Dr. Briffa, Dr. Eenfeldt, Jimmy Moore, Dr. Parker, and Dr. Su

PS. Every one of the 11 members of this team can show personal facts and figures backing up their claims that eating Low-Carb, Paleo, Mediterranean Low-Carb, etc. has been a health boon for them ... but let's just take the most extreme example: Jennifer Eloff, best-selling low-carb cookbook author, while writing her 2nd low-carb cookbook, which featured the "Fat-Fast" - a low-carb diet variant  described in Dr. Atkins book, in which 80% of daily calories come from fat, lived that diet for almost 1 year, (She did the old "Eskimo thing") and she had her cholesterol checked afterwards - and here are her numbers. Also, keep in mind she had just been diagnosed with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, which she had for years without knowing it. That makes weight loss almost impossible - thus her interest in the "Fat Fast". Now this disease will actually raise cholesterol levels, so these values (shown below) are even that much more remarkable, in light of all of this!

Jen (age 46): TOTAL/HDL= 3.3     TRI/HDL=0.27    LDL/HDL=2.14 
Note:  Low-Carbers know that Cholesterol readings are not as important as we've been led to believe.

However, HDL is closely related to triglycerides. One would assume that low-carbers have lowered triglycerides, and one would be correct! It appears common for people with high triglycerides to have low HDL's, and these same people also tend to have high levels of clotting factors in their blood stream, which is unhealthy in protecting against heart disease. Therefore, in adults, the triglyceride/HDL-"good" cholesterol ratio should be below 2 (divide  triglycerides by your HDL) or more precisely, for the triglyceride/HDL ratio:
2 or less is considered ideal      4 - high      6 - much too high!

Jennifer's (on her 80% fat-fast diet) was 0.27 ... way better than  the ideal of 2

And Jennifer's BP? (SYSTOLIC <100/ DIASTOLIC < 70) which was really good!

NOTE: Low-carbers understand that "all of the above" numbers are significant only when viewed through the "Inflammation Lens" - it's the presence of Inflammation in the body (blood vessels in particular) that makes cholesterol readings significant.  So we make sure that along with all these readings, we find out what our C-Reactive Protein (CRP) levels are. If they are low, we worry less. If they are high, then that's a cause for concern for us. We are smart enough to know that 1/2 of people who die from heart disease have perfectly normal cholesterol numbers. We have also had to defend ourselves, and the low-Carb lifestyle, against so many attacks claiming that "The Butter, Cheese, Bacon, Steak, Eggs - are going to kill us" that we are all now experts on cholesterol! Often low-carbers are more knowledgeable than family physicians. CRP levels > 2.4mg/L has been associated with a 2x (double) risk of a coronary event, when compared with levels < 1mg/L. So, get your CRP levels checked as well! One would think all Dr's knew/know this much? One would be wrong! Even Jen's Dr's in Canada, just 10 years ago, did not bother to do the CRP tests. They only looked at cholesterol numbers. However, from Jen's readings, even if her CRP was >1mg/L, her Cholesterol levels were exemplary, better than for most people on Statins - and what's ironic is that she accomplished this much by increasing her fat intake to 80% of her daily calories! BUT she also cut her carb levels to <20mg/day, and that, it turns out, is what works better than Statins! Then you may also want to ask your Dr. what kind of LDL Cholesterol you have, low-density or high density, small or large - With LDL, small is bad, big not so bad ... but I'm going to let the experts in "Low-Carbing Among Friends" tell you more about all these things, as you may well not listen to me, and we do want you to really take all of this very seriously! The team behind this book does, as do most low-carbers. We would not adopt any ideas that harm our families or ourselves. We are a well informed group, with 4 expert Dr's on board, united in our purpose ... to "Help others understand what exactly is true - and what is not!"

This expert medical team of 4 Dr's, our 2 knowledgeable low-carb cheer-leaders, as well as the 5 experienced recipe coaches, will do a much better job of explaining what I've said, so please listen to them first and foremost, but for now, here's a summary: On it's own, fat is NOT the enemy! On their own, complex carbs are not too too bad, but highly refined simple carbs definitely are! It may surprise you, but low-carbers and the low-fat diets make very similar points in this regard, just from different view points. Simply put, you need a certain number of calories to live. Either you get more of them from fat or you get more of them from carbs, or you get a lot from both - and if you do that, then do expect health problems, unless you exercise a lot! It seems that a lot of fat in combination with a lot of carbs is a BIG problem, but in the absence of carbs, fat (even a lot of fat) is not a problem at all! Ask the Eskimos (Inuit). Traditionally they ate large amounts of fat - much more than any of us ever will, and yet they had no problems with heart disease. It's not exactly like they could plant wheat or sugar-cane on their ice floes, they were forced to be low-carbers! However, then outsiders came to "help them", with all of their fancy processed foods - and pretty soon they were dying of heart disease and diabetes too. Are you starting to get suspicious yet? OK, so if you really like carbs, then you had better foreswear any fat and exercise a lot!  But that will not be nearly as good for your health, as living with as few carbs as possible, because then you can enjoy your steak ... with butter on top and eggs and cheese and bacon and so many supposedly "bad" foods, but please do still participate in moderate exercise. So it is that regular Ice-cream, Burgers, Fries, Pizza, Cakes, Muffins, Cinnamon buns, Cheesecakes, Waffles, Pancakes,  Fudge bars/squares, Tacos, Crepes, Donuts, Chocolate candy bars, Shakes, Mousse, Scones, Cookies etc. are definitely not good combinations of fat & carbs! "Low-Carbing Among Friends" shows you how to enjoy all of these delights again, because the wonderfully, creative authors found ways of removing most of the carbs, whilst keeping the fat (preserves texture/mouth-feel & satiates us) and protein... as well as all of the original great taste!

Bye, got to go now, the BBQ's smoking, tasty NY steaks, low-carbers cooking!

I call Jen my "Barbie doll", but there is more to this (Ausie) nickname than meets the eye ... You see, since age 15, Jen, me, and BBQ's have been an item. Nowadays she nags me a little, not because of the steak - but because even my favorite LC beer - has some GLUTEN in it! Sigh, I've found a GF beer, and LC beer, but those two still have to "get married"! Well, in the meanwhile, I'll just sin a little. Beer and Barbies (BBQ's) really go together rather well - especially if you have German genes, like me. Either way, when Jen is working too hard, I just put the steaks on the BBQ and let the BBQ's smoke waft over towards her window, and pretty soon my "Barbie-doll" is at my side. Jen was my "Christmas present" decades ago (she actually tied a Christmas card around her neck, with a gold bow, her in tank-top and shorts - "Daisy-Duke style", and just sat there with a gorgeous smile, looking at me, saying nothing!) Little wonder 2011 will mark our 40th Christmas together! Sadly, Jen was disowned for not marrying her Victorian mother's choice (a rich school chum of Prince Andrew ... penthouses, chauffeur-driven Mercedes, private tables at ocean-front restaurants) and even more sadly, that injustice never changed. We eventually got tired of waiting for the mother to "warm-up" and ran away together, simply sold everything, got into our minivan in Canada, and drove south until the road ended (23.5 days later) and started a new life. We've lived inside the Jungles of South America (see Jen's blog) for 5 years now,  in a beautiful, peaceful land, far, far away, and still happily ever after. I often have to  pinch myself, as does Jen  - it all seems like a dream at times. So why am I sharing a little of our lives with you? Because you're low-carbing among friends now, and these are exactly the kinds of things friends talk about, over a tasty mug of coffee or cup of tea ... oh yes, go ahead, choose one of the tasty treats (below) to have along with your coffee or tea, and let's chat some more ...

Our family (avid Low-Carbers for 12 years) Bon App�tit! ... 
(This gives me an idea - It may take a while, but I'd like to post photos of some of the other recipe author's families too)

Oh yes, before I forget, you're invited to come and join us, to be "among friends"
You can pre-order "Low-Carbing Among Friends"
In fact, order now to ensure you get it first, and get a substantial discount!

   
  Proudly Printing in the USA, Nov, 2011 by :  

After enjoying the BBQ with us, let's enjoy this

and please have some of these

and a slice of this

and one or more of these

Then have some Coffee with a helping of this

One may well expect our team to be a wee bit chubby after eating like this? Well, let's meet the team members, and let's test that theory ... against "society at large".


Carolyn - 38

Maria

Jennifer - 55

Jimmy

Dana

Lisa

Kent

Dr. Eenfeldt

Dr Briffa

Dr Parker

Dr Su - 70

Who says: "You can't have your steak (and cake) and eat it too?" - certainly none of us! But then again you really need to know exactly "what works ... and what doesn't" - or else meals can very definitely pose a major health problem! Let us show you how to avoid the pitfalls and traps awaiting you and your family. You are "Among friends" now, and that's exactly why we've  ensured that there is ample information on this website and all the associated blogs and websites, so that even if you don't have the money to buy our books, all this helpful advice (a virtual treasure trove!) is yours to draw on! Eat well and prosper! Thanks for visiting with us.

(C) 2011 - All rights reserved (Jennifer Eloff, Author and Splendid Publishing)

Here are 4 cartoons (full credit given) that really got my attention:

One of the big LOW-CARB "no-no's" - refined SUGAR (and HFCS)
So the thing to do is to remove SUGAR and HFCS's from our diets ...

Hmmm .... maybe there's more to this Low-Carbing  than just NO SUGARS?

LOW-CARB "no-no's", Bleached white flour, Sugar & Trans-fats = DIABETES

But if we go too far, and remove all fat ...

DISCLAIMER: Any diet cookbook discusses Health issues by it's very nature, but with respect to any health related opinions you may encounter in our Books, Websites, Facebooks or Blogs, PLEASE DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH and/or consult a Doctor, of your choosing, as per usual. If this is unacceptable to you, then please do not buy our Books or patronize our Websites, Blogs or Facebook pages as what we offer in all of these are well intentioned opinions only not personalized medical/health advise for you, your family or friends/others!