You’re in luck! This Ultimate Keto Holiday Food Swap Guide is the perfect place to find every recipe you’ll need. We have snacks, appetizers, sides, drinks, desserts, and more. You don’t have to look further. This guide has you covered.

Ultimate Keto Holiday Food Swaps

1. Christmas Fudge

To start, one serving of regular fudge is just one square inch. Just one tiny piece. It contains 90 calories and 18 grams of sugary carbohydrates, almost an entire days-worth on keto! Here’s a better option and full recipe with just 2 grams of net carbs.

Keto Hazelnut Fudge:

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups organic 100% dark chocolate, chips or chopped
• 1 cup organic coconut milk
• 1 scoop Keto Zone® MCT Oil Powder – Eggnog Flavor 
• 1 cup toasted hazelnuts
• 2 tablespoons keto sweetener or equivalent stevia
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon organic cinnamon powder
• 1/2 teaspoon organic star anise powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

1. Heat coconut milk in a saucepan over medium heat.
2. Once the coconut milk begins to simmer, add in the dark chocolate and turn heat down to low.
3. Continue to heat and stir, until chocolate is melted and ingredients are well combined.
4. Once melted, remove the mixture from heat and add in the remaining ingredients until all ingredients are well incorporated.
5. Pour mixture into a parchment-lined (or well-greased) loaf pan, and freeze for about 2 hours.
6. Remove from the freezer and use a sharp knife to carefully cut fudge into 12 pieces. Serve and enjoy!

Nutrition info (per piece): 160 calories, 15 grams fat, 2 grams net carbs (4 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber), 2 grams protein

2. Cranberry Jam

Cranberries are on the top of the list when it comes to low-carb, high-antioxidant, nutritious keto-friendly fruits. Then, we dump cups of sugar on it to make Holiday Cranberry Jam – this doesn’t work in the Keto Zone! Just a small portion will kick you out of the Keto Zone in no time. This year, keep the cranberries coming and try our 4-Ingredient Whole-Berry Keto Zone Cranberry Chia Jam. Buy extra and make this favorite, with only 0.4 grams of net carbs, year-round. It’s delish!

4-Ingredient Whole-Berry Keto Zone Cranberry Chia Jam

3. Yule Log Cheese Appetizer

Did you know most commercial cheese “yule logs” contain preservatives like sodium phosphate and sodium alginate, modified foods starch, colorings, and more? Instead of consuming these processed ingredients, deconstruct it and serve a beautiful charcuterie board instead. Try cheese slices, nuts, keto crackers, and olives. Set them out in a beautiful arrangement and you’ll never need a commercial yule log again!

4. Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes are a Holiday favorite, for good reason. They are a nostalgic comfort food that has deep roots in traditional feasts. However, they are loaded with carbohydrates! Instead, stay in the Keto Zone with Cauliflower “Mashed Potatoes.” Not only do they limit the carbs to 2 grams net, they offer tons of nutrients that are great for your body. Cauliflower Cauliflower supports digestive health, brain health, strong bones, and more (1)!

Keto Zone Cauliflower “Mashed Potatoes”

5. Christmas Cookies

There’s a certain kind of nostalgia that accompanies the making, cookie-cutting, and enjoyment of Christmas Cookies. But, if you’re trying desperately to stay on track and in the Keto Zone through the Holidays, Christmas Cookies can be a downfall.

Instead of succumbing to a high-sugar cookie, make one of the best Keto Holiday Favorites around: Keto -Friendly Frosted Christmas Cookies! You won’t believe how great they taste at only 1 gram of net carbs! They take a bit of work, but they are worth it.

Delicious Frosted Keto Zone Christmas Cookies

6. Eggnog

What are the Holidays without a little eggnog? What a treat! However, if you stick to conventional eggnog, you’ll drown yourself in more than 30 grams of sugar and carbohydrates, artificial flavors, and harmful fats. Keto Zone Eggnog on the other hand, contains only 7 grams of net carbs, whole food spices, and other nourishing ingredients! Try it today!

Keto Zone Holiday Eggnog

7. Green Bean Casserole

Traditional green bean casserole may be warm and comforting, but that comfort comes at a price: highly processed “cream” soups laden with harmful fats, high-carbohydrate ingredients, and processed chemicals.

Instead, try this delicious, fresh green bean casserole for only 4 grams of net carbs. It’s flavorful, low-carb, contains good fiber, is easy on digestion, and uses healthy fats. And did I mention it contains bacon?

Healthy Green Bean Casserole (Keto Zone Friendly) 

8. Hot Chocolate

You could just drink empty calories and sugar this Holiday Season. Or, you can nourish your body, support joint health, fight free radicals, and reduce inflammation with Keto Zone Hot Chocolate! This deliciously spicy recipe is loaded with great ingredients. What’s more, it only contains 1 gram of net carbs!

Keto Zone Super Spice Hot Chocolate

9. Dips for Snackin’

Most traditional dips are made with conventional mayonnaise. The issue? Most mayo is primarily soybean oil; a cheap oil that increases inflammation and degrades health! It is extremely high in omega-6s, which compete in the body with omega-3s. It is associated with metabolic disorders (2), detrimental levels of cholesterol and triglycerides (3), and increases in inflammation (4). In addition, preservatives come with their own health concerns. Instead, try making your own dips and using avocados (or avocado mayo). 

Our Spicy Ginger Dip is a great alternative. Not only will you avoid harmful ingredients, you will promote health with ginger!

Keto Zone Spicy Ginger Dip 

9. Peppermint Mocha

Did you know the peppermint mocha at your local coffee house likely contains more than 50 grams of sugar? That’s almost ¼ of a cup, in one drink. 

This is no way to spend your Holidays! You can have great drinks, treats, and great health. This year, make our Keto Zone Peppermint Mocha. It contains nourishing  Keto Zone® Collagen Powder (Chocolate Flavor) and Keto Zone® MCT Oil Powder (Vanilla). Be determined to stay the course through the end of the year and don’t sabotage your health with sugar!

Keto Zone Peppermint Mocha

11. Appetizers

If your normal Holiday appetizers are fried, sweet, or include bread, they will likely kick you right out of the Keto Zone. But, you can make a wiser choice. We have appetizer recipes that not only keep you in the Keto Zone, but taste delicious as well.

In fact, we have Bacon-Wrapped Brussel Sprouts, Kebabs, and Smoked Salmon appetizers that are easy to make and will please any crowd. Don’t settle for bread. Instead, lose the carbs and keep amazing flavor with Keto Zone Appetizers.

3 Can’t Get Enough Holiday Appetizers

12. Decadent Keto Chocolate Cake

Take any meal to the next level by finishing with this Decadent Keto Chocolate Cake. IBelieve it or not, it contains less than 3 grams of net carbs per serving! With its delicious chocolate flavor, you’ll never believe it’s good for you.

Decadent Keto Chocolate Cake

Bonus: Lifestyle & Nutrition Swap

You have the opportunity to swap out poor food choices, unhealth, and fatigue year round! There’s no better time than now. If you’re ready to live in the Keto Zone, flood your body with nutrients each day, meet your weight gains, and promote health throughout your body, get your hands on all things Keto Zone. Try:

Keto Zone Diet Book

Keto Zone Starter Kit

Keto Zone Maintenance Kit

Bottom Line

You won’t miss a thing with our Ultimate Keto Holiday Food Swaps! Eat delicious foods, enjoy the festivities, and stay right in the Keto Zone. Take it a step further: Get everything you need to stay in the Keto Zone year round. Make this your Holidays, and your year, for great health!

The post The Ultimate Keto Holiday Food Swap Guide appeared first on Keto Zone® | Dr. Don Colbert, MD.

Did you know you can mix the Keto Zone Shake with coffee?

It’s true!

And since it’s technically still summer, what better way to get your morning caffeine boost and high-quality fats than with a blended iced coffee, with chocolate of course. 

Our Keto Zone Iced Almond Mocha Shake is your very own healthy knock-off version of a Starbucks Mocha frappuccino, without all the extra artificial flavors and sugars. You can take the iced shake on-the-go or enjoy on your patio during a hot summer day. 

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons almond butter
• 1 scoop rich chocolate Keto Zone Shake
• 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 2 cups cold brewed coffee
• Ice cubes
• Keto sweetener to taste

Instructions

1. Add almond butter, Keto Zone Shake, almond milk, iced coffee, ice cubes and keto sweetener to blender. 
2. Blend and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts

Servings: 1 glass

Calories: 480 kilocalories

Fats: 39.3 grams

Carbohydrates: 22.5 grams

Net Carbs: 11 grams

Protein: 16.1 grams

Looking for more Keto Zone Shake recipes? Check out:

• Keto Zone Chocolate Coconut Meal Replacement Shake
• Keto Zone Strawberry Avocado Shake

The post Keto Zone Iced Almond Mocha Shake appeared first on Keto Zone® | Dr. Don Colbert, MD.

In fact, our Keto Zone Iced Coffee Mocha will flood your body and brain with nutrients to start your day energized and focused. It supports:

• Heart Health
• Brain Health
• Weight Loss
• Energy and Focus
• Healthy Blood Sugars
• Healthy Digestions, and more

Take your cold-brew to the next level with Dutch Chocolate MCT Oil Powder. The health benefits and taste are extraordinary. Here’s how and why you should:

Keto Zone Creamy Iced Coffee Mocha with Chocolate MCT Oil Powder

What is MCT Oil Powder?

MCT Oil Powder is simply the powdered form of medium-chain triglycerides (MCT).

MCTs are special fats that have shorter carbon chains than most fats in the diet (1). Why does size matter to you?

The size of the fat directly affects its function in the body.

MCT oils are derived and isolated from several natural foods, most often coconut oil. Once isolated, the MCT oil is mixed with a carrier, such as fiber powder, and dried to form MCT Oil Powder.

In fact, there are four types of MCTs found in nature: caproic, caprylic, capric, and lauric acid. Our MCT Oil Powder contains three types of MCTs, excluding lauric (this is an advantage).

Caprylic acid (C8) is the most ketone-producing and possibly the most healthful of all the MCTs. MCT oil is specifically concentrated with C8.

To get the amount of C8 in 1 scoop of MCT Oil Powder, you’d have to eat almost 1/2 cup pure coconut oil!

The shorter the MCT, the quicker and easier the digestion. Even people with poor digestion can reap MCT oil benefits, and everyone can enjoy positive health effects. Here’s how MCT oils’ fatty acids, specifically caprylic acid (C8), affect the body.

7 Proven Benefits of MCT Oil Powder

1. Heart Health Support

Medium-chain triglycerides in MCT oil have been shown to improve cholesterol profiles by decreasing LDL cholesterol, decreasing the number of LDL particles, and increasing HDL cholesterol (2, 3).

There are three primary ways MCT oil improves cardiovascular health.

First, MCTs improve cholesterol profiles by decreasing LDL (bad cholesterol) while increasing HDL (good cholesterol). In turn, this improves the total cholesterol ratio.

In one recent study, 17 overweight women were given MCTs for 27 days.  When tested, their LDL cholesterol decreased, HDL increased, cholesterol ratio improved, and plasma glutathione increased (a powerful natural antioxidant). Researchers stated that their cardiovascular risk profile was improved (4).

In another 2018 study, 96 adults consumed butter, coconut oil, or olive oil. When tested, LDL remained unchanged with coconut oil and olive oil. HDL significantly increased with coconut oil. This change improved the cholesterol profile in the coconut oil group (5).

2. Reduced Inflammation

Inflammation is at the center of most chronic diseases, and is linked to heart disease, diabetes, cognitive degeneration, and more.

MCTs can reduce inflammation in the body. In 2014, 30 adults with high cholesterol and inflammation consumed MCTs for 30 days. When retested, scientists found significant reductions in LDL, increases in HDL, and reductions in C-reactive protein (a marker for inflammation) (6).

3. Improved Brain Health and Focus

When you’re in ketosis, and you consume MCT oil, your body is able to produce increased ketones.

Currently, scientists are studying the effects of ketones, like those from MCTs, in preserving healthy brains and inhibiting degradation from aging (7).

Additionally, researchers have found that ketones are usable fuel for the brain in those with Alzheimer’s disease, similar to young healthy brains. (8). In Alzheimer’s disease, there’s an impairment in the use of glucose by the brain. Utilizing ketones in the brain rather than glucose may result in memory improvements and brain function (9).

Here’s what researchers found: Ketones are associated with many benefits, including reduced brain degradation from aging and improved brain function (10).

4. Weight Loss

Amazingly, MCTs can promote weight loss and improved BMI. This is great news since even moderate weight loss can improve cholesterol, triglycerides, blood sugars, and inflammation.

What’s more, since MCTs and fats, in general, improve satiety you also won’t feel too hungry even while trying to lose weight (11, 12).

5. Blood Sugar Balance

MCTs can improve blood sugars and decrease insulin output, thereby improving health and fat metabolism (13).

In fact, MCTs can help reduce the risk of diabetes by:

• Decreasing insulin resistance
• Providing an alternate energy source to carbohydrates
• Preserving beta-cell health (decline in these cells contributes to diabetes)
• Promoting weight loss

In one recent study, scientists concluded that MCT oils provided benefit to beta cells in both mice and humans. One key to combating diabetes is improving the health of these cells (14).

Additionally, a 2016 animal study showed that MCTs improved both insulin resistance and inflammation. (15).

While more human studies are needed, MCT oil powder is a promising supplement to help improve diabetes outcomes.

6. Healthy Digestion

Amazingly, MCTs can fight unhealthy yeasts while supporting an increase in healthy bacteria and absorption in the digestive tract (5). Unhealthy yeasts plague many people and cause a myriad of digestive and health issues.

Digestive diseases can affect the body in many ways, including:

• Poor absorption, stunted growth, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, and low energy
• Direct digestive symptoms such as constipation, bloated, and cramping
• Declining digestive tissues with the risk of ulcers, hemorrhoids, decreased healthy bacteria growth, fungus and yeast overgrowth, and diverticular diseases

MCT oil powder eases digestion, since bile isn’t needed to digest MCTs. In fact, MCTs go from the intestines directly to the liver, and the body quickly uses them as energy or storage. MCTs can nourish those who can’t digest nutrients well.

In one 2018 study, MCT supplementation decreased intestinal candida overgrowth in preterm infants. The candida decreased during supplementation, then increased again once it was stopped (16).

MCTs can improve healthy bacteria levels, fat-soluble vitamin absorption, and energy metabolism (17).

7. Energy and Athletic Performance

If you’re looking for a fuel that increases energy, MCTs are one such fuel. Once delivered to the liver from the intestines, MCTs increase energy output in the mitochondria, which are the energy producers in cells (18).

In addition, athletes typically look for ways to decrease lactate levels. When recreational athletes consumed MCTs, they experienced lower lactate levels during moderate and intense workouts than they did with other fats. This may lead to improved endurance and performance (19).

Other researchers found that MCTs reduce high-temperature exercise performance issues and improve overall performance (20).

Bottom Line

There a many benefits to adding MCT oil to your diet. And, now with the new Dutch Chocolate MCT Oil Powder flavor, you can make the best iced coffee mocha you’ve ever had.  Improving your health just got even more delicious!

The post 7 Proven Benefits of MCT Oil Powder and Creamy Iced Coffee Mocha appeared first on Keto Zone® | Dr. Don Colbert, MD.