Chic-Fil -A is a popular fast food chain in the United States, specializing in Chicken, mainly chicken sandwiches. In the US and many other countries world wide the Keto diet is gaining many followers, keen to achieve weight and fat loss effectively. In order to adapt to new trends in the eat out market, Chic-Fil-A like many food outlets around the world have adapted or introduced menu items that customers on a Keto diet, may order, guilt free, off menu.

Here’s a guide to the dos and don’ts … to have Chic-Fil-A, Ketogenic.

Breakfast Items (Typically available only until 10:30am):

Egg White Grill: 0g net carbs (without the English muffin)

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Biscuit: 1g net carbs (without the biscuit)

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit: 1g net carbs (without the biscuit)

Hash Brown Scramble Bowl: 1g net carbs (without the hash browns, with chicken)

Hash Brown Scramble Bowl: 1g net carbs (without the hash browns, with sausage)

In particular, it is worth noting that the Sausage, Egg and Cheese entrée without the biscuit as well as the Hash Brown Scramble Bowl with sausage but without the hash brown entrée are 2 items in the menu that are high fat and have the most fat-friendly macros

Regular Items:

Grilled Chicken Sandwich at 3g net carbs (without the bun)

Grilled Chicken Club Sandwich at 3g net carbs (without the bun)

Grilled Nuggets at 2g net carbs (without the bun)

Cobb Salad with Grilled Chicken: 10g net carbs

Sauces:

Even the Chic-Fil-A salad dressings and sauces are friendly to the keto diet, sauces such as Garden & Herb Ranch Sauce; Zesty Buffalo Sauces; Creamy Salsa Dressing; Light Italian Dressing; Avocado Lime Ranch Dressing all fall within the 0-3g net carb range. The lowest carb sauce being the zesty buffalo sauce at 0g net carbs and the highest, the light Italian Dressing at 3g net carbs.

Items to Avoid:

Sides to avoid – The Superfood side or salad, which is filled with high carb ingredients such as maple syrup, dried cherries and glazed nuts

Sauce to avoid: Polynesian sauce.

Dessert to avoid: ALL of them as they range from 38g net carbs for the frosted coffee to 84g net carbs for the chocolate milkshake.

Lunch/dinner entree to avoid: Fried Chick-n-Strips. 20g net carbs.

Beverage to avoid: Orange juice. 38g net carbs.

Keto peanut butter cookies done right, should have a crunchy outside, while the inside should be soft and chewy.

We have tried our best to find the perfect balance of these in this recipe using various combinations of peanut butter, eggs, almond flour and (non-sugar) sweetener

A brief summary of the ingredients you will need to make these Keto Peanut Butter Cookies

• Peanut Butter: As these are Keto Peanut Butter Cookies, you will need to use a sugar-free peanut butter, in the US, you can get these at Costco under the Kirkland Brand, but you may use any brand of sugar free or if hard to find, low carb or low sugar peanut butter
• Sweetener: Our personal favorite sweetener is Monk Fruit, though use the powdered version and ensure that it is of the type that can replace sugar 1:1. Many bakers like Erythritol as it does not have a bitter taste and dissolves well, though Swerve is also a good option.
• Almond Flour: These are Keto Peanut Butter Cookies and not normal carb laden ones so we need an alternative to flour, almond flour is a good alternative to wheat flour or other carb laden types of flour.
• Vanilla Extract: Optional in this recipe, but Vanilla adds a distinct flavor to all sweet dishes and baked items, vanilla extract is preferred to artificial vanilla, and will not adversely affect a Keto diet.
• Egg: To achieve the same results as our recipe for keto peanut butter cookies, we suggest using an egg for texture and consistency.

Recipe details:

• Preparation Time – 5 mins
• Actual cooking time – 12 mins
• Serving Size – 12 cookies
• Calories – 108kcal

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup peanut butter
• 1/4 cup sweetener (Swerve or Monk fruit is fine)
• 1 large sized egg
• 2 tablespoons of almond flour
• 1 tsp vanilla – essence is OK (optional)

Instructions

1. Ensure your oven is pre-heated to 350F

1. Mix all the ingredients into the mixing bowl until contents are well mixed. The consistency of the final mixture should be a reasonably firm cookie dough.
2. With a cookie scoop, scoop out the dough and shape to balls, you may then flatten into a traditional round flat cookie shape or use a fork to flatten it with distinct fork marks on the cookie
3. Baking time is 12 mins. Cool the cookies for 10 minutes prior to serving.

Is Quinoa Ketogenic? Well the short answer is a surprising NO! Read on below to find out why.

Quinoa is often referred to as a superfood and touted as a healthier alternative to many alternative carbohydrate staples like rice or pasta. For example a cup of Quinoa has twice the proteins and 5g more fiber as a similar cup of white rice, while having 15 times less carbohydrates.

In addition, there is way more of the good stuff in Quinoa compared to the traditional carbohydrates, including the following:

Fiber – Quinoa has a high fiber content, ensuring that you feel “fuller” after consumption compared to other carbohydrates – and thus consume less, rather than continue eating beyond what your body requires.

Anti-oxidants – Quinoa is rich in Anti-oxidants like Vitamin E and is known to reduce risk from coronary heart disease, certain cancers and also improves eye function.

Manganese – important for the body’s development and metabolic functions, 1 cup of quinoa roughly supplies around 30% of adult daily requirements.

Iron – Quinoa is a good source of Iron, an important component of hemoglobin which is crucial for the oxygen carrying capability of blood.

Folate – Apart from assisting to prevent certain cancers and depression, folate is an essential element in the prevention of neural tube defects in babies and important in the diet especially of pregnant women.

Below is a table of the essential nutrients that Quinoa supplies:

Table from: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/274745#nutrition

So why is Quinoa … not … Ketogenic?

The answer to the question is that Quinoa is actually rather high in carbs. Half a cup of Quinoa already has 17g net carbohydrates, which will make anyone on a Keto exceed the per meal recommended quota of 10g net carbs for a Ketogenic diet

Is Quinoa Ketogenic? …. No but there are ways to accommodate Quinoa on some forms of Keto diets

Targeted Keto diet: for people who incorporate workouts around a keto diet, this form of Keto can allow a daily budget of 20-50g Net carbs… even up to 100g Net carbs for endurance athletes, without being kicked out of Ketosis.

Cyclical Keto diet: Some people cycle between a standard Keto diet and a high carb diet, and having Quinoa is no issue while on the typical high carb cycle.

Quinoa substitutes on a Ketogenic Diet

The following are good alternatives to Quinoa while on Keto. While they may not be full substitutes in terms of taste and texture, they do offer similar nutritional benefits without kicking you out of Ketosis:

• Chia seeds
• Flax meal
• Hemp seeds
• Shredded cauliflower
• Chopped nuts

Conclusion

Is Quinoa Ketogenic? No… however, if you are on an alternate form of Keto diet, such as the Targeted or Cyclical Keto diet, there is room to accommodate Quinoa in your diet. Otherwise with creative tweaks to recipe, Quinoa can be replaced with ingredients such as Flax meals, Hemp seeds or Chia seeds.