Zara Elby - Keto Sweet Treats and Desserts: The Ultimate Keto Weight Loss Cookbook That Includes Recipes For Keto Fat Bombs, Keto Bars, Keto Cookies, Keto Ice Cream, and Much More!

INTRODUCTION TO A KETOGENIC DIET

What is a Ketogenic Diet?

Carbohydrates, fat, and proteins are allmacronutrients or macros. They form the bulk of our food. The human body alsoneeds a number of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) for better health.

A 'normal' diet, tends to consist of a high level of carbohydrates. These come from avariety of sources, such as grains, sugars, vegetables, and fruits. These typesof foods are broken down into glucose and used as energy. When your body hasmore glucose than you need your body stores the excess in the liver and also inthe muscles, this is known as glycogen.

This is your bodys main energy stockpileof fuel for sudden physical activity and keeping certain systems (the kidneycells, red blood cells, and the brain) running efficiently throughout the day.Glucose is the first source of energy that the body turns to when it is in needof energy. Glucose can be converted into fat cells and also as triglycerides inthe blood, which increases your risk of heart disease.

Insulin is a hormone that balances bloodsugar. It triggers the absorption of glucose by the liver, fat, and musclecells and thereby lowers the level of glucose in the bloodstream. A high levelof insulin also prevents our fat cells from breaking down, thus we can burn orstore the glucose that is constantly arriving. Once glucose is managed, insulinlevels drop and our body starts to burn fat. However, low insulin levels alertthe brain that we need fuel, which triggers hunger signals. We eat more and this consequently raises our blood sugarlevels. This can be a continuous cycle and therefore burning fat with a highcarb diet can be very difficult.

How does the Ketogenic diet work?

The ketogenic diet is a high fat, moderate proteinand low-carb diet that converts the human body into a fat-burning machine. Aswe mentioned earlier, with a carb-rich diet, the human body usescarb/glucose/blood sugar as energy. However, with the keto diet, thecarbohydrate consumption is lowered. This makes the body use fat for energy.The bodys energy system breaks the fat down to create energy-rich elements.This state is known as ketosis.

When following the keto diet, the body isproducing energy from fats, and the glucose levels are low. The low glucoselevel ensures that your insulin levels are also low, which allows your body tostart breaking down the stored fat cells. Your body gets energy from the fatsthat you eat. As a result, when you eat, the fat cells shrink, resulting in youlosing weight. Additionally, eating fat-rich foods makes you feel full quickerand for longer, so you eat less. This also helps with weight loss.

Benefits of the Ketogenic Diet

Choosing a keto diet offers valuable healthbenefits. Research indicates that being in a nutritional ketosis state leads tovital improvements in weight loss and blood glucose control, among others.

• Some other common benefits of the keto dietinclude:
  
• Improvements in insulin sensitivity
  
• Reduced medication dependence
  
• Lower blood pressure
  
• Improved cholesterol levels
  
• Stronger mental performance
  
• Reduced food cravings
  
• Reduced sugary food preference
  
• Feel full for longer
  
• Reduce yeast infections and thrush that can leadto candida
  

What to Eat on the Keto Diet

• Vegetables, particularly: Mushrooms, leafygreens, tomatoes, cabbage, broccoli, spinach, Brussels sprouts, kale, andpeppers.
  
• Healthy fats, particularly: Coconut oil, oliveoil, palm oil, grass-fed butter, seeds, and nuts.
  
• Healthy proteins, particularly: Pasture-raisedpoultry, grass-fed beef, cage-free eggs, wild-caught fish, bone broth protein,and other dairy products.
  

What to Avoid on the Keto Diet

• Avoid processed foods high in carbohydrates andcalories.
  
• Foods made with wheat flour or white flourproducts
  
• Conventional dairy
  
• Added sugar
  
• Non-keto bread
  
• Non-keto pasta
  
• Sweetened snacks such as cakes and cookies
  
• Non-keto ice cream
  
• Sweetened drinks
  
• Box cereals
  

KETO BARS

Serves: 20

Nutritional Information per serving:

Calories 144 | Fat 14g | Carbs 5g | Protein 3g

Ingredients:

• Salt
  
• 1/4 tbsp cinnamon
  
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  
• 6 drops stevia sweetener
  
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
  
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  
• 4 tbsp cocoa powder
  
• 4 tbsp coconut oil
  

Directions:

1. In a microwaveable bowl, heat the coconut oil inthe microwave for 45 seconds.
   
2. Next, add the vanilla, stevia, and cocoa. Stirthe mixture until smooth.
   
3. Once smooth, add in the walnuts and fold themixture until the walnuts are covered.
   
4. Pour the mixture into a baking dish. Smooth thetop using a spatula.
   
5. Mix peanut butter and cinnamon together. Pourcinnamon butter mixture over the chocolate mixture.
   
6. Sprinkle with salt and leave to chill for aminimum of 20 minutes. Slice into squares.