6 ounces chunk tuna
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/2 cup spinach
1/4 cup mozzarella, shredded
1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried basil
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Combine all of the ingredients except the mozzarella and pack into a small casserole dish.
3. Top with mozzarella cheese and bake until cheese melts, about 15 minutes.
4. Turn on the oven broiler to brown and crisp the cheese and serve immediately.

Makes 1 serving

2 cups baby brussel sprouts
3 slices bacon
1/2 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper

1. Fry bacon until crisp in a skillet over medium heat.
2. Remove bacon and place on paper towels to cool.
3. Add the brussel sprouts to the skillet and coat in the bacon fat.
4. Add the chicken broth and cover. Cook until tender, about 12 minutes.
5. Remove from excess liquid with a slotted spoon, season with salt and pepper and serve.

Makes 4 servings

6 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Line a baking sheet with wax paper and place grated parmesan by tablespoon onto it into little mounds, approximately 3 inches apart from each other.
3. Flatten the mounds and bake in the oven until the outer edges begin to crisp, about 6 minutes.
4. Allow to cool, then transfer to paper towel to drain of excess fat.

Makes 6 servings

3 years ago today I started the Atkins diet. To make a long story short, I effortlessly lost around 60 pounds in 6 months and changed my life forever. I'm sure it's ironic to many when I say this, but Atkins, the "bacon and eggs diet" is what inspired me to learn more about health and nutrition. I'm not going to go on a rant about it, because I understand why low-carbohydrate diets in general have a bad reputation. I can't possibly refute every argument categorically point by point, so I'll save my breath. When I started it I was under the same impressions, so I know how hard it would be to reason with a naysayer. The only thing that changed my mind was by doing it and noticing such an incredible difference not only in my waistline, but my general well-being and health… in only 2 weeks.

In celebration of this, over the next week I am only going to prepare Atkins-friendly dinners. I'm going to try and cover a wide range of induction friendly vegetables and delicious entrees from various protein sources. Of course there's no reason why anyone not on a low-carb diet wouldn't want to try these recipes as well!

Tonight we had Tuna Bake Florentine with Parmesan Crisps. The whole dinner is about 6 net carbs a plate, pretty much entirely from the brussel sprouts. The parmesan crisps are a nice touch, I think, but for presentation and as a nice compliment of flavor and texture. Shannon absolutely loved the tuna bakes and I can't say that I blame her. As a general rule I'll enjoy anything with baked cheese, but the flavor of the baked tuna with the spinach is delicious. Just a little bit of lemon goes a long way to make it all that much better.

On the side I had some Bacon Brussel Sprouts. Brussel sprouts are still a tricky one for me since I don't particularly like them that much. Boiled with butter is still my preferred method of choking these down, but I'm still looking for another way!