MMORRIS'S LOW CARB CHEESE SNACKS
3 egg whites
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded then frozen several hours
Popcorn cheese *
In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Process the frozen cheese in a food processor until very fine. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the egg whites and very gently fold them in being very careful not to deflate the egg whites.
Gently spoon the mixture into a large zip-top bag. Cut a 1/2-inch hole in one corner of the bag. Gently squeeze the dough onto a parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet in cheese curl shapes. Try to keep the piping bag from pressing down on the batter so that the cheese puffs come out as thick as possible otherwise they tend to flatten a bit while baking. Lightly sprinkle with popcorn seasoning.
Bake at 300º for 20 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the pan in for another 10-20 minutes or until firm and crisp. Remove them from the pan and cool. Store in an airtight container.
Makes about 30 cheese snacks or about 2 servings
* I used Kernel Season's Nacho Cheddar.
Per Serving: 139 Calories; 9g Fat; 12g Protein; 1g Carbohydrate; 0g Dietary Fiber; 1g Net Carb
Per Batch: 277 Calories; 19g Fat; 25g Protein; 1.5g Carbohydrate; 0g Dietary Fiber; 1.5g Net Carb
This recipe was posted at Low Carb Friends. The popcorn cheese has only a trace amount of carbs per serving so I didn't bother to include it in the nutritional counts. Mine were still a little soft after 30 minutes in the oven so I put them back in at 200º for another 10 minutes then turned off the oven and left them in another 10 minutes. They finally did get crisp. Although these really don't taste much like real Cheetos, they are a fun crispy snack and have almost no carbs. Click the photo to see a close-up.