Mmmm, double cream. A truly English indulgence. And a staple of Nora’s diet.
Today I picked up a whole case of double cream on Co-op Owner Day. 10% discount for ordering a case, 10% discount for picking it up on Owner Day. Aww yeah, 1 jar is normally $8 to $9 each, so that case special saves us about $20. Damn, really? That’s a lot of bacon.
We use double cream to sneakily boost the fat in Nora’s daily diet. We mix it 1:1 with Traditional Greek Yogurt to create Norgurt, with 0.55 g carbs, 0.25 g protein, and 4 g of fat per tablespoon. She eats up to 4 tablespoons (1/4 c) of Norgurt per day to deliver her morning and evening Depokote “sprinkles.”
We also mix it 1:1 with plain cream cheese (our buddies Mike and Cora like to buy a pound of cream cheese from the Co-op with the discount, then split it with us). One tablespoon of “double cream cheese” has 0.45 g carbs, 0.5 g protein and 5.5 g fat. That’s a heck of a ratio too. And it is so creamy and spreadable, as you might imagine.
One of my goals is to make the diet as palatable as possible for her, and one strategy is to mix in the fat where I can, rather than just trying to load her up on pure fat alongside regular foods. She does like to eat butter on flackers, and she does need to have up to 1/2 c of cream plus cocoa per day. But otherwise I try to make her meals as normal as possible.
Last month, I bought 4 jars on the Co-op owner day for the 10% discount, and used it up in 2 weeks or less. I think we went through 8-10 jars last month, so we should have no problem using up 12. It must stay refrigerated (not frozen) and has a great shelf life. The jars I bought today do not expire until August 2012, 6 months from now. No problem.
We have also been using a truly French indulgence, St. Andre Triple Cream Brie (0.5 oz/14 g has 0 g carbs, 1.5 g protein, 6 g fat). I’ve had to be careful to check the dates because it is not always terribly fresh. Today, a cheese worker at the co-op told me that it comes pre-cut, and directed me to Délice de Bourgogne from Didier Lincet, another triple cream brie. It has a touch of carbs and a bit less fat: per 0.5 oz/14 g, it has 0.35 g carbs, 1.5 g protein, 5.5 g fat. You can see that this one has a bit more carbs (from the natural sugar in milk, lactose) and a bit less fat. This one is cut and wrapped at the co-op, so it is consistently fresher. Nora ate that on a flacker, and asked for more. I biked all of the groceries home, so I enjoyed a taste as well. It’s a nice cheese.
As you can guess, this diet is not cheap. High-quality fats are expensive. We are thankful that we have the means to provide Nora with a high-quality high-fat diet, although I try to save money when I can. One of my first purchases after starting this diet was a case of organic butter. Luckily, that freezes well and we have only used about 1/2 of the case so far. Before we started the diet, Nora’s beloved teacher Dorothy (and former nurse) suggested that we just give Nora a bowl of organic butter and let her spoon it up. That’s not so far from the truth!