Jason's Log

My first linux kernel patch...

Well, as part of my ongoing quest to connect my eTrex Vista GPS to a laptop that hos no serial port, I have submitted my first ever patchfile to the linux kernel. It was a really trivial fix to the device driver for the Keyspan Serial-USB adapter model USA-19HS.

The bug report with the attached patch can be seen here. The patch is against the 2.6.1 kernel. Hopefully, this will be rolled into an official upcoming kernel release.

The good news is that I can now drive around with a linux laptop and track my position with a GPS device in real time. The gpsdrive application that I'm using isn't quite as full featured as Delorme's Street Atlas USA, but it's really not bad for free.

One last fauxtatoes update...

This time around, I tried the thickening trick with Guar Gum. Worked very well with only 1/4 teaspoon of Guar Gum for a whole batch of fauxtatoes. That's probably what I'll go with in future incarnations.

Fauxtatoes, improved and thicker

As I have shared with anyone willing to listen, one of my favorite low-carb recipes is 'fauxtatoes', which is a mashed potatoe replacement made with cauliflower. The only real drawback to this recipe is that the fauxtatoes don't turn out quite as thick as real mashed potatoes.

So tonight Young and I experimented with Xanthan Gum as a thickening ingredient.

In our case we added two teaspoons of Xanthan Gum to the basic recipe after seasoning with salt/pepper. We added the Xanthan Gum directly to the food processor and pulsed for about 20 seconds. In our case, we used 2 teaspoons. The outcome was some very light and fluffly mashed potatoes. The texture was much better than plain fauxtatoes, and a big improvement over an already teriffic recipe.

Next time, we'll probably use only one teaspoon, for a slightly less fluffy texture. I've also got some Guar Gum that I'm planning to test out. The sage will continue. Oh, and I found both Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum for sale in the baking aisle at Whole Foods.


Thickened Fauxtatoes
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1 head cauliflower
1/3 cup cream

4 oz cream cheese (half a block)
1 tbsp butter (I usually use a bit more)
1 teaspoon Xanthan Gum
salt & pepper
Option: 1 tbsp minced garlic (Young and I really like the garlic)
Option: shredded cheese (we used parmesean last time, very nice)

Cut and clean the cauliflower, place into large pot. Just cover with water, and pour in the cream. Bring to a boil and continue bioling until nice and soft. Once cooked, drain off water/cream.

Put cauliflower into food processor along with cream cheese (broken into chunks) and butter. Puree 30 seconds at a time until smooth. Add salt, pepper, garlic, and/or cheese to taste. Give it one last puree to make sure it's all mixed together nicely. Then add the Xanthan gum, and pulse for 15 seconds. Check the texture, and add another 1/2 teaspoon of Xanthan Gum if you like your fauxtatoes fluffier.

More low-carb bar reviews...

Here are another two to add to the list:

PowerBar Pria CarbSelect - Caramel Nut Brownie
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Again, a very good small bar. It had actual nuts sprinkled onto the outer chocolate covering. The flavor was very good, with no real aftertasts. The chocolate coating did have a very slight fruit-like sweetness to it that some people might not like, but I suspect most wouldn't even notice. Overall, a good testing bar.

PowerBar Prio CarbSelect - Peanut Butter Caramel Nut
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Damn. Powerbar is getting good at this. Although the peanut butter flavor was not as prominent as I would have liked it to be, it was definitely quite good. Another recommended bar from PowerBar.

A few more low-carb bar reviews.

After running out of my supply of SportPharma Lean-Protein bars, which may or may not be discontinued, I stopped by Trader Joe's to stock up on some new varieties:

EAS Advant Edge Carb Control Nutritional Bar - Chocolate Peanut Butter
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Long name for a mediocre bar. The aftertaste is more pronounced than other sugar-alcohol-based bars (primarily maltitol), and the peanut butter taste is not really very pleasant either.

PowerBar Pria CarbSelect - Cookies and Caramel
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Although not intended as a meal replacement at only 170 calories, this is one very good tasting bar. I was wondering how long it would take the folks at Powerbar to get in on the low-carb craze, and this entry is worth it. It does contain some maltitol, but damn is it good. I've got another couple of flavors to try, but this is an encouraging start.