Food Glorious food ( but healthy)

[HelenM]

There’s been several threads about giving up foods or feeling deprived recently but what about the positives? The days when you really enjoyed meals that were both healthy and kind to your BS?

Yesterday, the weather was hot , Summer had arrived in the market so fresh produce was cheap, we ate al fresco and I felt really good with the world. :D

Lunch : Greek style salad (mixed leaves , cucumber, tomato, avocado, low fat feta, olive oil/vinegar/garlic dressing)
Sourdough bread
Handful of cherries

Dinner: fresh grilled Trout (it was swimming around in a tank at the market) stuffed with herbs/pinenuts
Asparagus
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Baby new potatoes
Low fat hollandaise sauce (bottled but luckily fairly good ingredients list)
Strawberries and 0% plain yoghurt
A couple (few) glasses of local red wine.
Yes, I use insulin so am able to eat some potatoes and bread but the carb count does depend on portion size and they were both relatively low GI.
So what about you? What healthy, diabetic friendly meals have you really enjoyed?

[KickStart101]

Yup, we eat most of those foods. Lots are
available through the winter also. Yum Cherries!
I haven't purchased any of those this spring. We
usually have a bottle of non-alcoholic wine during
the week at some meals. Obviously, I go for the
healthy benefit of the grapes not the medicinal
aspect of the alcohol. ;)

I don't eat much meat. BBQed or roasted chicken,
turkey, porkchops, occasionally steak, roasts and fish.
I usually cook the meat for the Family not me. I would
not eat any meat I've seen alive though. That's just
me. :D
Yes, it feels Good to eat healthy foods.

[bryan42]

I dont think type 2's can enjoy any food???

[murphysl]

My favorites are Cacao nibs (raw chocolate), pine nuts, black walnuts, any raw coconut product (especially coconut spread and young Thai coconut), lemon cucumbers, and sugar plum tomatoes.

[slipperyelm]

Yesterday I went to a friend's house to give a garden consult. I am a botanist but he thinks I know all things horticultural, which is not the case. Well, when I got there, I found his garden full of the weed plant Lamb's Quarters, which is my favorite "greens" vegetable in the whole world, wild gathered or domesticated.

Here is the wikipedia entry on Lamb's Quarters.
Chenopodium album - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fat_Hen)

I left with a big bag of lamb's quarters, so happy and looking forward to them! I love them lightly cooked for about 4 minutes, then topped with butter. Oh, my gosh, heaven! Yes, food, glorious food!

Bryan42, I understand your sentiment about type 2s not getting to enjoy any food, but I find there is still lots to really enjoy. A broad palate certainly is an advantage.

[notme]

Summer eating is so much nicer than "winter" eating. I love the berries, watermelon, fresh salads and artichokes. Life is good in the summer.

[HelenM]

I found his garden full of the weed plant Lamb's Quarters
looked it up, I had heard of it called fat hen. The bottom half of our garden is unculltivated(I like to call it a wild flower meadow) so I shall have to look for it.

[slipperyelm]

Helen, you might have lamb's quarters cousin, "Good King Henry," Chenopodium bonus-henricus, also delicious.

Good King Henry - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_King_Henry)

[labob]

Type 2s can't enjoy food? Someone besides me must have gone to New Orleans last week, then, because I thought I had some fabulous meals and still managed to stay on target.

My reality (might not hold true for everyone) is that I eat more and better now than I did before diagnosis. I've just shifted a lot of the calories from grains and starches to non-starchy vegetables and fruits. I love peppers (green, red, yellow and orange); I don't think there's a day that goes by without them. Mushrooms and onions go with everything, as far as I'm concerned. When I get out of bed in the morning I can hardly wait to indulge in whatever combination of fruit will end up on top of my (admittedly small ration of) cereal.

i'm not going to say that this disease is a blessing. As we all know, it's not -- quite the opposite. Today I decided to join in with my non-diabetic friends at a sandwich shop (maybe the second time I've tried that since my diagnosis in December 2005), and even though I had a green salad as a side dish and only a small portion of the sandwhich I'd ordered, I still ended up at almost 170 mg/dl two hours after eating. I just can't do bread. So that sucks. But I can have lots of other tasty and nutritious foods that I actually prefer now to the carb and fat fests that seem to constitute most readily-available meals. Eating better takes more planning and is not always easy, but it's not only good for you, but it really does taste better.

[spirosway]

Yea....i am with you....on every meal eat greek salads that delicius!!!and very healthy!!!the food must be healthy!!!

[Tucker]

I eat very well, I have no complaints. I just do not make a pig of my self ;)

[Gary_W]

Hi Helen,

Nice to have a positive food thread :)

We actually have a French oven / range here as it got a lot hotter than most of the Brit ones. In the summertime, the cast iron chargrill pan gives the extractor fan a thorough workout. Just simple things like chicken thighs that have the skin on for moisture but the bone out so they cook through are fabulous cooked in this way. Just a simple marinade of olive oil, garlic, lemon and some fresh thyme is all it needs, or you can put in a bit of ras el hanout to take things in a Moroccan direction. Some nice wholemeal pitta bread, salad and some greek yoghurt finish things off nicely.

One of the regular 'peasant' dishes we cook is Jambalaya. Or our version thereof anyway... It's mostly rice, so I guess it won't suit that many folks here but I tolerate it well. Lots of good veg in there (peppers, tomatoes, onions, celery etc) and lots of sausages and ham (which aren't quite so healthy, but it's great). Again, fresh herbs in the form of parlsey, thyme and sometimes corriander.


Gary

[andypoo]

There’s been several threads about giving up foods or feeling deprived recently but what about the positives? The days when you really enjoyed meals that were both healthy and kind to your BS?

Yesterday, the weather was hot , Summer had arrived in the market so fresh produce was cheap, we ate al fresco and I felt really good with the world. :D

Lunch : Greek style salad (mixed leaves , cucumber, tomato, avocado, low fat feta, olive oil/vinegar/garlic dressing)
Sourdough bread
Handful of cherries

Dinner: fresh grilled Trout (it was swimming around in a tank at the market) stuffed with herbs/pinenuts
Asparagus
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Baby new potatoes
Low fat hollandaise sauce (bottled but luckily fairly good ingredients list)
Strawberries and 0% plain yoghurt
A couple (few) glasses of local red wine.
Yes, I use insulin so am able to eat some potatoes and bread but the carb count does depend on portion size and they were both relatively low GI.
So what about you? What healthy, diabetic friendly meals have you really enjoyed?


OMG,You can serve up my menu anyday. You named evrything that I wish I could have. My husband does the grocery shopping and he has no imagination.I went to a place they call "Whole Foods" and they have all the best stuff there. I'll get to go there in another week or so,and I'm going to ;oad up on the veggies,cheeses and fruits.