Diabetic Cookbook for Two (7 page)

Meats, chicken, and seafood are highly perishable items that need to be used within a few days of buying them. Because they are often sold in pre-packaged larger quantities, when cooking for two it’s a good idea to visit your store’s meat and seafood counters where you can buy these items by weight. If your store doesn’t have one, remove what you’ll need from the larger package and freeze the remainder for another use.

In many cases, buying single servings may be better than buying a larger package you may not use before it spoils. For example, buy individual cups of Greek yogurt and cottage cheese rather than one big tub. For other items, try to buy exactly what you need. For example, if a recipe calls for two onions, don’t buy a whole bag if you won’t be using the rest that week. Likewise, you can purchase only the amounts of grains, nuts, and spices you need from bulk bins.

At home:
Practice FIFO (first in, first out). When unpacking groceries, move older products to the front of your refrigerator, freezer, or pantry and put new products in the back. That way, you are more likely to use the older food before it expires. Take note of upcoming expiration dates on foods you have and plan your meals around those. Another strategy for cutting waste is to monitor what you throw away by designating a week during which you write down everything you throw out on a regular basis.

Think about designating one meal a week as a meal to use leftovers and other foods that might get overlooked. Leftovers make great brown-bag lunches or can be frozen for later. Remember to label and date them to avoid “mystery meals” in your freezer.

Lastly, when cooking, use the skins of produce and fruit whenever possible for extra fiber, vitamins, and minerals. If you have wilted produce or some reaching the end of its peak, toss it in a smoothie or use it in soups. If all else fails, compost your scraps for use as fertilizer on a vegetable garden.

A well-stocked pantry, refrigerator, and freezer are the way to stay on track for healthy eating. With good, simple basics on hand, there’s no reason to reach for unhealthy processed convenience foods. The following are 10 foods that make diabetic cooking quick and easy—and, most importantly, delicious.

1
Canned beans, dried beans, and lentils:
On a slow Sunday, cook some dried beans or lentils (which only take about 20 minutes) and then freeze them in 1-cup portions. Just drain them and use in a breakfast omelet, on top of a salad, in a burrito, or stirred into soup. To do a “quick soak” for beans, place them in a large cooking pot, cover with water, bring to a boil, and boil for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover, and let sit for 1 hour. Drain. Cover the beans with fresh water again and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, for about 1 hour.

2
Coconut flour:
Using flours with a low carbohydrate content can help you enjoy your favorite foods without compromising your blood-sugar levels. Coconut flour is low in carbs and rich in fiber in addition to being gluten-free. When substituting it for grain-based flours, you will need to add more liquid to the recipe as the fiber in it absorbs a lot of water.

3
Eggs:
Eggs are a perfect protein for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Eggs work great in low-carb crêpes and pancakes and can make putting together a quick, healthy meal of frittatas, scrambled eggs, or omelets a snap! For added nutrition, look for eggs fortified with heart-healthy omega-3 fats.

4
Frozen vegetables and fruits:
Having frozen fruits and vegetables on hand cuts down on prep time and food waste. Thaw only what you need for each recipe. Frozen fruits and vegetables are picked at their prime and have more flavor and nutrients than fresh produce purchased out of season. Even better, there’s no added sodium or sugar contained in canned vegetables and fruits.

5
Ground flaxseed:
Flaxseed is very low in carbohydrates and high in fiber, which makes it an excellent choice for diabetics. This low-carb food is high in heart-healthy omega-3 fats and makes the perfect complement to most meals. Flaxseed can be mixed into breakfast dishes, used in smoothies, sprinkled on salads, used as a breading substitute, and shaken onto steamed vegetables for a nutty flavor.

6
Plain nonfat Greek yogurt:
Incorporating dairy products in your diet can be a great way to get calcium and high-quality protein. For diabetics, Greek yogurt is an exceptional meal and snack option due to its low-carbohydrate and high-protein content. Greek yogurt is great for breakfast, in smoothies, on low-carb pancakes, and enjoyed as a snack. It can also replace sour cream in dips and recipes due to its similar taste and texture. Opt for nonfat plain varieties to limit added sugars. You can stir in a bit of stevia if you need that extra bit of sweetness.

7
Nuts:
Nuts are full of heart-healthy fats and make great toppings for breakfast dishes. Or throw them in smoothies, eat as snacks, toss in salads, and even use as a flour substitute for breading. Storing nuts in the freezer is better than storing them in the pantry. It prevents the oils from going rancid. They don’t take long to thaw—just set them on the counter for about 10 minutes and they’re ready to eat.

8
Old-fashioned rolled oats:
Old-fashioned oats are a healthy source of complex carbohydrates and are rich in soluble fiber, which is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease. Old-fashioned oats can also help you feel full longer because of their high fiber content. As a result, they are a beneficial part of a weight-loss plan. Oats are considered a low–glycemic index food. Eating a breakfast of old-fashioned oats can help stabilize blood sugar. Oats work well in pancakes and smoothies and as a bread crumb substitute.

9
Prewashed salad greens:
Keep a bag or two of prewashed mixed greens on hand to give your lunches and dinners a quick nutritional boost. Just add a dash of extra-virgin olive oil and seasonings or enjoy them with nothing at all!

10
Quinoa
(pronounced
keen-wah
): Quinoa is a great rice substitute, rich in fiber and protein—and gluten-free. It only takes 15 minutes to cook. Buy pre-rinsed quinoa if you can. If not, always rinse the seeds thoroughly in water before cooking to remove its natural bitter coating. Quinoa is a seed eaten like a whole grain. It can be mixed with fruits, nuts, cinnamon, and nondairy milk for breakfast, used as a base for a meal-size salad, or as a high-fiber, high-protein carbohydrate at dinner.

Being diagnosed with diabetes can be confusing and overwhelming. There are many new things to learn and understand. In most cases, your diabetes care team will be there to support you, but the day-to-day management of your diabetes will be in your hands. Topping the list of self-care behaviors you will need to become skilled at are healthy eating and being active.

Healthy eating means consuming foods that provide all three nutrients in reasonable amounts to help you achieve and maintain a healthy body weight. They are:

1.
Carbohydrates

2.
Fat

3.
Protein

It means eating
regularly spaced
meals that are low in saturated fat and sodium. It also means being consistent with the amount and type of carbohydrates you eat at one time.

What it doesn’t mean is giving up your favorite foods for nothing but bland boiled vegetables for the rest of your life! Trimming portion sizes, cutting out saturated and trans fats, substituting unsweetened, lower-calorie beverages for soda or sweet tea, and switching out high-sodium processed foods for whole foods may do the trick. But making these changes may require a healthy eating refresher.

To refresh your diet, you need to know the nutrient content of foods (especially carbohydrates), how to read foods labels, how to stock a healthy pantry, and how to cook foods to maintain their nutrient content while avoiding extra saturated fat and sodium.

To set yourself up for success, focus on the concept of addition rather than subtraction, and adding color, variety, and freshness to your diet. Subtracting foods has such a negative connotation. And, really, your goal is to improve your health by
adding
antioxidant-rich foods so you feel great, have more energy, stabilize your mood, and most importantly, stabilize your blood sugar.

Overhauling your diet overnight isn’t realistic and usually leads to frustration and the urge to give up. Instead, start slowly and make simple changes over time, like adding a salad to your diet once a day or switching from butter to extra-virgin olive oil when cooking. Another place to start is your pantry. Donate highly processed prepackaged foods made with white flour, salt, preservatives, and added fats. You don’t have to be perfect; the long-term goal is to reduce your risk of cancer and diabetic complications. Every positive change you make to your diet—no matter how small—counts.

Carbohydrates are one of the three nutrients that make up the foods we eat (fat and protein are the other two). We need carbohydrates to live—they are our primary source of energy and the only fuel source that our brains can use. The problem is there is so much hype about carbohydrates that people get the impression they are bad. Considering carbs is especially confusing for diabetics because eating carbs can mean a rise in blood sugar. But carbs are important, and here are a few things you need to know:

Carbs are found in three basic food groups—sugars, starches, and fiber—and come in two basic forms: simple and complex. Simple carbohydrates are sugars and refined flours, while complex carbohydrates consist of starches and fiber.

Starchy foods like potatoes, rice, and pasta, and sweet foods like sugar and honey, are high in carbohydrates.