Fit Fare

Since this is my introductory post, I figure I should tell you a little about me. I’m 33, engaged, and planning a wedding in a little less than 3 months. I also work full time with an awful commute. So my cooking time is often limited.

The love of my life, among many other things (such as amateur photographer, geek, avid reader, gamer, and writer), is diabetic. So not only do we often have problems finding the time to cook meals, but we need to make sure the meals we do cook are healthy for him. This means fewer carbs and low sugar. Of course, the easiest dinner is a piece of grilled protein (chicken, fish, beef, or pork) and some roasted vegetables. However, while this is an excellent meal (try topping the protein with one of Tom Douglas’ Rubs with Love), it can get boring after a while.

We’ve been together a little more than two years now, and here are some tips that I’ve compiled to help cook for good diabetes control.

• Balance is key. This sounds obvious, but mixing carbohydrates with protein allows the body to digest the carbohydrates more slowly, producing a smaller blood sugar rise. Small amounts of pasta, bread, and sweet desserts are often fine when served with a high protein meal.
• While experimentation is fun when cooking, baking is all about chemistry. Splenda, while great in coffee and tea, simply doesn’t bake well in all situations. DiabetiSweet, a sugar substitute that is often found in the pharmacy section of your local grocery store, crystalizes almost as well as sugar and is better for baking.
• When experimenting with baked goods that include sugar, first try replacing half of the sugar in the recipe with your sugar substitute of choice. This might mean that the diabetic in your life can’t have much of your first attempt. Trust me, though. Not all baking recipes work with a sugar substitute and if your half sugar/half substitute attempt works, then you can try replacing all of the sugar.
• Go for whole grains whenever possible.
• Fiber is your friend.

Now, a recipe. Despite my encouraging words about branching out, this is a rather simple recipe that is nearly guaranteed to get rave reviews.

Roasted Vegetables

This recipe can take almost any vegetables you have on hand. In fact, it is a great recipe to make when you need to clean out your fridge of a bunch of veggies that are going to go bad within a few days. Some of the possible ingredients include:

• Carrots
• Bell peppers
• Turnips
• Radishes
• Potatoes
• Yams
• Sweet potatoes
• Onions (pearl onions are the best)
• Whole cloves of garlic
• Beets
• Fiddleheads
• Snap peas

Cut all of the vegetables into small, bite-sized pieces. Separate out the vegetables by cooking time. Carrots, potatoes, and other root vegetables will cook faster than onions, snap peas, and bell peppers. Take the longer cooking veggies and toss with a tablespoon of olive oil and some paprika. You can also add a pinch of salt and pepper.

Throw the veggies in a roasting pan and roast for 15 minutes. Repeat the toss and spice process with the quicker cooking veggies and now add those to the roasting pan. Roast until the potatoes and root veggies are tender, usually another 15-20 minutes.

Serve to delighted guests.