Mars23 said:

I don't really have any preferences.

one fist a day is enough.

Believe it or not, healthy food can be delicious. And fast!

- tuna in water. open, drain, chop tomatoes, add some artichokes and a bit of onion, no salt, a bit of pepper. Perfect for supper.

- never use oil / butter for anything, just don't, don't eat anything fired, even if they say it's "Light"

rushing07 said:

I like this idea of adding tomatoes to tuna, but I was like wtf is an artichoke

http://simplyrecipes.com/...artichoke/

I still don't understand what part you would add to your tuna/tomato mix

Oh... I had to come back!!!! LOL

-Another thing I like to do is just for breakfast, lunch or a snack is just slice up some cantaloupe! You know you can have a scrambled egg--or egg substitute and some cantaloupe--or another type of melon, and you could even have one serving of wheat toast! Of course, I already mentioned that orange and grapefruit salad. You could have slice banana--but easy on the bananas because they are naturally sweet. I sometimes just slice up a nice big orange.. or if you like grapefruit, a half of grapefruit. You could have some nice grapes.. So the menu would be, maybe share a nice big fat stuffed 3 egg omelet.. of crazy on that.. stuffed with ham, cheese, fresh basil.. whatever you like... just SHARE it! Then maybe a nice slice of wheat toast or perhaps half a bagel or maybe a serving of oatmeal, and then half a grapefruit! It's filling and good.

--Or a nice alternative to an omelet is a frittata. This is what you do, beat three eggs or egg substitute. Then add say some broccoli.. or anything really. I use some diced fresh, not canned--too runny-- tomatoes , mushrooms.. garlic.. whatever you want.. Then add a little bit of shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese--made with skim milk. Dump that in a lightly greased (with olive oil spray), medium-sized skillet and then add some more low fat cheese on top. Cook on medium heat--to medium high, being careful not to burn the bottom, for around 10 minutes. Just keep checking it to make sure it doesn't burn! Now when when it's done, put a plate on top of the skillet and turn upside down. You can also use a big spatula to get it out of the pan. If you used the plate method, then get your serving plate, put it on top of the plate, and turn upside down again. And voila, you have your frittata! Serve with a nice salad or some fruit... maybe a nice slice of whole wheat bread. This recipe usually serves four, but I usually serve two slices a piece. Depending upon what you put in it, you can have seconds because it's only 3 eggs!
I've jalapenos in there.. Just use your imagination and experiment!

-Now on the weekends, sometimes I whip up an omelet for lunch and serve half of it with a salad, and a nice slice of whole wheat bread!

-This is how how think about it...Protein, carb (like a fruit or vege) and maybe one serving of a refined carb but always make it some sort of fiber--like a whole wheat product.. You just have to keep it to one serving, so you won't have to count carbs. Just don't pig-out--except maybe on special occasions,and I'm not even talking once a week. I'm saying you have to be aware of what you've been eating.

-Maybe to start, keep a "food" diary, and count your carbs? You can get a diabetic book with "carb" info. on the most common foods. Like I said, my sweetie--well both of us counted carbs for a while until we got used to the routine. Oh this is something we learned, apparently milk has a lot of carbs? Well let's put it this way, my sweetie loves milk, and had to cut down on how the milk because it was adding up. Also, some sugar free products have a little bit of carb.. You have to look on the label.

-Oh... I forgot to mention with the fish tacos--I said purple cabbage--I like to "dress" the cabbage first with a dash of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil--that's all I cook with or use), vinegar, and then some coarse black pepper.. You could also use a touch of salt.

-There just all kinds of foods you can rediscover... like asparagus. You can steam some asparagus, adding a little bit of butter or Smartchoice.. season to taste. Then just grill-up or broil some fish or even chicken. Grilled pork chops are really good, too!

-And green beans... This is another easy, easy recipe.. I like to mix green beans with diced, low-sodium tomatoes and feta cheese. You can put onion, garlic, olives or capers in there, too. It's good...

-Oh another tip: don't serve mash potatoes and corn on the cob together.. that's A LOT of carbs because corn is very high in carbs. Always remember that!
Don't serve bread with pasta...

--Don't serve bread with mash potatoes and corn! That's a lot of carbs--in fact probably your daily requirement in one meal! Spread your carbs-out over the day. Go easy on the bake potatoes.. maybe just buy one, prepare it in the microwave, and cut it in half.

-Now this is another thing I like to do.. Buy some frozen french cut green beans. Toss them with olive oil, salt and some pepper. Spread em out on a cookie sheet. Then put them in a 350 degree oven for a total of 20 or so minutes, tossing midway through. They come-out sort of shrunken and roasted! In the meantime.. make yourself some nice marinara sauce.. you could use a low sodium bottle version if you want.. but be careful of the sodium.. Then when the green beans are done toss em with the marinara sauce. I sometimes use the green beans as a pasta substitute.. and serve them with some nice meatballs!

-Oh speaking of beans...eat em. Great source of protein, but you have be care of the canned beans--like baked beans because they have a lot of carbs. Rather than eating let's say a hotdog with potato chips, have a hotdog and beans! Or maybe a hamburger with beans and some grilled veges. Always use whole wheat, low-carb/calorie buns! They even have low sugar buns! Just be very AWARE of refined carbs.

-Oh rather than frozen french fries... look in your market. There might be some frozen sweet potatoes fries.. which are much better nutritionally! You can't eat the whole thing now, I'm just talking as more nutritious side.. You can only roast or bake sweet potatoes--just substitute sweet potatoes for the white ones..

-By the way, another little tip is that.. if a serving of wheat pasta and steak sounds a little too sparse, ALWAYS serve up a nice salad. I eat side salads with meals all the time.. It's filling, low-carb, and fills you up. So the menu might look like this: fish, brown rice, and a nice salad...and then maybe some cheese for dessert! Or maybe a nice fruit.. mixed with yogurt if you HAVE to have dessert. We're not into dessert much.. so..

-Another tip, rather than chips with a sandwich (wheat, low sugar/calorie bread remember), have an nice, big sliced apple! You could also have one of those small cartons of low-fat yogurt! And make your sandwich just full of nice veges with some good quality sliced meat from the deli (preferably turkey or chicken) and a little cheese if you want. Just stay away from the stuff you KNOW that's bad for you! LOL

-Hey.. a little dessert.. We buy those low care ice cream sandwiches.. They are only 100 calories, and they satisfy the sweet tooth--but only one! LOL We're lucky we aren't into sweets too much anyway.. but there are a lot of nice recipe for fruit galettes.. with thin pastry or no pastry!

-Oh pizza, try wheat/thin crust with tones of veges.. and a salad.. Yum!

-Don't forget be careful of juices, alcohol....for sure sodas! We might have one or two small glasses of juice one a week. But it's much better to eat the fruit. I hate sodas, so I'm lucky on that one! Instead... if I want some carbonation, I drink La Croix or Perrier--over ice with some lime. It's very good on hot days! We might have some wine, but only on the weekends! Wine can be good for you, but too much is bad--particularly for women. You might consider making your own wine spritzers, with perrier or La Croix?

-Now here's a drink recipe! Get a martini shaker.. There is this great product Arizona pomegranate tea. Get the non sweetened kind or the one with 0 sugar--everything on the label.. Now this is what you do... Prepare the tea in a pitcher. Then put some ice in the martini shaker, then some lime juice to taste--fresh squeezed. I even leave the the limes in there, without the seeds of course. Add the pomegranate tea, shake, then pour over some ice! It's mmmm mmmm good--garnish with some lime! You can do the same thing with just water. Water, limes or lemons ice in martini shaker,--add a little bit of art. sweetener if you want... shake it up serve over ice with a garnish of lime of lemon. It's refreshing! You can play around with the recipe, and create it how you want!

I'm tell you.. cooking.. has never been so much fun! I just get all crazy!

-Oh a word about snacking. I'm not a big snaker, so I'm lucky. But be careful of those snacks. They add to your daily carb total. You might consider a protein like some hard cheese like Gruyere, trying to keep down on the fat. I say fruit is a great choice because most of us don't get enough fruit, but sometimes it's not satisfying because there isn't enough protein. Maybe a little bit of peanut butter, on serving of whole wheat crackers--or better yet, peanut butter on a sliced apple. If you had an apple for lunch, maybe have pb on some celery..or let's see..jicama. Find something sort of crunchy, but low carb! Sometimes, I just like to drink a glass of lowfat milk. Now.. obviously a big carton a day isn't good either.. even though milk is good for a lot of things. Just know you have to account for ALL of your carb intake throughout the day. So when you snack.. that accounts for your total carb intake.

For me--I don't have diabetes, I just follow the diet-- I prefer to have satisfying meals, so I'm not inclined to snack. Now.. my partner likes to snack.. and that's where those crackers come in. Just have a SERVING, not the entire box! And like I said..it counts for part of your total carb, so keep that in mind.

---Make sure you read the labels... you'd be surprise.. And remember you can subtract fiber from the carb because fiber is good for you. But you're still gonna have that carb, even with wheat product. Plus like said veges are carbs, but they're good for you...and don't metabolize(??) or process as glucose... contributing to diabetes.

And I reiterate, EXERCISE EVERY DAY! Just get out there and walk for a 30 minutes to an hour a day. If you don't belong to a gym, go walk at a mall, or perhaps your local public school has a facility, open to the community. Buy an exercise tape if all fails. Wii has a good exercise program, one of my friends told me. Play tennis, swim, do something each day!
[Edited 10/18/09 7:16am]
[Edited 10/18/09 7:19am]

Cinnie said:

Do you squish out the boiled artichoke petals into the tuna/tomato???

Cinnie said:

I buy artichokes like this:



and then you just chop them up to use them.

deadmansbones said:

THANK YOU!!! What's your name?

broiled salmon..

or

seared tuna..

with a nice big ol salad.. with a light splash of vinegar and oil!



And it takes no time to prepare..

Also I like some sushi.. I like salmon rolls, stuffed with veges



Oh... I love calmari, too.



Pasta..

nice wheat pasta, tossed with grilled/sauted (a little bit of extra virgin olive oil) tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, squash..red and green bell peppers...season with garlic (sauted).. a pinch of lemon pepper and red pepper , pinch of sea salt. You can throw some nice fresh basil in there, too. Actually you can use any veges you want. I sometimes even throw some green beans in there. and some parmasan cheese-- gotta have it.

Of course you can serve this with a nice steak.. maybe fish.. or grilled chicken



Oh another easy one.. wheat pasta.. remember now just one serving. In a pan, sauted some garlic in olive oil Then in another pan lightly brown some some bread crumbs--not a lot just a little. Then while toss all of that in with the cooked pasta, and throw in some spinach and parmasan cheese.

Of course, you can serve this with grilled fish like tilapia.. or salmon (I love salmon) or grill some lean steaks, chicken.. whatever..

It's yummy!

Ok brown rice. follow the directions.. I like the taste of brown rice.. it has sort of a nutty, rich flavor. Yum-Yum. What I like to do is add a little bit of sauted garlic and basil. Sometime I add veges.. I just get all creative.

Once again, it's a side to some nice grilled meat.. Or.. sometimes I like to grill portabello mushrooms OR eggplant..scored and coated with a little bit of bread crumbs. Now you can find the eggplant frozen in the grocery store--usually in the vegetarian section.

It's mmm, mmm good.. I'm tellin ya!

I like keeping things real simple. Oh.. another thing that's great is fish tacos.

This is what ya do.. grill some fish..You could use catfish.. then grill up some veges.. Of course use those low carb wheat tortillas.. Now.. I stuff the tacos with spinach, cheese, maybe some avocado, onion, purple cabbage and the fish.. let's see.. then serve the grilled veges on the side.. And you can make this really good relish using some chunky hot sauce, corn, onion, jalapenos, cilantro and black beans.. (Be careful on the corn though!) You have to let the chill a little in the fridge though..

Oh by the way, I never use iceberg lettuce. I use spinach or romaine.. I make sure the salads are green and leafy.. very important nutrients. Apparently iceberg lettuce doesn't have much nutritional value..

Get all creative with veges...

I just thought of something else: whole wheat pancakes!

Just by the mix... prepare by following the directions Throw in some sliced bananas or blueberries.. then cook in the skillet.. Now don't eat all of em!
You can serve them with a little bit of honey.. and butter. Or you can use that sugar free syrup.. Now just serve a couple per person.. or whatever the serving is on the box. I can't remember

Ok.. then.. you can cook up some bacon..or canadian bacon maybe.. I usually don't cook eggs because the pancakes have an eggs!

Ok for the salad.. Now. cut up some oranges and grapefruit and mix together! I'm.. Sweeten with a little bit of equal or whatever... and voila..

It's really good... I'm tellin ya and easy to fix!

One last thing..

Ok.. make a Caesar salad.. then get those chicken patty vege burgers! Cook and cut up.. then throw those in there with you salad.. Now be careful-if you add croutons to your salad follow the serving size! And if you add croutons, don't serve any bread. That's your meal right there. It's good.. Just try it you'll like it!

Oh another thing.. I like spinach salads with apples.. I just get all creative. I don't follow a lot recipes.. sometimes I do.. But I just like putting things together.

-Another thing I like to do is just for breakfast, lunch or a snack is just slice up some cantaloupe! You know you can have a scrambled egg--or egg substitute and some cantaloupe--or another type of melon, and you could even have one serving of wheat toast! Of course, I already mentioned that orange and grapefruit salad. You could have slice banana--but easy on the bananas because they are naturally sweet. I sometimes just slice up a nice big orange.. or if you like grapefruit, a half of grapefruit. You could have some nice grapes.. So the menu would be, maybe share a nice big fat stuffed 3 egg omelet.. of crazy on that.. stuffed with ham, cheese, fresh basil.. whatever you like... just SHARE it! Then maybe a nice slice of wheat toast or perhaps half a bagel or maybe a serving of oatmeal, and then half a grapefruit! It's filling and good.

--Or a nice alternative to an omelet is a frittata. This is what you do, beat three eggs or egg substitute. Then add say some broccoli.. or anything really. I use some diced fresh, not canned--too runny-- tomatoes , mushrooms.. garlic.. whatever you want.. Then add a little bit of shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese--made with skim milk. Dump that in a lightly greased (with olive oil spray), medium-sized skillet and then add some more low fat cheese on top. Cook on medium heat--to medium high, being careful not to burn the bottom, for around 10 minutes. Just keep checking it to make sure it doesn't burn! Now when when it's done, put a plate on top of the skillet and turn upside down. You can also use a big spatula to get it out of the pan. If you used the plate method, then get your serving plate, put it on top of the plate, and turn upside down again. And voila, you have your frittata! Serve with a nice salad or some fruit... maybe a nice slice of whole wheat bread. This recipe usually serves four, but I usually serve two slices a piece. Depending upon what you put in it, you can have seconds because it's only 3 eggs!
I've jalapenos in there.. Just use your imagination and experiment!

-Now on the weekends, sometimes I whip up an omelet for lunch and serve half of it with a salad, and a nice slice of whole wheat bread!

-This is how how think about it...Protein, carb (like a fruit or vege) and maybe one serving of a refined carb but always make it some sort of fiber--like a whole wheat product.. You just have to keep it to one serving, so you won't have to count carbs. Just don't pig-out--except maybe on special occasions,and I'm not even talking once a week. I'm saying you have to be aware of what you've been eating.

-Maybe to start, keep a "food" diary, and count your carbs? You can get a diabetic book with "carb" info. on the most common foods. Like I said, my sweetie--well both of us counted carbs for a while until we got used to the routine. Oh this is something we learned, apparently milk has a lot of carbs? Well let's put it this way, my sweetie loves milk, and had to cut down on how the milk because it was adding up. Also, some sugar free products have a little bit of carb.. You have to look on the label.

-Oh... I forgot to mention with the fish tacos--I said purple cabbage--I like to "dress" the cabbage first with a dash of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil--that's all I cook with or use), vinegar, and then some coarse black pepper.. You could also use a touch of salt.

-There just all kinds of foods you can rediscover... like asparagus. You can steam some asparagus, adding a little bit of butter or Smartchoice.. season to taste. Then just grill-up or broil some fish or even chicken. Grilled pork chops are really good, too!

-And green beans... This is another easy, easy recipe.. I like to mix green beans with diced, low-sodium tomatoes and feta cheese. You can put onion, garlic, olives or capers in there, too. It's good...

-Oh another tip: don't serve mash potatoes and corn on the cob together.. that's A LOT of carbs because corn is very high in carbs. Always remember that!
Don't serve bread with pasta...

--Don't serve bread with mash potatoes and corn! That's a lot of carbs--in fact probably your daily requirement in one meal! Spread your carbs-out over the day. Go easy on the bake potatoes.. maybe just buy one, prepare it in the microwave, and cut it in half.

-Now this is another thing I like to do.. Buy some frozen french cut green beans. Toss them with olive oil, salt and some pepper. Spread em out on a cookie sheet. Then put them in a 350 degree oven for a total of 20 or so minutes, tossing midway through. They come-out sort of shrunken and roasted! In the meantime.. make yourself some nice marinara sauce.. you could use a low sodium bottle version if you want.. but be careful of the sodium.. Then when the green beans are done toss em with the marinara sauce. I sometimes use the green beans as a pasta substitute.. and serve them with some nice meatballs!

-Oh speaking of beans...eat em. Great source of protein, but you have be care of the canned beans--like baked beans because they have a lot of carbs. Rather than eating let's say a hotdog with potato chips, have a hotdog and beans! Or maybe a hamburger with beans and some grilled veges. Always use whole wheat, low-carb/calorie buns! They even have low sugar buns! Just be very AWARE of refined carbs.

-Oh rather than frozen french fries... look in your market. There might be some frozen sweet potatoes fries.. which are much better nutritionally! You can't eat the whole thing now, I'm just talking as more nutritious side.. You can only roast or bake sweet potatoes--just substitute sweet potatoes for the white ones..

-By the way, another little tip is that.. if a serving of wheat pasta and steak sounds a little too sparse, ALWAYS serve up a nice salad. I eat side salads with meals all the time.. It's filling, low-carb, and fills you up. So the menu might look like this: fish, brown rice, and a nice salad...and then maybe some cheese for dessert! Or maybe a nice fruit.. mixed with yogurt if you HAVE to have dessert. We're not into dessert much.. so..

-Another tip, rather than chips with a sandwich (wheat, low sugar/calorie bread remember), have an nice, big sliced apple! You could also have one of those small cartons of low-fat yogurt! And make your sandwich just full of nice veges with some good quality sliced meat from the deli (preferably turkey or chicken) and a little cheese if you want. Just stay away from the stuff you KNOW that's bad for you! LOL

-Hey.. a little dessert.. We buy those low care ice cream sandwiches.. They are only 100 calories, and they satisfy the sweet tooth--but only one! LOL We're lucky we aren't into sweets too much anyway.. but there are a lot of nice recipe for fruit galettes.. with thin pastry or no pastry!

-Oh pizza, try wheat/thin crust with tones of veges.. and a salad.. Yum!

-Don't forget be careful of juices, alcohol....for sure sodas! We might have one or two small glasses of juice one a week. But it's much better to eat the fruit. I hate sodas, so I'm lucky on that one! Instead... if I want some carbonation, I drink La Croix or Perrier--over ice with some lime. It's very good on hot days! We might have some wine, but only on the weekends! Wine can be good for you, but too much is bad--particularly for women. You might consider making your own wine spritzers, with perrier or La Croix?

-Now here's a drink recipe! Get a martini shaker.. There is this great product Arizona pomegranate tea. Get the non sweetened kind or the one with 0 sugar--everything on the label.. Now this is what you do... Prepare the tea in a pitcher. Then put some ice in the martini shaker, then some lime juice to taste--fresh squeezed. I even leave the the limes in there, without the seeds of course. Add the pomegranate tea, shake, then pour over some ice! It's mmmm mmmm good--garnish with some lime! You can do the same thing with just water. Water, limes or lemons ice in martini shaker,--add a little bit of art. sweetener if you want... shake it up serve over ice with a garnish of lime of lemon. It's refreshing! You can play around with the recipe, and create it how you want!

I'm tell you.. cooking.. has never been so much fun! I just get all crazy!

-Oh a word about snacking. I'm not a big snaker, so I'm lucky. But be careful of those snacks. They add to your daily carb total. You might consider a protein like some hard cheese like Gruyere, trying to keep down on the fat. I say fruit is a great choice because most of us don't get enough fruit, but sometimes it's not satisfying because there isn't enough protein. Maybe a little bit of peanut butter, on serving of whole wheat crackers--or better yet, peanut butter on a sliced apple. If you had an apple for lunch, maybe have pb on some celery..or let's see..jicama. Find something sort of crunchy, but low carb! Sometimes, I just like to drink a glass of lowfat milk. Now.. obviously a big carton a day isn't good either.. even though milk is good for a lot of things. Just know you have to account for ALL of your carb intake throughout the day. So when you snack.. that accounts for your total carb intake.

For me--I don't have diabetes, I just follow the diet-- I prefer to have satisfying meals, so I'm not inclined to snack. Now.. my partner likes to snack.. and that's where those crackers come in. Just have a SERVING, not the entire box! And like I said..it counts for part of your total carb, so keep that in mind.

---Make sure you read the labels... you'd be surprise.. And remember you can subtract fiber from the carb because fiber is good for you. But you're still gonna have that carb, even with wheat product. Plus like said veges are carbs, but they're good for you...and don't metabolize(??) or process as glucose... contributing to diabetes.

And I reiterate, EXERCISE EVERY DAY! Just get out there and walk for a 30 minutes to an hour a day. If you don't belong to a gym, go walk at a mall, or perhaps your local public school has a facility, open to the community. Buy an exercise tape if all fails. Wii has a good exercise program, one of my friends told me. Play tennis, swim, do something each day!

Thank you Donna. I asked because I like referring to people by their real names.


And I had no idea Ryan Gosling had a band.

I had no idea you could put fish in tacos.

Vendetta1 said:

Me neither, a friend forwarded me the link!

I've been aware of this site for years reading it for ideas and entertainment.
So I thought I'd pass-on the info to you all! I thought some of you would like it.

It's a cute concept. In fact, they use a children's choir for back-up singers. Apparently, choir is from Flea's music conservatory in L.A.

And you're welcome for the info. I just thought I'd share.. You know before my partner was diagnosed with diabetes, I really didn't cook all that much. But now as you can see, I cook a lot! And I also make better choices when we eat-out!

What's your name?

These are just wiser options, even if you don't have diabetes... it can prevent other health issues down the road when you aren't abusing your body's insulin production.

Thanks Donna, my diet needed a remix

deadmansbones said:

Ivy.

rushing07 said:

You gave a lot of good tips, but I wouldn't agree with the above. You can cook foods with very little oil and olive oil is a good fat. Even for salad dressing I'll mix a teaspoon of a good olive oil with a nice balsamic vinegar, a little water (to stretch it out) and herbs. It adds LOTS of flavor in very small amounts.

It's like you said, don't give up fats altogether. Our bodies need fat, just not as much as is typical in a standard american diet.

CarrieMpls said:

oh

thank you, my question was genuine!

rushing07 said:

Says you.

Thank you for your help Luke.

Vendetta1 said:

I miss you, Ivy! Hope you are well

I don't think I have diabetes but I do (try to) eat according to the rules your doc outlines Ivy.

Believe it or not, healthy food can be delicious. And fast!

Here are some things that I do to battle my cravings:

- hard boiled eggs / whites. add a little bit of veggies and just a bit of salt and you have a perfect snac, that will help you when you crave salty carbs, such as chips.

- tuna in water. open, drain, chop tomatoes, add some artichokes and a bit of onion, no salt, a bit of pepper. Perfect for supper.

- never use oil / butter for anything, just don't, don't eat anything fired, even if they say it's "Light"

- don't give up on fats altogether. Eat peanuts or almonds, one fist a day is enough. Another good fat is salmon.

- decaf coffee: always black and no sugar. Kills appetite. Don't overdo it.

- salads, add lost of green veggies, a bit of red and yellow. Instead of sauces and dips, use dark vinegar or lemon sauce. You can also use water from artichokes.

- If you really really feel like having something salt and dippy, treat yourself to light cheese with a bit of mustard (whichever kind you like). Mustards have very little calories and they are MUCH better for your health than mayo or any other sauce. Another dip good for you is turnip, but the one without creame.
This is much better than getting a pack of Doritos.

- avoid eating out

- STEAM! I swear there is nothing as delicious as a steamed fish with some veggies and sour craut. It's super light and has lots of proteins. Steam everything. After a while you'll notice that things that are fried will seem over done. I also feel now like a lot of things are too salty or too sweet.

- do treat yourself every now and then with a bit of chocolate and stuff. Twice / thrice a month is enough.

This is what I do. Not with any purpose in mind, just trying to eat healthy.