I usually do the cooking on special occasions here in my family, though as
the only diabetic I sometimes end up not eating what I cook (e.g. carb rich
birthday cakes etc.). This Christmas my wife and my daughters said 'forget
the turkey and the stuffing and the gravy and the mashed potatoes and the
cranberries and go ahead and make your perfect diabetic Christmas dinner,
we'll eat it with you'.
I thought a bit about it. I know some people make 'pretend' Christmas
dinners using 'mashed potatoes' made from cauliflower as well as fake turkey
or whatever, but somehow that didn't seem very appetizing. I'd rather have
something genuine than an imitation of something else.
So I went shopping and then brought the barbecue out on the patio and here's
what ended up on the Christmas dinner table:
Appetizer: Grilled asparagus spears and Shitake mushrooms garnished with
worchester sauce
Main course: Italian herb fettucini cooked al dente, drained and stirred
with some light olive oil, boneless skinless chicken breasts marinated in
lemon and pepper and then barbecued and a homemade primavera style sauce
made from crushed tomatoes and a variety of chopped vegetables, topped with
fresh grated parmesan cheese and sliced Sicilian olives.
Dessert: Frozen natural yoghurt whipped with blackberries, raspberries and a
dash of lime. Coffee and dark Belgian chocolate.
First of all, nobody complained and in fact they all had second helpings of
the main course. Secondly, nobody passed out on the sofa afterwards (the
usual symptom of massive turkey and stuffing overload), in fact they all
asked to join me when I went for a half hour walk on the seashore.
My blood sugars were reasonably good, 94 one hour after and 115 after two
hours, thanks to using the low GI pasta with a reasonable amount of oil.
For me at least, it goes to show that eating healthy doesn't have to mean
eating boring or eating alone.
Tor

Not to mention all the fun you probably had making it. Constructing a meal
like that often provides me with "quiet time".
Oh and big kudos to your wife and daughters, "we'll eat it with you" is not
necessarily a common thing.
--
--

t2_lurking
geabbottATabbottandabbottDOTcom
Do not mail to t2_lurking (auto-delete)
============================
Well, i dreamed i saw the silver
Space ships flying
In the yellow haze of the sun
-- Neil Young --

"Tor" > wrote in message
news:hOQGb.822388$6C4.227788@pd7tw1no...
> I usually do the cooking on special occasions here in my family, though as
> the only diabetic I sometimes end up not eating what I cook (e.g. carb
rich
> birthday cakes etc.). This Christmas my wife and my daughters said 'forget
> the turkey and the stuffing and the gravy and the mashed potatoes and the
> cranberries and go ahead and make your perfect diabetic Christmas dinner,
> we'll eat it with you'.
> I thought a bit about it. I know some people make 'pretend' Christmas
> dinners using 'mashed potatoes' made from cauliflower as well as fake
turkey
> or whatever, but somehow that didn't seem very appetizing. I'd rather have
> something genuine than an imitation of something else.
> So I went shopping and then brought the barbecue out on the patio and
here's
> what ended up on the Christmas dinner table:
> Appetizer: Grilled asparagus spears and Shitake mushrooms garnished with
> worchester sauce
> Main course: Italian herb fettucini cooked al dente, drained and stirred
> with some light olive oil, boneless skinless chicken breasts marinated in
> lemon and pepper and then barbecued and a homemade primavera style sauce
> made from crushed tomatoes and a variety of chopped vegetables, topped
with
> fresh grated parmesan cheese and sliced Sicilian olives.
> Dessert: Frozen natural yoghurt whipped with blackberries, raspberries and
a
> dash of lime. Coffee and dark Belgian chocolate.
> First of all, nobody complained and in fact they all had second helpings
of
> the main course. Secondly, nobody passed out on the sofa afterwards (the
> usual symptom of massive turkey and stuffing overload), in fact they all
> asked to join me when I went for a half hour walk on the seashore.
> My blood sugars were reasonably good, 94 one hour after and 115 after two
> hours, thanks to using the low GI pasta with a reasonable amount of oil.
> For me at least, it goes to show that eating healthy doesn't have to mean
> eating boring or eating alone.
> Tor
>
>

Did I say "Sounds Tasty". Does.
"Tor" > wrote in message
news:hOQGb.822388$6C4.227788@pd7tw1no...
> I usually do the cooking on special occasions here in my family, though as
> the only diabetic I sometimes end up not eating what I cook (e.g. carb
rich
> birthday cakes etc.). This Christmas my wife and my daughters said 'forget
> the turkey and the stuffing and the gravy and the mashed potatoes and the
> cranberries and go ahead and make your perfect diabetic Christmas dinner,
> we'll eat it with you'.
> I thought a bit about it. I know some people make 'pretend' Christmas
> dinners using 'mashed potatoes' made from cauliflower as well as fake
turkey
> or whatever, but somehow that didn't seem very appetizing. I'd rather have
> something genuine than an imitation of something else.
> So I went shopping and then brought the barbecue out on the patio and
here's
> what ended up on the Christmas dinner table:
> Appetizer: Grilled asparagus spears and Shitake mushrooms garnished with
> worchester sauce
> Main course: Italian herb fettucini cooked al dente, drained and stirred
> with some light olive oil, boneless skinless chicken breasts marinated in
> lemon and pepper and then barbecued and a homemade primavera style sauce
> made from crushed tomatoes and a variety of chopped vegetables, topped
with
> fresh grated parmesan cheese and sliced Sicilian olives.
> Dessert: Frozen natural yoghurt whipped with blackberries, raspberries and
a
> dash of lime. Coffee and dark Belgian chocolate.
> First of all, nobody complained and in fact they all had second helpings
of
> the main course. Secondly, nobody passed out on the sofa afterwards (the
> usual symptom of massive turkey and stuffing overload), in fact they all
> asked to join me when I went for a half hour walk on the seashore.
> My blood sugars were reasonably good, 94 one hour after and 115 after two
> hours, thanks to using the low GI pasta with a reasonable amount of oil.
> For me at least, it goes to show that eating healthy doesn't have to mean
> eating boring or eating alone.
> Tor
>
>

In article <hOQGb.822388$6C4.227788@pd7tw1no>,
"Tor" > wrote:

> I usually do the cooking on special occasions here in my family, though as
> the only diabetic I sometimes end up not eating what I cook (e.g. carb rich
> birthday cakes etc.). This Christmas my wife and my daughters said 'forget
> the turkey and the stuffing and the gravy and the mashed potatoes and the
> cranberries and go ahead and make your perfect diabetic Christmas dinner,
> we'll eat it with you'.
> I thought a bit about it. I know some people make 'pretend' Christmas
> dinners using 'mashed potatoes' made from cauliflower as well as fake turkey

Huh? What the heck's wrong with turkey?

Priscilla

Priscilla Ballou wrote:
> In article <hOQGb.822388$6C4.227788@pd7tw1no>,
> "Tor" > wrote:
>
>> I usually do the cooking on special occasions here in my family,
>> though as the only diabetic I sometimes end up not eating what I
>> cook (e.g. carb rich birthday cakes etc.). This Christmas my wife
>> and my daughters said 'forget the turkey and the stuffing and the
>> gravy and the mashed potatoes and the cranberries and go ahead and
>> make your perfect diabetic Christmas dinner, we'll eat it with you'.
>> I thought a bit about it. I know some people make 'pretend' Christmas
>> dinners using 'mashed potatoes' made from cauliflower as well as
>> fake turkey
>
> Huh? What the heck's wrong with turkey?
>
> Priscilla
IMHO, Christmas dinner is ONE meal in the year. Last time I checked the
calendar that was true. Eat what you want for that one meal.

As for the *perfect diabetic* meal there is not and cannot be any such
thing. Not even identical twins are actually identical - t1 has 50% twin
concordance, for example. As for turkey, what`s wrong with it? Nowt, that`s
what.
--
Al.
Idiopathic t1
Last HbA1c 5.95
Total Chol 2.7
Blood Pressure 105/70
Beef Lente 1x
Beef Neutral 2x

What's wrong with turkey? Nothing I guess, if we're talking about a sandwich
with lean turkey breast with mustard on multigrain bread. But that's hardly
everyone's idea of turkey Christmas dinner.
Once the average Christmas turkey and the trimmings and the side dishes and
the mashed potatoes and whatever are on the table and have been consumed,
in many cases we're talking portion sizes of say 1500 calories and maybe 300
grams of carbs? That's hardly my idea of being nice to myself at Christmas
time. The alternative, watching others eat the big portions and sticking to
one spoon of stuffing and one spoon of mashed potatoes doesn't sound like
all that much fun either.
That aside, no two diabetics are completely alike in how they respond to
food or in what their preferences are. I'm not coming down on those who do
chose to stick with their turkey and stuffing, just telling my own story for
those who might be motivated to look for an alternative.
Tor

Tor wrote:
> What's wrong with turkey? Nothing I guess, if we're talking about a
> sandwich with lean turkey breast with mustard on multigrain bread.
> But that's hardly everyone's idea of turkey Christmas dinner.
> Once the average Christmas turkey and the trimmings and the side
> dishes and the mashed potatoes and whatever are on the table and have
> been consumed, in many cases we're talking portion sizes of say 1500
> calories and maybe 300 grams of carbs? That's hardly my idea of being
> nice to myself at Christmas time. The alternative, watching others
> eat the big portions and sticking to one spoon of stuffing and one
> spoon of mashed potatoes doesn't sound like all that much fun either.
> That aside, no two diabetics are completely alike in how they respond
> to food or in what their preferences are. I'm not coming down on
> those who do chose to stick with their turkey and stuffing, just
> telling my own story for those who might be motivated to look for an
> alternative.

That is a very fairminded comment, and I personally just refuse to take any
notice of diabetes for Christmas Day, Easter Sunday, and my birthday. The
rest of the year I am of course eating according to my meter, injecting
according to my food, exercising as much as I am able. That is my story, but
I do not recommend or reject it for any one else. Sometimes I make a point
over_enthusiastically for the sake of effect - no tone of voice or facial
expression available on Usenet.
--
Al.
Idiopathic t1
Last HbA1c 5.95
Total Chol 2.7
Blood Pressure 105/70
Beef Lente 1x
Beef Neutral 2x

> That is a very fairminded comment, and I personally just refuse to take
any
> notice of diabetes for Christmas Day, Easter Sunday, and my birthday.

Oooo...Easter Sunday, I never thought of that one!
Kewl!
--
--

t2_lurking
geabbottATabbottandabbottDOTcom
Do not mail to t2_lurking (auto-delete)
============================
Well, i dreamed i saw the silver
Space ships flying
In the yellow haze of the sun
-- Neil Young --

In article <%QZGb.828556$pl3.17613@pd7tw3no>,
"Tor" > wrote:

> What's wrong with turkey? Nothing I guess, if we're talking about a sandwich
> with lean turkey breast with mustard on multigrain bread. But that's hardly
> everyone's idea of turkey Christmas dinner.

You snipped the context, which was of turkey as just turkey, separate
from the other components of a turkey dinner. And a turkey sandwich
isn't turkey. It's bread, and turkey, and maybe mayo, and so on.

Priscilla

I did actually specific 'slices of lean turkey breast' which to me at least
is 'good turkey' as compared to 'fat dripping skin on roasted turkey
drumsticks' which, again to me, is 'bad turkey'.
So much for the turkey itself. To most people, who eat a normal balanced
diet that contains veggies, protein, fat AND carbohydrates, context is
everything. That is, what else is on the plate. Having even a healthy, lean,
slice of turkey breast in the midst of a serving of mashed potatoes, bread
crumb stuffing, shortened gravy and super sweetened cranberry jelly, is a
bit like watching someone consume a big mac with supersized fries and coke
and then have a token garden salad, with empty lettuce calories, to give
them a feel of eating healthy. That's why I found it appropriate to add the
'on a multigrain sandwich'.
Tor

"Priscilla Ballou" > wrote in message
...
> In article <%QZGb.828556$pl3.17613@pd7tw3no>,
> "Tor" > wrote:
>
> > What's wrong with turkey? Nothing I guess, if we're talking about a
sandwich
> > with lean turkey breast with mustard on multigrain bread. But that's
hardly
> > everyone's idea of turkey Christmas dinner.
>
> You snipped the context, which was of turkey as just turkey, separate
> from the other components of a turkey dinner. And a turkey sandwich
> isn't turkey. It's bread, and turkey, and maybe mayo, and so on.
>
> Priscilla

In article <%QZGb.828556$pl3.17613@pd7tw3no>, "Tor" >
writes:

>What's wrong with turkey? Nothing I guess, if we're talking about a sandwich
>with lean turkey breast with mustard on multigrain bread. But that's hardly
>everyone's idea of turkey Christmas dinner.
>Once the average Christmas turkey and the trimmings and the side dishes and
>the mashed potatoes and whatever are on the table and have been consumed,
>in many cases we're talking portion sizes of say 1500 calories and maybe 300
>grams of carbs? That's hardly my idea of being nice to myself at Christmas
>time. The alternative, watching others eat the big portions and sticking to
>one spoon of stuffing and one spoon of mashed potatoes doesn't sound like
>all that much fun either.
>That aside, no two diabetics are completely alike in how they respond to
>food or in what their preferences are. I'm not coming down on those who do
>chose to stick with their turkey and stuffing, just telling my own story for
>those who might be motivated to look for an alternative.
>Tor
>

Tor, there are so many ways of making turkey and the fixings.. I had the fake
mashed potatoes(which are quite good if made right), turkey, a tbsp of gravy, a
tsp of stuffing, cranberry sauce made with splenda, a tbsp of mashed potatos, a
tbsp of yams, ham and a 2 tbsp of green bean casserole.. Believe me it wasnt
anywhere near 300 carbs.. and I was sure wasnt hungry.. Not even close..My
numbers were fine...
Your meal sounds great, but there are ways to have the traditional meals and
make them lower carb.. Portion control is a big part.. Later I had sweet potato
pie made with splenda, some lowcarb icecream and coffee.. Four of the 9 people
who were here are lowcarbing to one extent or another.. My hubby made apple pie
with splenda, which I can eat if I skip the crust.. Same with the pumpkin pie
he made with splenda.. No one noticed that they were made with splenda and
everyone loved it.. I made Real cranberry sauce with splenda and fresh
cranberrys.. It was great and so easy in the microwave.. I also had made
homemade zuchini bread, which doesnt seem to spike me.. Made with mostly
wholewheat flour, and canolla oil... I made little loafs, about 1/4 the size of
a regular loaf.. Then slice it thin.. Anyway, glad to hear your dinner went
great.. Take care and Have a Happy New Year..
As always YMMV and this is JMO
Jeanne Type 2 Diagnosed 05/28/02
189/154/120

"Tor" > wrote in message
news:%QZGb.828556$pl3.17613@pd7tw3no...
> What's wrong with turkey? Nothing I guess, if we're talking about a
sandwich
> with lean turkey breast with mustard on multigrain bread. But that's
hardly
> everyone's idea of turkey Christmas dinner.
> Once the average Christmas turkey and the trimmings and the side dishes
and
> the mashed potatoes and whatever are on the table and have been consumed,
> in many cases we're talking portion sizes of say 1500 calories and maybe
300
> grams of carbs? That's hardly my idea of being nice to myself at Christmas
> time. The alternative, watching others eat the big portions and sticking
to
> one spoon of stuffing and one spoon of mashed potatoes doesn't sound like
> all that much fun either.
> That aside, no two diabetics are completely alike in how they respond to
> food or in what their preferences are. I'm not coming down on those who do
> chose to stick with their turkey and stuffing, just telling my own story
for
> those who might be motivated to look for an alternative.

I fail to see how a turkey dinner could be a bad meal for a diabetic. In
fact, that is one meal that always works for me, unless perhaps the turkey
was honey roasted or there is fruit in the stuffing. My daughter and I had
macaroni and cheese and wax beans on Xmas Eve. That was her choice. On
Xmas day, we had turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing made with a lot of added
celery, onions and carrots, the leftover beans and corn. I didn't eat the
corn. It's not one of my favorite veggies. Can't say that I care for
stuffing too much either. Perhaps I'm just not used to it. We never ate it
at our house when I was growing up. My dinner was in no way 1500 calories
and only 45 g of carbs. Worked for me!

--
Type 2
http://users.bestweb.net/~jbove/

Just to re-iterate what I mentioned early, this was not intended as a
criticism of anyone who had turkey, ham, sausages, macaroni and cheese or
anything else than what I had. Likewise, if someone came in and posted that
they had baked trout and boiled potatoes for dinner, I wouldn't take that as
an attack on my pasta but simply as another example of how diversified our
diets are.
However, I am convinced that many diabetics did have a 'morning after high
BG hangover' from what usually comes with a traditional Christmas Dinner,
made without any consideration to someone trying to manage blood sugars
through diet. So the thought was to share that it's our dinner and we are
allowed to make whatever we want.
Tor

"Julie Bove" > wrote in message
...
>
>
>
>
> "Tor" > wrote in message
> news:%QZGb.828556$pl3.17613@pd7tw3no...
> > What's wrong with turkey? Nothing I guess, if we're talking about a
> sandwich
> > with lean turkey breast with mustard on multigrain bread. But that's
> hardly
> > everyone's idea of turkey Christmas dinner.
> > Once the average Christmas turkey and the trimmings and the side dishes
> and
> > the mashed potatoes and whatever are on the table and have been
consumed,
> > in many cases we're talking portion sizes of say 1500 calories and maybe
> 300
> > grams of carbs? That's hardly my idea of being nice to myself at
Christmas
> > time. The alternative, watching others eat the big portions and sticking
> to
> > one spoon of stuffing and one spoon of mashed potatoes doesn't sound
like
> > all that much fun either.
> > That aside, no two diabetics are completely alike in how they respond to
> > food or in what their preferences are. I'm not coming down on those who
do
> > chose to stick with their turkey and stuffing, just telling my own story
> for
> > those who might be motivated to look for an alternative.
>
> I fail to see how a turkey dinner could be a bad meal for a diabetic. In
> fact, that is one meal that always works for me, unless perhaps the turkey
> was honey roasted or there is fruit in the stuffing. My daughter and I
had
> macaroni and cheese and wax beans on Xmas Eve. That was her choice. On
> Xmas day, we had turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing made with a lot of
added
> celery, onions and carrots, the leftover beans and corn. I didn't eat the
> corn. It's not one of my favorite veggies. Can't say that I care for
> stuffing too much either. Perhaps I'm just not used to it. We never ate
it
> at our house when I was growing up. My dinner was in no way 1500 calories
> and only 45 g of carbs. Worked for me!
>
> --
> Type 2
> http://users.bestweb.net/~jbove/
>
>

"Tor" > wrote in message
news:BR4Hb.834981$6C4.271808@pd7tw1no...
<snip>
> So the thought was to share that it's our dinner and we are
> allowed to make whatever we want.

I always do that. I will not dine anywhere where they do not serve things I
can eat. I did make one exception recently but only because my husband was
hosting a specific event through the military and I was supposed to attend
it. The food was a buffet, so I assumed there would be something I could
eat. There was salad. That was about it. I did try to eat some mashed
potatoes (which are normally a good food for me, assuming they are eaten
with protein), but they tasted awful and I couldn't eat them.

In this case, I did not indulge in things I should not have eaten. Instead,
I ate only enough so I didn't get a hypo and left there hungry. That kind
of made me angry since we were at a fancy club, but that's the breaks
sometimes. Normally, I would refuse to attend such an event.
--
Type 2
http://users.bestweb.net/~jbove/