Recipes for Diabetics A Cookbook: Revised and Updated

The essential cookbook for people with diabetes Over 350,000 copies sold Delicious, easy-to-make, and healthful recipes for people who have to watch what they eat If you or someone in your family has diabetes, here's the end of monotonous mealtimes and being ruled by what not to eat. This classic cookbook, fully revised and updated, helps you plan meals the whole family will enjoy. From easy favorites to extravagant treats,Recipes for Diabeticsoffers low-calorie, low-fat dishes, so you don't have to worry about going off your diet. This indispensable resource includes: The newest exchange lists from the American Diabetes Association and the American Dietetic Association Daily menus More than 300 recipes for soups, salads, appetizers, entrees, breads, desserts, and drinks Recommended Daily Allowance chart for essential nutrients Exchange-group breakdowns and calorie counts for measuring individual servings Guides for using nutrition labeling to compute exchanges Dining-out tips, and much more You don't have to choose between good food and good health. You can have both.

Billie Little wrote Recipes for Diabetics: The Essential Cookbook for People with Diabetes because so many diabetics expressed their desire for a cookbook with recipes and helpful suggestions specifically related to their dietary needs.

Selvyn B. Bleifer, MD, is a cardiologist in Beverly Hills. He graduated from the University of California, Davis, and has practiced medicine for more than 60 years.

WEIGHTS, MEASURES, AND THE METRIC SYSTEM

The care provider who is planning meals for a diabetic needs to know something about food values. The following tables will help determine measurements for carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Also included are equivalents for most of the measures used in these tables. Be sure to use standard measuring utensils, such as an 8-ounce measuring cup, tablespoon, teaspoon, and the like. (Drug and discount stores also carry a set of measuring spoons covering sizes from 1/8 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon.) It is also a good idea to remeasure after cooking. There are a few foods that need not be measured; these are noted in the Exchange Lists.

EVERYDAY WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon
2 tablespoons = 1/8 cup
4 tablespoons = 1/4 cup
5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon = 1/3 cup
8 tablespoons = 1/2 cup
12 tablespoons = 3/4 cup
16 tablespoons = 1 cup
2 cups = 1 pint
2 pints = 1 quart
4 quarts = 1 gallon
1 fluid ounce = 12 tablespoons
16 ounces = 1 pound
1 pound butter or margarine = 4 sticks, 2 cups, or 64 pats or squares
1 stick butter = 1/2 cup (approximate) or 16 pats or squares
Dash or “few grains” = up to 1/8 teaspoon

METRIC SYSTEM

Liquid Measure

The metric system is based on units of 10. For liquid measure, the simple metric unit is the liter, which is just a little larger than our quart. One teaspoon is equivalent to 5 milliliters (or 5 cubic centimeters — a unit that drug dispensers prefer).

Units of Measure

1 milliliter = 1 cubic centimeter
1000 milliliters = 1 liter

Equivalents

1 teaspoon = 5 milliliters
1 tablespoon = 15 milliliters
1 cup = 0.24 liter
1 pint = 0.47 liter
1 quart = 0.946 liter
1 gallon = 3.8 liters
1 fluid ounce = 29.57 milliliters

Dry Measure

The basic unit of metric weight is the gram; this unit is approximately one-thirtieth of an avoirdupois ounce and is mostly used in pharmaceutical and scientific work. The more convenient unit is the kilogram, weighing approximately 2.2 pounds.

Units of Measure

1000 milligrams = 1 gram
100 centigrams = 1 gram
1000 grams = 1 kilogram

Equivalents

1 ounce = 28.35 grams
1 pound = 0.45 kilograms
2.2 pounds = 1 kilogram

Calories

1 gram carbohydrate = 4 calories
1 gram fat = 9 calories
1 gram protein = 4 calories
1 cup nondairy whip = 160 calories (approximately)

Examples: 1 teaspoon sugar is 5 grams carbohydrate (20 calories)

1 teaspoon margarine or butter is 5 grams fat

(45 calories)

GENERAL RULES
MEASURING FOOD

Most foods should be measured. You will need a standard 8-ounce measuring cup, measuring teaspoon, and tablespoon, and an ounce or gram scale. All measurements are level. Most foods are measured after cooking.

Careful measurement is more important for meat and fat quantities than for fruit, juices, and starches. Careful measuring of vegetables is less important as they generally are low in calories and fat.

It is important to measure foods at the beginning so you become acquainted with real serving sizes. (However, it really isn’t necessary for you to weigh every bean!)

FOOD PREPARATION

Meats may be baked, boiled, roasted or broiled (indoors or on an outdoor grill). Do not fry foods except in fat exchanges allowed for that meal. Vegetables may be prepared with the family meals, but the portion for the diabetic should be removed before extra fat exchanges or bread exchanges are added. Fat allowed in your diet may be used to season vegetables. Vegetables may be cooked in bouillon or fat-free meat broth if desired.

SPECIAL FOODS

It is not necessary to buy special foods. Select the diet from the same foods purchased for the rest of the family—milk, vegetables, bread, meats, fats, and fruit (fresh, dried, or canned without sugar). “Special dietetic foods” should be used with discretion; always check the labels of these foods for protein, carbohydrate, fat, and calorie content. Be sure additional calories in special diet foods are figured in the diet.

NOTE: Scientific tests indicate that saccharin may be dangerous to your health and, taken in large quantities, may be cancer causing. Its use is cautioned because of its ability to cause cancer in experimental animals.

FREE FOODS

Seasonings: Cinnamon, celery salt, garlic, garlic salt, lemon, mustard, mint, nutmeg, parsley, pepper, sugarless sweeteners, spices, vanilla, and vinegar. Other foods: Coffee or tea (without sugar or cream), fat-free broth, bouillon, unflavored gelatin, sour or dill pickles, cranberries (with nonnutritive sweetener or sugar substitute).

FOODS TO AVOID

Beer, wine, and other alcoholic beverages.

Sugar. New research shows that all carbohydrates are digested at about the same speed. Whether the carbohydrate is simple (like sugar) or complex (like bread) doesn’t matter. Both kinds raise your glucose levels at about the same rate.

For this reason, sugar is no longer a no-no. But you must work it into your food plan in place of other carbohydrates. Ask your dietitian to show you how.

Also, keep in mind that sugar has calories but no vitamins. Foods with sugar often have fat as well. The American Diabetes Association considers some artificial sweeteners safe in moderate amounts. These include saccharin, aspartame (NutraSweet), and acesulfame potassium (Sweet One).

EXCHANGE LISTS

SPECIAL NOTE: Negligible (trace) and less than 1/8 exchanges are not figured in the recipes in this book.

Calories are rounded off.

The following pages and the recipes in this book are based on the 1995 version of the Exchange Lists for Meal Planning.

Your registered dietitian or doctor will select items from the following food groups according to their carbohydrate, fat, and protein content, calorie count, and so on. To ensure good nutrition, your diet should include the same essential foods, sometimes referred to as the “basic six,” recommended for everyone:

1. Milk
2. Vegetables
3. Fruits
4. Starches (cereals, bread, starchy vegetables)
5. Meat
6. Fat

Foods on the same list have about the same nutritional value. The groupings are called “exchange lists” because one food may be exchanged for another on the same list, but foods on one list may not be exchanged for foods on another list. Each diet plan includes foods from all exchange lists to give variety.

The diabetic person on a rigid restricted-calorie diet should avoid too many bread, fat, and meat exchanges. The calorie counts and exchanges have been calculated from the diabetic exchange lists found on the next few pages. Different exchange groupings vary slightly. It is imperative that a diabetic follow the calorie prescription given him or her by the doctor and the exchange lists that are included with his or her own diet order. (A strict diabetic should recalculate these recipes if using a different exchange system.) Different methods of recipe preparation, interpretation of ingredients, types of nonnutritive sweeteners (both liquid and granulated), and so on, will vary the volume of the recipe and approximate yield. If the yield is different, the calories of the recipe need to be recalculated, and the exchanges refigured.

EXCHANGE LISTS FOR MEAL PLANNING

The exchange lists are the basis of a meal planning system designed by a committee of the American Diabetes Association and The American Dietetic Association. While designed primarily for people with diabetes and others who must follow special diets, the exchange lists are based on principles of good nutrition that apply to everyone. Copyright (c) 1986 American Diabetes Association, The American Dietetic Association.

An “exchange” is a measured portion of food. The size or quantity of each exchange on the list is already developed for you in easy household measurements.

One of the most important aspects of diabetes management is dietary care. The food exchanges are lists of foods grouped by similar values of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats so that one food can be substituted for another in your daily meal plans. Foods have been divided into six categories—milks, vegetables, fruits, breads, meats, and fats. Foods in any one group can be substituted or exchanged with other foods within the same group.

We suggest that you consult your physician or nutritionist about your meal plan. You will be told how many exchanges you can have from each of the six lists, taking into account how many calories will be best for you. The number of calories will be based on your health, energy needs, and physical activities.

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Excerpted from Recipes for Diabetics by Billie Little
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.