It's Try This Thursday!

Hello,

Today is my first Try This Thursday (TTT) and I'm excited! I hope everyone is having a great day.

As a person with diabetes, I understand the frustrations that come along with all of the new diet restrictions. I don't know about you, but since I was diagnosed six months ago, I've been dying for some kind of dessert that won't land me in the hospital after eating it. I've been told that people with diabetes can eat whatever they want as long as they eat it in moderation, but I don't agree with that. My idea of moderation may not be the same as the next person's. I'd rather eat things that I know are healthy and diabetic friendly. Of course, I've messed up a time or two and indulged in some cake, I'm still human, but afterwards, I had to work twice as hard to regain control of my blood glucose levels. Trust me, the extra exercise and dieting in the days that follow are not worth that slice of cake. Before I continue, let me just say that I am in no way encouraging you to go out and eat sugary junk, I'm simply sharing my personal experiences with you. Anyway, I recently went out and bought coconut sugar and coconut flour because I want to try baking some of the stuff that I used to enjoy before my diagnosis. I know coconut sugar and coconut flour can be expensive and I'm not trying to be one of those people that share recipes with ingredients you've never heard of or simply cost too much. Let me share my secret with you. I found the coconut sugar and coconut flour at Big Lots for about $4. If you have Big Lots stores wherever you live, go check it out. You may be able to find some good deals. With that being said , let's continue. Since I've never tried coconut sugar and coconut flour before, I wanted to start off with a simple recipe. What's easier than blueberry muffins? I found this recipe for blueberry muffins at justapinch.com and I'll add the link to the original recipe below.

Easy Blueberry Muffins From Scratch
For this recipe I'll be substituting the sugar, flour, and milk. Also, the original recipe states that this recipe can be used for 6 large muffins or 12 regular sized muffins.

Link to original Recipe
https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/breakfast/fruit-breakfast/quick-and-easy-from-scratch-blueberry-muffins.html

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup coconut sugar
2 eggs
2 cups coconut flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Directions
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees
2. Cream together the butter and sugar
3. Add eggs, beating well
4. Add vanilla
5. Combine flour and baking powder in small bowl
6. Add flour to the butter mixture, alternating with milk
7. Fold blueberries into the batter by hand
8. Spoon batter into greased muffin tins
9. Bake for 30 minutes
10. Cool in pan for 5 minutes before removing

So there it is. I'll be trying this recipe over the weekend. I'm a little nervous about the substitutions, but the coconut sugar and coconut flour packages state that they can be substituted cup for cup so hopefully these muffins come out good. I'll be back on Tuesday to share my results. I hope some of you will try this with me and share your feedback as well.

Thanks for reading.

Simple Taco Salad

Here's a simple Taco Tuesday recipe that my family really enjoys. Not everyone will agree with this, but you can make changes as needed.

Simple Taco Salad
Ingredients
Ground Beef
Fritos Original Corn Chips (About 2oz per serving)
Shredded Cheese (Any cheese of your choice will do. I prefer Cheddar.)
Salad Vegies (Anything you choose)
For my salad I use a salad mix with different kinds of lettuce, shredded carrots, spinach leaves, tomatoes, green onions, and avocado.

Directions
1. Place a serving of cooked ground beef in a bowl.
2. Cover the ground beef with your salad and top with tomatoes, cheese, avocado, etc.
3. Pour about 2oz of Fritos on top and enjoy.

I usually grab a handful of Fritos and break them up and then sprinkle them on top. This helps to reduce my carb intake, but still gives me the crunch I desire. You can leave the Fritos out al together if you'd like. You can also make these taco salads right in the 2 oz bag of Fritos if you choose. I believe some people call these Walking Tacos.

What do you think?

Spinach, Banana, and Mixed Berry Smoothie

Before I was diagnosed with type two diabetes, I used to enjoy fruit smoothies not realizing that they were jam packed with sugar. Needless to say, after I was diagnosed, I stopped drinking smoothies and sugary drinks altogether. Lately, I've been trying my hand at making more diabetic friendly smoothies. Here's one that I really enjoy.

Ingredients
1 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
1/2 cup Plain Yogurt
1 Banana (can be frozen)
1 cup Frozen Mixed Berries
1/2 cup Fresh Spinach

Directions
Add all ingredients to the blender and blend until smooth. This usually makes enough for one serving. You can double up on the ingredients as needed. Give it a try and let me know what you think.