I think Peg may be one of those corn-fed farm girls you hear about....
On a diabetic routine, my meals are planned, but I like some variety, and so I keep options on hand in case I feel like eating those.
Before I moved (5 years ago) I used to cook. I would make a recipe that served 4-20 and freeze individual servings. Every day I had a tossed salad for lunch, including lettuce, spinach, tomato, celery, olives, dried cranberries, mushrooms, and often things like sliced onions or green onions, sliced carrots, green pepper strips, maybe croutons or diced cheese, asparagus, vegetarian (soy based) bacon bits, and low-calorie Italian dressing.
For many years I always made my own bread and sliced and froze it. I made enough for 2 months, then went through the day-long process of making bread all over again. (And spent the next day or so getting over the experience.)
But I got tired and lazy, and I've been slacking off on the salads as well as on the cooking. Since it's just to feed myself, why bother if I can find easier foods on the market?
Virginia, I never used to like frozen dinners either but managed to find a few frozen vegetarian meals that are tolerable (Weight Watchers Smart Ones, Amy's). Teriyaki, quesadillas, some of them involve tofu, noodles, rice. There is a meatless frozen pizza (Freschetta) that I cut up into 10 or 12 servings.
There's also packaged tortellini (Barilla) that just need to be boiled in water a few minutes--ricotta and spinach or 4-cheese varieties.
One of my favorites is New Orleans red beans and rice, and there's also black beans and rice. These come in packages and are easy to fix on top of the stove. (Zatarain is the brand.)
But they are BEANS.
With the main dish I usually do a vegetable. I steam broccoli or cauliflower or microwave a bunch of fresh mushrooms or slice a tomato or cook some frozen vegetables like cauliflower, carrots, and broccoli.
Breakfast tends to be a small glass of orange juice, a mozzarella stick (string cheese) or a hard-boiled or poached egg, Diet Pepsi, and a whole-grain English muffin, toasted with a pat of butter or a tablespoon of apple butter. Instead of the muffin I might have a bowl of cereal (oatmeal, shredded wheat, bran flakes, multigrain chex) with 2% milk--no sugar but sometimes I put blueberries or strawberries on top.
Or if I'm in a hurry I'll have a Fiber One peanut butter/oats bar.
Lunch is almost always a 6 oz. container of Yoplait yogurt without any added fruit. I often add fruit--berries or sliced kiwi. Plus about 5 wheat crackers.
I often supplement lunch with a tablespoon or so of natural peanut butter or almond butter or some pecans or other nuts.
Before I go to sleep I have a banana, grapes, 3-6 dates, an apple or some berries or kiwi and a few cookies. Or one of those Dove Promises chocolate in place of the cookies.
Diabetes class teaches you to avoid desserts and never have between-meal snacks.
I actually went to diabetes class. I got myself over to the hospital 3 days in a row by 7 AM and sat through a class lasting several hours each time.
That was years ago. I don't see myself doing that kind of thing again soon.
There's one exception to the snack rule. I watch movies sometimes and microwave ordinary popcorn to eat while watching a movie. I add a pat of melted butter and lately have been cutting down on the salt. This is just popcorn with nothing added to it, not the microwaveable stuff that is being sold. It has added ingredients I can do without.
Short cuts: raisins make a good snack to carry along if I'm out somewhere, and if I'm in a hurry or having dental problems, dinner might just be a couple of scrambled eggs with a vegetable. Or canned minestrone--the whole can because it doesn't have much protein otherwise.
On a diabetic routine, my meals are planned, but I like some variety, and so I keep options on hand in case I feel like eating those.
Before I moved (5 years ago) I used to cook. I would make a recipe that served 4-20 and freeze individual servings. Every day I had a tossed salad for lunch, including lettuce, spinach, tomato, celery, olives, dried cranberries, mushrooms, and often things like sliced onions or green onions, sliced carrots, green pepper strips, maybe croutons or diced cheese, asparagus, vegetarian (soy based) bacon bits, and low-calorie Italian dressing.
For many years I always made my own bread and sliced and froze it. I made enough for 2 months, then went through the day-long process of making bread all over again. (And spent the next day or so getting over the experience.)
But I got tired and lazy, and I've been slacking off on the salads as well as on the cooking. Since it's just to feed myself, why bother if I can find easier foods on the market?
Virginia, I never used to like frozen dinners either but managed to find a few frozen vegetarian meals that are tolerable (Weight Watchers Smart Ones, Amy's). Teriyaki, quesadillas, some of them involve tofu, noodles, rice. There is a meatless frozen pizza (Freschetta) that I cut up into 10 or 12 servings.
There's also packaged tortellini (Barilla) that just need to be boiled in water a few minutes--ricotta and spinach or 4-cheese varieties.
One of my favorites is New Orleans red beans and rice, and there's also black beans and rice. These come in packages and are easy to fix on top of the stove. (Zatarain is the brand.)
But they are BEANS.
With the main dish I usually do a vegetable. I steam broccoli or cauliflower or microwave a bunch of fresh mushrooms or slice a tomato or cook some frozen vegetables like cauliflower, carrots, and broccoli.
Breakfast tends to be a small glass of orange juice, a mozzarella stick (string cheese) or a hard-boiled or poached egg, Diet Pepsi, and a whole-grain English muffin, toasted with a pat of butter or a tablespoon of apple butter. Instead of the muffin I might have a bowl of cereal (oatmeal, shredded wheat, bran flakes, multigrain chex) with 2% milk--no sugar but sometimes I put blueberries or strawberries on top.
Or if I'm in a hurry I'll have a Fiber One peanut butter/oats bar.
Lunch is almost always a 6 oz. container of Yoplait yogurt without any added fruit. I often add fruit--berries or sliced kiwi. Plus about 5 wheat crackers.
I often supplement lunch with a tablespoon or so of natural peanut butter or almond butter or some pecans or other nuts.
Before I go to sleep I have a banana, grapes, 3-6 dates, an apple or some berries or kiwi and a few cookies. Or one of those Dove Promises chocolate in place of the cookies.
Diabetes class teaches you to avoid desserts and never have between-meal snacks.
I actually went to diabetes class. I got myself over to the hospital 3 days in a row by 7 AM and sat through a class lasting several hours each time.
That was years ago. I don't see myself doing that kind of thing again soon.
There's one exception to the snack rule. I watch movies sometimes and microwave ordinary popcorn to eat while watching a movie. I add a pat of melted butter and lately have been cutting down on the salt. This is just popcorn with nothing added to it, not the microwaveable stuff that is being sold. It has added ingredients I can do without.
Short cuts: raisins make a good snack to carry along if I'm out somewhere, and if I'm in a hurry or having dental problems, dinner might just be a couple of scrambled eggs with a vegetable. Or canned minestrone--the whole can because it doesn't have much protein otherwise.
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