A Healthier Michigan diabetes eCookbook: appetizers and desserts

| 4 min read

It’s time to spice up your recipe card collection with some diabetic-friendly recipes for National Diabetes Awareness Month. Get your forks and knives ready for some great new dishes that are not only healthy, but also delicious.
From beginning to end, each dish was selected with National Diabetes Month in mind and will keep your taste buds happy while keeping your blood sugar in check.
For the complete Healthier Michigan eCookbook, please see our SlideShare presentation.
Appetizer Recipes
Veggie Quinoa Stuffed Acorn Squash
Ingredients:
1 large acorn squash
1 large acorn squash
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 cup frozen peas & carrots
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons diced yellow onion
1/4 cup vegetable broth
1 / 2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon tarragon
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2-3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese (optional)
1/2 cup frozen corn
1 small red bell pepper, diced
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375°. Lightly grease a shallow baking dish and set aside. Cut the squash in half cross-wise and remove the seeds. Brush the squash with the olive oil, sprinkle with salt & pepper, and place cut-side down in the baking dish. Bake for about 35 minutes, until tender.
While the squash is baking, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium skillet. Add the garlic and onion, and saute for about 1-2 minutes, until they become fragrant and the onion becomes slightly translucent. Add the diced pepper and cook for about 1 minute, then add the rest of the veggies. Cook for another minute or so, just enough to start thawing out the frozen veggies. Add the quinoa and the broth and mix together until well combined.
When the squash is finished baking, remove from oven and carefully turn the squash halves over. Stuff with a generous amount of the quinoa & vegetable mixture, sprinkle with a bit of parmesan cheese, and return to the oven for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients:
1 can of drained mandarin oranges
¼ cup plum sauce
1 tbsp rice wine or wine vinegar
1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
4 cups of chopped cooked chicken
1 chopped red bell pepper
½ peeled and chopped English cucumber
2 thinly sliced scallions
8 leaves of romaine lettuce
Directions:
Combine plum sauce, vinegar and ginger in a large bowl and stir together. Mix the oranges, chicken, pepper, cucumber and scallions into the same bowl and toss all of the elements together. Lay out lettuce leaves on a plate. Then, add contents from the bowl onto each leaf of lettuce. Enjoy! If packing a lunch, pour bowl contents into a container suitable for lunch box. Package lettuce leaves in small, plastic bag.
Dessert Recipes
Pumpkin Smoothie
Ingredients:
1 cup of ice
1 cup of pure pumpkin
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Nutmeg and cinnamon to taste
Artificial sweetener to taste (Stevia is recommended)
½ cup skim milk or plain yogurt
Directions:
Mix ingredients in blender until the mixture is slushy. It tastes just like cold pumpkin pie without all the calories! Obviously there is no crust, so be a little creative and find some low-fat graham crackers or vanilla wafers to scoop up the mixture with, almost like it’s a pumpkin dip.
Skinny Muddy Buddies
Ingredients:
2 cups Fiber One Honey Squares
4 tbsp. I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter
2 tbsp. Creamy All Natural Peanut Butter
1 package Fat Free Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding
2 squares Reduced Fat Chocolate Almond Bark
Directions:
Melt the butter, natural creamy peanut butter and chocolate almond bark in large mixing bowl over the stove. After, pour mixture over the Fiber One Honey Squares. Let the mixture cool for about 20 minutes. After mixture has hardened, pour into a large Ziploc bag, add box of pudding mix and shake gently.
Why We’re Celebrating National Diabetes Awareness Month
While researchers are still studying links between gum disease and diabetes, there’s no doubt that taking care of your teeth is critical and scheduling regular checkups can help identify symptoms of diabetes. Blue Dental (SM) and Blue Vision (SM) believe good dental and vision health are just good sense – and can possibly lead to a proper diagnosis of diabetes and a host of other ailments and diseases. While researchers are still studying links between gum disease and diabetes, there’s no doubt that taking care of your teeth is critical and scheduling regular checkups can help identify symptoms of diabetes. Blue Dental (SM) and Blue Vision (SM) believe good dental and vision health are just good sense – and can possibly lead to a proper diagnosis of diabetes and a host of other ailments and diseases.

A Healthier Michigan is sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, a nonprofit, independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
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