Diabetic Cookbook for Two (3 page)

5
Rotate the jobs neither of you enjoys.
Cleaning out the pantry or taking out the garbage may not be something you are passionate about, but it is necessary. Take turns on those jobs that no one wants to do all the time.

6
Pick a day to cook together.
Being committed to eating healthy, nutritious foods on a daily basis can help you manage your diabetes. Pick a day when you don’t have to work or have fewer obligations and spend a few hours in the kitchen with your spouse learning new recipes and preparing for the week ahead.

7
Encourage the effort or embrace the task!
A key to avoiding conflict in the kitchen (and beyond!) is to give each person the authority to do assigned tasks in his or her way. If you feel the need to redo the other’s task, then the division of chores may need to be redone.

8
Give your partner a break.
Many couples aim for a 50-50 split of chores, but there’s no hard and fast way to keep things “fair.” The goal is for each person involved to feel supported by the other. There are days when diabetes affects mood and energy level. Instead of feeling resentful, give your partner a break. Nothing says I love you like, “I’ll do that for you today.”

9
Verbalize appreciation and keep a sense of humor.
Remember to go with the flow and keep a sense of humor. If the breakfast oatmeal is a little burned, and the dinner chicken is a little dry, laugh, take it in stride, and use it as an opportunity to build memories together.

10
Enlist help.
Finally, if you need help, consider asking your children, siblings, neighbors, or friends. Check with your local diabetes association to see if there are families interested in doing a meal swap or supper club where you team up with other families so you only have to cook once or twice a week.

When cooking for two, heating a microwave dinner or grabbing takeout sounds much easier than whipping up a home-cooked meal. Years of spontaneous food choices may make the idea of planning meals for a week seem a bit tedious and unappealing. There are definitely advantages, though—particularly in terms of decreasing your risk for health complications. Cooking healthy meals at home can help you control your diabetes and your weight. It really is amazing what health-conscious eating, combined with physical activity, can do for preventing the progression of this disease. Think of a meal plan as a road map to healthy eating and living.

Planning meals in advance and knowing what you’ll eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner each day make it far less likely that you’ll get off track with your diet. With easy and delicious recipes, making meals from scratch ensures you are eating wholesome food. You control the ingredients so you know exactly what’s in each meal. In addition to being easy to prepare, the recipes in this book each contain a nutritional breakdown so you can easily see how each meal fits with your individualized meal plan.

Meal planning saves money, too! By shopping from a list, you are less likely to make those impulse purchases and you’ll be done shopping sooner. You’ll also save money because you will waste less food. Most people throw away a lot of food from their weekly shopping trips. You can avoid this with meal planning. Anything left over from one meal can be eaten for lunch or as a snack the next day.

Most of us have food lingering in our cupboards that is perfectly edible but hasn’t been used for one reason or another. You won’t have to worry about adding to that stash when you use the recipes in this book. If a recipe calls for an ingredient that will yield an unused portion, the recipe includes a “Toss it Together Tip” so you can incorporate purchased items into other meals.

With a little organization and effort, meal planning can slow the progression of diabetes, help your family eat healthier, and save you time and money! Let’s get started with meal planning. Following is an example of dinners for two for one week.

SAMPLE WEEKLY MEAL PLAN: DINNER