Great Diabetic Ideas and Recipe

If you have been diagnosed with Type II Diabetes, don't panic. It will take some lifestyle and diet changes, but it is manageable. Watching carbohydrate intake, testing glucose levels, eating in smaller portions throughout the day, and exercise are some of those changes. If like most people with Type II Diabetes, you may have felt sickly for a long time, even years before you received your diagnosis from your doctor. Making some changes will significantly help with energy level and feeling better.

The good news is a diagnosis has been made. Knowledge is power. None of us hope to be a diabetic, but now the next step is learning to take control of a food plan and healthy lifestyle. A low carbohydrate diet and walking 20 minutes a day will surprise many skeptics as to how easy it is to feel better.

Moderation is the key in most diets. This is especially true for diabetics. It's not that candy or that piece of cake is an absolute no-no. Once or twice a week in small portions is reasonable though.

Italian food with carbohydrate filled pasta is one of the most challenging in portion control. A good way to handle this is to limit the portion when preparing it. One cup of pasta is a good rule of thumb.

The recipe below is both low fat and low in carbohydrates.

Here's what you will need for this recipe:

2 boneless chicken breasts trimmed of any excess fat.

1/2 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1 can Hunt's No Sugar Added Spaghetti Sauce. This has 0 grams of fat and only 6 grams carbohydrates per 1/2 cup. You can also use 1 medium sized can tomato sauce.

1 8-ounce bag of low fat shredded mozzarella cheese

Non-Stick Low Fat Cooking Spray

Sprinkle of salt for each chicken breast

1-cup spaghetti noodles. Whole-wheat pasta is the healthiest option.

Eliminate the pasta all together, if you can. A crispy salad, fresh steamed broccoli with lemon, or some steamed garlic green beans would fit nicely as a side dish.

First make sure boneless chicken is completely thawed. Thawed meat always tastes better. Spray both sides of each chicken spray with no fat cooking spray. Do not spray your entire pan. This way the spices stick to the chicken much better. Mix your basil and oregano together and sprinkle on both sides of each chicken breast. Make sure to pat chicken breasts to help spices stay on chicken. This also helps with flavor. Put just a sprinkle of salt on one side of each chicken breast. Now it is ready for cooking. Put chicken breasts in medium sized pan and cover. Heat at medium heat to begin with for about 2 1/2 minutes on each side. In small saucepan put half of Hunt's No Sugar Added Spaghetti Sauce. Cover and put heat on just above low so it is ready when your chicken is done. If cooking spaghetti, fill medium saucepan halfway, put spray some cooking spray on water, and add a pinch of salt. Heat to boiling and then add your 8 ounces spaghetti noodles. Drain when it has reached desired tenderness. Next, Turn heat down to low for chicken, and allow to finish cooking. Over cooking can cause the chicken to be dry so keep an eye on it. If it appears to be done just turn off heat and it will stay warm until next step. Once spaghetti sauce is hot use a good size ladle to pour over each chicken breast. Put a good handful of mozzarella cheese on top and put cover back on pan over chicken. Low heat works the best, as long as the pan is covered, to melt the cheese thoroughly. Don't microwave your meal to melt the cheese because this can also dry out your chicken.

Enjoy your diabetic friendly dish!