getting started

     I had a conversation with a friend last night that reminded me of some good points that need to be made, especially in the starting out phase of adopting a paleo-ish diet.  For one thing, she wanted to know, if you are doing away with things like potato chips and bread (especially with lunchtime in mind), what do you replace those things with?  One suggestion I had, especially if bread is going to be a hard thing to give up, is to start out by just cutting in half how much bread you use.  Even now, if I have a turkey sandwich, it's only a half.  I also told her that I like having something with a crunch to it, giving chip-type things their appeal, so we do crisp apple slices instead.  You won't miss chips (and I thought I couldn't live without Veggie Straws!).  Some of us also like celery with peanut butter (or other nut spread), or carrots, and I always have some kind of nut on hand when I'm in a snacking mood.  I tend to graze all day long, given I have the luxury since I'm a stay at home mom, so having good stuff to snack on has been the key to success for me.  Prunes, almonds, pistachios, leftover vegetables from the night before, Slim Jims, and cheese are my snacks during the day, although I try not to overdo it.  We haven't done bread/rolls with dinner for quite some time, although we would consider it a treat to get a freshly baked crusty baguette on occasion.  Cutting back almost completely on that sort of thing has not caused me to crave or even miss it, strangely enough, which I consider to be progress.  I confess to still using a little sugar or Splenda in my coffee, but not all the time, sometimes a little half and half is sufficient (since we do dairy).
     Another trick of ours since my son was diagnosed with diabetes is to keep a bag of dark chocolate on hand.  That way, when we have a craving for something sweet I don't necessarily make a pan of brownies (the almond flour recipe I mentioned in a previous post...forgot to mention, by the way, that I usually substitute arrowroot powder for cornstarch as a thickener), and one piece of Dove dark chocolate is only 4 grams of carbs.  Not having stuff in your pantry that you're trying to avoid is at least half the battle!
     Since I alway try to include a recipe in each post, I will tell you what we had with dinner last night.  I buy a big bag of Green Giant Brussels sprouts at BJ's, and typically we've done the oven roasted version.  Since we had something else cooking in the oven my husband decided to stir fry them in 2 Tbsp of coconut oil, a little butter, a few splashes of soy sauce (coconut aminos can be substituted for people trying to strictly follow a paleo diet), sea salt and pepper.  Jon got the oil super hot before adding the Brussels sprouts (cut in half), and allowed them to brown pretty well (especially on the cut side).  They were so delicious, and the kids all said they liked them better that way.  So, good to know!
     One more thing I want to mention is that we are definitely observing that Zach's insulin sensitivity is much improved after making the changes we've made to our eating habits.  If I underestimate how much insulin he needs for something and he goes high, with a correction he comes right on down, as opposed to showing resistance and staying high (therefore requiring more than one correction...he wears a pump).  I will say that pasta and pizza crust are like kryptonite when it comes to insulin, so if you're a diabetic or are cooking for a child with diabetes, you can make your life a whole lot easier by avoiding these two things.  Also, Mexican food falls into that category, as well, in case you haven't made that discovery for yourself.  The times my son has worn a continuous glucose monitor have been very eye-opening, in terms of how different foods affect his blood sugar.  Pay attention to glycemic index, for sure.
     Tomorrow is that dreaded Valentine's Day (should be called Pancreas Day), glad we've avoided the big kid parties with all that mess.  We're heading to a yogurt place with some family where we can enjoy a good no sugar added treat!  There are plenty of paleo recipes out there for cut-out cookies you can do in the shape of a heart, if you're feeling more festive, like this one:  Orange-strawberry nut-free cut out cookies.