Author: jenb

Last night I was reflecting on my adventures with diabetes and how lifechanging this has been. But those changes haven’t taken place in a vacuum – my husband, Terry, has participated every step of the way.

He got me to the hospital when I couldn’t/wouldn’t do it for myself, and was by my side each of the three days I was there. He was my strength in those first few massively confusing weeks when the insulin seemed so overwhelming and I was afraid to eat anything. He gave me the courage to stop what wasn’t working (too much basal, a silly sliding scale for boluses) when my Endo wouldn’t, and got me through my first trials with carb counting. And he has dealt with all my subsequent successes and failures with love, infinite patience, and encouragement.

But I wonder….what has his support network been? I know during the first weeks of my trek down this path he and my sisters were in constant contact.

Anyway, I’m curious about your families. While they don’t have to test and medicate, like us they really do have to deal with our condition every day. Where do they turn when they’re concerned about your diabetes? What accomodations have they made? Diabetes can be expensive…how do our families deal with the added financial burden? Do you think they’ve realized any benefits (better food, more exercise, etc.)? Or do they not seem to think about it all too much?

Sorry for the ramble…you know how those 3:00 a.m. thought jags go!

Jen

I served this on Christmas day and it was a total hit with everyone, including my executive-chef sister. I hope you’ll try it – don’t be intimated by the first ingredient!

Ingredients:
1 12 ounce cans black beans
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate (I used Scharffen Berger)
2 T prepared coffee (I used French Roast)
1/4 pound butter
1/3 c, plus 1 T Splenda
Dark Agave Nectar
3 eggs separated
1/3 c plus a couple tablespoons ground hazelnuts
1 T vanilla extract
Unsweetened cocoa powder

1) Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
2) Generously butter a round cake pan
3) Drain and rinse the black beans, then puree them in a food processor until smooth; set aside
4) Melt chocolate and coffee in a small saucepan over the lowest heat possible (or in the top of a double boiler set over boiling water); set aside to cool
5) In a large bowl, cream butter and 1/3 C Splenda together until well combined and pale yellow. Add Agave Nectar to taste. I used about 1/3 cup – you might like more if you prefer sweeter desserts. Mix well.
6) Add cooled chocolate, ground nuts, vanilla and 1 C black bean puree to the egg mixture and mix on low speed until just blended.
7) In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Add 1 T Splenda plus a little Agave Nectar and beat until stiff peaks form.
8) Using a rubber spatula fold 1/3 of the egg whites into the batter to lighten it; incorporate fully. Gently fold in remaining egg whites until completely blended.
9) Pour batter into cake pan, smoothing the top and filling the pan from side-to-side. Bake in center of oven for 50 to 60 minutes. The middle of the torte may move slightly when the pan is shaken. It is meant to be quite moist.
10) Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge and reverse cake onto the rack. Allow to cool completely.
11) Brush the surface of the cake with a very thin layer of Agave Nectar. Dust lightly with cocoa powder. Sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of ground nuts lightly over the top.

To garnish the cake I sliced some Tangerine rind into very thin slivers, then microwaved it until it curled and then placed the curls in the center of the cake. I then tucked three small rose-scented geranium leaves gently around the curled rinds. It was beautiful. I think edible flowers like Johnny Jump-ups and/or calendulas or even tiny roses would also look lovely!

Serve thin wedges of this cake with a dollop of cream whipped with vanilla. Yum!

Jen

I was just on the US FDA website doing a little research, and came across this little gem of a recommendation concerning blood sugar. It’s in their medical device section unter Glucose Meters.

"What should your glucose levels be? Your fasting blood glucose level (after not eating for 8-10 hours) should be lower than 126 mg/dL. Your blood glucose level *immediately after eating (huh? what does this mean :dontknow:?) should be lower than 200 mg/dL.

Tsk, tsk. I guess it’s true that the benchmarks we on DF talk about are under these recommendations, but wow! Even the ADA’s guidelines are lower than this. No wonder people are so confused.

Jen