For diabetic dinners, recipes can take a lot of the work out of figuring out what can be included in your meal without exceeding your carbohydrate allowance. They also allow you to find a meal that is nutritional balanced more easily. According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), diabetic dinners should consist of half a plate of non-starchy vegetables, 1/3 of the plate should include starchy foods, and the remaining 1/3 should include meat or meat substitutes. For this reason, the diabetic dinners recipes found here are created to be close to this standard. The diabetic dinners recipes found here also include information on how many calories and carbohydrates you will be consuming.

 

Easy Diabetic DinnersReciopes

 

Chicken & Broccoli with Bow Tie Pasta

Ingredients:

  • 4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts (1 lb.)
  • 8 oz. of dried whole grain bow tie pasta
  • 3 cups broccoli florets
  • ¼ cup salad dressing or light mayonnaise
  • 2 tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 minced garlic clove
  • 1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp. garlic salt
  • 2 tbsp. parmesan cheese, finely shredded

 

Instructions:

Using a Dutch oven, cook the pasta according to the package directions, but before draining add the broccoli for the last 5 minutes. Drain the mixture well and then return it to the hot pan. While the pasta is cooking cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and coat in the garlic salt and black pepper. Heat the oil over medium heat, add the garlic, and allow the oil to heat for 30 seconds. Add the chicken and cook until it is lightly browned (about 5 minutes), stirring occasionally.

Add the chicken to the pasta/broccoli in the Dutch oven. Stir in the salad dressing. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until it is all heated through. Top with parmesan cheese before serving.

Serves: 6

Calories: 300

Carbohydrate: 30 grams

 

Sautéed Beef and Asparagus

Ingredients:

  • 8 oz. lean beef sirloin, trimmed of fat and thinly sliced
  • 6 oz. fresh asparagus
  • 1 cup of shredded carrot
  • Nonstick cooking spray
  • ¾ cup cooked brown rice
  • 1/8 tsp. lemon juice
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • ¼ tsp. black pepper

 

Instructions:

Snap off the fibrous stems on the asparagus. Cut the asparagus into 2-inch pieces, rinse, and drain well. Set aside. Sprinkle beef with the salt and pepper. Spray a skillet in nonstick cooking spray and place over medium-high heat. Cook the beef in the hot skillet for approximately 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the asparagus, carrot, and the lemon juice, and allow the mixture to cook for an additional 2 minutes, stirring continually. Then reduce heat, and allow it to cook for 5 more minutes until the asparagus is crisp, yet tender and the meat is thoroughly cooked. Serve over hot cooked rice.

Serves: 2

Calories: 257

Carbohydrate: 20 grams

 

Diabetic Frozen Dinners

 

Pre-packaged meals and frozen dinners seem to be downplayed often as being unhealthy food choices. This may not be completely true. According to WebMd.com, a recent study, which was published in The Archives of Internal Medicine(2000), monitored 302 overweight people with high levels of cholesterol and high blood pressure. Some ate from a diet at home and some followed prepared meal plans. The former lost significantly more weight. Why? The meals had more variety, nutritional completeness, and provided portion control. These patients also reduced their risk of heart disease over this one year period of being monitored.