For the past 9 years, my small department at work has hosted “Celebrating the Seasons”; a community event for those with diabetes showcasing 20 or so recipes, complete with a guest speaker, a gazillion door prizes and even has a massage therapist on hand. It’s the first week in November and we start choosing the recipes to feature I swear the week after the last event is complete. My boss is a Planner; yes that’s with a capital P.
I have a love-hate relationship with this event.
Mostly because I’m not the biggest fan of the recipes we showcase. Not to say that they’re not edible, but my boss and I differ on a few elements of culinary teachings especially in the realm of diabetes education. I like to think she’s a little old school in her use of cream of something casserole dishes, no fat or low fat dairy products and don’t get me started on the use of artificial sweeteners. Her favorite is sucralose ie Splenda. I swear it goes in anything and everything.
I on the other hand, want appetizers, sides and main courses to have a huge nutritional punch not just be low fat or low carbs. I also prefer full on fat desserts but just in smaller portions.
Quality over quantity.
Yesterday my office mate which is the Diabetes Nurse Educator and myself were the recipients of several samples that my boss had slaved away at over the weekend. One was a Won ton lasagna cup. 2 sheets of won ton pressed into a muffin pan topped with your favorite lasagna fillings (lean ground beef, ricotta mixture, sauce and cheese) then baked. The wraps she found were 8g of carbs a piece, and 2 were needed to make each cup. So essentially one won ton lasagna cup was 1 carb choice (and that’s with a No Sugar Added marinara sauce. Yes they make them, but you have to look at the label closely or make your own).
Could I have eaten 3 of these bad boys?……Absolutely!
This started the lasagna debate, which is better: traditional lasagna, lasagna roll ups or the won ton way? I argued that a lasagna roll up with one sheet of lasagna ranging from 17-20g of carbs is the winner. One I think they’d be much easier and quicker to make then the won tons and two they’re easier to portion control over traditional lasagna. Even having 2 roll ups you are still shy of 3 carb choices, possibly closer to 2 depending on what noodle you use. After all, I know in my family after the first square, more gets consumed in small little sections and then before you know it just like a wine glass that keeps getting refilled before it sees empty, you never quite know how much you’ve consumed.
Now your left slurring your words AND having to unbutton the top button of your jeans. Ugh!
My office mate choose the won ton way; although after having weight loss surgery she loved the smaller portion and got full after just one.
Of course, if you just eat lasagna as a gateway to Texas Toast garlic bread or if gluten and you broke up, then skip the noodles and try the zucchini lasagna method.
So what do you think??
You keeping with tradition, rolling with the punches or venturing into new won ton territory?
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