Diabetic Recipes

Good Eating Helps with Diabetes

Diabetes is perhaps the most tragic disabler of Valley residents -- but it doesn’t have to get that bad. Learning to eat right can help keep diabetes under control -- and even help prevent diabetes from developing in the first place.

Luisa Acosta, RN, BSN, CDE, a Certified Diabetes Educator with the Diabetes Education Center at Valley Baptist Medical Center-Harlingen, says the key is to eat healthy foods (such as fruits, vegetables, grains, and beans), and keep your weight down through an exercise program approved by your doctor.

As a diabetes educator, Acosta loves sharing tasty -- but healthy -- recipes with her patients, and one of her favorites is the following recipe for chicken and brown rice. This recipe was listed among the “Best of the Best” recipes by Diabetes Health Monitor, a free publication which Acosta shares with her patients.

Chicken and Brown Rice
Yield: 6 Servings

1 cup uncooked brown rice
6 skinless chicken breasts
1 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup chopped bell pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Canola oil
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
3/4 teaspoon salt
One 15-ounce can chopped tomatoes, with juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons dried raisins
2 tablespoons chopped almonds

Add the rice to 3 cups boiling water in a saucepan; cover and simmer 50 to 60 minutes.

Lightly oil a shallow baking pan.  In a preheated oven (425 degrees F), bake the chicken uncovered in the lightly oiled pan for 20 minutes.

While the rice and chicken cook, sauté the onion, pepper, and garlic in the canola oil in a skillet until tender. Add the curry powder, thyme, and salt. Stir. Add the tomatoes with their liquid and the parsley. Heat to a simmer.

Pour the sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with raisins. Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for another 25 minutes.

In another pan, toast the almonds about 15 minutes. Serve a chicken breast and rice on individual plates. Divide the sauce over the rice. Sprinkle the almonds over the chicken.

Nutritional Facts (per serving):
Starch exchange 1-1/2
Very lean meat exchange 4
Monounsaturated fat exchange 1/2
Vegetable Exchange 1

Calories 304
Carbohydrate 28 grams (g)
Fiber 3 g
Protein 30 g
Total fat 8 g
Cholesterol 73 milligrams (mg)
Sodium 469 mg.

For more information on diabetes -- including information on diabetes self-management, nutrition education, medication management, free blood sugar and blood pressure screenings, and free support groups -- call the Diabetes Education Center at Valley Baptist-Harlingen, (956) 389-1119 or Valley Baptist-Brownsville (956) 698-5512.

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