Shred Salads

Well, I've gone from being a salad hater to a salad maniac. Dad and Soul Sister still look at me with disbelief whenever I make and consume a salad.

Soul Sister's surprise took place Tuesday night at Ryan's restaurant. I met her and her friend there, and let them get their plates first. Then I went to get mine. I had no idea what I was going to put together, but I was going to try to be a good girl and eat some greens. I got some shredded iceberg lettuce, shredded carrots (thank goodness it wasn't "carrot salad" with that icky sweet dressing), some raw broccoli, a cherry tomato, pepperoni, diced ham, diced turkey, and some fine-shredded cheese. I topped it with Italian dressing and vinegar.

LOL! I'll never forget the look on her face when she said, "I should have brought a camera. In the 20 years I've known you, I've never seen you willingly eat rabbit food."

My response was, "It's amazing what three little words will do to your perception of the matter. Her friend looked at me with a puzzled look on his face, so I explained to him what the three words were: you ... have ... diabetes.

Why did those words have such an impact on me? Well, my former co-worker, who has diabetes, is having dialysis three times a week because of acute kidney failure; she's having a rough time and complications dealing with the dialysis. My family member Drusilla is diabetic, and she's dealing with total acute failure in one kidney, poor circulation in her legs, and possible diabetic neuropathy. After seeing what these two women are going through, you bet your a$$ I'm going to sit up and take notice.

Last night, I was still fondly remembering the salad I had the night before. I wanted to use spicier meat than the tuna I had been using. Then I had what I thought would be a brilliant idea: shred a can of Hormel Spam. Whoops! Not such a great idea. For one thing, it doesn't shred too well in my food processor. Second, the texture is too mushy for the mouth feel of a salad in which nearly all the contents are shredded and/or diced into small pieces. Foods like tuna, salmon, chicken, lean pork, imitation crab meat, etc. would be better suited. I may take the remaining Spam and brown it in a skillet before I add it to another salad, but at least I know what NOT to do again.

Before I went to my water aerobics class this evening, I experimented some more with my salad mixture. This time, I diced up some pepperoni and imitation crab meat and added it to the lettuce, carrots, broccoli, and cheese mixture. In addition, I took an empty salad dressing bottle, a brand new bottle of Italian salad dressing, and poured 1/2 the contents into the other bottle. Then I took apple cider vinegar and poured some in each bottle. This would dilute the oil contained in the dressing without compromising the flavor too much. Then I shook up one of the bottles and poured some of the dressing onto the salad. Oh man, did I hit the flavor jackpot!! I made enough for three meals plus enough left over to eat for supper.

I check my blood sugar two hours after I eat these salads, and my blood sugar does go down. However, I can't seem to get it lower than 130, but I have done better about trying to keep it from going over 200, so I am making progress. I'm not cutting out carbs, but I have cut them down considerably. There are a few exceptions, like when I have my old-fashioned popcorn with a regular Coca-cola or when I eat out.

Speaking of eating out, it's getting to where I'm avoiding fast food restaurants. I think about the french fries and other fried food, and how I feel after I eat the food. You learn to tune into what you're body is telling you when you start eating better. Then you realize why you've been feeling tired and listless. I love fried potatoes, but it does make my blood sugar go up. All-you-can-eat buffets are bad, too, not necessarily because people (especially me) tend to overeat, but their food is so full of sodium. I get so bloated afterward I can hardly move. I've been doing better in my food choices. I need to work on the amount, but like the nurse who advised me on handling my diabetes said ... I need to make these changes gradually or I won't be able to stick with them.

So far, so good ...