Grilled Chicken with Avocado-Basil Sauce

Living in an apartment in a city where cooking on a grill requires a special city permit (only in New York!), I’ve learned to love my Lodge cast iron grill skillet. I use it all the time for quick dinners like this one made with marinated and grilled chicken breasts with a sauce. This Avocado-Basil Sauce is fantastic with fish, shrimp, or scallops, too.

Grilled Chicken with Avocado-Basil Sauce

Makes 4 servings

Chicken & Marinade

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

2 teaspoons grated lime zest

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

4 (4-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Avocado-Basil Sauce

1 ripe medium avocado, halved, pitted, and peeled

3/4 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves

3 tablespoons lime juice

1 slender green onion, thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon hot sauce

1/4 to 1/3 cup cold water

Lime wedges

To make the chicken, combine the basil, lime zest and juice, olive oil, and garlic in a shallow glass dish. Add the chicken and turn to coat with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 6 to 8 hours.

Preheat the grill or a cast iron grill pan to medium heat.

Remove the chicken from the marinade and discard the marinade. Pat the chicken dry and sprinkle with the salt. Brush the grill rack or the grill pan with a small amount of canola oil. Place the chicken on the grill rack or in the grill pan and grill, turning occasionally, until the juices of the chicken run clear, 8 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, to make the sauce, combine the avocado, basil, lime juice, green onion, salt, and hot sauce in a food processor. Add 1/4 cup of the water and pulse to combine. Process the sauce until smooth, adding additional water, 1 tablespoon at a time, if needed. You can make the sauce up a day ahead. Place a sheet of plastic wrap on the surface of the sauce to prevent it from browning and refrigerate.

Serve the chicken with the Avocado-Basil Sauce and lime wedges.

Each serving: 6 g carbohydrate, 225 calories, 12 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 63 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 24 g protein, 273 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 1/2; Exchanges: 1/2 carb, 3 lean protein, 2 fat

Pile It On: Low Carb Veggies

If you’ve had diabetes for a while, or even if you’ve only been recently diagnosed, you’re probably already tired of your diabetes educator, your doctor, or your dietitian preaching to you about portion control.

Your health care providers are probably so concerned about getting the message across that you should only have a single cookie, a 3-ounce portion of meat or poultry, and high calorie oils and butter in moderation that they didn’t tell you what you can eat all you want of: non-starchy vegetables.

These include all lettuces and leafy greens, cucumbers, radishes, cauliflower, broccoli, beets, summer squash, green beans, and lots, lots more. You can find a full list here.

The American Diabetes Association calls these the non-starchy vegetables and they say that a serving is 1/2 cup of cooked vegetable or 1 cup of the raw vegetable. This serving size has about 5 grams of carbohydrate, so unless you’re loading up on other carbs at the same meal, you can eat two or three servings of these at a time.

Not only are these choices nearly a free ride when it comes to carbs, they are low in calories, high in fiber, and all of them have healthful antioxidants. If you’re out of ideas for preparing vegetables, check out the website FruitsandVeggiesMoreMatters.org. The site has more than 1000 recipes for fruits and vegetables in an easily searchable database.

Go to Eating Well magazine and Cooking Light magazine too and search for vegetable recipes. These two magazines do a fantastic job of creating great tasting recipes that are easy to prepare. I recommend them for people with diabetes also because all their recipes have the nutrition information included, so you’ll know how much of the dish can fit into your diet.

When was the last time someone told you to eat more of anything? Now, get yourself to the farmers’ market and start cooking.  

Meatless Monday Bean Burger

If you’re participating in Meatless Monday (or even if you’re not), here’s a burger with so much flavor, you’ll enjoy it any day of the week. I eat bean-based burgers often and love to play around with the seasonings. For this one, I sautéed the jalapeno, onion, and garlic to soften them slightly before adding them to the other ingredients.

A potato masher is the best tool for mashing the beans; I think a food processor grinds them too finely. I like to see a little bean in my bean burger. I used pintos for this recipe, because that’s what I had in the pantry, but black beans would work here too. These burgers will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days; just put wax paper between the patties to keep them from sticking together and cover them with plastic wrap.

A few words about buns (bread buns, that is): If you haven’t made the switch to whole wheat buns, a full-flavored recipe like this one is the perfect place to give them a try. The burger itself is so flavorful that you won’t notice the whole wheat. If you buy large buns and rolls from a bakery or from those self-serve bins at the supermarket, take them down a notch. No one needs that many carbs!  I bought the one in the photo here from the self-serve bin at my local market and I cut fully 1-inch of bun out of the middle of it!  Just saved myself a lot of carbs and calories that I never missed. If you can’t bear to throw the middles away, save them to make stuffing or bread crumbs. 

Cilantro Bean Burgers

Makes 3 servings

4 teaspoons canola oil, divided

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 cup diced onion

1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 large egg white

1/4 cup plain dry bread crumbs, preferably whole wheat

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

3 small whole wheat sandwich buns, toasted

Optional toppings: lettuce leaves, tomato slices, sweet onion slices

Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add 2 teaspoons of the oil and tilt the pan to coat the bottom. Add the jalapeño, garlic, and onion and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a dish to cool slightly.

While the vegetables cook, place the beans in a medium bowl and coarsely mash with a potato masher. Add the egg white, bread crumbs, cilantro, salt, chili powder, and cumin. Add the vegetable mixture and stir to combine. Shape the mixture into 3 patties.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and tilt the pan to coat the bottom. Add the patties and cook until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Serve in the buns, with the toppings of your choice.

Each serving:  39 g carbohydrate, 298 calories, 8 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 10 g fiber, 12 g protein, 410 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 2 1/2; Exchanges: 2 1/2 starch, 1 plant-based protein, 1 fat

Asian Chicken Salad

                Today I had a craving for a crunchy salad but I wanted something salty, too, so I made this fresh Asian Chicken Salad for lunch. The dressing and marinade are made with salty Asian fish sauce, tart lime juice, and spicy chili-garlic paste. It’s a refreshing but filling springtime lunch. If you’re watching your sodium, this salad—or anything made with Asian fish sauce—is definitely an occasional treat.

The pretty greens in my salad are from my local farmers market, from Monkshood Nursery and Gardens in Stuyvesant, New York. Any greens will work here—you can try mesclun, baby spinach, bibb lettuce, or romaine.

Asian Chicken Salad

Makes 2 servings

marinade and dressing

2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce

1 teaspoon grated lime zest

3 tablespoons lime juice

2 tablespoons cold water

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 teaspoon sugar

1 clove garlic, crushed through a press

1/4 teaspoon chili-garlic paste

salad

2 (4- to 5-ounce) boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 teaspoon canola oil

8 cherry tomatoes, halved

4 cups mixed salad greens of any type

2 radishes, thinly sliced

2 green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 carrot, peeled and shredded

1/2 of a hothouse cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced

1/2 cup fresh cilantro sprigs

To make the marinade and dressing, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until the sugar dissolves.

Place the chicken in a small shallow dish and add 2 tablespoons of the marinade. Turn the chicken to coat, cover snugly with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours. Cover and refrigerate the remaining marinade, which will be used as a dressing on the salad.

To make the salad, heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium-hgih heat. Add the canola oil and tilt the pan to coat the bottom. Remove the chicken from the marinade and discard the marinade. Place the chicken in the skillet and cook until the juices run clear, 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Transfer to a cutting board and let stand about 5 minutes.

While the chicken cooks, combine the tomatoes, greens, radishes, green onions, carrot, cucumber, and cilantro sprigs in a large bowl and toss to combine.

To serve the salads, drizzle the tomato mixture with about 2 tablespoons of the reserved marinade and toss to coat. Divide the mixture among two plates. Top evenly with the chicken. Drizzle the chicken with the reserved marinade and serve at once.  

Each serving: 12 g carbohydrate, 251 calories, 10 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 63 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 27 g protein, 1181 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 1; Exchanges: 2 vegetable, 3 lean protein, 1 1/2 fat

Best Whole Grain Crackers

        Sometimes you just crave a little crunch and if you make a smart choice, whole grain crackers can be a healthful snack. There are so many options, choosing one that’s good for you can take an hour in the cracker aisle of the supermarket.

The chart below lists my favorites, but when making a choice at your supermarket, select crackers with:

●             Whole grain as the first ingredient

●             At least 3 grams of fiber per serving

●             Less than 150 calories per serving

Avoid crackers with:

●             More than 200 milligrams of sodium per serving

●             Trans fat in the nutrition facts panel

●             Hydrogenated oil in the ingredient list

●             Sugar or other sweeteners in the ingredient list

●             Artificial colors in the ingredient list

What you choose to have with the crackers is as important as the crackers. A thin smear of peanut butter, a slender slice of cheese, or a spoonful of hummus all make healthful choices and give you a little protein to help keep hunger at bay through the afternoon.

BEST CHOICES FOR WHOLE GRAIN CRACKERS 

Brand	Serving	Carbs	Cals	Fiber	Sodium
Finn Crisp Crispbread	2 crackers	18 g	80	4 g	120 mg
Triscuit Baked  Wheat Crackers	6 crackers (these are small)	19 g	120	3 g	180 mg
Ryvita  Rye Crispbread	2 crackers	18 g	90	4 g	90 mg
Wasa Crispbread	2 crackers	20 g	80	4 g	100 mg

Photo: Vladimir Blinov

Great Find: Whole Wheat Pearl Couscous

I’ve seen whole wheat pearl couscous at my local supermarket, but just got around to trying it this weekend. I’m sold on it. It’s delicious, is a good source of fiber, and cooks in boiling water in less than 10 minutes.

This is my first experiment, but the couscous would be good not only in springtime salads such as this one, but in soups, too. It would make an easy side dish on its own tossed with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper, or you could fancy it up with sautéed onions and garlic and some fresh herbs. A great find for making healthy meals in a hurry!

Pearl Couscous and Cucumber Salad

Makes 4 servings

3/4 cup whole wheat pearl couscous

1 medium lemon

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Pinch of freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 radishes, diced

1 thin scallion, thinly sliced

1/2 of a hothouse cucumber, peeled and diced

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil and stir in the couscous. Return to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the couscous is tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold running water until cool. Drain well.

While the couscous cooks, grate the zest from the lemon and place it in a medium bowl. Squeeze the juice from the lemon and add to the zest. Add the salt and pepper, then slowly whisk in the olive oil. Add the radishes, scallion, cucumber, and parsley. Add the couscous and toss to coat. Serve at once or cover and refrigerate up to 2 days.

Each serving: 23 g carbohydrate, 149 calories, 4 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 5 g protein, 150 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 1 1/2; Exchanges: 1 1/2 starch, 1 fat

Note: Use your imagination and what’s on hand to vary this easy salad. Add canned garbanzo or cannellini beans; canned tuna or salmon; diced chicken or shrimp; diced bell pepper, fresh fennel, or summer squash; or crumbled feta cheese.