Saturday, August 15, 2009

Fake Shake Recipe for Gestational Diabetes Diet

My kids love pretty much anything in the blender - which means along with my homemade salsa and spaghetti sauce they love smoothies and 'shakes.' With the summer temperatures soaring, they begged me recently for a smoothie. What I made for them was a fairly healthy kid-friendly smoothie - low fat milk, crushed ice, frozen bananas, and chocolate syrup for sweetness. While this is great for growing, athletic kids, unfortunately having more than a sip of their bananna-laden, chocolate syrup-sweetened smoothie is not ideal for someone like me with gestational diabetes.

So, not content with my ice water after making their smoothies, I decided I needed to make a 'fake shake' milk shake that was more gestational diabetic friendly. Alter this to fit your tastes!


Fake Shake for Gestational Diabetes Diet (1 carb option)

*Start with one cup of skim milk
*Add 1/2 to 1 cup of ice to blender depending on ic-y you like your shakes or smoothies
*Add a sprinkle of cinnamon, and/or nutmeg or pumpkin pie spice
*Add about a teaspoon of vanilla
*Add 1-2 packets splenda or other sugar free sweetener of your choice
*Blend approx. 2 minutes using ice crush, smoothie, or shake setting on your blender
*Enjoy!

What you get is a yummy, creamy fake shake that is light and minimal on carbs.

If this is too bland for you, you can also alter it to get different tastes. One option I like is using a teaspoon or so of sugar free jam or jelly. This gives it a big flavor punch, especially the berry variety jams, like blackberry.

You can also add in a small amount of frozen fruit to boost nutritional and add flavor. Blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries are great choices as a whole cup of these fruits is only one carb choice. Use a quarter cup of fruit and the additional carb count is very minimal.

You can also try a sugar free chocolate or other syrup instead of the splenda for taste, or substitute light vanilla or fruit flavored yogurt for a slightly thicker frozen yogurt shake.

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