Diabetes Diet #4: Harvest Lunch – A Picnic Menu

Diabetes Recipes:

Autumn Squash Soup
Swiss Chard Tart
Fried Green Tomatoes
Orchard Apple Bake

Anatomy Of A Hypo And A New Season For Good Diabetes Care

Some things in our diabetes diaries are hard to forget. For me, it’s something that happened 8 Septembers ago, but the memory still pops up around this time every year. I was a guest at an ADA (American Diabetes Association) “volunteers luncheon” at a fancy New York hotel. At the appropriate time, I took a shot of insulin to cover what I anticipated to be a big meal. It wasn’t. I, Miss Picky Eater, didn’t like any of the menu choices. I rationalized that I’d be leaving shortly and would eat at home.

I remember walking down the busy subway steps (a daily ritual for native New Yorkers) and finding, oddly, that things had changed. I couldn’t remember which train to take and jumped on an uptown train to Harlem instead of downtown to Greenwich Village. A heavyset Afro-American man sitting near where I was standing, tapped my arm and asked if I wanted to sit down.I became very macho and refused the seat, thinking — hmmp! he thinks I ‘m not in good shape. Does he know I ran a mini marathon last week. I wondered if I should I tell him, as the A express screeched and rocked, speeding along dark winding tunnels, taking me further and further away from my downtown home, and deeper and deeper into a hypoglycemic reaction.

Finally, at 125th Street, I got off the train and switched back to a very crowded downtown train, where I stood pinned near the doors to get tousled and trampled by the rushing crowds. At last I heard the conductor announce my stop. When I came up from the hole in the ground, I didn’t recognize anything. I saw a “Pizzeria Uno” restaurant and thought, maybe I was in Chicago. I wondered through the flutter of noisy pulsating streets, not actually feeling my feet on the ground. It was as though I was invisible.

Next scenario, was someone shouting orders to drink more juice Where was I? Who was this person? I was home in my apartment and it was my dear husband, Danny, force-feeding me a glass of fruit juice. It took awhile to shake the feeling of confusion and disorientation.

Hypoglycemia is not a good trip to take. When I eventually regained my senses and came back to the real world, I noticed a gigantic butternut squash sitting on the table. Apparently I found it, or picked it somewhere along my journey. But 8 years have passed and I still don’t know where or how I wound up with that 5 lb. squash. I did however, learn a few good lessons from that hypoglycemic episode.

The most important lesson was that, in the case of diabetes, timing is always of the essence. Whether you take shots, medication or wear a pump, the time line of balancing food and insulin must always be respected. Violating that rhythm can lead to disaster.Another lesson that has stuck with me from butternut squash day is to always carry a glucose meter and candy or glucose tabs. This simple ounce of prevention which I had been educated about in the past, took hold when reality struck.The third lesson learned form that day was, what to do with a big September butternut squash. I created a soup recipe that I continue to use.

Since now is the perfect time for autumn squashes, I hope you check out Recipe Central for it, and with a nice Fall lunch menu. September and October are great months for a bicycle ride or hike along country roads to view the magic of matire changing colors. Pack a picnic to take along. Oh, and don’t forget your meter and a few glucose tabs