Taking Control Of Your Diabetes

10/10/202110/10/2021

The Happy Diabetic’s Iowa- Style Apricot and Onion Pork Chops Recipe

Several years ago, I met Chef Robert Lewis, aka the Happy Diabetic, at a Taking Control Of Your Diabetes (TCOYD) Expo. His upbeat attitude and friendly demeanor drew me to him immediately as he showed a captive audience how to make healthy meals at home. He has appeared on numerous Divabetic podcasts, including this year’s Divabetic Mysteries: A Christmas Peril.

Chef Robert was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes after a vacation in Colorado in 1998. When he was traveling back home, he felt super tired and sluggish, very thirsty, and had to urinate at almost every rest stop. Chef Robert knew something was wrong. He just wasn’t sure exactly what it was. So a few weeks later, he visited his doctor, and that’s when he was diagnosed with diabetes.

” I was in denial for at least six months, and things were not going well for me,” he said in an interview with Beyond Type 2 diabetes. “Once I took ownership in it, really, then some amazing things started to happen – I started to focus. I was able to seek out people with the right information. And I just slowly started making some lifestyle changes.”

From there, Chef Robert started attending diabetes education classes and putting his culinary degree to work, creating recipes that tasted good and were actually healthy.

He adds, “I started creating some recipes and worked with some really good dietitians who helped me with some of the nutritional components.”

Iowa- Style Apricot and Onion Pork Chops Recipe By The Happy Diabetic

Ingredients

4 5oz 1/4 inch bone-in pork chops

1/s cup of whole dried apricots and or apples peeled and sliced

1/2 cup of sliced white or yellow onions

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 Tablespoon chopped garlic

pinch of rosemary

Fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat the sauté pan. Place 1 T olive oil in the pan and heat to medium. Place the seasoned pork chops (seasoned with salt and pepper) and cook for 2-3 min. Add the garlic, onions and the whole dried apricots and or apples peeled and sliced. cook of 4-6 minutes covered. spoon the apples and or apricots and onions over the pork chops. Cook covered until the internal temp is between 155-165 degrees.

Serves 4

Nutrition Information: Cal: 290, Total fat:12.67g, Total Carbs: 29.83, Protein: 17.29

We’re talking about how to get over the fear and anxiety about speaking publically about your diabetes and related health issues (including depression and sleep apnea) with musical inspiration from Carly Simon.

Grammy winner Carly Simon has recorded over 30 albums, won two Grammies, and an Academy Award. Carly Simon managed to accomplish her dreams by overcoming severe stuttering and painful migraines to achieve her success. When I was a young child,” Carly Simon has revealed, “I had a stammer. And the only time it went away was when I sang. One day, my mother said to me, ‘Don’t speak it, sing it.’ And that’s what I did.”

Leading advocates share their journeys and tools that help them: FreeStyle Libre 2 App, CPAP machines, and a new line of baked good mixes, TruEats.

The FreeStyle Libre system measures glucose levels through a small sensor applied to the back of your upper arm. It provides real-time glucose readings for up to 10 days, both day and night.

Sleep Apnea is a potentially serious sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts. If you snore loudly and feel tired even after a full night’s sleep, you might have sleep apnea.

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy is a common treatment for obstructive sleep apnea. A CPAP machine uses a hose and mask or nosepiece to deliver constant and steady air pressure.

TruEats Baking Mixes have 1g of Sugar or Less + Complex (Good) Carbs for great-tasting, steady energy that’s diabetic friendly. Guests include Marten Carlson, Alysse Dalessandro Santiago, Surinder and Daven Kumar, and Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDCES.

October’s Divabetic podcast features music from Carly Simon’s Coming Around Again album courtesy of SONY Music.

08/31/201908/31/2019

Chef Robert Lewis Stars in Divabetic’s Mystery Podcast: Gingerbread Men Prefer Blondes

Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic’ stars in Divabetic’s 6th Annual Diabetes Mystery Podcast, Gingerbread Men Prefer Blondes on Tuesday, September 10, 2019, 6 -7 PM, EST. Chef Robert portrays Former Councilman Skeeter Jones who introduced legislation on the Sugar Tax. The Sugar Tax is a tax or surcharge designed to reduce consumption of drinks with added sugar. Drinks covered under a Sugar Tax often include carbonated soft drinks, sports drinks, fruit juices and energy drinks.

The tax is a matter of public debate in many countries and beverage producers like Coca-Cola often oppose it. Advocates such as national medical associations and the World Health Organization believe the tax will discourage unhealthy diets and offset the growing economic costs of obesity

In a recent profile on the Everyday Diabetes website, Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic’ admitted that he feared the worst for his own love of great food following his diagnosis with Type 2 Diabetes in 1998.

“I suspected that my days of good eating were over,” Lewis writes on his blog. “Yet, as I worked through my ups and downs, I came to realize that the selection of foods I could and should eat was vast and included many of my favorites. This motivated me to attempt to create delicious, diabetic-friendly dishes that were also easy to prepare.

Today he’s a man on the go! is a man on the go. When he’s not working as a director of training for 60 restaurants in the Midwest, he’s traveling around the country as a keynote speaker for Taking Control of Your Diabetes and/or hosting his own podcast, ‘The Happy Diabetic Kitchen Podcast’! Read more about Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic’ in Diabetes Health Monitor magazine.

This year’s Divabetic Diabetes Mystery Podcast, Gingerbread Men Prefer Blondes, takes place at the fictitiously decadent world-renowned Gingerbread Men Cookie Baking Competition in New York’s Central Park Zoo. Mr. Divabetic’s culinary misadventures continue in this year’s escapade as he enters the competition with headless cookies and pureed kale hot cocoa for the judges to sample. As if this dreadful combination wasn’t bad enough to land him at the bottom of the throwdown, his mother, Mama Rose Marie, is accused of poisoning one of the celebrity judges. Things go from bad to worse when the snake phobic Mr. Divabetic hears about the giant python’s escape.

Now, the happy healthcare host must decide to face his fear of snakes and recipe rejection or throw in his apron and risk getting caught up in another murder investigation. Can Mr. Divabetic and his team of amateur sleuths hunt down the real killer and get Mama Rose Marie out of jail? Will he be the next murder victim? Can he ever create an edible recipe?

The cast of Gingerbread Men Prefer Blondesfeatures Mama Rose Marie, Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes, the Charlie’s Angels of Outreach (Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDE and MaryAnn Nicolay BA, DTR), Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic’, Seveda Williams, Trisha Artman, Catherine Schuller, Wendy Radford, Dave Jones, Lorraine Brooks and Max ‘Mr. Divabetic’ Szadek.

Throughout this podcast we will be featuring music from the original Broadway cast recording of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes featuring the iconic Carol Channing courtesy of SONY MUSIC.

TUNE IN

05/22/201905/22/2019

The Happy Diabetic’s Healthy Burger Topping Recipes

Walk into any Memorial Day cookout, and you’re likely to find burgers on the grill—few foods are as synonymous with grilling in the US.

From Italian-spiced Bruschetta toppings to South of the Border Salsa fixings, Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic’ shares his favorite burger topping recipes for every taste this Memorial Day

“Ground chuck is my go-to. And it best has some fat!” says Dr. Chef Robert Lewis. “Ground chuck without fat means dry burgers. Let’s not go there. I tend to buy 80/20 ground chuck. 80% lean meant. 20% fat. Next, let’s add some flavor. Keep it simple, remember it’s all about turning ordinary ingredients into something extraordinary”

Chef Robert’s The Burger of LOVE Recipe

Ingredients (2 pounds of ground chuck):

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

1/4 tsp salt and pepper

1/2 TBS onion powder

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce.

1 Tablespoon of French style mustard

1 raw egg to bind.

Directions: Mix all ingredients in a bowl. DO NOT OVER MIX all the ingredient. Divide the mixture into 8 balls. Then flatten it into a patty by compressing it with your hands. Make sure the patties are even this will help the meat to cook evenly cook evenly.

SERVING SIZE: This recipe creates about 8 patties. If you need less adjust recipe as needed!

The Happy Diabetic’s Temperature Guide: It’s easy to overcook burgers. I like to pull the burgers off the grill at around 155°F the carryover cooking will them past the 160°F we are aiming for. To take the guesswork out of cooking, I use a Thermometer ($10 .00)

California Dreaming Burger Toppings Recipe

2 thin slices avocado

2 T Fruit salsa

2 T shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Fruit salsa Ingredients:

1 Cup Tomato (small diced)

¼ Cup Cilantro (chopped)

1 Cup red Onion (small diced)

2 Teaspoons Lime Juice

1 cup diced kiwi, pineapple, strawberries mango

Caprese of LOVE Burger Toppings Recipe

1 ounce fresh buffalo mozzarella

1 t drizzle extra-virgin olive oil

2 slices of Roma tomato

2 basil leaf

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Southern Hospitably Burger Toppings Recipe

1 large cooked over easy egg

1 T fresh salsa

1/4 cup green leaf lettuce

1 T queso fresco

Fresh Salsa Burger Toppings Recipe

1 cup fresh tomatoes, diced

½ cup corn kernels, fresh (or frozen)

½ cup onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 T fresh squeezed lime juice

2 T fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Salt (to taste)

Not Too Much Sun Burger Toppings Recipe

2 T chopped sun-dried tomatoes

1/4 cup fresh spinach

1 ounce goat cheese

Tomato Pesto Lovers Burger Toppings Recipe

1 t of pesto

2 Roma tomato slices

1 T crumbled feta

5-6 leafs of fresh spinach

Bruschetta Burger Toppings Recipe

1 T olive oil

1 clove garlic chopped

1 pint grape tomatoes sliced in half or 1 medium tomato, diced

1/4 cup onion diced

6-8 large basil leaves chopped

1T Balsamic Vinegar

salt (to taste)

Directions

Stir together olive oil, chopped garlic, tomatoes, onion, and basil leaves. Add salt and top the burger.

Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic’ has made it his mission to not only to be an ambassador of positivity for himself and his family (which includes 3 children and 6 grandchildren) but to also create amazing things in the kitchen for people of all walks of life to enjoy.

In a recent profile on the Everyday Diabetes website, Chef Robert Lewis admitted that he wasn’t going to let his diagnosis with Type 2 Diabetes get him down.

“When I started this personal journey as a type 2 in 1998, I determined right then and there that diabetes was not going to change my positive outlook on life! I have always looked for ways to bring joy to others,” says Chef Robert Lewis. “ As The Happy Diabetic, I work to bring hope as well as happy, healthy lifestyle strategies to people living with diabetes! Putting a positive spin on things will always help us get through the tough times together!”

Now The Happy Diabetic’s a man on a mission! When he’s not working as a director of training for 60 restaurants in the Midwest, he’s traveling around the country as a keynote speaker for Taking Control of Your Diabetes and/or hosting his own podcast, ‘The Happy Diabetic Kitchen Podcast’!

Mr. Divabetic hosts the new hilarious culinary podcast, Serve, Taste or Trash! Game. A delicious combination of crazy food challenges and fresh perspectives on the latest food trends.

Mr. Divabetic discusses easy ways to go from ‘Farm To Fabulous’ with co-founders, Debra Moser and Mitchell Berliner of Central Farm Markets and one of the market’s featured vendors.

Our Serve, Taste or Trash! Game challenge features jerusalem artichokes, kale and oranges. One lucky contestant must decide which choice they’d serve, which choice they’d taste and which one they’d trash. But will they regret their decision after hearing our guest culinary wizard’s mouthwatering recipes for each choice? Can low-sodium foods rate high in taste? Stay tuned.

Special guests include Wellness and Diabetes Coach, Ginger Vieira, the author of “Your Diabetes Science Experiment” and “Emotional Eating with Diabetes,” Co-founders of Central Farm Markets, Debra Moser and MeatCrafters owner, Mitchell Berliner, Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic’, the ‘Queen of the Green’ Miss Aida Romaine and Laura from Chattanooga, TN who is living with diabetes.

This program aims to encourage kids of all ages to become more open-minded eaters.

Tag: Taking Control Of Your Diabetes