One of the biggest excuses my diabetic patients have for not sticking to their meal plans is a lack of time. I understand how busy we all are, but straying from your diet can lead to many diabetic complications that, in turn, can compromise your foot health, even putting you at risk of amputation.
Being busy is no excuse for not eating correctly—we just have to get creative! I personally love using the slow cooker. Take 10 minutes to prepare a simple recipe, then your meal cooks all day while you go about living your life. When you get home, you can sit down to a fresh-cooked, already prepped, diabetic-friendly meal. Everybody wins!
Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup from Diabetic Lifestyle
Ingredients- 1 3-pound whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
- 2 large onions: one should be peeled and quartered and one should be small diced
- 3 large carrots: one should be peeled and quartered and two should be small diced
- 3 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
- ½ teaspoon crushed dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon crushed dried marjoram
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 quart canned no-salt, no-fat chicken broth
- 1 quart boiling water
- 6 ounces medium-wide noodles (cooked separately)
- 4 ounces button mushrooms, sliced
- ½ pound fresh spinach, well washed and large stems removed
- 2 celery stalks, diced small
Directions
- Rinse and pat dry chicken. Place in a 5-quart or larger crockery slow cooker. Place the peeled and quarted onion, peeled and quartered carrot, and parsley around chicken pieces. Sprinkle with thyme, marjoram, and pepper.
- Add chicken broth, cover, and cook on low for 7 to 8 hours or on high for 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
- When done cooking, remove and discard the onion, carrot, and parsley. Skim off and discard all surface fat from the broth.
- Remove the chicken from broth and cool for about 10 minutes, until cool enough to handle. Remove and discard the chicken skin and bones. Shred chicken.
- Add shredded chicken back to the slow cooker and bring to a simmer. Add diced onion, diced carrots, diced celery, mushroom, and spinach. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook noodles according to package directions.
- Just before serving, add cooked noodles to soup and season with salt and pepper (to taste).
