Diabetic Eating and Veganism

There's a certain part of the blogging- nay, the internet world- that I have long admired. Almost daily I have bathed (to a shameful extent!) in the posts issuing forth from the great minds who, in my mind, drive the movement. Do I speak of great matters? Do I hint at issues of the heart or soul?

Nay. I speak of earthly things (with, I think, some potential spiritual connection); I speak of something which I lack the wisdom and love to properly utilize myself without slipping into shallow gluttony, literally. You see, I speak of food blogging.

I LOVE FOOD. I am very, very glad that God made us organisms that eat. What doesn't make me glad, though, is that so much of what is ate is derived from animal life. What also doesn't make me glad is that now eating is a guessing game of insulin vs. blood sugar vs. exercise. Thus, I wish to make a feeble attempt at providing a look into my VERY INDIVIDUAL (DIABETICS, PLEASE, BE CAREFUL; I am just a teenaged girl and a fool at that) diet in the hopes that perhaps (at least on occasion) a vegan meal might be enjoyed which will not send one into DKA or into an A1C in the 8s or above.

Today I think I shall comment upon snacks and dessert.

As a food lover, I like desserts. I also like variety (which is good; it helps those with veg diets get a wider variety of nutrients and vitamins), so I like snacks. Now that I have diabetes, most- but not all- of these snacks are 30g or less in usable and relatively low in calories. Here's a few of my favorites, sans photos, because I am terrible at photography.

Snacks

• 2 tbsp hummus with cucumber (very low GI, only 15g or so usable carb)
• Raw cashews, almonds, walnuts, pistachios, or sunflower seeds ( Range from 2-10g usable carb, plus they have lots of fiber and protein).
• Small apple, pear, peach, or plum (10-15g carb depending on size and fruit)
• Celery and unsweetened nut butter (childish, but I'm learning to love it; I often add a few chocolate chips on top. Typically 5-10g carb)
• Unsweetened or lightly sweetened soy/almond/coconut milk (1-10g carb per cup; soymilk has best profile, really)
• Small bowl of unsweetened cereal, like puffed millet, with unsweetened almond milk (approx. 10g usable carb)
• Builder Bars (these are no as low in carb; they're at about 25g per bar. If I can take that, I eat the whole thing; otherwise, I split it. It's very high in protein and vitamins)

Desserts*

• So Delicious' NO SUGAR ADDED COCONUT MILK "ICE CREAM" tops my list because it is phenomenal that a vegan product exists that is sweetened naturally yet has only 10g usable carb for serving. THANK YOU, SO DELICIOUS!
• Banana "ice cream." This is nothing more than a frozen small banana with 1/2 cup of a nut/soy milk blended in. Cocoa powder can make this into chocolate "ice cream." (This has about 25g usable carb per serving; if protein powder or flaxseed meal is added, the GI is lowered)
• Small banana slathered in nut butter (about 25g usable carb per serving; you can also mash it together)
• Coconut milk sugar-free pudding (this isn't very healthy, but... I took a cup and a half or so (your choice, really) of full-fat, canned coconut milk and mixed it with sugar free chocolate pudding mix and let it sit in the fridge. VERY creamy... Yet it has aspartame :\)
• Fresh fruit in smallish amounts (This varies widely in carb counts)

* I do not include anything with agave nectar because 1. I am too poor to buy it, and 2. it's not that suitable for diabetics... Or, at least, it is no less suitable than regular sugar.

I have yet to really experiment with what can be done with stevia, xylitol, and other lower carb baking/sweetening alternatives. Maybe one day I shall, and maybe then I can report on some neat recipes.