As a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator, I’ve often heard my patients tell me how they are missing their favorite foods when diagnosed with diabetes.
One of the meals most people miss is pasta since eating a bowl of pasta for someone with diabetes could result in hyperglycemia.
Now, having diabetes doesn’t mean you need to avoid the good things in life (such as pasta), you just need to make certain modifications to ensure the dish won’t have negative effects on your blood sugar levels.
If you don’t have enough time and need to meal prep and are searching for a diabetes-friendly crock pot recipe, here you’ll find the best pasta replacement that won’t negatively affect your glucose levels.
One of the benefits of this meal is that you can make a batch of it and put it in the freezer.
So, next time you arrive home from work, tired, hungry, and want comfort food that won’t affect your sugar levels, you can take it out of the freezer only to reheat and eat.
Ingredients
- 4 ounces of ground turkey
- 1 cup of natural tomato sauce
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon oregano powder
- ¼ teaspoon basil powder
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ¼ spaghetti squash (375 grams)
- 1 oz Parmesan cheese grated
Step-By-Step-Guide
- Add the turkey, tomato sauce, and olive oil to the crockpot.
- Break up the turkey into smaller pieces.
- Add the spices and mix well.
- Place the spaghetti squash in the middle of the crockpot.
- Set the slow cooker on low and cook for 5-6 hours (or until the squash is tender).
- Remove from the crockpot and transfer to a cutting board.
- Remove the seeds, then using a fork, scrape the squash into strands.
- Finish cooking the sauce for another 30 minutes if you want it to thicken more.
- If you are happy with the consistency of the sauce, serve it along with the spaghetti squash.
- Add some parmesan cheese on top.
Nutritional Information
| Calories | 464 |
| Carbs | 42.8g |
| Fiber | 9.3g |
| Net carbs: | 33.5g |
| Protein | 34.2g |
| Fats | 19.9g |
Other Tips To Make This Diabetes-Friendly Crock Pot Recipe
The previous recipe provides a balanced amount of calories and macros (carbs, proteins, and fats).
Keep in mind that it is enough for one person. If you want to make several portions in the crockpot, you can multiply the recipe by the number of servings you want to make.
While spaghetti squash is low in carbs, if you want to reduce the carbs even more, you can replace it with zucchini noodles or kohlrabi noodles.
Finally, remember you can always add more non-starchy vegetables on the side. Include a nice side salad to add more nutrients and fiber. This can help increase fullness levels without having to go for seconds.
Conclusion
Having diabetes doesn’t mean you need to miss out on the good things in life. It just means you need to find the right type 2 diabetes recipes.
Diabetes crock pot recipes are ideal for those who don’t have a lot of time to spend in the kitchen but still want to have delicious recipes.
Using the crock pot to make spaghetti squash can be a good replacement for a bowl of pasta that won’t spike your blood sugar levels.
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