21+ lemonade

Today was a perfect combination of productiveness (cleaned the apartment, laundry, med school applications), great company and a delicious Martha Stewart drink. Suffice to say... it was a wonderful Sunday of Memorial Day weekend.

The drink of the day was Martha's Vodka-Thyme Lemonade , one of the most refreshing drinks I have ever tasted. All it took was some Splenda (my go-to sugar substitute) and water simple syrup, plenty of lemon juice and a few sprigs of thyme and within minutes I was drinking with a good friend on my roof deck for the first time this season.

Despite the bug bites, I must say this was a glorious night!

Recipe:

Ingredients

• 2 cups sugar
• 12 sprigs fresh thyme, plus more for garnish
• 4 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice, about 24 lemons
• 2 cups vodka

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, combine 2 cups water with the sugar and thyme; bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat; let cool to room temperature.
   
2. Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a large glass measuring cup; discard thyme. You should have 2 cups syrup. Cover with plastic; chill.
   
3. In a large serving pitcher, stir together lemon juice,

Nutty

A few weeks ago, one of my favorite surgeons and a fellow pre-diabetic ordered me some peanut flour. Peanut flour is a GREAT flour substitute - it is gluten free, high in protein and low calories. Today, I decided to put it to the test.

I wanted to start slow, it case something went horribly wrong. I picked Martha's Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies. I made some fairly major substitutions to make it good for my blood sugar and my body... and it worked out! I liked the peanut and chocolate taste together and they were really light and cakey. My first experience with peanut flour was a success.

Recipe and instructions (from Martha Stewart and all substitutions by ME!):

These cookies are crispy at the edges, chewy in the center, and loaded with two kinds of chocolate. Feel free to add 2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans to the dough.

• Prep Time 10 minutes
• Total Time 45 minutes, plus chilling
• Yield Makes 24

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled) - I substituted 1.5 cups peanut flour and 1.5 cups whole wheat flour - as both of these are dryer than white flour, I figured this would be enough
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder - I substituted with baking soda and creme of tarter
• 2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature - I substituted one cup of stick vegetable margarine and one cup of olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar - I substituted 1 cup agave syrup, as this is sweeter than sugar this was enough
• 1 cup granulated sugar - I substituted 1 cup of Splenda
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups milk chocolate chips
• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped - I omitted this, because I didn't want anything too chocolatey this time around

Directions

1. In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
   
2. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugars on medium-high until light and fluffy, 6 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-low and beat in eggs, one at a time. Beat in vanilla. Mix in flour mixture just until incorporated; fold in chocolate chips and chunks.
   
3. Using a 1/4-cup ice-cream scoop or a large spoon, drop dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet (you should have 24) and refrigerate 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Arrange 6 unbaked cookies, 3 inches apart, on each of two parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until edges are light golden brown, 17 to 18 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool. Bake remaining dough using new parchment.
   

Dressing up

As a frequent pre-diabetic necessitated salad eater, I am constantly on the lookout for new salad dressings that will make what has become ordinary just a little bit extraordinary.

I found a great option that not only tasted fabulous, but was a great way to use up some of those chives I have been trying to get rid of. Martha's Chive Vinaigrette was just what the doctor ordered.


And it was super simple. I just mixed in some chopped chives, dijon mustard, red wine vinegar water and Splenda, which I substituted for the honey the recipe called for. Once I mixed these together, I combined in some olive oil, gradually mixing so that the dressing combined correctly.


I decided to serve the dressing with my favorite salad staple: quinoa. I love quinoa because it makes a normal salad much more filling, enough for a large lunch that will tide me over for my long days from work to school. I added in carrots, grape tomatoes and cucumber to top it off.

The result was just the salad revamp I was craving. Easy enough to pack for work the next day, but different enough to keep me just a little bit on my toes.

Recipe (from marthastewart.com):

Ingredients

 Makes 1/2 cup

• 1/4 cup minced chives
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon water
• 2 teaspoons honey
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

1. In a small bowl, whisk together all the ingredients except the oil.
2. Slowly add the oil, whisking vigorously, until the vinaigrette is emulsified. The vinaigrette will keep, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Read more at Wholeliving.com: Chive Vinaigrette

A crunchy snack

The hardest part of my new low-carb diet is definitely going to be having small, appropriate meals often throughout the day. I absolutely love the idea of grazing often, but I need to find crunchy, satisfying and portable foods that I can eat throughout the day of work.

Martha has an awesome section on her website where she features snacks that are under 200 calories. I decided on something crunchy, and the first recipe looked like it would completely do the trick!

I mixed together walnuts and almonds - both healthy nuts that are on my approved list of foods. I combined these nuts with flaxseeds, quinoa, and sunflower seeds, which is a perfect combination of complex carbs. I whisked these ingredients together with some egg whites and added in cayenne, cumin and cinnamon. To top it off, I used a mix of splenda and water as a low-sugar alternative to the honey Martha used in her recipe.

Once baked in the oven, the nut mix was a filling, healthy, crunchy snack that I am sure will help me beat the hunger I sometimes experience in the middle of the day. I plan on packing it little ziplocs and bringing it to work with me every day as a nice substitute to a carb-loaded snack.

RECIPE

Mix 3 cups whole nuts with 1/4 cup each flaxseeds, quinoa, and sunflower seeds (bottom left in photo). In a separate bowl, whisk 2 egg whites with 2 tablespoons honey, 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt, and 1/4 teaspoon each cayenne, cumin, and cinnamon. Toss with nut mix.

Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet; bake at 325 degrees until dry, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Scrape from pan while cooling, to avoid sticking. Makes 16 servings (178 calories each).