Hummus is a delicious and versatile food that has little to no impact on my blood sugar levels. This is why it's become a staple in my kitchen over the past few years when whipping up meals and snacks.
Here are some of my favorite ways to eat it that I recommend trying for anyone who wants to mix up or elevate their typical snacks and meals:
DIY charcuterie board
Who doesn't love a charcuterie board? Sure, it's trendy but it's also tasty and never out of style.
Hummus is a great dip to add to your smorgasbord. Make your charcuterie platter fancy or keep it simple. If it's date night and you want to be a little bougie—and I usually do—add some goat or brie cheese, a decadent nut mix, herbs, and your favorite veggies to round it out. If you're a pescetarian like me, you may also consider adding smoked salmon.
Finally, I recommend adding lemon garlic or regular garlic Fresh Cravings hummus to your platter to round out your flavor palette. I also love adding Triscuits or Wheat Thins if I feel up to the challenge of managing my blood sugar levels with crackers. Sometimes, crackers are a little harder to manage but can be a yummy addition or even act as a palette cleanser between savory bites.
This idea is for T1D adults or parents of T1D littles, of course, but you can also find clever ways to make child-friendly charcuterie boards! For example, adding some bologna, sliced cheese, pickles, dried fruit, and gluten-free crackers to a platter before having a Disney movie night can be a fun treat for your kiddos.
Vegetarian cauliflower wings + hummus = a match made in food heaven
While I do eat fish, I lean mostly vegetarian, so I love a good parmesan garlic cauliflower wing. Barbecue sauce tends to be overly sugary and I don't like buying sugar-free items with a ton of artificial sweeteners, so when looking to pair this savory afternoon snack or meal appetizer with a dip, I again lean towards hummus.
Jalapeno Cilantro or Spicy Red Pepper hummus from Fresh Cravings adds an extra kick for those who prefer the spice of life. It doesn't have to be a game night to enjoy this food pairing!
Keep it simple—you can't go wrong with carrots or celery + hummus
Of course, you can't go wrong with the classic pairing of carrots or celery with hummus. This combo is especially easy to manage with my type 1 diabetes. While I might need to take one or two units of insulin depending on how many carrots I grab, in general, I find it easy to enjoy this generally low-carb snack pairing.
It's a healthy and delicious boost that gets me from 3 to 5 PM workdays. That, and my afternoon coffee!
Turn hummus into pasta sauce
Yes, you can turn hummus into pasta sauce! I'd recommend using the Fresh Cravings Classic Hummus or Lemon Garlic Hummus depending on the dish you're making. In the summertime, I love lemon and basil pasta, but during the winter, I lean toward tomato-based pasta variations.
Adding sundried tomatoes or basil pesto to your Classic Hummus pasta recipe will be a game-changer! While pasta is another food that is sometimes hard to manage blood-sugar-wise, for me it's all about timing. Having an early supper can help me ensure I don't go to bed with high blood sugar levels. Eating early gives me enough time to take a walk after my food has settled to avoid residual highs or treat residual highs with insulin with enough time left before bed so I don't have to worry about waking up to treat my blood sugar levels.
Plus, for adults with T1D or parents of T1D littles, cooking pasta usually provides a lovely excuse to enjoy a glass of red wine.
Hummus has great health benefits
Not only is hummus versatile and tasty but according to Healthline, it also has several health benefits. It's not just great food for people with diabetes to add to their nutrition plans but for anyone who wants to boost their health and happiness.
Hummus is very nutritious—it includes plant-based proteins, iron, folate, and fiber that contribute to various positive health outcomes, especially for vegetarians who may otherwise lack certain vitamins in their diets.
Hummus supports digestive health, eases inflammation, may help with blood sugar management, promotes heart health, aids with weight management, and more.
Having a healthy relationship with food while living with type 1 diabetes
When it comes down to it, adding foods like hummus to my meal and snack plans makes living with type 1 diabetes a little easier and dare I say, more satisfying?
As a person living with type 1 diabetes who is committed to being mindful of her holistic health, I craft my nutrition intuitively around finding balance, moderation, flexibility, and enjoyability.
Living with type 1 diabetes, I have to be careful about how I manage eating high-carb and sugar-dense foods but this is not to say they're off-limits. When I think about having a healthy relationship with food while managing type 1 diabetes, I think of something I've heard shared within the diabetes community that I can't take credit for but live and breathe daily: there aren't good or bad foods, just hard-to-manage and easy-to-manage blood sugar foods.
Approaching my life this way empowers me to have a healthy relationship with food, trust my decision-making, listen to what my body needs, and enjoy eating while living with type 1 diabetes.
No food is off-limits. The more informed and aware I am of how my body reacts to certain foods, the more enjoyable they are to eat.
DISCLOSURE:
This post is made possible through a collaboration with Fresh Cravings. Thank you to Fresh Cravings for sending me your delicious hummuses, salsas, and snacks.