Souper Bowl Sunday Party-Down Stew

(Entrée/Meal,  17g Carb per serving BUT loaded with protein and fiber, too!)

SPECIAL NOTE:  This makes a SLEW of STEW!  But, it’s a wonderful kick-off to your Super Bowl party.  I also like to share the love.  Send storage-bags-full home with guests.  It’s a great reheater for an easy work-night supper.  Yes, it’s a vat-full of soup; but, it’ll get ‘gone’ before you can blink.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup chopped sweet onion (like Vidalia, y’all)
• 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh thyme (or 8 teaspoons dried thyme leaves)
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1-to-2 teaspoons chipotle chile powder (increase at your own risk)
• 1 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
• 3 quarts fat-free and low-sodium chicken broth*
• 1 cup lime juice
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup pearl barley
• 4 cups ‘chunked’ baby carrots (each baby carrot cut into thirds)
• 2 cups chopped cilantro
• 2 (7.76-ounce) cans salsa verde
• 3 cups cooked and loosely pulled-apart chicken breast*
• 3 cups cooked and loosely pulled-apart chicken thighs*
• 4 (14.5-ounce) cans no-salt-added chickpeas/garbanzo beans, undrained
• 4 (14.5-ounce) cans no-salt-added diced  tomatoes with green chilies, undrained

Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a LARGE (12-quart) stock pot over medium heat.  Add the chopped onion, garlic, cumin, red pepper flakes, thyme, paprika, chipotle chile powder, ground cloves and black pepper to the pot.  Saute 4-to-5 minutes, stirring often (so herbs and spices don’t scorch), until onions are lightly browned.
2. Add broth, lime juice, sea salt, barley, carrots, cilantro and salsa verde to the stock pot.  Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer a total of 50 minutes.
3. Stir in cooked chicken, chickpeas and tomatoes.  Cover and continue to simmer for 10-15 minutes more.  Adjust seasonings (with the exception of salt, unless you are decreasing it) to taste.

Numbers you need to know:

This recipe yields approximately 9 quarts or 36 one-cup servings.  Per serving nutrition analysis is, as follows:  134 Calories; 2g Fat; 10g Protein; 17g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 17mg Cholesterol; 174mg Sodium.

Nita’s notes:

You can use leftover home-cooked chicken for this recipe. Or you can buy a couple of grocery rotisserie-style roasted chickens to use for the meat; BUT, beware the sodium level of what you get already-prepared from the grocery.  Since this recipe calls for both cooked chicken and chicken broth/stock, I like to kill the 2 proverbial birds (chickens) with one stone—I cook the chicken and make broth all in one fell swoop.

So here’s the chicken and broth recipe within the recipe:

 

Place  3 pounds each of skinless, bone-in chicken breasts and thighs in a LARGE stockpot with water to completely cover, 1 cup lemon juice, 1 cup white wine with a variety of seasonings; but, always with bay leaves, garlic and black peppercorns.  (Place the bay leaves and peppercorns in a tea/infusion ball so that they’re easy to remove.)  I use bone-in meat as often as time will permit because it yields more flavor and a moister final dish. 

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and let simmer 45 minutes.  (I make homemade broth this way all the time.)  When the chicken finishes cooking, remove the tea/infusion ball and trash its contents.  Then, remove the chicken from the stock/broth and refrigerate the stock for several hours so that all the fat condenses and rises to the top.  You can then scoop it out (skim the fat off) easily. 

While the stock is chilling, remove the meat from the bones, (shredding it by hand for this recipe), and refrigerate the meat until ready to use it in this or whatever chicken recipe is in the works.

 

Have a wonderful SouperBowl Sunday.  Whether you’re a Patriot or a Giant (or, if you’re like me, always pulling for the Falcons, whether they’re playing or not…), you’ll be a winner with this deliciously-healthy soup.   I hope the game’s exciting and that you have a great evening.  Enjoy yourself! 

And, as always, make healthier choices for a happier life. 

Nita

Anita Peacock

Lifelong Type 1 Diabetic

eMail:  MyDiabeticBag@gmail.com

eCommerce site:  MyDiabeticBag.com



MyDiabeticBag.com



Credits:

Eden Foods (http://www.edenfoods.com/) makes a wide variety of no-salt-added, fat-free and organic canned/boxed vegetables and stocks/broth.  I use a lot of their products and they are very, VERY good.  Check ‘em out for a way to make whatever you’re cooking easier to prepare—you won’t have to make everything from scratch to control the sodium and fat level.  I cannot get Eden Foods locally; so, I order them through our food co-op in bulk. 

Cilantro-Lemon-Lime Roasted Chicken (EASY Entree,2g carbs per serving)

Active Prep Time:  10 minutes (Do this the night before you plan to roast the chicken to allow ample marinating time for the best flavor.)
Marinating Time:  4 to 48 hours
Roasting Time:  50 minutes
Broiling Time:  5-to-10 minutes, until nicely browned

Ingredients:

• 10 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (This is approximately 3 pounds.  (You can substitute 3 pounds of other bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces, if you prefer.  Just use all the same cut so all pieces get 'done' at the same time.) 
• Olive Oil Spray (You won't need this until roasting time.)

Marinade*:

• 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons lemon-pepper, or to taste--I like mine very lemon-peppery (BE SURE to use a no salt brand like Mrs. Dash®.)
• 2 Teaspoons minced fresh garlic (2 cloves)
• 1/2 Cup white wine
• 1/4 Cup lemon juice
• 1/4 Cup lime juice
• 1/4 Cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 Cup fresh tarragon, chopped

Preparation:

1. Place thawed chicken in a large resealable plastic storage bag or in a plastic storage container that has a tight-fitting lid.  Set aside.
2. Combine marinade ingredients well.    (*Can prepare marinade in a food processor/blender to save time and work.)  Pour marinade over chicken, cover  TIGHTLY and shake container/bag to thoroughly coat chicken. 
3. Refrigerate 4-to-48 hours before cooking.  (The longer you let it marinate, the tastier the chicken will be.)  Shake container/bag several times during the marinating time for better final consistent flavor. 
4.  When your marinating time is complete and you are ready to rock 'n roast, remove chicken from refrigerator.  Let it sit for at least 30 minutes at room temperature.
5. Place your oven rack in the middle position of your oven.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.  Coat two 9" x 13" baking dishes with olive oil spray.  Place five chicken thighs SKIN-SIDE DOWN in each baking dish.  Pour marinade from container/bag into a glass bowl (preferrably with a lip) and whisk to evenly redistribute the seasonings.  Once you have it well-mixed, pour marinade evenly over chicken.  Cover baking dishes with aluminum foil.  (If you can't tolerate aluminum foil, use baking dishes with tight-fitting ovenproof lids.)
6. Roast chicken 10 minutes.  Remove foil/lids and turn chicken over so that the skin-side is up, brush with pan juices, replace foil/lids and continue baking  10 minutes longer at 450 degrees.
7. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.  Remove foil/lids and brush chicken with pan juices.  Continue baking UNCOVERED at 350 degrees for 30 minutes longer, basting with pan juices every ten minutes. 
8. Turn broiler on high, baste chicken once more and broil 5-10 minutes, until chicken is nicely browned.  Remove from oven and allow it to rest at least 10-15 minutes before serving.

Numbers you need to know:
Cilantro-Lemon-Lime Roasted Chicken yields 10 servings, 1 thigh per
serving.  Each serving has, as follows:  216 Calories; 15g Fat (4g
Saturated, 6g Monounsaturated, 3g Polyunsaturated); 16g Protein; 2g
Carbohydratetrace Dietary Fiber; 79mg cholesterol; 102mg Sodium. 

Nita's notes:
I get SO MANY compliments on my nice, juicy thighs.... my succulent
roasted chicken thighs, that is.
                                  .
The thigh is my favorite-est piece of chicken.  It's higher fat content (as
compared to the breast) helps it stay moist and delicious while it's
roasting.  You can substitute bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts to save
11 Calories and 5g Fat per serving; but, your chicken won't turn out as lip-smackingly juicy.

No matter what chicken "pieces" I'm roasting, I use specific
time-and-temperature guidelines.  No, I didn't come up with these
on my own.  I discovered this roasting method in the cookbook, Living Lean and Loving It.   (See credits.)

I find that following that roasting method guarantees  perfectly roasted
chicken every time.  And, yes, that same cookbook still claims a
favorite spot on my dining room cookbook hutch.  I would never part
with it.  I couldn't.  Lots of culinary inspiration in that late-80s book.

What I'm trying to say is that this method should suit any of your
baked/roasted bone-in chicken recipes.  Try the time-and-temp
specifications with your favorite recipe.  You'll get a much moister,
more flavorful result.

This dish is lovely paired with pearl barley (if you do grains) and a
raw-veggie salad/pico de gallo or sauteed onions and broccoli.  (These
sides are not included in the recipe nutrition breakdown.)
  
Hope you enjoy this as much as my church-folk  (Gwynne, sorry it's
taken me this long to get it posted), my family and I do.  There are
never leftovers!  And that makes me smile.  Try this recipe and there'll be
smiles aplenty.
 
Now, get in that kitchen and whoop up something yummy.  And, as
always, make healthier choices for a happier life!

Anita Peacock
Lifelong Type 1 Diabetic
Email:  MyDiabeticBag@gmail.com
eCommerce site:  http://mydiabeticbag.com/



MyDiabeticBag.com

















Credits:
The timed-temp roasting method I used in this recipe came from "Eight
Ways with Barbequed or Broiled Chicken" published in Living Lean and
Loving It cookbook by Eve Lowry & Carla Mulligan Ennis;  Publisher: St. Louis :  Mosby/Forman, 1988.  ISBN: 0801632153   DDC: 641.5638.

You can get new and used copies through Amazon.  Some are as low as a penny plus $3.99 shipping--that's quite a bargain for such a great cookbook!  (I've ordered several 'used-like new'  cookbooks through Amazon and that's a GREAT way to expand you culinary resources.)  Here's the link:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0801632153/sr=8--
1/qid=1327206724/ref=olp_tab_used?
ie=UTF8&coliid=&me=&qid=1327206724&sr=8-
1&seller=&colid=&condition=used

Mrs. Dash (http://www.mrsdash.com/) is a registered trademark by
ALBERTO-CULVER INTERNATIONAL, INC. in Melrose Park, IL,
60160-1163.

Red Raspberry Baked Brie (5g carbs/serving)

Appetizer, start to finish:  25 minutes, EASY

           

Here’s a simply elegant hors d’oeuvre that’ll take center stage at any holiday party.  The blending of flavors is exquisite.  Hints of curry and garlic accent the other delectable tastes.  Not too little.  Not too much.  Just enough.  Both play brilliantly against the sweet-tart fruit, the smoky chipotle heat, the crunchy cashews and the savory mellow cheese.  Multi-depth melty goodness.  (Man, oh man, is this good!)

Ah, and the fragrance while this is baking…. ‘Mouthwatering’ doesn’t do it justice.  It’s a symphony for your senses.  Pair this appetizer with plain low-carb crackers or sliced-thin and toasted-crisp bread.  You want the appetizer to carry the flavor; so, don’t use highly seasoned crackers.  They’ll detract from the cheesy-yumminess. They are the accompaniment, not the star of the show, after all.  

*World Table™ (Wal-Mart brand) offers some varieties of low-carb crackers.  Joseph’s Bakery has low-carb pita, tortilla and lavash options that are perfect to cut into smaller ‘slices’ and toast.  (Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit.  Spray baking sheet with non-stick olive oil spray.  Arrange ‘slices’ in a single layer on sheet and bake 10 minutes.  Store in an airtight container.)  Or you can get ambitious and make your own low-carb plain flaxseed crackers/crispbreads.  (See credits for more info.)

Ingredients

·        1/2 cup cashews, coarsely chopped and toasted

·        16-ounce wheel Brie, do not remove rind (can use multiple smaller-sized wheels)

·        1 teaspoon curry powder

·        2/3 cup Smucker’s® Sugar-Free Red Raspberry Preserves with SPLENDA®

·        1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

·        1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle chile powder (or Cajun or Creole seasoning powder)

Preparation

1)       Preheat oven to 350° F.  While oven preheats, toast cashews in a dry skillet over medium-low heat, 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until fragrant.   Set aside.

2)       Sprinkle curry powder evenly over top, bottom and sides of Brie wheel(s).  Rub curry into the rind to thoroughly coat the surface on all sides.  Place each wheel in a decorative oven-proof dish. 

3)       Combine sugar-free preserves, garlic and ground chipotle powder in a small bowl.  Spread mixture evenly over the top of cheese, allowing some to drip down the sides.  Sprinkle toasted cashews over top.

4)       Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cashews are slightly golden and cheese inside the rind is melted.

5)       Serve warm with your choice of crackers or toasted pita/tortilla/lavash ‘slices’.

Numbers you need to know:  This recipe yields 16 servings, 2 tablespoons per serving.  Per serving:  Calories: 125; 10g Fat; 32mg Cholesterol; 7g  Protein;  5g Carbohydrates; trace Dietary fiber; 179mg  Sodium.  (This nutrition breakdown DOES NOT include the information for the crackers/pita/tortilla/lavash.  You’ll need to figure those carbs, etc., and add those into your totals.)

Nita’s notes:

I’m not really a dessert person.  Didn’t grow up with them as the norm.  This “Raspberry Baked Brie” has the kind of ‘special occasion’ carbs I like to consume and how I like to consume them—combined with an almost equal number of protein grams.  This helps temper the effect of the carbs on my blood glucose level, helping me avoid the dangerous spikes that leave me feeling awful.   Can’t count the terrible holidays I had as a child.  I was allowed a ‘special treat’ (sugary dessert) for said occasion, only to wind up very sick shortly thereafter.  Sometimes hospitalized.  Sometimes not.

Always, especially at the holidays, be aware of what you are eating.  Carbs, fats, calories and sodium add up.  And add up in a hurry when you’re attending a holiday party.  Just because this is a diabetic-friendly appetizer, doesn’t mean you can consume it like a ‘free’ food.   You can’t graze at the appetizer buffet.  You can’t consume LOTS of diabetic-friendly (but not ‘free’ food) food and it not affect your blood glucose level.  Even low-carb options consumed without regard will turn into high-carbs.  Party smarter.   

And don’t forget to count the ‘accompaniments’ to dips and spreads.  Some people don’t realize how high-carb most of these things are.  I’m pairing this Brie with “World Table™ Original Rice Crackers (Oven-Baked)”, which have 25g carbs and 130 calories in a serving of 15 crackers.  No, I’m not going to eat 15 crackers at one time.  But, that does translate into 1.7 grams of carbohydrate and 8.7 calories per cracker, which makes these crackers VERY low-carb/low-cal to eat with this spread.  Just pay attention.  Avoid the spike.  (I’d try to make a football reference; but, I’m team-sports-impaired.)

Here’s my party-hardy-but-healthy protocol:  1)  Check blood sugar.  Check blood sugar.  Check blood sugar.  And check it OFTEN during the festivities.  I mean it.  It’s better to know than to be willfully ignorant.  Too many consequences.  2)  I always take something I know is safe for me to eat in moderation, like my Raspberry Brie and rice crackers.  But, I do cut myself off when I’ve reached my carb/cal limit.    3)  I ALWAYS, ALWAYS take ‘free’ foods to nosh on once I’ve reached that carb/calorie quota.  I’m lucky.  I happen to L-O-V-E raw veggies.  So that’s never a compromise for me.  I take ‘em because I love ‘em.  I also keep a few single-serving mint tea bags and artificial sweetener in my Peacock Mini diabetes handbag.  That makes a nice sweet drink with no carbs and no post-party repercussions.

I know many people say they just eat what they want and take extra insulin; but, that doesn’t work for me.  And it’s not worth the “I feel like death warmed over” ickiness.  (I don’t want to celebrate my holiday in DKA.  That’s not celebrating.  That’s comatose.)  But, that’s me.  You have to decide for yourself.  What you are willing to sacrifice.  For me, it’s no choice.  I’d rather feel bright-eyed and alert to enjoy our holidays.  Play with the kids.  Hold the new babies.  Converse with a clear head.  Be involved. 

If in doubt about how to handle your holidays, talk to your healthcare team.  Even if you think you know what to do, it’s always a good idea to run it by your doc and dietician.

—Happy, HAPPY holidays from my home to yours. 

And, as always, make healthier choices for a happier life!

Anita Peacock

Lifelong Type 1 Diabetic

MyDiabeticBag@gmail.com

Check out my diabetes bags, y'all:  http://www.mydiabeticbag.com/

Join our Facebook diabetes support group:  MyDiabeticLife

Credits: 

·        “Raspberry Baked Brie” is my much lower-carb, much improved flavor version of “Chutney Baked Brie” in Ultimate Guide to Holiday Appetizers, http://images.allrecipes.com/site/allrecipes/appetizers2.pdf

·        Flax cracker/crispbread recipe:  http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/lowcarb-recipe-help-suggestions/688339-flax-crackers.html

·        http://www.josephsbakery.com/Smucker's is a registered trademark of The J.M. Smucker Company.   http://www.smuckers.com/products/

·        SPLENDA is a registered trademark of McNeil Nutritionals, LLC.  http://www.splenda.com/

·        World Table™ “Original Rice Crackers (Oven-Baked)”, distributed by Wal-Mart Stores,  http://mypbrand.com/2010/11/08/a-closer-look-at-walmarts-world-table/     (World Table™ also has a “Brown Rice & Flax Rice Crackers” option that I really wanted to try; but, we didn’t find it here in our local Wal-Mart.)  

from MyDiabeticBag.com



Diabetic-Friendly Apricot-Mustard-Sherry Glaze (6g total carbs per serving)

OK, sorry ‘bout this; BUT, I had to revise my apricot glaze recipe as I had previously posted it. Put it back the way I originally made it, using Splenda Brown Sugar Blend rather than just the Splenda Granular. Also, I needed to decrease some of the other ingredients back to my original version amounts. I shoulda known not to mess with 'perfection'....haha

I thought at first the adjustments I'd made to the recipe made it every bit as good; BUT, no. (And Hubby-Hugh agreed tonight. That's why I'm on here confessin' my sins.) The alterations were definitely detrimental. And, the changes had only saved 1g carb per serving. I'm deleting the old recipe (No Sugar Added Apricot-Mustard-Sherry Glaze) and reposting it as "Diabetic-Friendly Apricot-Mustard-Sherry Glaze" under documents.  Sorry for the inconvenience.

Perfectly mouthwatering, low-carb, low-cal glaze for your holiday ham!  This is one of those recipes you'll absolutely love.  So easy to make and it fills your home with the oh-so-deliciously-festive scents of cloves and orange.   But, just wait 'til you have some.  Oh, my.  The savory taste of fresh rosemary and the 'bite' of both pepper and horseradish give the flavor so much more depth than a purely sweet glaze could ever hope to achieve.  Yum!  Yum! 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Smucker’s Sugar Free Apricot Preserves made with SPLENDA®
• 1 cup orange juice
• 3  tablespoons SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, crushed
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons brown mustard
• 3 Tablespoons sherry
• 1/2 teaspoon prepared horseradish (not horseradish sauce, which has high-fat mayo and other things you don't need)

Preparation:

1. Whisk together sugar-free preserves, orange juice, Splenda,  garlic, pepper, cloves, red pepper flakes, rosemary and cornstarch in a small sauce pan until well blended.  Cook over medium-low heat until slightly thickened, whisking often so mixture does not stick to bottom of pan or scorch.
2. Whisk in brown mustard, sherry and horseradish.  Continue cooking three-to-four minutes longer, whisking often.  Remove from heat and set aside until ready to use.  (If not using immediately, store refrigerated in an airtight container.)
3. If you are using this as a glaze:  Use 1/4 cup (separated from the remaining glaze) to brush on a 10-pound ham.  Glaze ONLY during the last thirty minutes of roasting/baking time; but, baste often during that time.  Serve remaining glaze (from step 2) alongside meat at the table.    

Numbers you need to know:

Yields 2 cups (32 tablespoons), 1 tablespoon per serving.  Per serving:  19 Calories; trace Fat;  trace Protein; 5g Carbohydrate**; trace Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 20mg Sodium. 

**Special 'per serving' info:  The 1/4 cup used to glaze the ham during roasting contributes approximately 1g carb per serving (assuming 20 servings per 10-pound bone-in ham).  Adding this to the 5g carbs in 1 tablespoon glaze served alongside meat raises your carbs to approximately 6g total per serving.

Nita's notes:

• Although I've been a ham-harpy here, this is a heavenly basting or side sauce for any roasted meat, pork, fowl or fish. 
• And don't forget the sandwiches, especially during the post-Thanksgiving pre-Christmas/Hanukkah  holiday frenzy!  This yields the perfect low-carb/low-cal spread for open-faced ham and/or turkey sandwiches.  Simple meals for stressful times.
• Special, SPECIAL Nita note:  mind your serving size with any and all recipes!!  You can't 'drink' this glaze like a diet cola and then wonder why on earth your blood glucose level is through the roof.  Serving sizes and their corresponding nutrition breakdown matter.  They are what you and I depend on to make healthy choices.  Hidden carbs, calories, fats, cholesterol, protein and sodium add up quickly if you're not paying attention.  So, pay attention.  Be aware of what and how much you are eating.  This is such a potent taste sensation, believe me, you don't need more than the serving size to be above-and-beyond satisfied.  Scale it down to suit your own tastes. 

Make healthier choices for a happier holiday season!

Anita Whittle Peacock

Lifelong Type 1 Diabetic

Email:  MyDiabeticBag@gmail.com

eCommerce site:  MyDiabeticBag.com (ALL bags $29.95!)

Facebook diabetes support group:  MyDiabeticLife

Subscribe to this blog:  http://mydiabeticbag.blogspot.com/

Credits:

• "Diabetic-Friendly Apricot-Mustard-Sherry Glaze" is my reinterpretation of the following carb-laden recipe: http://www.recipetips.com/recipe-cards/t--2383/apricot-brandy-glaze.asp
• Smucker's is a  Registered trademark of The J.M. Smucker Company.   http://www.smuckers.com/products/ProductDetail.aspx?groupId=1&categoryId=18&flavorId=94
• SPLENDA is a registered trademark of McNeil Nutritionals, LLC.  http://www.splenda.com/

World Diabetes Awareness Day--Frederick G. Banting

Frederick G. Banting
11/14/1891-02/21/1941
Discoverer of Insulin
1923 Winner (with J.J.R. Macleod) of the Nobel Prize for discovery

Happy birthday to you!  Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, Dr. Banting.  Happy birthday to you!  We diabetics are SO VERY GLAD that you were born.

On this World Diabetes Awareness Day, the 120th anniversary of Dr. Banting's birth, I'd like to say a few things in simple appreciation of this man and his work.

Seems like EVERYBODY has diabetes these days.  Didn't used to be so.  Not for long anyway. Before Dr. Banting's little discovery of insulin, a Type 1 diabetes diagnosis was a death sentence.  Let me put it even more bleakly, before 1922, there was a 100% death rate for Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetics.  Our bodies, unable toprocess carbohydrates, literally starved to death.  Our organs stopped working.  A painfully horrific death.

Insulin is so widely available now that it's hard to believe there was a time in our not-too-distant past (before 1922) when insulin injections didn't exist.  No one knew anything about this simple hormone (first dubbed 'isletin' for the Islets of Langerhans).  We didn't know it existed.  For Type 1 diabetics, that was a fatal thing not to know.  Not to have.  Not to live.

But, in walks our unlikely hero, the plucky and persistent Frederick G. Banting.  I don't throw the word 'miracle' around too much.  People overuse and abuse it.  But, it really is quite miraculous that Dr. Banting discovered insulin.

So, I thank you, Dr. Banting for so many things.  Here are just a few.

Thank you, Dr. Banting, for putting your heart and soul into diabetes research, even though you had no prior research experience and had attended only one lecture on diabetes before taking the job in Toronto where you discovered insulin, how to isolate it, how to inject it.

Thank you, Dr. Banting, for turning the incredible loss you suffered, when your close friend withered and died from diabetes, into a driving force in unlocking some of the mysteries of the pancreas.

Thank you, Dr. Banting, for believing in yourself, for not giving up on your theories about a 'pancreatic extract' even though your boss, J. J. R. Macleod--a leading figure in the study of diabetes in Canada, didn't put much stock in your ideas to begin with.

Thank you for your tears when your diabetic research collie, that you'd kept alive on your 'isletin', died 9 days after the meager supply ran out.  Thank you for caring so much.

Thank you for selling your car to personally fund your research endeavors when the initial university money ran out.  Thank you for putting your all into finding an answer.

Thank you for not being greedy, for never profiting from your discovery so that insulin could be a very low cost miracle drug available to everyone that needed it, not just the rich.  You sold your insulin patent for $1 to the University of Toronto to further research.  You didn't accept the $1 million dollars (in the 1920s!!) offered to you by a financier.  You were an honest, ethical man committed to your ideals.

Thank you, Dr. Banting, for all the parents who don't have to watch their Type 1 kids die like they did before insulin.  We still lose more than we should; but, not like we did before you entered our world.

I have to cry when I read the story of your injecting this newly purified insulin into diabetic children in hospital wards in 1922.  The kids lay comatose and dying of ketoacidosis.  Before the last children were injected, the first began waking up from their comas.  I can only imagine how that felt, not just to the kids and their parents; but, to you.  

You changed the world.  And did it with such humility.  I wish I could have known you.  You are my hero.

I thank you, Dr. Frederick Grant Banting, for all the  birthdays I've celebrated since being diagnosed a Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetic a few months before my sixth birthday in 1969. 

Without you, I wouldn't be here.  There wouldn't have been a seventh birthday for me.  We Type 1s that are alive today have you to thank for every yesterday, today and tomorrow.  We mourn those who didn't get the benefit of your work.  Who weren't as lucky as we are.  Thank you doesn't seem big enough.  But, it's simple and straightforward.  Thank you for saving our lives.  Millions and millions of 'thanks' for the millions and millions you saved.

Anita Whittle Peacock
Lifelong Type 1 Diabetic
This post made possible by Dr. Frederick G. Banting

Cited references:

"Discovery of Insulin" by Christian Nordqvist in 'Medical News Today',
 http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/info/diabetes/discoveryofinsu
lin.php

"The Discovery of Insulin".  NobelPrize.org. 
http://www.nobelprize.org/educational/medicine/insulin/discovery-insulin.html

"Frederick Banting", http://scienceheroes.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=80&Itemid=115

"Frederick Grant Banting".  Encyclopedia of World Biography.   2004.  Encyclopedia.com.  http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Sir_Frederick_Grant_Banting.aspx