Of diabetic diets, sweet and a little sour

It is a challenge to cook dinner for my diabetic and coeliac-disease friends as they must eat gluten-free foods. Potatoes are off limit, so in­stead I prepare mashed sweet potatoes (yams), a good source of fibre that also helps lower blood sugar levels, which I serve with roast pork.

My friends’ favourite is a pilaf-style dish made with gluten-free quinoa grains (Peru). The fine grain can be made as a dessert with stewed fruits simmered in Splenda (artificial sugar) or by adding finely chopped cooked vegetables to accompany seafood and fowl dishes. There’s also a quinoa pasta, in lieu of macaroni, great served with tomato-based sauces. A wonderful breakfast dish is gluten-free amaranth flakes, also from Peru, and high in protein.

Gluten-free sorghum or “milo” is cooked like porridge (add stewed fruits!) and is also made into flour for pancakes. From Ethiopia comes the gluten-free grain teff that the natives make into flatbread. Teff has high iron content and one cup of this cooked grain contains more calcium than a cup of milk.

Old-fashioned rye bread has a low glycemic index and high-fibre content and is an excellent substitute for potatoes, noodles or rice with goulash and beef stroganoff.

To everyone in Malta coping with diabetes I say: bon appetit!