notes:  when we prepare this recipe, we substitute 16 oz ground turkey (85/15) for the 12 oz ground chicken, we use frozen diced sweet potatoes to save time, and bake texas toast garlic bread to serve alongside the chili.  shredded mozzarella goes well in the soup.

the morning after i made this broccoli cheese soup, my three year-old daughter asked for it again.   i figured i'd better save the recipe now since it was an adaptation of two recipes and i agree, it was yummy!  

BROCCOLI CHEESE SOUP
Yield:  6 cups
Nutrition: 407 calories, 30 carbs per cup

INGREDIENTS
5 tablespoons butter
1 medium/large sweet yellow onion, diced small
1 clove minced garlic
1/4 cup flour
2 cups vegetable stock (chicken stock can be used instead)
2 cups half-and-half (whole milk can be used instead)
3 cups broccoli florets, diced into small pieces 
3 large carrots, grated
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika 
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 ounces grated cheddar cheese, extra-sharp or sharp if possible

DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 400F.  In a small saucepan, add 1 tablespoon butter, the diced onion, and cook  over medium heat until the onion is translucent and barely browned, about 4 minutes. Stir intermittently.

Add the garlic and cook about 30 seconds, stirring constantly so it doesn’t burn. Remove from heat and set pan aside.

Add 4 tablespoons butter to a 3-quart pot.  Once the butter is melted, add the flour and cook over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, whisking constantly, until flour is thickened. 

Slowly add the vegetable stock, whisking constantly.  Slowly add the half-and-half, whisking constantly.

Allow mixture to simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes, or until it has reduced and thickened. Whisk intermittently to re-incorporate the ‘skin’ that inevitably forms, this is normal.

While mixture is simmering, chop the broccoli and carrots.  Toss broccoli and carrots in 2 teaspoons of olive oil, and roast in the preheated oven for 12 minutes.

Add all dry spices and stir to combine.

Allow soup to simmer over low heat for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until it has reduced and thickened some. Whisk intermittently to re-incorporate the ‘skin’ that inevitably forms, this is normal.

Add the cheese to the soup and stir; it won't take long to combine.

Transfer soup to bowls and serve immediately. Soup will keep airtight for 5 to 7 days in the fridge. Reheat gently.

SOURCE
adapted from Averie Cooks and Plated Subscription Service (no longer in business)

below are links to some of my thanksgiving favorites.    i think i'll add to this post as the years go by. 

​first: dessert.

pecan and chocolate tart with bourbon whipped creme fraiche

chocolate marshmallow pie

orange cranberry compote

sweet potatoes with sage butter crumb topping

gingerbread stuffing

pumpkin hard cider cheese dip  (serve with pita chips)

notes: instead of smoked sea salt, which we can't find at the store, we add colgin liquid smoke to the  marinade in  step 2.

years have passed.    years.

i've had two babies.  i've lost my dog. 

i've tried the loop software for omnipod (automated insulin delivery based on dexcom readings).  i've gone back to omnipod+dexcom without loop.  

however,...what i'd like to share on this blog remains the same: a collection of my favorite recipes. 

pictures from here on out may not be original, may not be great, and may not be present.  i'm a mama now, and with a full time job, "ain't nobody got time for that".

although they closed in 2019, plated was my go-to for nearly 3 years and i've saved all of my favorite recipe cards.    i'll be starting by sharing some of those. 

                    note for the lawyers: they did give me written permission, though i suppose it is no longer needed now that they've                        closed

​i hope you've been well <3


-----update-----
all my favorite plated recipes can be found   here       
recipes I haven't tried but downloaded can be found   here

from 7.0 to 6.6 in  16 weeks.

i have to eat my words;  my A1C  improved!

           A1C=  average blood sugar  over the past 2-3 months 

although i was expecting a 7.2 or a 7.3,  i did feel like my glucose values were getting better the last few weeks on the study pump.   and they apparently were.

apart from a 5.9 which i swear was an undeserved lab error, 6.6 is my lowest A1C ever.

in any case, end of study.   i turned in the study pump last week, and happily (yes, happily!) hooked myself back up to my omnipod and dexcom.   going from tubed to tubeless and having the ability to correct below 150 and give manual boluses at my whim make me very happy.   i'm challenging myself now to  achieve a 6.6 (or better) A1C with my omipod and dexcom.   i think i can do it!

time will tell if i start to miss the study pump.   

any comments or questions, let me know.

signing off for now--  erin
  
​PS- JDRF sent out this video  today  where another study participant (same study) describes her experience.  check it out!
​

it's hard to believe, but i have only one month remaining in the clinical trial!  this weekend i'll make my fourth trip to virginia before going back one final time in february to turn all of the trial equipment back in.

how's it going, you want to know?

here are the stats:

time in target range: 63%
time below range: 2% 
time above range: 19%

total daily dose: 44.125 units
basal: 21 units (47%)
bolus: 24 units (53%)
carbs per day: 124g
​
sensor glucose average: 150


as compared to my manual mode stats:

time in target range: 65%
time below range: 10%
time above range: 22%

total daily dose: 48.75 units
basal: 15 units (32%)
bolus: 33 units (68%)
carbs per day: 133g
​
sensor glucose average: 141


over the last month, i've made peace with the fact that  the medtronic 670g insulin pump  is only the first step towards a fully automated artificial pancreas.   yes, the basal rates are  automated and work fairly well, but there's still work to be done in terms of automating corrections and meal boluses.   automated basal rates aren't enough to  "fix" diabetes. 

while this study hasn't been the "diabetes vacation" that i'd hoped it would be when i was first accepted, it has been useful and it has been beneficial.   as one of my study mates said, "i've never been in a study that's been life-changing, but i've also never been in a study that didn't teach me something about how to better manage my diabetes".  

what i'll take from this study is a better understanding of my basal rates (i can identify the patterns that the pump's algorithm chose for me and try out similar basal rates on my omnipod when i go back to it), and  confidence that, although i'll always be striving for better and i'll always be frustrated when my body doesn't cooperate, i'm doing a pretty good job at managing type 1 diabetes already.  

last week i made my third trip to virginia for the hotel portion of the study, also known as "the hotel stay".

there were three participants including myself and we stayed in the hilton homewood suites,  each with our own room.   we wore our study equipment every day, eating "regular" meals (as if restaurant meals can be regular) and doing a 4-hour activity all afternoons except for friday.

we were all happy to learn upon arrival that medtronic would pay for our snacks and meals for the week.    ​SCORE!

here are some of the places we ate and activities we did--
(oddly enough ;) everyone loved my restaurant suggestions, starred below)

my absolute favorite restaurant was mariebette cafe and bakery.   i could go on for a while about how amazing their pastries and breads are.  i should maybe let my freezer do the talking, though, because i have frozen 4 baguettes and 8 pains au chocolat from mariebette and i've only been there twice (once, last visit, and... oh wait, i did go there for breakfast sunday before leaving virginia).   okay, i've been three times.    don't judge!

back to the study, though...

we didn't have any afternoon activity on friday because from 7am friday until 7am saturday, we  agreed to do  frequent sample testing.  every hour from 7am-10pm, and every half hour from 10pm until 7am, we had iv blood draws.   one participant had one iv the entire time, another had several unsucessful iv starts and had to resort to fingerprick testing, and i ended up with four ivs (left arm, right arm, left arm, left hand).   owie!   the purpose of these blood draws was to see the difference between iv blood (most accurate for blood sugar) and the glucose sensor readings (based on interstitial fluid).   for me, i noticed  a range of readings matching exactly to being 40 mg/dl different.   i didn't get a TON of sleep during the overnight blood draws, but i did get enough as i woke up promptly at 7am to have the ivs removed and go exercise downstairs in the  gym area.

all in all, the hotel stay was a pretty fun part of the study.   i hope that  seeing the results of the controlled activities (with each of us doing the same things for several days) will help the  developers/researchers/whomever needs to see that this pump is an improvement on previous models.

two trips to virginia left...