When our daughter was first diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes it was quite over-whelming. She was just 17 months old and there was so much information to take in. For a start she was too young to understand what was going on and tell us when she was feeling “Low”, so we had to be vigilant in watching for symptoms. Then we had to learn to test her blood glucose, give injections, make sure we didn’t leave the house without a whole kit full of stuff (which is just second nature to us now), and then there was The Food! What could we feed her? Well, we understand now that diabetics basically have to follow a healthy diet, low in fats and sodium, just like everyone else, but at the time we needed somewhere to start. So the dietician at the hospital suggested we buy Annette Sym’s “Symply Too Good To Be True” Cookbooks. They were a great place to start and I have learned some great tips on reducing the fat and sodium content in the dishes we love. Don’t think that because the recipes are healthy that they are flavourless, they aren’t. Eating a healthy diet doesn’t have to be boring and it’s important to treat yourself every now and then. Everything in Moderation. I still use Annette’s books, and this dessert is probably one of our family’s favourites.
Strawberry Custard Flan
Serves: 10
Ingredients:
Base:
1 Egg White
1/4 Cup Sugar
3 Tbs (45g) Flora Light Margarine, melted
1/4 Cup Skim Milk
1 1/2 Cups Self-Raising Flour
Cooking Spray
Custard:
1 x 375ml Can Evaporated Light Milk
3 Tbl Custard Powder
3 Tbl Sugar
Strawberry Topping:
1 Sachet Diet Strawberry Jelly (Cottees)
1/2 Cup Boiling Water
3/4 Cup Cold Water
1 x 250g Punnet Fresh Strawberries
Directions:
Preheat oven to 180C fan forced.
To make Base: In a medium sized mixing bowl beat egg white and sugar for 1 minute using an electric beater.
Add margarine to milk, pour into egg mixture, combine.
Add flour to bowl and fold together (don’t overmix flour, as this will make the base tough).
Coat a quiche dish with cooking spray, press base into dish using your hand (dip hand into flour so mixture doesn’t stick).
Press mixture out evenly over base and three quarters of the way up the sides of the dish.
Bake 15 minutes, leave to cool.
To make Custard: Place all custard ingredients into a medium sized saucepan.
Stir continuously using a whisk (don’t have heat too high or milk will scorch).
Once boiled, leave to cool slightly then pour over base.
To make Topping: Dissolve jelly crystals in a small bowl with boiling water then add cold water, stir well.
Refrigerate mixture until jelly just starts to set (watch carefully as it takes anything from 3/4 hour to 1 hour).
Hull and wash strawberries.
Cut in half and place decoratively over custard, forming a circle.
Once jelly is almost set, spoon jelly over strawberries. Be careful not to let it run over the edge of the dish.
Refrigerate.
Notes: You can substitute any fruit you like for the strawberries and change the colour of the jelly to match your fruit.
Nutritional Information:
Per Serve
Fat: Total 3.1, Saturated 0.9g; Fibre 1.4g; Protein 6.2g; Carbs 29.7g; Sugar 12.9g; Sodium 210mg; Kilojoules 720 (cals 171); GI Rating Medium.
Source: Symply Too Good To Be True, Book 4 by Annette Sym