The End of Diabetes: The Eat to Live Plan to Prevent and Reverse Diabetes

They say that the most romantic meal is the one you cook at home. So for this Valentine’s Day, we put together this 5-course meal for you and your partner. If you stick with one serving from every of these recipes, you’d only consume about 20g of net carbs for the entire meal. And yes, that includes dessert!

Photo credit: Jo Harding | Brenda Bennett

Soup: Low-Carb Broccoli Cheese

This pureed broccoli with cheddar cheese is hearty, creamy, and delicious even for carnivores. The additional ingredients — celery, carrots, and onion — make this recipe savory, and but if you want to add some protein, you can top it off with bacon strips.

Total carbs: 9g | Net carbs: 6g per serving

Photo credit: Sarah Severance

Appetizer: Garlic Cream Cheese & Spinach Roasted Mini Sweet Peppers

There are endless variations on what you can stuff in pepper bowls, but for this recipe, you’ll be using cream cheese and chopped spinach, two ingredients that are both diabetes-friendly. Add spices if you want to get more creative.

Carbs: 1.5g for each pepper half

Photo credit: Laura Miner

Salad: Greek Chickpea, Avocado, & Cucumber

Apart from chickpeas, all the other ingredients you need for this salad are either household staples or easy to find in grocery stores. Just chop or dice the vegetables, mix them with the Greek vinaigrette, and you’re ready to relish some rainbow on your plate.

Total carbs: 7g | Net carbs: 4g

Main Course: Keto Braised Short Ribs & Mashed Cauliflower

Photo credit: Lisa Marcaurele

Keto Braised Short Ribs

You can prepare your main course ahead of time using an oven, slow cooker, or instant pot. Each method has its advantages, but whichever method you choose, you can expect the meat to be fall-off-the-bone tender and infused with flavors of red wine, bacon, and herbs.

Total carbs: 4g | Net carbs: 3g

Photo credit: Jennifer Shun

Mashed Cauliflower

The vegetable salad may be enough to go with the ribs, but this mashed cauliflower is a perfect alternative (or addition to your meal). It’s fluffy, creamy, and with subtle undertones from its other ingredients. This recipe uses a food processor. The longer you process, the fluffier the texture of this side dish.

Total carbs: 5g | Net carbs: 3g

Photo credit: Caroline Levens

Dessert: Crustless Cheesecake

This recipe doesn’t use coconut or almond flour, which is a plus point if you have a tree nut allergy. If it looks too plain for you, you can garnish it with low-carb melted chocolate, crushed cookies, or whipped cream.

Total carbs excluding the topping: 2g

You can also check out these fruity mocktails if you need a drink to go with your meal.

Enjoy your meal, lovebirds, and always remember that the secret ingredient is always love (and fewer carbs).

Diabetes Daily

The End of Diabetes: The Eat to Live Plan to Prevent and Reverse Diabetes