# When it’s your birthday, what food treat do you give yourself?



## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

I have a big birthday coming up in August. For the last few weeks, I’ve been dreaming about what bad food treats I’m going to give myself! Lol. I’ve thought of many things that I have denied myself since October last year, when first diagnosed with T2. The list, so far, is:

Breakfast: pancakes with maple syrup and bacon (although, I have had this since diagnosis, but not since lockdown).
Lunch: tiger bread sandwich. Not sure of the filling yet! Ice cream for dessert.
Dinner: pizza, chips and salad Or, maybe a takeaway Chinese.
Dessert: choc fudge cake with double cream.
Koppaberg fruit cider. Strawberry and kiwi flavour. A couple of bottles thereof.

It will be interesting to see what my blood sugar readings are after each meal.

So, what would you have for a special birthday?


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## Lanny (Jun 6, 2020)

Gyoza dumplings with soy, honey & sesame oil dip for breakfast! Smoked salmon & prawn sandwiches with tomato mayonnaise on seeded bread & chocolate fudge cake with whipped cream for dessert for lunch! A Chinese chicken curry with boiled rice & chips followed by another slice of chocolate cake with cream for dinner! Wouldn’t test AT ALL the whole day & just add extra bolus units for everything: ok then, test for dosing purposes only; but, not be bothered by what the readings are! THEN, see what the fallout is the next day: if not too bad may have one last slice of cake after a meal before dumping the rest; best avoid temptation as a day off for my Birthday is fine but, don’t want to fall off the wagon afterwards! 

Edited to add:- Oh, I better point out that although I’m type 2 as well, I’m on insulin now & have a bit more control by adding more insulin for the naughty things I eat: still NOT a License to be naughty all the though; been diabetic for 19 years now & moved onto insulin the last 8 years!


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

Lanny said:


> Gyoza dumplings with soy, honey & sesame oil dip for breakfast! Smoked salmon & prawn sandwiches with tomato mayonnaise on seeded bread & chocolate fudge cake with whipped cream for dessert for lunch! A Chinese chicken curry with boiled rice & chips followed by another slice of chocolate cake with cream for dinner! Wouldn’t test AT ALL the whole day & just add extra bolus units for everything: ok then, test for dosing purposes only; but, not be bothered by what the readings are! THEN, see what the fallout is the next day: if not too bad may have one last slice of cake after a meal before dumping the rest; best avoid temptation as a day off for my Birthday is fine but, don’t want to fall off the wagon afterwards!



Nice one! Lol.


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## trophywench (Jun 6, 2020)

I'd be asleep and lucky to wake up for dinner (well or lunch actually!)

I'd like a lovely cooked brekkie for starters but only if someone else cooked it and washed up too.  Lunch, a Coronation Chicken sandwich.  Afternoon tea - a slice of one of my (late) sister's Victoria sponge cakes.  Dressed crab salad for dinner with a few new potatoes and a lightly lemony mayo, or Tournedos Rossini, or Beef Wellington, each with Pommes Dauphinoise & veg, followed by Eton Mess or raspberry & fresh cream meringue.


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

trophywench said:


> I'd be asleep and lucky to wake up for dinner (well or lunch actually!)
> 
> I'd like a lovely cooked brekkie for starters but only if someone else cooked it and washed up too.  Lunch, a Coronation Chicken sandwich.  Afternoon tea - a slice of one of my (late) sister's Victoria sponge cakes.  Dressed crab salad for dinner with a few new potatoes and a lightly lemony mayo, or Tournedos Rossini, or Beef Wellington, each with Pommes Dauphinoise & veg, followed by Eton Mess or raspberry & fresh cream meringue.



Mmmm, sounds lush. I like the coronation chicken bit; a good idea for my tiger bread lunchtime sandwich, I think!


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## Kaylz (Jun 6, 2020)

Hmm this has made me think

Breakfast - Sausages, slicey, black pudding, tattie scones, beans, couple of fried eggs, couple of slices of fried bread
Dinner - I'd get Bruce to take me to a pub we used to go to for dinner and have my old 3 courses of mozzarella sticks with chilli sauce, main varied but I'd hope it was spaghetti bolognaise, a pasta dish or steak pie and chips and then whatever cake they had on with cream, ice cream and custard
Tea - probably round to the pub we used to go for tea where I'd have another 3 course job, starter would be haggis pakora's, main would be the whale which was a mammoth battered fish with chips and salad and tartare sauce and some mayo for the chips then pudding would be syrup sponge and custard or sticky toffee pudding and custard although there was once I had my syrup sponge and finished off Bruce's sticky toffee
xx


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## Northerner (Jun 6, 2020)

Battenburg!  

My birthday cake last year


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

Kaylz said:


> Hmm this has made me think
> 
> Breakfast - Sausages, slicey, black pudding, tattie scones, beans, couple of fried eggs, couple of slices of fried bread
> Dinner - I'd get Bruce to take me to a pub we used to go to for dinner and have my old 3 courses of mozzarella sticks with chilli sauce, main varied but I'd hope it was spaghetti bolognaise, a pasta dish or steak pie and chips and then whatever cake they had on with cream, ice cream and custard
> ...



Pie (flaky pastry) and chips. Nice. If It was ok with you, you can have my black pudding and haggis pakora’s.


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

Northerner said:


> Battenburg!
> 
> My birthday cake last year
> 
> View attachment 14421



oh, yummy! I’ve not had Battenburg cake for years. Nice. I also like Mr Kipling’s Manor Cake.


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## Lanny (Jun 6, 2020)

Oohhh!  & Slurping sounds! I treat myself every now & then, with extra corrections, to Mr. Kipling’s mini battenburg cakes: 5 in each box; spread it out over the week by having 1 after eating with +2 to my usual Novorapid dose!


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## Kaylz (Jun 6, 2020)

Lucylemonpip said:


> If It was ok with you, you can have my black pudding and haggis pakora’s.


no problem at all!  xx


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## Lanny (Jun 6, 2020)

Drat!  With all these ideas fermenting in my mind my birthday is still almost 6 months away!


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## trophywench (Jun 6, 2020)

Mines nearly 12 Lanny!

Hate Battenburg, never really liked marzipan anyway and now it's a sort of firm fondant instead, I think I loathe any kind of fondant even more.

Kipling Manor cake though - now you're talking - I love dried fruit.

Pete's grandma's 'recipe' for bread pud was good.  First - scour the washing up bowl thoroughly, then soak your stale bread in water in it for several hours, drain as well as you possibly can - Pete's job cos he has far larger hands than me.  Add mixed dried fruit, whatever you have but not glace cherries and then if you can leave it a bit again do so, cos the fruit will soak up some of the water, especially old currants that have been at the back of the cupboard LOL  If you want candied peel in it, add that later when it's already soaked again.

Lightly grease the biggest roasting pan you own and tip the contents of the washing up bowl into it.  Bake for approx. 25 mins in a medium oven.  Take out of oven and leave in tin to cool thoroughly.  Sift a couple of tablespoons of caster sugar over the top.  Cut into slices and test it, in case it just happens to be poisonous.  Assuming not, put the rest in an airtight tin and take to hand round wherever you can to save you getting fat.


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## Northerner (Jun 6, 2020)

I had this one year, Belgian chocolate fudge cake  I made sure I had plenty of insulin


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## Two_Hares (Jun 6, 2020)

Do people have treat days on special occasions?  My DSN told me I could have a treat once a week at my initial meeting (she did not specify what a 'treat' is and I'm pretty sure my idea of a treat will be hugely different to hers!).  I haven't had anything wild yet as I've only really been properly eating well the last 5 weeks or so and haven't felt the need (other than two mini ice creams (different days) during the hot weather the other week but they were small so pretty low carb and BG readings were fine after!).  My birthday is August too so might need to start thinking about what I'd have....


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## Kaylz (Jun 6, 2020)

@Two_Hares yeah some do, even though I'm Type 1 and have the benefit of insulin I still choose not to

I've just thought I need to add supper in here but go back quite a few years too as the bakery no longer exists but I'd have a caramel cake from McKay's bakery, it was just a 2 sponges stuck together and filled with buttercream and then covered in a caramel buttercream icing and topped with a jelly sweet but it was delicious! my grandad once helped himself to a huge chunk while we were out, wasn't happy with  him at all as he didn't even tell us and we only discovered it when we went to cut slices for after our dinner!
xx


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## grovesy (Jun 6, 2020)

trophywench said:


> Mines nearly 12 Lanny!
> 
> Hate Battenburg, never really liked marzipan anyway and now it's a sort of firm fondant instead, I think I loathe any kind of fondant even more.
> 
> ...


Not heard of Manor Cake.


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

grovesy said:


> Not heard of Manor Cake.



It seems to be properly called Manor House Cake. Lol. Here’s a pic. Sainsbury’s sell it am pretty sure Tesco’s will do too.


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## grovesy (Jun 6, 2020)

A fruit cake then. Ta.


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

I’ve just thought of something else as well... a bar of Galaxy chocolate And a Boost bar. Love those, especially when it’s been in the fridge for a while.


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

grovesy said:


> A fruit cake then. Ta.



Yes. It’s lush and has crunchy Demerara sugar on top.


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## Two_Hares (Jun 6, 2020)

Lucylemonpip said:


> I’ve just thought of something else as well... a bar of Galaxy chocolate And a Boost bar. Love those, especially when it’s been in the fridge for a while.


A Boost and a bottle of fresh Orange Juice used to be my afternoon pick me up at work if I was tired...oh lord, I wonder what my BG would read after that now!  Love a Boost though....and a Double Decker!


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## grovesy (Jun 6, 2020)

Lucylemonpip said:


> Yes. It’s lush and has crunchy Demerara sugar on top.


Sorry it is not my idea of a good fruit cake, I am more of rich fruit cake person.


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

trophywench said:


> Mines nearly 12 Lanny!
> 
> Hate Battenburg, never really liked marzipan anyway and now it's a sort of firm fondant instead, I think I loathe any kind of fondant even more.
> 
> ...



sounds lush. Perhaps a touch of whiskey in it would be nice too? Lol. I’ve got 8 weeks to wait...


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

grovesy said:


> Sorry it is not my idea of a good fruit cake, I am more of rich fruit cake person.



That’s okay. I’d have that too! Lol.


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

Two_Hares said:


> A Boost and a bottle of fresh Orange Juice used to be my afternoon pick me up at work if I was tired...oh lord, I wonder what my BG would read after that now!  Love a Boost though....and a Double Decker!



Yes, double deckers are good too. Not too dissimilar to Boosts.


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## Northerner (Jun 6, 2020)

Lucylemonpip said:


> It seems to be properly called Manor House Cake. Lol. Here’s a pic. Sainsbury’s sell it am pretty sure Tesco’s will do too.
> View attachment 14424


'Serves 6' - Mwahahahaha!


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## trophywench (Jun 6, 2020)

It fills a corner nicely for me, thanks.

We both also enjoy rich fruit cake too - but rarely see one small enough to make it worth buying cos if we invest in a larger one, it lands up being thrown away as nobody else in the family likes it.


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## Lucylemonpip (Jun 6, 2020)

Northerner said:


> 'Serves 6' - Mwahahahaha!



Lol.


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## SB2015 (Jun 6, 2020)

Loving this thread Lucy

Breakfast: cooked breakfast with bacon, eggs, tomatoes and mushrooms
Lunch: freshly made cheese scone
Tea: birthday cake of any kind.
Evening meal: freshly cooked Cornish pasty from St Agnes pasty shop.
A nice glass or two of Sauvignon Blanc would help to bring glucose levels down!!!

I would need to check my stock of insulin for that lot, but it would be worth it.


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## SB2015 (Jun 6, 2020)

Ooo yes, and some nice dark chocolate covered  Brazil  nuts.


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## grovesy (Jun 6, 2020)

SB2015 said:


> Ooo yes, and some nice dark chocolate covered  Brazil  nuts.


I love them but I can no longer eat Brazils as they upset my IBS.


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## Kaylz (Jun 6, 2020)

Lucylemonpip said:


> Yes, double deckers are good too. Not too dissimilar to Boosts.


preferred star bars or peanut butter chunky kit kats! xx


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## rebrascora (Jun 6, 2020)

Full English for breakfast including fried eggs, smoked bacon, black pudding, mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, hash browns and fried bread..... no beans thanks..... 
or
.... a BEMO (Bacon Egg Mushroom and Onion) butty with tomato ketchup   
Cheese scone with butter, extra cheese and pickle with a hot chocolate at 10 o'clock. I really miss cheese scones and hot chocolate!
For lunch, I'm also going to go with the Coronation chicken salad sandwich in a really nice bread.... maybe the tiger bread suggested or probably a nice granary followed by the sweetest, stickiest chocolate brownie I could find.

Dinner would probably be Duck a l'Orange with new potatoes and green beans and broccoli followed by a rum baba.... anyone remember those from the 70s?  and all washed down with several rum and cokes....  or maybe if we have a 70s theme I could have Babycham  and a Cherry B to finish the evening!

Would just like to say, that is my dream menu..... there is no way on earth that I would be able to eat that much these days or justify the huge insulin requirement it would take.... and I would struggle horribly the next day trying to get back on track, so this is not ever going to happen, but dreaming it up is nice.

Oh and I will happily help if anyone is struggling with their haggis pakoras.


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## Kaylz (Jun 6, 2020)

rebrascora said:


> Oh and I will happily help if anyone is struggling with their haggis pakoras.


do I really have to share??    lol, only if you share some Coronation chicken as long as its not got any sultanas in!
xx


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## rebrascora (Jun 6, 2020)

Kaylz said:


> do I really have to share??    lol, only if you share some Coronation chicken as long as its not got any sultanas in!
> xx



Whaaat! Coronation chicken without sultanas or raisins just isn't coronation chicken! Might as well have haggis without oats in it! I will pick the dried fruit out of your portion though if you like, but happy to share if it means I also get some haggis on my birthday.


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## trophywench (Jun 6, 2020)

We've stopped buying premade Coronation chicken (which we'd started calling Corporation chicken anyway cos it wasn't that good) and instead have premade chicken tikka breasts either whole for home slicing or ready sliced to put on sandwiches, with a goodly covering of Hellman's full fat mayo and then a decent covering of torn up iceberg lettuce on sandwiches at lunchtime now.  Not a sultana - but anyway chopped up mango is better - to be seen.


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## SueEK (Jun 6, 2020)

Ooh lovely thread. I would have a warm croissant with ham and cheese followed by a big cheese scone and butter with a large glass of orange juice.
For lunch I would have a dressed crab with large chunks of warm fresh bread.
Evening meal would be smoked salmon and prawn cocktail followed by a spaghetti carbonara and profiteroles with lots of rose wine.
Yum yum yum x


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## Sharron1 (Jun 6, 2020)

Chocolate eclair  my birthday, family birthdays and bank holidays.  But looking at the Kipling stuff. I do miss his exceedingly tasty bakewell slices. No more birthday's for a few months. August BH next.


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## NotWorriedAtAll (Jun 6, 2020)

I'm finding this thread very useful to help me decide what recipes to put into my very low carb diabetes-friendly cookbook so thankyou sooooo much to @Lucylemonpip for starting it.

A lot of the things that people are craving such as very rich chocolate cake and chocolate eclairs and Battenberg cake etc are recipes I have already converted into 'keto' recipes that do not budge blood sugar levels very much at all  In my case they only raise it by 1 - 1.5 mmols/l mainly because they only have about 4g carbs per (generous) portion.

I made a light fruit cake for Christmas that was touted by its originators as being keto friendly but it shot my levels up from 7 to 9 so I am still on a quest to find a recipe that works.

I have at last found a bread recipe that is absolutely excellent so bread and butter pudding, fried bread, proper bread sauce, real scotch eggs and stuffing for roast chicken is back on the menu!!

I don't give myself sugary treats for my birthday - I prefer to convert the recipes into perfectly safe and even good for me recipes that taste as good or better than the original versions and have them every single day - because I love my food and I know I would be miserable denying myself so I do what I always do when I find something difficult to cope with - I find a workaround so I don't have to.


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## Bexlee (Jun 7, 2020)

Kaylz said:


> preferred star bars or peanut butter chunky kit kats! xx



ooooohhhh peanut butter kitkat ..... peanut butter mmmmmmm yum


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## trophywench (Jun 7, 2020)

All dried fruit is pretty carby.   Can't avoid that even if the 'cake' part it made with low carb ingredients.  Bread and butter pud - would you get the same effect not using 'normal bread' ?  You could try one slice of 'eggy bread with a slice of your keto one, to check how it behaves when soaked in beaten egg before embarking on a pudding.


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## Bexlee (Jun 7, 2020)

It’s making me hungry just reading all your posts!
Breakfast = bacon, scrambled eggs, mushrooms and a bagel

Lunch=  TGi Jack Daniels chicken strips and sweet potato fries followed by fudge cake and ice cream

Tea (dinner ! ) chicken and cashew nuts or chicken in black bean sauce and special fried rice

My birthday is fairly near Christmas so I persuaded little nephews and niece to plead a case to their mum (my sister) and my hubby for an official birthday in July - which we now have. So not long to wait, well so long as we can travel to see them. I haven’t seen them in person since February so long ago

oops I forgot birthday cake - any but none of those with rolled icing over them - yuck. Chocolate fudge cake or a nice sponge with fresh creme


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## Eddy Edson (Jun 7, 2020)

Chicken pho or chicken risotto. And an apple & pear muffin for breakfast if I really think I've deserved it.


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## Kaylz (Jun 7, 2020)

Bexlee said:


> ooooohhhh peanut butter kitkat ..... peanut butter mmmmmmm yum


glad someone shares my love of peanut butter, have a huge spoonful in my porridge every morning!  xx


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## nonethewiser (Jun 7, 2020)

Every birthday have big greasy fry up, bacon sausage eggs black pud tattie scone beans tomato mushroom toast big mug of builders tea.

Evening chinese followed by bakewell slice & ample wine.


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## Toucan (Jun 7, 2020)

My dream birthday food would be from memories of growing up days on a Devonshire farm.

Breakfast: Fried potato cake with egg and bacon
Lunch: A large Devonshire pasty - just cooked and still warm
Tea-time: Scones jam and cream (Cream on first)
Supper: Roast beef that just melts off the knife, Yorkshire pudding , crispy roast spuds, thick gravy (and a tiny few veggies).

Just a dream though,.Firstly I didn't inherit my Mum's cooking skills to make it all like she did.
Also I just couldn't eat that much food in a day any more!  -Just may be a few clues though of why I ended up with a weight problem in later years.


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## Drummer (Jun 7, 2020)

I don't understand the question.
I mean - every day I have things to eat which make me feel great and also happy and healthy.


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## bakebeans (Jun 7, 2020)

For breakfast I’d have egg and bacon with hash browns and bakebeans
Lunch would be warm chicken in a buttered tiger roll and a packet of chilli heatwave Doritos and a juicy peach
Dinner: Roast chicken with stuffing, roast potatoes and Yorkshire pudding with thick gravy.
Afters would be chocolate fudge cake and ice cream


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## trophywench (Jun 8, 2020)

@Drummer - whilst you eat exactly how it actually suits you to eat every single day and that's 100% fine, out of all the things you eat, surely you must have some favourites?  Diabetic or not, the vast majority of normal ordinary run of the mill people in the world, do.  

Hence if you wish to 'treat' yourself you'd just opt for your favourite meals.


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## Ditto (Jun 11, 2020)

That makes sense so bacon and eggs then. I'm having that tomorrow morning. Today I had a fave meal for dinner, Sirloin steak and sprouts! With butter on. I don't think I should be having the butter but I luvs it.

I'm not that keen on cakes but Manor House Cake is yummy if you're going to have cake. Also Florentines from Spinks but that shop is long gone I think. I can take or leave sweet stuff it's the chavvy chip butty type food I have to drag myself away from. If I have peanut butter I want the whole jar.


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## HenryBennett (Jun 11, 2020)

Lucylemonpip said:


> It seems to be properly called Manor House Cake. Lol. Here’s a pic. Sainsbury’s sell it am pretty sure Tesco’s will do too.
> View attachment 14424



Mr Kipling cakes generally have a long shelf life due to all the sugar they contain.


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## HenryBennett (Jun 11, 2020)

My birthdays have always been a bit different it being on Boxing Day. Christmas Day leftovers!


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## rebrascora (Jun 11, 2020)

@HenryBennett That would be my dream birthday treat as Boxing Day lunch is my favourite meal of the year. Christmas dinner leftovers, chips and salad in the company of those you love. All the hype over for another year and just a relaxing, chilled, day.


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## Sparkle (Jun 11, 2020)

I am confused, are  you guys all serious? I thought it would make you feel unwell immediately and also cause long term damage. My birthday is in August too and as a fairly newly diagnosed, I had already been thinking how horrible it will be not to have birthday cake or treats on the day. My diabetic nurse said an occasional treat like half a dessert, or a couple of squares of chocolate.


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## rebrascora (Jun 11, 2020)

I think I clarified my post by saying it was my "dream food" and I would not actually indulge in those things for my birthday or any other day anymore and I am sure many of the other posts have got carried away with the idea too and would probably not have a quarter of the things they have mentioned on their birthday. 
That said, many people do follow the idea that there are 2 days a year off from diabetes.... their birthday and Xmas day. Personally I didn't have anything carby on my birthday at all but I did have a tiny portion of Xmas pud on Xmas day and a small leftover Yorkshire pudding with gravy and a tiny few chips with my meat and salad on Boxing day. Those of us who are Type 1 can inject insulin to cover the naughties, so it can be a bit easier for us, although it makes my levels go haywire for a couple of days afterwards even with extra insulin. 
A few extra carbs for one day will not cause you damage but best not to go silly. One piece of cake or fish and chips once a year plus whatever we have at Xmas is not unreasonable considering the restraint we show the other 363 days of the year. 
You will probably feel sleepy afterwards if your BG levels go high but you can either go for a birthday walk afterwards to help lower it or indulge in a birthday nap. Obviously you do not want your levels heading up into the 20s but hitting mid teens occasionally will not kill you.... Just as well really as most of us Type 1s would be dead if it did, because balancing insulin with food manually is much more tricky than you might think!


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## Sparkle (Jun 11, 2020)

Thank you for explaining.


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## Ditto (Jun 11, 2020)

Torture. I'd rather not have anything at all.


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## trophywench (Jun 12, 2020)

Daughter No1 (chef!) usually entertains us all on Xmas day - roast beef plus a small turkey crown for her MIL's benefit largely which the remainder of goes home with her cos she has both her sons and their families on Boxing Day so it's never overcooked LOL and all the trimmings so I have one Yorkshire with my beef with every available veg including 3 roast spuds but no mash, followed by a small portion of whatever lovely dessert(s) are on offer.

Early evening some of everything you can put in a salad except it's deconstructed so you only have to have the bits you like, and there'll be cold cuts, cheeseboard, tuna and whatever on offer, pork pie, saus rolls, crisps, pickles and then save yourself - because you always have to leave enough room for a small serving of trifle!

No way Pedro could I possibly eat that amount of food on a regular basis and I'm not about to start trying.


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