Over time, I've made a few adjustments and recently used the adjusted recipe as the feature demonstration for Memorial Health System's Diabetic Support Group.
Eddie's original recipe + the revised recipe follows, along with explanations that make the revised recipe a little more diabetic friendly and heart healthy as well.
Great as an hors d’ oeuvre or as an accompaniment to a meal, “Salad Bread” is bursting with summertime flavors and, is a good way to use up excess garden produce. Or, add deli meat and create a sandwich packed with veggies.
Eddie's original recipe + the revised recipe follows, along with explanations that make the revised recipe a little more diabetic friendly and heart healthy as well.
Great as an hors d’ oeuvre or as an accompaniment to a meal, “Salad Bread” is bursting with summertime flavors and, is a good way to use up excess garden produce. Or, add deli meat and create a sandwich packed with veggies.
Eddie Morris' recipe first appeared in an issue of the Abilene Reflector-Chronicle:
Home-Cooking--Dickinson
County Style
“ Capturing the Present and Remembering the
Past”
by Meta Newell West,© November, 2002
It is also included in the 2nd edition of a Dickinson County Heritage Center cookbook (by the same title as listed above). Cookbooks are still available at the Heritage Center.
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| Barry and Cale chopping veggies for Salad Bread. |
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| Barry and Cale "chowing down" on Salad Bread. |
Eddie's ORIGINAL RECIPE Salad Bread About 6 to 10 servings
1 narrow French
baguette, split lengthwise
About 1/2 stick
(2 –ounces or 1/4 cup, or 4 Tbsp.) softened margarine
About 1 teaspoon
garlic salt
4 -ounces (1 cup) sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded – use more or less as desired
2 tomatoes,
seeded & chopped
1/2 to 1 green
pepper, chopped – or more if you prefer
1/4 cup chopped
green onion tops
1. Spread softened butter evenly over cut lengths of bread.
REVISED/MODIFIED RECIPE—lower fat, carb, sodium & calorie, + hearty
healthier
Salad Bread About 6 to 10 servings
Salad Bread About 6 to 10 servings
1 narrow French baguette, split lengthwise (ideally whole wheat or sourdough loaf)
About 2 to 3 tablespoons softened butter, margarine or use olive oil
About 1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 to 4 -ounces (1/2 to 1 cup) sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded – use lesser amount to reduce fats and calories (lower-fat could be used but I prefer to use less
2 tomatoes, seeded & chopped
1/2 to 1 green pepper, chopped (I like to use a variety of colored peppers)
1/4 cup chopped green onion (whites and tops, too)
Note: Use as many veggies as you choose, in whatever proportion you prefer.
1. Spread softened butter evenly over cut lengths of bread, or brush lengths of bread with olive oil.
Information about the MHS Diabetic Support Group presentation can be found on
My notes on the Revisions/Modifications made in the adjusted recipe :
- Instead of a French baguette, use a whole wheat or sourdough baguette. Bread consumption can often hinder the control of blood glucose in diabetics. Many types of bread are laden with simple carbs & sugars that cause the blood glucose to rise. The ADA (Am. Diabetics Assoc.) recommends high fiber breads made from whole grains to keep blood glucose from spiking & to maintain optimal digestive health. What about sourdough? Although it’s a white bread option, white bread generally scores about 100 on the glycemic index (GI) while white sourdough breads score only about 54. Sourdough breads generally contain less sugar + the carbs go through a fermentation process that likely slows down starch absorption in the body.
- Instead of a 1/2 stick of softened margarine, reduce the amount in half to cut both calories and fat. Personally, I prefer butter rather than margarine. It is a saturated fat (comes from an animal source, is solid at room temp & contains cholestorol) so it does affect your cholesterol level + raises both your good blood cholesterol— both (HDL) and bad (LDL). However, margarine, which starts as unsaturated fat (from a veg. source & generally liquid at room temp) is then altered (hydrogenated) to make it solid at room temp, creating a trans fat — these raise your bad (LDL) and lower your good (HDL) cholesterol level.What about reduced fat margarine on this bread? Due to its high water content, this type of margarine may make the bread a bit soggy. What about olive oil? This is a viable alternative—brushing on a thin layer probably means using less fat. Plus, olive oil is a monounsaturated fat (raises HDL, good cholesterol) & lowers LDL (bad). Both MUFAs (olive oil in this case) and polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs – corn, soy, & other veggie oils) may also benefit insulin levels & blood sugar control — very helpful for type 2 diabetics + help decrease heart disease. PUFAs lower LDL (bad) but also the good (HDL) cholesterol levels. Note: fats of all types (whether butter or olive oil) contain the same calorie count – 9 cal/g.
- Instead of garlic salt, use garlic powder (or other salt-free sesasoning) to reduce sodium.
- Reduce sharp Cheddar cheese by half (from 1 cup to 1/2 cup). I prefer less of full fat cheese but reduced fat cheese could be used— it still provides the mouth-feel associated with some fat content but reduces the overall fat and calories of a full fat product. The more pronounced taste of sharp Cheddar (vs. regular or mild) boosts the flavor of the salad bread.
