Having diabetes does not necessarily mean that you have to give up your favorite sweets. With careful planning, you can still enjoy small portions of sweets, including fudge, on rare or special occasions. However, your daily diabetes diet should focus on nutrient-rich foods such as whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables, lean protein and light dairy products.
Serving Size
If you eat fudge or other candies on a diabetes diet, keep your serving size small. Fudge, candy and many desserts contain mostly empty calories, meaning that they offer very limited nutritional value. So don't overindulge in fudge and other sweets. You may find it easier to practice portion control with fudge than some other sweets. This is because fudge is so rich and dense that you will more likely satisfy your sweet tooth with a 1-inch square of fudge than with a 1-inch square of cake or pastry.
Artificial Sweetener
You can use artificial sweeteners to make a more diabetes-friendly fudge. Unlike sugar, artificial sweeteners do not cause your blood glucose levels to rise. This is because artificial sweeteners do not contain any carbohydrates. Try preparing a diabetic fudge with liquid artificial sweetener, unsweetened cocoa powder, reduced-fat evaporated milk and a light "butter" substitute. Or for an alternate fudge recipe, use granular artificial sweetener, unsweetened chocolate baking squares, low-fat cream cheese and vanilla extract.
Sugar
According to the American Diabetes Association, in general, you can safely include small amounts of sugar in your diabetes diet. So if you do not like the taste or texture of desserts prepared with artificial sweetener, you can stick with a traditional recipe that calls for sugar. But remember, sugar is loaded with carbohydrates, so eating just a small amount will cause a significant increase in your blood glucose levels. Keep your portions extremely small to help avoid a potentially unsafe spike in your blood glucose. To reduce carbohydrates, cut the amount of sugar called for in a fudge recipe by half -- you might need to cook it longer.
Considerations
According to the American Diabetes Association, if you eat a dessert with your meal, you should omit a carbohydrate-containing food from your menu, regardless of whether your dessert was prepared with artificial sweetener or sugar. For example, if plan to eat a sandwich for lunch and a piece of fudge for dessert, omit the bread in your sandwich and wrap the sandwich fillings in lettuce. Avoid fudge recipes that call for extra ingredients with added sugars such as marshmallows, candy bars, cookie pieces, caramel or butterscotch. A healthier way to add variety to your basic chocolate fudge is to add unsweetened nuts, whole rolled oats, or almond or peanut butter.
References
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness -- Sugar and Desserts
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness -- Fitting in Sweets
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness -- Artificial Sweeteners
- Fudge Recipe Collection: Diabetic Fudge Recipe -- Tasty Diabetic Fudge
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness -- Create Your Plate
