Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Confessions Of A Cheese Slut

Confessions Of A Cheese Slut: While I've never turned tricks for cheese, insulin or anything for that matter - I'm a self admitted Cheese Slut!

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Seriously, is it any wonder I'm a Cheese Slut?

Here’s the thing – I’m a serious fan of cheese, BIG TIME. I wish I didn’t like it, or at least, I wish I could stop loving it so much. Cheese and I have had a life long love affair.

One of my earliest memories is from when I was 3 or 4. I was playing with my older brother in our den & I was pretending to cook him dinner. And all of a sudden, I decided that I needed to take a cheese break.

I ran into the kitchen and asked my mom for some “Baby Cheese.” Baby cheese is what my family and I called sharp cheddar cheese. Apparently, my love of cheese was so great that my whole family named my favorite cheese after me, “the baby” of the family.

I wasn’t selfish, I brought a little pink plastic plate from my tea set and loaded it with slices of Baby cheese and Ritz crackers, walked carefully and slowly back to the den and my brother and I had a feast!

And I have to be honest; I was well into my early twenties before I stopped referring to cheddar as “Baby Cheese.”

Another favorite childhood snack was celery with cream cheese on top, salami and cheese roll ups, and slices of American cheese in my tomato soup, accompanied by a grilled cheese sandwich of course. And don’t even get me started on our family’s Friday night meal of homemade Mac & cheese or my mothers Lasagna!

At diabetes camp, I was introduced to campfire popped popcorn with melted slices of orange cheddar – and it was heavenly!

It didn’t help that the following cartoon was a Saturday morning favorite & I knew every word!!


"When my get up and go had got up and went,
I HANKER FOR A HUNK OF CHEESE!"

Cut to Kelly as an adult, being introduced to the wonders of carb counting. I was thrilled to see that cheese hardly had any carbs! So in my mind, cheese equaled a free food!

But as we all know, cheese is loaded with fat and fat causes bg spikes hours after the meal has ended. And my beloved cheese has the potential to clog arteries and intestines.

Cheese is a quick fix to hunger and requires no prep time at all - It's TOO EASILY ACCESSIBLE & TASTES YUMMY.

I once shared a beach house with a guy who loathed cheese in any form – And damn if I didn’t envy him!

I could be a vegetarian if it wasn’t for my lust of cheese - and my penchant for bacon! Speaking of, another favorite college snack was bacon right out of the frying pan & wrapped in cheese!

Why am I writing about this? Because I have a strong suspicion that I’m not the only one who:

  1. Suffers From Cheese Lust
  2. Forgets that low carb count does not necessarily equal low fat, but still chooses to ignore that fact whenever I see fit
  3. Sharing is a good thing!

Do you have any low in carb lusts that are high in fat or just not so great in other areas, be it chemical additives or calories? And if so, how do you deal with it?

This Cheese slut needs to know!

30 comments:

Briley said...

So when everyone else has bacon on top of their cupcakse, you're going to want cheese?

Bob Pedersen said...

This isn't quite the same thing. But I sometimes rationalize a high-fat treat on the grounds that it's low-carb. I grant that the logic here is somewhat suspect. :)

Unknown said...

our son was just diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and I can't keep enough Baby Bel cheese in our house.. as presents for him people actually bring Baby Bel cheese to our house! My dad just spent $50 on cheese for our little boy :) WE LOVE CHEESE at our house.. maybe its because I am half French??? can that be my excuse?!

Unknown said...

OK, I need to know how to do the cheddar on the popcorn. That sounds effing good!

I love me a sharp cheddar and/or a Monterey Jack - YUMMY!!!

BTW, your title today was a "GRABBER"...I immediately clicked over for a visit!

Erin said...

Diet coke!! Can't get enough of that aspartame-filled fizzy stuff.

Cara said...

I'm so in the same boat. My favorite snack as a kid (and sometimes as an adult) was a price of american cheese. It's a crime that it's so unhealthy.

Sunny said...

I love cheesecake, especially when made with Splenda and without crust. But, as we all know, cream cheese is not fat free. Although I do use a mixture of full fat and reduced fat when I make it.

Scott K. Johnson said...

Yeah. Totally addicted to cheese. Totally.

Bill said...

I too am a cheese man-slut. Chips and cheese dip at my local mexican restaurant are my absolute favorite. Problem is I can't stop at one, or one bowl and just go for it. My blood sugars usually suffer for the next 24 hours sometimes despite increasing basals and extra boluses etc. Cheese is my love and my nemisis.

Sarah said...

OMG, me too!! Currently I'm really into string cheese, cottage cheese, and laughingcow, trying to watch the fat g as well as the carbs. But if you put some baked brie in front of me I'd scarf it down immediately!! I knew all the words to the cartoon abt hankering for a hunk of cheese TOO!! similar carb-substitute loves: SALAME (salivating as I type) and of course, diet coke. Sigh.

Becky said...

My family loves cheese. Good thing we live in WI and can get local, amazing cheese easily! But I worry that it makes my seasonal allergies worse. I will have to try the popcorn - if I can give up my current popcorn of sauteing some garlic in the melted butter before pouring over the popcorn and covering in freshly grated (NO CAN!) parmesan! And fortunately for my son he seems to so far suffer no ill BG effects from cheese!

SarahK said...

***raises hand*** ME!ME!ME!! I'm a "cheese slut" too. My husband even goes as far as buying a separate "brick" of sharp or extra-sharp cheddar cheese for me on his bi-weekly trips to the grocery store.
It used not to bother me to eat cheese when I was growing up, but it does do a number on my bgs now, so I have to limit it now. It's just so hard becuase EVERYTHING (well, most everything) tastes so much better with it!

Fiona said...

We're a cheese-y household. My current snack of choice is two pieces of salami with a slice of Harvarti in the middle. It's a no-carb sandwich! Another low carb high fat guilty pleasure is Italian sausage.

Valerie said...

Who doesn't love cheese?! I find that one hard to believe. I gave up cheese for a while because dairy was bothering me, but then I went to a potluck where we made a lot of different kinds of grilled cheese...pretty soon I remembered how GOOD cheese tasted and why I love it sooo much! I try to keep it to string cheese, otherwise I don't think I could control myself. :)

Scott S said...

The scary part is that I remember this commercial. Too bad cheese was so high on the calories, otherwise we'd all consume more!

Sysy said...

I too love cheese and resort to crumbling it over a salad once a day so I don't overdo it-because I could take a hunk and have the entire thing. I also love almonds. But almonds are dangerous for me because I could sit down and eat a whole bag (and have) way too easily so I limit almonds to once a month (during pms!)

Heidi / D-Tales said...

We could eat together and be very happy! Cheese and bacon -- mmm mmm mmm! I need to try the popcorn and cheddar combo soon. Some houses can't be without bread and/or milk. In my house, we can't be without cheese. :)

Rachel said...

Love cheese.

Trying to limit myself to goat cheese, other than parmesan shavings and the occasional bite of cheddar. It's not working that well so far.

Anonymous said...

Um, do I need oxygen to breath? Well, the answer to that is the answer to whether cheese is a necessity. Actually, now that I'm pondering that cheesy cheese goodness, I may just have to leave work and get home to have some.... Mmmm. Cheese.

Bernard Farrell said...

I love sharp cheese and soft stinky cheeses, blue cheese, feta cheese, well almost any type of real cheese. American 'cheese' doesn't count. There are also some great Irish cheese these days.

I don't worry about the fat content if I limit myself to about an ounce. Mostly I can keep to that limit.

If you've never tried it, sharp cheddar on top of a McVitie's biscuit is especially delicious.

Unknown said...

Holy flashback Batman!! That cartoon/video must have played 200,000 times when we were kids!

I love cheese...but if I had a choice between cheese and chocolate...I'd have to pick chocolte. :)

Meri said...

Sorry, the comment with the "Holy flashback Batman!" was from me. I'm using my son's computer. :)

Steve said...

Just say cheeze.....I love pepper Jack!

Haley said...

Holy Cheese!

I think diabetics all have an equal love for cheese.

I eat cheese daily, It doesnt really spike my bg but it does keep it stable for a while, so its a perfect snack!

unfortunatly it is not healthy, but defiantly amazing.


at diabetes camp when they serve cheese we all fight over it :)

Unknown said...

Wendy + Cheese = True Love 4ever.

So glad I don't have to be a closet cheese slut any longer! Let's start a support group.

OMGsh...now I need to go slice of a bite before I move on with my life...

Brenda Bell said...

I really didn't get "cheese" until university: at home we had American Cheese, Velveeta, cottage cheese, farmer cheese and feta cheese (the last two for baking boureccas). The Other Half is very much a Cheddar man; as for me, I've learned to enjoy all sorts of cheeses (though generally without add-ins and never with bacon!) -- but for the most part, we keep reduced-fat string cheese and reduced-fat extra sharp Cheddar in the house for eating, part-skim or fat-free mozzarella for baking (though it doesn't have the same texture as fresh mozzarella), fat-free ricotta as my go-to instead of cottage cheese (much lower in sodium!), and fat-free feta for use in salads. Unfortunately, going much lower than the first level of fat reduction in Cheddars and mozzarellas changes the texture so much that it tastes and feels like eating plastic. Guess "moderation" is needed -- though it's hard to comply when I have a hunk of Really Good Cheese in the house, or some (very bingeworthy) Buffalo Wing Cheddar...

Kimberly said...

Holy crappola! I thought cheese was a free food...how did I not know that fat will rise bg??? I don't bolus for queso!?!?!?!

Virna / @nograpfruit said...

mmm...cheese... *drool*
Cheese balls, cheese puffs, cheese doodles, cheese popcorn, cheese straws, grilled cheese... (pardon my bubba gump cheese moment) oh, and diet coke. Gotta have the diet coke.

I draw the line at apple pie though. No cheese on the pie! other than that, me and cheese, we got a love thang ;D

Kay Litchy said...

I insanely love cheese. I wasn't diagnosed with T1 until I was 37, but it's been my go to treat ever since. Also, anytime I go to a party or get together where everyone brings food, I bring cheese, because I know that every other food at the party is going to be high carb. I also love bacon. And peanut butter. I tell myself that the 2 tbsp serving of peanut butter is not that high in carbs, and then I eat half a cup.

Bernard said...

I'm with you on the cheese. The sharper the better. I crave blue cheese, so I rarely get it. There's an Irish sharp Cheddar called Kerrygold that is amazing. Nowadays I try not to eat more than a few slices. I'm afraid I've passed the love of sharp cheese onto my youngest son, we're the main consumers of strong cheese in all its forms. Hey it's a great way to get father son bonding.