Snickerdoodle Granola for Breakfast

Part 2: Balancing blood sugars & pregnancy, plus TWO recipes!

Edited & approved by Rosa Keller, PhD RD, Nutrition Science
Supported by Dr. Claire Packer, OBGYN Resident at Mass General Brigham (Harvard)

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*This newsletter and chat line are not intended to be medical advice.

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In our MWN conversation each week,

I share verified, *easy* nutritional tips that can *truly* improve how you feel everyday, followed by a simple, delicious recipe à la moi – an award-winning, professional chef. 

From our 5 pillars, this week we talk about: Balancing Blood Sugars (Part 2) for Pregnancy - Let’s go!

This recipe and nutrition tips today not only apply to someone who is pregnant, but also they can be beneficial to your health anyway. If you’re busy and doing a quick skim, or you’re not interested in this subject, jump down to the tasty recipe I’ve developed for you. And we will see you next week.

Jump to:

The Recipes: Snickerdoodle Granola & A Perfect Breakfast Bowl

A warrior believes in an end she can’t see and fights for it. A warrior never gives up. A warrior fights for those weaker than herself. It sounds like motherhood to me.

(“The Four Winds”, Kristen Hanna, p. 426)

When you embark on the pregnancy journey, you dive into the most unknown world of your life. You relinquish control over how you feel, how you look, and how you live.

Your body transforms into a new shape, your organs twist, turn, and reform, and you grow a whole new organ. Your hormones go wild, leaving you feeling a bit lost, searching for the YOU that you know. It’s terrifying to say the least. But it can also be joyous.

But you take on this conquest and charge forward the best you can. A brave warrior, to say the least. You’re diving into the wild and beautiful ride of motherhood.

Pregnancy as beauty, Anonymous

Motherhood takes the utmost courage of your life. But it’s also the time when you are naturally the most willing to make changes in your habits. To ensure that you are best equipped for what’s coming over the next nine months and for the rest of your life.

So, if there is anything that you can control, something that might make you feel a little better in your own skin, wouldn’t you want to give it a try?

The decisions you make about what you eat and what you put into your body are within your scope of control, although it may not feel like it sometimes. These choices can make a massive difference in your perinatal experience from start to finish – through fertility, pregnancy, and beyond.

And if I know you, my friend, I am confident that you will take the leap to learn what you need to know to take control of your health as a warrior woman. A choice to thrive the best you can and enjoy the ride.

I am writing this today to call out to the warrior in YOU. Who’s with me?

Last week we discussed what blood sugars are, why they are important to EVERY woman, and how they can greatly affect your fertility. 

Today, let’s chat about blood sugars during pregnancy. Believe it or not, your baby’s blood sugars are a direct reflection of your own. (source) And blood sugars determine metabolic health, heart health, brain health, and longevity of both of your lives.

*This advice is important even if you consider yourself healthy and not at risk for diabetes.* Taking care of your body and health means giving your baby the best start possible for their life. It also means you, as their Mama, will be able to pick them up and hold them longer, stay physically and mentally present in their life, control stress levels, and enjoy the little moments with your new baby.

Blood sugars and nausea

So you’re in the first trimester of pregnancy, (or perhaps for your entire pregnancy), and you can barely keep ANY food down. First, I’m so sorry. Second, you should know that balancing your blood sugars is SO KEY to feeling ok during this time. Now what, you ask?

Here’s the scoop: 

• At the beginning of pregnancy, the newly forming placenta is burrowing into the uterine wall to access oxygen and nutrients from the mother’s bloodstream. This is particularly happening between weeks 7-12. The extraction of nutrients from the bloodstream causes an imbalance, leading to extreme nausea. (source) If you give it too much sugar at once, it will make it worse. You need to eat foods that your body digests slowly. AKA, not too many simple carbs. Keep reading.

• Ironically, your body will crave quick-hits, which means you’ll likely crave simple carbs (bread, pasta, etc). This is where it gets confusing – the carbs can cause your blood sugar to fluctuate too quickly, leading to MORE nausea later on. Ugh! (source)

• Your body is hyper-aware of anything you consume that might be toxic to this new embryo and that might cause birth defects. So if you eat anything too processed, too rich or overwhelming, your body will reject it, assuming it might harm your baby. 🤢(source)

What You Should Do: Prioritize protein, cooked fibers & fats — and without *added* sugars 

Protein digests slowly, reducing any overwhelming blood sugar fluctuations and instead providing sustained energy. It’s a slam-dunk way to help your digestion of carbohydrates. Protein sources include:

• Nuts (like the granola recipe in this email!)

• Seeds

• Fish (if you can handle it)

• Vegetables (yes, this too!)

• Whole grains (if WHOLE - like quinoa & farro)

• Meat (again, if you can tolerate it)

Many of these sources also include fibers and healthy fats, too. Nice! If you cook your vegetables, they’ll be softer on your belly and easier to digest. This recipe looks tasty. *Sometimes cold foods can be more nausea-friendly. You’ll need to test this and see what works better for you. If you have aversions to flavors, cooling foods can suppress the intense flavors.

Photo cred: girlheartfood.com

Protein is crucial for your growing baby to thrive. Also, fibers from vegetables, fruit and whole grains help with protein and nutrient absorption. Healthy fats such as olive oil, walnuts, avocado, and fish also aid in absorption. All of this will keep those blood sugars balanced and you’ll feel much happier in your own skin. (source)

Now let’s get even more real for a minute: For all trimesters in pregnancy – there is a misconception of “eating for two”. The amount you’re supposed to eat fluctuates throughout. Generally, a pregnant woman only needs to eat for 1.1 – essentially an extra snack per day. Whuuuuh? (source) 

So here’s the deal: 

• During this sensitive time, you may crave comfort foods. So you eat extra pasta, pizza, cookies…stuff that feels comforting through the chaos of bodily changes in pregnancy. Yum! While you should definitely eat foods that make you happy, and enjoy foods like these, all of a sudden reaching for nothing but unhealthy carbs can be addicting and overwhelming for your blood sugars. And this often happens in T1 of pregnancy.

• The order you eat certain foods matters. Eating protein, high fiber, and healthy fat before and with carbs helps to slow your digestion, keeping blood sugars steady. It’s so simple, and so effective.

  • Extra bonus: If you walk 10 minutes after you eat, you’ll help your blood sugars immensely. This is top priority for me – and I feel a massive improvement everyday with how I feel after I go for a walk around the block.

• Good news: Your body is obsessed with keeping blood sugars low during pregnancy. It’s doing whatever it can to protect the baby and you! Your body is naturally on your team. With a generally whole foods and balanced diet, your blood sugars should be able to self-regulate and you’ll be ok. But too much high blood sugar is a known cause of birth defects and, without some care and attention, it can impact your baby’s growth, development, and metabolic health for life. (source) This is not to scare you, but help make you aware that this does matter.

• Overeating or malnutrition are culprits for leading to complications like gestational diabetes, heartburn, pre-eclampsia, and potential of c-section. (source) All stuff you just really want to avoid however you can. You’ll look and feel your best possible if you can listen to your body. Eat when you’re hungry, and stop when you’re full. Easy to say, I know. You can do this!!!

What You Should Focus On:

1. Eat moderately and more often, when needed, and reach for whole, beautiful real foods.

In an ideal world, we’d listen to our body. Eat when you’re hungry, and stop when you’re full, to feel your best. Easy to say, I know. But with crazy schedules and so much confusing eating suggestions in our society, we eat out of habit, stress, and socially. So how are we supposed to know what to do? 

Research shows that balancing our hormones and blood sugars is best done when having 3 main moderate meals per day, and in between, if you’re hungry, have a healthy snack. It’s age old advice, but typically, it works. Especially when you’re pregnant – keeping a regular schedule can be extremely helpful for your hormones, nausea, and the way you feel. 

*Did you know that the typical American eats an average of 11 times per day??*

Eating balanced meals 3 times per day, plus perhaps a few snacks, can be hard to do, I know. I’m with you here. My recipes each week outline balanced serving amounts to help guide you. And after that, listening to your body can be very powerful. Also – here are a couple snack ideas. 

While whole grains and fruits are important for energy and many nutrients, we do want to be careful about overeating carbohydrates and sugars. This can overwhelm your digestive organs, converting excess food into glucose, which enters your blood. This excess glucose can be harmful to both your health and your baby’s health, both today and long term. As a pregnant woman, excess glucose can cause fatigue, alongside carrying extra weight and fluctuating hormones. These shoot through your body, impacting your respiratory system, heart health and brain.

So, however you can, enjoy eating the beauty of real foods, and eat when you’re hungry. It’s simple, but most of us don’t do it, most of the time. 

I’ve made a special THIS…NOT THAT cheat sheet for you for condiments that tend to have tons of added sugars that you should avoid.

Grab it here!

2. Balance and beautify your meals

Put vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, meats, and cheeses on top of / before your grains, fruit, and treats. While you can’t control the morphing and changing of your body and organs, you can control what you eat to feel much better. The granola recipe below is great for this. :)

Snickerdoodle Granola & A Perfect Breakfast Bowl

These two recipes’ goal is to give you a protein-rich, power-packed, low-glycemic breakfast idea that you’ll really look forward to eating. I mean…snickerdoodle cookie flavor? Yes please. 

It’s crunchy, sweet, salty. And since it’s very low-carb and nutrient dense, guaranteed it will jam-pack you with energy for hours and you’ll feel really good, too. 

*Hint hint*: Get your partner to make this recipe for you! Not only can it be "their thing”, helping contribute to your health and that of your baby’s, but they will be pumped to enjoy some also. I’ve done this with my husband, the granola guy. It works well and he’s always so proud. 😘And you can get one full week of breakfast for the both of you with this recipe.

I’ve added suggestions below of how to make it into a low-glycemic, high-protein breakfast bowl. It’s the one I eat everyday, myself. Big fan! 

This bowl aims to have little to no waste, to keep your fridge looking pretty, too. I don’t know about you, but that makes me happy.

Snickerdoodle Granola

Breakfast (great to grab a handful as a snack, too)
Servings: 12 (¼-⅓ cup per serving)
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 25-30 minutes | Total Time: 40-45 minutes

Gluten-free | Dairy-Free | Vegetarian | Vegan (optional - see note) | Grain-Free

Per serving: Carbs: 17g | Protein: 7g | Fiber: 4g | Fat: 20g
Macronutrient information pulled from MyFitnessPal.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw almonds

• 1 cup raw cashews

• 1 cup raw walnuts

• 1 cup pumpkin seeds

• ½ cup chia seeds, flax seeds, or both

• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt 

• ¼ cup honey (see how honey is good for blood sugar & pregnancy here)

• 2 tablespoons cinnamon

• Replace cinnamon with ¼ cup cacao powder and make it into brownie batter granola! 

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F.

2. Chop all nuts with the largest chef knife that you have into smaller chunks – think about ¼ nut. (This is my fav chef knife for this recipe, btw.) 

3. In a large mixing bowl: Add nuts, seeds, salt and cinnamon. Mix with a wooden spoon. Then, drizzle in the honey. If your honey has crystallized, heat on low on the stovetop or microwave it for 15 or so seconds so that it’s runny. Mix it all well. Taste, to make sure it’s not poisonous. 😉

4. On a large baking sheet, add a piece of parchment paper. Spread mixture out onto parchment. 

5. Bake for about 15 minutes. Stir, then continue baking until nuts are a golden brown color, about another 15 or so minutes. Depending on the oven, how big your tray is and how thick your granola is, it may take less or more time. Keep the oven light on, and stir every 10-15 minutes to keep an eye on it. 

Remove from oven and let rest for 30 minutes to cool. Scoop into a bowl or jar to save for breakfast and snacks! Best if kept in the fridge (keeps it fresher and also hardens the honey).

A Perfect Breakfast Bowl

Breakfast
Servings: 2
Prep Time: 5 minutes | Total Time: 5 minutes

Gluten-free | Vegetarian | Grain-Free

Per Serving: Carbs: 43g | Protein: 30g | Fiber: 11g | Fat: 24g
Macronutrient information pulled from MyFitnessPal. 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup low-fat Greek yogurt

• ½ - ⅔ cup Snickerdoodle Granola

• 1 cup raspberries

• 1 cup blueberries

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk

Instructions:

Build bowl: In two bowls, add half of each: yogurt, granola, berries. Then pour in milk. Enjoy the perfect combo for a delicious, fueling breakfast that will leave you feeling amazing!

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Enjoy!! And please let me know if you made it by commenting below or sending me a message. I love photos too! If you post on Instagram or TikTok, please tag @hello_julienne so I can see and repost. 😀

Recipe, Shopping List & Equipment List (b/w) — download and print here:

MWN Snickerdoodle Granola Recipe

142KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Plus: A Perfect Breakfast Bowl

Download

Is this Pregnancy-Friendly?

• YES!

  • This recipe is an excellent option for pregnant individuals. The ingredients are rich in essential nutrients that support overall health and pregnancy.

  • Protein from Greek yogurt and nuts supports the growth of fetal tissues.

  • Healthy fats from nuts and seeds aid in brain development and help balance insulin levels.

  • Fiber from chia and flax seeds helps regulate digestion and maintain stable blood sugar levels.

  • Antioxidants from berries support the immune system and provide essential vitamins.

• Tips:

  • Ensure all nuts and seeds are fresh and stored in the fridge or freezer to avoid going rancid.

  • Use organic berries and wash them thoroughly to reduce the risk of pesticides and support ovary and hormone health.

Is this Gestational-Diabetes-Friendly?

• YES!

  • This recipe is balanced with protein, healthy fats, and fiber, which helps manage blood sugar levels effectively. It includes low-glycemic ingredients that are beneficial for gestational diabetes.

• Tips:

  • Balance your meal by having protein and fiber-rich foods. Eat a bite of the yogurt and granola first before the berries.

  • Consider using low-fat or non-fat Greek yogurt to reduce fat intake, since the nuts already contain a lot of fat, while still getting protein and probiotics.

  • Walk for 10 minutes before or after eating to help control blood sugar levels.

Want to Prep Ahead?

• Absolutely!

  • Preparing parts of this dish ahead of time can make the cooking process quicker and more convenient.

• Tips:

  • Make the granola in advance and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

  • Pre-wash and store the berries in the refrigerator for easy access.

  • Measure out portions of yogurt and almond milk the night before in glass jars ready to take on the road.

How to Store Leftovers:

• All items can be stored safely and make for a great next-day meal.

• Tips:

  • Store the granola in a glass airtight container in the refrigerator to keep it fresh and crunchy.

  • Store the prepared breakfast bowls in separate glass airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days.

  • Reassemble the breakfast bowl components when ready to eat to keep the granola crunchy.

• Almonds: Any nuts will work, realistically! My favorite subs are pecans, hazelnuts, or even pistachios.

• Cashews: Any nuts will work, realistically! Macadamia nuts, pecans, or Brazil nuts are great subs.

• Walnuts: Any nuts will work, realistically! I’d replace with pecans, hazelnuts, or Brazil nuts.

• Pumpkin seeds: Substitute with sunflower seeds or chopped hazelnuts.

• Chia seeds, flax seeds, or both: Use hemp seeds or sesame seeds as alternatives.

• Fine sea salt: Pink Himalayan salt also works well. 

• Honey: Use maple syrup for a vegan option.

• Cinnamon: Replace with ¼ cup cacao powder for a brownie batter flavor, or you can skip if needed.

• Greek yogurt: Use coconut yogurt or any plant-based yogurt for a dairy-free option.

• Raspberries: Use strawberries, blackberries, or sliced peaches. Yum!

• Blueberries: Replace with blackberries, strawberries, or sliced kiwi.

• Almond milk, unsweetened: Use any milk such as cow’s milk, soy milk, or coconut milk, as long as it is unsweetened. I’d skip the oat milk. See my thoughts on this here.

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