Green Bagels

We live in an eclectic part of the country.  Ethnic restaurants, music from around the world, and people who can share stories and traditions of a multitude of cultures are all part of our life.  There's a lot to love about it.
Sometimes those cultures even merge to create truly unique experiences.  A talent show featuring steel drums, bluegrass and a piano sonata by Mozart comes to mind.  And so do green bagels.

Every St. Patrick's Day since she was in Kindergarten, my daughter has enjoyed a green bagel for lunch or snack.  More than one local bagel place produces these Eastern European Irish delicacies. Sold by the bagful for class parties and alternative school lunch fundraisers, they're as much a part of our local St. Patty's day festivities as corned beef.

Bagels are one of the few highly regulated food choices around here. 'Everything in moderation' is usually the law of the land.  But from the moment they first begin to cross her lips those 60+ bagel carbs (or 30+ for a 'mini') can wreak havoc on my daughter's blood sugar for at least 12 hours. When she was littler, she'd complain about the bagel restriction.  "My friends eat bagels every day for lunch." As she's become more aware of and responsible for her own blood sugar monitoring, she's stopped complaining quite as much and started to actively avoid them herself except on rare occasions like, of course, St. Patrick's Day.

Because after all, what's St. Patrick's Day without a green bagel?