She may not be able to find a way to make her famous burger on a bun of glazed donuts recipe healthy, but Paula Deen is following up her announcement about being a Type II diabetic by offering up some lighter versions of her butteriest, gooiest Southern dishes.
First up: Her Gooey Butter Cake recipe, now available in a lighter version that knocks a whopping 665 calories, 90 grams of carbohydrates and 71 grams of sugar from the original dessert.
The original cake comes in at nearly 1,000 calories per serving, with 99 grams of sugar and 137 grams of carbohydrates. The American Diabetes Association recommends eating between 135-180 carbohydrates … per day.
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Deen, who has launched a "Diabetes in a New Light" campaign with Novo Nordisk, is partnering with her sons and frequent Food Network co-stars, Jamie and Bobby, on her new healthier cooking venture.
Bobby Deen is hosting "Not My Mama's Meals," a new Cooking Channel series in which he makes "Lighter and Leaner Pimento Cheese Sandwiches," "Bobby's Lighter Frozen Chocolate Mousse Pie" and the aforementioned less gooey butter cake.
Deen, along with her sons, will appear on ABC's daytime food series "The Chew" (1 p.m.) to discuss her diabetes and plans for recipe makeovers, but that may not be enough to satisfy some of her most vocal critics.
Fellow chef and reality TV star Anthony Bourdain, who once called Deen the "most dangerous person to America" because of her sugar and fat-laden fare, tweeted on Tuesday, "Thinking of getting into the leg-breaking business, so I can profitably sell crutches later."
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The missive came after Deen's "Today" appearance, in which she confirmed she'd been diagnosed with Type II diabetes three years ago and is now a paid spokesperson for pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk.
Meanwhile, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, which named her "Paula Deen's Southern Cooking Bible" one of the five unhealthiest cookbooks of 2011, issued a public letter to Deen, addressing her Southern cooking and urging her to try a 21-day vegan diet.
"Many people initially balk at the idea of setting aside meat and cheese. But as a native Alabamian who grew up on Southern cooking, I can assure you that Southern classics such as mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese translate very well into hearty, delicious vegan dishes," writes PCRM director of Nutrition education Susan Levin.