NBA Hall Of Famer Earl "The Pearl" Monroe Talks About Battling Diabetes

He's the "Black Magic" known for his incredible skills on the court, scoring over a thousand points in nine of his 13 professional seasons in the NBA. This Hall of Famer is the innovator of the infamous "spin move," but today his new battle is off the court. Earl "The Pearl" Monroe stopped by the studio to talk about his battle with Type 2 Diabetes and what he does to combat the disease. Monroe also talked about his favorite dish Pappardella's Diabetes-Friendly Zuppa de Pesci (see the recipe after the jump).

November is also Diabetes Awareness Month. Monroe has teamed up with Merck & Co., Inc. on the first-ever Diabetes Restaurant Month program, to challenge restaurants in select cities to create diabetes-friendly menu items. Diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 1998, Earl has learned how to maintain a diabetes-friendly lifestyle with a healthy diet and regular exercise, and he aims to inspire others to do the same by making a few small changes in their daily lives, including making smart choices while dining out.

Participating New York restaurants featured diabetes-friendly dishes on their menus for one month, and diners were encouraged to try featured dishes and log on to MerckDiabetes.com to rate their dish and help Earl choose the best one and find a list of participating restaurants.

To find out more about Merck's Diabetes Restaurant Month and for Monroe's tips on healthy eating, visit http://www.MerckDiabetes.com.

Pappardella's Diabetes-Friendly Zuppa de Pesci(One serving)
Ingredients
4 oz. salmon
3 medium clams
3 pei mussels
3 medium shrimp
1/4 cup white wine
1 cup tomato sauce (below)

Tomato sauce (yields 15 cups)
Ingredients
1 can whole tomatoes, no salt added
200g Spanish onion
10g garlic
10g basil
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
5 tbsp olive oil

Directions
1. Sautee Spanish onion and garlic in olive oil on low heat.
2. Add the whole tomatoes and stew on low heat for 45 minutes.
3. Puree the stew and season with salt, pepper, fresh basil and oregano.
4. For the seafood, season the salmon filet with salt and pepper.
5. In a small pan, heat 1 cup of tomato sauce and 1/4 cup of white wine.
6. Put the salmon filet in the sauce and cook on low heat with a lid on for 5 minutes.
7. Add the clams, mussels and shrimp, put the lid on and cook another 5 minutes or until all clams and mussels have opened.
8. Pour the soup with the fish and seafood in a shallow plates, garnish with parsley!

Nutrition Information (one serving)
Calories: 380.8
Fat: 13.7
Saturated fat: 2.1
Cholesterol: 117
Sodium: 571.9
Carbohydrates: 11.3
Fiber: 2.3
Sugar: 5.9
Protein: 39.1