At the Diabetes UK Annual Professional Conference, GlucoMen were exhibiting the latest blood glucose meter. We were also delighted to team up with celebrity chef Aldo Zilli to help people with diabetes and Diabetes Specialist Nurses enjoy the very best of Italian cuisine. Scroll down for the interview.
Aldo showed delegates how it's done in a series of live cookery demonstrations with recipes all specially selected from Aldo's book Zilli Light.
To view or download the recipes shown at the show, please click here!

Aldo Zilli and his assistant, Katharine Ibbs.
Aldo Zilli – Interview with Diabetes UK
'I try to start the day in a healthy fashion with a breakfast drink such as a fruit smoothie. I always need a strong well-made coffee to start the day as well! Lunch is a light salad or something from my restaurants depending on where I am working. In the evenings, I have a preference for good-quality fish served with a selection of vegetables.'
'Healthy eating is an integral part of the policy in all of my restaurants including my new restaurant Zilli Green in London, which is a fusion of Italian and vegetarian. My ethos in all of my restaurants is to produce great tasting healthy cuisine with a contemporary twist.'
'I am enjoying it very much – there are more people than I expected and the atmosphere is vibrant.'
'The best way for a person to lose weight and maintain that weight loss is to adopt health eating and exercising as part of their lifestyle. There is no point in just going on a quick weight-loss diet and then putting it all back on again – it is far more sensible and effective to make changes that are permanent and not too severe.'
'English and Italian cuisine each has their merits of course. I think a lot of people don’t realise that English cuisine can involve such a wide range of naturally-sourced ingredients such as vegetables and fruit. It is a lot more interesting than most people think.'
'I am hoping to be more established with a greater selection of restaurants. With a bit of hard work, five years has the potential for a lot of achievements.'
I have worked incredibly hard to get where I am and this is the kind of work ethos that I admire and want to instil in my children. If you want to achieve anything, you have to put in the effort and the hours.
'Pasta of course.'