Going out to eat

Yesterday, before dinner, waaaaaayyyy before dinner, the hubby and I had lunch. He was hungry and so was i…sort of. I wasn’t thirsty, so it had to be hunger. We stopped off at Jimmy John’s, a sandwich shop here in CO and ordered. Now, ordering when you are still in the soft food stages of bariatric surgery is hard work. No bread, nothing hard, no noodles…not so limiting, just challenging.

So staring up at the menu of things I can no longer eat or can’t eat right now, my brain froze. Did I really want to order a $7 sandwich so I could only eat the meat and some veg’s, and still have leftovers since I’m still at an ounce of food. I almost told my hubby to get what he wanted and then I’d pick off his sandwich.

I can see that convo now.

Then, at the bottom of the list, was what they call “slims”. Sandwich's with only meat and no veggie's. Worked for me. So I told my hubby what I wanted and sent him to the counter. He gets there and orders it with no bread. I’m horrified. Not sure why, but I am. I don’t want them to think I’m snobby diet freak. I rush over and tell the girl to ignore him, just order the slim. Everyone is looking at me like I’m crazy, but I’m going to hold my ground. I do not want to look like a freak.

Finally, the guy behind the counter making the meals is like “Why don’t I just wrap it up in iceberg lettuce instead of the bread?”

Why the hell didn’t I think of that? I nod and go to sit down, still embarassed at my reaction.

After getting my meal, I take about two bites…and I’m done. Should not have drunk all the water, but still, it was an ounce of food.

So far the forays into ordering out have not been promising, but I’m sure things will get easier as time goes by.

PBNB-make sense?

My husband gets the weirdest cravings sometimes. We’ll be watching something on TV and he’ll turn to me and say “Can you make that?” Before the surgery, the answer would be yes and we’d be off to the store, getting what we needed and eating all night long. These days, those options are limited. Doesn’t mean that he still doesn’t get cravings, but lately, I use what’s in the house, especially if I can’t eat it. I mean, why keep it if I’m not enjoying it. So, that is how we came up with PBNB-peanut butter nutella banana quesadillas. Can you sense a theme here with the whole quesadilla and tortilla thing? I bought a huge bag and now I have to use them before they go bad.

Back to the food. It was a cold night as well, so I thought I would make some from scratch hot cocoa.

Here’s what went down:

1 tortilla

2 tbsp. of nutella

2 tbsp. of peanut butter

1 ripe banana

1 tsp. of sugar

2 tbsp. of butter

2-3 tbsp. of walnuts, peanuts, pecans or any nut you have on hand.

Preheat skillet or cast iron skillet on medium heat, melting butter. You’re not cooking anything, but the chocolate needs to get gooey.

Slice bananas and put into a small bowl. Toss with sugar gently and set aside. Spread nutella on one side of tortilla and peanut butter on the other. gently spoon banana’s on either side of tortilla and fold over, making sure to seal the edges to the best of you ability. put into skillet and cook each side 3-4 minutes, or until sides are golden brown.

Take out and cut in half or into fours.

The cocoa was simple:

2 cups milk

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cocoa powder

1/2 tsp. of salt

Heat all ingredients in a small sauce pan until bubbles come up on the sides of the pan.Do not boil.Once the bubbles form, spoon into mugs and enjoy

and for this night, my husband's cravings were quelled, but he still wants a sandwich with bacon, chocolate and bananas. I’m not doing it!

Dessert Quesadillas

New old stuff

^{Last night was another adventure into leftover cooking. No quesadillas this time, since I ran out of tortillas. This time, we made spaghetti, using the rest of the pork and a few other vegetables I had in the fridge. Chop up a little celery and onion, add the pork, some barbecue sauce, fresh squeezed orange juice, orange zest, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and you have a whole new item on the menu.}

^{Alas, I did not get to eat any of this. I am not allowed to eat pasta at this stage of eating, so I just watched from the sidelines, drinking water. I can’t remember what I ate, but I’m sure it was good. It’s funny how after surgery, I can barely remember eating, but before, I’d be all about it. I talked to my PCP the other day about how I still have the mentality of wanting to eat everything on my plate, but the reality is that I can’t. I have to retrain myself to listen to my body and not ignore the signs that I’m full, otherwise, what was the point of the surgery?}

^{Starting Monday, the hubby and I are going to have a whole new meal scenario. No more huge portions for him, no more fatty foods, though I will allow him a treat or two. I’ve noticed that if you deny yourself something for too long, you binge. So better to treat than to explode in anger at not having a cookie. I also got us new workout clothes and we WILL be joining a gym. Once I’m off this restriction of not lifting over 10 lbs, it’s on.}

Christmas Gifts

For Christmas, well the past few Christmas's, I’ve wanted a kitchen aid mixer. I didn’t have to be the biggest one, just a mixer so I could do thing in the kitchen that inspire me. Make cakes, bread, cookies…whatever caught my fancy. Some people think I’m crazy for wanting appliances for the holidays, but I say why? I don’t wear lots of jewlery, clothes are a personal thing and really…what the hell else is there? So, this year, I told the husband that was I all I wanted. Nothing else. Guess what I got?

Though it’s not quite that yellow, you get the idea. With a splatter guard. Very, very excited.

Post Christmas eating

 

I am not a big leftover fan. Never have been, never really will be. there are occasions where I will eat leftovers, but it usually occurs during the holidays, when there is good food still left over. Normally, this is not an issue, since before the surgery, I would eat what I wanted and not worry about it. Now, not so much. Because of this, it has fallen on my husband to eat what is left, which can cause him some serious pain in the belly and the morning after. This has led to some bad food waste and some grumblings from his side of the bed because “it gets boring.”

Because of this, I had to come up with a new creative way to get him to eat this stuff and not be pouty that’s it’s the same thing. So, using the pork from the dinner, I made this quick little quesadilla's, and I could actually eat them, though without some of the fillings I used for him. 

These are what his looked like, with all the fillings and stuff I can no longer eat.

this makes two quesadillas, but you could make more if you like.

Here’s how:

1 cup of leftover, shredded pork

2 tbsp. of garden vegetable cream cheese

2 cups of shredded lettuce

1 or 2 tortillas

1 Roma tomato

2 tbsp. of your favorite barbecue sauce

salt

pepper

1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

In a small bowl, mix together the pork, salt, pepper and barbecue sauce, mixing thoroughly. (I used a cast iron skillet, so now would be the time to preheat it. If not, preheat your trusty sidekick skillet, spraying with pam or butter)

Cut tomato in half, then slice each half into half-moon shapes. Set aside. On one side of the tortilla, spread out the cream chess spread to a thin layer, taking it almost to the edge. On top of this, spread out one to two heaping tablespoons of the pork mixture, with a cup of lettuce piled on top. On top of this, add 3-4 slices of tomato. Sprinkle half the cheese on top and press down, pressing the top part of the tortilla into the thin layer of cream cheese on the bottom.

Place into the skillet, cooking 3-4 minutes on each side. You aren’t cooking the meat, just melting the cheese and heating the whole thing through, so you can let it go as long or short as you like. I did about 4 minutes a side and got a nice brown shade.

The husband's plate loaded with leftovers and goodness.

Bariatric editing:

Mine had to be simpler, since I wasn’t going to be able to handle the cream cheese or the just massive quantities of food piled high on the tortilla. For bariatric patients, I took off the cream cheese, passed up the lettuce and just piled up the pork mixture and tomato with a bit of cheese. After cooking it over the skillet, it heated them up nicely and got them soft enough for me to enjoy. Also, my husband found the barbecue sauce with the lowest carb rating there was, but as my dietician says, right now, I’m getting so little food, just an oz., that it’s not going to make much of difference now. Later on though, it will. Which is why I’m getting into he habit now.

 

As you can see they are much thinner than the husbands and I cut them in half then half again. I only got about a sliver down, but they were good anyway.

Christmas Eve

For Christmas Eve, I had a few friends over for dinner. It was a huge deal, since I didn’t cook for thanksgiving. I found quite a few recipes that I wanted to try, though I knew I’d have to modify them to some extent to make them work for my new anatomy. Some of the recipes were old and true, ones that I’d inherited from my mother and others were new, taken out of the magazines and edited. The only sad part: no pictures. I didn’t get time to take them and then it was too late. I gotta get on my game for the next menu item I edit. The BHG at the end of some of the menu items stands for Better Homes and GardensHere was the menu:

Appetizers:
Toasted Ravioli Nibblers (BHG)
Roasted nuts

Starter:
Spinach salad

Main:
Slow cooked Rosemary Roasted Loin of Pork (BHG)

Side dishes:
Sweet Potatoes
Macaroni and cheese
Stuffing
Cheddar spoon bread (BHG)
Brussels sprouts
Collard Greens

Dessert:
Crimson Cranberry-apple Crisp (BHG)
Homemade Orange ice cream

Let’s start with the APPETIZERS.
Roasted nuts
1 cup walnuts
1 cup peanuts
1 cup almonds
1/2 tbsp of chili powder
½ tbsp thyme
1/2 tbsp of salt
½ tbsp pepper
1 tbsp of maple syrup

Preheat oven to 350-400. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking oil. Combine all ingredients into a bowl and stir to coat. Spread out on cookie sheet in a thin sheet. Bake for 6-8 min, checking to make sure nuts are not too dark. Stir once and put back into the oven for another 6-7 min, pulling out when the smell of nuts just starts to fill the air. Allow to cool before serving.

Note: at this stage of the diet I am not allowed to eat nuts, so I had to take my husband’s word that these were good, but spicy. So be aware.

Toasted Ravioli Nibblers
ADAPTED FROM BHG
1 16 oz package purchased frozen breaded cheese flavor ravioli (about 25)
25 cherry tomatoes
25 fresh small basil leaves
25 fresh mozzarella bocconcini balls or provolone chess cubes
Flavored dipping oil or marinara sauce

Prepare ravioli according to package directions.
To serve, thread one baked ravioli, cherry tomato, cheese ball and basil leaf onto each twenty-five 6-inch skewers. Serve immediately with dipping oil or sauce. Makes 25.

Side note: I did not find the breaded ravioli’s, so I had to make my own with an egg wash and panko bread crumbs. I also didn’t have the big skewers, so I served this deconstructed, with piles of the ravioli, the tomatoes, and the cheese, all centered around a dipping sauce of olive oil and Italian dressing, heated in the microwave.
Neither of these appetizers did I eat, since I only have space for about an 1 oz of food and I needed the room for dinner.

Starter:
Spinach salad:
1 package of prewash baby spinach (16-20 oz)
1 cucumber
2 roma tomatoes
3 strips of bacon
Cook bacon in a hot skillet, browning to desired doneness. Allow to cool and drain on a paper towel covered plate. Slice tomatoes in half, then slice into moon shapes. Peel cucumber if it’s not an English/hothouse cucumber, slicing on a diagonal. Empty spinach into serving bowl, topping with tomatoes and cucumbers. Crumble bacon on top and serve.

Note: this is something else that I also did not eat, though not because I couldn’t. I just chose to eat something that would give me protein.

Main:

Slow cooked Rosemary Roasted Loin of Pork:
ADAPTED FROM BHG
1 cup of slice leeks
2 tbsp snipped fresh basil
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp of salt
¼ tsp of black pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1 2½ lb boneless pork top loin roast
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
(The original directions tell you to cut the pork in half and roast in the oven. I did none of that. I’m going to tell you what I did.)
Preheat your 2 ½ -3 qt Crockpot to high.
In a food processor, combine leeks, basil, rosemary, garlic, salt, and pepper. Add 1 tbsp of the oil. Cover; process until a mixture forms a chunky paste. (I found that I needed to add more than one tbsp of oil to the mix to the get the right consistency. Add until it looks right.)
Poke holes in the top and sides of the roast and brush the remaining 1 tbsp of oil over the roast. Spread the leek mixture over the top and side, massaging into the meat and the inside the holes you’ve poked.
Place roast inside Crockpot, fat side down. Let cook on high for 4-5 hrs, checking periodically.
The meat will be falling apart when it’s fully cooked, nice and tender. It literally fell apart in the tongs when I tried to lift it. I did turn it once, to pull off the fat from the bottom, but that was all I did.

Side dishes:

Sweet Potatoes:
2 lbs of sweet potatoes
2 ripe bananas
2 tsp of vanilla
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of black pepper
1/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup splenda brown sugar
2 tbsp of I can’t believe it’s not butter
Preheat oven to 375-400
Cut up the potatoes into quarter’s or any shape you want. Just not too big. In a bowl, mash up banana into a chunky texture, adding the salt, pepper, orange juice and brown sugar. Add potatoes to mixture and stir to coat all the potatoes. Pour into casserole dish and cook for approximately 45 mins to 1 hr. Check occasionally to make sure potatoes once you get to the 45 min mark to make sure potatoes don’t overcook.

Macaroni and cheese:
1 box macaroni noodles
1 block of sharp cheddar cheese
1 block of mild cheddar cheese
1 block of Colby cheese
2 eggs
6 tbsp of I can’t believe it’s not butter
2 tbsp of salt
½ tbsp of black pepper
Milk
Preheat oven to 375°. Use Pam to oil one large casserole dish.
Cut up blocks of both cheddars and Colby cheese’s into about 2 inch blocks, setting aside in a large bowl. Meanwhile, bring water to a bowl, adding 1 tbsp of salt to water before adding noodles. Cook noodles to al dente or with just bite to them.
Add the rest of the salt and pepper to bowl of cheese. Put four tbsp of butter into bowl as well. Beat eggs, adding to bowl of cheese. Mix all ingredients thoroughly.
Drain noodles and put back into cooking pot. Add contents of cheese bowl to the pot and stir thoroughly. To ensure that the eggs to do not scramble, add 1/3 cup of milk to mixture, continuing to stir. Once mixture is thoroughly combined, pour into casserole dish, smoothing out to fill the dish. Pour milk over the dish until it comes up the sides, just covering the top of the noodles.
Cube remaining butter, scattering across the top of the casserole. Bake for 1 hr, checking after the 45 minute mark to check doneness. The noodles not covered by the milk will be brown and the cheese bubbling.

Stuffing:
1 12 oz package of Jimmy Deans Sage Sausage
3 Stalks of Celery
1 box of cornbread mix
1 box of stovetop stuffing
1 medium onion roughly chopped
1 tsp of sage
2 tsp of salt
1 tsp of pepper
2 tsp of poultry seasoning
1 can of chicken broth
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Take your celery stalks, split them down the middle, and dice them into small/medium small pieces. Also dice your onion and set aside. Brown your sausage in a large skillet, while browning break down into smaller pieces. While waiting for sausage to brown over medium heat, start your cornbread mix, following steps on packaging. When sausage is nearly brown, add onions and celery and cook until translucent. In a large bowl combine stovetop dressing mix, crumble your cornbread, and after sausage is complete add that into bowl. Add salt, pepper, sage, and poultry seasoning. Stir until incorporated. Add Chicken Broth after mixed, to moisten mixture. Once combined, pour in a 13 x 9-casserole dish. Put it into the oven and bake 45 minutes or until top is brown.

Cheddar spoon bread (BHG):
Adapted from BHG
1 ½ cups of Milk
½ cup cornmeal
2 Tbsp of I can’t believe It’s not butter
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp of splenda sugar
¼ tsp of salt
¼ cup assorted snipped herbs (basil, chives, parsley, sage, or thyme)
4 eggs (separated)
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large saucepan, stir together milk and cornmeal. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium high heat until mixture is thickened and bubbly; remove from heat. Add the 2 cups of cheese, the butter, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Stir until cheese melts. Stir in herbs.
In a large mixing bowl, beat egg whites with an electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight). Stir about one third of the beaten egg whites into the cornmeal mixture. Gently fold remaining beaten egg whites into cornmeal mixture until combined. Spoon mixture into an ungreased 2-quart casserole or soufflé dish.
Bake casserole, uncovered, for 40 minutes. Sprinkle with the 1 cup of cheese. Bake, uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes more or until cheese melts and a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. If desired, garnish with additional snipped fresh herbs. Serve immediately. Makes 8 servings.

Brussels sprouts:
5 strips of bacon
1 lb of fresh Brussels sprouts
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of pepper
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
Cook bacon until crispy in a skillet. Meanwhile, clean Brussels sprouts (cut off ends and take off outer leaves). Take bacon out and drain on paper towels. Add Brussels sprouts to pan and sauté in the bacon fat.
Sauté for approximately 10 minutes. While sautéing the sprouts, cut the bacon up into little bits and pieces. Then add the 1 cup of chicken broth and continue to sauté until the broth has thickened and sprouts are tender yet crisp. Take off the heat, add bacon that was cooked earlier and stir in to combine.

Collard Greens:
Two bushes of collard greens
3 slices of salt pork, cut in half
2 tbsp of salt
1 tbsp of pepper
1 tbsp of olive oil
Soak collard greens in sink full of cold water, rinsing dirt and sand from the leaves. Strip greens of woody stalks, throwing the stalks away and keeping the leafs. Cook salt pork in 1 tbsp of olive oil until crispy in large stock pot. Add water to stock pot, almost to the top. Rolling the leaves into logs, slicing into ribbons. Adding the greens to the pot and handful at a time, stirring to wilt down the greens. Cook for 1-2 hours, until leaves are tender and cooked.

Dessert:

Crimson Cranberry-apple Crisp (BHG):
¼ cup to 1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 cups sliced, peeled cooking apples
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
½ cup of quick cooking or regular rolled oats
¼ cup packed splenda brown sugar
2 Tbsp of all purpose flour
¼ tsp of ground nutmeg or ground ginger
3 Tbsp of I can’t believe it’s not butter
2 Tbsp of chopped coconut or chopped nuts (optional) Vanilla ice cream, frozen yogurt, or half and half (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a small bowl, combine granulated sugar and cinnamon. Place the apples and cranberries in an ungreased 1 ½-quart casserole or baking dish. Sprinkle sugar-cinnamon mixture over fruit. Toss gently to coat, Bake, covered for 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, for topping in a small bowl, combine oats, brown sugar, flour, and nutmeg. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. If desired, stir in coconut. Sprinkle topping over partially cooked fruit mixture. Return to oven.
Bake, uncovered for 15 – 20 minutes more or until fruit is tender and golden brown. Transfer to a wire tack and cool slightly. Serve warm, if desired serve with ice cream. Makes 8 servings

Homemade Orange ice cream:
Adapted recipe from website

1/2 pint (250ml) double/heavy cream
1/2 pint (250ml) single/light cream
2 oz (50g) splenda (more if you prefer a sweeter recipe)
2 cups of fresh orange juice
Gently stir together the cream, sugar and orange juice and then beat until creamy.
Transfer the complete mixture into an ice cream maker and mix/freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions.

So that was my complex and full meal. I only ate about an oz of it, but it was good nonetheless. Until next time…good eating.

New Beginnings...

NEW BEGINNINGS…

Oh god…not another food blog. Ah but this one is going to be different, with us discussing more than just food. On November 29, I underwent bariatric surgery. At the time, I was 260 lbs with BP of about 150/100. Scary eh? After researching my options and dieting longer than the Internet has been around, I made a serious decision to get my health under control. I waited until the technology caught up with the times, since I did not see myself being filleted like a fish. Once that happened, I went through the steps of being approved and here we are, on the other side of surgery, getting my bearings back while on stage three of food consumption.

Let’s start with the different stages.

Stage one: clear liquids. I was on this from the hospital until about two weeks into December. Nothing happening here, since my selection was very limited.

Stage two: Added to the broth was egg whites, cottage cheese, refried beans, and yogurt. Still not much going, since I was limited to this menu options.

STAGE THREE: this is in caps because the menu has greatly expanded and I can’t wait. At this point, we are allowed to eat mostly soft foods; though some things are still we are not allowed to eat. If it requires me to use a knife or has crunch…no go. Crockpot and I are going to be best friends. This is fine for me. With Christmas two days away, this opens up a whole new world for me that I can’t wait to explore. At this point, we are experimenting with herbs, seasonings, everything to see what we can or can’t eat. That is the reason I’m starting this blog. At this point, it’s going to be fun cooking again and trying things out.

Stage four: Solids. That means everything else. I’m excited about this step, but nervous as well. At this point, we’ll be eating everything else and testing things out. This is when it can dicey, so we’ll have to move slow at this point. That day comes January 12, 2011.

I’m starting this blog for other people who are going through what I am. I’ve gone through a lot of food blogs and while they have specialty diets, they are not necessarily geared towards the bariatric patient. I’m not vegan nor do I want to. I don’t have an aversion to whey or wheat and I have to have meals with at least 70% protein. Yup…that’s right.

Not everyone that has had WLS is going to be on the same plan as me. Some Dr’s have different standards and that’s fine. A lot of the guidelines are the same and most everyone will be able to follow along, with a couple of exceptions. For those of you in the know, my surgeon is Dr. Michael Snyder. Great surgeon and wonderful staff. If you’re in CO, look him up. I will be occasionally having some advice from the dieticians at the office, but not always. That means if you decided to follow the recipes, please check with your Dr. and make sure you can do it. If not, change it.
For those of you who find this the easy way out and disagree with my decisions to do this…that’s nice. Don’t follow the blog and please don’t leave comments about it. I’m not all that nice of a person and I will respond in kind. This was the right decision for me and my health and I’m proud of it. It might not be right for others and that’s fine. I support them in whatever I do and I would never try to tell them what is right or wrong. I expect the same for my decisions.

With all that said, let’s get on to the meat of things. We are going to make Christmas Eve dinner, of which I will only be able to have about…1 oz of anything.
Good times.