Pear Infused Iced Tea



Call me a dork diva, but I really, really like fruit cocktail. LOVE IT. I love it so much I've been buying it and hoarding it and eating it for dessert.

The motivation for this wonderfully refreshing beverage.

What does this have to do with this post? Well, I seem to have inherited the soul of a mother of 13 during the Great Depression. My mind is always chewing on how not to waste. How to use EVERYTHING to the last drop, crumb or morsel.

That's how this tea was born.

I feel bad calling this a recipe as it's so darn simple yet REFRESHING. I don't have a photo because I am packing up my house and my good glasses are all packed up! Lo Siento!

Nik's Pear Infused Iced Tea

Ingredients

Juice from 2 cans of no-sugar added fruit cocktail in pear juice (or 2 cups NSA pear juice if you can find it)
2 sleeves of Iced Tea with Lemon Drink mix (extra points if you get the decaf version)
4 quarts of water (I make a big thing of this as the divas will drain me dry!)

Optional: If you're an iced tea purist, by all means make some brewed tea using your favorite recipe (sweet vs. unsweetened). I think this would go nicely with a green tea personally.
Directions:

Pour juice into your pitcher. Add drink mix and water. Stir. Enjoy.

As the weather gets warmer, I look for various ways to jazz up my drinks. Hydration is important. So drink up!

Thai Shrimp Salad



Are you gearing up for that family BBQ yet? If you’re early out (or if eating around non-ops works your nerves), be sure to check out my survival guide to summer BBQ’s to help you deal.

In the meantime, let’s move forward with recipes you might pass. This one is for folks who have families that like (or are receptive to) international cuisine or those who have “adventurous palettes.”

It’s a spin-off of a submission by my friend Dee who remade a similar chicken salad of mine. So in this one post you are actually getting THREE choices on two different variations of this recipe. Aren’t choices grand???

Nik’s Thai Shrimp Salad

Ingredients

1 lb. of steamed shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 small onion, finely diced
½ cucumber, finely diced (you can peel if you want, I did not)
1 c. matchstick carrots
½ c. unflavored Greek yogurt
1 heaping tbsp low-fat mayo
2 tbsp PB2 (powdered peanut) OR 1 tbsp creamy peanut butter
1 packet of no-calorie sweetener
½ tsp. ground ginger
½ tsp minced garlic
¼ tsp cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes
1 tsp lime juice (I used the squeezy kind that you get in the produce section)
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Optional: (and not recommended for new post-ops), 1 stalk of celery, finely diced.

Directions:

Combine first four ingredients, plus celery if you are using, in a bowl.

In a separate bowl mix together the yogurt, mayo and powdered peanut. If you using peanut butter, nuke it about 15 seconds to soften it up.

Once that’s well mixed, add your spices and mix again. Taste. The peanut taste should come through and it should be tangy (from the yogurt and lime juice) and just ever so slightly sweet and spicy. If it is all those things, you are good to go.

Heap dressing on top of the shrimp mixture and mix it thoroughly.

Refrigerate until ready to eat!

This stuff is sooooooo GOOD! I put the recipe for a small batch of it (just in case you’d like to make it for yourself). It’s easy to double it and I would suggest you do because it’s not going to last long on the picnic table! I’d serve it with Bibb or Iceberg whole lettuce leaves to make a lettuce wrap. That’s always fun.

Let's Be Frank...

Barbecue season is coming. Now aside from the mental preparation of surviving a family barbecue, I thought it might be nice for us to…contemplate our options with regards to traditional grilling choices.

First up…the hot dog. I looooooove a good hot dog. Especially that one that the cook left on the grill too long so it looks like a fourth degree burn victim? Yep, that’s my dawg!

Did you know you CAN have a hot dog after weight-loss surgery? Honestly, you can. You can even have a chili dog.

These days I go for a regular dog (or polish sausage) and split it with one of the divas (regular hot dogs = animal fat = my pouch doesn’t like more than a few bites). But if you want to watch the content of your dogs, you also have options. Here are a few of my favorites.

Nik’s “Best in Class” Dog Competition

Best beef frank: Hebrew National 97% Fat Free hot dog

That's not how much they cost at my local grocery store, by the way. This is not my image. I am sort of afraid to lurk the grocery store with a camera. To me that says I've taken this whole thing a bit too far...

I liked this dog a lot. The only thing is it is about as skinny as I WANT to be. I like a plump dog. Flavor-wise, this grills up nicely and SMELLS like a hot dog. To me, the pleasure of a hot dog is about 75% in the smell of it. There is just nothing like it. For my non-American readers…if you don’t grill hot dogs you can’t get this one. But trust me…it is heavenly. At any rate, it is 40 calories a dog, 6g protein. Not bad for a hot dog. Not bat atall...

Best "Junk in the Trunk" Beef Dog: Ball Park Fat-Free Franks



Normally I am diametrically opposed to fat free hot dogs. It just seems wrong. Like fat free peanut butter. But these are actually good. These I actually tried specifically FOR this post because I wanted to give an option that wasn't a skinny dog (it's the dog in yesterday's chili dog post). I was pleasantly surprised. The flavor is nice, the skin crusts up nicely when I "put the burn on it" and under all the stuff I put on hot dogs, it held its own. Nice job, Ballpark! At any rate, it is 50 calories, 6g of protein.

Best non-beef frank: Jennie-O Turkey Franks

I got a pack of these at Save-A-Lot and, having gotten them from that particular store, didn’t have very high hopes. (Sorry…I’m on team Aldi!) But I was pleasantly surprised. Jenny-O managed to come up with a pretty good dog on the overall. This, to me, is a good dog to top with stuff. It doesn’t have that strong of a smoky aroma or flavor that you’d get with a beef or pork dog but the seasoning is nice and at 70 calories, you can put other stuff ON it and still come out with a meal of reasonable calories. My suggestion? Some kickin’ hot dog chili and a sprinkle of cheese. I skip the bun but if you feel like you can handle it, I suggest Arnold flat hot-dog buns. It gives you the bun experience without all the extra stuff in the middle.

Best vegetarian dog: Smart Dogs

How in the WORLD does a soy dog manage to beat out a meat one in protein AND calories? I know not, but Smart dogs does it. 45 calories and 8 grams of protein (and it’s fat free)! I’ve had these once and wasn’t told it was a soy dog. I couldn’t really tell (this, arguably, could be because me eating a hot dog is really like me eating toppings with a SIDE of hot dog). It even sort of smells like a hot dog. Mind you, it isn’t the oily, smoky, savory-ness that is a traditional hot dog, but I liked it very much. And my pouch did not hurt from eating a whole one. As with the Jenny-O hot dog…you can pile stuff on this one and be ok calories wise.

Chili Dogs (WLS Style)

I'm not playing with your emotions. Tomorrow I am going to go over my picks for the best nutritional value for hot dogs but first we have to discuss something important. Chili. Hot dog chili. As in...to make...a chili dog.



I know, I know what you're thinking. "Chili dogs, Nik??? Frickin' chili dogs???"

No, I promise I am NOT playing with your emotions. There IS a way for you, too, to enjoy chili dogs. (But not the way I have shown above...sorry...)

My thoughts on hot dog chili are simple. It's not a horribly objectionable thing to eat hot dog chili from a can, if that's what you like. There are some good varieties out there. I came up with this one on a day when I THOUGHT I had some in the cupboard and found that I did not (don't you hate it when that happens?). Now, I make it because I like it better than any canned I've tried. And it takes like 15 minutes to make. Here's how I do it.

Nik's WLS-friendly Hot Dog Chili

Ingredients

1 lb. lean ground meat (I used turkey, you use whatever your heart desires)
2 lean turkey Italian sausage links, casings removed (Hot or Sweet. Doesn't matter but I really must insist on the turkey to cut down on saturated fat which is, and always will be, be bad for your heart)
2 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 c. water
2 tbsp chili powder
1 can of tomatoes (I used tomatoes & chiles)
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions



Brown up your turkey and sausage in a pan, breaking it into very fine bits (no big chunks).

Once cooked, drain of any excess fat (there won't be much) and drop in tomato paste. Mix thoroughly before adding water, then chili powder.



Drain tomatoes and chiles (or tomatoes if you're just using them) and add to your pan. Bring the whole thing to a boil (this will happen quickly as you don't have much water in your pan) then reduce to a simmer and simmer about 5 minutes.

Turn off heat. If there is excess liquid, it will thicken upon standing.

Now the above dog belonged to one of the divas. It is sandwiched in a 100% whole wheat hot dog bun and sprinkled with some cheese. I served it alongside a garden salad with some light ranch dressing and they were happy.

But me and buns? A different story. But check me out:



YES! I made a chili dog ramekin!!!



Basically I cut my hot dog into pieces (for newbies you might use half a dog and dice it instead of slicing it), put those pieces into my ramekin, covered it with chili, covered that with some cheese and let it melt then covered the whole thing in diced onions. NOM!



So like I said...you too can have a chili dog at the Memorial Day barbecue.

Tomorrow we discuss what dogs are worthy of your premium pouch space. No...seriously we will. I know I've been flaky about posting lately but I already scheduled the dang post. It's coming!

So much to tell...so little time...

Hey Foodies!

I tell you life has been busy. But I'm still here, still cooking.

This weekend, I went to visit my good friend Pam in Michigan and met all her WLS peeps and family. Boy, did I get some inspiration for things to come on this blog! (Here's one hint: one friend of Pam's served me peanut butter in a way I've never had it before.)

I just wanted to type this short post to let you guys know I didn't fall off the planet and also to thank folks in Michigan for being so warm and welcoming. Special shout outs to:

• RuthAnn: I hope you don't mind but I've thought of some foodie swaps for the dessert you brought to yesterday's party and I plan to post the make-over next week!
• Christie & Jean: for taking the time to match an OH/FB name with a face
• Para: for asking such great questions. I hope you'll visit the blog for food inspiration when your time comes!
• Pam's Christie: You were an absolute joy to meet and so was your granddaughter!
• Pam's parents and grandma (yes, I do remember your names, just wasn't sure if you wanted them out on the interwebz) thanks for raising a great gal! 
• Khaliah Ali: you are so puuuuuuuurdy!
• ...anyone else I might be forgetting, it was nice to meet you!

I'll hopefully have pics soon (Pam took most of them and she has to send them to me). Until then, I board my plane shortly and look forward to the things ahead. I've got the big move, the shake book and a ton of other stuff going on. And of course, I always, always, ALWAYS play with my food!

Nik's Sweet Potato & Asparagus Egg Casserole



I am so happy! Besides the usual reasons, I am happy because I have FINALLY discovered a way that I can eat sweet potatoes.

Sweet potatoes and I have a turbulent post-op history. Indulge me a moment of recollection.

For the first year following surgery, sweet potatoes made me violently ill — as did all foods that were orange (yes, even my beloved baby carrots). I don’t know why. I didn’t ask why. The pouch was (is?) in charge and I obeyed.

Somewhere between that first year and the beginning of year three, my pouch and sweet potatoes became less adversary toward one another (I don’t know when as I did not eat them in that time). BUT…I discovered a new and not-so-wonderful side effect: in the absence of protein, those suckers put me into a carb coma faster than any other food I have eaten post op! Sweet potatoes, in my system, are better than sleeping pills and alcohol combined.

Needless to say, I was about to give up on the prospect of ever having my favorite “healthier spud” again. That is, until I saw a sweet potato frittata in a magazine and decided to give it a go — Nik style of course!

Nik’s Sweet Potato & Asparagus Egg Casserole

 

NOTE: I’ve been asked several times why I don’t make these into “bites” or mini-muffins or even a regular frittata. The answer is simple. It works better for my household and plan to use a casserole dish. This recipe works as a frittata and as egg muffins. If you like them better that way, go for it! You know what I always say — play with your food!

Ingredients:

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
3 slices of bacon (I used pork)
1 bunch of asparagus (I actually used canned to save time but you can use fresh as well), cut into ¼ inch pieces
1 medium Vidalia onion, cut however you like (I used thin rings)
1 tbsp butter (Jen Stockinger, you will be proud. I have come to terms with actual butter)
4 eggs + 4 egg whites
½ c. unflavored Greek yogurt
Salt, Pepper

Directions:

Dice up bacon and fry it in a pan. Set aside the cooked bacon pieces.

Combine diced sweet potatoes and asparagus pieces in a bowl. Toss with salt, pepper and any seasonings you like then transfer to a baking sheet sprayed heavily with non-stick (no you don’t have to coat them in oil for them to roast well). Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes, checking halfway through and flipping as necessary.

In a pan, melt butter and add onions and cook on a medium flame until very caramelized (browned). About 10 minutes or so.

In a separate bowl, combine whole eggs, egg whites and Greek yogurt. Whisk until well mixed.

In whatever vessel you will use to cook this thing, combined the sweet potato/asparagus mixture, bacon and onion well. Pour the eggs into that mixture and then mix to make sure eggs are incorporated throughout.

Cook in your (still) 375 oven for about 30 minutes or until set.

Allow to cool before cutting into pieces.

A few notes about this baby:

It’s DENSE. One small slice and I was good to go.

The topper you see is simply unflavored Greek yogurt with some onion powder and a bit of salt mixed in. The casserole is fairly sweet so the topper makes a nice counterbalance.

No dumping! No violent reactions! No carb coma! WOOT!

I imagine this would be a nice dish to serve for a brunch. I think it’s sort of rustic looking personally. Mine was especially so because I slightly overcooked my potatoes. I don’t mind that as I have this thing for slightly burnt stuff.

At any rate…enjoy responsibly.

Three foods with big protein bang for your calorie buck

That was quite a title!

First an admission. I cannot lie to you guys. This was NOT supposed to be today's post. But unfortunately I left my camera at a friend's house and rather than give you a recipe with no pictures, I'd rather wait until tomorrow, when we can all revel in some good ol' fashioned food porn!

In the meantime, let's discuss bargain eating. ("Wuzzat?")

Bargain eating is trying to eat foods that give you the most benefit for the amount of calories you are eating.

For us, that would be mainly protein and especially for newbies, getting the most out of things is essential.

So first, let's talk about protein a bit. My next info series "Protein Power" is in the writing phases, but there is some basic stuff I can say about protein.

For instance, one gram of protein has four calories. And what makes a good protein source? Well we each have our own rules, but to me something is a GOOD protein source if it has one gram of protein for every ten calories (at least...remember...since 1g protein =4 calories, technically there CAN be up to 2g of protein in 10 calories. Just sayin...) and if the carbs are lower than the protein.

Keeping that in mind, here are three things that, in my estimation, give you good protein bang for your calorie buck.

String Cheese

Especially if you get it from Aldi. My Fit & Active string cheese has 60 calories, 8g protein. That's as much as a glass of milk with 20 less calories. And I could finish a string cheese very early on. Be sure you are cleared for cheese (especially mozzarella) before trying, but this makes a great midday protein snack.

Here's a yummy snack I make using string cheese.

Tuna

Four ounces of tuna roughly equals 10g protein. Granted, many newbies can't eat four ounces of tuna, but if you're looking for something that can go down easy and give you good protein. Tuna is a good "go-to" food.

Here's three things I like to do with tuna:

• Thai Tuna sliders
• No-noodle tuna casserole
• Mediterranean tuna

There's lots more. Do a search for "tuna" in the search box in the right menu panel and see what you discover!

Cottage Cheese

You all thought I was gonna say Greek yogurt, didn't you??? I like Greek yogurt fine although I don't tend to eat it much anymore outside of being a sub for sour cream. Cottage cheese, however? I can't get enough of the stuff! And if you get the low-fat kind (NOT fat free...although in a moment I'll tell you how to deal if you accidentally buy fat free...), it's only 10 calories more than milk...with 4 more grams of protein!!! Half a cup of cottage cheese generally has about 14g of protein and 90 calories, making it an excellent choice...and it's easy on the pouch.

What do I like to do with cottage cheese?

• You like cannoli? Click here.
• You like Cadbury Cream Eggs? Click here.
• In my latest coup, I started replacing half the cream cheese in my protein cheesecake with cottage cheese  (that I've run through the processor to smoooth out) Nobody knows the difference and it bumps up the protein a LOT.

Now...if you happen to get some fat free cottage cheese (you poor thing) and don't like it, here's what you can do. Measure out your portion of it. For every ounce of cottage cheese, add 1 heaping tablespoon of Greek yogurt (or plain yogurt). Then add your flavorings. It helps. Trust me. (No offense to all the fat free cottage cheese lovers out there...I hope I didn't offend both of you ;)

So there you have it. Three solid choices that give you excellent bang for your protein buck. Newbies, find a way to incorporate one of these into your plan and you will be A-OK!

Where the HELL have you been, Nik?

I’ve been around. Not that you all want to be “all up in my bidness” but I’m preparing to move from the home I’ve lived in the last 12 years. It’s a hard process, saying goodbye. Especially for me. I do not do change well. Pray for me, swing chickens, send good juju or whatever it is that you do!

As for my eating, lately I’ve been mostly eating from my pantry and most of those recipes are already here on the blog. But in case you’re curious, here’s some of what we’ve been chowing down on, just to give you an idea of what I REALLY make over and over again.

Carbquik Pancakes (HINT: Click the titles for the posts and recipe!)

(This one has a bonus - an instructional video. But wait...there's more! You get to see me looking a HOT mess...)

Actually now we make them with Atkins Mix (cheaper…more protein…WINNING!). I make pancakes every Saturday. I eat pancakes every Saturday. I am three years post op and NO I have not regressed back to my 327 lb. self. Viva la pancake.

Lots and lots of Salad

I usually prep up salad stuff and stick it in the fridge because none of us like the same salad. La Grande Diva is a fan of Chicken Caesar salad. La Petite diva and I both like Asian Chicken salad. It’s an easy dinner after a long day.

Curried Chicken

True fact: if you put the word "curry" in front of ANY food, my children will eat it. I lie to you not! I once got them to eat curried asparagus. This chicken curry is a quick, easy and comes with fake me out rice!

Fun with Chocolate

And I just came up with another way to have fun with chocolate but it’s not quite ready to debut yet. At any rate, we have had lots of fun with chocolate in my household. La Petite Diva and I have been sipping on our Click Frapps and La Grande Diva (the culinary “black sheep” of the family) has enjoyed these.

So that’s what’s been cooking around my house. I think I’ve gotten my life to a place of relative sanity to be able to start posting actively next week. Again, send the positive vibes my way.

Until then…keep playing with your food!

...Oh! Oh! Oh! Stop the boat! Turn it around!

I also have to thank the folks out there placing their Amazon and Netrition orders through Bariatric Foodie! For those not in the know, if you place your orders through any of the product links I list here or the search box on the right menu panel part of the proceeds of your purchase supports the blog. For the summer, I am saving those funds to try and hit every single Obesity Help Conference this year so I can meet as many of YOU as possible!

Keep the love comin' peeps! I am already scheduled to be at the Long Island conference. We're THIS close to getting me to Seattle. Then we'll work on New Orleans.

Dear Bariatric Foodie: Know of a good Fritos substitute?

I so love getting food questions! I beg you guys to send them to me...and every once in a while someone does!
This is from Alicia N.:

Recently at work we celebrated Cinco De Mayo. One of the items served was Texas Caviar or Poor mans Caviar. According to my co-worker who made it you are suppose to serve it with Fritos. I had some Fritos but it’s good w/o the Fritos. My question is: Have you ran into or made something that tastes like Fritos w/o the guilt or bad choice in eating the chips or do you have any suggestions?


I ask this question as I’m sure there are other WLS’ers that would like to know this as well.

Thanks for asking this question Alicia! It’s a good one.

Opinions on things like chips vary across the post-op spectrum. Some post-ops eat them, some stay far away. I sort of take a stance in the middle. Salty/crunchy things are a trigger for me so I buy them when I have a clear purpose for them (like for a meal I’m serving where I am sure they will get eaten up). Otherwise, I usually skip even buying them.

I don't know of a corn chip substitute (if you do, leave it in the comments so we can all benefit!), so in situations that call for such things, I tend to default to tortilla chips. Corn chips and tortilla chips are basically made from the same ingredients, but corn chips are cut differently and have some added flavoring and salt.

So...if you’re looking for some beneficial chips, here are my favorites:

Food Should Taste Good Multi-Grain Flax Tortilla Chips
 

Click any of the photos to go where you can order it!

Stats: Serving size is 10 chips, 140 calories, 6g fat, 18g carbs, 3g fiber, 3g protein

Where to find them: They are showing up at mainstream grocery stores now but I buy them at my local Whole Foods.

Why I like them: First off, flax seed is a great source of Omega-3’s. These chips are a good size, so don’t let the 10 chip serving size dishearten you (or your non-op family and friends). You can do wonderful things with 10 of these chips! They are crunchy, salty and just ever so slightly sweet (very satisfying). And on an unrelated note, their octagonal shape helps me to NOT spill the dip all over myself. Just sayin.

Trader Joes Soy Flax Tortilla Chips (sorry...no photo!)

Stats: Serving size is about 7 chips, 130 calories, 8g fat, 13g carbs, 4g fiber, 6g protein

Where to find them: Ummmm…yeah

Why I like them: Are you sensing a theme here with the flax seed? It’s easy to grind up and put in things like tortillas and it’s great for your body in its proper portion size. There are two flavors: regular and “spicy.” I put spicy in quotes because they are NOT spicy. I even gave one to my “hates all things spicy” friend and she said they were not spicy. They read like a less salty Dorito, if that makes any sense.

Genisoy Soy Tortilla Chips

 

Stats: Serving size is 23 chips (woot!), 110 calories, 3g fat, 14g carbs, 2g fiber, 8g protein

Where to find them: you can check their website for local offerings or you can go here.

Why I like them: As far as non-traditional tortilla chips go, this is a decent one. I only ever bought one bag to see how they tasted and they are pretty good. I got the lightly salted. I am the only weirdo in the world who really likes tortilla chips all by themselves. That being said, I missed the “conrness” (cornyness?) of tortilla chips when I ate these. The soy flax and the multi-grain both have that…something that corn provides (heartiness?) that this one is lacking just a wee bit. But it’s a fine choice and I didn’t mind them at all.

Of the three, I’d probably go with the TJ’s chips. They have a good flavor/nutrition tango going on.

And if you need a good idea on how to use them, here’s one. I’ll be posting another as BBQ season ramps up!

If you have a food question, hit me up! I love to answer them.

Winner, winner (free) chicken dinner!

I've really enjoyed sharing my eats for the day with you guys. I hope you enjoyed it as well. I popped onto the sites of my fellow bloggers and it really is interesting to see what other folks are eating. Even I have my fair share of food neuroses so seeing that we are all different is just as helpful to me as it is to you!

So let's bring this puppy on home!

Where we last left off I'd had my 2nd Click drink for the day. Around 5:30 I went to pick up the divas who reminded me that today was not only Cinqo de Mayo (and food blogging day and my late Pop-Pop's birthday), but it was also Thursday.

This revelation doesn't mean much unless you, like we, are obsessed with a little fast food joint known as Chick-Fil-A. Starting last week and through May if you go to Chick-Fil-A on Thursdays and say to them, "I can take the heat," they will give you a free spicy chicken entree. This promotion has our name ALL over it. If you read this blog at all, you know we are spicy loving mommies.

Not the sexiest dinner but it works

Last week the divas got the free sandwiches (it is one per person, not per order. Way cool CFA!) and I got a Southwest Chargilled Salad (as per usual). We have a system. I eat about half the salad (all the chicken), they eat their sandwiches and I split the remainder of the salad between the two of them. Perfection!

Except tonight the little diva wanted Chick'n Strips and my cheap lil heart could not let go of the opportunity for free food so...I got a spicy chicken sandwich, ditched the bun, put half a packet of low-fat mayo on it and went to TOWN!



I should say that me and fried foods are not friends. This sandwich is no exception. I don't claim to always make the smartest decisions. It didn't make me sick but I felt gross for a good while after I ate it. In my estimation, some things are worth this feeling. This sandwich is one of them.



After that we went to the mega Wal-Mart for camping supplies for this weekend's Girl Scout camping trip and I picked up a Coke Zero. Many of you ask about soda after WLS. I can count on one hand how many sodas I've had since surgery three years ago and here's why. See the amount in that bottle? It took me TWO HOURS to drink that much of it. It's sort of futile. The gas fills my pouch, the acid burns my throat and I find I am getting nowhere fast.

But when you want a soda, you want a soda. And I don't believe in denying myself anything at this point. I'm done losing weight. A soda every now and again won't kill me.

And with that you can stick a fork in me...I'm done...

I haven't figured up my calories for the day but my head tally (which is scary accurate) says I'm at about 1,200 calories or so. Under budget. Hrm. I don't feel very inclined to do anything about that. Instead, I think I'll go to bed.

G'night!

...The Journey Continues...

Ok...so where we last left off I had eaten a hella carby breakfast.

My bowl of oatmeal usually holds me until about 10:30-ish (actually longer but that's when I make myself take in something else. I don't have reactive hypoglycemia but I have had a few "very special moments").

But this time slot leaves me with a dilemma. If I take in too much, lunch is screwed. Too little and I'm snacking my way into my next meal. So...my answer is...(Beth you will love this):

2 scoops of Click, a lot of water and some Splenda...NOM!

A big ass purple cup of hot Click!!!

Wait...let's back up. At about 9 a.m. I have this:

It's fully leaded. I probably drink too much caffeine. I do make sure to get in decaf fluids and plenty of them.Then at 10 I took my first dose of calcium/vitamin D and my multi with the same big purple cup of Crystal Light.

There...now we're all caught up. So Click! I used to make my Click Frapp mid-morning...and wouldn't be able to eat anything else until about 3. Jobs tend to have problems with you taking a lunch break then if you work 9-5. But by itself Click is absolutely perfect! Just enough calories/protein to keep me at bay until my next meal but not so many that it screws up my eating day. How I love thee, Click! I had this around 10 a.m.

I was about 10 bites into this before I remembered I was supposed to snap a pic so in the interest of full disclosure, this is another pic from the other night's post.


So for lunch (12 p.m.) I had some of my Fiesta Chicken and "Rice" skillet. Usually things like this that I post on the blog become my workday lunches. It's yummy. When I ate it I was mad when my fork hit the bottom of the bowl and had to go for a walk to convince myself NOT to get seconds (which would have resulted in pain).

Just a few moments ago I made another hot Click. Now I should say this. I am not a big fan (for myself...not for anyone else) of food snacks. Something about chewing is addictive. So I don't like to do it unless I have license to chow down. Over the past three years I've employed a lot of strategies to fight that (gum chewing, etc.) but the bottom line is, for snacks, liquid works better for me than food. Your mileage may vary.

I'm going to leave it off here because I have to go retrieve the SD card where my dinner/late night snack pics reside.

So one more post!

Remember to check out my other food blogging peeps:

Beth at Melting Mama's first blog post is a hoot. Go check it out!
Rob at Former Fat Dudes...is yours up yet?
Andrea at WLS Vitagarten has her post up...and frankly it makes me feel like a glutton
Tom at Beariatric...I need to check his next!
Pam has posted hers at Journey to a Healthier Me
Michelle at The World According to Eggface has posted "a day in her pouch"

...and be sure to check back here, Bariatric Foodie!

And if you would like to blog your day's eats (doesn't have to be live), just leave your blog address in the comments so others know where to find you!

Peek-a-boo...

This looks sooooo unexciting...



You might remember last week I mentioned that me and some other WLS bloggers are blogging our food intake today so you can see a range of longer term post-op eating styles. Let's get it started!

I'll be doing several different posts with my intake so if you have any questions (and in this case, yes, I'll answer food stats questions about how many calories, carbs, etc. something is), please leave them in the comments section!

Throughout the day, be sure to check out my other blogger friends posts too. As a reminder they are:

• Shelly from The World According to Eggface
• Rob of Former Fat Dudes
• Andrea from WLS Vitagarten
• Pam from Journey to a Healthier Me
• Tom of Beariatric
• Beth, also known as "Melting Mama"

So let's get started. What you see above was my breakfast. Despite the fact that I make many different foods for this blog, I am mainly a creature of habit. I woke up around 6 and did about 20 oz. of Crystal Light with my iron and vitamin C (this is the only time of day my iron doesn't come in danger of interacting with any dairy/calcium or coffee, both of which can block absorption). As I type I'm enjoying the above bowl of peanut butter oatmeal.

Simple concoction. I take 1/2 c. oats and add enough water to cover them along with some Splenda and a pinch of salt and nuke for 2 minutes. Stir in one heaping tablespoon of peanut butter and off we go.

Yes, this is carby. I eat carbs. SURPRISE! I also exercise. So I burn carbs. So usually it evens out.

A few things you should know as we go throughout this day.

• I am a fairly hearty eater
• My nutritionist prescribed daily intake (3 years post-op) is between 1400-1600 calories. My NUT came up with this based on my height, weight and goals. Yours is probably different. Work with youR NUT to come up with a caloric goal of your own!
• Many will ask how I can eat so soon out of bed. There is no secret. To do it you just have to do it. It wasn't comfortable at first (not even a protein shake) but I couldn't continue to go into morning workouts unfueled so I started small and worked my way up to a decent meal. That I know of this is the only way to be able to eat so early in the morning if you currently cannot.

Next up will be a mid-morning snack. Check back to see what it is! And like I said, throughout the day check out the other bloggers and see what they are eating!

Nik's Fiesta Chicken and "Rice" Skillet



Cinqo de Mayo is almost here and I promised you some fun recipes. This is one. The other is a dessert (the divas finally finished off the last of the Easter treats...woot!) which I'll share probably tomorrow (but it's quick and easy enough that I reserve the right to post it on Thursday).

Tonight's offering can be a one skillet dinner if you happen to have some cauliflower rice hanging around (and by the way, yes you can freeze cauliflower rice). If not, one skillet, one pot but still very quick and easy!

Nik's Fiesta Chicken and "Rice" Skillet

Ingredients

1 lb. chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
1 bag cauliflower florets, cooked and mashed (or 2 c. cauliflower rice)
1 small onion, finely diced
1 green pepper, finely diced
2 cans tomatoes and chiles (whatever heat intensity you like)
1 can black beans
1 can cheddar cheese soup
2 tbsp tomato paste (if you don't have it you can skip this but it does add zip)
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp each ground coriander and ground cumin

Directions

Spray down a skillet with nonstick and throw in your onions and peppers. Sautee until softened then add garlic and spices and mix well.

Add tomatoes and chiles, tomato paste and chicken cubes and allow to simmer until the liquid is reduced by about half. (Maybe 5 minutes or so)

Add in your drained black beans (don't forget to rinse them when you drain them from the can to get that extra sodium off!) and cauliflower rice. Stir well. At this point you have a big ass skillet of food. I probably should have mentioned this earlier but...use a big skillet!

Finally, add in cheese soup and stir well. Allow mixture to simmer on low-medium heat for about ten minutes or until warmed through. Serve hot!



Now this is one of those dishes that will make your kids heads explode. Because they won't want to like it. It's got all the makings of something they'll absolutely hate...until they taste it and love it.

You may very well ruin them for junk food forever...you bad parent you!

BF Top 5: How Nik does Mexican...

Next Thursday is a special day in three very special ways.

#1 - It is Cinqo de Mayo...let the margaritas pour!
#2 - I'm going to bare all to the blogosphere along with some of your favorite WLS bloggers
#3 - For way more personal reasons...it is my late grandfather's, Manuel Fernandez, birthday. He did eight years ago of cancer that formed as a result of meds he was taking for Alzheimer's. He was the center of my world and I honor him on that day!!!

So...for all these reasons, I feel like we should celebrate! To start us off, I thought I'd give you guys an idea of how Nik does Mexican. Because there are quite a few quasi-Mexican dishes on this blog. So...in no particular order...

Taco Casserole

One of my worst photos...one of my BEST recipes!

Taco Casserole is still the recipe I get the most feedback on of any of the recipes I've ever posted. It has everything you love about Mexican food in it and has the added bonus of being newby friendly! WOOT.

Chicken Enchiladas



This one is the divas favorite. In fact, I was discussing our Cinqo de Mayo menu and they both requested my homemade enchiladas (although the little diva said she could also go for some "plain old tacos" as she put it). My version is low in fat, high in protein with great fiber to boot! I have graduated to eating a whole one (one day I lost my mind and thought I could eat two...yeah...the pouch corrected that thinking quick, fast and in a hurry!), but this recipe is cool because you can cut off a piece that's just right for YOU.

Protein Mojito

One of my favorite mocktails, this drink gives you the great flavor of a mojito without the embarrassing memories, hang-over or, for some of us, the walk of shame (just sayin'...)

Mexican Lasagna



This is a nifty Rachel Ray knock-off (although I'm quite sure she didn't invent it). It's sort of like Taco Casserole for the more mature pouch. This is not to say newbies can't partake, but there's a lot of fiber in this thing. Proceed at your own risk!

...And a new recipe...

I've been posting on Facebook and Twitter about my latest protein shake obsession: Mexican Chocolate Protein shake. This isn't an original idea (by a long shot). I'd seen Mexican chocolate things on Food Network and other places. Everyone seems to have their own version. Here's how I make mine:

Nik's Mexican Chocolate Protein Shake

8 oz. milk (I use Hood Calorie Countdown chocolate)
1 scoop chocolate protein powder
1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp good instant decaf coffee

A few (to taste) generous shakes of cinnamon

No-calorie sweetener to taste

Mix it up via the Triple X method. Or not. Your choice. I top with a dollop of fat free whippage and an additional sprinkle of cinnamon. NOM!

So those are my top five...there are many honorable mentions...like my Mexican Egg Casserole for instance or my taco bowls...but since this is a Top 5 I had to excercise some decisiveness and...you know...not give you ALL the links I wanted to give ;)

(I also feel compelled to note that even though my grandfather's name is Manuel Fernandez, I am not of Mexican descent - he is of Portugese descent - so my OBSESSION with Mexican food and all the resulting recipes are nothin' but love for a great style of cooking with yummy food!)

Look for a few new Mexican recipes this week!