The Bariatric Foodie Year in Review 2012

Wow. Another year gone by. And this year I have mixed feelings about the New Year. On the one hand it's a new start, a chance to do better with my health, career and finances. But then the passage of this year also means goodbye for me: goodbye to a year when my mother was alive, goodbye to the self I was before she passed. But still, I'm hopeful.

And you guys have a LOT to do with that. When I needed time off this year, you understood. You sent me encouraging notes and cards and some of you still write to me just to make sure I'm ok. This is what I love about community. I care very deeply for you all and this year you all showed me in so many ways that you care deeply about me and I am humbled.

S'anyway...enough of all the mushy stuff! Without further adieu, I present to you the Bariatric Foodie Year in Review!

January

Nik's Protein Caramel Apple Salad

The beginning of January is always a special time for me because Jan. 8 is my surgery anniversary! Check my 2012 reflection on being four years post-op.

So far as food, there was lots of yumminess to be had here at BF. From Melissa's Oatmeal, walnut and cranberry protein cookies, to my Protein Caramel Apple Salad  to Zesty Skillet Mushroom Chicken, there was great food to be had in the Foodie Nation in January!

February

The 2013 Bariatric Foodie Pledge begins on February 2nd!!!

Anyone who's been hanging around here a while knows what February means. The Bariatric Foodie Pledge!  The Pledge will return in 2013 for its third year and I am working on gathering up great prizes as we speak! But I have to give shouts to last year's sponsors: Davinci Gourmet (maker of fine sugar-free syrups I use n many protein shake recipes) Click Espresso protein, Building Blocks Vitamins, CarbSmart and Quest Nutrition!

Even though we worked hard on our goals all month long, we did manage a few yummies in February too. Among my favorites were a tutorial on how to make protein pudding, fellow Foodie Kelly showing us how to make yummy fruit compote and my Curried Chickpeas!

Yummy blueberry compote!

March

Even though this was the month Mama Foodie was called home, the month began pretty well. Kelly (who now proudly serves as your Foodie Vitamin Correspondent for the BF email newsletter) wrote the fabulous BF Basics: Veggie Tales, on vegetarianism after weight-loss surgery!

We also had quite a few Foodie submissions including Cauliflower Crust pizza, Lois' Banana Butterscotch Protein Blizzard and Carissa's Cinnamon Muffins!

April

The first part of April was pretty quiet in the Foodie Nation. It was a strange month, I must admit. On April 1st we "celebrated" La Grande Diva's 13th birthday and on the 5th we laid Mama Foodie to rest, I took a few weeks off to cope with that loss. But I found that keeping touch with you all helped me through my grief so it wasn't long before I was back to posting.

We went over my no-fail secret to marinating meat post-op (which has a 100% success rate so far!), I tried mustard greens for the first time in this delicious recipe and I came up with yet another casserole, this time my Cheesy Chicken & "Rice" Casserole.

OH! And how could I forget??? April was the month the "Eggchilada" was born! Life has never been the same. ;)

May

Veggie chili, anyone?

I think May was when burn-out really hit me. I also moved out of our home of 13 years that month so things were REALLY quiet around these parts!

In May, we did manage the "All Click'd Out" contest where some of you won some Click protein. La Petite Diva and I also reviewed Click Decaf and I shared my recipe for some "Kick Arse" Veggie Chili.

June

Taco soup!

In June I got this crazy idea. Well, maybe not crazy but...crazy. I came across this website that challenged people to learn about global poverty by taking a challenge: for five days spend only $1.50/day on food. Yeah. That was not fun. But I did it, called it "Nik's Hunger Games" (Get it? Cuz...y'know...hunger games and...never mind...)and recorded it so you all could watch me suffer...er, learn.

So after all that business was over...I ate! Let's see, I had some of Dana's Fauxtato Salad (well, actually I didn't but a fellow Foodie was nice enough to share her recipe) we also got to sample Teddi's Taco Soup!

...And in a move that proved that life definitely marches on, Mama Foodies two Basset Hounds - Leroy and Loretta - became the proud parents of NINE puppies, one of which is my baby boy Benji!

July

Noodleless Lasagna. Nom, nom, nom!

This was an exciting month because we launched Foodie News, the Bariatric Foodie e-mail newsletter (if you aren't signed up for it, there's a form right above this post. Issues begin again in January!).

Other than that we stayed generally busy with Amanda's Faux Lasagna Meatball Bake, my recipe for Noodleless Lasagna and we asked ourselves one of life's essential questions: "What the HELL is a jicama?"

We also gave away some delicious Chike Protein Iced Coffee! I like Chike. Don't you?

August

Nik's Proteiny Zucchini Fritters

Ok, so it was hot. Really hot. I mean really, really hot. Which inspired me to come up with the "Super Chill Method of Making Protein Frosties" (think of it as the "Triple X" method on crack). We also learned that a zucchini cake can, in fact taste like a crab cake - and have good protein to boot! I also shared one of my favorite lunch knock-offs, WLS-friendly Lunchables!

September

The biggest part of the month for me was this moment:

Getting to meet up with fellow fab post-op bloggers Melting Mama and Shelly (a.k.a. "Eggface") at FitBloggin '12!

That was a great experience, but to be fair that came at the END of the month. Lots of great stuff happened up to them like our Fit Frappe contest! And learning to make Sofrito! (And learning what the HELL Sofrito is!) And Pumpkin Spice Protein Shake Starters! And exclamation points!!!

October

Nik's Pumpkin Chili

This month was all about the veggies for me. I shared my recipe for Pumpkin Chili (and many of you were brave enough to try it...and liked it!). I also shared my Farmer's Market Scramble and I announced the sale of the 2012 Bariatric Foodie Holiday Survival Kit! Thanks for all who purchased one (and btw there are still a few Bariatric Foodie Protein Shake Sample Kits available at a super-low price if you'd like to try one!). You helped score this for the Foodie Nation:

A Nikon D5100 DSLR Camera!!!

I hope you guys have already noticed the improvement in food porn pictures since I got this!

November 

This was a busy month as the sales of the Holiday Survival Kits really took off! I made a trip to Pittsburgh to visit with Ms. Cheryl (the Head BF Kit Elf) and we also had some yummy recipes going on. 

We did Fall Harvest Baked Protein Oatmeal (NOM!), Nutty Apple Baked Protein Oatmeal and a quickie meal: Skillet Salisbury Steak and "Rice."

This magnet - one of five in the BF Inspirational Magnet set - helps me remember WHO I'm in this for!

In November I also began offering the BF Inspirational Magnet Set for those who, like me, sometimes need to take pause before opening the refrigerator door. They are still on sale on the "Shop BF!" page by the way, if you want a set. 

December

This is always a busy time around these parts but then I always get hair-brained ideas that make it even busier. Like, say, doing a month of back-to-back giveaways! But that's just what I did! The Mother of ALL Decembers has been a great success so far and I enjoyed every moment of it.

This month was also special because I finally, finally, FINALLY released the Bariatric Foodie Guide to Perfect Protein Shakes with dozens of recipes, tips and tricks to make every protein drink experience (hot or cold) a good one! If you want a copy, you can order it here!

And there's always food. Always! In December we made "Nik-a-doodles," I shared my "Secret Sauce" that's so good it doesn't NEED any spaghetti and we baked protein banana bread. Mmmmmm...

So in closing...

This has been a great year here at Bariatric Foodie and I'm so glad to have YOU around as we start 2013, which promises to be even bigger and better.

I wish you the happiest of New Year's and, as always, PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD!!!

BF Review: Banana Nut Muffin Quest Bars

I have been a posting FOOL lately, haven't I?

Well it's because I'm off work and I adore my Foodies sooooo much!

:)

Ok, so as promised here's my review of the Banana Nut Muffin Quest bars. After you watch it be sure to use the widget below to enter to win some for yourself! Remember, THREE of you will win some bars!

Enter here to win some!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Mama Foodie's "Chicken & Rice" Remixed

When I was little and it snowed outside, my mom would always make us "Chicken & Rice." Even in the years before she died every so often she'd call me up and say, "Nikki, I made some chicken & rice. Come over and have some."

Here's my food memory of the dish.

Looking back, it usually followed my mom cooking a whole chicken. After we had it for dinner she'd let it sit in the fridge for a few days so we could make chicken sandwiches and chicken salad. Then she'd retrieve the carcass and make chicken & rice. Somehow in my memories this always coincided with snow or freezing temperatures.

Chicken & Rice was an interesting concoction. It put to use whatever spare veggies my mom had and she always boiled the chicken until it was beyond tender, almost like little threads of delicious meat. And there was always pepper. Lots and lots of black pepper, just as all my mother's dishes had because she loved pepper so much.

Anyway, we recently got some winter weather in Baltimore and, being the holidays, I miss my mom something awful. So in her honor I set out to make a healthier version of this dish, both because I am passionate about healthy comfort food and because it makes me feel just a little bit closer to her.

The version I made was indeed comforting and I think it'd be a good meal for those on soft foods or just starting out with meat. So from Mama Foodie to me to you. Enjoy.

Mama Foodie's (Remixed) Chicken & Rice
(# of servings varies. For my 5 year-old pouch this makes about 6 servings)
Ingredients:

• 4 cups of an assortment of chopped veggies of your choosing (In mine is a large onion, chopped, half a HUGE zuchhini, diced and about half of an eggplant diced. For newer pouches you might want to stick to squash as it gets very soft.)
• Either the remnants of one chicken carcass (meaning there's still good meat on there but nobody feels like picking it off) or 2 large chicken breasts (HINT: try my post-op meat marinating technique to make sure your meat gets super tender!)
• 1/2 of: salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder + 1 bay leaf
• 3 c. water
• 1 can lowfat cream of mushroom soup
• A batch of cauliflower rice (newbies, do not eat unless you are cleared for cruciferous veggies)

Directions:

Spray a large pot down with nonstick cooking spray and sautee veggies until tender. 

Add chicken carcass or chicken, along with water and spices and turn the burner to low (if you have an electric oven, like a 2 or 3 setting) and allow it to cook one hour. 

If using chicken carcass, remove the bones (the meat should have fallen off on its own) and discard. If using chicken breasts, pull meat apart with two forks. Taste and adjust seasonings as you see fit but remove the bay leaf.

Add soup and stir then simmer over low heat for an additional 15-20 minutes.

Serve over cauliflower rice.

You can also just throw the sauteed veggies, chicken, water, spices and soup in your crockpot and cook on low for 4-6 hours. Works basically the same, I just didn't feel like hauling out my crockpot!

This is warm and comforting and tastes just like mom used to make but just a little bit healthier.

BF Review: Stubbs BBQ Sauce

So you may remember a month or two ago, I received, reviewed and gave away a Kalorie Box and I did a more detailed review on each of its contents...except one: Stubbs BBQ Sauce.

There's a reason for that.

See...I have to be in a BBQ kinda mood. And I wasn't then. Between my surgery and my day job (wherein your girl Nik actually DOES write about hungry people around the world) I have found out two things about myself:

1. I can't stand to waste food.
2. No amount of convincing can get me to consume a food I'm not in the mood for.

Having said all that...I recently found myself in the the mood for BBQ and remembered I had this jar in my pantry, tucked away nice and safe. So I decided, what the heck? Let's give it a whirl. So here goes.

The Big Picture

• Serving size: 2 tbsp
• Stats: 30 calories, 6g carbs, 4g sugars, 0g protein
• Other "neat stuff": per their website, they use all-natural, gluten-free ingredients

Aesthetics

• Smell: like BBQ sauce although I can tell by the smell it is going to be a "tangy-er" sauce
• Look: a bit thinner than traditional BBQ sauce (probably because it doesn't use a bunch of starch to thicken it, hence the lower carb count). Lots of spice bits in there. I was encouraged!
• Taste: I did a finger-dip before using it in my intended dinner cuz...well...refer to #1 in the list above. If I use it, I gotta eat it! I was pleasantly surprised. I was right. The sauce was tangy, pleasantly sweet (but not overly so), didn't taste like any artificial sweetener and had a slight kick to it to boot! 

Now...on to how I used it. 

My friend Kafi would be happy to know that I took this pic with my regular old point and shoot so she is right...it's not the camera but the technique!!!

So having just survived the onslaught of indulgent food at Christmas I was in the mood for something a bit more culinarily responsible, so I actually turned to one of my fave bloggers for inspiration, Shelly over at The World According to Eggface. She has the tortilla pizza market on lockdown! (Which by the way is why you don't see many here...I'd probably be inadvertently copying one of her recipes anyway!)

Now I'm not going to lie and say that I had leftover turkey from Christmas. I didn't even cook a full dinner! BUT I was in the mood for turkey so I used the deli variety and combined it with the sauce (about 1/3 cup), some finely diced onions and 1/4 cup shredded Colby Jack, threw it in the toaster oven for about 10 minutes and voila! Pizza heaven.

Which leads me to...

Final Verdict

I liked the sauce overall. I sorta wished it was a bit thicker but in exchange for those carbs I'll take a thinner sauce. The kick in it appealed to me. You all know I love my spicy stuff. And the sauce paired well with the other pizza ingredients. I do think, however, this sauce would shine in some recipe with a softer, milder cheese, like cream cheese or even goat cheese to counterbalance that tang. 

So all in all I liked it and look forward to putting the rest of the bottle to good use!

Nik's Christmas Cookie Protein Shake

Funny thing I've noticed. Every year I sell two protein shake sample kits in the Bariatric Foodie Holiday Survival Kit. Both flavors are generally well received but one tends to reach EPIC status.

Last year it was this shake. It can be made hot or cold. You can decorate it with any assortment of sugar-free embellishments. But most of all it is (a) devilishly yummy and (b) it SMELLS awesome!

I hope you enjoy!

Nik's Christmas Cookie Protein Shake

8 oz. milk (whatever kind you use)
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I like this kind and it's what I used in the shake kits last year)
1 tbsp sugar-free butterscotch pudding powder
1 oz. either sugar-free brown-sugar cinnamon syrup (what I used last year) or sugar-free cookie dough syrup (I tried it this year and NOM!)

NOTE: In the absence of EITHER syrup, you can use a tablespoon of sugar-free pancake syrup + a generous dash of cinnamon for a cold shake, 1/8 tsp. maple extract + a generous dash of cinnamon for a hot preparation.

Optional: Ice, Whipped Cream, embellishments

Directions:

If making cold: Combine ingredients and mix by the Triple X Method. Or not, your choice!

If making hot: Combine ingredients and mix using the Bariatric Foodie Method for Making Hot Protein Drinks. Or not, your choice!

Top with whippage, if desired, and any deco. Then SLURP!

Merry Christmas!