From the Foodie Files: Sensible Protein Shake Swaps!

One of my biggest crimes as the write of this blog is assuming you all have read this blog as long as I’ve written it. Not true!

So many of you don’t know that I used to be something of a calorie zealot. This blog fed into that big time as I sought ways to make yummy food for the least amount of calories, but the most protein, possible.

To that end I have all these random bits of information stored up in my head that lately I’ve been trying to organize into things that might be helpful to all of you.

Today’s topic: Shake additives! Now you all who have The Bariatric Foodie Guide to Perfect Protein Shakes know that there are several different kinds of additives you can use to enhance your shakes. And you also know my additive rules. In keeping with those rules, here are three easy swaps you can make to your shake additives to save a few calories, maybe add some protein or subtract some carbs!

#1: DO USE sugar-free banana pudding, DO NOT USE bananas!

I’ll disclaimer that. If you are a tri-athlete, a marathon runner, weight lifter or generally do super strenuous workouts OR if you have low potassium and have been advised to eat bananas, go for it. Throw one in your shake and don’t look back!

The rest of us have to tread carefully because they can be a carb BOMB! I see lots of folks throwing whole bananas in their shakes. And it’s not a bad thing, per se. Especially if you want to go all-natural. BUT if you are looking to save a few calories but still want your banana flavor, consider banana pudding. Check out the “comps.”

Small banana: 90 calories, 23g carbs, 12g sugar, 1g protein

Sugar-free banana pudding mix (1 tbsp): 25 calories, 6g carbs, 0g protein

So either way this additive isn’t giving you a lot of protein. So better yet, just use a banana flavored protein and cut the middle man out altogether! But if you don't have that, certainly do NOT accept all those extra calories and carbs to get your banana on!

#2: DO USE Powdered peanuts, DO NOT USE peanut butter

Long-time readers know my love affair with peanut butter. But alas it’s not going in my shake! Why? Well, I hear many of YOU say, when you put it in your shakes, “it’s a good source of protein!” That’s sorta true. Peanut butter is primarily a source of FAT that has a good amount of protein in it. That’s a bit different.

Instead I use PB2, or powdered peanuts. It’s what happens when you steamroll a bunch of peanuts to make peanut oil. You’re left with this beautiful powder that tastes like peanut butter for a fraction of the calories. Check out the comps!

Peanut butter (2 tbsp.): 190 calories, 17g fat, 7g protein

PB2 (2 tbsp.): 45 calories, 1.5g fat, 5g protein

I mean, c’mon! It’s a no-brainer! For the record, I use PB2 a lot in things like protein oatmeal and in yogurt BUT when I want an actual nut butter, I go for the real thing and here are my top picks for peanut butter! 

PB2 is showing up in many Wal-Marts and grocery stores. Look for it where you would normally find peanut butter OR you can order it online! To be fair, you can also just use a peanut butter flavored protein powder and that'd save you a lot of calories too!

#3 DO USE Low-fat cream cheese, DO NOT USE Sugar-Free Cheesecake Pudding Mix

Now this one isn’t so great a difference that using the latter is going to mess up anything. In fact, I discovered this quite by accident one day. But many of you love cheesecake shakes. And cheesecake yogurt. And many of you make these thing using sugar-free cheesecake pudding mix.

The interesting thing about this swap is that my suggested swap has 10 MORE calories than the thing I say not to use BUT it has less carbs. And, in my opinion, it yields something that tastes like REAL cheesecake. I’m sorry Jell-O. Despite your best efforts your mix doesn’t taste like cheesecake to me, but then I am a connoisseur. Anyway, here are the comps:

Cheesecake Pudding Mix (1 tbsp): 25 calories, 6g carbs, 0g protein

Low-fat (Neufchatel) Cream Cheese (1 tbsp): 35 calories, 0.5g carbs, 1g protein

So for your extra 10 calories you’ve gotten rid of 5.5g carbs and picked up a gram of protein and (just to sound like a broken record) you’ve also picked up authenticity! And if you pair it with ingredients that mimic those in cheesecake, like unflavored Greek yogurt (which mimics the taste of the sour cream used in traditional cheesecake), it gets even yummier. In fact, check out this recipe!

So there you have it. Three sensible shake swaps that will keep your shakes yummy AND beneficial. Do you have any good swaps that you use? Share them in the comments! And, as always, PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD!

Nik Loves Egg Burgers!!!

After my multiple mentions about them in my WLSFA Meet & Greet recaps...(read parts one and two to catch up if you need to), you all HAD to know I was gonna make an egg burger!

I had two varieties in Vegas. The first was a turkey burger with cheese, turkey bacon and an egg. It was good. But here's the thing. I don't delude myself. Turkey bacon, while a reputable breakfast meat, is not "bacon" bacon. I don't expect it to be and therefore am not disappointed that it's not. And I think with this particular thing I needed "bacon" bacon.

So then I went to Gordon Ramsay's restaurant, "Burgr" and had an egg burger made from beef with cheese and something called "duck breast bacon" which was actually pretty good. Duck is fairly high in fat so I guess it makes good bacon? I dunno. It was yummy.

For my at-home version, however, I decided to forgo the bacon (I know, a travesty!) and focus on other things. I had a taste for onions, ya see. So I sliced one up, caramelized half and pan fried the other half to be the bed for this burger.

Seriously? Pan frying onions is so easy and tasty! If you love onion rings, you'll love these. Put a little pat of butter in a pan and let it melt down. Reduce your heat to medium and throw the onions in there and then...walk away. In about 10 minutes they'll be all crispy (and some burnt if you don't watch them, but I actually like that) and with a little dash of salt they taste JUST LIKE ONION RINGS without the breading!

Anyhoo, so this is a lowfat turkey burger, a slice of good ol' American Cheese and, of course, my lil' egg on top. No bun. Don't need it!

S'anyway, I fixed up my little plate above, sat down and...

Ok, in the interest of full disclosure, if you're using commercial turkey burger patties, especially low-fat ones, you're gonna need a knife. So I got up and got a knife, sat back down, cut into that bad boy and...it was absolutely everything. The savory burger, the cheese, the egg yolk drizzling down over the pan-fried onions. It was like steak and frites and onion rings and breakfast and a whole TROTH of good food memories rolled into one.

I haven't been so satisfied since...well, yeah. Anyway.

The love continues...

BF Basics: The Weight Loss Numbers Game

Obligatory Disclaimer: The views expressed in this BF Basics post are OPINIONS of Bariatric Foodie blogger, Nikki Massie. This post should NOT be taken in place of medical advice. If you have concerns about your weight, weight loss or understanding any of the numbers outlined in this BF Basics series please consult your bariatric surgeon's office or primary care physician. Ok...now carry on!

Your weight on the scale. The body mass index. Percentage excess weight lost.

What the HELL do all these numbers mean?

Never fear, BF is here! I’m going to break down each of these numbers, how they can be tools in your weight loss journey and why none of them should be the sole narrator of your success story.

Ready? Let’s go!

Your Weight on the Scale

What is it? It seems very obvious to most of us that the weight on the scale is how much we weigh, right? But for us there’s just a liiiiiittle bit more going on there. You see, when we get on the scale, somehow we (erroneously) think that we should compare ourselves to a person who has never been obese before. So when we see a higher number, we go through a chain of thinking that can go like this:

“Yowza! I weigh a lot!”  > “In fact, I weigh too much!” > “I must not be a success after all! I need to lose more weight!” > (Insert whatever you do when you freak out)

Yeah. That’s stinkin’ thinking. Stop that.

In reality there are several key ways we are different, namely:

• Your bones, from carrying around an obese OR morbidly obese person for so long, may be denser than a person who has never been overweight or obese. In short, you might actually be “big boned.”
• Unless you are made completely of rubber, massive weight loss probably resulted in some excess skin. This skin weighs something and it’s going to show up on the scale.
• If you are working out, there are a bunch of biological processes that can cause scale wonkiness. After workouts your body can retain fluids. It also saves fluids to metabolize the carbohydrates that your body needed to survive the workout. And of course there’s the matter of muscle. While it is NOT true that muscle weighs more than fat (a pound is a  pound is a pound), it IS true that muscle is more compact than fat, meaning in a given space you can fit more muscle than fat. So if you have a high muscle mass you may stay on the top of the weight curve. 

All this is to say that the number on the scale, while helpful, only presents a partial picture. Here’s what I think the scale is good for (take this with a grain of salt!):

• Differentials: "I used to weigh this and now I weigh this." This can go in both directions. Most post-ops have a "buffer zone" of how much the scale can go UP before they freak out. 
• Trends: If you pay attention you probably have a weight loss trend. Maybe you lose only a few pounds in the first week of the month, stall for two weeks and then lose a big amount that fourth week. Or maybe (ladies) there are certain times of the month when you tend to "regain" a few pounds of water. The scale can show you these trends and put your mind at ease. It is my belief that knowing these trends would SIGNIFICANTLY cut down on stall freak-out posts on the internet. Just sayin'.

The Body Mass Index

So if you want to read all about the history, in's and out's of the body mass index, you can click here. 

The simplified version is this. It's a calculation that is based on your weight divided by your height (there's a bit more to it but let's not muddle things). Based on that information you are given one of a few categories for your weight:

• Underweight (>17.5)
• Normal (17.5 - 24.9)
• Overweight (25 - 39.9)
• Obese (30 - 40)
• Morbidly Obese (40+)

So, you hear a lot that the BMI is flawed. But why? Here's my opinion.

• The same way the scale can't factor in skin and heavy bones, the BMI also cannot
• The BMI also doesn't account for muscle mass. If you are 5'5 and weigh 200 lbs. and are ripped, the BMI still assigns you a score of 33, which is still going to be considered obese. Which to said ripped person would probably seem laughable.
• On a personal level, I think when your fitness and body size say healthy and your BMI says obese it messes with your head.

Given this information, what exactly is the BMI good for?

• Showing you that you, as a 6'2 person are not meant to weigh the same thing as the 5'5 person over there. You are different and the BMI highlights that.
• This system works better (not perfectly, but better) in my opinion in measuring the severity of obesity and morbid obesity. The higher the number, the more disproportionate your weight is to your height and we know for a fact that's not healthy. 

Excess Body Weight Lost

Of all these numbers, I think this one has the most potential to show us our true progress. This is a number many surgeons use to determine if your weight loss is on track. Essentially this number is how much of the overall weight you needed to lose, that you've lost (I re-wrote that sentence three times and that's about as clear as I can get it!). So if you had 100 lbs. to lose and you lost 50, you've lost 50% of your excess body weight. Got it?

If you've never figured this number out, it's pretty simple, although it involves a few steps. Here's how you do it. 

• Subtract your starting weight from your goal weight (whatever that is, wherever it came from)
• The resulting number is your excess body weight that you need to lose.
• Now, go to this website. It's a percentage calculator. Go to the second row. In the first box, plug in how much weight you have lost so far. In the second box, plug in your total excess body weight. Then click "calculate." 
• The result will by your excess body weight lost. Trust me, you're going to have a moment. Have a box of Kleenex ready. (Psst..after you are done calculating, leave YOUR percentage in the comments so we can do the happy dance together!)

Many weight loss surgery patients lose 100% of their excess body weight but studies show us that 50 - 70% is more common, with around 50-60% in long-term maintenance. But still. This number is a good one because it only compares you to you! Where you came from. Where you are now. Nothing else. 

So these numbers can work together to help you along your journey. Here's how:

• The number on the scale can show you trends and warn you when something isn't going right (excessively slow weight loss, regain, etc.). In those instances, you need to call your surgeon's office. There is nothing I or any other post-op can really do that will effectively help. 
• The Body Mass Index can help you put your weight in perspective. Even though I am against comparing yourself to others, if you must, ALWAYS ask a person how tall they are. That factors into what they should weigh vs. what you should weigh. It keeps your head on straight. Because we do wonky things when our heads are not on straight.
• The Excess Body Weight Lost is a good indicator of how far you've come from your highest weight. It's also the number that's going to make you feel best about yourself. And if experience is any indicator, we tend to win when we feel we are winning. So pay attention to the winning number!

I hope this brief tutorial has given you all some insight. The numbers can drive you crazy (if you let them). But they can also be tools that propel you to phenomenal success!

#WLSFA Meet & Greet Recap (Part Two)

I’m late as all get out! I could give you some spiel about life being busy but…what does it matter? Here we are and I am late!

So where did I leave off?

Oh yes, at the lunch. So after hearing Dr. Garth speak I returned to the Quest exhibition table for a few hours. We completely “sold out” (gave out?) of bars! Woot! From there I headed to my room to get ready for the “Let Your Star Shine” gala.

I had a sense that folks were really going to get dolled up for this event. Here’s what I wore:

Everyone looked so lovely! It was like bariatric prom. By this point, sadly, I’d developed an inherent mistrust of the WLSFA’s food offerings (half-meals devoid of protein and laden with bread = grumpy Nikki) so I had dinner beforehand at Gordon Ramsey’s restaurant, Burgr, which is inside the Planet Hollywood hotel.

And, yes Foodies, I ate another egg burger! I get latched onto an idea and I just go with it. I’m committed like that! This time it was a beef burger (miracle upon miracles it sat right!) with duck breast bacon (I didn’t ask, they didn’t tell), cheese and a fried egg. I ate it sans the bun which STILL didn’t make it healthy but it was darn tasty! Thankfully Gordon doesn’t believe in side orders with burgers so I didn’t have to deal with fries all up in my face (and truth be told if he’d given me fries I would have eaten some).

So back to the gala. The light fare was of the raw veggies and bread variety but this time I wasn’t so affronted. Preparation is key in those types of situations. I did opt to have a glass of wine from the cash bar. And yes, you can write a book on post-op alcohol consumption but my reality is this: I am five years post-op and alcohol is NOT my addiction. Believe me I’ve battled transfer addictions but alcohol has not been one so far. If that ever changes you all have my full permission to do an intervention.

After we took pictures of ourselves looking too cute for words, we all took a seat and there were some awards given. One was for the 2013 “Bari-athlete” of the year. I thought that was inspiring. Then there were a few others, although for the life of me I cannot remember what they were. Then there was a cute, although slightly campy, competition for king and queen of the gala.

I took a pic with the king:

After all that, they accepted donations from groups. There were several groups that gave donations, including the Bariatric Bad Girls Club. Since the closing of the event, however, the donation by the BBGC has been returned and the group leader has been banned from future festivities. It’s not apparent to me why any of this happened (or why it happened so publicly) and I don't have enough information to say much more than that without inserting my personal opinion. And I don't want to do that because in THIS space, I represent you, the Foodie Nation. And the Foodie Nation, as of this point, has no opinion.

So I'll just say this: I hope whatever takes place from this point forward supports people in their efforts to get weight loss surgeries. Because that's what's important. That people have the opportunity to take this life-changing journey. And I may be being presumptuous but I think I speak on behalf of the Foodie Nation by saying that sentiment is something BF does support. But anyway, I digress.

The most inspiring part of the night was the keynote speaker: Carnie Wilson!

"Yes, Carnie, the Foodie Nation IS as awesome as you've heard!"

So I could tell I’d like Carnie as soon as she stepped up on stage and promptly deemed her high heel shoes too uncomfortable and took them off! Seriously. I think she’s got some Baltimore up in her.

Anyhoo, she talked for about an hour and went through her entire journey: from being a kid “fixated on sugar” to worrying for her health. If memory serves me correctly she shared it was her then future husband who suggested weight loss surgery (and further weight loss surgery in front of the whole world), thinking it’d not only save her life but many others.

She also shared about the wonders of post-op life we all know so well. And about the fear and shame associated with regain. And of course she talked about the decision to have band-over-bypass and how she was treated as a result of the decision.

Three words. She. Was. Awesome.

It’s inspiring to me to hear how this is a journey. You aren’t just “finished” at the end of your magic window. Life can happen. And there’s hope for you if it does.

So after the event I (eventually) made my way up to Carnie. But first I got distracted by the Cupid Shuffle. It’s like a compulsion. The song starts and I must dance! But when I did get to speak with her, I told her I admired her bravery and what she was doing for herself and her family. I buried Mama Foodie last year because she could not bring herself to do what Carnie Wilson did: admit she needed help.

And of course this made us both cry. She looks better crying than I do. That is all.

So that evening came and went and the next morning was the end of the event. Breakfast was quiche and, for once, I was pleasantly surprised by the fare. Quiche and fruit. Now THIS is how they should have approached every meal. But alas.

There were raffles for prizes. I didn’t win anything. And then we all said goodbye. Well, most of us at least. Some of us were hanging around another day or two.

The next day my best friend and I set out to get ourselves an NSV (non-scale victory). We wanted to go zip-lining! The weight limit for zip-lining is 250 at the place where we went. In past days that would have meant no zip-lining for us. But this day, we did it!

I took pictures of the in-process zip but…yeah. I have to get the bravery to post those. For now here’s a picture of us immediately post-zip.

Besides that we relaxed by the pool a lot and had some good girlfriend talk and flew out late on Monday night. It was a nice getaway for this single mama Foodie whose last vacation was…never.

So I hope you enjoyed my recaps, here and on Facebook. If you did, I have a BIG favor to ask of you guys. I’m trying to represent the Foodie Nation at the Obesity Action Coalition's “Your Weight Matters” Conventionin Phoenix, AZ on August 15 - 18.

Going to WLSFA was such a treat and I THANK QUEST NUTRITIONfor sending me, but I hope to go to this one without a sponsorship. Why? Because at WLSFA instead of being in the sessions, live-blogging all that I was learning, I was in the exhibition hall. Don’t get me wrong. I had a lot of fun. But for this event, with such great speakers, I want to be able to take in as much as possible and share it with those of you who aren’t there!!!

But a sista is on a budget. So here’s where you come in:

• If you need to put in a Quest bar order, I ask you to do so through my ad on the right menu bar! I get a portion of those sales and I’ll be using them toward my plane ticket fund. 
• If you need to do an Amazon or Netrition order, please start them from the search boxes on my right menu bar! Same deal. 
• If you’ve been thinking about getting the Bariatric Foodie Guide to Perfect Protein Shakes consider getting it in June! Click here to get it in hardcopy, herefor Kindle and here for iPad or Nook! 
• I've also set up a secure donation button on the right menu bar at the top if you don't have any shopping to do but DO want to help the cause! Any amount, big or small, helps!
• If you all do that in June, I may just have enough to go to OAC! And I’d love to go so that I can share my experience, my swag and my impressions with all of you! 

Thank you in advance, Foodies!

"What Do I Feed My Kids After Weight Loss Surgery?"

A few times a month I get a message that reads something like this:

“Dear Nik,

I was just wondering what you feed your kids? I am having/have had weight loss surgery and I want to feed my kids better but they won’t eat the things I can eat and I can’t eat the things they like. What do I do???

Signed,

Distressed Parent”

Here at Bariatric Foodie our motto is “Play With Your Food!” That means that I have the belief that ANY food can be made weight loss surgery friendly. So imagine for a moment that any food both you AND your kids like could be made weight loss surgery friendly (and, by default, healthier). What would you make?

 The best philosophy I’ve learned with feeding kids healthy food is this (underlined, centered and bolded to get your attention).

You don’t get kids to eat healthier by feeding them different stuff. You get kids to eat healthier by making the stuff they like out ofbetter stuff.

Simple, right? Well just in case it isn’t here are a few of my favorite kid AND weight-loss surgery friendly (depending on your surgery age/type/tolerance) recipes.

Nik's WLS-friendly Chicken Nuggets

What kid doesn't love chicken nuggets? These actually don't take long to make and can be made with different flavors (try adding some dry ranch mix to the breading!), spicy (my kids love a dash of cayenne pepper in them). And you can also experiment with sauces! I love mixing dry ranch dip mix (about a heaping tbsp) with a six-ounce container of nonfat Greek yogurt for a dip. My kids love reduced fat/sugar honey mustard dressing. 

But why is this weight-loss surgery friendly, you ask:

• The chicken is marinated in Greek yogurt, which breaks down the tough fibers. I've experienced more than a few post-ops who were unable to eat chicken until they marinated it this way. Click here for my full meat marinating technique!
• The breading is crushed, high fiber cereal. It's hard for us to get in fiber after weight loss surgery, so every bit helps. With my beloved Fiber One, you get high fiber in just a few calories and it crisps up great!
• You can use either egg whites OR Egg Beaters to dip your nuggets. Either is a low cal way to get that breading to stick!

Click here for the recipe!

Four-Cheese Mashed Cauliflower

I have a funny story about this recipe. This past Christmas my brother-in-law proclaimed that he'd NEVER like cauliflower. I told him he'd never tasted my cauliflower and cheese. So he made a big show of saying how he'd try it and publicly denounce it (if you can believe it, this was all in a friendly way). Well...guess who I saw going back for his FOURTH helping and who insisted on taking the leftovers home???

Why it's weight-loss surgery friendly:

• You're nixing the starch! No noodles = less carbs and easier tolerance!
• Cheese = honest protein (so long as you don't go crazy with it!)
• Veggies! And soft ones too! This bakes up into a nice soft dish that's easy to eat.

Click here for the recipe!

Nik's Protein Pudding

Dessert is a conundrum for WLS patients. Not just because dessert options are often less than...optimal. But also because dessert can be a whole other meal for us!

Protein pudding is great to satisfy the sweet tooth. It can also be dressed up many ways. (Try my Candy Corn Protein Pudding for Halloween!) It can even be poured into a popsicle mold to make protein pops! ("Ice Cream" on a stick!)

Why it's weight loss surgery friendly:

• Make it with skim milk and it's low fat!
• Adding protein puts a few extra grams in your day.
• It's sugar-free! (Although check the pudding box to make sure the substitute used is one youc an tolerate!)

Click here for the recipe!

The "Nik Wrap"

My kids love McDonald's as much as the next person. So sometimes we have "fast food night" and I make these quick and easy wraps. Since I first did this recipe I've started using Jennie-O turkey burgers. They're quick and easy! 

But here's why they are weight-loss surgery friendly:

• The burger I suggest is turkey and low in fat, high in protein
• It can be made smaller by halving the wrap portion
• The wrap portion is high in fiber and protein
• ...or you could skip the wrap altogether and still make your kids a wrap

Click here for the recipe!

Cookies!

I love cookies. But I don't love the empty calories. No matter how you slice it cookies are always going to be an occasional indulgence, so my philosophy is to make them a responsible indulgence by adding protein and nutrients wherever possible! 

The above are my no-flour almond butter cookies. In my house we also love no-flour coconut macaroons and "Nik-a-doodles" a sugar-free, protein-enhanced version of the Snickerdoodle.

Here's why my cookies are weight-loss surgery friendly(er):

• The almond and coconut cookies have no flour! The Nik-a-doodles use Atkins Baking Mix which is a low-carb/high-protein flour alternative.
• Sugar-free! And these recipes work with most any sugar substitute. Since Splenda (which is what I use) measures cup-for-cup against sugar, make sure you measure your fave substitute against 1 c. sugar.

So in summary I'd like to say it is TOTALLY possible for you to share food with your entire family (your kids included!) after weight loss surgery. You just have to be creative about it. I know you all have ideas or recipes you use. Share them in the comments!

Nik's #WLSFA2013 Recap: Part One

(This is part one of two. Check back later this week for part two!)

I just returned from the Weight Loss Surgery Foundation “Mother of All Meet & Greets”, held at Bally’s Las Vegas from May 17 - 19. And now I wanna tell you ALL about it!

Firstly, a big shout out to Quest Nutrition (makers of our beloved Quest bars, available for ordering using the link to your right) for sponsoring my travel! It’s important to thank companies when they do this for bloggers so that they will keep doing it! So if you get a chance hit them up on Facebook or Twitter and say thanks! I think having an actual post-op there talking about Quest bars was a great thing.

So…here’s my official, no-holds-barred recap of my experience at the event.

I arrived in the wee hours of Friday morning and immediately hit the sheets, thinking (erroneously) that it would curb jet lag from the time difference. The next morning I got up and had breakfast with a bunch of friends!

Later I went and registered for the event and made my star for the “walk of fame” that would be displayed at the gala on Saturday night.

After that I had some free time (there was a fundraiser lunch with Carnie Wilson that afternoon but I had no funds so I had to skip it!) so I headed to the pool for some fun in the sun. Here’s me in my bathing suit! (Don’t be scared!)

Side note about bathing suits: don’t be afraid to buy one! They kinda shrink with you. My clothing size generally ranges from 10 to 14 (depending on the store) and this bathing suit is a size…20? I think? Yes. So all that is to say buy a bathing suit. It can last a while. (/end PSA)

Later that night there was an event called Evening in Paris. I figured I should dress Parisian but I am generally a thrift store shopper so I went for haute couture more so than Parisian and this is what I came up with!

Me with Julianne, a gorgeous member of the #FoodieNation!

Folks wore all kinds of stuff but I think our friend Shelly (aka Eggface) exemplifies the most popular representation of Parisian dress.

Isn’t she a cutie???

On the overall the night was very inspiring. WLSFA showed a video about some recipients of their weight loss surgery grants (that is the mission of the organization, to make grants for people who otherwise could not get surgery). And the date/location for next year’s Meet & Greet was announced. It will be in April and will be part land based in Tampa, FL and part cruise.

While I enjoyed the night in Paris event, I was a bit thrown by the food. It was held at dinner time which, to me, means we get dinner but not so much. There was cheese and crackers, fruit and veggies. Which was nice. But your girl Nik has the Wonder Pouch. So afterward a bunch of us went out for food and I discovered a new food love (which, oddly, I did not photograph…I think my phone was dead): the egg burger! I had several over the course of the weekend. The first was a turkey burger with cheese, turkey bacon and a fried egg on top. Oh. My. YUM!!!! I put eggs on everything else. Why had I not thought of this before???

Anyway, back to business.

On Saturday I worked the exhibition hall telling folks about Quest Bars! That was so much fun. There were lots of other exhibitors there as well supporting the event, including some we know very well like Big Train, Click, Building Blocks Vitamins, Celebrate Vitamins,  PB2 (I met the owner!), BJ’s Bariatrics, Slimpressions and more!

I am here to tell you they gave away a LOT of free swag. I’m trying to figure out how to judiciously give away some of what I got between my blog, Twitter and Facebook Foodies. Stay tuned on that one!

Mid-day there was a lunch. I blogged the lunch on Facebook so many of you already know my thoughts about it. I will say my thoughts have gotten decidedly more judicious since the actual lunch. I think I was hungry and grumpy when I wrote the things I wrote.

But here’s what I will say. While none of these are universally true, there are a few things you can safely assume are true of MOST post-op WLSers:

1. They MAY be intolerant to things like carbohydrates or sugars and may have a reaction
2. They DEFINITELY have been instructed to eat a diet where a majority of their calories come from protein. 
3. They are PRONE to having self-control issues around things like desserts and bread.

Which is why it baffled me to be greeted at the table by this:

Before we’d even eaten. Yes, I know we all make our own food decisions but for me, a food addict (and I know not all WLSers are but many are) I’d liken it to setting a bottle of whiskey down at a table full of alcoholics. Why is that a good idea???

From there the lunch quality is debatable. We were served this:

A vegetarian chili with pretty good stats (they gave them to us but I forgot). But we got MAYBE a quarter cup of it (at most it was 1/3 cup, no lie). 

And we had this nice little salad (which I made look a lot more abundant than it actually was by using a flattering camera angle).

All of which led me to believe that finally, FINALLY someone got the concept of not front-loading the meal so that a post-op is full at the entrée. But then…

There was no entrée. That was it.

I don’t mean to harp on this but this sort of made me angry. Not only because I was hungry, although for a newer post-op the size of the portions was probably great BUT because we were greeted by THREE trays of simple carbs and only a scant amount of protein. What sort of message does THAT send?

Anyhoo…the speaker at lunch was Dr. Garth Davis (of TLC’s former show “Big Medicine”). As soon as he began speaking I knew what his subject matter would be. I’ve heard him make this particular speech before.

Over the past few years, Dr. Garth has been advocating for a more plant-based food approach for post-ops. I don’t remember the nitty gritty of his presentation but he cites the fact that in countries with low obesity rates, they eat things we revile (rice, bread, etc.) but don’t see the same levels of obesity. Much of his talk is about good eating sense. Eat cleaner foods. Eat as close to the source as possible. Balance out your protein with complex carbohydrates. Initially I was vehemently opposed to what he was saying (I was taught the same thing as you guys about protein!) until I realized he wasn’t so much advocating against protein, but against MEAT.

I’m still not sure what I think of Dr. Garth’s hypothesis but I will say that clean eating is on my resolutions list. 

So I'm going to stop there for now. But in my next post I'll tell you about the "Let Your Star Shine" gala (wherein Nikki made Carnie Wilson cry), the closing breakfast and other highlights!

Look for it!

BF Cook-Along, Week One Round-up: Quinoa Recipes!

So in addition to my Asian-style Cold Quinoa salad, many of you submitted your own recipes for the inaugural week of the "BF Cook-along!" This is a round-up of the first week's recipes, all of which used quinoa. Some folks have not gotten back to me with full recipes so I just put what information they gave me. I'll add the recipes in as I get them! If you have any questions leave them in the comments!

Now we're in week TWO! And the cook-along ingredient is Eggplant! There are a few different ways you can submit a photo & recipe (and both must be present to make it into the week two round-up):

1. Post the picture of WHAT YOU MADE (not someone else's recipe...you do actually have to have cooked it at some point) on BF's Facebook Page along with the recipe (or the link to the recipe if you got it off the internet). Please include any modifications you made to the recipe!
2. You can also Tweet a photo and mention @BariatricFoodie but be sure to either include a shortened link to the recipe OR email the recipe to me at bariatricfoodie@yahoo.com.
3. You can simply email a recipe/pic to bariatricfoodie@yahoo.com.

Simple, right? 

Now onto the quinoa recipes! ("Um...what's quinoa?")

Deb’s Quinoa Tabbouleh

1 c. quinoa
2 c. water or vegetable broth
1 large or two medium tomatoes, chopped small
1 cucumber, chopped (optional)
4 scallions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste


Preparation:


In a medium pot, cover quinoa in water or vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a slow simmer, cover, and allow to cook about 15 minutes, or until quinoa is cooked and most of the liquid has been absorbed. Allow to cool to room temperature. 
In a large bowl, combine tomatoes, cucumbers, scallions, garlic, fresh mint and fresh parsley. Add cooked quinoa, olive oil, lemon juice and salt, tossing gently to combine well. Season with salt, to taste.


Chill for at least one hour before serving, preferably overnight, to allow flavors to mingle.

Brandy’s Quinoa & Black Beans - FULL RECIPE FORTHCOMING!

Brandy used this recipe from Epicurious as her starting point, but here's what she had to say about how she made it hers!

"So this is basically quinoa, black beans, scallions, cilantro, tomatoes, lime juice and lime zest...salt & pepper, too. I can link the recipe if anyone is interested. The original recipe called for 1 tsp of sugar - I left it out and didn't miss it! I served this last night with Caribbean Pork Chops." 

Selby’s Quinoa & Millet Porridge - FULL RECIPE FORTHCOMING!

quinoa and millet cooked in almond and coconut milk with nutmeg and cinnamon . Bananas and strawberries . I used brown sugar for sweetness but you can use agave, or your favorite sugar substitute.

Shannon’s Smoked Quinoa Wraps --Makes 12 ¼ Cup wraps
1 c. Quinoa 
2 c. Chicken stock (could use any stock or water)
½ c. Onion finely chopped 
½ c. total of Red, Green, Orange, and Yellow Peppers or ½ cup of your choice pepper finely chopped
Green peppers will get bitter when cooked so do a combination of one other and green if you choose.
2 cloves Garlic crushed and finely chopped 
¾ c. roasted and chopped Walnuts 
1 Tbl Salt
½ Tbl Pepper
½ Tbl Cumin
½ Tbl Paprika 
4 Tbl Egg Beaters 

Measure and rinse quinoa set aside. In a sauce pan bring chicken stock to boiling and add quinoa. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Roast walnuts at 400 for about 3-4 minutes, watch closely. Chop and mix all veggies in a bowl, add cooked quinoa still hot to veggies. Mix well. Add chopped walnuts, garlic, and seasoning to bowl. Let cool. 
Soak corn husks in hot water for at least 15 minutes. 
When mixture is cool add eggs and mix well. Portion out ¼ cup onto flattened husks, and roll as you would a tamale. 

Prepare grill for indirect cooking. Coal fire, 2 piles of coal on either side of grill leaving the middle open, with a gas grill use side burners only not center. Bring grill to 275-300, add Wood chips to smoker drawer for gas grilling, or soak chips in water and add to charcoal. Place wraps between hot zones in the cool area of your grill (between the burners/coal). Leave on grill for about an hour and a half. Remove, allow to cool slightly, unwrap, and eat directly from the husk. 

Using the grill with a smoker allows for the egg and veggies to cook as well as imparting the smoke flavor to the mix. Truth be told, I could have skipped adding the egg, sautéed the veggies and added that to the quinoa and ate as is….adding a drop of liquid smoke (my husband is anti liquid smoke) to give it that flavor…but these would be delicious as a side with some shredded pork I think. I am not completely satisfied with this recipe as is, and will probably do some more playing around (thinking of adding cheese and maybe more egg to get it to stay together). But I am delighted with the flavor of this dish.

Barbara’s Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

I actually saw this recipe on Pinterest and just had to try it!! I did change a few things. I'm not a huge fan of ground turkey so I used ground pork. This time around I used a red, orange and yellow pepper just for the added color. The sweet from the peppers is great for cutting the spice a bit  I absolutely DISPISE cilantro, so I didn't use it either. OH, and I added in 1 cup of cooked Quinoa (YUMM-O!!!) Other than that everything was left the same. This is the picture of the ones I made today (3rd time making them because they are just that good!!!)

Original recipe can be found at: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/09/santa-fe-turkey-stuffed-peppers.html

BF Cook-along: Cold Asian-Style Quinoa Salad

Ok, first my apologies to my Foodies who only access the blog and not my Facebook or Twitter pages. Let me get you up to speed.

I decided to do a cook-long and it works like this. Folks give input on an ingredient they'd like to see everyone get challenged to use in a recipe over the course of the week. I pick an ingredient from those suggested (using a random generator) and we all make something with that ingredient, snap a photo and post it. The idea is...to get new ideas!

So for this inaugural week the ingredient was quinoa. If you've never heard of it, read this and we'll wait for you to come back.

All up to speed now? Lovely.

So tomorrow I'll announce next week's ingredient AND I'll post pictures (and recipes where I have them) of other Foodies' quinoa submissions. Look for it!

My recipe was in pursuit of an alternative to pasta or potato salad at the forthcoming Memorial Day barbecues. I love cold salads but I just can't do noodles. So here's what I came up with. The amount yields enough to pass at a function so if you're making it just for you OR you're not sure if others will like it, I highly suggest halving it.

Nik's Cold Asian-Style Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 c. quinoa (if you have some cooked quinoa lying around, great! If not, there's guidance below)
• 2 c. water (if you have to cook your quinoa)
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 orange bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 small red onion, diced
• 2 c. cooked and shelled edamame (soy beans - I usually just got
•  a bag of frozen edamame and let it thaw!)
• 1 small can tiny shrimp (see picture below OR if you don't like shrimp a cup of diced cooked chicken meat works fine too)
• 1 small can Mandarin orange slices, drained of their liquids and rinsed
• 1/2 c. Light Asian Sesame or Sesame Ginger salad dressing
• 1/2 c. almond slivers

Directions:

If you need to cook your quinoa, the only thing I did differently from my general quinoa cooking directions is that I first dry toasted it, which really just means I put a dry pan (free of nonstick cooking spray or oil) on a medium flame and let it get hot, then added the dry quinoa and stirred until it started to brown. It just deepens the flavor a little bit. 

While the quinoa is cooking, dice up your peppers and onion and put them in a big bowl along with the edamame, cover and refrigerate. Once the quinoa is done refrigerate until cooled. DO NOT ADD HOT QUINOA TO YOUR VEGGIES!

When everything is nice and cool, combine quinoa with veggies, mandarin oranges and shrimp and mix thoroughly. 

Add the dressing and mix again. Cover it again and let it sit in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours.

When you are ready to serve this, heat a dry skillet over medium heat until hot and add the almond slivers. Toast them until they are fragrant and slightly brown.

Add toasted almonds to the cold salad mixture, toss and serve!

I like this salad! It's crunchy (both from the almonds and the edamame), a little salty and a little sweet. I think it could stand up against any other barbecue side dish!

Free Shipping on Big Train orders for Bariatric Foodie readers!

Big Train, makers of Fit Frappe protein mixes, love the Foodie Nation SO much.

("How much do they love us, Nik?")

They love us so much they want to give us FREE shipping on all orders over $40! That means free shipping on:

• Fit Frappe (read my reviews of their Mocha, Espresso, Vanilla Latte, Vanilla, Chocolate and Spiced Chai flavors!)
• Low-carb Baking Mixes (review forthcoming)
• Anything on their website!

So visit Big Train and use the discount code BariatricFoodie at checkout to receive your discount today!

Happy Frapping!

Nik's Kitchen Sink Cabbage Stew

So…I had this head of cabbage. And it was about to go bad. And I could have made my regular “Comforting Cabbage & Sausage Stew.” But alas I didn't have all the ingredients. But you know what we say around these parts: "Play with your food!"

I didn’t change it up much but my goal was three-fold: 

• Get tomatoes in there in a way that La Grande Diva would not veto (per her eating rules tomatoes are only allowed in cases of salsa and tomato soup, which is ONLY to be eaten with grilled cheese sandwiches).
• Use up any random veggies I had in the fridge
• Make it spicy! (True fact: if you add the adjective "spicy" to any dish my children will at least try it)

So I made this nifty little variation. Mine has a kick to it. Yours doesn’t. I’ll give my recipe but you can really sub most of what’s in here. Except, of course, for the cabbage! I call it "kitchen sink" cabbage stew because you can put everything but the kitchen sink in it and it'd still be good!

Nik’s “Kitchen Sink” Cabbage Stew

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 pkg. turkey smoked sausage, sliced into rounds of desired thickness
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 head of cabbage, roughly chopped
• 1 small can low-sodium and/or low-sugar tomato soup
• 2 c. water
• ½ bag of baby spinach, rinsed
• ½ tsp. garlic salt
• ½ tsp. Herbs de Provence
• ½ tsp. cayenne pepper (omit if you don’t want it to be spicy!)
• 10 oz. cannellini beans, drained and rinsed.
• Optional (but I used): ½ can of sweet corn 

Directions:

Spray a pot with non-stick cooking spray and let it get hot over a high flame (like seriously…let it sit there a good 2-3 minutes). Once hot, drop the heat to medium.

Add onions to the pot and sautee until they are slightly softened (about 2 minutes). Add sausage and brown it. Finally, add garlic to the mixture and stirl.

Add cabbage, followed by soup and water. Allow the cabbage to cook down a bit before adding spinach, corn (if using) and desired spices.

Allow all this to cook over medium heat about 20 minutes, stirring often.

Add beans and stir through. Drop the heat to medium-low and simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until cabbage is tender.

The wonderful thing about this soup is that throwing the beans in there and letting them cook a while thickens the broth of the soup. So I guess technically it’s a “stoop” (this is the ONLY Rachel Ray term I’ve ever fully embraced).

The girls LOVED it. It was sweet and salty and savory all at the same time. To me it wasn’t overly spicy but your mileage may vary.

My eldest daughter (the picky one) described it like this: “It’s sort of like pork and beans except there’s vegetables instead of pork.”

Well…there ya go.

And just for fun. I usually take a gamillion pics of dishes at different angles and choose one final "money shot" (bad pun, I know!) for the blog picture. I thought I'd show you my outtakes for this dish. There weren't that many!

 I liked this picture but it didn't strike me as special in any way.

 Not that anybody notices this stuff but me  (cuz you all have lives!) but lately my final pics have been of two varieties: the direct overhead shot (as in the picture way up top) or with part of the plate or bowl off camera with some sort of background or side element. In this instance I thought the food was a bit dark in this pic (I was at my desk at work!) and the spoon and napkin just wasn't that interesting on top of my putty colored desk. 

I am by no means a pro food photographer but I'm working on learning to take better pictures! Lord knows if I ever do a food cookbook (having just finished the shake book that might be a minute!) I am here to tell you it'd need to be DIY all the way, so better to learn the skill of taking the pictures now, eh?