[dg39]

Hi, I need some suggestions. My husband will be finishing up the liquid phase of his lapband. He'll be going on to mushy foods. Other than meatballs, meatloaf and scrambled eggs, I'm at a loss as to what to make/prepare/buy for him. Can anyone give me some ideas for this phase. He will be continuing having his protein drink for lunch as its easier for him to have during his work hours. But, for dinner, other then what I mentioned above, I have no idea what I should be making. He wants to concentrate mainly on protein, but, the thought of a mushy steak, fish, pork isn't so appetizing. Any help would be sooo appreciated...Thanks....

[jiffypop]

what??? chickadeedeedear hasn't shown up yet? don't worry, she'll be here..

as for protein sources [and watch the breading that goes into the meatballs and meatloaf!!!], some thoughts: chili. any thinly sliced meat in a sauce [eaten in very small bites - about the size of the fingernail on the pinky], so any form of cutlet pounded very thinly and served with some FF gravy should work.

crustless quiche. soft fish always works. one of my friends takes some nice pieces of fish, and then cooks some sliced onions until they're soft, then lays the fish on top, and dumps a couple of cans [depending on the amount of fish] of those seasoned chopped tomatoes into the pan, and adds more seasoning [depending on her mood]. then covers the pan and gently cooks it. the fish stays nice and moist. lots of flavor.

forget about the steak and pork chops for now.

who's next?????

[Chickadee]

Hi dg,

Honestly, I thought the mushy stage was very difficult. For my surgeon's after plan, mushy equaled pureed. My favorite thing to eat was my delicious homemade chili (which I blended to make less chunky) over mashed potatoes with a little cheese melted on top. I ate a lot of mashed potatoes! At this stage, I didn't worry about calorie, carb, or fat counts. If I made chicken for my family I would put a little in the food processor and add some kind of liquid or mayo or something to make it into a mush. To me, everything I ate during this period ended up looking like Alpo.

I wouldn't be surprised if meatloaf and meatballs don't sit too well. I still have trouble with those two things sometimes. It depends on whether he has any restriction or not. My surgeon emphasized no big chunks of food during the mushy phase, so I would either wait on things like meats, fish and vegetables or make sure they're chewed to mush, which is harder than it sounds. Jif is right about bite size - keep them very, very small. Even now, if I'm eating something that could cause me pain, I'll cut things into the size of a kernel of corn.

I think the quiche is a good idea, as long as there aren't any chunks of anything big. You can take things like stew and chunky soups and puree it so it's smaller bits. When he does start eating more "real" food, have him try it slowly. As he gets more experienced with his band, he'll know right away when something isn't going to go down right, but for now he needs to be very patient.

Good luck to you both - remember, this stage will end soon.

Chickadee

[jiffypop]

chickadeedeedear - you're so wonderful!!!!!! if you weren't happily married!!!!

[Chickita]

My doctor wanted the carbs to stay low, so mashed potatoes were an absolute no-no. I ate refried beans with cheese a lot because you can get them when you eat out, too. I ate soups at this stage, if they had chunks they were pureed. My doc also wanted things pureed, no meats allowed. Eggs, cottage cheese, sugar free pudding, and as I move on a ways tuna and soft veggies.

One thing to keep in mind...don't worry about hubby eating too little, take advantage of the lack of appetite. It doesn't last forever and his progress will be better if he eats as little as possible while he can. I worried a lot about how little I was eating...now I wish that was the problem!

[Chickadee]

Jiffypoo darlin' I think you're wonderful too - and you're right, I don't swing that way (not that there's anything wrong with that)!

Chickitabanana - Isn't it wierd how doctor's protocols vary? Mine thought smashed taters were wonderful food. So dg, just make sure you do whatever his doc advises.

DG - I thought of something else. I hear of lots and lots of people who have trouble with scrambled eggs. For some reason they are hard to get down for many of us bandsters. Try poached, hardboiled, or fried (without too much fat).

Have a good weekend all!

The Chick

[Leenie]

I don't know anything about what his diet needs are but I can tell you that I used to cook for 90 people in a nursing home. I would prepare a 'regular' meal and then anyone who couldn't chew or needed help eating I would puree that meal. I would put it thru a meat grinder type of machine. This machine would not make things watery it would just make it 'baby food' like. Thats another thing... how about baby foods? they even have organic baby foods now. So maybe a cooking store or like bed bath & beyond might have a meat grinder type of machine.

Hugs !!!!