It feels like yesterday I was at the Clinic. Oh, wait, I actually was there yesterday! Indeed I ended up in the Emergency Department, but thank goodness I was eventually discharged. Man, I had been so sick since 4am and I arrived back home only at 9:15pm... I was so exhausted that the only thing for me was bed, I guarantee you that.
You see, I had an abscess to a tooth on Thursday so I rushed to the dentist and he gave me a new (for me) antibiotic: Erythromycin-Erythrocin (noted here so I won't forget the name). The first two doses went down ok, but the one at 4am gave me immediate nausea and I got sick from that moment till 12pm. What a fright. There was also a strong pain in the abdomen so I got very worried and called the bariatric team. The surgeon asked me to go to the ED straight away and there I was in a flash. A contrast (using Barium) CT scan and full bloods later cleared me from any feared surgery complications, and they changed the antibiotic to the good old and trusted Augmentin.
Solid food
Last Sunday, prior to the antibiotic incident on Thursday, I was able for the first time to eat solid food: Bolognese pasta (Fusilli al ragu', recipe below) and although I could have very little of course, and could not cook the pasta "al dente", it went down like a treat!
For dinner I tried to eat a Beef and Mushrooms casserole (with mince meat) but that was way more difficult and I couldn't master more than 3 teaspoons. The Polenta that went with it, however, was ok.
Today, Saturday, I even ate Beans Pasta (Pasta e Fagioli, recipe below) and although it was the first food I had since getting sick it went down ok and no nausea at all!
It's the simple pleasures in life, a slow return to normality :-)
The scale
The horrible relationship I always had with this infernal thing - all my life seeing it going down, then up, then down, then up, and up, and up.. well, that's changing.
For the first time it's now becoming a good friend. I continued to weigh myself every day for a few days, but then one day I saw a regain (see last week) and decided to weigh myself only every Saturday, when I blog.
Did I resist? I must admit I didn't... it was a pleasure to see it going down, and down, and down! Today I'm 118.1, almost 7kg down since surgery!!! (Note to self, do not expect this rate of losing to continue as I didn't eat nor drink for 24 hours when I was sick).
Bolognese sauce
What makes this a bariatric recipe is the total lack of oil and the fact I pureed it once it reached room temperature, otherwise this is my Salsa al Ragu'.
Ingredients:
1 small onion, half a carrot, half a celery stick, 4 cloves of garlic = all of these diced in very small pieces, it will make the base of the "soffritto".
350gr of mince (beef, less than 5% of fat), a tin of chopped tomatoes and 2 good slugs of tomato concentrated puree'
Salt, pepper and grated nutmeg
Grated parmesan
Method:
Put the soffritto in a non stick pot, add a little water and cover. Let it stew stirring often until all vegetables become soft, adding a little water if needed but keeping it as dry as possible.
Then add the mince meat and break it down evenly until no lumps are visible and brown it well.
Add the tin of chopped tomatoes and the tomatoe puree, add 3 pinches of nutmeg, salt and pepper, then cover and simmer it on low for 1 hour, stirring every now and then.
The sauce is now ready to dress any pasta, which you can serve with grated parmesan.
Beans Pasta (Pasta e fagioli)
What makes this a bariatric recipe is the length of the cooking of the pasta, although the dish calls for pasta to be a little overcooked in any case.
Ingredients:
1 small onion, half a carrot, half a celery stick, 4 cloves of garlic = all of these diced in very small pieces, it will make the base of the "soffritto"
1 tbsp of olive oil
140gr of short pasta ("mezze maniche" or "penne" would be suitable, although "ditalini" work best)
240gr (drained weight) of ready to eat butter beans (or borlotti beans, which are better)
2 bay leaves and 3 pinches of dry rosemary (or a sprig of fresh rosemary)
1 stock cube (vegetable or chicken)
Water, salt and pepper
Grated parmesan
Method:
Add the vegetables and the oil in a heavy based pot, stir well then put on medium heat. Cover and stir often until the vegetables become soft - do not add water at this stage.
Add the beans, the herbs, the stock cube and the pasta. Cover with boiling water and bring up the heat until it boils nicely but not furiously. Leave it uncovered and cook for 20 minutes over the time indicated on the pasta packet. Add boiling water every now and then to ensure it will all remain just covered with broth.
Serve hot with grated parmesan on top.
Comments