I have been banded for over 4 months now and am able to eat pretty much anything. I am looking for new ideas for dinners to make for myself and my hubby. He dosen't need to lose any weight but needs high Protein and low fat so I need recipes that can meet both of our needs. Since it is only the two of us I have had a hard time with making way too much food for us since I've been banded. I guess I'm still in the old habits from when I was eating like a horse!

Does anyone have any ideas? Any recipes you couldn't live without? Know any good websites you could point me to?

Peace.

Have you tried Master Cook? It is a great software program. You can tell it how many people you are cooking for and it will cut the recipie down for you, it calculates all the nutritional information for you, you can make substitutions for healthier meals, etc. If you haven't, here is a copy I made of their webpage.

Buy the CD...$19.99

System Requirements:

Minimum:

• Windows® 98/ME/XP CD

• Pentium® 200

• 32 MB RAM

• 4X CD-ROM Drive

• 75 MB free hard drive space

• SVGA 800x600 @ 256 Colors

• Sound Card for video tips

• Internet Explorer 5.0 or

greater for integrated

web functionality

Recommended:

•Pentium® 400

• 64 MB RAM

• 8x CD-ROM Drive

• 150 MB free hard drive space

• High Color

• QuickTime 4.0 or later (included)

for viewing video tips

• Sound Card for video tips

• Internet Explorer 5.0 or

greater for integrated

web functionality

Click on Screen Shot to View Full Size:

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I used to never, ever eat seafood. I am a cancer survivor and everytime I would visit my Oncologist he would ask me if I was eating fish yet. I finally gave in and began eating light flavored fish within the last 6 months.

About 2 months ago, I made my very first baked fish ever! It was the best and easiest thing I have ever cooked. I make it weekly now. Takes 5 mins to prepare and 25-30 mins in the oven.

I buy 5 Tilapia filets from the fresh fish counter in my grocery store 2 or 3 days before I am going to cook the fish. I don't freeze it.

Prepare the Tilapia:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Melt your favorite low-fat margarine in the microwave OR use Pam cooking spray OR Olive Oil cooking spray.

3. Lightly brush on the melted margarine or lightly spray each filet, both sides and place into your favorite baking dish. I use a large glass caserole pan.

4. Season each side of the fish with multiple salt-free seasonings. I use varieties of Mrs. Dash, Magic Salt free seasoning by Chef Paul (http://shop.chefpaul.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=76, I find mine at the grocery store), fresh ground pepper and morton's light salt.

5. Bake fish for 25 minutes at 400 degrees. (You will know its done if it is light and flaky)

I usually serve with a bundle of "blanched" asparagus. Blanched means to briefly cook in boiling Water.

This exact meal at a famous local seafood restaurant costs me $20 for just my serving. It is cooked in oils, served with unneccesary sauces and is very fattening. To feed my entire family of 4 with this meal costs around $13 and is the easiest meal I cook.

I have another very fast low-salt vegetable side item that I can make in under 5 minutes and tastes great. I add it to any dish I cook that needs a vegetable if I need one.

Zesty cooked spinach:

Ingredients:

Bag of Pre-washed spinach leaves

1/3 can of ro-tel tomatoes italian style

teaspoon of minced garlic (optional)

1. Empty the bag of spinach into a microwave safe bowl and cook on high for one minute.

2. In a large skillet, quickly spray the bottom of the pan with PAM cooking spray or Olive oil spray using medium heat.

3. Toss the cooked spinach, ro-tel tomatos and minced garlic into the skillet.

4. Sautee until all ingredients have been well mixed and warmed up.

Ready to serve.

For tasty meals, nutrionally balanced and quick to make try the mayo clinic www.mayoclinic/health/heathlyrecipes

For loads of recipes (140) that can be coverted at different stages of Lap Band (pureed, semi-solid, solid) try the book "Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery" by Patt Levine and Michele Bontmpo-Saray. Patt Levine had WLS in 2003 so knows what she is talking about. And the recipes are really easy to make.