A cook book for us!

My whole family believes I was born with my face buried in a book, and they may be correct. I love books. Ever since deciding to have this surgery I have hunted for a cookbook designed specifically for WLS patients & until now have not had good luck. I do have one written by a chef who had the surgery & it is a nice cookbook but basically is just another low carb cookbook. Last week I got a book written by Susan Maria Leach called "Before & After." You may have seen her interviewed on the Today show & I guess she is in one of the recent People magazine issues. If you frequent obesityhelp.com's main message board you have probably read some of her posts. The book includes her story & a very good Q&A section but what I liked most is the cookbook section. She has a chapter about protein shakes (she sells them on her website bariatriceating.com.) She talks about the best selling ones & the ones she thinks are the best tasting. She also gives a basic shake recipe & includes many variations. I can't drink the protein she recommends but plan to use her variations combined with the protein I can drink. I can't wait to try the Apple Crisp proten shake. The next chapter is soups, purees, & other soft foods- foods she recommends for recent surgery patients- Foods we would eat in phase 2 or early 3. The rest of the cookbook includes all kinds of low carb, sugar free, high protein recipes. But what I like best is the portion sizes. They are designed for the portions we eat. Nothing has disappointed more than to look at nutrictional information & think I am really getting lots of protein only to realize that no way can I eat a full sized portion so I am not getting as much protein as I thought. Her portions are half cup portions & the calories, fat, carbs, & protein levels are listed for each recipe. I bought my book at Amazon.com. It retails for $24.95 but at Amazon it is under $18. Oh, by the way, the book also includes some really nice desserts- no sugar & very low in calories. I plan to try the custard real soon and there is a chocloate cake to die for. Dixie

Oops, sorry. I copied this from a post I put on our local group, one with mostly my surgeon's patients. Our post surgery stages are referred to as phase 1, phase 2, & phase 3. So, for everyone else, her chapter on purees & soups is aimed at the time when you are graduating to "real" food, not just clear liquids. Dixie

Thanks - I will have to buy it. It's nice to know that someone else has already seen the book and likes it. Susan Maria seems to be a wealth of knowledge and I love to order from her - love the chocolate and chocolate mint Elite protein powders!! Blessings, Andrea

Hi Dixie -- I just got Susan Maria's book last week (ordered from Amazon.com). I agree that it's good. I have only tried one so far, but have several recipes marked! I thought her "story" was good for pre and post-ops to read. She tells how we lives as a post-op eating in restaurants, traveling, socializing, etc. The other cookbook I have is called "Culinary Classics -- Essentials of Cooking for the Gastric Bypass Patient" by Chef David Fouts. He's had the surgery, and tells about what kinds of meat to buy/not buy, how to prepare, marinate or season meats so that they are more easily digested. My husband can't wait for me to start making some the recipes because he thought they sounded great. Francie Lap RNY 4/27/04, -22.5 lbs.