Eating with a DS: A Day in the Life (pics!)

I think the calorie thing throws people for a loop, honestly.  Most people underestimate calories tremendously, even chronic dieters who should know better.  Also, people are fataphobic.

I thought your portions looked quite delightful.  I'm a bit envious you can eat that much cheese at once, and I'm jealous about your sashimi because I am with child and thus raw fish is verboten.  Weird because I'm normally NOT a raw fish woman, but I think it's a "grass is greener on the other side" thing.  And I think I need gorgonzola steak now. 

ETA:  Aw crap, I dunno if gorgonzola cheese is okay for the gravid!  Blast!

 I think you're right about the calorie thing. I think people are maybe also not taking into account that there are like, barely any starches here. No toast or pancakes with breakfast, no rice with lunch, no potato or bread with dinner, etc.

Bummer about the pregnancy restrictions, though understandable. I bet you could make a super tasty parmesan/asiago sauce for your filet instead of the gorgonzola.

Yeah, I think it would look like a ton of food if you had a giant dollop of mashed potatoes on your dinner plate, a big scoop of rice with lunch, etc.  I think people miss that DS or no DS, if a person doesn't bombard his or her system with carbs and thus raise insulin, the body can't store all the excess fat calories as body fat.  It's the reason Atkins works (at least the first time a person tries it!)  

Parm/asiago sauce sounds pretty darn good.  I'm sure it was a PITA to post all this but keep posting food ideas - you are my muse!   Oh, I was gonna buy truffle butter (were you the wicked soul who planted that in my head?) the other day but I had sticker shock.  Damn, I've been thinking of it ever since.  Gotta get it.

As I've been trying to explain to my mother, the DS is essentially WLS with a lifetime of the Atkins Diet (in smaller portions, of course).

Jenna, wanted to run a recipe by you that I developed a few years back and that I will be making weekly post-op for Creamed Spinach:

1 bag frozen spinach, cooked on a stovetop and drained
1 brick cream cheese (I prefer full fat, but the light will work, just not the fat-free)
1-2 Tbsp vinegar (I prefer apple cider vinegar, but white vinegar also works)
2.5 cups shredded cheese of choice

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

On the stovetop, heat the cream cheese and spinach until the cheese is mostly melted.  Add vinegar (If you like yours more tart, use more vinegar) and 2 cups of cheese.  Mix well, and add to a baking dish.  Top with the rest of the cheese.

Bake for 20-30 minutes.  If you like your tops crispy, you may want to lean towards 40.  This can be served straight from the stovetop, but the spinach breaks down more in the oven and the consistency is beautiful that way.  On the stovetop, you end up with mildly chewy but tasty spinach.  If you are a fan of onions, you can also add a very small sauteed onion to the mix (i don't care for them, so I do not add them).

Mmm, that sounds yummy. I have a similar recipe for a cold spinach dip, except it also uses some sour cream and some chopped water chestnuts for texture.

Oh, my, I think I may need to have some creamed spinach tonight!

Oooh if we are talking decadent spinach dishes you HAVE to try this!
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spinach-and-Mad eira-101482

• 2 pounds spinach (or 2 to 3 packages frozen spinach)
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1/3 cup crumbled crisp bacon
• 1/2 cup, cooked, chopped mushrooms
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1/3 cup Madeira
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• Chopped parsley

Wash spinach thoroughly and cook, withou****er, in a kettle (the moisture left on the leaves in enough). Steam gently until wilted and still a bit bitey. This will only take a minute. If you use frozen spinach, be careful not to cook it too long. Drain spinach thoroughly, pressing out all excess moisture. Chop coarsely and mix with butter, salt, nutmeg, bacon, and mushrooms. Sprinkle with flour and blend in Madeira and heavy cream. Reheat slighly until just heated through, heap in a serving dish and top with a good dollop of butter and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

 Eat the cheese. 

One: any Gorgonzola you'd buy in an American grocery store would be pasteurized and  Two: cooking it for a sauce would safen it up and kill bacteria. 

Hell, I ate cold cuts while pregnant all three times. Figured I'd never gotten listeria from a slice of turkey and the chance that I'd get it now was incredibly low. 


Also, eat the su****oo Worst you'll get there is Salmonella, which will make you sick like a dog and you'll need to be put on IV fluids, yadda...BUT salmonella doesn't cross the blood barrier in the uterus. 

Also, again the chance you will get salmonella in your own home, or reputable restaurant (they don't do good business by poisoning people) is so stinking low in this day and age. 

Hmm, I thought the sushi was a no-no due more to the high mercury levels than the possibility for bacteria.

Unless they went and changed the darn rules again without telling me, there are just a few types of fish pregnant women shouldn't touch, like swordfish, and a few that need to be pretty limited, like albacore tuna.  The rest are OK a couple times a week.  And oddly, this is one pregnancy rule I kinda don't stress over, because I figure fish is brain food and if I go for the less contaminated stuff things will be okay, I hope!  A couple years ago I read about a cohort of scientists who said that limiting fish to 2x a week wasn't backed up scientifically and may actually just mean babies aren't getting as many EFAs when Mom is pregnant, to their detriment.

I think the no-su****hing is bacteria-related.  Oddly, the pregnancy rules seem skewed against, I dunno how to say it, highbrow food?  The average woman doesn't eat a ton of raw fish or raw milk cheese or top-shelf seafood, I don't think, but most of the rules are about foods like that.  

Also, I think it's weird that Subway is considered too risky, but despite the umpteen million e coli outbreaks from hamburger, we're not advised to avoid ground beef while pregnant.

Hmm, sorry to totally totally hijack the thread with my neuroses, Jenna - this all has me thinking.  If I remember right, you and Mr. Jenna are going to have a little one in the future so hopefully this isn't all useless talk.  LOL.

 What RainyDay said, it's mostly large fish what you have there, would hardly be a blip. 

Based on my weight when I was pregnant and according to the little chart provided by WIC I could have eaten four cans of tuna a week if I so chose. Though really I don't know who wants to eat that many tuna fish sandwiches to be quite honest.