Question:
Please share your pureed recipes or ideas

   — Shasta S. (posted on September 2, 2000)

September 2, 2000
Beans are very high in protein. I puree a drained can of kidney beans in blender, then I puree a drained can of roast beef. I place the pureed roast beef over the pureed kidney beans then cover w/ some low fat cheese. I place in the micro for just about 15 seconds. You can place some mild salsa over top if you can handle it. This makes a WONDERFUL Mexican dish that is LOADED W/ PROTEIN!! ***I puree 3 hard boiled eggs w/ a little low fat mayo. This makes a good egg salad w/ high quality protein in the egg whites. ***I do the same w/ tuna packed in water that has been drained first w/ low fat mayo ***The same can be done w/ canned white meat of chicken.***I puree all kinds of soups, then freeze them in small containers***Puree as many kinds of beans that you can for high quality protein w/o fat.(A blender works fine. If you find that the food being pureed is very thick, add a little liquid).***Cut up chicken breast w/ low fat creme of chicken soup pureed is good.***For more protein I take a can of salmon drained and bones taken out, mix it w/ a little finely chopped onions, one egg, a little cracker crumbs and mix well. Make in to small patties. Place on a Foreman grill (if you have one) or in oven on 350 degrees til browned. YUMMY!! I also freeze these patties individually til ready to use.***Any canned vegetable can be pureed in blender w/ just a little of the liquid that it came in. Add seasonings to taste.***Chili bought at Wendy's can be pureed and poured over baked potato for some protein. I have found that just about anything can be pureed if you cut it small enough and add a little liquid when pureeing. I freeze anything that I won't be using within a day or two for later use. Use your imagination and you will be able to come up w/ a lot of things that are great tasting! My favorite though, is the Mexican dish w/ pureed kidney beans, roast beef or lean ground beef and chees melted over top. YUMMY!! Hope this helps. Make sure that these dishes are ok'd by your dietician or surgeon first if you are newly post op. I always just take a couple bites first to see if my pouch will be able to tolerate whatever new food I am adding to my menu. This saves me a lot of discomfort later.
   — kathy S.

September 2, 2000
Hi Shasta. If you don't have a small hand blender, now is the time to invest in one. A larger blender is good, but the small, hand-held ones are great for puree-ing the small amounts that we need post-op. They really aren't terribly expensive...a friend gave me one as a birthday gift just before my surgery and I think she got it at K-mart for around $10-$15. I got quite creative with mine and would use it everyday to puree something new. Beans and nearly every kind of vegetable purees really well as do small amounts of chicken or turkey. I loved refried beans that I seasoned with a bit of onion and garlic powder and melted low-fat chedder cheese. I put a little salsa "juice" on top of it all and just loved it. It was one of my "staples" following my surgery and I still have it quite often. Alot of people use baby food, but I rarely used it for my kids when they were babies, preferring to puree my own from whatever we all had for dinner or lunch myself. Coco wheats are good as is cottage cheese with some pureed peaches or pears drizzled on top. Fish does NOT puree well, but you don't have to puree it to count it as a pureed food...it's ok just as it is. Just make sure you chew it up really good. My surgeon said I was allowed to season my food to taste as I chose to, and I did. You don't have to live with a "bland" diet just because you DO have to live with a pureed diet. Good luck. cj
   — cj T.

September 2, 2000
My favorite creamed soup: 2-3 tbs of instant potato flakes, 1/2 c. of skim milk, 1/4 c. cottage cheese, 2 tbs. low fat shredded cheese, 1 tsp. bacon bits, salt and pepper (I used alot of Thai curry paste) to taste...whirl it up in the food processor or blender, pour it in a mug and microwave for a minute or so. Very tasty! (I usually eyeballed this so measurements are not exact...)
   — Allie B.