Tonight was a special night out with the family. And the kids really wanted to go to The Old Spaghetti Factory. Now I love their food as much as the next but having had weight loss surgery it’s not the best choice for me.
I went into this night out with a plan. I brought my plastic containers to be able to put my salad in and some of my main dish as well. I do this for two reasons to avoid being asked 20 thousand times if the food was ok and so I don’t have to explain to some stranger that I’ve had weight loss surgery. I’m usually pretty open on the topic but sometimes I just want to go out to dinner without going into a whole explanation. I had pre planned what I was going to order and then when I got there I was intrigued by a dish that wasn’t on their menu online but was now calling my name at the restaurant.
I chose to order a salad which went straight into my container as soon as the waitress left. And for my main I order Chicken Alfredo served with bacon, mushrooms and mascarpone stuffed ravioli. Keep in ming that I am almost two years post op and would never have imagined ordering this dish before being this far out. What did I learn from ordering this delicious pasta dish? Pasta to a weight loss surgery patient is like a Chinese food meal to everyone else. You always think you can eat more then you actually can and after a few bites your so full it hurts. Then 30 minutes later your ravenous again. I don’t regret the food choices I made tonight because it has taught me something I already knew. Stick to protein and avoid pasta. That one meal I ate over the course of several hours in four different sitting. I am currently typing this feeling stuffed and satisfied but will probably wait quite a while before having pasta again. There are so many alternatives i have found to pasta now that I don’t ever feel like I am missing you. Here’s a few ideas for pasta substitutes: quinoa, zucchini noodles, sweet potatoes or sweet potato noodles, shiritake noodles ( I have to admit the texture of these just isn’t for me), Chicken Alfredo can be served of broccoli or cauliflower. You can make egg wraps and use those as your pasta sheets in lasagna honestly the list goes on and on.
What are some of your favourite pasta substitutes? Is there any foods that you use to love that when you try to eat you no longer enjoy?