Weight Loss Surgery Blog

Lori Skurbe, Staff Bariatric Dietitian

By Lori Skurbe, MPH, CDE, Prime Surgicare Bariatric Dietitian

Fall is a beautiful time of year—crisp, cool weather, vibrant colors abound and we’re enjoying the plethora of fall produce – apples, sweet potatoes and seasonal squash, such as acorn, butternut and pumpkin.

For people following a bariatric diet, there are many ways to enjoy these foods and stay on your nutritional track.

I’m sharing some of our weight loss surgery patients’ favorite fall recipes, which are rich in taste, fiber, vitamin A, Vitamin C and those essential phytonutrients we all need to stay healthy.

The best part – they are naturally low in calories and high in flavor!

These bariatric-friendly dishes are easy to cook and will appeal to the rest of your family or friends for whom you may be cooking. You can make anything from a healthy pumpkin bread to a soup, overnight oats to a savory side dish.

Get out those baking dishes and soup bowls—this is going to be delicious!

Easy Baked Apples

Ingredients:

6 apples (any type you like), washed and cored

Cinnamon

Water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven the 375 degrees.
2. In an over safe dish, place the cored apples. Sprinkle with cinnamon and add water so that there is about an inch of liquid around the apples.
3. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until apples are soft.
4. Serve each apple in a bowl with a little bit of the liquid from the baking dish. Sprinkle with additional cinnamon, if desired.

Maple Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Butternut Squash

(recipe from the recipecritic.com)

 Ingredients:

1 pound Brussel sprouts, rinsed, ends trimmed and sliced in half

1 pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed

3 TB olive oil

4 TB real maple syrup, divided

Salt and pepper (you can omit salt, if you need to lower the sodium)

1 cup whole pecans

½ cup dried cranberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly spray with non-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl combine Brussel sprouts, butternut squash and olive oil.  Toss with olive oil and 1 TB maple syrup. Salt and pepper.
2. Spread evenly on the baking sheet and roast in the oven for 25 minutes or until the edges are brown and the center is tender. Remove from oven.
3. Add the roasted Brussel sprouts and butternut squash back to the larger bowl. Add pecans, cranberries and remaining maple syrup and toss. Serve immediately.

Pumpkin Soup

(recipe adapted from: delish.com)

Ingredients

1 TB extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

4 pound pumpkin (any kind, preferable sugar pie) or ~4 cups canned pureed pumpkin (if you do not have a fresh pumpkin)

4 cups low sodium vegetable broth

Kosher salt (may omit if need to keep sodium levels down)

Freshly ground pepper

Directions:

1. In a heavy soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, heat oil. Add onions and garlic and cook until golden.
2. Meanwhile, half, peel and scrape out seeds of the pumpkin. Cut into chunks.
3. Add pumpkin chunks and broth to pot. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, uncovered, then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer until pumpkin is fork tender, about 30 minutes.
4. Remove pot from heat and, using an immersion blender, carefully blend mixture until smooth. (Alternatively, let soup cool, then blend in a standard blender.)
5. To serve ladle soup into bowls

NOTE:  if using canned pumpkin puree, you can skip steps 2 and 3. Just add pumpkin puree to cooked onions, garlic and broth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Blend with immersion blender or standard blender.

Garlic Acorn Squash

(recipe from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:

Cooking spray

2 medium acorn squash, halved and seeded

2 TB olive oil, divided

4 tsp minced garlic, divided

Salt and ground pepper to taste (may omit salt)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9 X 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Place each squash half in the baking dish, cut side down.
3. Bake squash in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Flip squash over and place 1 TB of olive oil and 2 tsp minced garlic into each squash. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Bake squash, cut-side up until tender, about 20 minutes. Cool for about 5 minutes before serving.

Vegan Split Pea and Sweet Potato Soup

(recipe from: popsugar.com)

 Ingredients:

1 pound (2 ¼ cups) green split peas

5 celery stalks, sliced

1 large sweet onion, chopped

1 large clove garlic, minced

8 cups vegetable broth

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

Salt and pepper, to taste (may omit salt if need to keep sodium down)

Directions:

1. Wash and drain the split peas, removing any stones.
2. Pour the peas, celery, onion, garlic and vegetable broth in a big pot with the top on. Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer, cracking the top open slightly.
3. Stir occasionally, cooking on low heat for 2 hours. Add the diced sweet potatoes and cooked for another 20-30 minutes or until the peas are soft and the soup looks creamy. Season with salt and pepper.

These recipes are an excellent addition to your fall menu and are all plant-based!

Let us know if you tried these recipes and share some of your favorite seasonal recipes.

During these turbulent times, our Prime Surgicare team is here to support you. If you need nutritional support, call us at 732-982-2002 to schedule a telehealth visit with me. You may be surprised how much we can cover in a visit or two, which can keep your weight loss or weight maintenance on track.