OK, got where you're coming from. Funny thing is that I haven't been on this forum for a long time due to the madness of a poster who is no longer around, but I realize I've come back in a definitely defensive mood because of them (won't ID who they are now), so was already to get into it with you, but it's so nice not going there, being able to have an exchange of ideas without a flame war! PS - don't know how long you've been retired, but we're a lot closer in age obviously than I think you think, and in fact I remember diets that you've forgotten :-). I do know that for me, high cholesterol and all, the Atkins/protein thing works fast and well (though it's almost impossible to avoid some carbs after all), compared to others (though I'm not a 'dieter', never needed to be one until a lot more recently than otherwise). Metabolic syndrome is a consequence of our society, and how sad is it that we want to chop pieces off ourselves to 'fix' it! I do have a pretty good take on what foods are made up of though, for the record, e.g. starch is sugar is fat is... so can we KAMU? We're probably going to agree on it all anyhow :-).

Oh boy, Judy, good luck. First, I'm going to tell you that I use the websites of Cooking Light, Eating Well and Diabetic Living. Yes, I knowk we're not talking about diabetes, but they have a lot of low fat/low carb dessert ideas. Side dishes? Well, vegetables are the easiest and healthiest, without a bunch of added fat, of course. I like roasted vegetables so I'll do a big sheet pan of whatever I have. That ould be potatoes, sweet potatoes, winter squashes, green beans, cauliflower, tomatoes, carrots, celeery, onions, nearly anything. Drizzle with just a little olive oil and some salt and pepper. Mixed herbs if you like, I like fresh ones but have been known to use an Italian blend or Fines Herbs, etc. Quinoa is good and low in fat, as is brown ricePIckled things are good too, like three bean salad. Baked beans, scalloped potatoes made with skim milk, make mashed potatoes with skim milk or with some chicken broth. You can make a passable gravy with broth too, although I avoid soup bases because of the sodium. If you stay away from the creamy/cheese/mayo based salads and vegetables, you'll be good to go on that. For dessert? Grandma's Blueberry Crisp, so darned healthy you need ice cream. Low fat ice cream, of coure. Baked apples, fruit filled crepes, the less crust the better. Phyllo/filo dough can be good for desserts, if you stay away from the butter layer. Chocolate pudding made with skim milk and dark chocolate is a possibility too. So, here's the dessert recipe to get this started. Heck, I found this posted in 2003, was it THAT long ago? Wow.... Blueberry Crisp ================ annie1992 (My Page) on Sun, May 25, 03 at 1:50 Cindy Mac, this is the only blueberry crisp recipe I've ever used, the one my grandmother used. It's not very sweet, which I like because I like the flavor of the berries better than the flavor of the sugar, LOL. It's really good warm with vanilla ice cream, but it's also good cold for breakfast (it's a FRUIT, Mom). Blueberry Crisp 3 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen, unsweetened 2 tbls lemon juice 2/3 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup flour 1/2 cup quick oats 1/3 cup butter, softened 3/4 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp salt Heat oven to 375. Arrange berries in ungreased square baking dish (8 inch) and sprinkle with lemon juice. Combine remaining ingredients until crumbly. (I use a pastry blender, grandma used two knives). Crumble topping over berries and bake until topping is lightly browned and berries are hot, about 30 minutes. Makes 4-6 servings. I double this and it still comes out good. Plus blueberries are low in calories, have lots of fiber and no fat, contain antioxidants C, E and beta carotene and have been found to be as helpful in urinary tract health as cranberries. That's why I need ice cream with them, they are just too darned healthy! Meringue type cookies and biscotti are pretty low fat too. Annie

(((Chubby_rat))) Okay...I'm coming public here -- I had lap band surgery 2.5 years ago. I'm about halfway to goal, not a poster child. And I'm now trying to get my butt in gear again. There are additional reasons that weight loss is recommended before lapband surgery -- a lot of fat settles around the liver and stomach area, and a good weight loss directly prior to surgery can make it easier for the surgeon to get in there, and also easier healing for you. After all, with laparoscopy, there's not a whole lot of room to maneuver. Your insurance will come through -- it's your doctor who is taking the cautious path. BTW, there are other doctors who are not as stringent about the pre-surgery weight loss. The nutritional visits are critical since your consumption will be so much less and it will be hard to get all the protein and vegetables in. The best part is that the lap band really, really does curtail hunger. But it's also not a panacea -- bad habits will return unless you're vigilant. And exercise is paramount. Again, I'm no poster child, but I know many bandsters who are. The band can be a PITA due to the saline fills required. Have you asked your doctor about other alternatives -- there are a couple of new ones available -- if the vertical sleeve had been available at the time I might have gotten that instead. If you'd like to email me offline, I'd be happy to share more information about the journey.

Straw, you are spot on in identifying the veges. We generally do add potatoes also to the mix as they bake very well. Yogurt goes well with beef. It ensures better marination of the spices and almost dries up during baking but in the process, keeps the beef tender and gives it a nice flavour. However, few people may not like it with the veges though. Olive oil also assists in saving the meat and veges from drying / burning and give a very nice flavour to veges. Shirmp marination in our recipes usually doesn't contain yogurt though there is no harm in using. However, mostly lemon juice or vinegar go well with shrimps. We usually prefer a perforated baking dish which allows excess water to drain down. But then one has to keep another tray at the lower level inside the oven as water will keep dripping down from the perforated tray and make the oven dirty.