Cheating with Slimfast

We've been cooking a lot of soups around here recently, but sometimes there just isn't enough time to make something from scratch. One of the things we're using to supplement durring this "no-chew" period is Slim-Fast shake powder mix.

This powder is designed to make meal replacement shakes for people who are dieting so they are packed with a pretty good array of vitamins and minerals. Since Nathan's not actually dieting we can be a bit more creative with what we mix it with. 

Current favorites include:

Whole Milk

Vanilla Yogurt

Vanilla Ice Cream and Milk (to make a REAL shake)

Chocolate Fudge Swirl Ice Cream

Chocolate sauce and Milk

We don't use these all the time since eating only Slim-Fast powder for 8 weeks would probably be a little bleak. But having the powder on hand has been super helpful and has been great for when we're a little to tired to make anything fancy.

Get well soon!

Elizabeth and Nathan

Waterpik

Oral care has been a tough thing since the accident since it turns out regular brushing is pretty much imposible when your jaw is rubber banded shut. In this regard we are actually really lucky because my parents gave us this nifty tool for Christmas. Yes, if you ever wondered what dentists get their children for Christmas/Birthdays, it's usually tools for better oral hygien care.  This little guy basically blasts targeted streams of water in your mouth to keep the spaces between your teeth clean and clear. Really it's similar to flossing, but since it turns out flossing is also impossible when you can't open your mouth this thing has been a life saver.

Now it's not all fun and games. Unlike regular flossing you really have to be paying attention when you use it. For example, last night I sprayed my face, my shirt, and most of the bathroom mirror in my attempt to practice good oral hygien. However, it is totally worth getting yourself in the eye once in a while for how much nicer it feels to have at least some way to clean durring these first few weeks.


Get well soon,
Elizabeth and Nathan

Split Pea Soup

Split pea soup was one of the first things I though of as an easy liquid diet food. The peas go all mushy and the whole thing is just like a pureed soup except that you didn't actually have to do any pureeing, genius! Extra bonus, it might be the best way to incorporate bacon flavor into a drinkable food without actually stooping to the act of pureeing bacon (we may eventually sink to that level, but we're trying to hold out for at least a week).

Ingredients:

1 onion chopped

2 stalks celery chopped

2 cloves garlic chopped

salt and pepper to taste

1 bay leaf

1-2 tsp marjoram

2 strips of bacon

1 cup split peas

6-8 cups water or broth (depending on how thick you can handle)

Directions:

Saute bacon slices in the bottom of a large soup pan on medium heat. Once they are crispy take them out and place them on a paper towel to cool. You are now done with the bacon and some chewing member of you family (or friends) should probably be invited to come enjoy them so that you're not tempted to try and force the bacon through your banded shut teeth. Add the onion, garlic, and celery to the pot and fry in the bacon grease until the onions become transparent (ok, yay now you get bacon flavor after all, also, if all this bacon is not your thing, you can replace it with butter or olive oil and everything will still turn out tasty, just less bacony). 

Once the onions are transparent add the water (or broth if you have it) and set the heat to high. Once the pot is boiling add your split peas, salt, paper and marjoram. Lower the heat and simmer until everything disintegrates into a green mush.

Now depending on your jaw you might be able to eat this as is, or you might want to add an additional step which will make everything even smoother and easier to drink. Since Nathan currently has to drink everything through his teeth we did this extra step to make the whole process a little more pleasant.

Step 1: Find a sieve

at first I thought this one was a good one

and then I realized squishing an entire pot of soup through it was going to take just about a million years.

This huge one is MUCH better, I definitely recommend buying a big one if you can find it

Step 2: Mush all the soup through the BIG sieve

This makes all the soup much smoother, and catches all the big pieces that would get stuck in your teeth, before they get stuck in your teeth. WAY more pleasant that way. Unfortunately not all the soup will probably fit through the sieve and you'll be left with some chunky parts. If you have a chewing-able person in your household they might be happy to eat these more chunky pieces of soup (this is our current solution). Otherwise you might try blending these chunkier pieces in either a blender or a food processer (maybe with some more broth?) to break them down more and make them easier to eat.

Get well soon!

Elizabeth and Nathan