If you're a regular blog reader of mine, you probably know that I'm a huge texture hound when it comes to food. I love my crunchy homemade vegan granola, my chewy dried fruit and my creamy smoothie bowls. Which is why figuring out delicious gluten free soft foods to eat after surgery (in my case, gum graft surgery) has been especially challenging. It's amazing how hard eating can be when nothing tastes really good...and a girl can only eat so many bowls of mashed potatoes.
So, to help out anyone else needing soft foods after wisdom teeth, soft foods after oral surgery or just soft foods after surgery of any kind, I'm rounding up my 15 favorite gluten free and vegan soft foods to eat (plus, recipes on how to use them!). As always, make sure you follow your doctor's orders and only eat the food your doctor advises or allows.
As a bonus, though, most of the soft foods and recipes I'm listing below are as healthy as they are delicious...and even if you don't have to eat soft foods, these gluten free recipes are scrumptious enough to be included in any diet!
Vegan Soup Recipes
1. Mashed Potatoes Whether you've just had your wisdom teeth removed or got gum graft surgery like me, mashed potatoes are one of the easiest soft foods to whip up and enjoy. Like I mention above, though, it can be easy to overdo it on the mashed potatoes and never want to look at another spud again.
The key to making your gluten freeand vegan potatoes something special is throwing in lots of secretingredients. My personal favorite is mashing potatoes with a little coconut milk, thyme and curry powder. When I have turmeric on hand, I add that as well for an even brighter yellow color. Obviously, vegan butter, gluten free gravy and even BBQ sauce are fair game as well!
2. Sweet Potatoes Sweet potatoes are one of the best soft foods to eat after oral surgery for two reasons. One, they're freakin' delicious AND antioxidant-loaded. (Talk about a win/win). Second? You can eat them with savory or sweet gluten freemeals.
Easy Vegan Naan
If you're craving a sweet treat after your gum graft surgery, I've enjoyed sweet potatoes (mashed with no skin!) topped with nut butter and bananas. For a savory version, BBQ sauce or avocado is especially delicious on top.
3. Pasta, cooked well One of the hardest parts aboutgum graft recovery, at least in my experience, is getting in enough calories while eating soft foods. Pasta can help with that! My personal favorites are gluten free rice pasta from Tinkyaand vegan chickpea pasta from Banza (a great way to sneak in extra protein!). Whatever pasta you do use, be sure to eat it well-cooked, or perhaps even over-cooked, so it's super tender.
Like this post? Then tweet me some love by clickinghere: This #college #celiac is sharing her fave #glutenfree and #vegan foods + recipes that helped her survive#gumgraftsurgery. These soft foods are so tasty, you'll crave them year-round! http://bit.ly/2k9FL6J
Korean Vegan Recipes
4. Superfood-packed Soups What kind of food blogger would I be if I didn't mention soup in a list about the best gluten free soft foods to eat after surgery? Soup was actually a lot more challenging to eat than I anticipated, so I'd suggest waiting a couple days into your recovery before you try it. However, it's an easy way to sneak in some superfoods, from turmeric to a rich vegan broth. Plus, it's easy to make your own soup (just check out my Easiest Gluten Free Green Veggie Soup for proof) and you can throw in whatever steamed veggies, pasta, beans or spices you happen to have on hand.
5. Steamed and Mashed Vegetables Trust me. It may sound fun to eat ice cream and smoothies nonstop after oral surgery...but you get sick of sweets pretty fast. That's where steamed and mashed veggies come in. My personal favorite has been steaming thinly sliced zucchini and squash. On the first couple days after my gum graft surgery, I threw the steamed veggies in my Vitamix (you can use any blender!) and pulsed a few times to get a rough puree. I think they taste delicious on their own, but some extra spices never hurt!
Need more ideas forgluten free mashed vegetable sides? Mashed cauliflower can be almost as addictive as mashed potatoes, especially when you use coconut milk, thyme and oregano. Not to mention fall favorites like pumpkin, butternut squash, beets, carrots or parsnips. It definitely did feel frustrating to be eating an adult version of baby food for five days straight...but you'll be amazed at how delicious this baby food really can taste.
Vegan Italian Recipes
6. Roasted Spaghetti Squash After my gum graft surgery, I was told that anything I could cut into easily with a plastic fork was fair game...so one of my favorite soft foods to eat after surgery was roasted spaghetti squash. Of course, I couldn't eat the seeds or the crunchy outer shell of the squash (which I'm crazy enough to throw in the freezer for when crunchy foods re-enter my diet). But spaghetti squash is delicious enough to be eaten as its own gluten free vegan dinner as long as you have the right toppings.
In fact, you can turn your spaghetti squash into a healthier version of gluten free and vegan enchiladas, a low-carb alternative to spaghetti and tomato sauce or even Spaghetti Squash Nachos(though you'll have to omit the chips if you're eating soft foods after surgery). And if you've never tried spaghetti squash until now? Just see this as the silver lining in your dental surgery.
7. Mashed Beans and Black Bean Soup Diving into my first batch of homemade vegan black bean soup (based on this awesome recipe) is what I was thankful for this Thanksgiving, especially since I had my gum graft surgery the day before. Mashed up beans (from chickpeas - hello hummus! - to black beans to whatever else your heart desires) are an easy way to get some vegan protein, and they taste extra delicious with a side of mashed potatoes or spaghetti squash. For an even cozier serving of comfort food, soup is where it's at!
Easy Vegan Dinner Recipes Made With Everyday Ingredients
8. Vegan Cheese Sauce The secret to (happily) surviving on a soft foods diet for five days or more, at least in my experience, is to keep changing up the flavors every chance you get. One of the easiest ways to do this is loading your plate with sauces, like my favorite vegan cheese sauce. You can use this cheese sauce to whip up an easy vegan mac and cheese recipe or to turn your spaghetti squash into a (non) cheesy delight.
You can also experiment with the vegan cheese sauce itself. Add curry powder (like in my curried cauliflower mac and cheese recipe) for an extra kick or throw in nutritional yeast for an extra cheesy flavor. When you're recovering from dental surgery, you may crave some pretty weird thangs (trust me...I know), so you never know what pairings of spices or flavor add-ins will become your new favorite.
9. Avocado Speaking of flavor bombs, there's really no easier way to upgrade a simple gluten free dinner of mashed potatoes, beans and veggies than by throwing on some creamy avocado. Avocado is also an easy way to get enough calories on your soft foods diet (adequate healing uses up a lot of energy!).
Vegan Mozzarella Cheese
Of course, you can always transform avocado into a creamy chocolate pudding, a spicy guacamole or even an avocado boat stuffed with a form of soft protein. The only limits are your dietary restrictions and your imagination!
10. Banana Ice Cream and Smoothies You know that I love my vegan smoothie bowls and gluten free banana ice cream...and that couldn't be any truer than in the two weeks after my gum graft surgery. Although I can't eat the crunchy add-in's in my Sweet N' Salty Banana Ice Cream recipe, I've been making my own banana ice cream by just combining frozen bananas, coconut milk and cinnamon in my blender. You can also make vegan protein ice cream (like I talk about here) by just adding your choice of gluten free protein powder to the blend.
Smoothie bowls are an equally delicious way to get extra calories and nutrients while eating soft foods. If you're struggling with your vegetable intake, add sliced raw zucchini and squash to your smoothies. I promise you won't taste the veggies at all! You can even experiment with adding cauliflower, sweet potato, beets (for a gorgeous color!) and superfoods like spirulina, maca or acai. I like to make a big batch of banana ice cream and smoothies and freeze them in microwave-safe containers. When I need something cool and creamy, I just defrost one of the mason jars in my microwave (usually for 6 minutes at 4 power, though this will vary by microwave and smoothie size). Then, you can just dig in!
Amazing Vegan Indian Recipes
11. Jam and Nut Butters If you've ever wanted an excuse to eat your weight in nut butter, dental surgery is a pretty good reason!
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