Entry for Thursday, October 26, 2006 - Writer's Block?

This is just one of those days that hasn't presented any good fodder for the blogosphere.  Tomorrow its back to NIH for chemo.  Right now, I'm going to bed.  Have a nice night.

Entry for Wednesday, October 25, 2006 - Mind/Body Connection

I forgot to tell you all about the funny thing that happened during Warren's clinic visit at NIH yesterday.  We were telling the doctor about the facial tic that he gets sometimes that pulls down the left side of his mouth.  We think it is related to the physical therapy he's been having to stretch his left shoulder.  That side is very stiff due to the surgery he had on his neck.  Anyway after we told her about it, she said to Warren "Maybe you should try acupuncture to help that."  Well, needless to say, I burst out laughing and then had to explain to her how I'd been trying to talk him into it for a few months.  So now he'll have to ask the physical therapist to set some up for him at NIH.  Isn't that funny?  Well it is to me and that's all that matters.  I told Warren that he needs to just accept the fact that acupuncture is in his future.  In all seriousness, its great that they include acupuncture, reiki, and massage into their healing modalities.  I think that is the future of medicine anyway.  The mind/body connection has got to be honored for true healing to take place.  Not every dis-ease of the body can be healed, but healing can occur regardless of physical outcomes.

I need to get busy around here today.  I've got lots of energy so I want to run the vacuum cleaner.  I went to bed at 8:30 last night and didn't get up until 9:00.  Have a great day.  I might post more later if life inspires more topic.

 

Entry for Tuesday, October 24, 2006 - Soup Redux

Today was a chemo day at NIH.  Warren also saw the dermatologist to have the stitches removed from last week's biopsy.  The results from the biopsy revealed that he has a basel cell carcinoma of the skin on his arm (skin cancer).  They say its not the kind that spreads through the body (melanoma), but it will get larger and should be removed.  They won't be doing that there, so we'll have to find a dermatologist locally to have that done sometime in November.  It is not related to his squamous cell carcinomas that are currently being treated, but rather more related to the fact that he was a red head and had very fair skin.  Let the good times roll.

We got home about 3:45 p.m. and I immediately put on my flannel nightgown, a bed jacket and slippers (I've been cold all day).  Once I got comfy, I made myself a hot cup of green tea and settled in with the computer to read my emails and work on this blog.  I'd take a nap, but I'm afraid that I'd just sleep through the night and not fix Warren his dinner, or I'd wake up after an hour and feel groggy the rest of the evening.

I've been trying to decide whether to give you the Winter Squash Soup recipe that I got from my nutritionist or to give you a recipe for what I actually made, because there is a slight difference and both are good.  So what I'll do is give you both.  The first is my adaptation and the second is the "official" recipe.

Cheryl's Easy Butternut Squash Soup



2 pkgs of peeled, cut, seeded butternut squash (available fresh at the Giant)

2 32 oz. boxes of vegetable broth (I use Pacific Organic - you could also use chicken broth)

1 chopped onion

1 cup petite cut baby carrots

1 tsp. ground coriander

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. tumeric

sea salt to taste

cayenne pepper to taste (1 - 2 pinches)



Put all ingredients into a soup pot and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until all vegetables are very soft.  Let cool slightly and then either puree in a blender or with a blender stick (a great tool by the way).  Soup can be served with a dollop of sour cream or sprinkled with shredded parmesan.

Wonderful Winter Squash Soup



1 winter squash of your choice, cut in chunks (acorn, butternut, pumpkin, etc) with skin on

Optional: 1 yukon gold potato chopped with skin

1 large onion chopped coarsely

2-5 cloves garlic chopped

1 tsp.  ground coriander

1 tsp. tumeric

1 tsp. ground cumin

cayenne pepper to taste (1-2 pinches)

sea salt to taste

extra-virgin olive oil 2-3 tbsp.

water



In a stock pot, saute onion and garlic in olive oil.  After 2-3 minutes, stir in coriander and cumin.  After 2 more minutes stir in tumeric.  Toss in winter squash, pumpkin pieces and potato (if used).  Add water just to cover vegetables.  Bring to a boil and simmer until squash is soft.  If skin is too tough to eat (some melt in your mouth, some don't!), remove cooked chunks and scoop the flesh away from the skin and return the flesh to the soup pot.



Puree in a blender.  Season with cayenne pepper and sea salt.  Serve warm with whole  grain bread and a tossed salad of mixed greens in a vinegrette.

I love soup; homemade soup anyway.  Can you tell?

Have a great evening.

Entry for Monday, October 23, 2006 - Cold Days Need Hot Soups

Yesterday, although I never got dressed, I didn't just sit around and gather moss.  I was in one of my cooking modes.  I made a pot of Hearty Potato Soup, a pot of Winter Squash Soup, I cooked fresh kale, carrots, roasted potatoes, and sweet Italian Sausages.  The vegetables and sausages we had for dinner last night.  The Squash Soup went in the freezer to take on my trip and the Potato Soup we'll have tonight for dinner.  Its cold and windy today; the perfect day for hot soup.  Oh, and before I forget, please add the following to your "Stuff You Should Never Do List".  I had a saute pan with a glass lid that I had in the oven.  When I took it out of the oven I put it in the sink and ran water on it to "cool it down".  Big mistake!  It exploded, luckily it exploded away from me and into the sink.  Also luckily, it broke like safety glass into little pellets.  What a mess!  I know better than to do that, I don't know what I was thinking.

Today I took my car into the dealer to have some safety recall work done.  We only had to be there about an hour, so that wasn't too bad.  While we were waiting, we looked around the showroom at the new Jeep Liberty's and Grand Cherokee's.   I was interested to see if they had re-engineered the dash and console on the Liberty, but it looked about the same.  I was intrigued with the navigation system in the Grand Cherokee, because I have no sense of direction.  My next vehicle will definately have that!  After lunch we went to the grocery store.  That set me back $110.00 and the only meat I bought was sausage (that was on sale!).

Tomorrow its back to NIH for the long day to start week 6.

I'm including the Potato Soup recipe that I use, because its quite good and you might like to make it.  The recipe came from the Taste of Home Magazine.

Hearty Potato Soup



6 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" cubes

2 carrots, diced

6 celery stalks, diced

2 quarts water

1 onion, chopped

6 tablespoons butter or margerine

6 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1-1/2 cups milk



In a large kettle, cook potatoes, carrots, and celery in water until tender (about 20 minutes).  Drain, reserving liquid and setting vegetables aside.  In the same kettle, saute onion in butter until soft.  Stir in flour, salt and pepper;  gradually add milk, stirring constantly until thickened.  Gently stir in cooked vegetables.  Add 1 cup or more of the reserved cooking liquid until soup is the desired consistency (should be slightly thickened).  Yield 8-10 Servings (about 2-1/2 quarts).



You can use this recipe as a base and use brocolli or cauliflower instead of potatoes.  For some extra zip I sometimes add an 8 oz. jar of "Cheese Whiz" at the end of cooking.  This gives the soup a slightly cheesy taste which is quite good.

Tomorrow I'll post the recipe for the Winter Squash Soup which I got from my nutritionist.



Have a great evening.

Entry for Sunday, October 22, 2006 - Happy Birthday Daddy!

Today would have been my Dad's 84th Birthday.  He was born October 22, 1922.  In this picture he was probably 23 (sometime in 1945).  He was back from the War and he and Mom had just gotten married.  He served as a staff sargeant in the Marine Corps during World War II.  He was one of the bravest people I have ever known; not so much because of his war service (but that's part of it), but because of the way he lived his life with muscular dystrophy.  Looking at him as a young man, there was no hint of future disability.  I miss him.