"When you have your health, you have everything."

“When you have your health, you have everything. When you do not have your health, nothing else matters at all.” -Augusten Burroughs, Dry

I quoted only the first half because I do not totally agree with him. Food matters. Very, very much.

During the past couple of months, I have been volunteering to provide meals for a person who has cancer. He stopped with the chemo treatments because they were not helping and he is allowing the disease take its course. His family is doing everything they can to make him comfortable. I was told he has six months, more or less.

Providing meals is a bit of a challenge. At first, I was preparing meals with an emphasis on fresh, organic ingredients. I prepared them mainly in the form of soup using myself as a guide. Whenever I've been sick with a cold or flu (I know, it is no comparison to having cancer) soup is what I often craved. So I would provide a variety of soups so he could choose according to what he craved at the time.

pureed cauliflower soup
assorted veggies with a tomato dipping sauce
poached and shredded chicken breast

vegetable soup with diced chicken
vegetarian split pea soup
sauteed brussels sprouts
mixed green salad with avocado and lemon balsamic vinaigrette

red lentil soup
tortilla soup with a little shredded chicken
steamed broccoli
mixed green salad with avocado and a hazelnut oil and white balsamic vinaigrette

After a couple of procedures and complications, his diet was changed to a low fiber/low residue diet for 6-8 weeks in order to slow down his digestion. I found myself researching exactly what he is allowed to eat. Initially I found it to be a challenge, but it is getting easier to work around the limitations. Food with seeds, skins or peels are off because they can clog or get caught up and cause a problem. Everything has to be cooked to a soft consistency. No raw foods or leafy greens.  More recent meals included:

pureed potato leek soup
chicken-ginger broth soup with cubed potato and carrots
provencal fish soup
chicken and rice soup with diced carrots and butternut squash
avgolemono soup
petrale sole risotto

For last night's meal, I made lamb shanks braised in a red wine sauce, smashed potatoes, and butternut squash cubes for him. I received an email this morning saying that enjoyed his meal so much that he had a second helping. Reading that really made my heart sing and put a big smile on my face. It was a nice way to start off the day.

I'm signed up for two days of "meal duty" in January. I would sign up for more, but I want to give the other volunteers the opportunity to provide as well. Otherwise, I'd be happy to cook for him exclusively.

Enjoy and love life. It is everything. Wishing you all a Happy New Year.

variation on a theme

another week, another poached chicken, another pot of soup. this one is a variation on chicken tortilla soup. why a variation? i forgot to buy a package of corn tortillas to cut into strips and fry up as a garnish. but i did buy an ear of corn and had some corn meal so i adapted with what i had.

ingredients:
olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. chile powder
1/2 tsp. ground cumin seed or 3-4 turns on a burr grinder
4 cups chicken stock/broth
2 tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 cup tomato sauce

1 tbsp corn meal
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme

one medium potato, diced
kernels from one ear of corn
shredded cabbage

1/3 cup diced chicken meat 
1 tsp chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

garnishes:
diced white onion
shredded cabbage
chopped cilantro
sliced avocado
shredded cheese
sour cream
lemon or lime wedges

method:
heat 3-qt saute pan on medium. add the olive oil and when it begins to shimmer add the onions. stir so it doesn't burn, then add the minced garlic, chile powder and cumin seed. let it fry up a bit then add the stock, tomato paste and tomato sauce. stir and bring up to a simmer then add the corn meal, oregano, thyme, potato, cabbage, and continue to cook until the potato is tender, about 5-10 minutes. stir in the corn kernels and chicken, turn off the heat and stir in the cilantro. salt and pepper to taste.

garnish as you like and enjoy!