freezer

Smooth Mornings

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celery, spinach, grapes, and carrots.

Makings of a breakfast smoothie.

 

Medicine doesn’t necessarily have to come from a pharmacy. I take prescription and over the counter drugs to manage the side effects of chemo, but what and how I eat is also an important part of that plan. When it comes to my first meal of the day, I had always been a drink-coffee-first-eat-later kinda guy, but since my diagnosis, I’ve been making sure to limit caffeine, stay hydrated, and have a nutritious breakfast within an hour or so of getting up. One of my favorite menu options is a smoothie, because it’s a quick and easy way to boost my fiber and fluid intakes, and it never comes out the same way, twice.

I don’t measure anything or work from a recipe, but there is a general method. First, I take a carrot, a stalk of celery, some frozen and fresh fruit, and maybe some greens, and toss them all into my blender. For the liquid, I splash in a bit of pomegranate juice, then pour in enough orange juice to cover everything. After adding some flax meal for protein—probably a tablespoon or two—and remembering to put the lid on (important!), I blend up some breakfast.

Finished breakfast smoothie

All smoothed up!

The carrots, celery, juices, and flax seed are standard, but I change up the other ingredients based on whatever I have on hand. Because I vary the amounts of the fruits and vegetables each time, the smoothies always taste a little different, even if what they’re made from may be the same. This week, I discovered a combo that I really like: macintosh apple, spinach, and white grapes. Some others that have worked well: blueberry and peach; clementine and peach; mixed berries, pears, and romaine lettuce; pineapple, strawberry, and watermelon; and plum and raspberry. If I’m out of flax meal, I’ll add a little peanut or almond butter, or skim or almond milk.

To save time, I wash, peel, and chop stuff in advance, and store it in bags or containers. That’s good, too, for making sure I can grab a quick snack during the day, and for cutting down on prep time for other meals. I’ve been freezing any fruit that’s getting too ripe, which also cuts down on food waste. Hot tip: freeze cut up produce flat in a zip top bag, leaving some space between pieces, so once it’s frozen you can take out whatever amount you need and put back the rest. Also, store bags vertically, like books, and it’s easier to get them in and out of the freezer.

Smoothies work for me because they’re a fast and easy way to start the day off right, and they don’t get boring if I change up the ingredients. Drinking fruits and veggies in the morning instead of coffee: who would have thought?

From the Forgotten Comes Dinner

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As far as groceries go, I am the king of overbuying. I either forget that I already have two jars of dried rosemary, or I get caught up in summer abundance, and have more produce than I can eat before it goes bad. After my last green market haul, a head of broccoli and an eggplant ended up hidden away in my fridge until days later, when I was looking for something else and realized it was use it or loose it time for both. I’m always game for a challenge, so instead of chucking them, I cooked up a surprisingly tasty quick meatless dinner.

What did we do before every recipe, tip, trick, and kitchen disaster fix was online? Not sure how well broccoli and eggplant would compliment each other, I did a search and found plenty of promising results. Next, I wondered if the fresh dill I had—also on death watch—would be a good fit. Google said, “yes.”

I was pretty hungry, so stir-fry seemed to be the fastest and easiest way to go. My usual base is garlic and onion sautéed in a little olive oil, some stock, and salt, pepper and seasonings to taste. I sometimes find though, that my off-the-cuff dishes come out bland. The week before, I made a delicious chicken and broccoli dish that called for thinly sliced lemon, so I decided to add that into the mix.

With my basic plan in place, I got to work on my culinary experiment. As I cooked, I thought the flavors in this dish would need something else to pull them all together, so I added in some ground coriander. I’ve been eating less meat, but making sure to include more plant-based protein to compensate, so I tossed in a can of black beans, which made the stir-fry more hearty, and also thickened it. Side note: I thought I would need a little flour to do this, but the result was too pasty when I added it, and I ended up adding more stock as a fix.

In under an hour, I had a surprisingly good main dish, which served over quinoa and with a side salad, made a very satisfying dinner. Even better, the leftovers gave me two additional meals and a quart for the freezer, where I’ve been storing extra food in case I don’t feel up to cooking, or am hungry and want to eat quickly.

I was pleased for turning veggies that would have otherwise been compost, into several nutritious meals, while at the same time exercising my brain a little, and tapping into my creativity. Not a bad job, if I do say so, myself.

 

Broccoli and Eggplant Stir-Fry with Black Beans and Dill

Prep Time: 15 mins, Cook Time: 25 mins. Yield: about 6 cups.

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 cups diced eggplant
  • 2 cups chopped broccoli, stems peeled if desired
  • 1/2 small to medium lemon, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise, seeds removed
  • 1 to 1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh dill
  • 1 tsp dried ground coriander
  • Salt and pepper
  1. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and onion; sauté until golden and tender, about 5 minutes.
  2. Add eggplant and broccoli. Sprinkle with salt; sauté until broccoli is bright green and eggplant starts to soften, about 3 minutes.
  3. Add the lemon and sauté about 2 minutes.
  4. Add about 1/2 cup stock; cook, stirring occasionally, until broccoli is tender, eggplant is soft, and lemon is translucent, about 8 minutes. Add more stock a splash at a time, as needed.
  5. Add beans, dill, coriander, salt and pepper to taste, and about 1/4 cup stock. Cook, stirring occasionally, until beans are heated through, adding more stock as needed, until mixture reaches desired consistency.
  6. Adjust seasonings if desired and remove from heat.
  7. Serve over quinoa, rice, or pasta.