So...whats for dinner?

kidsandlabs

HI everyone, I will be starting chemo the week of Aug 27. So I am starting to cook double the amount of food and freezing it, so it can just be taken out and popped in the oven or stove top. My husband thinks I am over doing it and it is unnecessary. I just want to be prepared. So am I going over board? 

LuvRVing

Welcome Kidsandlabs!  Are you overdoing it?  Only if your husband has agreed to cook most every meal while you're on chemo!!!  It's really a great idea if you have the energy to do it.  I think your hubby may not realize the impact chemo "may" have on you.  I sure as heck wasn't cooking dinner on many nights during my treatment. 

Moonflwr912

I second luvrving! Ask your husband if he wants to eat while you have chemo. Otherwise he can eat whatever you can stomach! Mashed potato, and other semi bland things seem to be the menu for me. I think your husband also needs a reality check! Chemo hits everyone differently and I hope you are one of the ones to not have harsh SEs, but if it hits hard, he HAS to pick up the slack. You are not doing this for fun! Much love and keep on cooking.

Laurie08

kidsandlabs-I agree, tis better to be prepared!  Hopefully chemo is gentle on you and you will have no need.  But, if you have a tough day you will be prepared and proud!  When I had my BMX I was very lucky that friends started a meal calendar for me and brought us dinner every night for 30 days.  DH said it was embarrassing and not needed.  Until he was taking care of two kids and trying to do it all- then he asked, who's bringing dinner tonight?  We were very lucky to have the help and I am forever grateful.  I am sure you will do great.

eric95us

Kidsandlabs... as a husband, I can answer your, "Am I overpreparing?" question in one word..... NO! :-)



Sharon was pretty strong and the side effects weren't too bad (according to her), but there were times she didn't feel like doing anything. Our daughter was in 8th grade and helped where she could. I love to cook, so that part wasn't so bad. But, adding in everything else....even with two of us picking up the load, we were pretty tired by the end of the day,



Eric

debbie6122

Michelle- Thanks for your update on Joyce I have been waiting to hear about her test glad they finally found the cause. And glad you had a nice dinner out with her.

Kidsandlabs- Welcome I echo what everyone else said its better to be prepared but hopfully DH will do a lot of cooking for you too. I know all I wanted was pudding and mashed potatoes and ice pops. 

Laurie- Wow that is some great friends you have there bringing dinner for 30 days, that is awesome!

Have a great Sunday everyone!

Momine

Kidsandlabs, no, you are being smart. Before each round of chemo, I cooked a batch of something easy and froze it in single portions. I also stocked up on frozen veggies and single servings of frozen fish.

apple

welcome to kidsandlabs.  it is really nice to have food ready and waiting in the freezer... of course you get to the point where you are will to just go and buy the un healthy frozen food.  at least pizza).

I've been a horrible cook lately.  I see my husband went to the freezer last nite and took out a huge slab of bacon and a big bat of jimmy dean type sausage.  I'm gone on Sunday mornings.

kidsandlabs

Thanks for all the feedback. My husband is a neat freak so cleaning won't be a problem. However, cooking he can't even make a box of Mac & cheese! literally!

Isabelle2

LuvRVing...thanks for the info...haven't time to do anything else this a.m. as have to get ready for trip to Ontario Get together.  Will post the mushroom recipe later along with pictures of our Ont. bash ....your instructions sound so simple.   thanks teach.

kidsandlabs:  smart lady for preparing ahead of time.   I did the same thing before surgery & was so glad I did.   My DH can and will cook but his world has been disrupted too.

Wish I lived closer to some of you so that I could share.

LuvRVing

Kidsandlabs - my husband told me for 30 years that he couldn't cook.  Then I went through chemo and you know what?  He discovered some pretty good cooking skills!  All those years of watching Iron Chef, Chopped, and all the other FoodNetwork shows paid off.  So don't be surprised if he suddenly develops a talent! 

Cottontail

I haven't been in this thread much, as I have been eating mostly junk food (instant mashed potatoes, vegetarian spaghetti-o type things from cans, etc) or letting my husband get takeout (veggie lover's pizza, no cheese).

Well, last night for the first time in a long, long while, I not only could taste food, but I was feeling up to cooking!  Yay!  I still kept it simple, and made a giant pot of potato leek soup, and served it up with some toasted ciabatta bread.  It was fabulous, and felt so good to be able to feed myself (and my husband) again.

I've spent many years relying on convenience foods, and I have vowed to eliminate many of them and cook REAL food again.  I have tons of cookbooks filled with fabulous recipes, and a whole closet full of small appliances that never get used.  Well, it's time to use them.  I'm going to try to use up the junk that's in our pantry now, and as I get to feeling stronger, cook real food again.  Even when it's something as easy as potato leek soup!

Lacey12

Ditto to the advice of the others, kidsandlabs! You (and DH) will be happy you planned ahead so nicely! Oh, and welcome!



Isabelle2, I can tell we are going to be loving your recipes!



Gorgeous day here...gotta get to the beach!

Lacey12

Yeaaa, cottontail....go for it!

eric95us

Cottontail, I have a cookbook featuring Leeks...Its title is, "First you take a Leek".  :-)  Everytime I see that, without fail, I laugh.  That I laugh speaks volumes about my sense of humor.... :-)

I'll write more later.  I've got to get showered and take DD down to her old school for an openhouse and also be "the substitute bus transportation person" to meet with the new parents....so Sharon can relax a bit.

Eric

carolehalston

Cottontail, potato leek soup sounds really good on this cool MN day.  Hard to believe soup can sound good in August!  Last week I had a beef vegetable soup at a restaurant and really enjoyed it. 

Lacey, ditto on all the oohs and aahs over granddaughter and grandson. 

Eric, I would enjoy reading that recipe book, You Start with a Leek.  But then I enjoy reading most cookbooks.  Are leeks expensive in your supermarkets?

Michelle, I'm glad you found a trial that fits your situation and schedule.  What a schedule it is!  I get slightly fatigued just reading the itinerary!  You and Lacey should get together and write a book on restaurants.  The descriptions of meals make me hungry, not to mention envious. 

I bought bags of wonderful veggies yesterday at the two farmers' markets in Park Rapids.  The tomatoes are just gorgeous, vine ripened.  There is such a bountiful supply of cucumbers, squash, zucchini, carrots, potatoes.  The green beans are less plentiful now but I bought some pole beans, which are flat.  And corn is sold out of pickup trucks everywhere you look.

I made a delicious corn dish last night.  Cut the raw kernals off the cob.  Sauteed the kernals in butter with a jalapeno pepper, very finely diced, and yellow, red and green bell pepper, not diced as fine.  We also had baby back ribs and a salad of sliced tomato and cucumber with EVOO and wine vinegar dressing.

Tonight's dinner will be panfried walleye fillet, sauteed veggie medley (corn, carrot, yellow squash, zucchini) sprinkled with Asiago cheese and a salad.  I'll season the walleye with s&p, garlic and onion powder, and Paul Prudhomme's cajun Magic minus salt.  I'll brown it in a hot skillet with some butter and olive oil.

This afternoon we're playing golf at 4pm, at which time we'll save some money by paying the twilight rate. 

Hugs to all.

debbie6122

Cottontail- Glad your getting your appetite back and feeling more like cooking. Potatoe leek soup sounds really good. Like Michelle says, its amazing what our DH learn to do when they have too.

Eric- Thats funny on the book title. Your daughter and Sharon are very lucky to have you, infact now that I think about so are we..

 Carole- Your corn dish sounds good I make something similar to that but sometimes I will put okra or lima beans in with it. Yumm!

Looks like my sis won't make it now for a couple of weeks she has a tumor on her pituatary gland that is growing and showing some bleeding in it and the meds they put her on is making her sleep all the time, hopefully she will get used to it and be able to come soon. Yet again cleaned my house with a no show but thats ok because I just want her to be ok.  

Cottontail

Well, having said I will cook more, I'm sending my husband for Thai takeout tonight, hahaha. Panang curry with tofu for me, yum!



I did buy more leeks when I was out shopping today, will make more soup later in the week. (My husband and i both really love it!) Leeks here are $2.99 for a bundle of three medium or two large leeks, and they're organic. I use two bundles for one large pot of soup. They're the most expensive ingredient, but the pot still only costs around $10, and makes about six hearty servings.

Moonflwr912

Hi all, leek and potato soup does sound good, but.you gotta have bread, and its too much carbs for my diabetes.

I went to a baby shower today, all the food had a baby theme, ie: baby beans, baby joes, baby potato! LOL I'm glad someone else drove. I am exhausted. I am still putting out a lot of fluid and may not get drain pulled on Tuesday, either. Oh well. Much love

Lacey12

Michelle, the restaurant that DH's brother recommended is Carmines....the exit is the first one right out of that tunnel on 15 (Merritt) at the south end of New Haven. They rave about the monkfish there.



Last evening we ended up back at Ledgewater with our good friends who we have hardly seen up here all summer. We lamented not getting a table on the deck until we watched the cold breezes creating shivers in the diners! But we had a great window view of the lake on a crisp night. Spectacular. My sea bass dinner with spicy zucchini pancake was excellent, as was the lemon strawberry cheescake we had for dessert.

Tonight we marinated and grilled chicken thighs, with sides of very sweet local corn the cob and cucumber caprese salad tossed in balsamic vinegar. Not bad.....



While I'm up here i ave to use those blueberries we picked....am thinking I will make a pie with spelt crust. Also saw a recipe for individual spelt crust pies. Hmmmmmm



Glad to hear that Joyce K is doing better. Hope she continues to heal and has an easy cataract procedure.



I sometimes buy leeks at Traders, and they are reasonable.



Carole, I envy your home grown finds on your trip!

eric95us

Drat (well, like Ralphie..it wasn't quite drat)..but anyway.  I had a nice long post..and poof..it was gone. 

I'll try it again..going backwards through the posts..this thread has been busy, which is good.

 Thank you Debbie. You are very kind.

I was going to look at Leek prices today at the store, but I forgot. I don't recall them being very expensive.  My mom has some Leek recipes that were her grandmother's.  My mom is 94, so these are quite old..and are written in German.  Mom is fairly fluent in German, so I'll have to see if she can translate some of the stuff for me.  I was reading some of it...the recipe book in one hand, a German-English dictionary in the other and a puzzled look on my face. 3 tins sugar, 2 if rationed, but use less salt....a wild bird egg lump of butter..cinnamon to taste, if available..all hand (at hand???) clove... much nutmeg. 

 Carole.  That corn sounds good.  I may try it..but probably with Serrano Peppers. I've got a couple of the plants growing under the grape vine and they are starting to get flowers..Serranos are a bit hotter than Jalapenos..so I use less..but I think they are much tastier. 

Cottontail...so glad you're getting your appetite back.  Sharon's appetite was a bit spotty at times during chemo..and her tastes were all over the place. Things are getting back to normal about a month after her last chemo.

 Kidsandlabs (lab retrievers?). Your husband might like cooking.  In college in the early 80s I started out where it was a horrible chore that I wasn't very good at doing.  Then it became some nice time with my then girlfriend..and the two of us, once we learned the cooking language, started to improve.  It's now something I greatly enjoy and I feel bad when I can't get enough cooking time.  

Hi Apple.  Often Sundays are "fend for yourself" mornings...depending on what's going on.  Today was "fix the old car some more" and then so Sharon could relax, go to Chrissy's old school's open house and answer parent's questions about the school buses.

Debbie, I've printed out the two recipes...and they are in the "to try" notebook.  

Michelle, I've been reading about your trial.....Wishing you zero side effects and excellent results.

Moonflower.  I'm glad the drains are slowing down.  Sharon hated the things.  Her experience at talking US Navy and Merchant Marine "sailor talk" was not enough when she was describing the (long strings of cuss words) drains. She was talking to me when the surgeon pulled the drains and she didn't even realize he had "done the deed"..so pulling them out didn't hurt...

And finally Lacey.....What a granddaughter and grandson.  Wow!   I got a friend's baby daughter a T-shirt...on it was a picture of her dad wrapped around a little finger....I think Ava may need one of those shirts.... :-)  For me, 18 months to about 3 years age are the most fun.  I can act normal and no one gets worried about my behavior....without the kids..people are calling the state hospital.

Tonight Sharon cooked chicken and onions in the dutch oven picutured in my avatar.  I was fixing things at my mom's house. On the BCO site there's a thread about "the best ever gift".  I am so tempted to post on that thread.  Sharon and Chrissy are at the top of the list and that dutch oven is next.

I guess I better post this before I lose it again...

Everyone have a good evening. 

Eric

Moonflwr912

LOL, Eric, I HATE when I lose a long post! Went to a baby shower, had baby everythings, baby beans, baby joes, baby potatos, etc, so cute. That was at 2 we ate. Came home, my DD drove, and wasn't hungry til 9 pm. So had a bowl of mini wheat cereal for supper. Hit the spot. LOL

debbie6122

Eric- I just love reading old recipes with different ways of saying ingredients and equivlents. I epecially loved the 'Wild bird egg lump of butter" LOL! So would that be like 8 tablespoons?  What would 3 tins be. cups?

Pork chops for dinner tonight. I made a marsala sauce with mushrooms to top the pork chops. and hericort verts with fingerling and purple potatoes. The potatoes were in the deli all I had to do was preheat them which was good. For dessert I made a chocolate oreo pudding. 

Bedo- Your computer must still be down. Just wanted to say Hi!

Seaside- Wondering where you are too? Hope everything is fine.

kidsandlabs

Hi Eric, yes Labrador Retervers, 5 of them. One black, one yellow and 3 chocolates. As for my husband cooking, oh no! I have tried in the past. Something are better just left untouched. LOL. He will even admit it. I also have grown children that have been totally amazing, I think too much. One of my girls is a nurse and I really hope they don't try to take to much on. I really don't want to be a burden on them.

apple

so i bought some spare ribs.. i will precook them then let the boys finish them on the grill.  i wonder if i could just boil them.

Well, I cut a couple onions and 4 cloves of garlic, sauteed them for a bit, added spices liquid and 2 hunks (about 1.2 the sparerib each) to the water.  they are cooking slowly and marinating for 60 to 90 minutes.  I'll have the boys grill them later.  It sounds like it'll work.  They'll burn them on the grill and leave the insides raw otherwise. 

LuvRVing

Apple - when I cook spare ribs, I just do it all on the grill.  I don't understand the need to pre-cook them.  Seems like lots of flavor would be lost.  They take a little longer, but if you cut them in 3-rib pieces, it doesn't take that long.

Lacey - your dinner was almost the same as ours yesterday - marinated chicken thighs in balsamic dressing with a healthy addition of garlic, hot dogs, farm-fresh corn, caprese salad (explain your cucumber-based caprese...do you just add cukes to a regular caprese?) and...Kraft mac & cheese. Yup, for the kiddies (including my DH who loves the stuff but I never make it).   I have food left over for two meals or lunches.  My DD#2 made chocolate covered strawberries...mmm...and brought smashed strawberries with splenda and whipped cream along with a sugar-free angel food cake.  Yummy!  Very mommy-friendly dessert!  And we'll keep Carmine's in mind for next week. 

I am so tired today after yesterday's birthday party.  I'm going to stop by my mom's for an hour.  That is about all I'm doing, maybe sitting outside and finish reading my latest book "How We Do Harm" - it's about treatment and clinical trials.  Best I finish this before I start my lab rat treatment!!!

Lacey12

Apple, yes, I always used to parboil spareribs before grilling them. Haven't had them in ages...maybe a good idea for tonight.



Eric, I also enjoyed your German recipe sleuthing. Going over it with your mother will certainly jog historic memories for her!



Great T-shirt idea! Do you recall where you had it made?



Oh, I never mentioned that our DDIL's family eats "Mediterranean breakfast" every AM.

They have a cold plate of feta or goat cheese, olives, persian cukes, grape tomatoes, whole wheat pita. DDIL's father tops it off with a fresh (right off the plant) very hot pepper that would pop my eyes out! My DH is always game for trying them. WOW!

Lacey12

Michelle, Yes, the "cuke caprese" was just an addition of lots of cukes since that's what I had....was going to do my easy cuke salad, but had some voluptuous grape tomatoes on the counter, fresh mozz in the frig and some beautiful basil on the deck. So I just sliced the cukes, halved the tomatoes, made small chunks of the cheese, chiffonaded the basil, added some fresh grnd pepper and balsamic and tossed. It tasted great, tho I would opt for white balsamic next time so the cukes don't turn brown. Your meal sounded more expansively delish than ours! Hope you can rest easy today...book and beach sound good.



I should clarify that the ribs I parboiled were the country style ones. Not sure I have ever even made regular ribs....not sure why......

carberry

WOW everyone was busy this weekend.

Debbie  MMMMM on the the scallops with champagne sauce?

Everyone here eats so well and are such great cooks...I feel so unworthy!  LOL

Wine festival was just ok....did not partake in the wine tasting....they were mostly local wineries and we are well versed in what they have so didnt want to pay 20$.. Molly Hatchet was good I guess for what they do, but not my type of music. and the festival food was just ok, shared a pulled pork sandwich with DH ( he says mine are better)

Did a Sunday brunch at the Belhurst Castle (yes a real castle) with a great bunch of friends....was delicious with many options. The best was chocolate layered cake with raspberry filling. And they served chocolate covered strawberries with whipped cream when they brought the bill.  After that and lots of boating all day, was pooped and could barely put togethr some BLT's for dinner.

So glad Joyce is doing well, we miss her here.

Michelle  Is that a "negative" book about trials?  When I do ribs, I reverse the process and sear them on the grill first to get that flavor, then add the sauce or liquid and cover and slow cook in a low oven for a couple of hours, they will just fall apart.

Hope everyone that is going through surgeries and treatment are relaxing and taking it easy.

carolehalston

Carrie, that's a interesting technique for the ribs.  We've cooked them both ways, pre-cooked and raw on the grill.  We prefer the pre-cooked.  Normally I just simmer them in water with s & p or slow-cook them in the oven during the cooler weather.  Recently I put sliced onions and a liberal amt. of Paul Prudhomme's unsalted Magic cajun seasoning.  I cooked the ribs on an electric burner on a table outside the rv.  DH and I were having our martini's outside and the aroma of the ribs was tantalizing.  Before we're ready to eat, DH fires up his gas grill and flames the ribs with barbecue sauce just long enough to put a tasty coating on them. 

We differ in our barbecue sauce preferences.  I like tangy, vinegary sauce.  He likes the sweet sauce heavy in brown sugar.  We usually buy the home-made stuff at farmer's markets.  Or from venders selling their sauce in supermarkets.  I recently bought a sauce from a huge African-American man in one of our local supermarkets.  It's delicious.  Wish I could track him down and buy some more. 

On Saturday we went to an Art Fair at a winery called ForestEdge Winery.  It was well attended.  There was a free wine tasting station.  DH and I sampled one wine which contained Pear as an ingredient.  We didn't like it.  Actually, Carrie, we didn't find a lot of wines at the Finger Lakes wineries that we liked a lot.  The Art Fair was fun.  The day was gorgeous.  The art and crafts venders were high end and it was a pleasure to look at the wares.  I had to hold tight onto my credit card because we already own a lot of STUFF and don't need any more.  We each had a brat for lunch and bottles of root beer touted as "gourmet."  The brat was cooked perfectly and the root beer was good.  Guess it's kind of funny to go to a winery and drink root beer!  We also had a brownie ice cream sandwich.  I think the ice cream stand was doing the most business.  

Today we're going biking.  DH will be riding a new bike because last week we had a bike mishap.  My bike fell off the rack enroute to the bike trail parking lot and was pretty badly damaged.  I insisted DH get a new bike because he's the biking enthusiast and rides his bike all year.  I'll ride his Trek with some adjustments.  I've already tested it and like it just fine.  Problem is his new bike has slightly smaller tires and will go faster than his old bike.  He already outpedals me.

Hope everyone has a good Monday.