There are no dietary restrictions for this version of Chemo. (If you have an appetite, that is.) However, due to my compromised immune system, I am not allowed to eat many favorite foods…fresh, raw vegetables. No lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, mushrooms…No fresh salads, period! (Exclamation point?) No munching celery sticks, broccoli florets with a dip, and no fresh fruit - except for melons on rare occasions. They are protected by outer rinds. Grapes, strawberries, peaches, plums, etc are all a no-no. Nope, not even bananas because it’s too easy for them to be contaminated in shipping. That’s what I’m told, anyway.
I know. Most people crave sweets, or soda. Not this guy. Give me a pound of fresh baby spinach and mushrooms, and I'll be in total heaven til it's all gone - and likely cry for more. Well, I am queer, after all...
This has been the bane of my existence since diagnosed last October, and while my blood count has had its ups and downs, it hasn’t been steady for any length of time to allow for the enjoyment of those foods listed above.
I am not interested in canned or frozen fruit or vegetables, though I’ve been buying Dole fruit cups to fill the void when my appetite goes bye-bye. But recently, necessity being the mother-fu… of invention, I’ve been experimenting with various salads using canned and frozen veggies and they have fulfilled my need for something tangy and tart - though I would kill for a crisp Caesar Salad. Beets, carrots, potatoes, baby onions, black, red, white, and french cut beans, artichoke hearts, chick peas, and even canned whole italian tomatoes have been sliced into various concoctions to ease my achy-cravy body.
Some haven’t been half bad, some quite good, and a few were absolutely awful. And sometimes I’m just too tired to think, let alone use my imagination to produce some semi-delicious salad.
I didn’t know this before, but the frozen veggies such as I’ve been using, are far more expensive than the fresh variety found in the produce aisle - not to mention far less tasty. Bother!
**With apologies to k. d. lang.
And so it goes.
*
weird with a beard, as we would say
ReplyDeleteskittles is what you need.
Seems to me some of those options you have combined give enough protein and fiber for a full meal. If you can’t cook the beans from raw, at least the canned varieties offer quick and tasty alternatives.
ReplyDeleteWith your condition, I am sure you are not allowed fresh herbs either. That’s really a shame. Nothing like fresh basil, cilantro, or parsley to enhance the taste of such dishes. You are being very creative. Good luck.