Guest Post: The Importance Of Cancer Nutrition

The following is a guest post written by Jillian McKee:

Good nutrition is something like a stable foundation. It doesn't fix the problem, but it supports everything, making it easier for other things to go well. When it comes to cancer, good nutrition can improve the body's tolerance for treatments, aid in maintaining general health, help make recovery quicker, and help patients feel better.
What we eat determines how much energy our bodies have, and what resources they have available for rebuilding cells, fighting infections, and maintaining normal function. Because the process works fairly well even when we eat poorly, it is easy to underestimate the importance of good nutrition. When the body is fighting something, whether it be the effects of cancer treatment or the cancer itself, the effects of either good or bad nutrition are magnified.

Mother's Day = Food

This year, my mother requested food for Mother's Day. Not just on the actual day, but some homemade meals she can keep in the freezer and pull out when the inevitable question arises: "What's for dinner??"

My plan is to start with some simple things, like, tomato sauce - always good to have on hand! - then perhaps some beef stew in the slow cooker and a salmon loaf (think: a high omega-3 version of meat loaf), which freezes well.

Here's the general recipe for the salmon loaf, though I tend to change it a bit each time:

• 2, 12oz cans Wild Salmon, drained, but reserve the liquid from 1 can 
• Note: canned salmon contains bones, which disintegrate when you mix it up. I like getting the extra calcium, but some folks may find this creepy. In any case, there shouldn't be a choking risk from the bones. 
• 1 medium Onion, chopped
• 1 cup Whole Wheat Breadcrumbs (I usually throw 2 end pieces into a food processor and that's enough)
• 2 Eggs
• 1/4 cup low-fat Milk
• Black Pepper, freshly ground, to taste. I find this recipe doesn't usually need salt, but sometimes I throw in some garlic powder and some herbs like parsley or rosemary.
• 1 cup whatever veggies are on hand - I've tried chopped kale, corn (or both), chopped green beans, shredded carrots...whatever sounds good to you. 

Mix together all of the ingredients above. It should be moist and stick together - you may need to add 1 - 2 tablespoons of the reserved liquid or some extra milk. Bake in a large loaf pan or casserole dish on 350 F for approximately 45 minutes. The best way to tell if it's done is to use an instant-read thermometer (like the one I have in the photo here). Because this dish contains eggs, the internal temperature should be at least 160 F.

Here's a handy PDF brochure from USDA on safe cooking temperatures!

March is National Nutrition Month!

This year's theme for National Nutrition Month is "Get Your Plate in Shape."

Boy, that plate looks like it can outrun me any day - must be all those veggies, fruits, whole grains, lean meats, fish and low-fat dairy it's been eating! (That is, if you can say that plates eat...just bear with the personification, ok?)

Snack Idea: Cheese & Pear Toast

Fruit and cheese is one of my favorite combinations!

I just made this as a quick snack/small meal:

• One ripe pear, thinly sliced
• Low-fat cheddar cheese (I like Cabot)
• Whole grain bread, 1 or 2 slices

Layer cheese and pear slices on bread, then pop it in the toaster oven for approximately 5 minutes.

Yum!  Of course, now i'm thinking that pear could be a great addition to grilled cheese - and less watery than tomato slices...

Pie!

Pie before

I can't believe it's been almost one year since I last made apple pie. I use a sweet ginger crust, which is very easy to work with (you can't overmix it - very useful for creating lattice because you can re-roll it as many times as you need).

Pie after!

Still Growing

I just popped into the backyard to toss a mushy pumpkin into the compost bin when I discovered our broccoli is still growing! Exciting - especially considering that I'm in NY and it snowed at the end of October...

This reminds me to spread the word about Winter Sun Farms winter CSA. I just joined for the second year, because I loved it so much last season - fresh frozen local produce all winter, and fresh eggs too! Check out their website to see if they are in your area.

How are you celebrating Food Day?

Monday, October 24th is the very first annual Food Day! Food Day seeks to raise awareness of issues pertaining to food and to bring people together, "to push for healthy, affordable food produced in a sustainable, humane way." The holiday was founded by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (nutrition advocacy organization and publisher of the fantastic Nutrition Action Healthletter).

The 6 goals of Food Day are as follows:

1. Reduce diet-related disease by promoting safe, healthy foods

2. Support sustainable farms & limit subsidies to big agribusiness

3. Expand access to food and alleviate hunger

4. Protect the environment & animals by reforming factory farms

5. Promote health by curbing junk-food marketing to kids

6. Support fair conditions for food and farm workers

Sound good? Great! So, What can you do to celebrate Food Day? Anything pertaining to real food - it's up to you! Organize a healthy dinner with friends, teach someone a new vegetable recipe. Check out this page for more ideas.

Purslane Salad (with beets and tomatoes)

This week I decided to pick up some purslane while at the farmers' market near my office. Too bad I didn't do this a few weeks ago, before I pulled up (and threw out) a ton of purslane growing in my vegetable garden! At the time I didn't realize what it was. Purslane is a weed, you see, and well, that being the case, I'm sure it will invade my garden again soon enough.

I've also been hearing the buzz about purslane being high in alpha-linolenic acid (an omega-3 fatty acid), and while the nutrient database I use at work (NDSR 2011) says the n-3 content is no higher than that of spinach, this study says otherwise.  In either case, it's packed with other nutrients - and just plain delicious.

I made a purslane salad with beets and tomatoes, dressed with basil-infused olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. So simple...and next time I'll think twice before tossing out those weeds.

Banana Bread with a Boost

I love banana bread! This afternoon I decided to play around with a new recipe. While baking is more precise than cooking, you can still tweak recipes and end up with delicious - and healthful - baked goods.

I started looking at this recipe from the Food Network and this recipe from Allrecipes.com. I mostly followed the Food Network version, but made several substitutions to eliminate saturated fat, boost protein and add omega-3 fatty acids: 

Instead of 8 tablespoons of butter, I used 5 1/2 tablespoons of canola oil.

Instead of 2 cups all-purpose flour, I used:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup nonfat dry milk powder
• 1/2 cup ground flaxseeds

Instead of 1 cup white granulated sugar, I used 3/4 cup brown sugar (less sugar but more flavor).

I also used less than the 1 teaspoon salt called for by the recipe - probably around 1/2 tsp.

The result? Yum! - delicious, hearty, moist.

Garden 2011

This is the second year of our garden. We planted slightly less, but I think we will end up producing more edible vegetables (last year we were not able to eat much of the cabbage or broccoli due to whitefly infestation).

This year we have 6 tomato plants. The two plants to the far left and far right sides I found spontaneously growing in the main garden bed and transplanted. I'm not sure what variety of tomato they are - I guess it will be a surprise!

 In the main garden bed we have eggplant, cucumbers, bush beans (which have already started producing!), zucchini (that's the huge one in the center) and broccoli. We also planted spinach seeds, but they didn't do so well - we'll see if they come back but I'm not going to count on it.

I really wanted to plant swiss chard as well, but never got around to it.  I may start some in a large pot to have well into the fall.