In honor of one of my favorite writers, the fabulous Nora Ephron, today's post will begin with a recipe. This is based on a recipe of Ina Garten which I "Pamified".
Warm Tuna Salad
Ingredients:
2 cups Israeli couscous (I didn't have any couscous in the house so I used barley)
14 oz of fancy Italian tuna packaged with oil (I used a large can of normal tuna packed in water)
2tsp lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup olive oil( too much, I will use my own good sense the next time)
3 T. capers (not enough capers for me, I easily used twice as many)
1/2 cup Kalamata olives ( again I didn't have any so I used a can of Safeway brand black olives)
1/2 cup roasted red bell peppers ( Ina used jarred, I made my own)
2 tsp garlic
1 cup scallions (seemed like an awful lot, so I just used about 3 scallions)
1/4 cup basil (I used those frozen Dorot basil cubes you can buy at Trader Joe's)
juice of 1/2 lemon
For some reason, Ina had one and a half tablespoons of salt in this. How much you use is between you & your doctor
pepper to taste
1. Make couscous ( or barley)
2. Combine tuna, lemon zest, 1/4 cup lemon juice, olive oil, capers, olives, red bell pepper, garlic & some pepper (Ina suggested 1 1/2 tsp)
3. Pour hot couscous or barley onto tuna mixture. Toss it all together, cover & set aside for 10-15 minutes stirring occasionally. Just before serving stir in scallions, basil & juice of 1/2 lemon.
Serve warm or at room temperature. It was delicious, but as I said, I'm reducing the olive oil the next time.
Every one should read "Heartburn" by Nora. It's a fictionalized account of her marriage to journalist Carl Bernstein, has lots of food talk & recipes mixed in with accounts of Carl's adultery. The book is much better than the movie starring Meryl Streep & Jack Nicholson. As I remember the movie has a cool soundtrack, though.
Ok, back to ME, of course.
My blood test came back normal! No more worries about my Parathyroid. There will be some follow up tests & maybe some fiddling with the meds they gave me. Why do I spend so much time & energy worrying?
I must be the first cancer patient in history to GAIN weight. I did lose some at the beginning cause I felt sick & had the radiation going on, but then after my first surgery & during chemotherapy I was ravenous. One reason is that they gave me steroids as part of a pre chemo "cocktail". At some point I started emotional eating as a treatment for my depression & anxiety about having uninsured cancer & lots of complications. The upshot is now I am dieting. I have lost 4 pounds in about 4 weeks, pretty unimpressive, but at least I'm not gaining any more.
Went to my second Yoga class yesterday. I got very upset with myself cause I felt like the most uncoordinated person in the world. Almost started crying in public again. Thankfully, that hasn't happened in a long time. The moves & poses are complex. You don't do just one thing at a time. The teacher gave me a little talk after class. Some of the other ladies in the class have been coming for years. I shouldn't judge myself against them. She said I was strong in some ways. Remind me to ask her next week where I am strong. Today I am just a little sore. I wish I could go twice a week to the class. I'm going to have to figure out how to do that. My body isn't the only thing that has to be coordinated, so does the care giving for my mother.
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