Legs, De-Evolution, and the AutoImmune Life

We trundled off to the cancer center yesterday afternoon. Neither of us were in the mood. Well, is one ever in the mood for the cancer center? The heavy grey skies just made it a bit more foreboding. We saw our beloved oncologist however, and while the question of Ernie's leg issue isn't solved, the doctor has at least ruled out all the big guns…..numerous scans, and an mri have shown no clots, no tumors, no bone lesions, nor problems with the lymph system. He also doesn't see involvement with heart, etc….and thinks it is NOT cancer related. That doesn't solve things, but it does help. We are off for a consult with another doctor next week. I always buy Ernie a beer after these things so we stopped at Fries and Peanuts. We got a chance to chat with dear friends and it all made me feel pretty good, grey skies and cancer center notwithstanding.

I tried to recreate my quinoa salmon patties without egg for dinner. I tried added mashed sweet potato to bind it….it didn't really work, and crumbled apart, but was still utterly delicious. Over a bed of greens from Farmer Greg's Clay Bank Farms salad mix, it made for a really good dinner. I'm a sucker for the bits where the quinoa gets a tiny bit crunchy.

Patties mid-de-evolution:

And, now, in honor of the word de-evolution…

I am soldiering on with the autoimmune protocol diet. So far, so good. I AM actually feeling better. Thanksgiving will be simple and quiet. I didn't feel I could inflict an autoimmune version of Thanksgiving on anybody other than family.  We will grill the turkey simply…Ernie is in charge. I'll make mashed potatoes even though I can't have any, because…mashed potatoes. I can have Brussels sprouts…not sure how I'll make them….either the Momofuko way with fish sauce, or in a salad perhaps, and I'll make some kind of squash dish…have some acorn and butternut on hand. I'm going to try to figure out a cranberry sauce….with maple syrup instead of sugar…oh, and I have a test run of some sugar free pickled beets in the refrigerator. I'm the only one that likes Thanksgiving desserts so no problem there. The real heartbreak is no tourtiere. Sigh. NEXT year, as they say, NEXT year.

A still life of my current cooking:

A little 19th c. copper lustre salt that I dug out of the cupboard recently holding pink Himalyan salt, avocado oil in the background, cabbage in the old cast iron pan my mother in law gave me, and a little Pyrex full of the leftover from last night's dinner….which I will mix with the cabbage.

Onward.