Chemo - Part 11 - Day 10

Well, there's good and bad news today about the chemo recovery. The good news: "Feeling more human." The bad news: A rash has developed on the face and chest, and was spreading a little. It's possible that it's a heat rash resulting from being feverish (so a side effect of a side effect) or if it's a side effect of the chemo itself. My parents haven't called the doctor yet, but if it's not better by morning, I'm calling the doctor myself.

I've been busy today after work, doing grocery shopping and cooking. Those recipes will come soon. In the meantime, I had found and tried out a recipe for pear sorbet here: http://rikishore.com/2011/11/thanksgiving-all-of-my-favorites-in-one-meal/. Because I don't have an ice cream maker, I made granita instead.

Ginger Pear Granita

3 ripe pears, cubed

2 tsp ginger, sliced

2 tsp lemon juice

1 cup water

1 tsp vodka (to prevent freezer burn)

Put the pears, ginger, and 1/2 cup water in a large pan over medium heat. Cover and cook for 15 minutes. Remove the ginger slices, then transfer to a food processor. Run until smooth. Mix in the water and vodka. Transfer to a tupperware and place in the fridge until cool. Once chilled, transfer to the freezer. Stir every 30 minutes, until the mixture looks like icy flakes (see below).

This dessert is yummy, sweet, and good for nausea. Yay ginger! It also helps with mouth sores and difficult swallowing. Who knew eating yummy things could be so good for you? I mean, besides everyone who follows Paleo that is...

Lack of Stress Migraine

Happy Halloween! In advance... This is the result of my pumpkin carving.

Did you know that you can get a migraine from a lack of stress? I guess your body/brain gets used to a certain level of stress racing through your system. So if you switch to a situation where you no longer have that stress level, you can get a migraine. Personally, I find this particularly cruel. I've talked to my doctor about this and I guess it's also an issue if you switch up your sleep schedule. So on the weekends when you don't HAVE to wake up early, she recommended that you only sleep in for 30 minutes to an hour. For me, that means that instead of waking up at 5 a.m. like I normally do during the week, I should instead sleep in until a whopping 6 a.m. Um, I think not. I did wake up early this past Saturday because I had to take the FE exam. That deserves a resounding WOO HOO!!!! Finally I'm done! I find myself missing all of the time that I've spent at Starbucks over the last couple months. Maybe I'll go hang out and read a book.

Anyways, the reason why I'm sharing this lack of stress migraine knowledge is because that's my theory for why I had a migraine all day yesterday. I woke up at 6 a.m. to the shrill of my alarm and to the "blinding light" of my room. (I'd like to point out that I have black out curtains hanging from my walls, so the small amount of light that gets into my bedroom is the light of the street lamp outside that sneaks in around the corners of the curtains.) After leaving voicemails and sending emails to my supervisors from my cell phone (which was glaringly bright by the way), I fumbled around for my eye mask and curled back under my covers into my light-free sanctuary. I refused to venture forth until 11. I sat in a dark room for a vast majority of the day. I made a brief and well-shaded trip to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to buy myself a new pillow with the hopeful intention that this pillow won't magnify throbbing headaches when I'm trying to fall asleep. I don't know if anyone else has this, but whenever I had a headache when I'm trying to fall asleep, the pressure that the pillow puts on my head is enough to make the head pain double. The pillow is too hard. Doesn't make a lot of sense, right? Pillows are meant to be soft.

So beware... beware of the lack of stress! Bwuah ha ha...

Pork Tenderloin and Pears

1.5 lb pork tenderloin

2 pears, thinly sliced

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp thyme

Cut off the silver skin of the tenderloin (click on this video for a demo). Season with salt, pepper, and thyme. Heat a skillet (cast iron if you have it) over the burner and cook the tenderloin for 3 minutes on each side. 

While you're searing the tenderloin, preheat your oven to 450F and slice your pears. If you used a cast iron skillet, line your pear slices around the tenderloin in the skillet. Otherwise, transfer the tenderloin to a baking dish and line with pear slices. 

Before

After

Cook in the oven for 12-15 minutes or until cooked through.

Riesling-Pear Popsicles

Rieseling-Pear Popsicles
2 tbls honey
2 pears - peeled, cored, and chopped
1 tbls lemon juice
1/2 cup Riesling wine

Purée pears, honey, and lemon juice in blender. Mix in Riesling. Pour the resulting concoction into popsicle molds and freeze for >1 hour.

These popsicles can remain frozen for up to 1 week. They're very light and fruity!