SPOS - Fruit Cocktail

Stomach Peg Original Soup™ SPOS - Fruit Cocktail

A lot of time, I am preaching the goodness of veggies. Supermarkets have made it so much easier to work with fruit, in the form of a fruit cocktail.  Many now carry pre-sliced fruits, and particularly blends of pre-sliced fruits - watermelon, pears, apples, cantaloupes, honeydew, pineapple, etc.

FRUIT COCKTAIL IS A SMOOTHIE WITHOUT ALL THE WHITE STUFF
Pureeing these in my Vitamix makes a great smell in the kitchen.  It also slides down the G-Tube a lot easier than a smoothie because it doesn't have the foam and heavy texture of the yogurt/cream.  Also if I make the base of fruit-only, then each of the yogurt snobs can add just THEIR FAVORITE yogurt to turn it into THEIR smoothie.

To spriten things up I'll add ginger, lemon, orange, papaya, grapefruit.

Most of my batches are less than 12 oz, so finding pre-cut pre-mixed fruit cups is helpful. Slicing a half dozen fresh fruit leaves a lot of leftovers. Buying small pre cut allows my family the ability to finish off the rest of the fruit and mix it in with their yogurt.  We then change the flavor combinations week to week.

FRUITS THAT DON'T LAST
Not that they go bad,  it's that they are the favorites in the house - fresh organic blackberries, fresh organic raspberries, fresh organic blueberries.  Everyone in the house knows how spotty the growing season is for these three fruits.


Yes I have been know to add a little bottom of a muffin to my puree . . .


FROM THE TAP TO THE TABLE
I found this site in my travels and it has some wonderful combinations that you might not have thought of.


COMMENTS
Please add your comments and suggestions to my blog.  Nice to see people from around the globe reading my blog.  Please follow you want the latest recipes.  We are a small global community, let me know how I can help you out.  I'm sure that whatever your issue is, there is another person who can benefit for hearing how you are solving your problems.  You are not alone, are are among other leaders.

FACEBOOK
I have created a companion page on Facebook called: 100 Meals Pureed - Recipes for Head and Neck Cancer Survivors.  Sometimes it is easier to share a FB page than send a blog address. 

You may also enjoy an additional blog article - Stomach Peg Original Soup(tm) SPOS I’m not a Chef

SPOS - Smell of Healing

Stomach Peg Original Soup™ SPOS - Smell of Healing

An important part of making SPOS is the smell of cooking.  I love the smell of ginger.  However, I don't like the smell of cooking cabbage.  Luckily, the smell of the ginger outweighs the smell of the cabbage.

I also cook the cabbage first thing in the morning, when my wife is making coffee.  You have to understand that my wife likes REALLY dark coffee, so our house can smell like a coffee-shop.  When I say dark, I mean the coffee you can chew.

Cinnamon is another favorite smell.  I try to add cinnamon where I can because of the anti-cancer properties.

In the afternoon, I tend to make chocolate based treats.  They are not for me, but for my neighbors who have been so helpful this winter.  My wife is a masterful baker - me? not so much.  I invite my friend Betty Crocker to come help me.

My daughter is jealous that my neighbors are making out like bandits, but is you know the amount of effort they put in this BOSTON SNOW RECORD BREAKING YEAR (March 1015).  I couldn't nearly make enough.

I have even changed my shower soap to a smell that is more appealing - Margarita!

Red Pasta sauce is another smell I love.  Tomato sauces can burn the mouth, and also cause stomach upset, so be sure to check and see if it is OK,  and don't be upset if the cancer survivor "passes" and wants something different.

Vanilla Extract and Almond extract are welcome additions to purees.  I don't cook with them, I add them Directly to the puree, to get maximum aromatic benefit.

SMELL ON THE FLIPSIDE
I love the smell of peanut butter - at least I used too.  I suddenly have an aversion to the smell.  Not sure why, and I hope it doesn't stay long.  If there is a smell that suddenly turns for the worse.  Alert your caregiver is a kind way.  
UPDATE: 1/16  My love of the smell of peanut butter has come back,  showing the ebb and flow of smells.

The other day there was a Rotary International fundraiser at one of my favorite pizza places Flatbread Company .  Walked in and was instantly overwhelmed by the smell.  Normally, I love that smell.  But between the loud bustling sounds of a restaurant and the eclectic smells, I needed to step outdoors. If you have strong reaction to the smell, don't be afraid to speak up.


COMMENTS
Please add your comments and suggestions to my blog.  Nice to see people from around the globe reading my blog.  Please follow you want the latest recipes.  We are a small global community, let me know how I can help you out.  I'm sure that whatever your issue is, there is another person who can benefit for hearing how you are solving your problems.  You are not alone, are are among other leaders.

FACEBOOK
I have created a companion page on Facebook called: 100 Meals Pureed - Recipes for Head and Neck Cancer Survivors.  Sometimes it is easier to share a FB page than send a blog address. 

You may also enjoy an additional blog article - Stomach Peg Original Soup(tm) SPOS I’m not a Chef

SPOS - St. Patrick Version

Stomach Peg Original Soup™ SPOS - St. Patrick Version

3 leaves of Cabbage Chopped
2 finely chopped carrots
1 turnips finely chopped
1 Onion finely chopped
1 teaspoons of turmeric
1 DASH of Bell’s Seasoning
1 teaspoon of salt
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 little bit of corned beef for smokey taste

Option:
1 potato

I'm not making a huge pot that need to last a couple of weeks, just enough for a couple of days.  And although turmeric is not a traditional Irish spice, it's still important to add cancer fighting spices.  I use a strong ginger beer to cleanse my G-tube, so it also helps activate the anti-cancer agents in the tumeric.

I am still using IsoSource for three main my meals, so this dish is for my three of four snacks between the main meals.

This year I added a little extra starch in the form of sweet potato, instead of traditional white potatoes.

This is the first time that instead of using a blending wand and screening the soup, I poured the cooked mash into a Vitamix and pureed it on the optional HOT SOUP setting.  Worked out like a charm.  I did have to let it settle, and skim off the foam that collected on the top.

COMMENTS
Please add your comments and suggestions to my blog.  Nice to see people from around the globe reading my blog.  Please follow you want the latest recipes.  We are a small global community, let me know how I can help you out.  I'm sure that whatever your issue is, there is another person who can benefit for hearing how you are solving your problems.  You are not alone, are are among other leaders.

FACEBOOK
I have created a companion page on Facebook called: 100 Meals Pureed - Recipes for Head and Neck Cancer Survivors.  Sometimes it is easier to share a FB page than send a blog address. 

You may also enjoy an additional blog article - Stomach Peg Original Soup(tm) SPOS I’m not a Chef

SPOS - Tandoori burp

Stomach Peg Original Soup™ SPOS


Everyone has a signature dish.   My father-in-law makes a fabulous tandoori chicken.  He was kind enough one time to send me a small jar of his signature blend of spices.  Now that I have a G-tube, I thought I might never taste it again . . . . JEFF THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX!

Many Indian spices and vegetables are cancer fighters, so it is easy to adopt a vegetarian SPOS. The goal is to consume healthy vegetables that regulate digestion, while using Isosource.

If there is one thing that I learned from working on 100 Meals, sniffing and burping are key.   Tandoori SPOS is best served a little warmer than normal so that you get that aromatic charm for your nose.  The burping seems to take care of itself.   OK so I burp all of my meals,  I shouldn't single this one out . . .

In the evening my daughter made white rice with veggies, and asked if I wanted to puree a cup to add to the Tandoori SPOS - - - which I did.

COMMENTS
Please add your comments and suggestions to my blog.  Nice to see people from around the globe reading my blog.  Please follow you want the latest recipes.

FACEBOOK
I have created a companion page on Facebook called: 100 Meals Pureed - Recipes for Head and Neck Cancer Survivors.  Sometimes it is easier to share a FB page than send a blog address. 

You may also enjoy an additional blog article - Stomach Peg Original Soup(tm) SPOS I’m not a Chef