Celebrate the Negative

Genetic test results are in ... I'm negative all around! No BRCA 1 or 2, no genetic anomalies or mutations! Whew!

I'm not very good about celebrating when I have good news, so I'm hopeful to find some time soon to celebrate my negativity.

Next step will be determine what I want to do. I'm not very excited about taking tamoxifen. To take a chemical for 5 years, with PMS-like side-effects, what a joy. Will mull that over some more ...

Dish two: Meh

This looked promising! 

Here's the aftermath of the triple citrus juicing. Limes, oranges, and a lemon from our tree.  

 It sure looks pretty. The mint sprig really makes it. It didn't taste so great though, as I overcooked it. 10 - 15 minutes, not so much, as I checked it around 9 minutes and the internal temp was about 30 degrees too high. Rubbery cod is not a delight. I'll try this one again though, as the citrus/ginger sauce was yummy. We served this with the Napa cabbage salad, which was even better a couple of days later. 

Maybe next time I'll swap the cod for halibut. Here's what the the author (Rebecca Katz) has to say about it:

Halibut: Anti-inflammatory. The omega-3 fatty acids found in halibut have great health-promoting properties. *could reduce the risk of cancers including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, multiple myeloma... may extend to common forms of breast cancer (among many others)

Hey good lookin' whatcha got cookin'?

The genetic testing was approved by my insurance! Shocking! I had blood drawn on August 30. Results take 3 - 4 weeks, so while I'm waiting, I thought of a new project. Yeah, I know, like I don't have enough on my plate, but I do need to eat.

I'm not going to be ambitious enough to pull a "Julie and Julia" but I thought this might be fun. Please forgive my photography. I am obviously not a food journalist, and next time I plan to take a photo of the wreck I made of the kitchen. There was shredded cabbage everywhere for this first recipe, but alas, I had cleaned it up before I realized how fun it would be to show the mess.

I bought this book last year, when a friend was diagnosed with cancer. I sent her a copy, with the idea that she'd select something, and I'd make it and bring it to her.

So it turns out she was so ill that visits were not recommended, and she was barely in the mood to eat anything. (She's in remission now, and doing wonderfully!) I never made anything from the cookbook, until tonight.

In progress - I added mushrooms, because they were in my Farm Fresh to You box, and I was worried they weren't going to last much longer. I'm not sure if mushrooms are good for cancer, but organic produce probably isn't going to make it worse, right?

And yum - here's the final dish! I know, I know, you're quite impressed by the artfully placed cilantro. 

Check back soon, maybe I'll attempt another dish! Or maybe I'll have genetic testing results first! Or, check back to see if Alan liked this dish. He's taking some to work tomorrow. Stay tuned.