I don’t know if you can handle the acidity of it, but when everything tasted like dust to my mum her doctor recommended eating fresh (not canned) pineapple. Mum would suck on a piece for a few minutes before eating and it helped make the food taste ok. Apparently it has some sort of enzyme that chemo often knocks out so replacing it can help. Had to be fresh and had to be taken immediately prior to eating.
Indian restaurants serve a thin rice pudding made with 1/2 & 1/2, green cardamom (might be a weird flavor for you right now, though, if you’re not already used to it) and chopped pistachios. I make it out of leftover rice all the time. The 1/2 & 1/2 makes it really good. Just heat up some leftover rice in a saucepan, stir in some sugar to taste, cinnamon and/or nutmeg, and 1/2 & 1/2 (or milk if you prefer) until it’s the right consistency. Add any other flavorings or raisins as desired.
After some devastatingly difficult open-heart surgery, my Aunt had zero appetite. I made her Shepherd’s Pie from the Sundays at Moosewood cookbook. Meatless. Anyway, she ate a fair amount and said it was the first thing that had made her want to eat since the surgery! Let me know if you’d like the recipe.
Refried beans, pinto or black. Can you eat tortillas? Along with the guac above, makes a tasty burrito.
As a nibble in between times, would you care to try crystallized ginger? Sweet, fairly strong on the tastebud receptors, and has natural anti-nausea effects.
you will be able to tell shortly, it is in the outgoing mail this morning =)
I found it fun… i was eating a lemon like it was an apple =)
How about tzatziki (Greek yoghurt + cucumber + garlic)? Could you manage minced beef and mashed potatoes? (Yes, I know you’re sick of mashed potatoes, but it’s the combo). How about fish pie?
I came in to recommend some Ginger Chews or Ginger Tea.
You can make your own tea just by adding a bit of Ginger chunk to the tea pot. Ginger lasts forever when you buy it.
Good health to you!
I second the recommendation for rice pudding with coconut milk. I’d take a standard rice pudding recipe and simply substitute regular or reduced fat coconut milk. You can substitute some cardamom for some of the cinnamon and can use rose water in place of the vanilla (takes more) if you want a more exotic taste. I’ve done this–my mother found it satisfactory during chemo. I wonder how eggplant parmesan would work for you. A bit sour and salty. You can cut the smells way down by roasting, rather than frying, the eggplant. On the other hand, some people find eggplant irritating. Also, you might like a timbale–a savory custard. I don’t have a particular recipe in mind, but it’s smooth and can be flavored with bacon or other good things.
I use this recipe:
http://www.recipesource.com/fgv/polenta/puliszka1.html
You can vary it by exchanging the sour cream and dill for olive oil and paprika or cayenne (melt the feta completely in this version).
Off the top of my head, here is my mushroom risotto recipe:
Chop an onion finely and fry over low heat in some butter (sprinkle salt on so the onion doesn’t burn). Add an assortment of chopped mushrooms and fry some more. Add 1 cup of rice and stir together. Add boiling stock (whatever flavour you like, chicken or veg is good) a little at a time, stirring the rice mixture in between additions and not adding more stock until the previous lot is completely absorbed by the rice. My measure is to add it just at the point where the rice starts to stick to the bottom of the pan but before it burns (burning is bad, err on the side of caution!). Keep going with this process until the rice is cooked. This will take about twenty labour intensive minutes and 1 - 2 litres of stock. Time for the money shot when the rice is cooked: add half to one cup of grated parmesan (depends on your taste) and a cup of cream. Heat through until the cheese is melted and serve with some parsley (that’s your green veg serve) and ground pepper if you like it.
Tip:
keep the heat on low for the entire cooking process
I like to add in shitake mushrooms which have been rehydrated in boiling water when I add the cream and cheese, but they aren’t to every-one’s taste