I'm A Vegatarian (Almost) and Didn't Even Know It

Since the last dilation procedure I have been trying to find some additional food items that I could eat. Lets face it, there are only so many variations of omelettes until they start to get boring. One of my favorite ways to try out new things is to check out the Chinese buffet bars they have at grocery stores. Its a great way to try a small amount of something without having to commit to a full sized serving. (Yep... its that whole fear of commitment thing. Who knew that it applied to food as well.)

Last week I was checking out the buffet at the grocery store and they had Panang Tofu. For those of you that don't know Panang Ped from a local Thai restaurant is probably one of my favorite dishes. I figured that I would give it a try even though I am not a big fan of tofu. Sure enough I could eat it without too much of a problem. The only real issue was the carrots were cooked to be crunchy and that causes problems. The tofu on the other hand was no problem at all along with the steamed summer squash. (Some steamed vegetables are not a problem as long as they are soft).

Once again putting all those late nights watching the Food Porn, I mean Network, channel to good use I decided to give it a try at home. I tossed together a simple dish with Panang curry, coconut milk, steamed carrots and summer squash along with tofu and baby portabella mushrooms. At a bit of seasoning and poof, a almost normal dish that I could eat. Big time Yippee! on that one. Another thing I discovered is that the "heat" from this dish, it is a bit spicy, doesn't bother me as much as it would have a few months ago. I take that as a sign that my throat is starting to recover a bit more from the treatments.

One of the problems I have had with normal food is eating meat. In small amounts with lots of gravy I can eat dark chicken or turkey. I also tried some duck from the take out buffet as well. Some things like certain fish sticks or salmon if it is swimming is sauce are OK. Not having a protein has the main part of the dish has been a limiting factor. Now with the tofu option on the table so to speak some other possibilities are opening up. This will allow me to add a few more items to the list of things that I can eat at home while working on improving my swallowing technique and undergoing the dilation procedures.

Time to get back to the Food Network....