So, I was diagnosed with BPH- benign prostatic hyperplasia. Just for a convenient guideline, 50% of 50-year-old men have it, and 80% of 80-year-old-men have it. It doesn't necessarily lead to cancer; in fact, there are some lifestyle changes that can slow down or even prevent its development. Apparently there isn't hard evidence that the symptoms of BPH can be reversed, so basically once you develop it, it's more or less a matter of managing the symptoms.
What causes it? Once again, Science is inconclusive, but evidence suggests the Standard American Diet, lack of exercise and being overweight- the western office worker trifecta- is the main culprit. In a nutshell, the SAD diet produces inflammation, and acidifies the urine. Both situations irritate the prostate and cause the cells to grow. Eventually the urethra, which is right next to it, is crowded to the point that it becomes harder to completely evacuate when you pee. This can result in nasty, painful infections. It can also eventually lead to impotence. Yay.
There are official treatments for the symptoms. The pills involve relaxing muscles and spawning a dieuretic effect. Both can have adverse reactions which can lead, paradoxically, to the same symptoms caused by BPH. So I am going to try to manage this with diet and exercise. Foodwise, the basic strategy is eating in the Mediterranean and Asian foodways. Stay tuned!
Abbey and I are big fans of Anthony Bourdain, and we're ecstatic that Netflix has added his CNN series Parts Unknown. Last night we watched, well, more than one, but most importantly, the Tangiers episode. First revelation: now I know how to make a Spanish Tortilla, Tangiers style (which we had for breakfast- including the ketchup and mayo on top, which was delicious). Second: apparently everyone in Tangiers really is stoned, as according to the stereotype. The third revelation was the heavy use of fresh herbs and wild spinach. I've been in a Tangiers kind of mood all day, and I just had to do something middle eastern inspired for lunch. I don't have any wild spinach, but I do have a decent amount of fresh herbage available at the moment.
I decided to make falafel the base of my meal, and since I was running short on time, I wanted it to be portable. Rather than use the more cumbersome pita, I grabbed the fresh wheat tortillas in the fridge for this project so I could wrap it up tightly and take with if needed. Of course, since this is Morocco-inspired, I had to listen to some Master Musicians of Joujouka while cooking and wash it all down with some a thick shot of espresso.
Ingredients
2 tbl light olive oil
box of Falafel mix
1 tomato, sliced
1 small carrot, peeled and shaved with the peeler into strips
a couple of inches of cucumber, sliced, then cut at least in half
red and/or yellow and/or orange bell pepper. I used small ones , you can cut big ones into squares.
fresh wheat tortillas (I like Tortilla Land brand)
plain Greek yogurt
dill pickles
whatever olives you like, I used a mix of Greek green and calamatas
For the sauce
1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
a handful of cilantro, leaves, stems, etc
a small handful of fresh mint (tsp of dry if no fresh is available), leaves, stems, etc
2 cloves of garlic, finely diced
commercially prepared harissa sauce (or make your own from one of the many recipes on the interwebs)
salt and pepper (if you have Turkish pepper and spice mix, use it!)
Prepare the falafel and let it sit according to the instructions. In the meantime, heat a couple of tablespoons of light olive oil in a shallow pan over medium-high heat.
While that is heating up, chop up the cilantro and mint, then mix in a bowl with the garlic and a small dollop of the harissa. Taste it- if it's not hot enough, add some more. salt it, then add a couple grinds of pepper. I used a Turkish pepper mix with fennel and coriander, but that's not necessary at all. Add the extra virgin olive oil and stir.
When the oil is hot, use an ice cream scoop and toss in dollops of falafel. Add the peppers. In about three minutes, the falafel should be ready to flip, but check for brownness first. Turn the peppers no more than once or twice so they char a little. After you've flipped the falafel, break it up a bit.
I used one pan for this: remove the falafel and peppers, then toss a tortilla into the hot pan. Check it in a minute and flip if it's starting to get dark brown spots. When nothing on the tortilla looks translucent, it's done.
You probably don't need my instructions on how to proceed from here. Put some sauce on the wrap. add a few chunks of falafel, layer in the strips of carrot, slices of cucumber and tomato. For the sake of efficiency, I roughly diced the olives and pickles together and spooned some on. follow up with the plain yogurt and more sauce. Roll as you might a burrito or spring roll: fold up the ends, then roll the whole thing forward, carefully tuck in the rolled ends as you go. Look what a nice roll it made!
And that's how simple it is. Delicious, too.
Could you have made your own falafel? If you possess that kind of magic, absolutely, do so. My falafel making skills are middling at best, so I normally just grab one of a couple different mixes I like at the store.
This is what I listened to while making it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
We're embarking on a new line of thought regarding what we will eat these days, but nothing radically different. In a way, I think Michael just needs a different philosophy to keep him engaged in the day to day task of eating healthier. So, here we are, eating a Mediterranean diet. We've been cooking heavily from "The new Mediterranean diet cookbook : a delicious alternative for lifelong health," by Nancy Harmon Jenkins. What we've noticed so far is that many of the soups and stews are just a big old pile of vegetables and broth. Not a lot of meat involved. And we're digging it. These are light, high fiber, delicious and easily digestible meals. A supper like the below chickpea soup leaves us feeling satisfied, but not weighed down or sleepy so that we can go about our evening business without wanting to collapse on the couch and stare at the t.v. We'll keep you posted on our further Mediterranean adventures!
