Summary for HealthiNation’s Cancer Treatment & Nutrition

Hosted by Sharon Richter, Registered Dietician

The following is an interview conducted with Carrie Levin, a breast cancer survivor and chef and owner of Good Enough to Eat in New York City. As a chef, Carrie has some delicious cooking tips for cancer survivors to help them keep their energy and spirits up as they go through cancer treatment.

SHARON: Carrie, about a year ago you were diagnosed with breast cancer. Tell me about the treatment you had to go through.

CARRIE: Well, first they thought I would just have to have a mastectomy and then reconstruction. Then they had to take my lymph nodes out, which meant that I had to have very strong chemo, and then radiation. So, I received the full treatment.

SHARON: During treatment, did your doctors recommend foods that you should add or take away from your diet?

CARRIE: Well, when I had the reconstruction, my beautification doctor told me to have pineapple, because pineapple is good for bruising. And then my oncologist when I met her, said to have raw vegetables and mostly cabbage. So I made different kinds of slaws. And cabbage is supposed to be wonderful to prevent breast cancer. Protein, because the chemo drains you just about everything you have in you, so you need the protein. Red meat is really good, and you do have to have it well-done.

SHARON: And you want to avoid those nitrates.

CARRIE: Exactly.

SHARON: So, take me through a day. How did you start your day and incorporate all these different foods in your diet?

CARRIE: Okay, for breakfast…a lot of the times my husband made for me a Swiss breakfast—it has fruit, nuts, dried fruits, and wheat germ. Wheat germ is a wonderful food, with all the Vitamin B in it. So, I had that a lot at breakfast. At lunch time, I prepared all different kinds of coleslaws.

SHARON: That’s excellent because cabbage helps block estrogen. So, you have cabbage in your diet, you’re including that in lunch, so let’s talk about lunch, what you really made.

CARRIE: Okay, so one of the things I would have quiet often is coleslaw with a protein. And you can put anything in your coleslaw. I use peppers, carrots, and the pineapple. That’s how I get the pineapple in there.

SHARON: And then the protein, what did you make?

CARRIE: I did a lemon parmesan shrimp, because that’s one of our dishes at the restaurant that people love.

SHARON: Can you show me how to make it?

CARRIE: Absolutely. So I’ll just give you a quick little tip for this. Flour and parmesan reggiano, if you want it. But if you don’t like the smell, don’t use it. You don’t have to do it. White pepper, kosher salt, and then the mustard—dry mustard—and paprika brings out the flavor of cheese. Just put that in everything. You don’t have to have cancer (laughs). That’s just a really good thing to have in your house.

SHARON: And they don’t have strong smells.

CARRIE: No smell. No smell at all. It’s wonderful. Okay, now the egg. You can do the whole egg, which is great for protein. And egg white is wonderful. So we’ll just add the egg white here.

SHARON: That’s great. You’ve taken out the fat then.

CARRIE: Yeah, there’s no fat.

SHARON: The meal is so low in fat to begin with, and now you don’t even have the fat of the yolk.

CARRIE: Exactly. Okay, we take the shrimp, dip it in the egg white, and then roll it in our flour and cheese mix. Take it out and shake it a off a little. And then keep on going with the rest of the shrimp. For lunch I would try to make myself eat five to seven medium-sized shrimp.

SHARON: That’s like a serving of protein.

CARRIE: Five ounces of protein. It’s perfect.

SHARON: So now you’ve drenched the shrimp. What do you do next?

CARRIE: So now you get your fat hot, and then you take your shrimp and put it in the frying pan and sauté it on both sides for about two minutes.

SHARON: What are you looking for when you cook it?

CARRIE: Get a little crinkly and brown. That brings out the flavors. And it looks good on the finished dish. You want to get a little bit of contrast in color and texture.

SHARON: It looks delicious. So, you made this wonderful lunch that includes a lot of the nutrients that your physician told you to add into your diet. What do you do with dinner?

CARRIE: Okay, dinner. I made a lot of stews. So, in the stew we have tomato sauce and tomato paste, and that has…

SHARON: That’s terrific lycopines. Lycopines is an amazing antioxidant. Everyone should really include it in their diet. It’s very health.

CARRIE: Yes, it’s good for all different kinds of cancer—to not get all different types of cancer.

SHARON: Absolutely.

CARRIE: The stew also has all the vegetables. Then we have the prunes. Prunes are loaded with iron, which you need because you’re depleted with the chemo. And also, you’ve had so much stuff put into you, you get constipated, so you need your prunes.

SHARON: Such a high-fiber source. It helps with digestion.

CARRIE: It’s wonderful.

SHARON: I have a question about the meat. You said you want it well-done. Do you cook it first, or do you let all the ingredients cook together?

CARRIE: No, you always sear.

SHARON: Searing is only cooking the outside of it?

CARRIE: Yes. And it keeps the juices inside. And then you cook for two to three hours depending on the size of your meat. So now we’re going to get the fat hot. I’m going to take my flour, and salt and pepper. I always use kosher salt because, again, your taste buds are pretty dead, and kosher salt has a stronger flavor. So, mix it all together. When you hear the sound of the fat sizzling, you add your spices—your salt, pepper, and a little paprika for the color. Get that hot. When it gets to be light brown, you then add your onions, your garlic and your celery. And put your garlic in at the end so it won’t burn. Because I had my lymph nodes removed I really can’t get burned, so I always keep a keep a big pot holder with me to not get hurt. Now, while this is cooking, you shake it. And you want to make sure the salt and the pepper are nice and roasted, and the vegetables stick a little bit. Then we put the meat in the seasoned flour. When the vegetables get nice and brown—10 or 15 minutes depending on how big you cut them. And then you do the same thing with the meat. Then you put everything back in the pot and you deglaze with your beer or your juice. At that point, you put your tomato paste, and that’s when you put your herbs in. When you put in your liquid, you bring it to a boil, and then you turn it down. After about an hour and a half, you put your carrots and your potatoes in.

SHARON: Then how long do you need to cook it? Potatoes take awhile to cook.

CARRIE: Another hour or hour and a half. And then it’s ready.

SHARON: And you’re ready to eat.

CARRIE: And then it makes your whole house smell really good, and you want to eat.

SHARON: Carrie, thank you so much for coming today and sharing your story with us. You taught us about adding calcium, which you can get in milk you added to the wheat germ in the morning. The wheat germ has the B Vitamins, which gave you a lot of energy, you said. Then you incorporated so many different nutrients. The coleslaw, pineapple, protein sources with your lunch. And then even the stew you had for dinner had a ton of vegetables. And it all sounds so delicious.

If you or someone you know is affected by cancer, some of these comfort foods might help them during this difficult time..

HealthiNation offers health information for educational purposes only; this information is not meant as medical advice. Always consult your doctor about your specific health condition.