Good Friends

This past weekend our good friends from Atlanta, Liz (as in "Never trust a skinny cook" blog fame), her gracious husband Henry, and their oldest son, Andy, were in town to watch a couple spring training games. Well, Henry and Andy were here for the spring training games, a long time wish for Henry. Liz claimed she was here researching the Tampa restaurant scene. I will let Liz summarize her findings if she cares to do so. I do know we had a lovely dinner on Saturday at Vino e Pasta, as you know is one of my favorite restaurants.


We had a lovely evening reminiscing about the "old" times and catching up on new happenings. It is always a fun evening when you are out with Liz and Henry, and it was nice seeing Andy after far too many years.


Thanks guys for a lovely evening.

Lobster and More Lobster

We do not eat lobster very ofter, but this past weekend found me dining twice on lobster. My dear cousin, Shirley, shipped two lobster tails and two steaks from Omaha Steaks. This was a very kind and generous gift. So, Saturday, Frank and I fixed the two tails with asparagus. They were excellent, very tasty and just the right size. Of course in my normal eating mode which I haven't recovered yet, I would have been tempted to do surf and turf. But the lobster was more than enough, especially since lobster is the best way to get melted butter to the mouth. Thank you Shirley for a lovely meal.


On Sunday we decided to go to 400 Beach Seafood and Tap House. It was a beautiful day for outside dining so we took a sidewalk table overlooking Straub Park and the bay beyond. But let's get back to the lobster. The first time I ate at  400 Beach I had the lobster roll and found it lacking in flavor. That was over a year ago, and since I already had lobster breath from the night before, I thought I would give it another chance. While this time it had slightly more seasoning, it still was fairly bland. No more lobster roll from 400 Beach for me. It was a far cry from Legal Seafood. (Among others I've had).


Quick Health Update: I continue to improve, but it seems far too slow of a recovery for me. But I am going in the right direction. I just need more energy. 

Celebration

To celebrate my outstanding scan results, I decided a nice dinner out was in order. So on Saturday night, Frank and I headed to Roy's in Tampa. While Roy's is part of the Outback Group of restaurants, it is based on the concept of Roy Yamaguchi's original Hawaiian restaurant with Hawaiian Fusion cuisine. We had wonderful dinners in a very nice setting. 

Frank opted for the three course prix fixe options, selecting the Poached Pear and Pecan Salad, an entree of Olive Oil Seared Mahi Mahi, and Roy's Melting Hot Chocolate Soufflé for dessert.

I skipped the salad course, and ordered the Polenta Crusted Scallops for my main course. And not being able to resist, the Chocolate Souffle for dessert. 

We had a very enjoyable dinner and a nice celebration.

More Good News

While I continue to recover from the research trial in early January, the results are in. Both the MRI of the brain and CT scan of the torso so significant regression in tumors. This is really good news. That is two set of scans in a row with no new growth and regression in those that are there. It also means I don't see my oncologist for four weeks, (I really like my oncologist, but a break from our frequent appointments will be a welcomed break). 


Oh, I am still cooking, but nothing significant. Just simple stuff with limited work effort.


That's all I'm saying.

Back in the Kitchen

I usually judge my treatment recovery by when I feel ready to return to the kitchen and prepare a meal. Well, after weeks of having good friends prepare meals for me, I finally hit the kitchen last Monday. The meal wasn't fancy but it was a good feeling to be hovering over the stove top again. My dear friend, Deirdre, arrived from the Philadelphia area earlier in the day. I decided I would prepare dinner with her assistance. We fixed tilapia in a lemon butter sauce, and green beans. Simple, but tasty. And a major accomplishment in a long road to recovery.

Slow Return

The month of January has been a blur, more like a blur in slow motion. After the first two weeks in the research trail at Moffitt including an extra week trying to get some of my results stabilized, I spent the rest of January resting, (as in sleeping) and just laying around the condo. I am finally starting to increase my activity level (not a lot) and eating much better. The appetite that had totally disappeared in January is finally returning. Obviously I must be feeling better if I am blogging again... unfortunately nothing interesting yet. So that is my update for now. 


I would also direct your attention (and mouse) to "Paul & Libby's World of Travel" on the right side bar. They depart on another cruise journey, this time to South America and Antarctica,, this time with their 1 year old daughter. Paul's blogs are always interesting and fun to read. Take a look.

Clones

Maybe our friend Carol was channelling my cell transfer when she created this photograph. Check the billboard on the right. Those who know us may recognize a couple characters from the movie (NOT).

Cool I say. And thanks for the smile, Carol.

Come Back to Daddy

I usually don't post medical updates on my blog, leaving that for personal email "blasts" to family and friends. But I am making an exception today.

I am at Moffitt this week for the next research trial, called TIL. Last July one of my tumors was removed and cells harvested, grown in the lab and frozen until I was ready to have them transferred back to the my body.

Well, today is they day the cells come home. The cell transfer is scheduled for later today. This will be followed by a series of high-dose interlukin 2 treatments.

I don't expect to be making any further blog updates until I recover from the IL2 sessions, but I wanted to let you know why I was missing from the blogosphere.

Ciao for a week or so.

It is 2011

Happy New Year. May 2011 be a good year for everyone. Keep eating, keep traveling, and keep smiling.

Last night was New Years Eve, and First Night in downtown St. Petersburg. First Night is a community  celebration with entertainment at various venues around downtown, and two fireworks displays, one at 9 for those of us who can't make it to midnight. 

Before Frank and I headed to First Night, he fixed a perfect, restaurant quality, Beef Tenderloin with Picon Cheese from Jose Andres', Made in Spain cookbook. Frank nailed the entree in every way. The tenderloin was nicely seared and cooked to a perfect medium-rare. The cheese, cider, and shallot sauce was rich and flavorful. He served it with oven-roasted asparagus. 

Great work, Chef Frank

After dinner we walked to St. Peter's Cathedral to hear a selection of arias performed by members of St. Petersburg Opera Company, followed by a chamber music concert. Both concerts were very good, but the opera selections stood out with some outstanding voices. 

Beef Tenderloin with Picon Cheese

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 teaspoons Spanish Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 pound beef tenderloin

3 garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 shallot, thinly sliced

2 fresh thyme sprigs

1/4 cup sidra (Spanish hard cider - or other hard cider0

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 oz. Picon cheese (a Spanish blue cheese) or other good quality blue cheese

Sea Salt to taste

Chopped chives for garnish

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees

Heat the olive oil in  a large ovenproof saute pan over high heat. When the oil begins to smoke, add the tenderloin and sear on all sides, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the pan to thee oven and cook the tenderloin for 10 minutes or until it measures 130 degrees on a meat thermometer (for medium rare). Transfer the tenderoin to a platter and keep warm.

Carefully return the saute pan to the stovetop and heat over medium0high heat. Gently crush the garlic loves with the flat side of a kitchen knife and add them to the pan along with the shallot and thyme. Cook for 2 minutes then add the sidra and 2 tablespoons water to deglaze the pan, scraping up any brown bits. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the cream and 1 ounce of the Picon cheese. Keep stirring as the cheese melts into the sauce and the sauce begins to thicken, Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.

Slice the tenderloin into 1/2-inch-thick medalions and arrange on 4 plates. Season with sal and spoon the cheese sauce over and around the medallions. Crumble the remainin 1 ounce Picon cheese over the medallions and garnish with chives.

Delayed Duck

OOPS. I forgot to post our Christmas Eve dinner menu, so here it is (no recipes included)

• Classic Shrimp Cocktail
• Belgian Endive salad with blue cheese and olive oil dressing
• Roast Duck with a Apple Cranberry Chutney (Stonewall brand) and port wine reduction
• Oven roasted yukon gold potatoes, roasted in duck fat (soooo yummy)
• Sauteed green beans with garlic and cherry tomatoes
• and for dessert, gourmet cupcakes from Georgetown Cupcakes. (A Christmas gift from my employer).

It was a lovely tasty dinner shared with my good friend, Frank.