Went to Dr. Etta Frankel yesterday for a check up — bored her with my recent medical sagas of basal cell carcinoma and plantar fisciitis.
Dr. Frankel is normally even-tempered, but she was mad. “I see you tan and freckled. That is not good.” When we sat down in her office, she wrote out some internet sites to buy SPF clothing and handed me the prescription.
She asked about my husband’s health. “It’s difficult,” I said. “Living with someone with Parkinson’s.”
When I pointed out the slight uptick in my weight, she looked back at her records. “Yes, you were 133 in 2003.”
A bit more than a pound a year. Again, “Not good.” So she handed me a diet sheet mimeographed from the early 1970s. On it, there’s a long list of what not to eat and drink, like pasta and wine.
So when I came home, after the doctor’s appointment, then work, to surly children and a difficult spouse, I poured myself a big glass of wine and made pasta for dinner. It was Chris’s idea.
I’m not at all a food blogger. But this was good.
Start water to boil for pasta.
- Sauté white onions, sliced thin, in olive oil
- Add cherry tomatoes cut in thirds
- Add black olives
- Slice fresh basil into little ribbons. Set that aside with a bunch of little mozzarella balls.
- Cook the spaghetti
- Then add the set-aside mozzarella and basil and any old thing you find — pine nuts, broccoli, chunks of salami — into the olive oil mixture
Toss it together. Great summer dinner. On the side sliced strawberries and grapes. Chris spread sourdough bread with an olive tapenade.
We sat down to eat, all civilized, C. asked, “How was your day, Mom?”
“Good, I went to the doctor and got a good report.” I’ll start the healthy eating tomorrow.
When I mentioned that I might blog about our yummy dinner, Chris said, “Michael Tucker blogs about his meals.”
Name drop alert: Yes, he does. Chris’s friend, Michael, is an awesome actor and writer. Chris is featured in one of Tucker’s blog posts where Chris is fondly referred to as one of the Fat Boys. The Fat Boys better go see Dr. Frankel for some dietary suggestions. Here’s Tucker’s blog. (Incidentally he’s married to the fabulous actress Jill Eikenberry, who brought a lot of media attention and awareness to breast cancer when no one else was talking about it. We refer to Tucker and Eikenberry as the Tuckenberries.)
100 Days of Poems and Pics 
Yummy sounds wonderful – just the thing to chase away those surly blues. Sorry to disagree but that plate looks very healthy. I would suggest half the amount with a delicious salad of greens, small yellow tomatoes, nice tasty cukes along with some craisens and a few nuts on top. I’d suggest carrots but they all seem so tasteless lately – even the organic ones. The dressing is equal parts olive oil mixed with an excellent and tasty balsamic – I buy the big bottle at Costco because it can be used with any vegetable dish or soup dish too. I add a drop of agave – no more and mix. Use very little. I like organic olive oils mixed with spices like garlic, red peppers or green herbs. Then toss and mix. Oh there is also this pasta that is quite wonderful, Fiber Gourmet Light Nested Fettuccini. They are half the calories and twice the fiber count of regular pasta and tastes excellent. My favorite is the spinach and I buy 12 more online to save.
Actually came across your blog searching for Etta Frankl, MD.