Wednesday, May 30, 2007

What I Craved for on the Second Day Back in My Apartment


My "staple dish" in
the post-op recovery period at home


On the 2nd day after coming home (I mean, apartment room), I had this sudden craving for broccoli-- more precisely, broccoli potage -- and cheese. I had no idea why, though. My sense of taste was still messed up and I couldn’t stand the taste of some food I usually love – like apple cake. I had baked bunch of apple cakes and froze them before being hospitalized. But when I tried it first time after coming back, the buttery flavor of the cake and the slight sourness from the apple chunks almost made me nauseate. (What a shame!! I spent so much time baking them when I was terribly busy getting so many things done before going to the hospital.) Instead, what I really wanted was broccoli & cheese… and some good bread which is not too buttery or sweet.

So, the 2nd day back in my apartment room, I took a taxi to a nearby supermarket (because I wasn’t sure if I could ride a bicycle then) and bought broccoli and grated cheese. After that, I spent several hours in the kitchen making a big potful of broccoli potage and freezing them in several ziplock bags, feeling slightly dizzy from time to time. But it was worth it! :D

For a few days after that, I enjoyed broccoli potage topped with grated cheese (I know this may sound strange, but I really wanted cheese flavor added) again and again, and each time all I had to do was just defrosting and heating up the frozen potage. With onion, potato, garlic and soy milk added, I think the liquid food was pretty nutritious.

But I still don’t know why I craved specifically for broccoli so badly and why I had no problem with garlic while the smell of ginger bothered me so much, and also why black pepper and bay leaves were OK when the smell of cinnamon, clove and celery almost killed me.
.... Strange.


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10 comments:

an9ie said...

It's funny what food you crave when you're recovering from illness. When I'm sick I only want to eat grapes or watermelon for a day.

That potage looks good!

Pinkity said...

YUM! The potage looks really good.. makes me feel even more hungry than i am now!!! :D

Get well soon obachan!

Anonymous said...

Broccoli has lots of iron, so perhaps your body was telling you something. (Iron and calcium?)

Anonymous said...

Looks great Obachan and glad to see you're recuperating so quickly. Can I ask what kind of cheese you used? I can't seem to think of what kind would work in a soup like this--it looks yummy and would like to try it myself :)

Anonymous said...

Wow! That potage looks extremely "oishii"! :) Anyway, taste buds after a case such as your may have gone haywire, but should return to normal soon.... as above mentioned, you may crave something that your body is lacking.... good to see that you are recuperating so fast. Best health! :)

obachan said...

an9ie
OH, grapes sounds good. That reminds me… An English guy told me that grapes were the most popular food to bring when visiting patients in his country. I wonder how it is in other countries…

Pinkity
Thank you. I’m pretty close to full recovery now. : )

Anonymous commenter
Oh, iron. Yeah, that makes sense… because I lost some blood during the surgery.

Another anonymous commenter
It was what they call “processed cheese” here and perhaps the most inexpensive brand. Please don’t take this broccoli soup + cheese idea too seriously. My taste buds were messed up at that time, you know. ;)

Mako
Thanks. I guess my taste buds are OK now, since the oatmeal raisin cookies tasted good when I tried them today.
And there’s no doubt that my recovery has been so quick because of the supports and wishes that my readers sent me from all over the world! :D

Chubbypanda said...

It's good to see that you're doing better, although I'm sorry your sense of taste is still messed up. I hope you recover fully soon.

Pip said...

Hi Obachan! It's been a while since I came to visit you and now I'm glad to hear that the operation was successful. I hope you'll recover in no time and will be able to cook and bake again your wonderful "chef-d'œuvre"! :)
By the way the broccoli potage looks great!

Unknown said...

That looks oishii! I'm glad you are back home and recovering well, obachan.

obachan said...

Chubbypanda
Thanks. I think I’m back to normal now (as of June 9th). Tell you the truth, I’m going out for Korean dinner (with beer!) tonight. Hehehe…

Pip
Thank you. I’ve already started cooking/baking, and new posts are on their way! (They are not necessarily chef d'oeuvre, though. :P)

Mariko
That’s very nice of you. I have a confession… Yesterday (June 8th) I made broccoli potage again, using the same recipe. But it didn’t taste as good as it did before. I guess my taste buds were really messed up.