Introducing A Recipe For Life

If we were to play a word association game and I said, “Alzheimer’s disease” what words would come to your mind?  Well, I am not a mind reader, so I can’t say for sure what you would say, but I am going to guess that, “stress” might be one of the words.

It’s an incontestable fact; Alzheimer’s disease and stress go hand in hand.  Stress for the caregiver and for the one who is physiologically and emotionally battling the monster, Alzheimer’s disease. 

The last couple of days, I have posted about grief from the perspective of the caregiver and the Alzheimer’s patient.  The process of grieving adds another layer of stress to the, already complicated, matter of dealing with Alzheimer’s disease.

Today, I am introducing, “Recipe for Life.” A segment that will be of benefit to Alzheimer’s caregivers and patients alike.  “Recipe” will focus on various aspects of nutrition and health that will be of benefit to those affected with Alzheimer’s disease and caregivers specifically, and everyone else in general.  Good nutrition is essential to good physical and mental health, so it’s important that you keep yourself healthy and strong.

Last week in Caregivers Corner, I talked about water, juice and smoothies, they are an awesome threesome to keep you hydrated, healthy and energized.  Today, I’ll give you a healthy, simple and delicious recipe that you can chew versus drink.

Today’s Recipe for Life:

One Pot Wonder-Lentils and Rice (adapted from What’s Cooking Vegetarian by Jenny Stacy)

Benefits:  Lentils are high in dietary fiber and protein, they cook quickly and combined with a whole grain, such as brown rice they pack an extra punch to make a well rounded, complete protein dish.  There is an excellent article by Rebecca Livermore about the health benefits of lentils, click here to see Rebecca’s article. In summary, they are not only high in fiber and protein, but they also provide iron and folic acid.  They are an excellent food for fighting cholesterol, constipation and coronary heart disease.

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups DRY  lentils (your choice, red, green or brown)

1/3  cup long grain rice (brown is best nutritionally, but white will work fine)

4  Cups of vegetable stock

1  leek cut into chunks (its okay to use a small onion)

3  medium cloves of garlic crushed

1  14 ounce can of chopped tomatoes

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp garam masala (Indian Spice, curry will work too)

1 red bell pepper sliced

1 cup small broccoli florets

1 cup can or frozen corn

1 cup French style green beans

1 TBS fresh basil, shredded

Instructions

1. Place lentils, rice, vegetable stock in medium-large pot, cover and cook together for 30 minutes.
2. Add the leek, garlic, tomatoes, cumin and garam masala or curry, red pepper, broccoli and corn.
3. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
4. Add the fresh basil and enjoy this “Recipe for LIFE!”