The Life Raft Group held our local group meeting on March 4, 2012. We were thrilled to have special guest Pamela Stofberg, R.D. and intern, Jackie Piemonte volunteer their time to talk to us about nutrition. Pamela is an outpatient oncology dietitian who provides coverage to all divisions of the John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, N.J. She has more than thirty years of professional experience and has worked in the areas of oncology nutrition, surgical nutrition research, corporate consulting and community nutrition outreach programs.

For this meeting, each attendee brought a healthy dish and a recipe to share with each other and after a very informative talk on general nutrition and GIST-specific issues Pam made healthy smoothies for everyone! For those that missed the meeting, we have included the family smoothie recipe she shared with us at the meeting below. Pam also presented a wealth of very helpful infor-mation, especially regarding one major concern for the group having trouble with digestion and diarrhea, for which she suggested adhering to a low residue diet that focuses on consuming foods that are more easily digested. You can read more about it at www.webmd.com/ibd-crohns-disease/low-residue-diet-foods.

Thank you, Pam for coming out and spending the time to answer all of our questions and for making the delicious smoothies! We would also like to thank our friends at Trader Joe’s in Wayne, N.J. for donating ginger tea, cookies and dark chocolates for the meeting.

Strawberry Banana Citrus Smoothie
(Pam Stofberg Family Recipe)

1 Banana
8 oz. container of vanilla yogurt
8 oz. orange juice
1 cup frozen whole strawberries

1. In a blender, process the first 3 in-gredients. Add frozen strawberries and process until smooth.

Hummus

2 (15 oz.) cans of chick peas, one drained, one with liquid (to cut down on starch replace liquid with water)
¼ cup raw sesame seeds
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 teaspoon cumin
Salt

1. Place all ingredients, except salt, into a blender or large food proces-sor in the order mentioned.
2. Blend until smooth and season to taste with salt.

Green Blast Smoothie

The combo of fruit and vegetables in this smoothie provides a whole serving of vegetables and a whole serving of fruits. It’s a blast to drink, too.
Prep Time: 10 mins, Total Time: 10 mins, Servings: Makes: 4
4 cups packaged fresh baby spinach leaves
2 cups seedless green grapes
1 medium banana, cut up
3/4 cup seeded, chopped green sweet pepper
1 1/2 cup unsweetened apple juice
1 1/2 of a medium jalapeno pepper, seeded, optional

1. In a blender or food processor combine spinach, grapes, banana, sweet pepper , apple juice, and jalapeno, if using. Cover and blend or process well. Mixture will be slightly pulpy but should be nearly smooth.
Makes: 4 (6-ounce) servings
Nutrition Facts
Calories 109, Total Fat 0g, Saturated Fat 0g, Monounsaturated Fat 0g, Polyunsaturated Fat 0g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 27mg, Carbohydrate 27g, Total Sugar 20g, Fiber 3g, Protein 2g.
Daily Values: Vitamin A 0%, Vitamin C 71%, Calcium 4%, Iron 8%. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens

Silken Smoothie

Recipe by Tyler Florence
Total Time: 10 min
Prep: 10 min
Yield: 2 servings

1 cup raspberries, frozen
1 cup crushed pineapple
1 cup soymilk
2 tablespoons honey
1 lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup soft silken tofu

1. Combine all ingredients together in a blender and puree until smooth.

Ginger, Carrot, Pear, Orange “Juicer”

This recipe is made in a juicer.

3 large carrots
1 Asian pear
1 orange (remove peel and pith)
1/2 inch slice of fresh ginger

1. Put all ingredients through juicer.
Recipe courtesy of the Cooking Studio at the John Theurer Cancer Center

Mango, Orange and Ginger Smoothie

By Martha Rose Shulman
Ginger combines very well with mango and contributes a host of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory
phytochemicals.
1 cup orange juice
1/ 2 large mango
1 1/ 4 teaspoons ginger juice (see note below)
4 ice cubes
Optional: 1/2 ripe banana (about 2 ounces peeled banana)

1. Combine the orange juice, mango, ginger juice and ice cubes in a blender.
2. Blend until frothy and smooth. *If you want a thicker drink, add the banana.
Serve right away for the best flavor.
Note: To make the ginger juice, grate about 2 teaspoons ginger. Place on a piece of cheesecloth. Gather
together the edges of the cheesecloth, hold over a bowl and twist to squeeze out the juice.
Yield: One large serving or two small servings. This is best served right away.

Nutritional information per serving: 201 calories; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams
polyunsaturated fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 milligrams cholesterol; 48 grams carbohydrates;
3 grams dietary fiber; 4 milligrams sodium; 3 grams protein

Mango Blueberry Smoothie

By Martha Rose Shulman
This drink is similar to lassi, made tangy with buttermilk (or yogurt)) mango and spoonful of lime juice. If you want to make a non-dairy version, use almond milk or rice beverage.
1 heaped cup ripe mango, fresh or frozen
1 cup buttermilk or plain low-fat yogurt, or for a nondairy version almond or rice beverage
2 teaspoons mild honey, such as clover
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1 1/ 2 to 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice (to taste)
6 raw almonds (untoasted)
2 or 3 ice cubes if desired

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a blender, and blend at high speed until smooth.
Yield: One 16-ounce or two 8-ounce servings. This is best served right away.

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