Yesterday I had my 12th injection in my eye to halt aging macular degeneration. It started out as once every four weeks, then, seeing improvement over half a year or so, the doctor stretched it to five weeks, then six weeks, then seven weeks. And now I don’t go back for another injection until January. Next year. Eight weeks. Yet it seems so far away.

“You’re holding your own!” the doctor told me as he reviewed all the tests technicians had done before I got to see him for the injection. He remembered, as I so vividly did, that the sight in my right eye 20/200 when he first saw me. I remember how he told me he wasn’t sure what he could do, he was hopeful he could stop the progression.

My aging macular degeneration had come on fast and furious, uncommon, but not rare.

Every month when I went back, the doctor filled me with more hope, more happiness, as each month there was progress. No longer did I see eight candles on the altar where there were really four, no longer did those candles bend down as though melted. Every day I see those candles standing straight up, strong, tall. Just like my vision is becoming.

He started me on one drug for the injections. He explained that AMD is the leading cause of sight loss in people over 50 years of age. At 80 something, I began to feel grateful it had taken that long to affect me.

Each injection there was some improvement. Then one day the doctor decided to try another drug, one far more expensive, but one whose FDA tests and approval indicated might be even more effective.

At the ridiculous price of $5,000 per injection…not for the doctor, simply for the drug itself…one has to be grateful for an insurance plan that covers either all or a good portion of the cost.

It’s almost sinful that American pharmaceutical companies are able to charge that kind of money in order to let people see. Someone told me I should check the price of the same drug in Europe, and I would find it half the price. That certainly doesn’t seem right either.

Both drugs work basically the same. AMD is when blood vessels grow underneath the retina, that little membrane that sits at the back of the eye. It’s the tissue that senses light and sends the images to the brain. It’s the part of the eye that provides that clear central vision so necessary for reading, driving, and seeing detail, like facial features, smiles, and minute details in a flower, tree or art work. When those blood vessels leak blood and fluid, it prevents the retina from doing its job. The medicines to treat that keep new blood vessels from forming under the retina and hopefully prevent further damage.

For some people, the injections might cause what is commonly known as ‘red eye’ for a while. It’s just something that happens because the eye is a little irritated. Of course it’s irritated! Your eye is used to sitting high up on your head, being remarkably busy all day long and never being interfered with except for an occasional tear or tiredness. It doesn’t like to be invaded by a needle or anything else. So it may get a bit swollen or a blood vessel may break and cause an eye to look bloodshot. A small price to pay for vision improvement. And it goes away on its own in a day or two. Doctors can suggest drops to take, either before, after, or both, to ease that concern if indeed it exists. For me, once again, red eye for a fleeting time is a very small price to pay for improved eyesight, and doesn’t impact my vanity one bit.

As I left the office after my 12th injection, the doctor wished me a Happy Thanksgiving. In response I blurted out, “Thanks. I’m grateful for you.” He smiled and said, “that’s nice to hear.”

Then it hit me. I wonder how many of us do take the time to say thank you to the doctor who is making vision possible. How many of us take the time to drop a note or a card to say Happy Thanksgiving, and you’re one of the people who is making it happy for me?

How many of us let that professional know his skill, his wisdom, his choices in medications, his explanations as to why and how he does certain procedures really go beyond what he has to do in order to earn the title of Doctor?

Think about it. Have a Happy Thanksgiving. And let your eye professionals know you are grateful to them as well.

As we all begin to celebrate the holidays, it’s more fun when you realize you can make some fun and fairly exotic treats while still ensuring you’re not cutting back on your intake of fruits, nuts, and all the other good things not only for eye health, but for general healthy eating. These also help ensure a generous intake of all the necessary vitamins, without adding a lot of calories at that! Try a couple of these just for fun!

Banana Split Breakfast

1 banana, peeled in split lengthwise

1 oz dark chocolate (white or milk chocolate if you must)

3 Tablespoons Greek yogurt

¼ Cup granola or chopped nuts

Place the split banana on a plate, cut side up. Grate the chocolate, or chop finely.

Spoon yogurt over banana, sprinkle with chopped nuts or granola, and top with grated chocolate.

For more fun,

Banana Split on a Stick

4 bananas

8 Popsicle sticks

¼ Cup granola or chopped nuts

1 Cup chocolate chips

Peel bananas, then split in half widthwise and insert stick into each half. Place in freezer bag or well covered container in freezer about 3 hours, or till frozen.

Spread out nuts, granola on flat surface.

Melt chocolate in microwave about 30 seconds, stirring every 15 seconds, and continuing procedure till chocolate is melted and smooth.

Dip each of the frozen bananas in chocolate, twirling to cover the whole top half. Immediately roll in nuts.

Either serve immediately or store in freezer.

Have fun with pineapple as well

Grilled pineapple with ice cream

1 Tablespoon honey

1 Tablespoons coconut oil (olive oil works)

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

4 pineapple rings (fresh if you prefer, but canned works)

1 C. vanilla ice cream

2 Tablespoons chocolate syrup (not necessary, but treat yourself!)

Whisk honey, oil, and cinnamon together.

Set grill to medium-high, place pineapple on grill and brush with honey mixture. Grill three minutes, turn, and repeat brushing and grilling for another 3 minutes or so. Pineapple should be softened a bit if using fresh fruit.

Top each pineapple ring with ¼ Cup ice cream, drizzle with chocolate.

Serve immediately

Air Fryers. This has to be the most improperly named appliance in any kitchen.

Call it Air Cooker. Or Air Oven. Or even Skinny Cooker. But limiting its abilities to simply Fryer is a misnomer.

I recently received one as a gift from my son and daughter-in-law, in spite of my saying many times “I don’t eat fried foods,” “I don’t want one.” “I’ll never use it.”

Now I recommend it as a Christmas gift for anyone who wants an easy and delicious way to prepare great meals in record time. And still maintain high healthy standards.

With my personally imposed new healthy food regimen after being diagnosed with aging macular degeneration, I don’t eat any fried foods, increased the amount of seafood I consume, and have fruits and vegetables at every meal, keeping in mind the health benefits for the eyes of red, orange, and yellow fruits of the earth.

But now, my meal plans have changed once again, this time to enlarge on the variety of ways I can prepare the things I like best and think are best for my eyes and overall health.

Therein lies another benefit for people living alone, or couples. Saving on utility costs. It is a lot more economical to use this Appliance for maybe 10 or 15 minutes to create a Chipotle Rib-Eye steak with an avocado salsa rather than putting on the broiler in that large oven. And more economical to cook something like Greek style Chicken wings for 20 minutes or so rather than hauling out a deep fryer, melting all that fat and creating the same entrée. Roasting a whole chicken, complete with stuffing, might take 45 minutes or so, but that’s in an appliance that sits right on your counter.

An Air Fryer, as it’s called, preferably an Air Cooker, is a means of cooking food simply by having hot air, really hot air if you’re cooking at 400 degrees or so, circulate through the enclosed section where you’ve placed your food. If you bread it or coat it, or brush it with a sauce, you can still have that crunchy deliciousness that comes with food fried in all that deep fat or oil. But without all the calories and bad choices for health. But, you can also bake, broil, roast, steam, and even rotisserie. Think of it as a microwave oven or stove, with a lot less space, a lot easier to clean, and a lot faster service.

With healthier eating the best benefit of air cookers, it’s easy to see that fat and oil are reduced from cups to perhaps a tablespoon. That also means a lot less calories without sacrificing the crispy outside and tender inside of a fried chicken leg or French fries for instance.

Are there disadvantages? A few! It’s an appliance you don’t want to store in a cabinet; it can be unwieldy to haul out and put on the counter because yes, it’s bigger than a coffeemaker, but smaller than a breadbox. So counter space is a definite necessity. Accommodate it. If you normally keep a dish drainer by the sink, think of those great absorbent towels to rest rinsed dishes or glasses on and put away that unsightly drainer. Move the coffeemaker a bit to make room next to it; you’ll probably use this appliance more than your toaster; think of storing that in a cabinet instead.

Can you cook everything in it? Well, almost, but soups, broths, or anything else with a lot of liquid won’t work. Don’t think of making hot cocoa in an Air Cooker. Puddings, cakes, even pies can be created with an Air Cooker.

And, like any new appliance, you have to try it out for a while to get it used to the way you like to prepare meals. So until you’re used to each other, you’ll want to check to be sure the temperature and time of a recipe might fluctuate a little from the Air Cooker. Simply open the cooker and check for doneness as you would in an oven. Simple, easy, and individual.

As far as cleaning, it’s a distinct advantage over so many other appliances. You can use aluminum foil or parchment paper to cut back on spills. You have to wait until it cools completely since it gets so hot while it’s working, but you won’t need abrasives or steel wool. Hot soapy water does the trick for the cooking basket and tray, simply wiping down the outside is all you need for the exterior.

As one who eats fruits and veggies at every meal, I also appreciate the cook book my very thoughtful younger ones included. One of the best things in it, for me, admittedly not for every taste, were the chick peas! Never had them crispy before, and with that tablespoon of butter and rosemary and turmeric, they’re unreal!

A medley of winter root vegetables is also spectacular in the Oven Cooker, and the choice of veggies could be yours, but carrots, potatoes, beets and perhaps turnip are a great start and take about 15 minutes to get crispy and delicious. Or how about a half butternut squash with a bit of cinnamon and sugar, and some chopped walnuts? The sugar caramelizes and is great.

All in all, to me the biggest disadvantage of the Air Fryer is its name. For those who like to choose healthy meals all the time, it’s a terrible misnomer that would turn you away from considering it. It did me…until that son and his wife ignored everything I said, and apparently knowing me better than I know myself, gave me a gift that’s perfect!

It’s wonderful and thoughtful when you have two grown children who worry about your macular degeneration and want to be sure you’re eating all the right foods. When my son and his wife gave me the Air Cooker and a recipe book to go with it, I was delighted to find so many ways to do foods I really like but have skipped because they required frying. Then my daughter gave me yet another cookbook for air cookers, this one strictly vegetarian. It’s magnificent.

Here’s a great alternative for nibbling on nuts (though they’re great for you as well!) watching football games or soap operas on tv. Roasted Chickpeas, Tandoori-style has a lot less calories than nuts, a bit of salt and sugar from the peas, but 4 grams of protein as well.

Tandoori-style Chickpeas

1 can chickpeas, drained, rinsed, and patted dry with paper towels.

2 tsp. curry power

1 tsp each of paprika and cumin

For more spice, add ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Mix the together in a small bowl.

Preheat the air cooker to 400 degrees, put the chickpeas in the fryer basket and roast for 5 minutes.

Remove the basket, spray the chickpeas with cooking oil and toss.

Return to the cooker, roast another 8 minutes, shaking the basket once or twice during the cooking.

Take the basket out, sprinkle the spice mixture and toss to coat. Put back in the cooker for another 2 to 3 minutes.

That’s it! Once cool, they’re great for nibbling!

Or how about radish chips? They even sound exotic!

8 large radishes, scrubbed and trimmed on both ends

Slice each radish into thin rounds and pat dry with a paper towel.

Preheat oven cooker to 400 degrees, put in the radishes and drizzle with 1 T olive oil, tossing to coat. If you choose sprinkle with a bit of salt and shake again.

Put the basket in the cooker and cook for 18 minutes, tossing once; the radishes should be crisp and light golden brown.

Take out of the cooker, sprinkle with a bit of curry power or Greek spice mix, enjoy either hot or cold. They’ll keep well in an airtight container as well for a few days.

It’s really a Southern thing, but Black-eyed Peas in many homes are an absolute must to prepared for New Year’s Day in order to ensure wealth and happiness in the New Year. Eat them with greens, preferably collard greens, and either corn bread or corn in some other fashion; legend has it you’re guaranteed a New Year full of pennies (the peas) dollars (the greens) and gold. (the corn)

Since black-eyed peas aren’t really peas at all, but beans, so they are full of all that fiber and protein beans all have to ensure better vision, to say nothing of being heart healthy, low in calories, and great aids for digestive health; they should be a part of a healthy diet throughout the year.

Black-eyed peas can be prepared either dried, purchased in bags, or in cans. They’re different from most beans when purchased dry, however, since they don’t have to be soaked overnight to get them prepared for cooking; six hours soaked in cold water is generally enough to speed up cooking. Another option is soaking them in hot water for an hour or two, then covering them with water, or broth if you prefer, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and let them simmer away for another 45 minutes until they’re nice and tender.

They’re full of copper, thiamine, iron, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc and potassium and loaded with Vitamin B6. They are also a great antioxidant so they help against disease as well.

There are several different legends that claim to be the origin of black-eyed peas for New Year’s tables but most originated in the Southern states. In every legend, they represent prosperity and good luck for the coming year, and true traditionalist insist on having them as the first food of the New Year, opting for these little critters in stews, salads, or alone rather than champagne when the ball drops.

The truth is black-eyed peas are really a West African crop, where they were known as cowpeas. The crop found its way to the southern United States through the slave ships. An easy plant to grow and thrive, it was known as a poor man’s food, and Southerners quickly adopted it for their own plantations, and slaves enjoyed a bounty of peas for their own creative recipes. Because they provided a foundation of healthy eating for slaves and an easy crop for plantation owners, they became known as a symbol of hope, a tradition that continues for New Year’s Eve wishes for the coming years.

There are those that say the tradition for black-eyed peas and good luck goes back to 500 years after the birth of Christ, and the Jewish people, in celebrating the Rosh Hashanah holiday, served black-eyed peas as a sign of good luck. West Africans served it on special occasions, like the birth of a child, to ward off evil spirits.

There are many more who liken the tradition to Civil War days when the Yankee troops, hungry themselves, raided the Southern soldiers’ food supplies, taking everything but the black-eyed peas. Or in a more specific story, Union General William Tecumseh Sherman and his army came through the Confederate South, and left large fields of black-eyed peas untouched, looking down on them as fodder for livestock and cattle only. So the peas grew rampant and spread. When the Civil War ended, however, the previously ignored beans saved the lives of desperate, starving families in the South.

Whatever is truth whatever is legend, it is a fact black-eyed peas and all beans are good for healthy bodies anytime of year. Enjoy this Tex-Mex recipe for Corn and Beans, serve it with a green salad, and may 2022 be filled with pennies, dollars and gold, together with lots of hope and happiness. This recipe is for that easy to use Air Cooker.

Tex-Mex Corn and Beans

Preheat air cooker to 350 degrees.

Combine:

1 can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed

1 Cup frozen corn kernels

1 red pepper, seeded and chopped

1 jalapeno pepper, sliced, 2 cloves sliced garlic.

D Spray with olive oil and mix is a teaspoon lime juice, tossing to coat.

Sprinkle mixture with 2 teaspoons chili powder and ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (less if you don’t like that much heat)

Place it all in the air cooker basket, roast for 10 minutes, shaking once.

That’s it!

May 2022 be filled with love, health and family

Having that new air cooker has given me an entire new way of cooking, enjoying some great recipes in a new way, and still keeping my diet filled with the vitamins and minerals that are so necessary for eyesight. Even with all the greens, oranges and yellows I’m consuming, my eye surgeon still urges AREDS2 twice a day, an easy thing to do with an inexpensive OTC medication. But for fun, for an easy dish that serves four, try this

SWEET POTATO VEGGIE HASH

Set Air Cooker to 400 degrees and preheat.

Peel and chop 3 potatoes (Yukon Gold are great) and toss them with 1 T. olive oil.

Put in basket and cook potatoes 15 minutes, until tender, stirring every few minutes.

Add and toss with potatoes: 1 sweet potato, 1 onion, 1 red pepper, all chopped or diced, 2 garlic cloves, 1 teas. thyme, some black pepper.

Bake another 10 minutes or so, stirring once or twice3. Potatoes will be browned, and with the vegetables, crisp tender.

Or how about Sweet Potato Tots that can be made with canned sweets.

SWEET POTATO TOTS

Preheat Oven Cookers to 400 degrees.

Drain 1 can sweet potatoes, put in bowl and mash. Stir in until well mixed: ½ Cup grated Parmesan cheese, 1 egg white, 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg, sea salt if you must.

Form rounded tablespoon size tots with the mix, and roll in a plate of 1 Cup crushed cracker crumbs. (Ritz are great, so are saltines).

Put in single layer in basket, spray with cooking oil, and cook about 15 minutes, stirring once. Tots will be crisp and golden in color.

Sweet Potatoes

This is a nondescript looking vegetable that is loaded with so many good things from minerals to vitamins that is should be a part of everyone’s diet. Only rarely are there allergic reactions to sweet potatoes, and just about the worst thing that can happen if you eat too many of them is an orange-ish tinge to your skin, the same thing that can happen with carrots or pumpkins. But even that isn’t dangerous at all and goes away simply by eating less of these orange vegetables.

Sweet potatoes are in the same family as morning glories, which seems kind of strange, and are different from, and more nutritious than yams, which belong to the lily family. They are generally available in supermarkets year round and are one of the less expensive vegetables. All this in addition to being full of all the healthy things. They are also low in calories, before you smother them with butter, and are cholesterol free, which means you can probably use some of that butter if you want.

Sweet Potatoes are great for avoiding aging macular degeneration or helping to keep it from advancing, since they are full of those “eye” vitamins C and A, along with a healthy amount of potassium and folates. There are those who say the antioxidants in sweets are also great in fighting cancer, and if that’s your choice, the purple sweet potatoes have the most. There is lots of beta carotene in sweet potatoes, a great blend with all the zinc and copper that are also in them. The high fiber content and the potassium are great for fighting heart disease and reducing cholesterol levels. Even diabetics can generally eat sweet potatoes with little problem, they fit well into their balanced diet. Experts also credit sweet potatoes with helping the brain function better and increasing memory powers, the same as they say about avocado and broccoli.

In buying sweet potatoes, avoid the vegetables with dark spots or indents; they might be signs of decay under the skin. It’s ok if they are sprouting, simply cut off the sprouts, scrub the potatoes, and select your favorite recipes.

There are so many ways to prepare Sweet Potatoes, be it on top of the stove, in the oven, in that great Oven Cooker or even on a grill. They can be boiled, roasted, grilled, baked, whipped, pureed, fried, served with mixtures of cinnamon for sweetness or chili powder for spice. They can even be made into a butter that will keep in the refrigerator for weeks and is great on toast.

One of my newest personal favorites is the

Oven Cooker Sweet Potato Wedges:

½ Lb. sweet potatoes, cut in wedges, peeled if you like, well scrubbed with skin

1 Tsp. coconut or olive oil

1/4 t. each of chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, black pepper, ( or cayenne) and thyme.

Mix all the ingredients, toss in sweet potatoes and stir.

Place wedges in Oven Cooker, at 385 degrees, for 25 minutes, shaking occasionally. Enjoy!

About that Sweet Potato Butter 2 Cups chopped sweet potatoes

1 Banana

1/3 c maple syrup

½ teas. ginger

¼ teas. nutmeg

1. Place sweet potatoes in a saucepan. Cook, covered, in enough water to cover 15 to 20 minutes or until tender; drain. Cool slightly.

2. Drain, and place in a food processor or blender; process until smooth. Add banana, process til smooth. Place the mixture in a saucepan with the maple syrup, ginger, and nutmeg. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cook, uncovered, over very low heat 20 minutes or until very thick, stirring frequently.

3. Spoon into a 1-pint glass jar. Cover; refrigerate up to 3 weeks.