Ft. Myers News Press Article

Robust Recipes
Prostate cancer survivor writes healthy cookbook.
By Francesca Donlan
Originally posted on October 09, 2006, news-press.com

David Ricketts spent a bulk of his career writing cookbooks.

He’s dipped into Southern cooking with Naomi Judd and tackled bubbling, happy foods with Richard Simmons. He spent years as contributing food and recipe editor for Family Circle magazine. But it wasn’t until he was diagnosed as having prostate cancer in April 2001 at the age of 55 that food became profoundly personal.

His doctor advised a diet that was “low-calorie, low-fat, high-fiber, no red-meat diet, with fish two or three times a week, grains and beans, lots of fruits and vegetables and soy products,” he said.

Ricketts took his doctor’s advice as a “culinary challenge.”

Last month, he published the “Eat to Beat Prostate Cancer Cookbook.” It’s chock full of recipes that don’t include red meat, chicken or pork.

It’s a cookbook that he and his father, Arthur Ricketts, 92, can’t live without. Arthur Ricketts is also a prostate cancer survivor.

But the cookbook should appeal to everyone who wants to eat well, David Ricketts said.

“It’s good for anyone,” David Ricketts said. “The bottom line is that it’s heart healthy.”

David Ricketts whips up blueberry-OJ smoothies, tropical fruit salad with avocado, yogurt-mustard cod fillets with dill, and pumpkin flan with caramel sauce, while his father enjoys all the new tastes and textures.

“I think it’s great because he’s been feeding me for the past four months,” Arthur Ricketts said. His wife of 70 years, and David Ricketts’ mother, Gertrude Ricketts, died last spring. Before his son moved into his North Fort Myers home, the elder Ricketts enjoyed steak and potatoes. He called salads “rabbit food.” Now he eats “the whole produce department.”

“I’m eating food that I never ate before and it’s all good,” he said. “David makes a chocolate mouse with tofu that’s out of this world.”

David Ricketts blends a lot of Southwest Florida’s favorite fruits and vegetables into his recipes. Succulent strawberries, merry mangoes and amazing avocados can stave off a variety of life-threatening illnesses. It’s all of those powerful anti-oxidants, enzymes and nutrients that make them so good for your body.

Here are some of the fruits and vegetables David Ricketts uses in his cookbook — and in his life — for their powerful healing properties.

AWESOME AVOCADO
David Ricketts is a big fan of the avocado — he makes a nice chilled avocado soup with chiles and lime.

An avocado is the highest fruit source of lutein. Tests show lutein reduces the growth of prostate cancer cells growth by 25 percent. It also protects against cataracts and macular degeneration.

Avocado also is a great source of monounsaturated fat (known to keep cholesterol levels down). It’s loaded with vitamin E, one of the highest fruit sources for this powerful antioxidant.

And the combination of beta-sitosterol (a beneficial plant-based fat) and monounsaturated fat makes the avocado an excellent cholesterol buster.

BERRY TREASURES
Berries are bursting with antioxidants and other healthy nutrients. Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are full of compounds that may fight everything from memory loss to cancer. Pack them all into a smoothie.

Berries hold dense concentrations of antioxidants, substances that protect you from the free radical damage that can set the stage for everything from clogged arteries to wrinkles. In fact, when it comes to total antioxidant power, four of the top 10 fruits and vegetables are strawberries, raspberries and blackberries, with blueberries ranking No. 1 on the list, according to Prevention Magazine.

Looking especially promising is the ellagic acid in berries, which scientists are zeroing in on as a cancer fighter. In tests, ellagic acid (found in rich levels in strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries) can inhibit breast, colon and esophageal cancer cells. Unlike healthy cells, cancer cells “forget” how to die. In the presence of ellagic acid, they remember, according to Prevention Magazine.

A TOMATO A DAY
Tomatoes offer lycopene. “This powerful antioxidant is a carotenoid and is the pigment responsible for the red color in tomatoes, watermelon, pink grapefruit and guava. There is strong evidence that tomatoes, and especially cooked tomato products, may reduce the risk of prostate cancer and also be particularly effective in inhibiting cancer growth in the advanced stages,” Ricketts writes in his cookbook.

SOY
The rest of the world knows about soy but here in the United States soy has always been under the radar, David Ricketts said.

“In the past couple of years major supermarkets are devoting more space to healthy and organic foods particularly soy products,” he said.

The cookbook author replaces all of his dairy needs with soy products including tofu, soybeans, soy milk, soy yogurt, silken tofu and soy cheese. The soy possibilities are endless: tofu fritters, pomegranate-glazed tofu with broccoli and baby corn and strawberry tiramisu.

Healthy Recipes

BLUEBERRY-OJ SMOOTHIE
Blueberries are considered by some to be a superfood: One serving provides as many antioxidants as five servings of carrots, broccoli, or orange-fleshed squash. The soy yogurt packs a protein wallop and provides isoflavones, which are being studied as deterrents to hormone-related cancers. And there are seven grams of fiber in this drink. You can substitute other berries.

Serving Suggestions: Works for breakfast, lunch, or snack, and as an accompaniment with a sandwich or bowl of fruit — that last combo will really increase your fruit consumption for the day.

Makes one serving

Prep: 5 minutes
1 cup plain soy yogurt
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 small ripe banana, peeled
1⁄4 cup orange juice
— Excerpted from “Eat to Beat Prostate Cancer Cookbook.”

WATERMELON-BANANA SMOOTHIE
Watermelon seems to be in the supermarkets all year round, and it’s an excellent source of lycopene. For a variation, toss a few cubes of fresh papaya into the blender.

Papaya is another good source of lycopene.

Serving suggestions: Great for breakfast, with a sandwich for lunch, or as an afternoon snack.

Makes one serving

Prep: 5 minutes
1 small ripe banana, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 cup watermelon cubes, seeds removed (or use seedless melon)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
In a blender or food processor, puree together all the ingredients.