If you watch any newsreel of trauma or disaster victims, you will surely see somewhere a responder or volunteer draping a blanket over injured, wearied, or shell-shocked victims. There is something healing in the simple act of draping this cloak around someone.
The word “palliative” comes from palliare – the Latin word for “cover” or “cloak.”
The word “palliative” comes from palliare – the Latin word for “cover” or “cloak.” Palliative care extends the same comfort to patients that the ubiquitous blanket does for disaster victims.
Palliative care is the management of symptoms and providing comfort to patients with life-threatening illnesses and their families. This model of care starts at the time of diagnosis of any life-limiting illness and continues throughout the disease. This episode discusses the concept of palliative care, how it integrates with medical care, and the differences between palliative care and hospice care.
Other Resources:
Follow this link for a great handout on Palliative Care: What You Should Know.
Want to see how your state rates in palliative care? Follow this link to the Center to Advance Palliative Care’s Scorecard.
Recipe Time!
As always, we start off with a recipe – this is another Death by Chocolate – this time a super-rich cheescake from Handle the Heat! See the recipe below.
Death by Chocolate Cheescake
(from Handle the Heat )
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 15 (225 grams) full size chocolate graham crackers
- 6 tablespoons (85 grams) unsalted butter, melted
For the filling:
- 8 ounces (227 grams) semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 24 ounces (680 grams) full fat cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup (21 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
For the topping:
- 1 cup (170 grams) semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
Directions
For the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. In the bowl of a food processor, process the cookies until you have 1 cup finely ground crumbs. Add the butter and pulse until moistened. Press into the bottom and halfway up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Bake for 10 minutes, or until fragrant. Let cool slightly and maintain oven temperature while making the filling.
For the filling:
- In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave the chopped chocolate in 30-second bursts, stirring between bursts, until melted and smooth. Let cool.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth, about 1 minute. Add the sugar, cream, and cocoa powder and beat until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure all cream cheese is being incorporated. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating just until smooth. Beat in the melted chocolate until just combined. Be careful not to overbeat.
- Pour the batter into the cooled crust. Place springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for about 50 minutes, or until the top looks slightly dry. If the middle is slightly wobbly, that’s fine. Err on the side of under-baking. Turn off the oven and crack the oven door open and allow to cool for 10 minutes (this helps prevent cracking). Remove the cheesecake from the oven to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
- Refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 4 hours. Release the cheesecake from the pan onto a cake stand or serving plate.
For the topping:
- Place the chocolate chips in a medium heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan heat the cream just until simmering. Pour over the chocolate chips. Let sit for 3 minutes before stirring until the mixture is melted and smooth. If needed, allow to cool and thicken. Pour over the cheesecake.
Where There’s a Will, There’s a Way
Charlie also shared his first segment of Where There’s a Will, There’s a Way, interesting and unusual wills. This episode talks about Trouble, the unlikely beneficiary of a billionaire’s estate. Listen to the podcast for more of this interesting story!
Do you have an interesting will to share for our next segment? Please share in the comments below or email them to us at info@every1dies.org.
