How this Fast Diet Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow, for a calorie total of less than 600. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post, another day of eating 600 calories or less. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it. Simple way to lose weight and be healthier.
In what has to be one of the most gripping and forlorn line in his work “Mandalay,” Rudyard Kipling wrote, “Ship me somewheres East of Suez where the best is like the worst. Where there aren’t no Ten Commandments an’ a man can raise a thirst.” We are not here to discuss religion or your drinking habits. Rather, today’s topic is the food of India. If the best is like the worst, then these meals rank right up there with the best. And the worst must be pretty good too. Here’s hoping that today’s menus help you to reach your goals, and you don’t have to ship out to foreign lands to enjoy it.
Tomato-Curry ScrOmelette: 300 calories 8.2 g fat 4.0 g fiber 16 g protein 40 g carbs 392 mg Calcium PB GF This recipe was loosely inspired by Fifty Breakfasts, a book by Col. A. R. K. Herbert, detailing “dishes men like” and containing many foods redolent of his years serving the Queen in India.
1 ½ two-oz eggs HINT: If you are serving one person, crack three 2-oz eggs into a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Whip up those eggs and pour half of their volume into a jar with a lid and put it in the ‘fridge for next week. 1/2 Tbsp curry powder 2 oz fresh tomatoes, diced and drained 1.5 oz strawberries dollop of plain, fat-free yogurt optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or natural apple cider optional: blackish coffee or tea or lemon in hot water
Drain the tomatoes so that they are not too juicy. Combine with the curry powder and whisk with the eggs. Spritz a fry pan with olive oil or non-stick spray and pour in the egg mixture. Cook to your liking. Prepare the beverages and plate the fruit. Plop a dollop of plain, unsweetened yogurt on the eggs. A rousing good start to your day.
Tandoori Chicken and Vegetables: 265 calories 4.8 g fat 9 g fiber 20 g protein 32.6 g carbs 99.5 mg Calcium PB GF TIP: You can buy jars of tandoori sauce in most supermarkets. Be sure it does not contain corn syrup or sweeteners. Aim for 70-80 calories/ quarter cup
2 oz chicken breast, cooked or raw ½ cup eggplant, cubed 2 oz broccoli 2 oz bell peppers, cut in chunks 2 oz zucchini, sliced or cubed 2 oz carrots, sliced 1/4” thick or use ‘baby carrots’ cut in quarters ¼ cup brown rice, cooked TIP: when I cook a batch of brown rice, I freeze some in 1/4 cup portions to use for recipes like this ¼ c tandoori sauce: purchased or use the recipe in the link 2 Tbsp plain, non-fat yogurt
Cook the vegetables together in a little water until they are tender. Add the chicken and the sauce. Warm it all. If the chicken is raw, be sure to cook it through. Either stir the yogurt into the sauce or serve it atop the meal. Plate the brown rice [warm it if cold] and serve the chicken and vegetables on top. Perfect for eating on a hot night or a cold one.
Ingredients for next week: breakfast, single portion
| 1 two-oz egg | 1.5 two-oz eggs |
| Crushed tomatoes | mixed fresh herbs [to taste] |
| Anchovy + Pear | 1/4 cup zucchini, raw or cooked |
| Low-fat cottage cheese | Jarlsberg cheese |
| Tiny bit of cooked chicken | peach |
| optional smoothie | optional hot beverage |
| optional hot beverage | optional smoothie |
| 4 oz halibut | 3 cups grated zucchini + lettuce for salad |
| Olive oil + chicken stock | Onion + garlic |
| Onion + scallions + garlic | 3 eggs + lots of herbs |
| 2 cups diced tomatoes | Whole wheat ‘bisquick’ |
| 1.5 cups chickpeas, canned | 2 oz chicken breast + Parmesan cheese |
| 2 wedges Laughing Cow cheese | |
| Sparkling water | Sparkling water |
Eating well, with creative recipes, to follow the Fasting Lifestyle according to Michael Mosley's "Fast Diet." 