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.

March 12, 1455 saw a momentous event in the history of communications. The Gutenberg Bible was printed. What was so special about that? asks the modern youngster who has moved beyond the printed word to read in e-texts. The big deal was that the book was printed using metal type — each letter cast separately — and those letters could be quickly re-arranged to spell many words. Prior to then, entire words were carved from wood to use in printing: cumbersome, slow, and expensive. Who was the brain behind this? We all refer to him as ‘Gutenberg’ but that was not his family name. His real name was Johannes Gensfleish. Since he was born and lived in the Gutenberg house in Mainz, Germany, the words ‘zum Gutenberg’ were tacked on to his name. His parents were minor aristocracy and their son was educated in languages, but also took up the practical skills of goldsmithing and clothing retail. Johannes had the idea for the press [based on wine presses he had seen], but lacked the funds to develop it. He borrowed the money and then went into partnership with the lender. After printing a few of the famous Bibles, the partner called in the debt. Johannes had to give up his press and his interest in the printing business. His ex-partner went on to print and sell the books. The Gutenberg press was not the first iteration of printing with movable type — the Chinese developed movable type made of clay in 1041. But Johannes Gensfleish’s press was a revelation in Europe and within years they were operating in most countries. Ideas in the form of books, broadsides, and newspapers flowed to the people. The information age had begun.

Our breakfast honors Johannes’ ‘baby’ by featuring a meal that is variously called German and Dutch. His press became multi-national too. The dinner is a classic of the Germanic repertoire.

German Pancake or Dutch Baby: 165 calories 8 g fat 4 g fiber 8 g protein 17 g carbs [7 g Complex] 95 mg Calcium  NB: Food values given are for the plated foods only, and do not include the optional beverage.  PB  On Sundays, we sometimes have these as a special breakfast treat. The recipe is found in the Breakfast Book  by Marion Cunningham and it is delicious. I was determined to make these fruit-covered popovers work for a Fast Day. Here it is: still delicious, but I would save it for a day with a LOW carb/high protein dinner. HINT: This recipe makes 2 [two] of the Dutch Babies. Either invite a friend for breakfast or freeze half of the batter for another time.

3 oz of egg [one 2-oz egg + one white] ¼ cup milk ¼ cup white whole wheat flour 2 tsp melted butter ¼ cup raspberries sprinkle of confectioner’s sugar Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [85 calories] or lemon in hot water Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie  [88 calories]

If starting the night before: combine the egg, milk, and flour in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate. The next morning, beat in the melted butter with a mixer.

If starting in the morning: combine the egg, milk, flour and beat in the melted butter with a rotaty mixer. Set the toaster oven at 450 F. Spritz a custard cup [I used a 3.5” cup but next time I’ll use the 4” cup] with non-stick spray and pour the batter into the cup. Bake for 15 minutes, until the baby is puffed and golden brown and baked on the bottom. Remove from the cup to a plate, top with berries and a sprinkle of 10X sugar. Celebrate something special while you enjoy your optional beverage.

Pork Schnitzel:  233 calories 10 g fat 3 g fiber 14 g protein 23 g carbs [10 g Complex] 31 mg Calcium   PB  If you find breaded pork loin cutlets at the butcher shop, snap them up for this easy, yet low calorie meal. Have the butcher verify that the cutlet + breading is indeed 3 oz in mass.

one 3-oz breaded pork loin cutlet [each ounce= 1 oz = 62 calories  3 fat g  0.3 g fiber  4 g protein  4.4 g carbs  6.2 mg Calcium]  2 oz beets 1 oz small red potatoes ½ oz mushrooms

Set the oven for 425F. Slice the red potatoes in half and place in an oven-proof pan. Spray liberally with non-stick spray and place in the oven. Set timer for 15 minutes. [Check the potatoes for done-ness at 15 minutes. They may need another few minutes – your call.] While the potatoes cook and the beets warm up in a pan, spray a heavy non-stick skillet with non-stick spray. When it is hot, begin to cook the pork schnitzel. Cook for 2-3 minutes on one side, then flip it over and put the mushrooms in the pan as well. Cook both for another 3 minutes. Plate the pork and vegetables. Pour the mushrooms on top of the schnitzel along with any pan juices. Very simple and satisfying.

Ingredients for next week: Breakfast, single portion for Monday ……… single portion for Thursday:

1 slice 70-calorie whole-grain bread	1 two-oz egg
cottage cheese, small-curd	slice bacon + strawberries
chives/scallion	10%-fat cream + nutmeg
3%-fat ham, thinly sliced	Swiss Cheese + cayenne
Optional smoothie	optional smoothie
optional hot beverage	optional hot beverage

Dinner, single portion for Monday: …….. single portion for Thursday:

cooked pheasant meat	cooked roast beef + shallot
carrots + cabbage + onion	pickled beet slices
pheasant or chicken gravy	Dijon mustard + shallot
Arnold Sandwich Thin [100 calories]	red wine vinegar + olive oil
Sparkling water	Sparkling water