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.

The Large Hadron Collider is an enormous machine. It lurks 300 feet underground in a ring of tunnel. The tunnel channels charged particles [protons, which are classified as Hadrons] around and around the ring in opposite directions, eventually to slam the protons into each other inside the LHC. There they splinter into even tinier particles [quarks, gluons] which are detected by the various layers of the machine. On September 10, 2008, the LHC went on-line, a very exciting day for our family. Our Elder Son worked for three years at CERN, the research center that designed and built the LHC, in partnership with universities and science facilities around the world. He was a graduate student in physics and he was building and testing the Muon Filters before they were installed in the End Cap of the collider. Dear Husband and I were thrilled beyond measure to visit him there and to be taken on a tour of the work site. And I have the T-shirt to prove it.

Though an excellent cook, Elder Son nonetheless opted for convenience on workdays: he would prepare a smoothie for breakfast before he caught the bus for work. In that spirit, here is a morning shake to start your day. The dinner involves Swiss Chard, a nod to the fact that CERN is located just outside of Geneva, Switzerland.

Strawberry-Banana-Tofu Smoothie: 199 calories 3.4 g fat 3.7 g fiber 14 g protein 26 g carbs 360 mg Calcium  PB GF This is a dandy ‘shake’ for breakfast or lunch.

2 oz banana ½ c plain, fat free yogurt ½ cup sliced strawberries 2 Tbsp sugar 2.8 oz soft or firm tofu, which is 1/5 of a package 

Put everything in the blender and wizz it on “Low” until it is all chopped up. Then run it at a higher speed until it is smooth. HINT: If you want to, add another ½ cup of yogurt, or skimmed milk which will add more volume and bring the calorie count to 259.

Swiss Chard Fritatta:  284 calories 12.5 g fat 4 g fiber 18.7 g protein 24 g carbs [23 g Complex] 166 mg Calcium  PB GF — if using GF bread or omitting it  Susan Loomis is the source of this recipe, which also can be a wonderful breakfast, scaled down to serve two. HINT: Serves 2 as a main course. Could serve 4-6 as an appetizer.

3 oz swiss chard or fresh spinach 1/3 tsp olive oil 8 oz eggs = 4 two-oz eggs in their shells 3 pinches granulated garlic + 3 pinches salt + large pinch paprika 3 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese 1 oz 7-grain sour-dough bread, or something similarly hearty ¼ cup pickled beets 

Clean the chard by holding the leaf and pulling off the stem. Chop the leaves. Put olive oil in an oven-proof pan that can also be used on the stove-top. Turn on the broiler and move the upper rack to the top. Cook the chopped leaves in the oil until the leaves are limp, adding water as necessary to prevent sticking. Be sure to cook off the water/liquid in the pan. Combine the eggs, cheese and seasonings. Whisk well and pour over the chard in the pan. Cook over medium heat until the bottom is well set [4-5 minutes]. Put under the broiler until the top is cooked. Serve from the pan or slide the fritatta out onto a serving plate.

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

1 two-oz egg + 2 cucumbers	1.5 eggs
mint + piment d’emplette	Parmesan cheese
whole milk + Parmesan	applesauce
Fromage blanc + cantaloup	haggis
Optional smoothie	optional smoothie
optional hot beverage	optional hot beverage

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

cod cheeks + olive oil	Salmon + leek + peas
heavy cream + garlic	clam juice/fish stock + cayenne
Dijon mustard + asparagus	garlic + milk + cornstarch
white wine + chives	green beans + nutmeg + dill
Sparkling water	Sparkling water