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: a simple way to lose weight and be healthier.

You have heard of Saint Valentine, but do you know Dwynwen? Probably not. She was born in Wales to a noble father and was said to be the prettiest among her 23 sisters [her father had many servant girls]. Dwynwen fell in love with a local boy, but her father scotched that for he wanted her marriage to cement an alliance with another noble family. When he was turned down, Dwynwen’s enraged boyfriend angrily blamed her. Now afraid of both her father and her boyfriend, the young woman hid in the forest. She prayed that her broken heart would mend; that other people would be able to marry their true loves; and that she would never be married. Heavenly power may or may not have turned her former boyfriend into a big icicle, [which thawed after her intervention], but Dwynwen became a nun who traveled around Wales. At last she settled in Anglesley on the island of Ynys Llanddwyn. She built a church and convent there, the ruins of which still remain. Her grave and her holy well became pilgrimage sites after her death in 465 CE. Now the island is a nature preserve. Since the 1960s, Welsh people have been sending cards on Dydd Santes Dwynwen, and, in a move to revive the native language, they say  ‘dwi’n dy garu di ‘ to those whom they love.

Dwynwen is revered in Wales as the Patron Saint of lovers on her feast day January 25, so our breakfast and our dinner contain foods that are produced and consumed there.

Welsh Breakfast: 144 calories  7.5 g fat 1.5 g fiber 8 g protein 6.6 g carbs 45 mg Calcium  NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages.  PB GF  Eggs, bacon, and Bubble & Squeek constitute a fine breakfast in Wales — or anywhere.

1 slice uncured American streaky bacon 2 oz tomato, sliced  one 2-oz egg            1 Bubble & Squeek** patty [NB: if drinking tea only and no fruit beverage, serve 2 patties]      Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] Optional: 6 oz orange-rhubarb juice [65 calories] 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Cook bacon in a frying pan, remove and blot on paper towel. Cook the egg and Bubble & Squeek patty in the bacon fat. Slice and season tomatoes. Plate and thank St Dwynwen for your loved one.

**Bubble & Squeek makes 4 patties, each 34 calories                     1.4 g fat 1 g fiber 1 g protein 5 g carbs 14 mg Calcium                    ½ c potatoes mashed with skimmed milk  ½ c boiled cabbage, chopped  ¼ c scallion, chopped    Stir together and form into four patties, each about 40 g/ a scant 1/4 cup.

Leek & Mussel Gratin:  278 calories 10 g fat 5 g fiber 17.5 g protein  29 g carbs 240 mg Calcium  PB GF All the components of this meal are typical of Wales, UK. And — these fine ingredients make for a fine meal. If you are lucky, you might find a Welsh cheese.  HINT: The following recipe serves 2 [two].

5 oz /114 g mussels*, weighed after removing from the shells  ½ oz/15 g/2 Tbsp oat bran        ¼ cup/ 118 ml whole milk  6 oz leeks, trimmed, cleaned  Celtic Sea salt             1 oz Cheddar cheese [or the Welsh cheese Penbryn], grated    per person: 3 oz carrots, sliced as coins OR green beans   per serving: ¼ oz Cheddar, grated   *You could use oysters.

If starting with mussels in their shells, cook them briefly [5 minutes] in 1 inch of simmering water then cool and remove from shells. [Save the mussel broth for chowder.] Measure out milk and stir in oat bran. Do this early so it can sit for a bit. Slice the leeks cross-wise in ¼” slices. Steam them in a little water until limp. Drain and put in a saucepan with the mussels, milk-oat, cheese, and salt to taste. Stir to blend and heat over low. Spoon equally into two scallop shells – real or porcelain – or ramekins which have been spritzed with cooking spray. Top with the additional cheese. Bake at 375F for 15 minutes, until hot and the cheese on top is melted and browning. Meanwhile, prepare the vegetable. Plate it all and let your mind go wool-gathering to the mountains of Wales.

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

next week will feature an	1.5 two-oz eggs
anniversary menu retrospective	reduced fat ricotta
	dry mustard + peach
	Watercress Sauce:
optional smoothie	optional smoothie
optional hot beverage	optional hot beverage

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

next week will feature an	cooked chicken + mushrooms
anniversary menu retrospective	Brussel sprouts + green beans
	quick barley + orzo
	stock + chives or parsley  + thyme
Sparkling water	Sparkling water