Author: me

Slow Days: Siracusa Pasta

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People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically. 

Now for the answers. Can you really eat ANYTHING you want on a Slow Day? Not really. If you eat too many calories every Slow Day, you will not lose weight. There are many questions asked on the FastDiet Forum which attest to that. Once in a while your can splurge, as long as it isn’t everyday. For what to eat on Slow Days, Dr. Mosley recommends a Mediterranean Diet. As for how we eat, an example follows.

This recipe is from Lynne Rosetto Kasper’s book The Italian Country Table. She describes visiting the market in Siracusa, Sicily: the people she chats with and the ingredients that inspired this recipe. From them she makes a wondrous pasta dish. The following ingredients make enough for TWO [2] servings.

You will really need a mise en place for this preparation, so set it up now.

Sv 2
3 cloves Garlic, halved 
2 tsp olive oil		Sauté until pale gold and take from pan.
¼ cup red onion, choppedSaute over medium-high heat until transparant.
zest of orange and/or lemonAdd zest, cook 30 secs
1/4 c fresh oregano leaves/ 1 tsp. driedAdd oregano and cook 30 secs. Take off heat.
3 oz ditalini pastaCook pasta 5-6 mins until it is al dente. Reserve ½ cup of pasta water. 
½ c. pasta water
cooked garlic		Add pasta water and garlic to sauce pan and cook 30 secs.
Cooked pasta
½ cup basil 
8 oil-cured olives		Roughly shred the basil. Roughly chop olives. Add these, tossing everything to coat it with flavors. 
1 cup quartered cherry or Roma tomatoesPut tomatoes in pan and adjust seasoning.
3 oz mozzarella balls
basil leaves
optional: clementine or orange sections		Plate with the cheese balls on top. Strew with basil leaves and citrus sections.

I added spinach leaves and clementine sections for even more color and bright flavor.

Gosh it is good.

Alexander

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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.

Empires come, empires go. But the Empire of Alexander the Great was remarkable. His life is like a tale from Greek mythology: his mother told him of portents at the time of his birth; he tamed the wild horse Bucephalus at the age of 12; he studied with Aristotle; he won a major battle at age 18. No wonder he styled himself as ‘son of Zeus’ and assumed the status of a demi-god. In his 20 years as King of Macedonia, he took his armies East — all the way to India! — spreading Hellenistic culture along the way. Alexander was wise, he was literate. Alexander was cruel, he was violent when drunk. Alexander was a great leader, but his army and his generals condemned him for adopting ‘Persian’ ways. He died in 323 BC, while on campaign and by June 13, his reign was over. “Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair” could be said of Alexander. His conquests influenced the ambitions of both Julius Caesar and Napoleon.

Echoing the journey of Alexander, we begin the menu with Greek flavors at breakfast and go all the way to India for dinner.

Greek ScrOmelette: 152 calories 9.3 g fat 0.6 g fiber 12.6 g protein 4 g carbs [3 g Complex] 88.5 mg Calcium  NB: Food values shown are for the ScrOmelette and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages. PB GF Feta cheese is such a lovely ingredient. 

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, pour half of their volume into a jar with a lid, and put it in the ‘fridge for next week. 0.37 [3/8] oz feta cheese, reduced fat 1 Tbsp tomato puree [not tomato paste] large pinch of cinnamon + of oregano 1 Tbsp pomegranate seeds –OR– 1-1/4 oz applesauce sprinkled with cinnamon Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Cream the tomato puree with the feta cheese and seasonings, then whisk in the eggs. OR Whisk the eggs and pour into the pan. As soon as the bottom of the eggs sets, spread the cheesse-tomato-seasonings on top of the egg. Scramble or cook as an omelette. Prepare the beverages and spoon out the pomegranate/apple for a real taste of Greece.

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, 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 ¼ c tandoori sauce 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 for Monday ………………. single portion for Thursday:

1 sweet crepe 1.5 two-oz eggs 
low-fat French vanilla yogurtIndian curry powder
reduced fat ricottatomatoes + strawberries
fresh strawberriesplain, non-fat yogurt
uncured baconoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

cooked chicken + strawberriestwo 65-calorie corn tortillas
kiwi fruit + spinach leavescheddar + enchilada sauce
slivered almonds + dry mustardcarrot + broccoli + cauliflower
oil + poppy seeds + red wine vinegarchicken
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Crossroads: Indian Ocean

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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. Welcome to WeightLossNearMe who is now Following. Join us in the Fasting Lifestyle.

Locations where the tides of history throw divers cultures together are fascinating to me.  Goa is on the West coast of India. If ever there were a place where “East meets West,” this could be it.  Petroglyphs and stone tools show that people were living there at least 10,000 years ago.  By 1400 BCE,  immigrants had arrived from Africa, Australia, and Southern India.  Then came the Buddhists, bringing their Nepalese religion and cultural ways. Many Buddhists are vegetarian/vegan, but the Goan Buddhists were not due to their contact with the Saraswat Brahmins from Northern India.  In the heyday of the Greek and Roman Empires, their ships would stop in Goa to take on food and water.  And in 1510, the Portuguese arrived, making Goa a territory of Portugal until 1961.  The languages, the religions, the culinary traditions of many peoples swirl in the daily life of Goans. Perhaps because of the well-stirred melting pot, the Hindu majority lives in harmony with the minority Christians, and Muslims.  In some instances, the same foods are prepared one way by the Catholic population, and another way by the Hindu population — but they all agree on the rich spices and flavors of one of India’s smallest provinces.  Goa is an unusual little slice of the Indian mosaic. ‘Visitors’ have been arriving for centuries and they still visit today.                                                                                                                          

Due to the coastline and the influences of the “spices of Indies and the East” which lured the Portuguese, breakfast will include shrimp and mixed spices.  Dinner will be that most cross-cultural dish: pork vindaloo. 

Goan ScrOmelette: 150 calories…    7.6 g fat…   1 g fiber…   10.4 g protein…   10 g carbs…   57 mg Calcium… NB: Food values shown are for the ScrOmelette and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages.   PB GF The mixture of spices and spicy foods called Cafreal Masala is typical of Goan cuisine. It really delivers a punch to these eggs!

++ 1½ 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, pour half of their volume into                                                  a jar with a lid, and put it in the ‘fridge for next week.  ++++1.5 tsp cafreal masala [see recipe on above website] ++++ ½ oz shrimp, cooked and chopped  ++++ 1.5 oz mango ++++ Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea++++ Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Whisk the eggs and pour into a hot pan that has been spritzed with non-stick spray. Sprinkle the shrimp on top. Drizzle the masala paste onto the eggs and swirl it into the eggs as they cook, sort of like putting the chocolate into marble cake batter. Plate with the mango and serve with your choice of optional beverages.

Vindaloo Pork & Mushrooms: 250 calories… 7.2 g fat… 5 g fiber… 21 g protein… 15 g Carbs…. 52.5 mg Calcium…  PB GF From southern India comes the complex flavor of vindaloo. You can substitute turkey for the pork or eliminate the meat and use extra mushrooms for a meatless meal. 

++ ¾ Tbsp vindaloo seasonings++++1 clove garlic ++++ ¼ tsp ground ginger ++++1 tsp canola oil ++++ 1/3 cup [~1.25 oz] onion ++++ 1.5 Tbsp cider vinegar ++++ ¼ tsp sugar ++++2.5 oz pork OR turkey, cut in matchsticks ++++ 100 g [3.5 oz] mushrooms ++++ 1.5 oz broccoli ++++ ¼ cup brown rice or couscous++

Mince the garlic and add the vindaloo spices and the ginger. Stir in vinegar and toss the meat with this marinade. Let sit for 30-60 minutes. Saute the onions in the oil until beginning to brown, adding water if necessary to prevent sticking. Add the meat and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the broccoli and cook further for 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and sugar and cook for one minute more. Serve with the couscous or brown rice.

D-Day

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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.

June 6, 1944. Only a fraction of the people who participated in D-Day are still alive. In a final push to defeat Hitler in World War II, the Allied troops [United Kingdom, United States, Canada, the Free French, and Polish forces] crossed the English Channel and landed on the beaches of Normandy, France.  If you have never been to the “Invasion Beaches” then watch that part of Saving Private Ryan.  Only then will you appreciate the audacity and courage of that action.  We visited Normandy last month.  After the war, a huge effort was made to rebuild the towns and buildings that were destroyed in the Allied and German bombings — now it looks so serene and pastoral and quaint.  The graveyards are moving [watching the opening scene in Saving Private Ryan is enough to make me cry.] The history is all around you.  Even though it was 75 years ago, the Normans and the people of France have not forgotten.  Nor should we.                                   In honor of the 75th anniversary of D-Day, we will start with a meal of classic Norman flavors: Camembert cheese and apples.  For dinner, a mess-kit meal that the American GIs might have eaten the night of June 6 on top of the cliffs of Normandy while they pondered their gains and thought about their fallen comrades.

Camembert Bake: 146 calories  10 g fat   0.6 g fiber  9 g protein  6 g carbs [5 g Complex]   90 mg Calcium   NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages.  PB GF  The best-known cheese of Normandy stars in this egg dish. Easy to prepare and so delicious. I hope you will try it.Camembert Bake 2

One 2-oz egg                                                                                                             ½ oz Camembert                                                                                                         1 tsp Dijon mustard                                                                                                    grating of nutmeg                                                                                                         2 oz strawberries OR 1.5 oz apple slices                                                            Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water Optional:  5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Freeze the cheese, then grate it while frozen. -OR- Cut the cheese [rind and all] into small chunks and leave to soften at room temperature. Stir in the mustard and nutmeg. Whisk the egg, then stir in the cheese mixture. Pour into an oven-proof dish that has been spritzed with non-stick spray and bake at 350° F for 12-15 minutes. When the beverages are ready, plate with the fruit.

Beanie Wienies:   300 calories   4.3 g fat   8.6 g fiber  14.3 g protein 43 g carbs 74 mg Calcium PB GF  My husband grew up eating this with his childhood chums. What could be simpler? And the carb count is due to the good fiber of beans and carrots. So complex.Beanie Wienies

1 reduced fat hot dog [we like Hebrew National all beef franks or Applegate]                                                            ¾ cup canned baked beans                                                                                                            1 oz carrots, cooked or raw

Put the baked beans in a small sauce pan. Cut the hot dogs into 1” pieces [on the diagonal, my husband would say] and add to the pan. Warm thoroughly. Plate with the carrots and think about food memories of childhood.

Ingredients for next week:

Breakfast, single portion for Monday ………………… single portion for Thursday:

1 two-oz egg   + soy sauce 1.5 two-oz eggs
ginger  +  bean sprouts + scallions pomegranate seeds/applesauce
crab meat  + semolina flour cinnamon  +  oregano
garlic powder  + clementines feta cheese  + tomato puree
Whatever you need for your smoothie Whatever you need for your smoothie
Whatever you need for your hot beverage Whatever you need for your hot beverage

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

vindaloo seasoning + garlic chicken breast   + eggplant
ginger + onion + vinegar + oil + sugar  broccoli + sweet pepper + carrot
mushrooms + pork OR turkey plain yogurt  + zucchini
brown rice couscous tandoori sauce  + brown rice
Sparkling water Sparkling water

Breakfasts on the Wall

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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. Welcome to Organic Tree who is now Following.

End of the Trail

We all like to go on vacation: to visit new places and have new experiences. It has been said that “Travel is broadening.”  But that can be a problem — you go on a great trip and come back with several extra pounds.  Often the reason given is that “when you stay in a hotel, you have to eat off the menu and therefore you can’t possibly continue to Fast.”  I’m here to argue against that.  Two years ago, I went on a hiking trip with our cousin and her son. The Hadrian’s Wall Path is 84 miles long. We started on the East end [Wallsend, Northumberland] and walked to the West end [Bowness-on-Solway, Cumbria].  And all along the way we stayed in a variety of places: from hotels to inns to holiday parks. The Wall and the Wall Path were truly  amazing: a wonderful walk through beautiful countryside and pretty villages.  We hiked 8 days, ranging from 5 to 19 miles per day.  Can you Fast while on vacation? Yes.  Can you Fast and still go hiking? Yes. It was great.  The trip covered two Fast Days and here are some of my breakfast choices for the week:

2-3gg omelette on the road

A two-egg omelette ordered off the menu with a side of mushrooms and a cup of coffee was just what I needed at the Benkinsopp Castle Inn in Brampton.

Fasting on the Trail

                                                                In East Wallhouses, at the Robin Hood Inn, scrambled eggs on toast became the perfect start to a day on the Path. This is similar to a meal we would have at home a Fast Day. [The extra pieces of toast were not eaten.]

English Breakfast on the Trail

Of course at some point in England one will be served the Full English Breakfast, as we were at the Gilsland Spa Hotel in Brampton. This can be a temptation for a real pig-out, but I opted for lots of protein and some fruit yogurt.

La Florida

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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 May of 1539, Hernando de Soto thought he was on to something.  After helping to subdue Peru and Mexico for Spain, he retired back home as a very wealthy man.  Though newly-married, the young father was restless for the soldier’s life. He had been named ‘Governor of Cuba and La Florida‘, so he sold everything [What did his wife have today about that??] to provision 10 ships with 700 chosen soldiers. Off they went to the new world.  After a stop in Havana to drop off his wife, they landed in Tampa Bay (Florida) on May 30, 1539. And then they sought gold: North through Florida, into Georgia, North Carolina; West into Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana they went, doing their usual Conquistador deeds. [For God and King? The king might have approved, but God surely didn’t.] Three years later, no gold, no riches, no fountain of youth: only angry natives, sickness, battles, and wounds. In May, 1542, de Soto died of fever on the banks of the Mississippi River and his body was sunk into the water to preserve the illusion that he could not die.  There was a car named after him…                                                                                              In memory of all the indigenous peoples whom he killed or oppressed, we have a breakfast based on the Cuban/Miami sandwich ‘the Cubano‘ and a dinner with ingredients grown in the sunshine of modern Florida.

Cubano ScrOmelette: 151 calories  8.5 g fat  0 g fiber  12.2 g protein  0.8 g carbs   71 mg Calcium NB: Food values shown are for the ScrOmelette and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages.  GF  The famous Miami sandwich comes to the Fasting breakfast table, with every flavor intact!Cubano ScOmelette

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.                                                                                                   1/8 oz ham, diced                                                                                                                                   ¼ oz Swiss cheese, diced                                                                                                                   ¼ oz pork, diced [this could be from a previous roast or a grilled tenderloin]                                           ¼ tsp mayonnaise                                                                                                                           1.5 tsp dill pickle, diced                                                                                                                               Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water                       Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Cut up the meats and combine in a small dish. Dice the pickle and whisk with the mayonnaise and the eggs. Spritz a saute pan with non-stick spray and heat it. Put the meat mixture into the hot sauté pan to warm, then add the eggs. Scramble together [or cook like an omelette] until the way you like it. Pour your beverages and enjoy a semi-tropical start to your day.

Grapefruit-Avocado Salad:  289 calories  20 g fat  6.4 g fiber  18 g protein  15.3 g carbs [14.5 g Complex]  75.5 mg Calcium   PB GF  This is delicious, nutritious, and satisfying. Real food. Good food.grapefruit-avocado salad

1 two-oz egg, hard-boiled                                                                                                               2.5 oz avocado [this was half an avocado], sliced in 4 pieces                                                               3.3 oz pink grapfruit sections [you need 4 sections]                                                                                       1.75 cups lettuce, sliced/shredded                                                                                                      1 oz cooked chicken breast [you could substitute 4 shrimp for a vegetarian meal]                          ½ tsp white wine vinegar + ½ tsp lime-infused olive oil + ¼ tsp ground ginger lemon finishing salt

Whisk the oil, vinegar, and ginger in a meduim-sized bowl. Add the lettuce and toss to coat with the dressing. Remove the lettuce to a serving plate, letting some of the dressing drip back into the bowl. Spread the lettuce evenly over the plate and sprinkle with the finishing salt. Starting at the center with the egg, arrange the grapefruit and avocado around the plate. Place the chicken as you wish. Brush the remaining dressing on the grapefruit and avocado.

Ingredients for next week:

Breakfast, single portion for Monday ………………… single portion for Thursday:

next Monday I will discuss ways to 1 two-oz eggs
maintain a 5:2 lifestyle while Camembert cheese
traveling Dijon mustard   +  nutmeg
apples/strawberries
choose a new favorite from the Archive Whatever you need for your smoothie
Whatever you need for your hot beverage

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

baked beans
choose a new favorite from the Archive low-fat hotdogs, 110 calories
carrots
Sparkling water Sparkling water

No Exit

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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.                   Welcome to Kirilson who is now Following.

When it comes to Existentialism, Jean-Paul Sartre was in the forefront. In the Nazi-occupied Paris, he produced a one-act play titled “Huis Clos.”  That is a French legal term meaning ‘a trial behind closed doors’ although the title in English is usually given as “No Exit.”  French citizens during the war were presented with many choices: stay or flee; collaborate or resist; fight or be passive.  To Sartre, humans have the freedom to make any choices we want — even not taking an action involves choice.  But responsibility comes with each choice; with each non-action.  The play involves 3 characters who have made and continue to make choices, all of which makes their lives and those around them unhappy.  Whether or not you subscribe to the message that “Hell is other people,” Sartre wanted us to explore the options we have and the consequences of the choices we make.                                                       On May 27, 1944, the play opened. Since the play takes place in a drawing room in Hell, our menus contain ingredients with some fire in them: green chile and red curry paste. You can add more, if you like it hotter. You have choices about what you eat and how much of it.

Green Chile-Egg Galette: 147 calories   6 g fat  1.7 g fiber  9 g protein  24.6 g carbs [12 g Complex]  36.4 mg Calcium  PB  The bite of the green chiles, the nutty taste of the galette, the rich taste of egg: what a remarkable flavor combination. Eat with a fork or pick it up in your hand.Green Chili-Egg Crepe

1 galette/crepe [see SIDEKICKS I, Sept 17, 2017 for recipe]                                one 2-oz egg                                                                                                                 2 Tbsp roasted green chiles                                                                                   1 oz apples OR pears                                                                                                Optional:  blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water     Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Whisk the egg with the chiles and pour into a 6” cast iron pan or small saute pan spritzed with non-stick spray. [If serving two, pour egg mixture into a 4×6” oven-proof dish spritzed with non-stick spray. Bake at 350 F. for 12 minutes] Cook the egg by gently lifting the edges to allow un-cooked egg to flow underneath. Meanwhile, gently heat the galette/crepe: wrap in a tea-towel and put in the microwave for 1 minute OR put in an un-greased sauté pan over low heat for less than 1 minute, then turn over for another 30 seconds. Plate the crêpe with the fruit, put the egg on top of it, then fold over. Pour the beverages and put some zip in your morning.

Halibut in Thai Coconut Curry:  258 calories  14 g fat   1.7 g fiber   21 g protein   9.7 g carbs [5 g Complex]   139 mg Calcium PB GF  This is from Alaska from Scratch by Maya Wilson and it is delicious.Halibut w: Coconut Curry

1 tsp olive oil, separated                                                                                             3 cups spinach, lightly packed                                                                                     1 Tbsp shallots, chopped                                                                                             3/4 Tbsp Thai red curry paste or more to taste                                                        1/4 cup chicken broth                                                                                                        3.5 fluid oz light coconut milk                                                                                pinch sugar                                                                                                                         3 oz halibut fillet                                                                                                         2 Tbsp scallion                                                                                                            1-1/2 tsp lime juice

Heat ½ tsp olive oil in a wide saute pan with 1-2 Tbsp water. Add the spinach with salt and pepper and toss in the oil until greens begin to wilt. Remove to a bowl and cover to keep warm. Put ½ tsp oil in the pan with the shallots and cook 2 minutes more. Add curry paste, chicken broth, coconut milk, and sugar. Whisk to combine and simmer on low until reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Salt the fish and add to the broth in the pan, spooning some broth on top of the fish. Cover and poach 5 minutes per 1/2” of thickness. Put greens in the serving bowl and top with fish. Stir scalions and lime juice into broth, turn heat up briefly. Ladle broth over the fish and greens. Optional: ¼ cup brown rice.

Margaret Wise Brown

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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 Runaway Bunny, 1942. The Little Fur Family, 1946.  Mr Dog, 1949. Goodnight, Moon, 1947.  Did you love those books as a child? Did you read them to your own children? [I read the Runaway Bunny so often to our older son that I memorized it.  Our younger son would not take a nap unless Mr Dog was read to him.] Those titles and almost 100 others are the work of the author Margaret Wise Brown who was born on May 23, 1910.  After college, she trained as a writer then became an editor of children’s books at Harper.  Although she famously once said, “I don’t particularly like children,”  she clearly understood the sort of book would appeal to them: books with adventure, independence, and the reassurance of home. And then there were the wonderful illustrations by Clement Hurd, Garth Williams, and others.  She was not, as an NPR article put it, “the quiet old lady whispering ‘hush’.”  Brown was ever questing and out of the box. Her love affairs might have shocked the parents who bought her books. Just as she was getting ready to settle down, she had emergency surgery in Nice, France.  Upon release from bed rest, she executed an exuberant high kick, dislodged a blood clot, and died. Good night, Margaret. And yet, as James ‘Pebble’ Rockefeller, her fiancé, said of her, “her light is burning ever brighter.”                                                                                                                            To celebrate her birthday, we will eat colorful foods [The Color Kittens, 1949] and foods from Southern France, which she toured before her death.

Spinach Frittata

Spinach Fritatta: 131 calories  9.4 g fat  1.5 g fiber  17.2 g protein  24 g carbs 311.5 mg Calcium  PB GF Long an item in food magazine brunch articles, it was time to take it to the Fasting table. Worth the wait: delicious and filling.

1 two-oz egg                                                                                                                                                               1 egg white                                                                                                                                                                            1 Tbsp cottage cheese                                                                                                                                                          1/4 oz Manchego cheese, grated                                                                                                                                        2 Tbsp scallions, chopped                                                                                                                        ½ clove garlic, minced                                                                                                                                     3 Tbsp cooked spinach pressed, drained, chopped                                                                                                     salt to taste + nutmeg  + garlic powder                                                                                                  2 oz kiwi/strawberry                                                                                                                                  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water               Optional: 3 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [44 calories]

Combine the cheeses, mushrooms, garlic, spinach, and flavorings. Spritz a 4” custard cup with non-stick spray and spread the cheese mixture evenly in the bottom. [I was cooking for 2 and used an oval 5×7” baking dish] HINT: do this the night before and leave on the counter. Set the oven for 375° F.  Beat the eggs until broken up and frothy. Pour over the spinach/cheese mixture and bake for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the optional beverages and plate the fruit. Breakfast is great.

Chicken Ratatouille Crepes

Chicken Ratatouille Galettes: 267 calories   7.6 g fat   5 g fiber   24 g protein   38 g carbs  321 mg Calcium     PB     Galettes/Crêpes are wonderful to have on hand for use with a variety of fillings. If you had the galettes/crepes and the filling previously-made, then the meal goes together in no time.

2 galettes [that’s the name for a buckwheat crêpe] [see Sidekicks I, Sept 17, 2017]                                                                                                                               1.5 oz chicken breast, cooked                                                                                                           ½ cup Mediterranean Vegetables [see SIDEKICKS II Oct 4, 2017]                                                      1 Tbsp goat cheese    +    1 oz mozzerella cheese                                                                                  herbes de Province OR tarragon

If making crepes/galettes from scratch now: prepare the batter and let stand 30+ minutes. If using frozen crêpes, put them in a plastic bag on the counter and let them thaw. Turn on the oven to 250 F.. Cut or shred the chicken into small pieces. Put into pan with the Med.Veg. and heat enough to warm the vegetables, to reduce the liquids, and to cook the chicken. Take off heat. Prepare the crêpes/galettes: either cook them now from batter or finish the thawing process by putting them in a warm oven. Add cheeses to mixture in the pan, and stir to combine. Toss in lots of herbes de Province or fresh herbs and taste for seasoning. Arrange the galettes on a cookie sheet and divide the filling among them. Fold over, pressing down gently. Heat in the warm oven.

Ingredients for next week:

Breakfast, single portion for Monday ………………… single portion for Thursday:

1 two-oz egg1.5 two-oz eggs  +  ham
1 buckwheat crepecooked pork,
roasted green chilesSwiss cheese
peardill pickle
Whatever you need for your smoothieWhatever you need for your smoothie
Whatever you need for your hot beverageWhatever you need for your hot beverage

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

halibut   + olive oil + scallionsalad greens + chicken
spinach + shallot  + chicken brothgrapefruit  + avocado
Thai red curry paste1 egg +  lime-flavored oil
lite coconut milk + limewhite wine vinegar
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Vasco da Gama

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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.

On May 20, 1498, the first Europeans reached the Indian subcontinent by sea.  Vasco da Gama was the leader of the expedition under orders from King Manuel of Portugal. Up until then, no one had any idea of reaching India by sailing around Africa — but it worked.  By following the currents in the South Atlantic Ocean, da Gama rounded the southern tip of Africa [which the explorer Dias optimistically named the Cape of Good Hope] and then followed the currents up the east coast.  He took on a native pilot and arrived at Calicut [aka Calcutta, now Kolkata].  Da Gama’s return to Portugal with spices and silks earned him wealth and fame.  How did this sit with the Indians?  Not too well, aparently — he was sent back to put down a rebellion against Portugal and then returned as governor in 1524, when he died. Was da Gama’s arrival in India a good thing? Probably not — colonialism is rarely beneficial to the colonized people. But it established a link between ‘East’ and ‘West’ and perhaps some good has come from the mixing of cultures.                                                                                                                                                   The meals today begin with vegetables and Indian curry cooked into eggs. Appropriate since curry is a melange of spices the like of which the Europeans craved.  Dinner is purely Eurocentric: fish and chips with a Portuguese twist: just the sort of thing you get when cultures meet in the kitchen.

Curried Vegetable Bake: 123 calories   5 g fat  1.3 g fiber  7 g protein  11.6 g carbs [9.5 g Complex]   41.5 mg Calcium   NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages.   PB GF   If you like the warm, spicy taste of curry, then feel free to add more to this dish.

Curry Bake

one 2-oz egg                                                                                                                                     1/2  oz broccoli, cooked and diced                                                                                                              1/2 oz carrot, cooked and diced [HINT: use leftovers from a dinner]                                     1 Tbsp Indian curry powder -OR-  4 Tbsp curry sauce [see Sidekicks I, from Sept. 17, ’17] additional curry powder, salt, garlic powder, all to taste                                                                   2 oz applesauce                                                                                                                                  Optional:  blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water                         Optional:  5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie  [88 calories]

Spritz a ramekin with non-stick spray and set the toaster oven to 350 degrees F. Whisk together the vegetables, seasonings, and the curry powder/sauce until well blended. Whisk the egg into the mixture and turn into the ramekin. Bake about 15 minutes while you portion the applesauce and prepare the optional beverages.

Portuguese Fish & Chips:   260 calories    6.3 g fat     4.7 g fiber   24 g protein    28 g carbs [27 g Complex]    60 mg Calcium    PB GF – if using GF flour  From our favorite dinner place in Souris, PEI, 21 Breakwater , comes this house specialty from the chef’s native cuisine. The batter is so light that it lets the lime-infused fish shine through. The recipe takes little time to accomplish. I have described it in detail so you can be successful.

Portugese Fish & Chips

3 oz tilapia or hake or other firm-fleshed white fish                                                                                                                          1 fl. oz lime juice or lemon juice                                                                                                                    1 egg white + 1 egg yolk, separated                                                                                                  2 Tbsp white whole wheat flour                                                                                                3 oz sweet potato, peeled                                                                                                                 ½ tsp canola oil                                                                                                                                 ½ tsp granulated garlic     +   ¼ tsp paprika    +      black pepper                                                                                                                           2 oz asparagus or broccoli

Marinate the fish in the lime juice with a pinch of salt and pepper for up to 30 minutes. Set the oven to 425 F. Peel the sweet potato and cut lengthwise into 1/4” slices. Cut each slice into 1/4” sticks. Put the oil in the non-stick pan that you will use to cook the fish. Add the potato sticks to the pan and toss about to coat with oil. Combine the granulated garlic, paprika, and pepper, and sprinkle on the potato sticks. Toss to distribute the seasonings. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil with the dull side up. Spray liberally with non-stick spray. HINT: You could do this 1-2 hours in advance. Distribute the potatoes on the pan so they do not touch. Put in oven for 10-12 minutes. Meanwhile, put the asparagus on to cook. Take the fish from the marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Dredge lightly with flour. Whip the egg white into soft peaks. Fold in the egg yolk and remaining flour from dredging the fish. Heat the non-stick pan and spray with non-stick spray. Remove the fries from the oven and turn them over. Return to oven for 10 minutes more. Dip the fish in the egg batter so that it is coated on all sides. Cook the fish on one side over medium heat for 6 minutes, then on the other side for 6 minutes or until fork tender. When fries are done, turn off oven, open the door, and leave the fries in there for up to 5 more minutes. Plate all that good food and live it up.

Slow Days: Florentine Sandwich

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People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.

Now for the answers. Can you really eat ANYTHING you want on a Slow Day?  Not really. If you eat too many calories every Slow Day, you will not lose weight. There are many questions asked on the FastDiet Forum  which attest to that.  Once in a while you can splurge, as long as it isn’t everyday. For what to eat on Slow Days, Dr. Mosley recommends a Mediterranean Diet. As for how we eat, an example follows.

Our FirstBorn and his wife love to travel.  On a trip to Firenze, Italy, in addition to the art and history, they discovered a panini shop and this sandwich.  They prepared it for us when we visited them and gifted us with the ingredients at Christmas.  How splendid to have generous, creative offspring!  The bread is a ‘no knead’ Focaccia, recipe perfected by FirstBorn, which is really easy to bake — although it needs an 8-12 hour rising time, which takes some planning ahead.  Surely you could buy some bread locally.  My batch produced 4 round loaves, 8″ in diameter, each weighing 6-7 oz.

The ingredients to serving two are simple: 1 loaf focaccia bread, 2 Tbsp creamy white cheese [Stracchino or crème fraiche or whipped cream cheese or Philadelphia brand 1/3 fat Cream Cheese [‘Neufchatel’], 2 Tbsp truffle cream [combination of mushrooms, oil, truffles], 1 oz uncured capicola ham, and 1.5 cups arugula or ‘spring mix’ greens. Florentine Sandwiches, mise                                       To assemble, cut the loaf around the equator into two equal rounds.  Spread the soft cheese on the bottom round, then spread on the truffle cream.  Arrange the ham evenly on top, then heap on the greens.  Sprinkle with a good finishing salt and top with the other piece of the loaf.Florentine Sandwiches, plated   This serves two very nicely, or three if you had more sides than the cherry tomatoes.