Following the Fast Diet Lifestyle

…not by bread…

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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.

As it is my habit to link a new post to recipes in an older post, imagine my dismay when I discovered that the ‘Not by Bread’ post [from February 2018] had disappeared into the ether! Here I have resurrected it, as best I could, for your use.

The Good Book says that “Man shall not live by bread alone.” [Matthew 4, verse 4] Most people on a diet of any sort start by cutting down on bread and some diets cut it out altogether. With the Fast Diet, entire food groups are not eliminated: on a Fast Day, they might be minimized; on a Slow Day, they are fine to eat in moderation. Here are a few ‘breads’ that I use on Fast Days as part of a meal. You will notice that I usually use ‘white whole wheat’ flour instead of just plain white. The former is higher in fiber and slightly lower in calories, which makes it a better choice for a Fast Day.

BANNOCK:  each 2” bannock = 16 calories 0.5 g fat 0.2 g fiber 0.4 g protein 2.2 g carbs 4.2 mg Calcium  Bannock is part of the diet of the Scots, the way Soda Bread is to the Irish. This recipe makes the full batch, which yields 3 cups of dry mix. The dry mix keeps well in a sealed glass jar in a cool dry place. Splendid for breakfast [ex: Bannock & Bacon] or with a soup. NB: 1-½ cup of dry mix makes 16 [sixteen] 2” bannocks 

Bannock & Bacon with applesauce = an excellent start to the day.

1 cup flour ½ cup white whole wheat flour 1.5 Tbsp sugar 1 cup rolled oats, called ‘old fashioned’ in the US, as opposed to ‘instant’ 4 Tbsp butter at room temperature or cold pinch of salt 1 Tbsp baking powde

To prepare the dry mix: Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and stir. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until well-incorporated. Measure out the amount you need into a bowl, and put the remaining dry mix into a jar for storage. To prepare the dough: Add milk a little bit at a time to the bowl of mix and stir with a fork. Add a little more milk until a stiff dough ball is formed. Roll out on a lightly-floured board until 1/3” thick. Cut out with a 2” round cutter. Gather the scraps together, reroll, and continue to cut out the rounds. Bake on a lightly-greased baking sheet at 400 F. for 10-12 minutes.

DUMPLING:  each = 70 calories 0.2 g fat 2.6 g fiber 3.0 g protein 23 g carbs 130 mg Calcium This savory dumpling is the type you cook over a stew, such as Chicken Fricasse. It comes from Fannie Farmer. HINT: makes 2, but the recipe can be easily increased.

Chicken Fricassee with Dumplings is one of our favorites.

5 Tbsp white whole wheat flour 2/3 tsp baking powder pinch salt + pinch sugar + spices or herbs 2 Tbsp/1 fl. oz milk 

Combine all the dry ingredients, then stir in the milk. The batter should be stiff but not dry. [add a little stew broth or water if needed] Bring your stew to a simmer. Spoon the batter onto the stew so that the batter is on not in the liquid: the dumpling should steam not poach. Cook uncovered 10 minutes, then cover and cook another 10 minutes.

PAN MUFFIN  each: 71 calories 2.5 g fat 0.8 g fiber 1.8 g protein 10.8 g carbs 8.5 mg Calcium These are a dandy little bread to add to a breakfast plate. You will see them in Roman Breakfast, and Cottage Breakfast with egg.

1 cup Bob’s Red Mill 10-grain hot cereal mix   
1-¼ cup buttermilk/soured milk		Combine cereal and milk in a small bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes, while preparing other ingredients.  
1/3 cup butter   1/3 cup sugar 1 two ounce egg Cream the butter and sugar, then mix in the egg. 
1 cup unbleached flour 1 tsp salt 1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda		Add the dry ingredients and the cereal/milk mixture. Stir until just combined. 
2 Tbsp batter for each pan muffinPortion the batter onto a hot griddle or flat-bottomed pan spritzed with non-stick spray. Cook on both sides.

YORKSHIRE PUDDING:  ¼ cup = 77 calories 0.7 g fat 0.6 g fiber 4 g protein 17 g carbs 25 mg Calcium 1/3 cup = 107 calories 1 g fat 0.8 g fiber 5 g protein 23 g carbs 35.6 mg Calcium On a Fast Day, Yorkshire Pudding and its sister, the Popover, are a delightful addition to a meal. On a Slow Day, this treat is still permissible in meals such as Toad in the Hole and Kippered Yorkshire Pudding.

Here are mini Toad in the Hole for breakfast near Christmas.

one 2-oz egg ½ cup white whole wheat flour 1/2 cup unbleached white flour ½ tsp salt ½ cup water ½ cup fat-free milk

Mix all the ingredients together and let the batter stand at room temp for 30-60 minutes or in ‘fridge overnight. You will need ¼ cup to 1/3 cup of the batter per person. HINT: The remainder can be frozen in 1 cup or 1/3 cup batches for future meals. When it is time to use the batter, beat it with a rotary beater until it is frothy.

Slow Days: Hake with Green Sauce

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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.

In April, disappointed that our trip to France was canceled, we decided that if we couldn’t be in Gascony, we could eat as if we were in Gascony. After scouring our cookbooks, we chose recipes for dinner, and sometime breakfast, that would be typical of where we would have been on a particular date. Thus we “dined out” in the restaurants of our imaginations. One of the earliest meals was named Hake in Green Sauce. There is no sauce. “Green Sauce” is a centuries-old term for vegetables served on or with the protein of the meal. In Spanish, the term is ‘salsa verde,’ which we today think of as a mild-hot condiment in a jar. The recipe, called “Merluza, Salsa Verde,” is found in Anne Willan’s French Regional Cooking.

The ingredients you see pictured are enough for two people.

Hake, new potatoes [our’s were multi-colored], garlic, oil, crushed red pepper, peas and asparagus comprise the ingredients. The potatoes are simmered in boiling water for 15 minutes, then drained. The peas are cooked until just tender, then shocked in cold water and drained. Same for the asparagus. The hake is seasoned, then dredged lightly in flour. Brown the hake in an oil-coated pan until lightly brown on both sides, but not cooked through. Arrange the dish in an oven-safe dish [I used the tart pan you see in the above photo] and sprinkle with the hot pepper flakes and chopped garlic. Put the potatoes around the edges of the fish, then put the vegetables on top. Sprinkle with parsley, salt, and pepper. Pour 1/4 cup water into the dish, cover it, and bake at 375F/190C for 15-20 minutes, when the fish will be tender.

This is really good — I ate the whole thing!

Slow Days: Sourdough Pancakes

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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.

It is almost a joke now that during the Pandemic Lock-Down, people vowed that they would use the time to perfect the art of baking: specifically sourdough bread. It seemed to be the culinary equivalent of reading War and Peace — something to get around to when you had time. Early on, bread flour and yeast were GONE from supermarket shelves. New England’s flour-of-choice, King Arthur brand from Vermont, was not even available on-line. For those who have sourdough starter [don’t be a wimp — start your own starter!], be aware that there are many things to do with it, besides making bread. Recently, we made Sourdough Pancakes [click link for recipe] for Sunday Breakfast. A real treat and easy to do.

HINT: For two people, I cut the recipe in half. The night before, I combine the flours with the sugar, oil, buttermilk [substitute = soured milk], salt, and starter. This is left on the counter overnight to ripen.

The next morning, the batter is stirred. An egg and the baking soda are added in. The mixture needs to sit a few minutes while you heat the griddle, set the table, and make the coffee. By now the batter is foaming in the bowl.

This recipe resulted in 14 pancakes: enough for today’s breakfast, another meal later, and 2 for a snack with peanut butter and jelly.

Lightly butter the griddle and use a 1/4 cup measure to pour 3-4 Tablespoons of batter on the hot surface. Continue until there is no more space on the pan. When the top of each pancake starts to develop ‘eyes’ [little holes], it is time to flip them to the other side.

Served with maple syrup [our own, I’m happy to say] and sausages — what a treat! The breakfast is completed by the berry-yogurt smoothie and mocha cafe au lait which we enjoy every morning. Great start to a great day. A lot easier than making bread.

Slow Days: Yogurt, DIY

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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 Fast Diet 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.

I was so happy to come across this recipe by Priya Krishna in the New York Times food column. In my past, making yogurt has been a chore and the results were not worth the effort and worry of watching the thermometer like a hawk and wishing I could maintain temperatures in my cooler-than-most kitchens. Usually the recipe failed. This has been foolproof and perfect every time.

The recipe’s author’s words are in quotation marks. All other directions are my paraphrasing or telling what has worked for me.

1 quart milk, 1/4 cup yogurt, the heavy pan to heat the milk, the glass jar in which the yogurt will ripen over-night, the little amount of water for the bottom of the heating pot.
4 cups milk
[Smallest burner on high = 10 mins] 		“Evenly coat the bottom of a medium Dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed pot with a thin, 1/4-inch-thick layer of water. (To prevent milk from sticking to the bottom of the pot.)” Set the pot over high heat. “Add the milk to the water in the pot, and heat until it just comes to a boil, watching closely: As soon as you start to see bubbles forming, take off heat.” 
“Let the milk cool until it reaches 130 F. degrees, about 25 mins. If you don’t have a thermometer, the milk should be warm enough that you can comfortably stick your (clean!) finger in it — it should feel hot, but not hot enough to scald (think of a Jacuzzi).” There might be a skin on the top of the milk at this point.
Here is 1 Tablespoon of yogurt in the bottom of the 1-Qt glass jar.
1 Tbsp yogurt  “Smear the bottom of a 1-quart lidded glass container with 1 Tbsp of yogurt. (A dab in the center is fine; you needn’t spread the yogurt evenly to coat the bottom.)“
3 Tbsp yogurt “When the milk has cooled, add remaining yogurt to milk and whisk until the yogurt has completely dissolved into the milk.” I use a balloon whisk and stir 50 times clockwise, 50 times counter-clockwise, then 50 times clockwise. You want it thoroughly mixed.
“Pour the mixture into the prepared glass jar and loosely set the lid on top, leaving a little room for air to get out.”
9:28 PM Thursday“Place the container inside an unheated oven. Shut the oven, turn the oven light on and let sit for 4-12 hours” Note: “Depending on the temperature outside, you may want to vary the conditions a bit. In the winter, you may need to leave the oven light on the entire time it takes for the yogurt to set, as directed above; in the warmer months, you may need to shut the light off about an hour after placing the yogurt in the oven.” I like my yogurt firm, so the long ripening times is perfect.
I don’t do this step. Maybe in summer I will….“Check the yogurt: When it is done, it will be set (not liquid) but still jiggle like Jell-O. If it’s not yet set, leave it in the oven for 1 hour more. Depending on the humidity and temperature outside, the setting process can take up to 5-½ hours, so don’t fret if the yogurt isn’t done the first time you check.“
8:28 AM Friday“When the yogurt is done, top it with the lid to seal. Put it in the refrigerator to chill and fully set before using. The yogurt will keep, covered, for 4 to 6 weeks. (It’ll start to get pretty sour after 2 weeks, which, depending on your tastes, could be a good or bad thing.] You can also freeze a few tablespoons to start a later batch.”
Ready to go! Just right for smoothies, to eat with fruit, use as ‘crema” in fajitas and enchiladas, in coffeecakes — whatever you please.

Slow Days: Bruschetta

~ me ~ 1 Comment

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.

“Bruschetta” … what does that word mean to you? And how do you pronounce it? The cookbook Diary of a Tuscan Chef gave us a recipe for this concoction, which we ate happily for years — a tomato relish on bread. And we called it ‘bruce-SHET-ta.’ Had we turned the cookbook page, we would have had the real story. When olives are being pressed into oil, [a late-Fall, cool-weather activity] one of the workers will toast bread over a fire, rub it with garlic, and drizzle the new oil over it so everyone can have a snack and a taste of the crop. THAT is bruschetta!

Bread, garlic, and olive oil = bruschetta

Of course, as the idea of ‘putting some food on toast’ moved around the world, something was lost in translation, including the pronunciation. When on tour in Italy, I asked the guide, a Roman, how to pronounce this culinary creation. Chuckling, he said that Americans always ask that and for the longest time he had no idea what they meant by ‘bruce-shet-ta.’ The correct way to say it? ‘bruce-KAY-ta’ The aforementioned Tuscan Chef, Cesare Casella, writes: “Americans seem to think bruschetta is chopped tomatoes, garlic, basil, and olive oil on toast. I don’t know why. For us that is crostini con pomodoro.” He concludes that there seems to be an “American craving for cubed tomatoes.”

On the right you see Cesare Casella’s ‘tomato relish’ on the bread.

When Older Son began baking, he sent us a recipe for his ‘no-knead focaccia’, which is great but makes more bread than Dear Husband and I can eat in a week. So Older Son prompted us to eat it as Bruschetta. I protested that there would be very little protein in that: just bread and tomato relish. Being wise, our son suggested additional toppings: herbed ricotta cheese, slices of chicken or turkey breast. Anchovies would be good. The recipe for the bread is below.

So that is the evolution of a meal that is perfect in Summer or any warm evening. Perhaps we should call it ‘Crostini’ but we don’t. We’re Americans, you see.

No-Knead Focaccia

one 10” loaf, four 6” loavesTwo 6” loaves or 6 bunsDutch oven or cast iron skillets
500 g bread flour or half bread flour, half white whole-wheat
375 g water
10 g salt
6 g yeast		250 g bread flour or half bread flour, half white whole-wheat
187 g water
5 g salt
3 g yeast		Combine ingredients until they form a shaggy ball.
Cover bowl and let rest 8-12 hours. Rising overnight works very well.
Olive oilOlive oilLeave dough whole or divide into smaller portions. Oil pans and add dough.
Let rise 1-2 hours.
Olive oil garlic, chopped
olives, chopped
herbs		Olive oil
garlic, chopped
olives, chopped
herbs		Brush dough with oil, then sprinkle with optional topping of your choice.
Bake at 450F 30-40 minutes, until golden brown. If baking smaller portions, shorten baking time.
1 of 8 servings = 64 calories

Slow Days: Lobster Rolls

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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.

If times were normal, we might be at our vacation cottage right about now. Not to stay for a long time, but to see the place in late Spring, before the tourists descend. We used to go there during my school’s April Break: to open the cottage, move up some furniture, visit with local friends, and see what the Winter storms did to the beach. If we stayed into early May, then the ocean would be dotted with colorful buoys and small fishing boats — in other words: Lobster Season. Prince Edward Island has two very limited seasons, one for each of two different parts of the island. In full Summer, when we usually arrive, lobsters are still available. When Summer guests appear at out cottage, we treat them to a lobster feast. Afterward, the cephalo-thoraces [the front-middle part that everyone else throws away] are picked clean of the meat located in the ‘shoulder joints’: enough to make lobster rolls!! [Four thoraces produce enough meat for this meal of three rolls.]

1-1/2 cups of lobster meat, chopped celery and red onion, chiffonade of lettuce or spinach, mayonnaise, and celery seed make the filling. The rolls are ‘New England’ style hot-dog buns. That means they are sliced across the top, not along the side. Being New Englanders, we prefer those.

The buns are lightly toasted with butter on a griddle and served with fresh tomatoes or a light salad. If you want to know about the wine — we always serve ‘The Hermit Crab’ or a Viognier with lobster rolls — go to Dear Husband’s blog peterspicksblog.com.

Slow Days: Blueberry Muffins

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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.

People get lyrical about muffins. On the other hand, James Beard had a dim view of them, saying “Muffins have been inordinately popular for years. I, for one, have never been able to understand why.” For a long time, I didn’t care for most blueberry muffins I ever had — they were either too much like biscuits or they were gigantic and super-sweet. Finally I found a recipe from Maine for a coffeecake with blueberries in it. Inspiration!! It struck me that this recipe would be perfect when baked as muffins. Many fine breakfasts have resulted from that recipe, and here it is:

++1 cup unbleached flour++++ 1 cup white whole wheat flour++++ 3/4 cup sugar++++ 3 teaspoons baking powder++++ 1 teaspoon salt++++ 1/3 cup butter [fairly soft so it will mix]++++ 1 cup milk**++++ 1 egg++++ 1/4 teaspoon almond extract++++ 1 cup blueberries [fresh or frozen — frozen are better since they don’t mush up when stirred in which turns the batter a nasty grayish-blue]++ **You could use buttermilk or plain yogurt instead of milk, and then you would need to add 1 teaspoon of baking soda to the above ingredients.

Combine and mix all the ingredients except the blueberries. Lastly, gently stir in the berries. Put into muffin papers or greased muffin tins. NB: Do all this the night before and leave the pan on the counter, covered, ready to bake in the morning. Works perfectly. Bake at 350F for 15 minutes or so. How many muffins you’ll get depends on the size of the tins. When I use silicon cupcake forms [see right] and I get 13-15 muffins.

What isn’t eaten for breakfast is put into zipper-locking bags, as these freeze and reheat very nicely. Have a happy breakfast!

Slow Days: Breadcrumb 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.

For years we searched for the right foods to eat during Lent. We wanted foods that were connected to the meaning of the season; foods that were good to eat yet not so fancy that we seemed to be ‘living it up’; foods that had a nod to the traditional austerity typical of the 6-week period of religious contemplation. One of the thorny decisions concerned Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, which is a solemn day after the giddiness of Carnival before it. At last we decided: a breadcrumb pasta from the Puglia Region of Italy. The idea of dressing your noodles with a sauce of breadcrumbs struck just the right note of culinary penance. No meat, no butter: this is the perfect choice to begin Lent.

The ingredients are very simple: 3 oz pasta, 1/3 cup crumbs from day-old bread [we use whole grain for flavor and fiber], 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1 Tbsp sliced garlic, oregano, salt, 6 olives, 1 oz spinach leaves, grated pecorino cheese.

These ingredients are enough for two servings.

You will need a mise-en-place, this cools so quickly! Once you have prepared your mise-en-place, start cooking the pasta. Cook the pasta for about 4 minutes, then turn off the heat with the pasta still in the water. Stack the spinach leaves and cut them cross-wise [chiffonade]. Pit the olives and cut each into four pieces. Heat a cast iron skillet at medium heat and pour in the oil. When the oil is hot, add the garlic and briefly cook it until pale yet fragrant. Add the crumbs and stir into the oil. Add the oregano and take off the heat. Stir. Turn down the heat, then put the pan back on it. Cook, stirring until the crumbs are crispy. Take off heat again and stir in the olives. By now the pasta is ready. Using a slotted spoon, remove it from the water and put it in the pan with the crumbs. The trick is to incorporate a little of the noodle-water into the dish. Stir to mix. Add two pinches of salt and the sliced spinach. Toss it all together, then add the grated cheese. Plate. This took such a short amount of time that I barely called out a pre-dinner alert, than it was time to plate up.

Such an unusual combination of flavors and textures!

This is not a meal for a low-carb menu. But then, this is a Slow Day, so we don’t need to count calories. We eat this one time each year and we enjoy it.

Slow Day: Grilled Vegetable 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.

Sometimes, there is a crowd to feed and that’s when we turn to one of our stand-by meals: Grilled Vegetable Pasta with Sausage. The vegetables include: zucchini/summer squash, yellow or orange sweet peppers, red onion, and or other colorful fresh items of the same texture. Choose any pasta you wish — 2 ounces by weight per person. Bratwurst or Italian sausage will do just fine. Make 1-1/2 cups of your favorite white sauce and add 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese.

The colors of the vegetables are echoed in the colorful pasta.

The sausages are grilled, then sliced. The vegetables are sliced or cut into chunks, as you prefer. In a grill basket, toss and shake the vegetables over hot coals until softer and starting to blacken, then empty into a large bowl. While one person is doing the grilling, the other preparing the cheese sauce. SLOWLY, over low heat. [Sometimes (often), my sauce ‘breaks’ and becomes clotted. The solution is to whisk flour into the milk to bind the sauce back together.] Cook the pasta and combine everything in the bowl with the vegetables. Easy to prepare and always a hit.

Often, seconds helpings are the norm.

I. F.

~ me ~ Leave a comment

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.

I.F. could describe the “Laconic answer”. [Back Story: The Greek city-state of Laconia, famous for the citizens’ terseness of speech, was besieged by an invading army. Their general sent a message: “If we take your city, we will kill every man, woman, and child. You had better surrender now.” Answered the head man of the city: “IF.” Laconia was not defeated.] Or, in this modern era, it could stand for “Intermittent Fasting.” What is that, you ask…. There are several ways to answer that. Over-all, intermittent fasting is a way to become more healthy by losing weight and giving your body time to restore itself in a sort of resting phase that occurs during a time of limited calorie intake. Version 1: You abstain from all eating, but are free to consume all the water you want, for two to four days each and every month. Sometimes an electrolyte liquid is consumed during the fast. Version 2: You abstain from all eating, but are free to consume all the water/broth/black coffee/black tea you want for one full day — from the time you wake up to the time you go to sleep again. This is done once or twice within a week. Version 3: You do all of your eating within an 8-hour window — say, 8 am to 4 pm. For the other 16 hours of a day, you may consume only water. This is called 16:8 Fasting. Version 4: Every other day, you consume a limited number of calories — from 500 to 1000 — while on the alternate days you eat as you please. Also called “Alternative Day Fasting.” Version 5: Two days each week, you consume 500-600 calories, eating as you please [but wisely] on the other days. Also called “5:2 Diet,” as developed by Dr. Michael Mosley. This is the eating plan that Dear Husband and I have followed for 6+ years with very good results.

Whichever method you choose, the goal is to train yourself to eat more moderately. If you never learn that, you will go off any diet and your weight will zoom up again. What’s the point of that?? People who do not get a handle on their over-eating are doomed to diet-and-gain over and over again. We view our eating plan as a Lifestyle, something that fits into the way we live and that we are happy to continue every week for the rest of our lives. Following are some of the meals we eat on a Fast Day.

B-T-O Bake: 127 calories 6 g fat 1 g fiber 9 g protein 8.6 g carbs [7.5 g Complex] 66 mg Calcium  NB: The food values shown are for the egg bake and the fruit, not for the optional beverages.  PB GF  This bake has flavor and to spare. Delicious way to use left-over broccoli.

1 two-oz egg 1 Tbsp low-fat cottage cheese 1 oz diced tomato, drained ¾ tsp Parmesan cheese ½ oz cooked broccoli 1 Kalamata olive 1 plum OR 4 cherries OR 4 oz strawberries Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] or lemon in hot water  Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie  [88 calories]

Set the toaster oven at 350 F. Dice the broccoli and the olive. Stir the cheeses together. Spritz an oven-safe container with non-stick spray. Whisk the egg, then whisk in the cheeses. Distribute the tomato, olive, and broccoli over the bottom of the baking dish. Whisk the eggs once more and pour into the baking dish. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Portion the fruit and prepare the beverages of your choice. Now that’s a breakfast!

Tortellini w/ Black Kale:  209 calories 9 g fat 3.5 g fiber 10 g protein 24 g carbs [7.4 g Complex] 231 mg Calcium PB Packaged, dried tortellini is a handy item to have in the pantry. It makes for a fine Tuscan meal when pared with Black Kale. The recipe is from ‘thekitchn‘  NB: I used the recipe below for the kale as two servings, when paired with the pasta. But the calories are so low that you could use it as one serving. 

27 g dried cheese/spinach tortellini [Barilla brand is good] 3 oz diced tomato 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese PLUS ingredients shown below for the kale.

For the Kale:

3 oz black kaleUse your hands to pull the kale leaves from their stems. Coarsely chop the leaves. Rinse them, but do not dry.
1 tsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic pinch red pepper flakes 		Heat the oil in large, wide, high-sided sauté pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute (do not let the garlic brown).
¼ tsp kosher salt pinch ground pepper Add the kale, stirring as it starts to wilt. Stir in the salt and pepper. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the kale is just tender, about 5 minutes.
2 tsp Lemon juiceRemove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice, and serve.

For the meal: Cook the pasta in boiling salted water for 9-11 minutes, then drain. Combine with the diced tomatoes and Parmesan. Plate the pasta surrounded by the kale.