How to eat if you want to lose weight

Good Saint Swithun

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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. Welcome to skygrooves who is now Following.

What will the weather be on July 15?? Ever since the reburial of Saint Swithun in 971 CE, the weather on July 15th has been considered a predictor of days to come. Swithun was Bishop of Winchester, England, and tutor of the young Alfred who became “The Great” as an adult. Despite that, Swithun was a humble man. His wish was that instead of being buried in a crypt in the cathedral, he be interred outside, where the rain would fall on his grave. So upon his death in 862, he was buried outside of the church. In 971, King Edgar gave money for a shrine for Swithun, and he was reburied inside. Torrential rains followed. Thus July 15th became a pivotal day in the summer weather calendar. If it is fair that day, more fair weather will follow.

Our foods for Saint Swithun are made of plants that ripen in summer after sufficient rain.

Leek & Tomato Bake: 124 calories… 5 g fat… 2 g fiber… 7.5 g protein… 12 g carbs… 61.5 mg Calcium…  NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages. PB GF  This makes for a quick and delicious breakfast.

1 two-oz egg ++++ 1 oz tomato, cut in ½ “ dice ++++ ½ oz leeks, sauteed in non-stick spray until limp [I keep a small bag of these in the freezer] ++++ pinch of dried basil + pinch of garlic powder++++ 1-2 oz pear or apple ++++  Optional:  5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories] ++++  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories]

Combine the tomato, leek, and seasonings, and pour into an oven-safe baking dish. Whisk the egg with salt and pepper to taste and pour into the baking dish. Bake at 350F for 12 minutes or so. Plate with the cool, crunchy fruit.

Vegetable Quiche: 268 calories… 14 g fat … 3 g fiber… 24 g protein… 12.5 g carbs … 293 mg Calcium…  PB GF  I made this recipe with the idea of a crustless quiche [some might call it a fritatta or a tortilla] that didn’t break the bank on calories. Although the recipe should serve two, my portion was too large to finish. Use your judgement.

4 two-oz eggs ++++ 2/3 cup/ 2 oz zucchini, grated ++++ ¼ cup red onion, chopped ++++ 1 cup broccoli, diced ++++ 1/3 cup/ 1.75 oz diced red bell pepper ++++ 4 Tbsp cottage cheese, lower fat ++++ 2 Tbsp plain yogurt ++++ 2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese ++++ lots of chopped fresh herbs ++++ 3 oz/ ½ cup tomato, diced ++++ 1 oz mozzerella cheese, grated ++++ salt + pepper ++++ ½ cup lettuce, shredded ++++ ½ tsp balsamic vinegar

Prepare the vegetables [except the tomatoes] and steam them over simmering water for 3-4 minutes. Drain over an empty bowl to capture any remaining liquid. Put the vegetables into an oven-proof dish [I used a 9×7” oval] which has been spritzed with non-stick spray, and spread around them evenly. Salt and pepper at will. Stir the cottage cheese, yogurt, Parmesan, and herbs until well-combined. Whisk the eggs well, then whisk in the cheese mixture. Pour over the vegetables. Chop the tomatoes and distribute them on top, then sprinkle with the grated mozzerella. Bake at 400 F. for 30 minutes – should be puffed and a little golden on top and set in the middle. Let the quiche sit while you shred the lettuce and toss it with the vinegar.

Going Green

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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.

What does ‘green’ mean to you? Is green the color of envy? Green is the color of money. Does it evoke nature? To the physicist, green is a wave of visible light who’s length is 495–570 nm. To the envi-ronmentalist, ‘going green‘ means that you do what you can, at home or on the road, using green energy for a sustainable future. Ask a politician about the Green Party, just to see what they will say. Green is the particular color of Islam, found on flags and mentioned in the Quran. Artists know that green is a color made of varying combinations of yellow and blue, which makes it a ‘secondary’ color. Green is considered to be soothing. Hospital walls are painted green, as are the rooms back-stage to calm down the actors. Pastoral villages used to have a ‘green’ in the center, where townspeople could pasture their cows or outdoor meetings could be held. Green is the color of safety, as a green traffic light means that it is safe to proceed. A ‘Green Card‘ in the USA gives the holder permission to live and work in the country, even though they are not citizens. Green means many things to many people. It is my favorite color, even though Kermit The Frog said that its not that easy being green…

Our meals today feature two famously green food items: avocados and spinach. These meals are so good that others will envy your choices, but you will eat them with calm because they are beneficial for your health.

Guacamole Eggs: 145 calories… 11.4 g fat… 1 g fiber… 11 g protein… 5 g carbs… 45 mg Calcium…  PB GF Avocado and eggs are a very good combi-nation. Both are high in fat, but the plant fat helps to mitigate effects of the animal fat. Here, we use Haas avocados.

Three 2-oz eggs of which you will use 1½ eggs per person 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.++++ 3 Tbsp Guacomole, homemade** or purchased ++++ Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] ++++   Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

**Guacamole: ……makes 1 cup…….. 1 jalepeno pepper, chopped [Remove seeds for less hotness] ++++ 1 cup diced tomatoes, canned or fresh ++++ 1½ avocados ++++ 1/3 cup minced onion ++++ ¼ cup chopped cilantro leaves ++++ salt + lime juice + hot pepper flakes to taste

Peel, seed, and mash the avocados. Stir in the other ingredients and mash again or pulse in the food processor.

Whisk the eggs with salt and pepper and pour them into a pan which has been spritzed with non-stick spray. Cook, without stirring or scrambling, until the top is almost set. Spread the guacamole on half of the eggs, then fold the omelette over. Serve with optional beverages. Mocha coffee would be the more traditional choice for a Mexican food theme.

Ham Florentine Crepes: 299 calories… 11 g fat… 5.6 g fiber… 15.6 g protein… 33 g carbs… 307 mg Calcium… PB Peter Christian’s Tavern was a very popular New Hampshire restaurant and their cookbook was a local best seller. The restaurant has closed but Peter Christian’s Recipes is a goldmine and it served as the source of this meal. Very easy if the galettes/crepes and Bechamel sauce are pre-made.

Ham Florentine Filling: makes 1½ cups ½ cup no-cheese Bechamel Sauce ++++ 1 cup ham in ¼” dice ++++ 1 cup [5 oz] cooked spinach, fresh or frozen ++++ ½ cup chopped celery ++++ ¼ cup chopped onion ++++ celery salt + dill + granulated garlic + basil Be sure to squeeze the spinach until most of the liquid is out of it. [save the liquid] Spritz a saute pan with non-stick spray and add some of the spinach liquid. Cook the celery and onion until onions are transluscent, adding more spinach liquid as needed. Add the remaining ingredients and cook on low heat until warmed through. 

For the Dinner: 2 galettes/crepes ++++ ¾ cup Ham Florentine filling ++++ 1 oz carrots + 1 oz cauliflower florets + 1 oz broccoli florets

Set the oven to 250 F. If the crepes are frozen, thaw and wrap in a tea towel. Put them in the oven as it warms. When the crepes are soft and pliable, lay them on a baking sheet, covered with the tea towel. Warm the Ham Florentine filling and spoon over half of each crepe. [I saved out a bit of the filling.] Fold the crepes over the filling and pat in place. Put the crepes in the oven until warmed through. Top with reserved filling before serving.

Medical Fasting

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How this Fast Diet Lifestyle works: Two days each week, eat meals with a calorie total of less than 600 for the entire day. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it: a simple way to lose weight and be healthier. Join me in the Fasting Lifestyle!

The other week, there was a memorial service for our friend Suzy M. She was a lively, engaging woman who threw herself into living life — until her life was cut short by colon cancer. The best way to detect colorectal cancer is by getting periodic colonoscopies. Too many people avoid that proce-dure because they think it sounds horrible [hello! you are sound asleep for it and it does not hurt] or they dread ‘The Prep’ [the bowel-cleansing regime that precedes the process.] That Prep involves ‘fasting’ for medical purposes, and taking prepa-rations that hasten bowel evacuation. The first time I did this, it meant drinking a saline solution that made me want to vomit. Not useful. The second time, it involved drinking polypropoylene glycol in water, which is tasteless but boring. So I evolved my own method which is more palatable and spread over 3 days. My method is based on the doctors’ suggestions on how to Prep, but tweeked to make it more flavorful and less drastic.

First, I mix up some ‘Elixir’: 6 cups water, 1/4 cup honey + 1/4 cup cider vinegar. Set aside. Then, I make some Leek Broth: 2 cups cleaned, trimmed, sliced leeks cooked in 3.5 cups water. After the soup is cooked, strain out the leeks [save to top a pizza or as an add-in for eggs], divide the liquid into two portions, and refrigerate. This is from the book French Women Don’t Get Fat in which the author, Mireille Guiliano, describes how this soup helped her to lose weight when she was a pudgy, unhappy teen. The soup is very flavorful. We make it here not for weight loss but because it is ‘filling’.

On C-day minus 3, one eats foods very low in fiber: croissants or white toast with ham for breakfast, along with orange juice and coffee/tea. For dinner, a crab cake or broiled fish with summer squash and white rice or plain pasta.

On C-day minus 2, one again eats meals that are very low in fiber. An egg for breakfast, along with orange juice and coffee. For lunch, cottage cheese. For snack, cheese.

For C-day minus 2 dinner, 2.5 oz chicken breast meat, cubed + 2.5 oz cooked white rice + 1/2 cup chicken stock. Combine the rice, and the meat, and the stock and heat until warmed through. This produces a flavorful chicken-rice stew.

The reason for these days of low fiber, is so that when you get to the last day, when laxatives are taken, there is very little left in the bowel to get rid of.

After dinner, mix three different beverages and store them in quart jars in the ‘fridge: ………………………………….. A] Combine 32 oz White Cranberry or White Grape Juice with 60 g of Polyethylene Glycol …………………………….. B] Combine 32 oz of Elixir with 60 g of Polyethylene Glycol …………………………………………………………………………. C] Combine 32 oz water with 60 g of Polyethylene Glycol

C-Day minus 1: This is the true ‘Fasting Day’, since you will have no solid food, no caffeine, no dairy, and no alcohol. For “breakfast”, a cup or two of herbal tea with honey [but no dairy] plus one cup of Leek Broth, warmed with some added salt.

At 10 am, take two [2] tablets of Ducolax  [bisa-codyl] laxative. At 11 am, Drink 8 oz of Mixture C [the water one]…. At 11:20 am, Drink 8 oz of Mixture A [the juice one] …. At 11:40 am, Drink 8 oz of Mixture B [the Elixir one] …. At 12 noon, Drink 8 oz of Mixture C …. At 12:20 pm, Drink 8 oz of Mixture A …. At 12:40 pm, Drink 8 oz of Mixture B …. At 1:00 pm, Drink 8 oz of Mixture C …. At 1:20 pm, Drink 8 oz of Mixture A …. At 1:40 pm, Drink 8 oz of Mixture B …. At 2:00 pm, Drink 8 oz of Mixture C …. At 2:20 pm, Drink 8 oz of Mixture A …. At 2:40 pm, Drink 8 oz of Mixture B……………………. C-day minus 1 dinner: one cup of Leek Broth mixed with 1 cup Beef Bouillon from a bouillon cube.

And you are done with the Prep. I have had very good success with this method: a cleaned bowel, with no explosive diarrhea, no abdominal cramps. At least, that is how it works for me. Good luck. If you are over 40 years old, haven’t had a colonoscopy ever or in more than 10 years, please, schedule one now.

The Declaration

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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.

What is July 4th? In the USA, it is called ‘Independence Day’ which would imply that on that day in 1776, we were officially and finally free from Britain’s rule. Nope. No way. Not true. After six years of war, the USA became an independent country after Lord Cornwallis surrendered his army at Yorktown. Then there was some diplomatic wrangling, and a treaty was signed on September 3, 1783. THAT was our true “Independence Day”. So what are we celebrating on July 4th? The Fourth of July, 1776 was the day that the Declaration of Independence was read in public for the first time. The document had been debated and thrashed out by the Continental Congress over months of work. Thus, the citizens of the English Colonies were announcing to the British King that they wanted to be free from the rules and taxes and regulations that had been imposed on them. The document lists 27 grievances against the King and concludes that “We, therefore, the Representa-tives of the united States of America… do… solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States”. So that is what July 4th is all about — along with fireworks, some parades, picnics, backyard cook-outs, and lots of eating.

Our meals for the Glorious 4th are in keeping with the spirit of the day: the colors of the flag, and the family gathering to grill dinner.

Red White and Blue: 150 calories… 1 g fat… 2.6 g fiber… 14.5 g protein… 20 g carbs… 331 mg Calcium…  NB: Food values given are for the plated foods only, and do not include the optional beverage. PB  GF – if using GF bread Ricotta is higher in protein and Calcium than cottage cheese, but you could substitute that if you wish.

½ cup fat-free ricotta ++++ ¼ cup blueberries, fresh or frozen [if frozen, keep frozen until ready to use] ++++ ½ cup sliced strawberries, fresh or frozen [after slicing, put into a strainer to let the juices drain] ++++ 1 slice of 70-calorie multi-grain bread [Nature’s Own/ Dave’s Thin-Sliced] cut into a star with the largest cookie cutter that will fit the bread ++++ 2 large pinches of cinnamon sugar ++++  Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories] ++++  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait[65 calories]

Cut your slice of bread with the star cookie cutter. TIP: freeze the scraps for use in Crab Cakes or Stuffed Clams or Crab-Stuffed Flounder cf. Sprinkle the bread with a small pinch of cinnamon sugar and toast it. Measure the ricotta onto your plate. Put the fruit on top. [Tip: Better not to stir the fruit into the cheese, since it will ‘stain’ the cheese.] Top with a small pinch of cinnamon sugar and plate with the toast. Pour the optional beverage. Huzzah!

Blue-Burger: 290 calories… 6.5 g fat… 5 g fiber… 27.5 g protein… 27 g carbs… 100 mg Calcium … The winter 2004 issue of Eating Well magazine was the inspiration for this recipe. But this version suits our Fasting needs a little better. It is yummy.

++++ 3-oz ground bison meat ++++ 4 Tbsp blueberries, fresh or frozen ++++ 1.5 Tbsp egg white ++++ ¾ tsp Dijon mustard ++++ ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce ++++ pinch garlic powder + large pinch black pepper ++++ 1 Martin’s potato slider bun ++++ cherry tomatoes, grilled ++++ ½ cup coleslaw ++++ 

Thaw the meat and break it up in a bowl. Add the blueberries and all the flavorings. Gently combine ingredients with your fingers, without squishing the berries. Shape in a patty using a 4” muffin-cutter as a mold. Try not to pack the burger too much, but it does need to hold its shape. Broil or grill 4-5 minutes per side. Serve on a toasted potato bun. Grilled cherry tomatoes are nice as a topper. And don’t forget the coleslaw.

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

next week, I will…1.5 two-oz eggs 
..discuss medical…jalapeño pepper, onion
fasting.diced tomatoes
1.5 avocados, cilantro
optional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

no-cheese Bechamel
Next week, I will…ham, spinach, dill
be discussing fasting…celery, onion, dill,
for medical reasons.2 galettes, garlic powder
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Oh, Canada 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: a simple way to lose weight and be healthier. Welcome to shoppexng who is now Following.

Since July 1, 1982, Canadians have been celebrating “Canada Day”. This is their national holiday. Canada was officially ‘created’ on July 1, 1867, when the British North America Act was signed. Prior to 1982, the country had celebrated “Dominion Day” on July 1st. Since its ‘discovery’ by Europeans in the 1500s, the region had first been called “New France”, with the area around Quebec City called ‘canada’ — a misappropriation of the Iroquois word for ‘village’ or ‘settlement’. From 1841, it became the Province of Canada, property of the monarch of the United Kingdom. On July 1, 1867, several eastern provinces banded together to form a ‘confederation’ — this is often hailed as the birth of the nation of Canada, celebrated since 1868. Subsequently, they called it “Dominion Day”. It does not mark an ‘independence day’, unlike the 4th of July in the US or Bastille Day in France. It represents the union of the provinces into one governmental entity. As the Canadian gover-nment expresses it: “Canada Day is a day to reflect on what it means to be Canadian, to share what makes us proud and to celebrate in our own way. This pride is reflected in as many ways as there are Canadians. Canada Day highlights the richness of our land, our diversity, our culture, our contributions, but above all, our people.”

Our meals are from across the vastness of Canada. The breakfast features mushrooms from the forests of the North-West, with toast from prairie-province grains. The dinner is from the oceans that lap the nation from coast-to coast-to coast.

Egg-Mushroom Toast: 156 calories… 6 g fat… 2.6 g fiber… 10.5 g protein… 16 g carbs… 69 mg Calcium…  NB: The food values shown are for the toast, egg, mushrooms, and the fruit, not for the optional beverages. PB GF – if using GF bread  This is yummy. The eggs are creamy and the mushrooms lend a mysterious layer of flavor. I like this better than poached eggs.

1 piece 70-cal multi-grain bread ++++  one 2-oz egg ++++ ½ oz mushrooms, chopped ++++ 1 Tbsp chives, chopped ++++ 1 tsp thyme ++++ 1 oz apple ++++  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] ++++  Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Toast the bread. Spritz the non-stick saute pan with oil or spray and gently cook the mushrooms. Put the chives, thyme, salt, and pepper in with the egg and beat it up. Scramble lightly with the mushrooms, keeping the eggs moist. Turn out over the toast and plate the fruit. Sip your beverages and have a good day.

Mussel Feast: 279 calories… 12.6 g fat… 0.6 g fiber… 34 g protein… 11 g carbs… 117 mg Calcium…  PB GF We love mussels and eat them fresh all summer long in Canada. Fresh mussels are available all year ’round, and frozen mussels are good for use with a sauce.

1 # mussels in shells = 1 quart ++++ ½ cup water ++++ ¼ c white wine ++++ flavorings: celery, onion, rosemary, thyme, garlic ++++ 1½ cup salad greens ++++ ¼ oz feta cheese ++++ 2 oz tomatoes, cubed ++++ 2 kalamata olives, halved ++++ ¾ tsp olive oil ++++ ½ tsp lemon juice ++++

Rinse the mussel shells in case they are muddy. Discard any mussels which are open and do not close when rapped gently on the counter. In a large sauce pan [provide room for an increase in volume as the mussel shells open] bring the water to a boil with the wine and flavorings. Add the mussels, put on the lid and cook the mussels for 10 minutes. With a long-handled spoon, stir so that the mussels from the bottom are now on top. Continue to cook for another few minutes, until all mussels are open. Discard any which refuse to. Strain out the mussels and place in the serving bowl. Pour the broth over all. In a salad bowl, whisk the oil and lemon juice to form a dressing. Toss with the greens and plate with feta+ tomato+olive topping. After you eat the mussels, drink the flavorful broth. Tastes like Summer to me.

Helen Keller

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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.

On June 27 in 1880, a healthy baby girl was born into the family of Colonel Arthur Keller of Tuscumbia, Alabama. Little Helen grew strong and happy until a high fever struck when she was 19 months old. From then on, the child was unable to see or hear. Since there was no way to communicate with her, Helen grew up like a wild thing — flailing out at people, grabbing food off of others’ plates, locked away from life in her world of darkness. When she was eight, a teacher was brought to her. Twenty-year-old Annie Sullivan, a graduate of the Perkins School for the Blind, had trained in sign language and and set out to open up the world for Helen. They lived together in a cottage on the Keller property for two weeks. Annie spelled out words in Helen’s hand, but the child did not associate the finger games with ideas or concepts. At last, Annie spelled out W-A-T-E-R while Helen’s hand was in water — and the connection was made. This is the most famous scene in the film The Miracle Worker, a bio-pic of Annie Sullivan, made in 1962 — and it is true. Helen was a quick learner, mastering words and eventually being graduated cum laude from Radcliffe College — all with Annie Sullivan by her side. Keller became well known early on from her books: The Story of My Life (1902) and Optimism (1903). She was a social activist: advocating for women to vote, for better education for the blind, and for world peace. With Jane Addams, she was a founder of the American Civil Liberties Union in 1920. Throughout her life, Keller was an inspiration to blind and sighted people alike, touring and speaking around the world. If a blind and deaf person could learn to write and speak and have an active, useful life, then anyone could achieve their goals! Helen Keller refused to be limited by her disabilities.

Our menus have nothing to do with Alabama or Helen Keller’s upbringing. But these meals are what I would want to eat if I couldn’t see my plate, being mostly food to pick up in the hands.

Sweet Potato Pancake Plate: 122 calories… 2 g fat… 2.6 g fiber… 9.4 g protein… 26.4 g carbs… 27 mg Calcium…  NB: Food values given are for the plated foods only, and do not include the optional beverage. PB GF – if using Brown Rice Flour These potato pancakes are fine as a side dish, and they hold their own as the star of this breakfast.

2 potato pancakes *** ++++ 2 oz applesauce ++++ one 30-gram slice Canadian bacon/back bacon = 2 slices Jones brand ++++ Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories] ++++  Optional:  blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait[65 calories] 

Warm the pancakes, the applesauce, the bacon, and plate. Savory and delicious.

***Potato Pancakes  makes 8-10   8 oz sweet potato, peeled and grated…. 2 oz egg, whisked…. 2 Tbsp minced/grated onion…. ….4 tsp white whole wheat flour OR brown rice flour …. ½ tsp salt Combine ingredients while you heat a griddle or heavy skillet. Melt a dab of bacon fat or olive oil in the pan, then spray with non stick spray. Drop the ‘batter’ in 10 piles [I used a ¼ cup measure] on the griddle, then flatten them out to a diameter of 3-4”. Cook on one side, then flip to cook on the other. Save the remaining pancakes for a side dish tomorrow or as part of lunch.

Pork Steamed Buns with Chinese Cabbage: 281 calories… 7 g fat… 4 g fiber… 10 g protein… 46.7 g carbs… 152 mg Calcium…  PB  First you prepare the buns, steam them, and freeze what you don’t eat fresh. Then you can enjoy them ‘instantly’ by warming them and quickly stir-frying the cabbage or bok choy. Delicious!  HINT: recipe makes 20 buns, so lots for future meals.  Freeze what you do not use for dinner today.

For the dinner: 2 pork steamed buns**… 1 serving Chinese cabbage*

20 filled **Pork Steamed BunsBamboo steamer in a wok or large cast iron skillet
1 teaspoon active dry yeast ++++¾ cup warm waterIn the bowl of an electric mixer with a dough hook (you can also use a regular mixing bowl and knead by hand), dissolve yeast in the warm water. 
1 c all-purpose flour++++1 c white whole wheat flour ++++ 1 c cornstarch ++++ 4 tablespoons sugar++++3 Tbsp canola or vegetable oilSift together the flours and cornstarch, and add it to the yeast mixture along with the sugar and oil. Turn on the mixer to the lowest setting and run it until a smooth dough ball is formed. Cover with a damp cloth and let it rest for 2 hours.
2½ teaspoons baking powder
2-3 tsp water		Add leavening and turn on mixer to lowest setting. If dough looks dry and leavening won’t mix in, add some water. Gently knead dough until it is smooth again. Cover with damp cloth and let rest 15 mins. Set up your steamer in the wok.
Roll dough into a long tube and divide it into 20 equal pieces. Press each piece of dough into a disk about 4½” in diameter.
Chinese BBQ pork: purchased or homemadePut some filling on each disk and pinch buns closed. Put each bun on a parchment paper square. I steamed them in 2 separate batches using a bamboo steamer (be sure water does not touch buns during steaming). Once water boils, put buns in steamer and steam 12 minutes over high heat.
Each = 123 calories… 3.4 g fat… 1 g fiber…3.5 g protein… 18 g carbs… 48 mg Calcium

*CHINESE CABBAGE:  PB GF This is a fine dish to accompany a variety of foods from Chinese dumplings to fish.

Serves 2
Non-stick spray ++++1 clove garlic, sliced Spray a heavy pan and cook garlic over medium heat 30 seconds.
½# cabbage, shredded/thinly-sliced +++2 Tbsp water Stir in cabbage and water. Cover and cook 1 minute.
1½ tsp soy sauce Add, cover and cook 1 minute.
1½ tsp fish sauce  ++++ 2 Tbsp waterTurn up heat, add sauce along with more water. Cook, uncovered, until cabbage is tender and liquids have evaporated
Each serving = 35 calories … 0.1 g fat… 2 g fiber… 2.7 g protein… 7.5 g carbs… 56 mg Calcium

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

1 two-oz egg = US largefat-free ricotta cheese
mushrooms + applestrawberries
chives + thymeblueberries, fresh or frozen
1 piece 70-calorie whole-grain bread1 piece 70-calorie whole-grain bread
optional smoothieoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

1 pound mussels + splash white wine4 oz ground bison meat + Coleslaw 
celery.onion.rosemary.garlicblueberries, fresh or frozen + egg white
tomato + feta cheese + kalamata olivesDijon mustard + Worcestershire sauce 
salad greens + olive oil + lemon juicegarlic powder + Martin’s potato buns, slider size
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Midsummer

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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. Welcome to asterisk1598 who is now Following.

“Midsummer” is celebrated on the first full day of Summer, which this year was June 20. I always won-dered why midsummer was observed at the start of Summer, but it is half-way between the start of Spring and the start of Autumn….so, maybe…. The French blend it with the Fete St-Jean on June 24, but in Sweden, where the midnight sun will be shining, Midsummer is always observed on a Friday, some-where between the 19th and the 25th of June. Everyone who can goes to the countryside to celebrate with floral wreaths, native costumes, May Pole dances, and food with friends. Young ladies must be sure that seven different types of wildflowers will be picked at night to put under their pillow, and by the end of the day, everyone will have danced like a little frog. Many of the traditions surrounding the date hark back to ancient fertility rituals, praying that the fields and farm animals would produce a bounty that summer. The parties and dancing would go on all night, except that there is no night at Midsummer because it is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

We will celebrate Midsummer with the garden’s bounty: spinach muffins from Greece at breakfast, and eggplant with tomatoes for dinner. This should remind us that celebrating the 1st day of Summer can happen on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, just as well as on the shores of the Baltic Sea.

Spanakopeta Muffins: each muffin = 142 calories… 10 g fat… 0.5 g fiber… 9 g protein… 3.5 g carbs… 132 mg Calcium…  NB: The food values given above are for the muffin and fruit only, not the optional beverages.  PB GF  In this recipe, the delightful Greek ‘pie’ comes to the breakfast table – much easier to prepare without the many sheets of filo dough. The ‘muffins’ freeze well for a make-ahead treat. The recipe is from “The Mediterranean Dish” by Suzy Karadsheh.

4 muffinsRack in center of oven, preheat to 350°F. Standard muffin tin, 8 or 12 wells
olive oilBrush on bottom and sides of 8 wells of muffin tin. fill any other cups w/ water.
4 two-oz eggs++++½ tsp dried oregano++++++¼ tsp black pepper++++++¼ tsp sweet paprika+++++++1/8 tsp baking powder++++++ Kosher salt In a 1-Qt measuring cup, combine these with a pinch of salt. Blend well with a whisk or hand mixer.
3-oz frozen chopped spinach++++++¼ c. yellow onion ++++++ ½ c. flat-leaf parsley ++++ 1.5 T. fresh mint leaves +++++  2 large garlic cloves +++++ 2-oz/56 g feta +++++  4 brined black olives Thaw spinach and squeeze out water. Finely chop onion, then measure. Chop parsley roughly. Chop mint. Mince garlic. Crumble feta. Chop olives. Add all of these to eggs, and whisk until well blended.  
Pour egg-spinach mixture into muffin cups about ¾ full.  leave enough room for rising.
Bake 25-30 mins, until eggs are fully set. 
Let cool briefly, run a butter knife around each muffin to loosen. Take from pan and serve, or store for later.

For breakfast: 1.5 muffin per serving plus 1 oz strawberries OR pear OR grapes.  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories]  Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Eggplant With Pearl Couscous: 1 cup= 216 calories… 2 g fat… 3 g fiber… 6.5 g protein… 41.4 g carbs… 20 mg Calcium…  PB  Julia Moskin of the NYT provided this recipe. Being a fan of eggplant, I served it. What a delightful meal! And Dear Husband’s I-don’t-like-eggplant comments disappeared.

3 Sv = 3 cupsheavy pot with a tight-fitting lid
½ tsp ground cinnamon ++++¼ tsp ground cumin ++++pinch ground cayenne +++ salt & ground black pepperIn a small bowl, combine the seasonings.
¾ cup turmeric pearl couscousToast couscous in a hot, dry pan stirring, until golden + fragrant, ~3 mins. Put aside.
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil ++++2 c. cubed eggplant with skin ++++ ¼ tsp salt + pinch pepper ++++ ½ cup yellow or white onion, choppedWhen oil shimmers in pot on med-high, add these. Cook, stirring often, until onions soften + eggplant is browned + slightly shrunken, 8-10 mins. OR roast eggplant.
2 garlic cloves, mincedAdd garlic and stir just until fragrant.
1½ tsp tomato paste ++++ spice mixture from aboveAdd paste and prepared spice mix. Cook 1 min, stirring. 
Toasted couscous +++ ½ c. tomato, diced +++¾ cup waterStir in these. Cover, lower heat, and simmer until couscous has absorbed the liquid, 8-12 mins. 
pinch smoked paprika++++2 T. fresh chopped parsley++++plain Yogurt, for serving (optional)Turn off heat, let rest 2 mins. Stir in paprika + parsley. Taste, adjust seasoning. Serve immediately.

For the dinner: 1 cup eggplant couscous + 1 oz zucchini, cooked in tomato juice.

Samuel Morse and his Telegraph

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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.

Samuel Finley Breese Morse was the son of a strict minister. Born in Massachusetts in 1791, he did not distinguish himself as a student at Yale College. Morse’s interest lay in art — he made money on the side at college by painting portraits — and electricity. Upon graduation, he went to London to study art. When Morse returned to the USA, he found that his art was not in demand, so he became an itinerant portraitist. His wife died while he was away from home painting his portrait of Lafayette, and by the time he got there, the funeral was over. That started Morse thinking about rapid, long-distance communication. Another trip to Europe resulted in a conversation with inventor Charles Thomas Jackson. They discussed the idea of electric impulses being sent as messages over wires. The sticking point was a way to ‘push’ the pulses over long distances. A partner-ship 1n 1838 with Alfred Vail gave Morse the financial backing he needed to solve the problem. Vail also collaborated on an alphabet of dots and dashes to spell out messages. On June 20, 1840, Morse applied for a patent to improve his new mode of communication: the telegraph. His famous message, to test his ability to send a long distance message, was “What Hath God Wrought,” sent from Washington, DC to Baltimore in 1844. Litigation followed, but the inventor was finally declared to be the first person to develop a working system. By 1861, telegraph wires reached coast to coast, and in 1866 an undersea cable linked Europe to North America. Morse is not an easy man for contemporary people to like: his views on the human race were heavily influenced by his father’s strict Calvinism. This narrow world view held that the only worthy people were White, Protestant, American, and probably men. But we appreciate the invention of the telegraph, which lead to all the means of electronic communication that we have today.

For Morse’s European sojourns, a breakfast from France. Although Morse had fierce “America First” ideas, we will offer a dinner inspired by the real first Americans — the Indigenous People.

Roasted Grapes & Sausage: 212 calories… 8 g fat… 2 g fiber… 5.4 g protein… 4 g carbs… 14 mg Calcium…  NB: Food values given are for the plated foods only, and do not include the optional beverage.  PB GF  Unusual flavors at breakfast. Delicious. HINT: This serves two [2].

Serves 2Heat oven to 450 degrees. Large cast iron pan.
½ c onion, sliced ++++++ ½ tsp oil +++++ ¼ tsp salt +++++  ¼ tsp pepperToss these together + spread in an even layer on a rimmed baking pan or cast iron pan . Roast 8 mins, until onions turn translucent and thinnest pieces are pale gold at edges.
10 oz grapes +++++ ½ tsp fennel seed +++++ 2 oz sausage, slicedAdd grapes, seeds, and sausage to pan with onions, and toss well. Spread in an even layer and spray with cooking spray or oil.
Roast 10 mins. Sausage slices will be browned on bottom and grapes will be wrinkled but still plump.
Parsley + chives +++++ 0.05 oz Parmesan, shavedPlate grapes, sausage, and onions. Top with parsley, chives + Parmesan.
1 tsp rice vinegarAdd vinegar to baking sheet and scrape up any browned bits. Drizzle pan juices on top, taste. Add salt or vinegar , if desired.

Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories]  

‘Original’ Succotash: 270 calories… 2.6 g fat… 9.5 g fiber… 18 g protein… 50 g carbs… 71 mg Calcium…  PB GF The Mystic Seaport Cookbook contains many quaint and curious old recipes. What follows is my combination of two of them. It is ‘original’ because it gets us back to what succotash once was [a main dish, not a side] and because it is my own version.  HINT: This recipe makes 3 cups of succotash, which could be 3 servings. 

½ cup lima beans [Green Giant frozen Fordhook] ++++ ½ cup green/snap beans ++++ ½ cup corn kernels ++++ ¼ cup canned navy beans ++++ 2 oz corned beef [New England style is grey because it contains no nitrates] ++++ 1 slice cornmeal mush aka: polenta ++++sage ++ pepper ++ salt to taste [mind that the corned beef might be salty] 

Cook the vegetables until they are tender. Drain the cooking water and reserve ½ cup. Mash the navy beans and whisk into ¼ cup vegetable water. Put all vegetables and the meat into a pan along with the mashed beans. Add sage and pepper to taste and more vegetable broth if you wish. If it needs more salt, add it too. In a non-stick pan, saute the corn mush on each side until it is warm. Plate the mush with one cup of succotash. It is very filling.

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

4 two-oz egg = US large Olive oil + oregano1 two-oz egg + onion  
sweet paprika + baking powder + frozen spinachsweet potato + white whole wheat flour
onion + parsley + mint leaves + garlicapplesauce, unsweetened
feta cheese + brined black olives + strawberrieswhite whole wheat flour OR brown rice flour
optional smoothieoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

cinnamon + cumin + cayenneyeast + white flour + white whole wheat flour
turmeric pearl couscous + tomatocornstarch + sugar + canola oil + baking powder
olive oil + eggplant + onionsChinese pork BBQ filling + garlic
garlic + tomato paste + parsleycabbage + soy sauce + fish sauce
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Michael Mosley, MD

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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.

Michael Mosley, MD, has died. He was born in Calcutta, India, but lived mostly in England from age seven when he was sent there for boarding school. After university, Mosley worked for a few years as a banker. He decided to go into psychiatry, though in his last year of training he concluded that he did not want to practice in that field. At med school Mosley met his wife, Claire Bailey, and they had four children. After receiving his degree, he pivoted to work as a producer for the BBC, focusing on science programs. When a show that he pitched could not find a presenter, Mosley stepped to the other side of the camera and made a name for himself. After many years of producing shows for television, he began working on the Horizon series. In 2012, the episode “Eat, Fast, and Live Longer” demonstrated the benefits of calorie restriction: lower blood sugar, lower cholesterol, weight loss, better brain health, reduced cancer risk, longevity. This finding lead Mosley to create the 5:2 Diet, incorporating what he had learned from researchers and his own experiments on himself. His book became an international best-seller and Fasting took the world by storm. My Dear Husband and I took up Fasting in 2013, and have been so pleased with the results that we still continue this lifestyle. 5:2 Fasting has improved our health. When Mosley died on June 5, while on vacation in Greece, it was not from prostate cancer, or diabetes, or heart disease — the usual conditions of old age. Rather, he lost his way on a hike in hot weather, and died of heat stroke. A sad loss.

Our featured meals will, of course, come from the Fast Diet book, co-authored with Mimi Spencer. Both of these are delicious, filling, good for you, and perfect for a Fasting Day. Thank you, Dr. Mosley.

Nordic Breakfast: 192 calories… 12 g fat … 7 g fiber… 11.6 g protein… 21 g carbs… 40 mg Calcium…  NB: Food values given are for the plated foods only, and do not include the optional beverage. PB  This is based on a recipe from the Fast Diet book, but I once thought it looked like a puny amount of food. Au contraire: the protein and fiber will fill you up. 

3 slices of Finn Crisp crackers++++ 1.3 oz smoked salmon ++++ 2 Tbsp whipped cream cheese ++++ ++++pinch of dill weed++++2 rings thinly sliced red onion ++++ ½ cup raspberries ++++ Optional: 3 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [44 calories] ++++  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or  mocha cafe au lait [65 calories]

Gently spread the cream cheese on the crackers. Divide the salmon among them. Arrange the onion rings atop the salmon. Plate the fruit and pour your hot beverage. Skip the aquavit.

Tuna-Bean-Garlic Salad:  261 cal… 7 g fat… 5.5 g fiber… 33 g protein… 33.4 g carb… 152.5 mg Calcium…  PB GF  This is from the Fast Diet book. Great meal. HINT: this recipe serves 2 [two]

1 cup canned garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed +++++ one 5-oz can light tuna in water, drained and flaked +++++ 2 cloves garlic, chopped +++++ 4 oz tomato, left whole if bite-sized or sliced +++++ salt, pepper, thyme, parsley +++++ 3 oz spinach or mixed greens +++++ 1 tsp lemon juice ++++ 1 tsp white wine vinegar +++++ 1 tsp olive oil ++++ 1 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

Gently stir the beans, tuna, and garlic together. In a wide, shallow bowl whisk the lemon juice, vinegar and olive oil. Stir ½ tsp of the dressing into the bean mixture. Toss the greens and herbs with the remaining dressing, then stir the bean mixture into the greens. Top with the Parmesan cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

Peonies

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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.

Peony buds with ants at work.

Peonies are one of my favorite flowers. Their lush, voluptuous blossoms are so gorgeous in the garden and in bouquets. My grandfather was famous for the peonies that he grew in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and some of his plants are in my garden. [Peony plants can live for 100+ years.] Members of the Family Paeoniaceae, they were first used in China as a flavoring for food. From there, they went to Japan, where the flowers were prized. By the 6th century BCE, peony roots were used in medicine. They were known in ancient Greece, where the story was told of the shy nymph Paeonia. Her beauty so angered Aphrodite, that the goddess turned her rival into a Peony flower. Not until the 1800s did the flowers arrive in England. There are tree peonies [with woody stems] and herbaceous peonies [the common plant] that bloom year after year with little care from us. The biggest helpers of the peony are ants. Some people freak out when they see their peony buds covered with ants, but the insects eat the sap that is exuded by the buds — if there were no ants, the flowers would not open. In flower lore, peonies represent everything from wealth to bad luck; from blushing shyness to passionate love. While Luoyang, China is known as Peony City, most florist blossoms are grown in Alaska. You can enjoy peonies in your temperate garden if you plant them is a sunny location with rich, well-drained soil. Plant them well, and they may out-live you.

Although peonies now are planted everywhere from Zones 4 to 8, they are native to two widely different regions. Our meals today are from the two original locations of the plant: the Mediterranean and China.

Mediterranean ScrOmelette: 148 calories… 8.4 g fat… 1 g fiber… 12 g protein… 7 g carbs… 108.4 mg Calcium…  NB: Food values shown are for the plated foods only, and do not include the optional beverages. PB GF How can this be SO easy and yet SO delicious? Don’t know, but we will continue to eat it!

1½ 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 ++++ 3 Tbsp Mediterranean Vegetables, drained + chopped +++++  ¼ oz mozzerella cheese, grated +++++  1½ oz strawberries OR 1 oz applesauce Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait  [65 calories] Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie  [88 calories]

HINT: the night before, thaw or prepare the Mediterranean Vegetables.  Heat a cast iron or non-stick pan and spritz it with oil or cooking spray. Add the prepared vegetables and stir to heat . Whisk the eggs and pour into the pan, stirring to incorporate the vegetables. Cook to your favorite degree of doneness. Sprinkle the cheese on top while still warm or add to the eggs while still cooking. Dish up the fruit, plate the eggs, and pour your beverage of choice.

Pork & Green Bean Stirfry: 176 calories… 3 g fat… 5.4 g fiber… 20.5 g protein… 18 g carbs… 63 mg Calcium…  NB: The food values given do not include the optional serving of rice** PB GF This stirfry has a lot of preparation but the result is rich in the wonderful flavors of East Asia. The recipe does not include rice, but if you read on, you’ll see amounts of rice to serve. HINT: This recipe makes enough to serve 2 [two] people. Food values above are for ONE serving. For Pork & Peppers, substitute colorful bell peppers for beans in recipe. 

Serves 2First prepare a mise en place. Seriously — do it.
5 oz pork or turkey tenderloin +++++ 1½ tsp dark soy sauce +++++ ½ tsp honey +++++  ½ tsp minced garlic 1/8 tsp red pepper flakesSlice meat into matchstick pieces. Put in a bowl with these ingredients and stir to combine.
4 tsp dark soy sauce +++++  ½ tsp honey ++++1 tsp peanut butter.Combine in a micro-wave-safe cup and briefly warm in micro-wave to soften the honey and peanut butter.
6 oz green beans, cut in 1.5” pieces Cook beans 3 mins in boiling, salted water. 
½ c matchstick carrotsAdd carrots and cook 1 min. Drain, saving water andvegetables.
1 tsp canola oil Heat a wok or cast iron skillet over high, then add oil. Add pork mixture and stir-fry 1 minute.
Remove cooked meat to a clean bowl and stir in the soy-honey-peanut mix. 
2 Tbsp bean-carrot water ++++ 5 oz red bell pepper, cut in strips +++++more bean-carrot water, as neededPut carrot-cooking water in the dish that had the soy-honey-peanut mixture. Swirl around to get those flavors into the water. Pour flavored water into the wok and add the bell peppers. Stir-fry 1 min – add more water to keep it sizzling. 
Blanched carrots + beans +++++ ½ tsp garlic ++++  1.5 tsp minced fresh gingerAdd beans, carrots, ginger, + garlic to peppers in the wok and stir-fry 1 minute.
Cooked porkReturn pork to the wok and stir-fry until heated, ~1 minute. 
sliced scallion +++  Sriracha ++++ optional rice**Plate with optional rice, and top with scallion and extra Sriracha

**If using ¼ cup cooked medium-grain white rice as a garnish, then add these food values: 50 calories… 0 g fat… 0.3 g fiber… 1 g protein… 11 g carbs [simple]… 0 mg Calcium **If serving with ¼ cup cooked medium-grain brown rice, then add these food values: 54 calories… 0.4 g fat… 1 g fiber… 1 g protein… 11 g carbs… 5 mg Calcium

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

Finn Crisp crackersred grapes + onion
smoked salmonolive oil + chicken dinner sausage
whipped cream cheesefennel seed + chives + parsley
red onion + raspberriesred wine vinegar + Parmesan cheese
optional smoothieoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

canned garbanzo beans + tomatolima beans + canned white beans
canned light tuna + garlic + Parmesan snap beans
thyme + parsley + olive oil + lemon juicecorn + corne beef
salad greens/fresh spinach + white wine vinegarpolenta or cornmeal mush
Sparkling waterSparkling water