Recipes for Intermittent Fasting Days

Alzheimer’s News

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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 Dishita who is now Following.

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 Dishita and fittacticsguy who are now Following.

It is one thing to see testimonials for healthy-living-plans on the website of the plan. Does that make you skeptical about their veracity? As one with a science background, I want to see corroboration from an independent source. In a mailing from the Alzheimer’s Prevention Bulletin came this headline: “Research shows intermittent fasting may prevent Alzheimer’s disease” Haven’t I been saying all along that Fasting has more than just weight-loss benefits? The article cites animal studies which look very promising:

Intermittent fasting in animal studies has also been shown to reduce brain inflammation. There is strong evidence that forms of intermittent fasting can delay the onset and progression of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease in animal models. Researchers are now exploring opportunities to study intermittent fasting in humans; particularly the effect this might have on neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease.

“In animal studies, intermittent fasting has been shown to increase longevity, improve cognitive function and reduce brain plaque as compared with animals fed a regular diet,” said Allan Anderson, MD, Director of the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute in Tucson. “One hypothesis is that intermittent fasting enables cells to remove damaged proteins. It has been shown to delay the onset and progression of disease in animal models of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s.….“The animal research is stunning,” concluded Dr. Anderson.

Well, I’m psyched. With Alzheimer’s in my family, I am eager to do what it takes to prevent or forestall the condition. So I exercise, I keep my mind active, I try to learn new things, and I Fast 5:2. Since reading this article, Dear Husband have altered our meal times to fit into the 16:8 schedule for Intermittent Fasting to add a further dimension. Eating less while eating well two days each week seems like a minuscule price to pay for improved brain health. What do you think? Read the full article here. And while you visit the site, sign up for the Alzheimer’s Registry by clicking the tab “About the Registry.” The more of us who participate in research, the quicker a cure can be found.

The meals today are typical of what we eat on a Fasting Monday. As the Good Book says, “Go, thou, and do likewise.”

Fore Street Bake: 147 calories 8 g fat 1.6 g fiber 9.6 g protein 8.5 g carbs 95 mg Calcium  NB: The food values shown are for the egg bake and the fruit, not for the optional beverages.  PB GF  One of our favorite restaurants in Portland, Maine is ForeStreet. First time there, I ate a pizza from their wood-fired oven and we have loved that particular combination of flavors ever since. Here’s the marvelous mixture in baked eggs.

1 two-oz egg 1/3 oz blue cheese ¾ oz leeks ½ oz mushrooms 1 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]

Slice the leeks and chop the mushrooms. Put into a Pyrex custard cup with a little water and cook in the microwave for 45 seconds. Spritz a ramekin with non-stick spray and add the cooked leeks and mushrooms. Whisk the cheese with the egg, then pour into the ramekin. Bake at 350 F. for 12-15 minutes. Portion the berries and pour the beverages and settle in for a taste of Portland. 

Miso Salmon:  242 calories 9 g fat 2 g fiber 29 g protein 12 g carbs 37 mg Calcium   PB GF Having heard of this over and over again, I asked our son for a recipe. So easy! So good tasting! You will have left-over sauce for flavoring a soup or another fish dish.

4 oz salmon filet, skinned 2 Tbsp miso sauce** 5 spears asparagus

**Miso Sauce:  makes 6 Tablespoons   33 calories/Tablespoon 2 Tbsp white or yellow miso 2 Tbsp mirin 1 Tbsp sake or sherry 1 Tbsp soy sauce 1 tsp sesame oil Stir together to combine.

Place the fish on a small plate and paint one side with some miso sauce. Turn fish over and repeat. On medium-high, heat a well-seasoned cast iron pan or a non-stick pan and add a spritz of cooking spray. Cook the fish on one side for 4 minutes while painting the up-side with more miso sauce. Turn the fish to the other side, paint with the sauce, and cook 4-5 minutes longer, depending on the thickness of the fish. Test for doneness by cutting a small slit down to the middle of the filet to see if it has changed from deep pink to opaque pink color. Cook the asparagus and plate.

It is still Lent

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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. 

Lent began four weeks ago. Years ago, I was lunching with colleagues and the young Biology teacher told us excitedly about her new diet plan: for the first six weeks, you eat no eggs or meat or dairy and then you phase them back in slowly. “That’s not a new diet,” I jested. “That’s called ‘Lent.'” Her ‘new diet’ pretty well sums it up: Lent, in the Christian church, has traditionally been a time of dietary privation; of fasting; all toward the end of soul-searching and penitence before Easter. Nowadays, these ideas are not stressed in Protestant Christian churches so much, but doing charitable acts, opening your heart and mind to kindness, and ‘welcoming the stranger‘ are ways to come closer to God. Lent will last another 3-1/2 weeks. How you spend it is up to you — but it seems to me that you could at least take two days each week for ‘Fasting’ and see how it makes you feel about yourself.

In keeping with the tradition of egg-less breakfasts and meatless dinners, I propose these menus for your Lenten attention.

Rounds, with Pan Muffin:  122 calories 4 g fat 1 g fiber 6.6 g protein 15 g carbs [5 g Complex] 10 mg Calcium  NB: Food values given are for the plated foods only, and do not include the optional beverage.  PB  All the foods in this meal are round, hence the name. Easy to prepare with Canadian bacon [back bacon to readers in Canada or the UK] and a pre-made pan muffin.

1 slice Canadian Bacon [‘back bacon’ to Canadians] one pan muffin  2 oz apple, sliced along the equator so the slices are round OR 2 oz applesauce, in a round dish  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] or lemon in hot water  Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie  [88 calories]

HINT: For easiest breakfast preparation, mix and cook the pan muffin recipe the night before. Freeze remaining batter or bake as muffins tomorrow. Slice the apple and plate it. Cook the Canadian Bacon. Warm the previously-cooked pan muffin. Done!

Maltese Spinach-Tuna Pie:  185 calories 9.6 g fat 5 g fiber 19 g protein 24 g carbs [16 g Complex] 49 mg Calcium  PB  This dish is a classic in Malta and you will enjoy it at home too. Lots of ingredients, but it is really easy to prepare. HINT: This recipe serves two. So low in calories, you may choose your own side vegetables or fruit.

100 g/ 3.5 oz [weight] frozen spinach 100 g/ 3.5 oz [weight] tuna 100 g/ 3.5 oz [weight] Mediterranean Vegetables   ¼ c peas ½ cup onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1 Tbsp capers 2 anchovies, rinsed 2 Tbsp tomato puree 1 tsp olive oil 1/6 sheet frozen, purchased puff pastry

Put the puff paste sheet on the counter to warm for 30 minutes. Thaw the spinach and squeeze out the moisture. Heat the oil in a pan, then saute the onions and garlic. When they are just cooked, add everything else except the puff pastry. Stir and cook until everything is warmed through. Transfer to a lightly-oiled oven-proof dish. Cut 1/6 of the pastry sheet. Rewrap and refreeze the rest. Place the puff paste on top of the tuna/vegetable mixture. Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes or until the puff pastry is browning and flakey.

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

1 two-oz eggCamembert cheese + watercress or micro greens
bleu cheese + leek plain yogurt
mushroomsedible flowers, optional
strawberrieshoney + Golden Berries or other fresh berries
Optional smoothieoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

wild-caught salmonuncured bacon + mushrooms + garlic + egg
miso + mirinscallion + baking powder + mustard + green beans
sake or dry sherry or soy sauceWorcestershire sauce + white whole wheat flour
asparagusParmesan cheese + flour + skimmed milk
Sparkling waterSparkling water

My Fair Lady

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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 Foodquipo and healthtips953 who are now Following.

In 1913, G. Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion debuted. On March 15, 1956, the Lerner and Loewe musical version, My Fair Lady, debuted on Broadway. Initially, Shaw had not wanted to release the rights to turn his play into a “comic operetta.” Rogers and Hammerstein, the original choice to adapt it, backed out. After Shaw died in 1950, the rights were secured. A teenaged Julie Andrews was cast as ‘Eliza Doolittle,’ and a man who couldn’t really sing, Rex Harrison, was cast as ‘Professor Higgins.’ On the first night of previews in New Haven, Connecticut, Harrison was spooked by the idea of singing with an orchestra in front of an audience — he retreated to his dressing room, refused to go on, and the show was almost canceled. But he relented, all was well, and the rest was history. My parents bought the original cast album and I memorized every song. In the late 50s, they took my sister and me to see our first Broadway show: My Fair Lady. When it finally closed on September 29, 1962, it was the longest running play of all time, and Eliza had thrown the slippers for many miles across the stage.

If you were to ask Professor Higgins who the most important characters in the musical were, he would naturally say himself and his fellow ethno-linguist Colonel Pickering, formerly of Her Majesty’s Army in India. Thus, our breakfast is a very English combination of flavors for Higgins and our dinner would pique the taste memory of Pickering.

Ham-Cup Eggs: 143 calories 7 g fat 1.4 g fiber 11.6 g protein 9 g carbs [7 g Complex] 68 mg Calcium  NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages.  GF  Easy to prepare ahead and easy on the taste buds.

1 two-oz egg 1 slice “Cottage Ham” [4” diameter thin slice of ham] I used North Country Smoke House brand at 21 calories/slice 1 Tbsp cottage cheese 1½ tsp Parmesan cheese, grated 2 oz apple  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]

Fit the ham into an oven-proof container that measures 3½” in diameter and 1¼” deep. [I used a cleaned tuna can. It was perfect.] You will need to snip the ham on 2 sides and overlap the meat to make it fit better into the mold. Combine the cheeses and season with herbs/salt/pepper to taste. Whisk in the egg and pour into the ham cup.  HINT: I did this the night before and put it in the ‘fridge. Turn on the toaster oven to 350 F and bake the ham cups for 20+ minutes, until the filling is puffed and set. Prepare the beverages and the apple. Use a wide knife to loosten the ham cups from the mold before plating. Some of the egg will have oozed into the mold as it baked, but that is easy to remove too. This breakfast was a real hit.

Indian Vegetables with Turkey and Naan: 299 calories 13 g fat 6 g fiber 17.6 g protein 31 g carbs [28 g Complex] 78 mg Calcium  PB GF — if your Naan is gluten free  This delicious meal needs 2 things in advance: Rogan Josh Sauce and Naan breads, both of which you can purchase. In a few weeks, I’ll show you how to make your own Naan, which is fun and easy.

1 naan flatbread, 106 or fewer calories/piece 3 Tbsp Rogan Josh Sauce ½ cup zucchini, in ½” dice ½ cup cauliflower, in ½” pieces ½ cup tomato, in ½” dice 2 oz ground turkey [I used 15% fat but would have preferred a lower fat option] ¼ tsp Indian curry powder 

Cook the vegetables and turkey in a little water until vegetables are softened and turkey is fully cooked. Drain, saving the cooking water for baking or soup stock. Add the sauce and curry powder to the vegetables- meat, and heat gently. Warm the naan in the oven or on a hot, dry skillet. Plate to suit your preference — on the Naan, under the Naan, beside the Naan. W.o.w.

Blizzard of ’88, New York

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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 USA has had some wild weather in the past year, including a snow storm in the state of Texas. People thought that was pretty horrible [and it was, especially as the people and infrastructure were unused to cold], but what would they have done in New York in the White Hurricane of 1888? The storm was preceded by warmth and rain — and then the temperature dropped. Snow began on March 11, continued all night and into the next day and the next. The wind howled, piling the snow impossibly high [52 feet/16 meters in Brooklyn]. Such snow! Forty inches [100 cm] in New York City, coming down impossibly fast and wind-blown. When it was all over, 200 people had died in the city alone, 100 more died at sea, and 100 others in the countryside. In the city, office and store workers had set out to work in the morning and never made it home. Since the trains and trolleys were stopped, those workers had to walk home in the evening — often trying to go 20 blocks in freezing temperatures, wearing inadequate clothing. A shop girl, in thin leather boots and layers of cotton petticoats, had a daunting task plowing through the snowy sidewalks. Many poor souls, men and women, were so exhausted that they sat down on door steps to rest, died of hypothermia where they sat , and weren’t discovered until the snow melted. The storm moved off to the North-East, blanketing New England and the Canadian Maritimes. Nowadays, all it takes is 4 inches of snow to paralyze a major city, but the subways still run underground and the communication wires are safe underground, too. Lives lost. Lessons learned.

Let us peer into the life of a shop girl or factory worker in New York City in 1888. Breakfast and dinner in a cold-water flat with no electricity meant foods that could be stored briefly or bought at a food stall. Thus breakfast might be bread and hard-boiled egg with leftover meat from dinner and the evening meal of soup from a vendor on the way home from work.

Shop Girl’s Breakfast:  231 calories 9 g fat 4.6 g fiber 14.5 g protein 27.5 g carbs 7 mg Calcium  PB The Industrial Revolution brought young women by the thousands from the farm to the city, to work in the factories and as shop girls. Breakfast would have been served cold, made from dinner leftovers and other foods that required little preparation or refrigeration.

1 slice whole-grain bread [no white bread on her budget] 1 two-oz hard boiled egg 1 oz of chicken dinner sausage 1 oz onion, sliced 2 prunes — aka: dried plums [0.6 oz]    Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea

Slice the sausage and the onion. Place in a small pan with some water and a spritz of non-stick spray. Cook until the water has evaporated, sausages have browned a bit, and the onions are limp. TIP: This could be done the night before. And, unlike our Shop Girl, you can reheat the sausage-onion in the morning. Toast the bread lightly and top with the sausage-onion mixture. Plate with the egg and the prunes. Only blackish coffee or tea for our Shop Girl – no stop at Starbucks on the way to work for a fancy brew.

Soup Royaume: 152 calories 0.3 g fat 6 g fiber 12.6 g protein 24.6 g carbs 84 mg Calcium  PB GF  A fine meal for winter, made hearty with autumn vegetables and lentils, it is named after the old lady who saved Geneva from invasion by the Savoyards. Add as much seasoning as you wish. Any soup can be improved by preparing it ahead and letting it sit for 8-24 hours. HINT: This recipe makes 6 [six] servings of 1 cup each.

2½ oz pork loin, raw or cooked, diced
½ cup onion, chopped
3½ oz [½ c]dry lentils** 		Put pork, onions, and lentils in a heavy saucepan and cook until browned.
**small green lentils from France, if possible
3 oz rutabega/turnip, cubed
2 oz carrot, diced
3 oz parsnip, diced
3 cups chopped cabbage
½ tsp mace + ½ tsp dry mustard 
1 Tbsp caraway seed + salt & pepper
3 cups water		Add the rutabega/turnip, carrot, parsnip, cabbage and seasonings to the saucepan. Pour in water to cover the vegetables. Cover the pan and simmer for about 1 hour or until vegetables are tender. Taste for seasonings.
½ cup frozen spinach, choppedAdd the frozen spinach, and heat through.
Divide in 6 equal servings.  Freeze what you don’t need today.
per serving: several leaves of fresh spinachRoughly chop the leaves and poke into the hot soup when serving. 

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

1 two-oz egg1 slice Canadian or back bacon 
4″ diameter thin slice hampan muffin [make ahead]
Parmesan cheese + appleapple or apple sauce
cottage
Optional smoothieoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

naan bread @ 106 caloriesfrozen spinach + tuna + peas
ground turkey + zucchinigarlic + onion + olive oil
Rogan Josh Sauce + tomatoanchovy + puff pastry
cauliflower + Indian curry powdermediterranean vegetables
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Good Queen Anne

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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 Foodquipo and Norbert Unpingca and reviews24h who are now Following.

When Anne Stuart was born in 1665, she was never expected to be a queen. Neither was her older sister, Mary. They were the nieces of the deposed King Charles II and spent much of their childhood in France. Although their father was a Catholic, he raised his daughters as Protestants. Charles was returned to power, and then Ann’s father ascended to the throne as James II. Meanwhile, Mary married William of Orange and moved to Holland. When James was deposed for his Catholicism, Mary and William were sent for to reign over England. When they died without an heir, Anne and her husband George became the monarchs, on March 8, 1702. What did she achieve as Queen? Anne created the United Kingdom by putting Scotland under control of the Crown and, by working with a two-party Parliament, she became the more modern type of Queen that we have today. But what makes her ‘Good Queen Anne’ to me, was her welcoming of French Huguenots [Protestants] to England since their religion was outlawed in France. The DeTurk branch of my family were given financial assistance and helped to move to the English colony of New York. A family named deBenneville was ‘adopted’ by Anne, and she took a particular interest in their son George, advocating his advancement. He eventually moved to Pennsylvania and married into my mother’s family. Thus, due to Anne’s kindly and generous interventions, several branches of my family tree were preserved.

For Anne’s French childhood, we will enjoy a breakfast of French flavors. For dinner, a meal fit for a queen who enjoyed hunting at her Hampton Court palace.

Chicken Provincal Bake: 139 calories 5 g fat 2 g fiber 10.5 g protein 10.5 g carbs [9 g Complex] 47.5 mg Calcium  NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages.  PB GF  What wonderful flavors! Based on the dinner of the same name. 

1 two-oz egg 2 Tbsp crushed tomatoes, slightly drained ½ anchovy, canned fillets, rinsed and chopped 1 Tbsp low-fat cottage cheese ¼ oz cooked chicken breast, minced thyme + rosemary pinch red pepper flakes 2 oz strawberry 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]

Spritz an oven-proof dish with non-stick spray and set the toaster oven for 350 degrees F. Whisk together the first 6 ingredients [not the berries!] and pour into the dish. Bake for about 15 minutes while you plate the fruit and prepare your optional beverages. Great way to start the day.

Game Pie:  293 calories 8 g fat 4 g fiber 37 g protein 14 g carbs 62 mg Calcium  PB GF – if using a GF bread or omitting the bread  This is a real treat. Various game meats can be found at some markets or online. We had these bits and bobs in the freezer, remaining from previous meals. 

If you don’t have four different varieties of game, two types will do.

1½ oz quail or pheasant ½ oz rabbit liver 1 oz wild boar loin 1½ oz turkey: domestic or wild, cubed ½ tsp Dijon mustard ½ oz cranberries 2 Tbsp rich broth of any sort ½ oz peas 1 oz egg ½ oz onion, minced pepper + salt + mace ¼ Arnold Multi-grain Sandwich-thin [½ of one slice] 1 oz carrot coins

Put the quail, liver, boar, mustard, cranberries, broth, and egg in the food processor and chop. Add water if it is dry. Remove to a bowl and add the turkey, onion, peas, and seasonings. Pat into an oven-safe dish that has been spritzed with non-stick spray. Nestle the sandwich-thin on top and bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes. Serve with the cooked carrots and a bit of mustard.

Comparing Plans: MIND Diet

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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.

Paleo and Keto diets are all the rage, but it seems to me that the MIND Diet should be better-known. It was developed in 2015 at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago from two widely-regarded diets: the Mediterranean Diet and the DASH Diet. The name is a real smash-up: Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay. As that implies, the diet has genuine benefits for those who wish to forestall neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease. Furthermore, although it is not an eating plan aimed at weight-loss/body health, it could help to lower cholesterol and weight. Since Dr Mosley recommends a Mediterranean Diet for Slow Days, it is remarkably easy to merge this with a Fasting Diet. Dear Husband and I tried it out, designing a month-long plan of eating, and were glad to see how easy it was to follow. According to a study of 900+ seniors, those who followed the plan religiously reduced their risk of Alzheimer’s Disease by 53%. Those were less punctilious, still reduced their risk by 35%. Those are great numbers. I’m up for that. The chart below shows how nicely the MIND and FAST play together.

Is this food allowed on this diet…MINDOn Fast Days
Fatty Animal protein: beef, lamb, porkNo Yes
Lean Animal protein: chicken, turkey8 oz/weekYes, preferred
Eggs Yes Yes 
Beer, wine, cocktails5 oz red wine dailyOnly on Slow Days
Grains: brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole cereal Yes Yes, in moderation
Nuts + seeds3 oz/week Yes, in moderation
Beans, legumes: peas, kidney beans, lentils, chickpeas4 oz/week Yes 
Seafood protein8 oz/week or moreYes 
Tropical fruitslimitedYes 
BerriesYes, often Yes 
Leafy green vegetables: spinach, chard, kale, lettuce1 oz/day or moreYes 
Cheese No Some 
Vegetable oils: olive, canolaYes Yes, in moderation
Animal fat: butterNo Yes, on Slow Days
Root vegetables: beets, sweet potatoes, carrotsYes Yes 
Other vegetables: onions, tomatoes, peppersYes Yes 
Higher fatNo No 
Colorful vegetablesYes Yes 
Higher fiberYes Yes
Daily Carb intakeunmeteredKeep it low
Complex carbohydrates: whole grains 3oz/day Yes
Simple carbs: cookies, pastries, cakeNoNot on Fast Day
16:8 intermittant fasting recommendedYesYes 
Number of days per week to follow the regimin 7 of 72 of 7
Do calories matter?No Yes, 600 on Fast Days
source: https://health.usnews.com/best-diet/mind-diet

Our meals today draw from ingredients that hew to the guidelines of the MIND Diet: whole-grain bread and a brightly-colored vegetable for breakfast, followed by beans with leafy greens for dinner. The soup also makes for a fine lunch, which is another time to eat your healthy ingredients.

Bruschetta Toast: 210 calories 12 g fat 4 g fiber 9.5 g protein 20 g carbs [12 g Complex] 56 mg Calcium  PB  This one was a serendipidous invention and it turned out to be yummy.

1 slice whole-grain seedy bread [Dave’s Killer Bread is great] one 2-oz egg 3 Tbsp Bruschetta sauce  – strain it if too liquidy 1 oz pear  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] or lemon in hot water 

Toast the bread lightly and pan-fry or poach the egg. Spread 2 Tbsp of the bruschetta on the toast and top with the egg. Dollop the remaining bruschetta on the egg. Plate the fruit. Eat with knife and fork or with your hands. A taste sensation.

Bruschetta Sauce: makes 2 cups 1 cup= 285 calories 28.5 g fat 3 g fiber 2 g protein 10 g carbs 2 mg Ca
½ pound plum tomatoes
3-4 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic + 1 scallion
½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes + ½ tsp salt
1 tsp fresh oregano, chopped
1 tsp fresh tarragon, chopped
2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 tsp fresh marjoram, chopped 		Core and quarter the tomatoes. Peel and crush the garlic.
Slice the scallion. Put all of these ingredients into a food processor and pulse off and on to make a chunky sauce.
½ pound plum tomatoes Core and quarter the tomatoes. Add to the above and pulse a few more times.
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1½ teaspoons red wine vinegar 		Pour the tomato-herb mixture into a bowl and stir in the vinegars.
This is the sauce that I mentioned in SlowDays: Bruschetta https://wordpress.com/post/fastingme.com/14162

Three-Bean Soup:  241 calories 3 g fat 29 g fiber 16 g protein 39 g carbs [32 g Complex] 134 mg Calcium  PB GF   A cold evening and a bowl of bean soup – so satisfying and delicious. HINT: This recipe produces 11 cups of soup. One serving = one cup A fine way to use up some of those beans that you hoarded when the Pandemic began.

1 cup dry navy beans** 1 cup dry kidney beans** 1 cup dry soldier beans** 2 Tbsp salt + water to cover beans 4 oz ham bone or ham hock, with some meat 1 cup onion, chopped 28 oz crushed tomatoes 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp dried basil 3 Tbsp lemon juice + salt + pepper to taste per serving: 1/2 cup baby spinach leaves cut as chiffonade **Any combination of beans will do. Add other types of beans or pulses, such as lentils, to create a 5-10 bean soup.

Rinse the beans in a collander under running water. Put them into a large bowl or cook pot and cover with 3-4” of water. The beans will double or triple in size as they absorb the water. Add salt and let the beans sit overnight. Next day, drain the water and discard. Put the beans in a large cook pot along with 1½ quarts water and the meaty bone. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and cover. Let cook slowly for 2 hours. Add the onion, tomatoes, and flavorings. Fish out the ham bone and cut the meat from it. Dice the meat, add back to the pot, and simmer slowly for one hour. Serve with ½ cup fresh baby spinach leaves stirred into the hot soup in each serving bowl at the last minute.

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

1 two-oz egg + lots of fresh herbs1 two-oz egg, hard-boiled 
Crushed tomatoes + low-fat cottage cheese1 slice whole-grain dark bread @ 70 calories
anchovy + cooked chicken meatchicken dinner sausage
pear2 prunes + onion
Optional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

quail/pheasant + rabbit liver + peascabbage + onion + rutabaga/turnip
Dijon mustard + fresh cranberries + eggcarrot + parsnip + dry green lentils
rich broth + turkey + onion + wild boarpork loin + frozen spinach + fresh spinach
mace + carrot + Arnold Sandwich Thin [100 calories]mace + dry mustard + caraway seed
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Boticelli

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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 freeketodiet and fraidycatfinance and morningfatmelter14 who are now Following.

Sandro Boticelli [born March 1, 1445 as Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi, but called ‘boticelli’ or ‘little barrel’] was yet another of the great artists of Florence, under the patronage of the Medici Family. He painted in the Renaissance style from 1470 to 1500. True to his time, he depicted religious themes, figures from Greek mythology, and society people in the style of Classical figures. His paintings are full of light and motion and beautiful people. He had many patrons and his skills were in great demand, but Sandro fell under the spell of the ascetic clergyman Savonorola, and he began to consider his mythological scenes to be irreverent. Some say he burned them, some say he refused to take new commissions. For whatever reason, Sandro’s style changed; he was not hired so often, and he was eclipsed by his contemporaries until his death in 1510. His posthumous legacy was obscured as well, until the late 1800s when there was a resurgence of interest in Florentine Renaissance art, permitting Boticelli again to take his place among the greats.

One of Boticelli’s most famous works is Primavera, an enormous painting showing the Goddess Venus with a retinue of Springtime characters. Off to the right, the cold winds of winter attempt to disrupt the revels but to no avail. This painting is on display in the Uffizi Gallery’s Boticelli Room along with The Birth of Venus, the other most-famous of Sandro’s works. It shows the nude Venus being wafted across the water on a giant scallop shell, new-born of the sea’s foam. Our breakfast is all about Spring [even though it will be a few weeks until the Equinox], and our dinner features sea scallops, of course.

Vernal Equinox Bake:  249 calories 8.4 g fat 2 g fiber 14 g protein 17 g carbs [5.5 g Complex] 212 mg Calcium  NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages.  PB GF  For the change of seasons, a breakfast with cured meat [to represent Winter] and artichokes [to stand in for Spring]. Simple and flavorful.

1 two-oz egg 1/4 oz uncured capicola, diced 3/4 oz artichoke hearts, marinated and purchased in a jar 1 Tbsp reduced-fat cottage cheese 1/4 cup blueberries or strawberries + 2 Tbsp plain, fat-free yogurt   Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] or lemon in hot water  Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie  [88 calories]

Drain the artichokes and chop them. Spritz an oven-proof dish with non-stick spray and sprinkle the capicola and artichokes on the bottom. Whisk the egg with salt and pepper, pour it into the dish, and bake at 350F. 12-15 minutes. Combine the fruit with the yogurt in a ramekin and plate with the egg bake. Serve with optional beverages and gaze upon Primavera by Sandro Boticelli.

Scallops with Peas: 260 calories 9 g fat 5 g fiber 26 g protein 11 g carbs 153 mg Calcium  PB GF – if using GF flour in the Bechamel  Salty scallops and sweet green peas are a wonderful combination. Very simple to prepare. Low enough in calories to add a Side Salad if you wish.  Perch a picture of Birth of Venus on the table so you can see it as you dine.

¼ pound dry sea scallops 1½ Tbsp chives, chopped ¼ c Bechamel sauce, no cheese ½ cup frozen green ‘English’ peas 1 tsp lemon zest 1½ Tbsp Romano cheese, grated   Optional: side salad

Put the frozen peas in a bowl or cup to thaw. Pat the scallops dry and cut them in half along the equator. Spray a non-stick pan with cooking spray and heat the pan over medium-high. Pan-sear the scallops, 1-2 minutes per side, adding some salt and pepper. Turn the heat to low. Add the Bechamel, zest and chives to the pan, along with a little water or white wine to increase the liquid. Add the peas and most of the grated cheese. Heat thoroughly but gently and spoon into scallop shells or ceramic baking shells. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and briefly broil or bake to melt the cheese on top. Serve with Side Salad, adding 36 calories.

The Dialogue

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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 healthremedy247 and Weight loss meal plans who are now Following.

Galileo was in a quandary. He wanted to write about the new discoveries in the solar system, those of his pen-pal Johannes Kepler and ideas of his own. The work of Kepler, who showed the truth of the Copernican System, had been banned by the Church in 1616. Now Galileo wanted to help the average person to understand why the new ideas were correct. But Pope Urbain VIII and the Inquisition had hampered him: he was on probation for his previous writings and was forbidden to write in support of Kepler’s ideas. So Galileo composed a new book in 1632. It was written in Italian, not latin, so everyone could read it. It was penned in the form of a novel rather than as a scientific tome. He called it The Dialogue of Two Chief World Systems. The plot revolves around three travelers who meet by chance on the road. Over four days of walking, they talk about the new ideas in astronomy. Salviati, an ‘intellectual’ [who stands in for Galileo], is a proponent of the new philosophy and he debates with Simplicio [the ‘simpleton’] who adheres to the Ptolemaic system, while Sagredo, a truth-seeker, listens and asks questions. By the end of the book, the ideas of the Church have been shot full of holes and the reader will probably conclude that Salviati is correct. Pope Urbain VIII was furious. It seemed that Galileo had cast him as the Simpleton! Galileo was put on trial in 1633, and convicted of heresy. He was forced to recant all the ‘false’ ideas that he had published previously, his books were burned, and he spent the rest of his life under house arrest until his death. Three-hundred fifty years later, in 1992, Pope John Paul II officially pardoned Galileo and apologized for the Church’s objections to his ideas.

In honor of the three interlocutors of the dialogue, our breakfast and our dinner each contain three principle flavorings. Peruse this summary of The Dialogue, to understand the points that Galileo makes in the book.

O-M-G Bake:  141 calories 7.4 g fat 1 g fiber 8.7 g protein 9 g carbs 110 mg Calcium  NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages.  PB GF  Think: Oh My Goodness! Or: Olive-Mushroom-Gouda. What Flavor!

1 two-oz egg 1 olive, chopped ½ oz raw mushroom, chopped ¼ oz Gouda cheese, grated 2 oz applesauce   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]

First set the toaster oven to 350 degreese F. Dear Husband is the one who prepares the breakfasts. He says to start the coffee next and then to prepare the smoothie. Spritz a ramekin with oil or non-stick spray. Put the olive and mushroom in the ramekin. Whisk the egg with the cheese and pour into the ramekin. Bake in the toaster oven at 350 F. for 12-15 minutes, depending on how you like your eggs. Dish up the applesauce and pour the beverages. Delicious.

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.

 

Michaelangelo

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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.

by Daniele da Volterra

What was the World of Art into which Michaelangelo was born on March 6, 1475? It was the height of the Italian Renaissance of the Quattrocento. Boticelli, Fra Lippi, and Masaccio were painting in Florence which was the center of the Art World. Ghiberti and Donatello were leading influences in sculpture, and Bruneleschi had wowed the world with the building of the dome of the Florence Cathedral. All of them were fascinated with the mathematics, optics, and physics of linear perspective: Science was influencing Art with the optimism of ‘We can do anything because we know math’ attitude. 25 years later, Michaelangelo was already recognized as a genius, having created his Pieta — a masterpiece of pathos and sculptural plasticity [making marble look like soft skin or draped fabric]. Enter the Cinquecento. Now art was more interested in the human form and in showing emotion. The Dying Slave, 1513 is the perfection of those concepts. From 1500 until his death on February 18, 1564, some of the most amazing pieces of art were created: sculptures, like the statue of David; frescos, such as the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel; architecture, Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome for example. Michaelangelo influenced artists for centuries after his death, which should come as no surprise. Genius in others is inspirational — we may never reach those heights, but we learn a lot through the effort.

The meals presented today are from the geographic milieu of Michaelangelo: the Western Italian Mediterranean. Olive oil, tuna, vegetables, olives, cured meats, cheeses — the artist and his contemporaries cooked with these ingredients every meal. Michaelangelo cared little about his appearance, nor about food, but that won’t stop us from eating well.

‘Pan Bagne’ ScrOmelette: 149 calories 10 g fat 1 g fiber 11.4 g protein 6 g carbs 63 mg Calcium NB: Food values shown are for the ScrOmelette and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages. PB GF  Pan Bagne  is a wonderful layered sandwich which we enjoy in the summer. Each of the 7 layers is a distinct yet complimentary flavor. This recipe combines several of the components, without all the oil, tuna, and bread. The result is delicious at breakfast.

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 and pour half of their volume into a jar with a lid and put it in the ‘fridge for next week.  ½ black olive, pitted and chopped ½ Tbsp creamy chevre cheese 1 Tbsp crushed tomatoes ½ Tbsp spinach, cooked and chopped ¼ tsp dried basil 2 oz strawberries or 1 oz apple  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories]or lemon in hot water  Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie  [88 calories]

Stir and cream the olive, cheese, tomatoes, spinach, and basil until nicely blended. Whisk the eggs with salt and pepper to taste. Continue whisking as you add the vegetable/cheese mixture and blend as thoroughly as possible. Scramble to taste. Brew your beverage and shake the smoothie. Slice the apple and settle in for a flavorful meal.

Ham Florentine Crepes: 299 calories 11g 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 crepes and Bechamel sauce are pre-made.

2 crepes/galettes ¾ cup Ham Florentine filling 2 oz carrots-broccoli-cauliflower

Set the oven to 350 F. If the galettes/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 with the Winter Vegetables.

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

1 two-oz eggtwo egg yolks  + 4 egg whites
black olivemilk + baking powder
mushrooms + Gouda cheesewhite whole wheat flour + white flour
applesaucesugar + cream of tartar + canned plums
Optional smoothieoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

canned garbanzo beans [chickpeas]broccoli/cauliflower + onion
5-0z cam tuna in water + garliccarrot + kale/chard + sesame/canola oil
tomato + thyme + parsley + vinaigretteany meat + brown rice + garlic
babygreens/spinach + Parmesan cheesepackaged Japanese curry sauce
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Galileo

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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 The Good Life Now and Chanaka and pipanddip who are now Following. Join us in the Fasting Lifestyle.

Galileo Galilei was born on February 15, 1564. He was a true Renaissance Man: poet, musician, popular professor, astronomer, inventor. His biggest claim to fame had to do with what he saw in the Solar System through his telescope. [Galileo did not invent the telescope, no matter how often he said it. He did improve and enlarge the instrument, making it more suitable for astronomical use.] Beginning in 1610, Galileo began publishing books about his observations: the moon had mountains and craters [described as looking like small-pox scars]; the sun had dark spots on its face [likened to pimples in his notes]; Venus waxed and waned in brightness as it went through phases [like our moon; Mars did not]; Jupiter had a Great Red Spot [now recognized as a cyclonic storm]; Jupiter had four moons circling around it [making Earth seem puny with only one]. From his notes and calculations, he gave proof to an idea previously proposed by Copernicus and Kepler: the sun was in the center of the Solar System — not the Earth. Why was this a religious and cultural bombshell? Because everyone in Europe had been told since the time of Aristotle and Ptolemy that the Earth was the center of the universe. Later theologians said that this showed that Earth was singled out and blessed by the Almighty. Despite the fact that many Churchmen [including a future Pope] attended Galileo’s ‘telescope parties’ where everyone took turns looking at the planets through the device, the Church did not like these seemingly heretical ideas. Galileo was put on warning by the Inquisition and forced to recant his ideas. He was a man of strong faith and he would rather pretend to abjure his new discoveries than be banned from the Church forever.

We will start our day with flavors of Florence, Galileo’s beloved home town, and end the day with flavors of the Mediterranean region: tuna with grilled vegetables.

Ham Florentine Bake: 133 calories 6.5 g fat 1 g fiber 8 g protein 6 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 bake is so flavorful that you will be amazed by the tiny calorie count. Same ‘ham Florentine’ used to fill crepes for dinner. Same kind of deliciousness.

1 two-oz egg 2 Tbsp ham Florentine filling** 2 oz applesauce Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories] or natural apple cider  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] or lemon in hot water 

Set the toaster oven at 350 F. Spritz an oven-proof dish with non-stick spray. Whisk the egg and stir in the ham Florentine filling. Pour into prepared dish and bake for 12-15 minutes. Portion the applesauce and pour your choice of beverages. This is a breakfast to prepare often.

**Ham Florentine Filling:  makes 1.5 cups   ½ cup no-cheese Bechamel Sauce 1 cup ham in ¼ ” dice 1 cup [5 oz] cooked spinach, from fresh or frozen ½ cup chopped celery ¼ cup chopped onion pinches of 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 the onions are transluscent, adding more spinach liquid as needed. Add remaining ingredients and cook on low heat until warmed through.

Tuna with Grilled Vegetables: 244 calories 7 g fat 4 g fiber 29 g protein 14.6 g carbs [10.6 g Complex] 32.5 mg Calcium   PB GF  The recipe comes from the Fast Diet Book and it is wonderful. Very Mediterranean, too.

5 oz tuna steak 4 oz red bell peppers 5 oz zucchini 2 oz cherry tomatoes 1 tsp olive oil lemon juice

Cut the peppers into long strips. Same with the zucchini. Toss all the vegetables with the olive oil. Cook the tuna and vegetables on a grill pan or grill, 3 minutes on each side. Splash with lemon juice before plating. Delicious and quick.