Fast Diet recipes that are gluten free and plant based

Moon Shot

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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 InspiredLiving who is now Following.

We were in a bus, returning to Paris. ‘We’ were a mixed bunch of college students from the US on a student “tour with cultural experiences and language immersion.” It was a Sunday in late July, 1969. The organizers had herded us into a bus for a weekend trip to Normandy and Brittany which we had dutifully toured. Now it was dark and we had a couple more hours ahead of us on that bus. We had been singing, chatting, napping, and suddenly the bus driver turned on the radio. An excited French broadcaster was beginning to shout: “L’Aigle est atterri*! L’Aigle est atterri**!!” Those who knew more French translated for the neophytes: ‘The Eagle has landed!” And so we knew that the Apollo 11 lunar lander was safely on the moon. What a moment! As one, we began to sing The Star Spangled Banner. Writing about it now gives me goosebumps. The next day, every cafe in Paris had a TV out on the sidewalk, so everyone could share the adventure. That night, the Place de la Concord had screens on which the TV images from the moon were displayed. We, France, and the world were mesmerized by the event. Fifty years ago and I can still remember it in detail.

*The word ‘atterri’ [or ‘landed’] literally means ‘come to Earth.’ Soon a new word was coined: ‘aluni,’ meaning ‘land on the moon.’ ** I remember the word a “atteresse” [with a accent aigu on the last ‘e’; and the moon landing version as “alunisse” but maybe I that is a detail that I have mis-remembered…

Our meals today are in the image of the full moon, with a round of dairy at breakfast and a fish timbale at dinner. NB: The idea that the “moon is made of (green) cheese” comes from the detailed observations of an early astronomer. He was looking at the moon through his telescope and writing notes to himself. To describe the color of the pale orb, he gave a comparison: it was ‘the color of green [meaning young or un-aged] cheese.’ Some idiot took him literally.

Bombadil’s Breakfast: 146 calories 5.1 g fat 2.5 g fiber 10.5 g protein 15.3 g carbs [8.3 g Complex] 312 mg Calcium  NB: the food values given are for the plated items only, and do not include the optional beverages. PB GF Vegetarian When Tom Bombadil served his guests breakfast, it was plants, fruit and dairy of his own collection or production. The plants should be watercress [since his wife Goldberry was the River-Man’s daughter] and the fruit shall be Golden Berries [aka Peruvian Ground Cherries], again in a nod to his wife.

½ oz Camembert cheese ½ cup watercress leaves or microgreens ½ cup plain yogurt ½ tsp honey 1 oz Golden Berries edible flowers [violets, chives, nastursum, or others]  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Warm the honey and stir it into the yogurt. Plate the items to your taste and enjoy a magical breakfast in The Old Forest. Wear a blue jacket and yellow hat.

Fish Timbale:  276 calories 17.3 g fat 1.6 g fiber 23.5 g protein 8 g carbs 95 mg Calcium  PB GF Sounds high-falutin’ but really very easy.

1.6 oz mackerel or salmon + 1.3 oz haddock or cod 3/4 oz egg [either pullet egg or an egg white] 1/3 oz white beans 2 Tbsp cream + 2 Tbsp spinach + 1/2 Tbsp shallot 1 oz Swiss chard 1/8 tsp olive oil nutmeg + granulated garlic

Wash the spinach and leave water on the leaves. Put in a lidded pan along with the chopped shallot. Put on the lid and let cook until the spinach is limp. Remove, chop, and squeeze the water out of the spinach. Thoroughly mash the white beans and add the cream. Stir the spinach/shallot into the bean/cream. If fish is raw: Put in a pan with a little water. Cover and steam until fish is cooked. Flake the fish and combine with the other ingredients, except the chard. Turn into an oil-spritzed ramekin and bake at 400 degrees F. for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, coarsley chop the chard and cook it in a little water until done. Drain and season with nutmeg and granulated garlic. Run a knife around the sides of the timbale and invert the plate over it. Turn the plate right-side-up and remove the timbale. Plate the chard.

Polonium

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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.

Marie Sklodowska Curie stirred and stirred her cauldron of melted pitchblende. It was 1898, and she was in a wooden shack behind the Sorbonne in Paris. This was not the university life she had imagined as a child in Poland. Marya [Marie] had entered the Sorbonne to pursue a degree in science when the University of Krakow [Poland] would not admit her. She did research into the energy given off by certain salts and crystals [like Uranium, discovered in 1789], an energy which she dubbed ‘radiation.’ Together with her husband Pierre, a professor of chemistry at the Sorbonne, Marie thought that pitchblende/Uraninite contained undiscovered elements which were radioactive. By July of 1898, they had isolated one of those elements, which they named Polonium in honor of Marie’s native land. By the end of the year, they also identified and named a second element, Radium.

Foods in honor of Polonium should have a distinctly Polish slant to them. Horseradish is a popular flavoring in Eastern Europe, so that is in the breakfast. The dinner of cabbage soup, also very Polish/French, evokes Curie’s stirring the pot of pitchblende. Marie was a busy woman, having some soup in the freezer for a quick meal would have appealed to her.

Horseradish-Cheesey ScrOmelette: 158 calories 9.8 g fat 0.7 g fiber 11.4 g protein 5.8 g carbs [5 g Complex] 105.6 mg Calcium  NB: Food values shown are for the ScrOmelette and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages. PB GF Barney Greengrass’ place in Manhatten combines eggs with a horseradish-cheese mixture and here is my version. Tangy and unusual. Oh, and good.

1-½ two-oz 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  1 Tbsp Barney Greengrass cheese mixture*** ½ Tbsp crushed tomatoes ½ clementine  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or tea or lemon with hot water Optional: 3 oz green smoothie or fruit smoothie [34 calories]

***Cheese Mixture: 2 Tbsp Old English cheese spread + 4 tsp horseradish from a jar. Save the remainder for another time. 

Stir the cheese mixture and tomatoes together until smooth. Whisk the eggs with salt and pepper to taste, then whisk in the cheese/tomatoes. Pour into a hot pan sprayed with cooking oil. As the eggs set, lift the edge and tilt the pan so that uncooked egg flows underneath. When the eggs are still very moist on top, fold the omelette, take off the heat, and put a lid on the pan. Plate the fruit and pour the beverages of your choice. Then plate that warm, tasty omelette. Yum.

Cabbage-Sausage Soup: 264 calories 11 g fat 5 g fiber 14 g protein 25.5 g carbs [22 g Complex] 66 mg Calcium  PB GF  Since this is Jacques Pepin’s recipe, I’ll let him say it: “When the weather gets cooler in the fall, I make soup. I generally cook up a big batch and freeze some for whenever I need it. This one, with sausage, potatoes, and cabbage, is hearty and good for cold weather.” Or for a quick meal anytime of year.

8 ounces mild Italian sausage meat [using bulk sausage is easiest] 1 ½ cups onions, sliced  6 scallions, cut into ½-inch pieces (1¼ cups) 6 cups water 1 cup chickpeas 16 oz potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch chunks 8 ounces savoy cabbage, chopped/sliced 1¼ teaspoons salt

“Break the sausage meat into 1-inch pieces and place it in a saucepan over high heat. Sauté, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to keep the meat from sticking, for 10 minutes, or until the sausage is well browned. Add the onions and scallions and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the water, chickpeas, potatoes, cabbage, and salt and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 45 minutes.” Portion for storage or serving. One portion = 1 cup.

Ingredients for next week: 

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

plain yogurt + honey + edible flowers1 two-oz egg
Camembert cheese or Brie
Arnold brand Sandwich Thin
watercress or microgreens
grapes
Golden Berries/blueberries
Canadian bacon/Jones brand
Optional smoothieoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

3oz cooked or raw fish + 1 egg
2 crepes [Not by Bread, 17-Sept-’17
cream + shallot + spinach
carrot + broccoli + cauliflower
nutmeg + canned white beans
leek/bacon filling
Swiss chard + garlic powder

Sparkling waterSparkling water

Summer of 1816

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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 Mary Ellen B. who is now Following.

In 1815, an Indonesian volcanic island near Bali blew its top. The eruption of Mount Tambora scarcely made the headlines, but it had long-ranging consequences. Tambora was a type of volcano that puts out huge quantities of ash and gasses [remember the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajokull in 2010?]. Ejected high into the atmosphere, they were carried by the jet stream around the world. This had the effect of blocking much of the solar energy [light] which enters the atmosphere. The result? Cooler temperatures in North America and Europe. Just as the farmers crops were sprouting from the ground, freezing temperatures and snow would kill them. While thousands of people around the Indian Ocean died directly from the eruption, many more died half a world away due to famine and hypothermia as winter came on. This came to be called The Year Without A Summer, immortalized in books and doggerel: “Air so cold you could see your breath/ 1800 and froze to death.”

Our breakfast contains sprouted seeds, in remembrance of the crops that died in the fields that summer. The dinner is fish chowder, which probably became a staple that fall and winter due to the lack of food from plants. Whatever your weather is tomorrow, at least this isn’t the summer of 1816.

Sprouted Bake: 129 calories 5.3 g fat 1.8 g fiber 9.5 g protein 7.8 g carbs [6.9 g Complex] 45.5 mg Calcium  NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages. PB GF Time to get the sprouts out of the sandwiches and into the breakfast.

1 two-oz egg ¼ c radish sprouts OR microgreens 1/2 oz avocado 1 Tbsp low-fat cottage cheese ¼ cup blueberries Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Mash the avocado and mix with the cottage cheese. Heat the toaster oven to 350 degrees F. Spritz an oven-proof dish with cooking oil or spray and put the sprouts in it. Whisk the egg with the avocado mixture and pour over the sprouts. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Portion the fruit and pour the optional beverages. 

Chowdah: 294 calories 7.3 g fat 1.7 g fiber 33.6 g protein 17.2 g carbs 114 mg Calcium  PB GF Here in Northern New England, chowder is king. Cod or haddock is traditional but hake is more flavorful and lower in calories. If you can, make it one day and eat it the next day for richer flavor.

½ slice bacon ¼ cup onion, chopped 2 oz potatoes, 1/2” dice 1.5 cups fish stock 4 oz cod or hake fillets, cut into 1-1/2” pieces ¼ cup 2% milk salt + pepper + parsley

Cook the bacon until it is almost crispy, remove from the pan, blot dry of fat, and chop coarsely. Pour most of the fat from the pan and add the onions. Cook slowly until soft and transluscent. In another pan, boil the potatoes in water until tender. Drain and salt the potatoes. Put the fish stock, cod, potatoes, and milk in the pan with the onions. Heat slowly until warm. Add the bacon, parsley, and seasonings to taste. [TIP: Best if held in the ‘fridge for 8-24 hours before you heat slowly [do NOT boil] and taste for seasonings again.]

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. Simple way to lose weight and be healthier.

155 years ago, a few colonies of the British Empire, the ‘Province of Canada,’ New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, met on Prince Edward Island to discuss confederation. In a few years, they formed a new colony called “the Dominion of Canada.” Other colonies were formed and joined, and so it was, in 1982, they became a fully independent nation. This is what is celebrated on Canada Day, July 1st. Flags, fireworks, parades, and speeches are the order of the day. And cookouts. And food with friends.

Our gastronomical celebration of Canada Day begins in the Maritimes, where the Fathers of Confederation first met. Dinner is from the icy waters of the newest Canadian province, Nunavut, where Arctic Char make their home.

Maritime bake: 150 calories 6.5 g fat 1.2 g fiber 16.6 g protein 6 g carbs [5.5 g complex] 84 mg Calcium  NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages. PB GF To us, the Maritimes of Canada are all about seafood, potatoes, local cheese, and lots of the herb Savory, winter or summer. Then there are the strawberries: June/July in Nova Scotia; July in PEI; August in Newfoundland. Good people, good food.

1 two-oz egg 1/2 oz salt cod [cover with water and soak 30 minutes] 1/8 oz Cheddar OR ADL brand “Old/Fort”, grated 1 tsp dried savory 1/2 Tbsp dry potato flakes + 1 Tbsp water pepper to taste 2 oz strawberries  optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or tea or lemon in hot water optional: 5-6 oz berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories] or green smoothie or unpasturized apple cider

The night before: 1] stir the potato flakes and water together in a small bowl and let sit to moisten. 2] cover the salt cod with water and soak 30 minutes. Drain and flake into small pieces.  Next morning: Spritz a ramekin with cooking spray. Set the toaster oven at 350 degrees F. Combine the potato, cod, and savory and put into the ramekin. Whisk the egg and pour over the cod. Top with grated cheese and bake 12-15 minutes. Prepare the beverages as you like them and plate the berries.

Arctic Char with Peas: 263 calories 8 g fat 3 g fiber 28 g protein 10 g carbs [10 g Complex] 25 mg Calcium  PB GF  Arctic Char is a member of the Salmon Family which can be both sustainably fished in the wild and farm-raised. It is delicious, too. There are two presentations given: one ridiculously easy, the other slightly more complex. Both are great.

Recipe I: 4 oz arctic char fillets ½ cup green ‘English’ peas, fresh or frozen Bake the fish at 400 F. for 10 minutes/ inch of thickness or grill for 4 minutes/side. Cook the peas and serve over/around the fish.

Recipe II: 247 calories 8.7 g fat 2 g fiber 26.7 g protein 7.3 g carbs [5.5 g Complex] 74.7 mg Calcium PB GF 4 oz arctic char fillets ¼ cup watercress sauce [see SIDEKICKS II oct 4, 2017] 1 cup snow peas, stems and strings removed Bake the fish at 400 F. for 10 minutes/ inch of thickness or grill for 4 minutes/side. Warm the watercress sauce and serve over the fish. Cook the peas and plate. 

Alexander

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How this Fast Diet  Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow, for a calorie total of less than 600. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post, another day of eating 600 calories or less. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it: a simple way to lose weight and be healthier.

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

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

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

1 ½ two-oz eggs HINT: If you are serving one person, crack three 2-oz eggs into a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Whip up those eggs, pour half of their volume into a jar with a lid, and put it in the ‘fridge for next week. 0.37 [3/8] oz feta cheese, reduced fat 1 Tbsp tomato puree [not tomato paste] large pinch of cinnamon + of oregano 1 Tbsp pomegranate seeds –OR– 1-1/4 oz applesauce sprinkled with cinnamon Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

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

Tandoori Chicken and Vegetables: 265 calories 4.8 g fat 9 g fiber 20 g protein 32.6 g carbs 99.5 mg Calcium  PB GF  TIP: You can buy jars of tandoori sauce in most supermarkets. Be sure it does not contain corn syrup or sweeteners. Aim for 70-80 calories/ quarter cup

2 oz chicken, cooked or raw ½ cup eggplant, cubed 2 oz broccoli 2 oz bell peppers, cut in chunks 2 oz zucchini, sliced or cubed  2 oz carrots, sliced 1/4” thick or use ‘baby carrots’ cut in quarters ¼ cup brown rice, cooked ¼ c tandoori sauce 2 Tbsp plain, non-fat yogurt

Cook the vegetables together in a little water until they are tender. Add the chicken and the sauce. Warm it all. If the chicken is raw, be sure to cook it through. Either stir the yogurt into the sauce or serve it atop the meal. Plate the brown rice [warm it if cold] and serve the chicken and vegetables on top. Perfect for eating on a hot night or a cold one.

Ingredients for next week: 

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

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

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

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

Crossroads: Indian Ocean

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How this Fast Diet Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow, for a calorie total of less than 600. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post, another day of eating 600 calories or less. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it. Simple way to lose weight and be healthier. Welcome to WeightLossNearMe who is now Following. Join us in the Fasting Lifestyle.

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

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

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

++ 1½ two-oz eggs HINT: If you are serving one person, crack three 2-oz eggs into a small                       bowl or glass measuring cup. Whip up those eggs, pour half of their volume into                                                  a jar with a lid, and put it in the ‘fridge for next week.  ++++1.5 tsp cafreal masala [see recipe on above website] ++++ ½ oz shrimp, cooked and chopped  ++++ 1.5 oz mango ++++ Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea++++ Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

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

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

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

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

D-Day

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How this Fast Diet  Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow, for a calorie total of less than 600. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post, another day of eating 600 calories or less. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it. Simple way to lose weight and be healthier.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Ingredients for next week:

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

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

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

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

Ramadan, 2

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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.

Ramadan is the Muslim religion’s holiest month. As the ninth month of the lunar calendar, it moves around from year to year [this is because a lunar calendar month of 28 days is shorter than the average Gregorian Calendar month of 30-31 days]. This year, Ramadan began on 5-6 May and will end on 4 June with the Festival of Id al-Fitr.  1.8 Billion Muslims are obliged to Fast during Ramadan in honor of the revelation of the Qur’an to the Prophet Mohammed.  [The Prophet was an early proponent of Fasting.] What does this Fasting entail? No food or drink during daylight hours.  [This is what some people today would call ‘intermittent fasting’ or ‘time restricted fasting’ — in other words, eating during a limited number of hours of the day.]  The fasting of Ramadan is not done to lose weight, but rather to show devotion to one’s religious beliefs.  Often what people save on food, they donate to charity. Is all food forbidden? Yes, but only during daylight hours.  Breakfast is permitted [before sunrise] and dinner is permitted [after sunset].  Can one observe a 5:2 diet during Ramadan?  Of course.  These meals are based on the cuisine of Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam. From the Hawayij spice, to the coffee [native to Saudi Arabia], to the dates [you are supposed to eat 7 of them each day], to the chicken [Saudis eat more chicken per capita than any other nation], to the watermelon [cultivated in Egypt 1000s of years ago and welcome in the Saudi desert]:  these flavors will put you in touch with the food traditions of the holy month.  If you are Muslim, I wish you “Ramadan Mubarak.”  If you are not Muslim [neither am I], read some of the Qur’an or Ask a Muslim a question, whether at the online site or with a colleague at work. We should all aim to break down barriers and work at understanding.

Arabian Omelette

Arabian Eggs:  153 calories  7.4 g fat  2 g fiber  10 g protein  12.5 g carbs [11 g Complex] 58 mg Calcium  NB: Food values shown are for the eggs and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages.  PB GF  Hawayij spice is widely-used in the cuisine of Saudi Arabia. And it clearly shows trade links to countries further East. Coffee [Coffea arabica  is a native plant] and dates round out the flavors of the country. The sweet dates are a wonderful counter-point to the spicy eggs.

1-1/2 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 to store in the ‘fridge for next week.                                        1 to 1.5 tsp Hawayij spice                                                                                                              2 deglet noor dates                                                                                                              Optional: blackish Arabian coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water     Optional: 5-6 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Whisk the eggs with the spice mixture and pour into a heated skillet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Turn down the heat. Leave the eggs undisturbed until puffy and the top is set. Remove from skillet, and serve folded or flat. Pour the beverages and enjoy the fruit/spice combination.

Arabian Spiced Chicken

Arabian Spiced Chicken:   297 calories  4 g fat  5.4 g fiber  24.4 g protein  46 g carbs [45 g Complex] 35 mg Calcium   PB GF   Using ingredients originally from the region, it is possible to craft a very authentic meal that could have been enjoyed by ancient Arabs. They would have eaten by grasping the stew with the flat-bread called fatir — but on a Fast Day, we will choose a fork. TIP: This recipe makes enough for 2 [two] meals.

6 oz chicken thigh meat, boneless, skinless                                                                                        1.5 tsp Hawayij spice                                                                                                                     2/3 cups water                                                                                                                                         1/3 cup dry quick-cooking barley                                                                                              1/3 cup chicken broth                                                                                                                    Per serving: 3 deglet noor dates     +     5 oz watermelon cubes

Skin and bone the chicken thigh and cut it into 1” chunks. Heat a non-stick skillet and spritz it with non-stick spray. Toss the chicken with the spice and sauté it until the meat is partly cooked. To the pan, add the water and heat it, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom. Stir in the dry barley. Put a lid on the pan, turn down the heat, and simmer for 10-12 minutes. Add the chicken broth and stir gently until everything is heated through. Plate with the dates and watermelon on the side. Sprinkle the stew with more Hawayij if you like. The peppery stew is fabulous with the cool, crisp melon and the sweet, musky dates. What an Arabian Delight.

Ingredients for next week:

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

1 two-oz egg1.5 two-oz eggs + cooked spinach
carrot  + broccoli + granulated garlicgrapes  + fat-free ricotta
apple sauce + curry powdermozzarella  +  garlic
curry sauce    [Sidekicks I, 17-Sept-2017]mushrooms
Whatever you need for your smoothieWhatever you need for your smoothie
Whatever you need for your hot beverageWhatever you need for your hot beverage

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

firm, white fish    + egg2 buckwheat crepes + Chèvre cheese
[white whole wheat] flour + paprikachicken breast  + Mozzarella
sweet potato  +  canola oil + asparagusMediterranean Vegetables
garlic powder  +  lime juiceherbes de Province/ fresh herbs
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Toussaint’s Rebellion

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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.

Toussaint Louverture was born enslaved on the Saint-Domingue, the French part of the island Hispaniola.  By age 33 he had been freed and was a paid employee of the same plantation where he was born.  Eventually he owned his own coffee farm [and his own slaves], becoming quite wealthy.  Inspired by the French Revolution, people of color rose up, seeking at least the Liberté which they had been denied. In 1791, Toussaint was a negotiator between the two sides. Later he became an important leader of the Haïtian Revolution.  He was a man of contradictions: born enslaved, yet he was versed in the writings of Machiavelli and Caesar;  a Royalist, yet espousing the ideals of the French Revolution;  a leader of the rebellion, yet one who had himself kept people enslaved;  a farmer, yet a wily military commander; a loyal French citizen, yet he sought to establish an independent nation. After dealings with Spain, the United States, England, and France, on May 6 1802, Toussaint struck a deal with Napoleon’s General Leclerc to end the fighting and to gain amnesty for the rebel leaders.  Toussaint hoped to return to his farm to live in peace, but by the end of May he had been captured by the French and was transported to France for trial.  He died in 1803.  The rebellion lived on and in 1804, the French were defeated and withdrew from Hispaniola.  The nation of Haïti was born.

The cuisine of Haïti is part French, part African, part Spanish, part Arabic, and part Taino [the indigenous people].  The ingredients are seafood, native plants, naturalized plants [plantains, melon, pineapple], and domestic animals [poultry, pigs, goats].  But the way they put it all together is unique. Breakfast is based on the spicy filling used in the ubiquitous ‘pates’, made with seasoned meat.  Dinner is seafood, plantains, and fruit: a very typical combination                                                                                           .

Haitian Chicken Bake:   131 calories  5 g fat   1 g fiber  13 g protein   8 g carbs [6 g Complex]  43 mg Calcium  NB: The calorie count shown is for the egg bake and the fruit only, and does not include the optional beverages.   PB GF  The Haitians love to eat their ‘pates’ [pronounced ‘patty’]: spicy fillings in puff paste dough. Here is the filling alone is used to jazz up some eggs at breakfast.Haitian Chicken Bake

1 two-oz egg                                                                                                                                          2 Tbsp chicken pate filling [see Food In Wrappers, 2  posted 7-April-2019]                             2 oz melon   OR  1 oz melon + 3/4 oz pineapple                                                                                                                           Optional: 5-6 oz berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories] or fruit smoothie                           Optional: blackish coffee, Haitian of course [53 calories] or tea or lemon in hot water

NB: Prepare the chicken pate filling in advance and freeze or refrigerate it. Whisk the egg, then whisk again with the meat filling. Pour into an oven-safe dish which has been spritzed with non-stick spray. Bake at 350° F for 12-15 minutes. Portion the fruit and brew that Haitian coffee. Done! An easy, savory taste of Hispaniola!

Lobster ‘Lambi’ & Plantains:  270 calories   8.3 g fat   2.8 g fiber  17.8 g protein   35 g carbs [34 g Complex]   51 mg Calcium  PB GF  A simple meal from Haïti. Easy any season of the year, as long as plantains are in the market. Ordinarily lambi is made with the meat of the Queen Conch, but if that is unavailable, try lobster tail instead. The plantains are delicious oven-roasted. Try them! Lobster Lambi w: plantains

3 oz lobster meat such as tail                                                                                                                                          3 oz plantain slices, from a ripe [yellow skin with some black spots] not green plantain                 ½ – 1 tsp olive oil                                                                                                                                  3 oz cantaloup melon                                                                                                                         1 lime, cut in half along the equator                                                                                               a few fresh spinach leaves

Peel the plantains and carefully slice them so they don’t get squished. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and sprayed with non-stick spray. Brush with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake at 425° F for 10 minutes, then turn the slices and bake for a further 10 minutes. If the lobster is uncooked, stick a skewer into the lobster tail lengthwise and grill it indoors or outdoors while you squeeze juice from half the lime on it. Cut it into bite-sized pieces. If the lobster meat is cooked already, cut it into bite-sized pieces and squeeze lime juice on it. Plate the lobster on top of the spinach, then arrange the melon and plantains. Keep the other half lime for more juice-squeezing to your taste.

 

 

Colorful Veggies

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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 nutrifitvitamins who is now Following.

Time was, when it was late winter, vegetables were in short supply.  Home-canned green beans were an option or vegetables that had been stored in the root cellar: cabbage, turnips, potatoes, parsnips.  Carrots if you were lucky.  While there is nothing wrong with those plant products, what do you notice about that selection? Not much color variation. Now we have many more varieties of vegetables available most of the year ’round.  [Thanks, globalization.  Caution, locavores]  And now we know that the more colorful the vegetables are, the more nutrition they provide. Today we will celebrate the orange veg; the green veg; the red veg  — all served up in a riot of flavor.

Eggs In Sweet Potato Nests: 163 calories   9.7 g fat   1.2 g fiber  10.6 g protein  9 g carbs [8 g Complex]  137.5 mg Calcium  NB: The food values given above are for the egg/potato mixture and fruit only, not the optional beverages.  PB GF Saw this discussed on line and decided to try it. Preparation is a little fussy but it is done the night before making for an easy morning. HINT: this recipe serves 2 [two] people, each person gets 2 nests. I’m told these refrigerate well for the next morning.Eggs in Sweet Potato Cups

½ oz [¼ cup] grated sweet potato                                                                                                                  1 two-oz egg                                                                                                                                       1 Tbsp grated Cheddar cheese                                                                                                           pinch or two garlic powder                                                                                                                  1 Tbsp chopped watercress or parsley to sprinkle on top                                                                 5 cherries                                                                                                                                      Optional:  blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or lemon in hot water                       Optional:  3 oz  fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie  [44 calories]

Grate the sweet potato and cheese. Toss thoroughly in a bowl with the garlic. Divide among 6 cups of a muffin pan and push it around, pressing up the sides a bit. NB: I used a flexible non-stick muffin pan which worked well with no sticking. If you don’t have one, use liners or spray the muffin pans very well.  Bake the cups in a 375° F. oven for 10 minutes. Whisk the eggs with some salt and pour over the baked sweet potatoes. Sprinkle the egg with chopped watercress or parsley. HINT: I left this on a cool counter/refrigerator over night.  Bake at 350° F. for 15+ minutes or until the eggs are set.  Let them sit just a bit to firm up before using a knife to loosen the egg nests, then removing them to the plates. Add cherries and the beverages of your choice and try this new flavor combo.

Red & Green Shakshuka:  220 calories  10.6 g fat  5.3 g fiber  11.6 g protein  16.7 g carbs [15 g Complex]   207 mg Calcium  PB GF   There is Red Shakshuka and there is Green Shakshuka. And here we have the combination: Christmas colors! It is delicious!Christmas Shakshuka

½ tsp oil                                                                                                                                                              ¼ c onion, chopped                                                                                                                          3 Tbsp chopped celery                                                                                                                      1 clove garlic, chopped                                                                                                                            1/3 cup red or green sweet pepper, chopped                                                                                 1.5 cups fresh spinach                                                                                                                       ½ cup mashed whole tomatoes                                                                                                      1/3 cup eggplant cubes, optional          If not using the eggplant, add more bell peppers.                                                                                                   cumin + paprika + oregano                                                                                                             1 egg                                                                                                                                                  1.5 Tbsp Feta Cheese

Use an 8″ cast iron or other oven-safe skillet that has an oven-safe lid. Set the oven at 375° F. Cook the onion and celery in the oil until a bit softened. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds. Add the sweet pepper, tomato, and eggplant, along with the seasonings. Cook until tender. Put the spinach in the bubbling vegetables and stir/toss them until the leaves are softened but not limp. Make a slight indentation in the vegetables and crack an egg into it. Sprinkle with the Feta. Cover the skillet and bake it in the oven for 5 minutes. Check to see if egg is done to your liking. If not, recover and cook another minute or two. Serve in the skillet. NB: You could cook two eggs on top for one person if you wanted to boost the protein = 290 calories /15 g fat / 5.3 g fiber / 18 g protein / 17 g carbs / 235 mg Calcium