Fasting Lifestyle

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The Glorious Fourth! Summer has hit with full force, so a cooling breakfast and a hot off the grill dinner will keep us in the celebratory mood and help to stay in the Fasting Lifestyle.  To those of you in other countries, you don’t have to honor the 4th of July, but you can still Fast along with us!

Red White and Blue     295 calories        1.4 g fat         3.8 g fiber       20 g protein     45 g carbs     504 mg Calcium PG GF if using GF bread             Ricotta is higher in protein and Calcium than cottage cheese, but you could substitute that if you wish.Red White & blue

½ cup fat-free ricotta                                                                                                                                              ¼ cup blueberries, fresh or frozen [if frozen, keep frozen until ready to use]                                     ½ cup sliced strawberries, fresh or frozen [after slicing, put into a strainer to drain]                                                                                       1 slice of 70-calorie multi-grain bread [Nature’s Own] cut into a star with the largest cookie cutter that will fit the bread                                                                                                                             2 small pinch of cinnamon sugar                                                                                                                blackish coffee or blackish tea or lemon in hot water                                                                                 5-6 oz fruit smoothie, green smoothie or natural apple cider

Cut your slice of bread with the star cookie cutter, freezing the scraps for use in Crab Cakes or Stuffed Clams. Sprinkle the bread with a small pinch of cinnamon sugar and toast it. Measure the ricotta onto your plate. Put the fruit on top. [I do not recommend stirring the fruit into the cheese, since it will ‘stain’ the cheese.] Top with a small pinch of cinnamon sugar and plate with the toast. Pour the hot beverage and the smoothie. Huzzah!

Bison Burgers with Coleslaw 305 calories   11.4 g fat    35.4 g protein   11.1 g carbs    23 mg CalciumBison Burger, slaw, peas

one 4-oz bison patty [not beef. Venison is a good substitute if you have it]                                  1/2 oz sliced mushrooms                                                                                                                3/4 tsp of catsup                                                                                                                                  1/4 cup peas, fresh at this time of year or frozen                                                                                                1/2 cup homemade coleslaw**  

**coleslaw:  1 cup chopped cabbage            1″ of carrot, grated         1.5  tsp mayonnaise made with olive oil    1 tsp cider vinegar   salt     pepper   Enough for two

HINT: Prepare the coleslaw at least an hour beforehand, and refrigerate.  Sprinkle a small, hot skillet with Kosher salt.  Cook one 4 oz bison burger  on one side for about 3 minutes. Flip it and cook until done as well as you’d like.  Put on a plate to stay warm. Sides: Add some water to the same  pan and stir/ cook the mushrooms until soft.  Meanwhile cook the peas.  Whisk the mayonnaise with the vinegar. Toss with the cabbage and carrot, the salt and the pepper.  To serve, put the ketchup on the burger, top with mushrooms. Arrange those colorful sides on the plate and get ready for some good eating. HINT: Cabbage and carrots will keep a long time in the ‘fridge, so don’t worry about having lots left over.   

Here’s To You, Lillian!

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Our friend Lillian is a wonderful cook: dinners at her house are legendary.  But when it comes to Fasting, she wants to keep it very simple. Here are some menus for the easiest to prepare meals for a Fasting Lifestyle for Lillian and Stephen. Just in time for Canada Day.

Monday Breakfast:  220 calories                                      total calories for the day = 591                                                                            2 eggs, hard-boiled                                                                                                                                             2 oz apple                                                                                                                                                               1/2 slice bread   I recommend Dempster’s multi-grain thin-sliced                                                                             lemon in hot water or big glass of water

Monday Lunch:  92 calories                                                                                                                                2 oz 3% fat ham = 2 slices                                                                                                                                1/2 slice bread                                                                                                                                                     big glass of water

Monday Dinner:  279 calories                                                                                                                          5 oz baked cod                                                                                                                                                       1 oz beets                                                                                                                                                                  2 oz carrot                                                                                                                                                              2/3 cup canned garbanzo beans [chick peas] drained and rinsed, topped with a generous pinch of savory or rosemary                                                                                                                         big glass of water

Thursday Breakfast: 160 calories                                total calories for the day = 579                                                                                                                1 egg, hard-boiled                                                                                                                                                 1 slice bread                                                                                                                                                            1/2 cup sliced strawberries                                                                                                                          lemon in hot water or a big glass of water

Thursday Lunch:    137 calories                                                                                                                    1/2 cup vegetable soup, made with white beans but not noodles                                                            1/2 slice bread                                                                                                                                                      big glass of water

Thursday Dinner: 282 calories                                                                                                                      4 oz baked chicken breast                                                                                                                                 2 oz beets, boiled                                                                                                                                                    2 oz carrots, sliced and boiled                                                                                                                           1/2 cup baked beans, without added molasses or sugar                                                                         big glass of water

Street Food

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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.

Whether its hot dogs on Coney Island, soft pretzels with mustard in Philadelphia, or something you’ve never before eaten in Singapore, street food is fun, tasty, and easy to eat.  I present today’s menu as an homage to Fast food which could be street food: in Santa Fe or in Baltimore.

Breakfast Burrito   291 calories    11.9 g. fat   4.7 g fiber   18.7 g. protein    38 g. carbs  79.4 mg Calcium  GF    Inspired by breakfasts enjoyed at the Frontier Restaurant in Albuquerque, N.M., this has all the tastes of the Southwest in a filling yet low-calorie meal.breakfast burrito

one 6” corn tortilla, MUST be 65 calories per tortilla                                                                                               one 2-oz egg                                                                                                                                                               1 Tbsp roasted green chiles, available canned under the ‘Hatch’ brand                                              1 Tbsp carne adovada – this is boiled pork shoulder with hot spices. Make a batch and freeze it in small amounts or see if you can find it at a Mexican market.                                            Large pinch oregano, Mexican oregano if you can find it.                                                                   [Hot sauce to taste]                                                                                                                                                    1 tsp cheddar cheese, finely grated                                                                                                                   2 ¼ oz of apple                                                                                                                                                                             5-6 oz green smoothie or fruit smoothie or natural apple cider.                                                        Black-ish coffee, black-ish tea, lemon in hot water

Whisk the egg with the chiles and carne. Heat a dry, well-seasoned cast iron pan and heat the tortilla until it is warm, soft, and just beginning to brown. Remove to a plate. Scramble the egg to your preference in a spritz of oil on your pan. Put the egg on top of the tortilla. Sprinkle the cheese on the egg and put it all in the toaster oven for about a minute. Douse with hot sauce if you wish, serve with the apple, smoothie, and hot beverage of your choice.

Crab Cakes:   275 cal     7.2 g fat   4.2 g fiber     27 g protein    19.7 g carbs  231 mg Calcium  PB    GF- if using GF bread                  Rock and Jonah crabs abound on the coast of New England and they are grand as crab cakes. This recipe is from Todd English’s Olive’s Table cookbook. Note: this is the full recipe and makes 5 cakes – more than you will eat at one meal. Prepare them all and cook as directed. HINT: This will provide a few future meals.crab cakes w: asparagus

½ pound crab meat                                                                                                                                                 2 T [1 oz] plain nonfat yogurt                                                                                                                           1 tsp Dijon mustard                                                                                                                                               2 Tbsp. chopped green or white onion                                                                                                                 1 T. parsley, minced                                                                                                                                             one 2-oz egg                                                                                                                                                              1 tsp salt & ¼ tsp pepper                                                                                                                                     1 slice fresh 70-cal bread, crumbled                                                                                                                  4 T. flour, for dredging                                                                                                                                            2 tsp oil                                                                                                                                                                       5 oz asparagus                                                                                                                                                          1 tsp low-fat mayonnaise + few drops of lemon juice + pinch each of tumeric and garlic powder [this is your aioli dressing]

Gently combine 1st 8 ingredients in a bowl. Dust a large plate with the flour. Using a 1/3 c. measure as a mold, form the crab cakes and turn them out onto the flour. There should be 5 cakes. Dust the top of the cakes with some of the flour. Heat a non-stick skillet and add 2 tsp olive oil. Handling them carefully, cook the crab cakes until they are beginning to brown on the top and bottom. Cook the asparagus. Put aioli on crab cakes and asparagus.

One Fast Day serving = 1.5 crab cakes. Cool the others, wrap in cling wrap and freeze. Reheat in a toaster oven, since the cakes will have been previously cooked.

Flavorful Plants

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Everything is growing and blooming and looking wonderful outside, so let’s eat some meals made with plants.  Don’t get nervous, this food is full of flavor. The Fasting Lifestyle can be delicious for meat-eaters and plant-eaters alike.

Zucchini Nests w/ Egg   302 calories    8.9 g fat      3.9 g fiber      14.4 g protein     19.2 g carbs         228.7 mg Calcium       PB GF [if using GF bread]                           Found this recipe online [allaboutfitnesssite.wordpress.com], then I changed it to fit our calorie restriction requirements. Note that the egg used for the photo is a pullet egg, which weighs in a 1.5 oz instead of the 2 oz eggs we usually use. If you can find them, pullet eggs can be useful as they give you the egg flavor but with reduced fat and calories. Pullets, as you know, are merely young hens which lay small eggs until they grow up enough to lay larger eggs. HINT: This recipe makes enough for 2 nests which serve 2 people.Zucchini Nests w: Egg

1 tsp olive oil                                                                                                                                                           ¼ cup diced onion                                                                                                                                                  2 tsp fresh sage or 1 tsp dried sage, chopped                                                                                                  1 clove garlic, minced or pressed                                                                                                                  large pinch hot pepper flakes or 1 jalepeno, chopped                                                                                  1 c. zuchinni, grated on the coarse side of the box grater                                                                               2 tsp cider vinegar                                                                                                                                                   1 oz roasted red pepper                                                                                                                                parsley, chopped                                                                                                                                              salt and black pepper                                                                                                                                             per person:     1 egg [2-oz or pullet]                                                                                                                                             1/2 slice multi-grain 70-calorie bread                                                                                                     blackish coffee or tea or lemon in hot water                                                                                                  5 oz fruit smoothie or green smoothie

In a non-stick pan, spritz lightly with olive oil or add 1 tsp.   Cook the onions until lightly browned, 4-6 minutes. Add the sage, garlic, and hot pepper and stir for 30 seconds. Add vinegar, zucchini, some black pepper, and ¾ tsp salt. Cover and cook about 6 minutes longer. Add roasted pepper and parsley. Cook 6 minutes longer ‘until zucchini is light brown.’ Mine never looked light brown, but it looked done to me! HINT: Do this part the night before to save time in the morning.

Next morning: Divide cooked vegetables into two heaps [scant ½ cup each].  Put one portion in storage, for another breakfast later in the week.  Put the other portion  in the saute pan and make an indentation in the top to form the nest. Cover and heat for 1 minute. Uncover and break egg into the ‘nest.’ Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Then cover and cook on the stove top for 4-5 minutes longer or until the egg is cooked to your liking. Plate with the toast, pour your hot beverage and smoothie. Now that’s something different!

Felafel with Cucumber Raita 256 calories   10.2 g. fat   16 g. protein    33.5 g. carbs PB   GF        SORRY, NO PHOTO AT THIS TIME

5 felafel patties [see Because It’s June! June 1, 2016                                                                                              1 cup raw spinach                                                                                                                                                   1/2 tsp olive oil                                                                                                                                                       large pinch ground nutmeg                                                                                                                                4 oz plain, non-fat yogurt                                                                                                                                      1 scant cup cucumbers, cubed                                                                                                                                      1 tsp white wine vinegar                                                                                                                                    1 and  ½ tsp fresh mint, chopped or dried dill weed

Thaw out 5 of those felafel patties what we prepared on Sept. 9. Heat them in the toaster oven or in a non-stick pan on the stove. Do not cook them in oil. Cut the spinach into a chiffonade [make a pile of leaves and cut thinly across their width]and put into a bowl. Cube the cucumbers. Stir together the yogurt, vinegar, and dill or mint. Add the cucumber cubes and stir gently to combine. Toss the spinach with the olive oil and nutmeg. Plate it and love it.

Summer Solstice

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Tomorrow will be the longest day of the year for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere.  The sun will be directly over the Tropic of Cancer, marking the first moment of Summer.  In far northern climes, like Scandinavia, this is a day of rejoicing and enjoying the long, long days.  We can celebrate our increasing good health and decreasing girth as we follow the Fasting Lifestyle with a Norwegian breakfast and a Swedish dinner.

Nordic Breakfast   297 calories    11.7 g. fat       15.5 g. protein     34.8 g carbs      PB                           This is based on a recipe from the Fast Diet book, but I always thought it looked like a puny amount of food.  So wrong! This will fill you up, even without the smoothie! If you insist on the smoothie, you will add another 84 calories.Nordic Bfast

3 slices of Finn Crisp crackers                                                                                                                                    2 oz smoked salmon                                                                                                                                               2 Tbsp whipped cream cheese                                                                                                                          2 rings red onion, thinly sliced                                                                                                                                  ½ cup raspberries                                                                                                                                                        1 oz apple                                                                                                                                                              blackish coffee  or blackish tea or lemon in hot water                                                                      NOTE: no smoothie

Carefully spread the cream cheese on the crackers. Divide the salmon among them. Arrange the onion rings atop the salmon. Slice the apple and pour your hot beverage. Skip the aquavit.

Lamb Patty with Swedish Cucumber Salad     299 calories    17.2 g fat     0.5 g fiber                   20.8 g protein        12.6 g carbs    68 mg Calcium        GF          The inspiration for this meal is from Craig Claibourne’s International Cookbook, long a family favorite.

Lamb w: Swedish cucumber salad

1 4-0z lamb patty, available at markets or make your own using 90% lean lamb                             2 cups sliced cucumbers                                                                                                                                           1 Tbsp sugar                                                                                                                                                              2 oz white wine vinegar                                                                                                                                           1 tsp cold water                                                                                                                                                     salt and freshly ground pepper                                                                                                                        ½ tsp dill

Combine the sugar, vinegar, water, salt, and pepper in a 3-cup container. Slice the cucumbers, spread them out on towels and pat dry. Stir the cukes into the liquid, wetting all the slices. Chill for at least one hour.  Add the dill now, or sprinkle it on top when you serve. HINT: the cucumber salad is enough to serve two. Cook the lamb patty by grilling or baking or pan-frying in a non-stick pan. Season to taste. Plate the lamb with the cucumber salad for the simplest of hot-weather treats.

 

A Day in the Midi

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If your schedule won’t permit a visit to the French Riviera, you can at least eat as if you were there!  We can follow the Fasting Lifestyle, dream our dreams of travel, eat good food, and still lose weight healthily.

Provinçale Omelette    294 cal.     9.5 fat      12.5 pro      15.7 carb          PB GF                                          I asked my husband for a new omelette idea, and he suggested these flavors.Provincal omelette

1 and ½ two-oz eggs HINT: If you are serving one person, crack three 2-oz eggs into a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Whip up those eggs and pour half of their volume, crack 3 2-oz eggs into a jar with a lid and put it in the ‘fridge for next week.                               1/2 oz bell pepper, steamed and diced                                                                                                                                   1 black olive, pitted and chopped                                                                                                                          1/8 oz feta cheese, diced                                                                                                                                                 1 oz grapes                                                                                                                                                                5-6 oz fruit or green smoothie or natural apple cider                                                                                                                                                    blackish coffee or blackish tea or lemon in hot water

Whisk the eggs [salt and pepper may not be needed due to saltiness of olives and feta]. Pour into a pan which has been sprayed briefly with cooking spray. When the bottom of the eggs have set, add the vegetables and cheese. Fold over, and plate with the grapes. Brew your beverage and take the previously-made smoothie from ‘fridge.

 

Chicken Provincal:    270 cal       7.6 g fat         24.4 g protein      19.4 g carbs    GF                       This recipe is from the Culinary Institute of America, with a few tweeks by me.provincal chicken w: broc:caul

3 oz chicken breast, boneless & skinless                                                                                                         1 Tbsp flour                                                                                                                                                                                        1 tsp olive oil                                                                                                                                                                    1 garlic clove, minced                                                                                                                                            1 anchovy fillet, oil rinsed off                                                                                                                              1 Tbsp dry white wine                                                                                                                                           ½ c tomatoes, chopped, juice retained                                                                                                               2 Tbsp chicken stock                                                                                                                                             2 oil-cured black olives, pitted and sliced                                                                                                      2-3 oz broccoli florets

Fillet the chicken breast meat by cutting it along the thin side to create 2 slices. These will cook faster, as well as looking like more food on the plate! Sprinkle the flour over the chicken to coat it lightly. Heat the oil in a small non-stick skillet and cook the chicken on one side. Turn once to cook the other side, remove from pan. Put the garlic, anchovy, tomatoes, and wine in the pan, mashing the solids with a spoon as they heat. Momentarily, add the chicken stock and olives to warm them and cook until the sauce thickens. Return the chicken to the pan to heat it briefly. If the sauce is in danger of cooking off, add some tomato juices or water or more stock. Cook the broccoli and enjoy your meal from southern France.

Salad Days

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Sure feels like Summer, even though the Solstice is a week away.   The tree frogs have replaced the peepers in their nightly chorus, a true indication of warmer days ahead.  Nothing suits warm weather like a salad, and let’s throw in some ‘toads’ instead of frogs for breakfast.  Don’t get anxious, its our old favorite, Toad In The Hole.

Toad in the Hole     293 calories   This whimsically-named meal is of old English origin – shades of Kenneth Graham and Beatrix Potter. The recipe is from the Fannie Farmer Cookbook.Toad in the Hole w: berries & Gr Smoothie

It begins with a Yorkshire Pudding batter which you need to prepare in advance. The Yorkshire Pudd recipe is from the King Arthur Flour 200th Anniversary Cookbook. HINT: make the batter the night before to save time in the morning.

Y. Pudd batter:         one 2-oz egg                     1 cup flour, preferably unbleached                                  ½ tsp salt                    ½ cup water                ½ cup fat-free milk

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

To prepare the breakfast:                                                                                                                                      1 breakfast sausage [I like the Al Fresco brand chicken with sage @ 50 cal/link]                             1/3 cup Yorkshire Pudding batter, well beaten                                                                                               4 oz mixed berries OR ½ of a pear or apple                                                                                                                                                  5-6 oz fruit smoothie or green smoothie or natural apple cider                                                           nearly-black coffee or tea; or lemon in hot water.

Heat the oven/toaster oven to 425. Cook the sausage, preferrably in a small oven-proof pan. If you have a small [5″] cast iron fry-pan, that would be a good choice, using a tiny bit of oil in the bottom of the pan since the sausage will render no fat. Dice the sausage. Beat the batter until it is foamy. Pour the batter into the pan then sprinkle the sausage bits over the batter. Pop the pan into the oven for 15 minutes. Plate the fruit, shake your smoothie [if saved from last meal], brew your beverage, and settle down to a quick meal.

Salade Niçoise:     283 calories        16 g fat        3 g fiber          22.5 g protein         12.7 g carbs   198.3 mg Calcium          PB GF         HINT: If you plan ahead a bit, this meal goes together in minutes. A few days before, eat a meal of baked or grilled salmon and green beans. Prepare 3 oz more salmon than you’ll need for that meal and save it for this meal. Cooked salmon freezes well, just leave enough time to thaw it thoroughly. Also cook an extra bit of green beans and save them in the ‘fridge.Salade Nicoise

1/2 tsp white wine vinegar                                                                                                                                      3/4 tsp olive oil                                                                                                                                                                1 and 1/4 cup spring mix lettuce OR 3 leaves of romain, medium-sized                                                     3 oz cooked, cooled salmon                                                                                                                                3 oz green beans, cooked and cooled                                                                                                                                                     2 black olives, pitted and halved                                                                                                                      ½ hard-boiled egg                                                                                                                                                   5 cherry tomatoes

Whisk the oil and vinegar in a wide shallow bowl. Add the beans and turn them to coat with dressing. Remove to another plate. Coarsely chop the romaine, if using. Toss lettuce  with dressing. Place the salmon in the center of the salad. Surround it with the remaining ingredients. A wonderful meal in no time flat.

Fasting While Traveling

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Traveling is when dieting gets difficult and all the rationalizations start.  “Couldn’t do my own cooking, so what could I do but eat?”  Last month I spent 12 days in Italy as part of a tour. When I returned, I weighed 1/2 a pound less than I did before. How?

Departure day was on a Thursday, so I ate a high-protein typical Fast Day Breakfast and Fasted the rest of the day. On the air plane I ate what was served and went to sleep.  The following days I ate and drank as I wished. Next Fast Day was a Monday, and the breakfast buffet offered just what I needed: eggs, fruit, meat or cheese.Fasting in Venice

Dinner was at a restaurant, so no chance to Fast, although I was careful not to go wild. Same on the following Fast Days which fell during the trip. Calorie restriction on some days, eat-as-you-wish on the other days. It works.  You can do it.

Every Fast Day I chose carefully from the breakfast buffet in Venice, Florence, and Rome.  Did I starve myself every day? No. Did I eat gelato every day? Yes. Did I walk 6-9 miles every day while sight-seeing? Yes. Did I find that one can fit the Fasting Lifestyle into traveling?  Coming back with no weight gain says ‘Yes you can!’

Let’s Eat

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So many diets, so little time.  And what do they have you doing?  Not eating, that’s what. Don’t eat this or that or any of the other thing, day in and day out.  With the Fasting Lifestyle, you can eat what you want on Tuesday, as long as you eat the following menu on Monday.  Give it a try.

Poached Egg on Toast  286 calories  6.3 g fat  4.1 g fiber  13.7 g protein   36.4 g carbs  95 mg Calcium    PB  GF if using GF breadPoached Egg on Toast

 one slice of 70-cal bread                                                                                                                                      one 2-oz egg                                                                                                                                                                 2 oz melon or 1 and 1/2 oz of apple                                                                                                                      5-6 oz fruit smoothie or green smoothie                                                                                                blackish coffee or blackish tea or lemon in hot water

If using an egg poacher, lightly spray the egg cup and heat the water to a simmer. Toast the bread. Poach the egg for 3-4 minutes, according to your taste. Slide the egg onto the toast, season to taste, and enjoy with your hot beverage, fruit,  and smoothie.

Tuna-Bean-Garlic Salad   261 cal    4.2 g fat   5.5 g fiber    31 g protein    28.4 g. carb  152 mg Calcium         PB GF     HINT: this recipe serves 2 [two] This is from the Fast Diet book.  Great in warm weather.                         Sorry.    Can’t find a photo of this meal….

3/4 cup canned navy beans, drained and rinsed                                                                                           1 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                                                                                                                                 3.5 oz spinach or mixed greens                                                                                                                                    2 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.

Because Its June!

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According to the song, “June is busting out all over.”  We are following the Fasting Lifestyle because we don’t want to be busting out all over our waistbands and belts.  Today we will look ahead to a summer of good, healthy meals by doing some ahead-of-time food preparation.

And guess what? This fits right in with a recent article:  Experts Say This Is the Number 1 Way to Lose Weight     http://www.popsugar.com/fitness/Best-Way-Lose-Weight-39766314    I’m not saying that the recipes listed here are all suitable for a Fast Day, but you could try them for a Slow Day and see if you like them.

Mediterranean Vegetables  makes 4 cups                                                                                                       per cup:      78 calories   1.1 g fat    4.7 g fiber    4.2 g protein                   14 g carbs       53 mg Calcium PB GF            HINT: This  forms the basis for four future menus:  2 breakfasts and 2 dinners.

Mediterranean Veg for freezer

2 cups eggplant, peeled and cubed OR 1 and 1/2 cup bell peppers, cubed                                                                                                                       2 cups tomato, cubed                                                                                                                                              2 cups zucchini, cubed                                                                                                                                           2 cloves garlic                                                                                                                                                                                        1 Tbsp fresh oregano and or rosemary                                                                                                     pinch hot pepper flakes, salt, pepper                                                                                                              ½ cup chickpeas, rised and drained 

Prepare all the veg., and put them in a saucepan. Simmer, covered, until cooked through, about 25 minutes. If watery, remove lid and continue to simmer. Add herbs and seasonings to taste, and the chickpeas.   After the mixture cools, I portion it into 2 scant cups in one freezer box; 1 scant cup into 2 other freezer boxes and pop it in the freezer for future use.

Felafel 1 batch =  648 cal   25.4 g fat     21 g fiber   32.5 g protein      72 g carbs      214 mg Calcium                                                  each patty = 26 cal    1.0 g. fat   0.8 g fiber     1.3 g protein    3 g. carbs     8.5 mg Calcium GF PB                                                         From the old favorite Moosewood Cookbook by Molly Katzen, these are easy to prepare and set you up for several servings of 5 or more future meals.

2 cups canned chick peas I like Goya brand [Or use dried chickpeas but factor in the time to reconstitute and cook them.  Canned chick peas make a smoother, less grainy result.]            1.5 cloves garlic, crushed                                                                                                                                        ¼ cup celery, minced                                                                                                                                           ¼ c. scallions, sliced                                                                                                                                                 1 egg                                                                                                                                                                           1.5 tsp tahini                                                                                                                                                             ½ t. cumin                                                                                                                                                                      ½ t. tumeric                                                                                                                                                                  ¼ t. cayenne                                                                                                                                                                ¼ t. black pepper                                                                                                                                                   1.5 t. salt

Combine in food processer until ingredients form a uniform paste. Scoop into a bowl and chill 1 hour. Form into balls on a silicone mat or parchment paper on a cookie sheet. I used a 1.5 Tbsp scoop and then flattened the patties. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes. The patties should be heated through and have an outside ‘crust’ which is firm to the touch. There will be about 25 [twenty-five] of them. Use now or cool and freeze for later use.