soup recipe for Fasting

Soup for You

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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 Tom Reilly and loseweighttodaystl and Keto Zeal and djsfitt who are now Following.

Winter. Soup. Cold and snow outside. Hot soup inside you. Perfect pairing. Soup as a meal is wonderful and for dieters it can be the perfect solution. One of the benefits of soup is that one batch makes enough for several meals, so future lunches and dinners are taken care of on a busy day. Here are two soups to make those of us in the Northern Hemisphere think of Summer, and which those of you in the Southern Hemisphere can prepare from fresh ingredients. The third recipe is definitely for Winter.

Chowdah:  294 calories 7 g fat 1.7 g fiber 33.6 g protein 17 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. HINT: This recipe makes one BIG bowl of chowdah, but if you double the recipe, you can freeze the remainder or enjoy it for lunch. 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, ½” dice 1½ cups fish stock 4 oz cod or hake fillets, cut into 1½” pieces ¼ cup 2% milk salt + pepper + parsley + turmeric

Cook the bacon until it is almost crispy, remove from the pan, blot dry of fat, and chop coarsely. Into the fat in the pan add the onions. Cook slowly until soft and transluscent. In another pan, boil the potatoes in water until tender. Drain [save the water for baking] 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.]

Soupe au Pistou:  212 calories 5 g fat 5.6 g fiber 9 g protein 34 g carbs 74 mg Calcium  PB GF – if using GF bread and pasta  Here is the summer soup of Southern France: garden vegetables with a basil pistou to flavor it. The recipe is from Anne Willan’s Country Cooking of France. HINT: This makes enough for 9 [nine] one-cup servings or 6 [six] 1-½ cup sv. If 1-½ cup, then 271 calories/bowl, with bread.

½ cup canned white beans, drained and rinsed 1 cup thinly-sliced leeks ½ pound [8 oz] tomatoes, ½“ dice ½ cup carrots, ½“ dice 2 cups potatoes, ½” dice 8 oz zucchini, ½“ dice ½ cup onion, diced 2/3 cup green beans, cut in 1” pieces ½ cup peas, fresh or frozen 1¼ oz short pasta, such as orzo or ditalini ¼ cup pesto, purchased or homemade 1 slice whole-grain sourdough bread

Prepare all the vegetables. Simmer the vegetables in 1 quart of water with salt and pepper for 20 minutes. Add the peas and simmer 5 minutes more. Add the pasta and simmer 2 minutes more. Take off the heat and stir in the pesto. HINT: If possible, cool, cover, and let sit in a cool spot for 8-24 hours to deepen the flavors.  Taste for seasoning. Serve with a slice of whole grain sourdough bread. Delicious for dinner or lunch. Freeze the remainder.

Green Split Pea Soup:  262 calories 1.6 g fat 19 g fiber 20 g protein 46 g carbs [46 g Complex] 30 mg Calcium   PB GF  For years we have loved this soup from Picardy, France which comes to us via Anne Willen’s  French Regional Cooking.  The easiest recipe in the world!  HINT: Makes 6 one-cup servings. What you don’t use today, freeze in serving-sized portions.

16 oz bag dry green split peas + water to soak 1 quart water, for making the soup 2 slices bacon 2 stems of thyme salt + pepper to taste

Put the dry peas in a bowl and add water to cover them by 2”. Let them sit and soften for 1.5 hours. Drain.  TIP: you will not need the soaking water for the soup, but use it to water the houseplants.  Put the peas, bacon, thyme, and water in a saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil, then turn down the heat, cover, and simmer for 1¼ hours.  NB: Not all the liquid will be used up. That’s fine. Remove the bacon and the thyme stems. Using a food processor, blender, or immersion wand, puree the soup. There should be 6 cups. Soup should be loose enough to run off a spoon, but not too thin. Add water, if necessary, to adjust thickness. Taste for seasonings. Cook the bacon in a saute pan until it is crisp. Crumble it and add to the soup. 

Soup Time!

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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.

Soup is the dieter’s friend. Around the world, when people want to eat something nourishing and filling, soup is the answer. Isn’t that what we want on a Fast Day — to be filled up with delicious food that still stays within the bounds of propriety? It is getting chilly here in the Northern Hemisphere, time to stock the freezer with home-made soups. Here are three favorites, from France, Thailand, and China. More, please.

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.” HINT: Makes 6 one-cup servings.

8 ounces mild Italian sausage meat 1½ 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.

Thai shrimp and Noodle Soup:  272 calories 2 g fat 4 g fiber 26 g protein 37.6 g carbs 82.4 mg Calcium  PB  This soup is superb, whether on a hot summer night or in the winter. HINT: serves 2. Invite a guest or save for a lunch later in the week. This is warm and wonderful and spicy and filling.

6 oz raw shrimp, shelled, tails removedThaw the shrimp in a bowl, then strain the liquid in the bowl into a 1-cup measuring cup. Add water to bring volume to 1 cup.  Put the shrimp in the liquid, and simmer until shrimp is opaque. Remove shrimp and go to next step:
46 gm rice vermicelli noodles [one small ‘bundle’ of noodles]Bring shrimp-water to boil, add vermicelli, cover and take off heat. After 4 minutes, drain, reserving the cooking water. Rinse and reserve the noodles.
2 pinches crushed red pepper 1 Tbsp Thai fish sauce 2 Tbsp lime juice 2 tsp sugar 1 Tbsp Thai green curry paste Put the shrimp-water, fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, and curry paste in a pan together. Warm while whisking to combine.
3 oz carrots, grated  1 c. spinach leaves, loosely packed, then coarsely chopped Add the carrots, saving some for a crunchy garnish. Add the spinach. Simmer the liquids until carrots and spinach are tender.
2 scallions, thinly sliced 1 oz grated carrotCut the shrimp in half cross-wise and add to soup. Serve soup with chopped scallion and grated carrot garnish.

Wonton Soup: 257 calories 34 g fat 1 g fiber 23.7 g protein 29 g carbs 25 mg Calcium  PB Cantonese wonton soup can be your’s, easily and without the extra salt or MSG. I prepared the entire batch of filling, then stuffed and poached all 26 wontons. Frozen, they will be the ‘instant’ source of future meals or an addition to a Dim Sum assortment.

Filling: 4 oz ground pork 4 oz chicken meat ½ tsp cornstarch ¾ tsp sugar 1 tsp sesame oil ¼ tsp white pepper ¾ tsp salt 1 Tbsp water 1 Tbsp sherry 4 oz shrimp, chopped to the size of green peas Combine all ingredients except the shrimp in the bowl of a food processor and mince to a paste. Stir in the shrimp. Refrigerate until ready to fill the wontons. TIP: Can be made the day before.

Filling the Wontons: Wonton skins are small squares of egg-roll wrappers, 5 wonton skins per bowl of soup 26 skins for the entire batch. Put 4-6 wonton skins on a cutting board. Moisten two edges of one of the squares. Place 1 Tbsp of filling on the square, fold over to make a triangle, and pinch the sides together. Set aside until ready to poach them.

Poaching filled wontons: Bring a pan of water to boil. Depending on the diameter of the pan, add wontons 4-5 at a time. They will sink to the bottom of the pan. When they float to the surface [in 4-5 minutes], fish them out and put on a tea towel to drain.

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

low-fat cottage cheese 1.5 two-oz eggs
plain fat-free yogurt37-calorie chicken breakfast sausage
mangoapple + sage
clementineparsley + oregano
granolaoptional smoothie
optional hot beverageoptional hot beverage

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

firm-fleshed white fishsauerkraut + caraway seed
marinara sauce + green beanscollard greens or similar
Parmesan cheese + mozzarellaapplesauce + garlic powder
fresh bread for crumbs110-calorie sausage + onion
Sparkling waterSparkling water

Saint Walburga

~ me ~ Leave a comment

How this Fast Diet Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post.  Eat sensibly the other days of the week.  That’s it.  Simple way to lose weight and be healthier.                                                                    Welcome to Raluca S. who is now Following.

Saintliness seems to run in families.  This was certainly the case for Saint Walburga. She was born in Devon [now part of England] in 710 CE, to a well-to-do Saxon family.  Her father was St Richard and her mother was Winna, sister of St Boniface [born Winfrid].  Walburga’s brothers were St Willibald and St Winnibald.  [I could not make this up if I tried.]  What does a family of saints talk about at dinner?  Prayer, I suppose. And Fasting, no doubt, since Walburga was known for it.  In her day, Walburga ran several religious houses and some credit her with being the first female author of England and Germany since she wrote a biography of her brother.  After she died on February 25, 779, her tomb seemed to exude a liquid which is said to have healing properties.  Somehow the good saint’s story became tied in with witches and their revels on the eve of May 1st.  Called ‘Walpurgis Night,‘ it is celebrated in Scandinavia and is likened to a little Hallowe’en in the mountains of southern Germany.                                                                                                           In honor of the origins of Walburga, we’ll breakfast in the English countryside.  For her gift of the healing oil, dinner will be the good-for-what-ails-you chicken soup, long touted by grandmothers as a universal panacea.

Cottage Breakfast:   157 calories   7.5 g fat   1.2 g fiber   8.3 g protein   14.8 g carbs 38 mg Calcium   PB  I wanted a breakfast that evoked a cottage in the English country-side, so here it is. The pan muffins are very good.Cottage Bfast A

1 pan muffin [see …Not By Bread…posted 7-Feb-2018]                                                                1 oz applesauce                                                                                                                                   one 2-oz egg                                                                                                                                      5-6 oz fruit smoothie [79 calories] or green smoothie or natural apple cider                                   blackish coffee [53 calories], blackish tea, or lemon in hot water

HINT: I prepared 8 pan muffins from the 10-grain mufffin batter, cooked them, and froze them. I made the remaining batter into muffins to eat on Slow Days. Take one pan muffin from the freezer the night before and let it thaw. Cook the egg to your taste and warm the pan muffin. Dish the applesauce, brew the hot beverage, pour the smoothie. What a sweet and easy meal.

‘Therapeutic’ Chicken Soup:   278 calories   3.4 g fat   5 g fiber   18.5 g protein   36 g carbs [26 g Complex Carbs]   78 mg Calcium   PB  GF — if using GF noodles The recipe is from It’s All American Food  by David Rosengarten. Simple, filling, and Granma says it is good for you. NB: One serving = 2 cups of soup! Eat less if you need to.Therapeutic Chicken Soup

1-1/2 cups excellent chicken broth, homemade or purchased                                                          2 oz [½ cup] parsnips, diced                                                                                                             1 oz [¼ cup] carrots, in coins                                                                                                                         ¼ cup celery, sliced                                                                                                                            2 oz cooked chicken breast, cut in 1/2” cubes                                                                                1/2 oz Pennsylvania Dutch Noodles                                                                                                 3 Tbsp parsley

Prepare the vegetables. Cook the noodles in salted water until just underdone. Drain them and plunge into cold water. Drain again and hold at room temperature until needed.  Heat the stock to a simmer and add 3-4 Tbsp water, which will boil away as you cook. I added the parsnips first and cooked for about 5 minutes, then added the carrots. After another 5 minutes, I put the celery in the soup. Cook until all the vegetables are tender, then adjust the seasoning of the broth. Add the pasta and chicken. It will need extra flavor now since the pasta will have used it up. Add the parsley and cook about 5 minutes longer.