Daniel Fast... Or Feast?

Have you heard of that young Jewish exile in the Bible {Daniel} who basically helped Nebuchadnezzar rule Babylon? A young man of integrity, wisdom, good looks and great health?

He put it all down to a diet of fruit and vegetables, everything grown from the land. Compared to the other young men of the king's court (who were boozing it up and hogging out on roast beast and other delicacies) Daniel and his wholesome friends were clear eyed and flat-bellied.

This is the essence of the Daniel Fast that a whole bunch of people from our church are signing up for in February.

As for me, although I could do to loose a whole lot of Roast Beast from my waistline, I'm not sure how I will manage longer term.

But I am prepared to dip my toe in the water and give it a try, for the sake of my health and to support my enthusiastic husband.
The guy who just went and stocked up on brown rice and green tea.

Really we don't have a clue what we are doing.
I think we are banned from baked goods, anything with yeast or preservatives, dairy, meat.
I'm sure a Daniel fast geek can fill me in on the finer details.

Mr G is going to give it ten days (which is how long Daniel and co did it for).
Me? I'm just starting with tonight's dinner and I'll see how I go...

So in the spirit of joining in, I thought I'd post some yummy Daniel-friendly recipes for any of the participants (or other random vegans, vegetarians or health kickers.) Think of it like a detox. Spiritual and physical.

We can be healthy and eat delicious food.



Warm Roast Vege Salad

3-4 kumara (sweet potato)
1/4 of a pumpkin
2 zucchini (courgettes)
1/2 red (spanish) onion, finely sliced
4 heaped tablespoons of sundried tomatoes
cracked black pepper
Olive oil

Peel the kumara and pumpkin and cut roughly into smallish cubes.
Rinse and slice the zucchini.
Peel the red onion and slice it finely (don't dice)

Line a roasting dish with baking paper and heap up the veges (put the tomatoes on the bottom of the heap to avoid them burning!). Douse with a good measure of olive oil and sprinkle with black pepper.

Roast for approx an hour at 180oC (or until veges are softened and filling the house with a delish aroma)

Serve with microwaved brown rice and/or a fresh corn cob. Eat without regret. Without guilt. Know that the person next to you's steak is not half as yummy as your roast vege salad.

Mouthwatering Vegan Ratatouille

1/2 red (spanish) onion
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
Olive oil
2 zucchini (courgettes)
8-10 white button mushrooms (or 3-4 portobello ones)

4 spoonsful of sundried tomatoes, chopped

3 tablespoons of tomato paste

a large splash of pineapple juice
a smaller splash of Tamari organic soy sauce

Saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil, add the zucchini and mushrooms and stir fry until softened and golden. Add the sundried tomato, tomato paste and pineapple juice. Add soy sauce (have a taste; add enough to take away the sharpness of the juice and tomato and give it a richer flavour).

Simmer on low while you cook your organic brown rice... serve and savour the flavour!

{Mmmmm... it tastes like there's wine in it... but guess what? there isn't!}

My favourite Daniel Fast stars... Organic and versatile!

Quick'n'Easy Microwaved Brown Rice
1 cup brown rice
2 cups water

Place in microwave-proof bowl and cover with glad wrap (clingfilm). Cook on high for ten minutes.
That's IT!


Balsamic Cucumber & Tomato with coriander

One telegraph Cucumber
3-4 tomatoes
Balsamic vinegar
Olive oil
Fresh coriander

Peel and slice the cucumber. Slice tomatoes. Layer in a bowl. Shake together a blob of balsamic vinegar and twice as much olive oil. Shake shake shake, then plop over the tomato and cucumber.
Snip up some fresh coriander and sprinkle over the top.

{Get one of those "living herbs" from the supermarket and keep it on your windowsill}

Virgin Pina Colada
1 can lite coconut cream
1 can crushed pineapple in juice
a splash of pineapple juice

Whizz together in the blender until light and frothy. Sip your virgin cocktail guilt free and tell yourself that this Daniel fast is not so hard after all. {Note: for a proper delicious creamy pina colada you should really use full-fat coconut cream. Lite is still nice, but not the same}

Peach and Pineapple Frappe
1 can of peaches in juice
1 can of crushed pineapple
two handfuls of ice cubes
a splash of fruit juice

Whizz up in a blender until completely smooth.
Refreshing and satisfying. Really, this aint so bad is it??

Fruity Breakfast Oats
1/2 cup raw rolled oats
1/2 apple grated
handful of raisins
sprinkle of cinnamon
1 cup of pineapple juice

Microwave in a bowl for 90 seconds.
Spicy and naturally sweet. And rather edible, especially if you splash with lite coconut milk (soy milk is even better). A great start to the day and YUM.


Snacks

• Carrot sticks and hummus - nothing wrong with that, right?
• Nuts 'n' raisins - make up your own mix; the raw bulk bin nuts are much cheaper
• Watermelon, pineapple, grapes, blueberries - all cheap this time of year
• Vanilla Red Bush (Rooiboos) Tea with soy milk is actually rather drinkable :)

............................

Ahhh look at that, I've almost convinced myself to do it.
Got any recipes you can share with us? It might help me last the distance if I can do it without too much deprivation...

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