Fasting Recipes for a College Student

[zhilan]

This Natvity Fast will be my first time doing the full Orthodox fast (last Lent I did just meat which isn't too difficult). As a college student who goes to college in a rather "ghettoish" area, I don't have much access to fancy organic stores and such. Also, like most college students, I'm tight on money and time - and my usual idea of cooking is take-out. :PDoes anyone know any sites or books or have suggestions for good fast friendly recipes or suggestions for college students who aren't studs in the kitchen? I'm invisioning myself eating shirmp flavored ramen for 40 days and that just seems like a bad idea!:help:

[choirfiend]

Do you have a microwave? A rice-cooker or mini-crockpot?

Vegetarian chili and brown rice is good.
You will learn to love Pb&J.
There are a thousand variations on plain ramen that you may enjoy. I'm eating a bowl with lots of vegetables added right now;)
Lentils are a staple. Add some indian spices and cook til mushy and you have some variation on Dal.
Salads and tuna can be good for you meat-eaters.
Or if you can afford some shrimp, you might be wanting for protein without access to more normal vegetarian food.
Hummus and pita=key

You can make large amounts of most of these foods and freeze them in single-serving tupperwares for a week at a time or so.

[zebu]

I was just wondering this same thing! Thanks for the ideas choirfiend!

[Dewi Sant]

How can you have PB&J?

Peanut BUTTER! Jam = Gelatin!



Anyhow.
I would be interested as to what cheap recipes there are as I too am a student.

I'm not sure what this 'brown rice' is, it intrigues me.

[zebu]

Most jam doesn't have gelatin. It has fruit, sugar, and pectin.

[Dewi Sant]

Something which I quite like is vegetable chilli.

Basically, the same as chilli con carne....without the meat.

[Dewi Sant]

Baked beans on toast with a slosh of Worcester sauce.....yum!


Though, apparently the american idea of baked beans are not the same as ours.

Ours are just beans in tomato sauce, nothing more.

[choirfiend]

How can you have PB&J?

Peanut BUTTER! Jam = Gelatin!



Anyhow.
I would be interested as to what cheap recipes there are as I too am a student.

I'm not sure what this 'brown rice' is, it intrigues me.
Are you serious?

[Dust and Ashes]

Peanut butter and....preserves! lol Well, the way preserves are made in these parts, anyway.

My favorite staple during fasts is potato dumplings. Flour, salt and water mixed very stiff then added to boiling potatos with salt and black pepper.

[kamikat]

brown rice is white rice before the healthy bran has been polished off. It is higher in fiber and nutrients than white rice.
Easy, fast veggie food is simply vegetarian refried beans spread on a tortilla, then topped with a spoonful of salsa, rolled up and microwaved for 30 seconds. Another yummy, fast meal is a baked potato topped with jarred speghetti sauce. Frequently, I'll have just a baked sweet potato with margarine for lunch.

[kamikat]

My favorite staple during fasts is potato dumplings. Flour, salt and water mixed very stiff then added to boiling potatos with salt and black pepper.


yum! gnocci!

[Lotar]

Two words: Del Taco
:P

Thank God I'm married now. :D

Oh, and gnocci is the nectar of the gods during fasting seasons. :yum:

[DonVA]

brown rice is white rice before the healthy bran has been polished off. It is higher in fiber and nutrients than white rice.
Easy, fast veggie food is simply vegetarian refried beans spread on a tortilla, then topped with a spoonful of salsa, rolled up and microwaved for 30 seconds. Another yummy, fast meal is a baked potato topped with jarred speghetti sauce. Frequently, I'll have just a baked sweet potato with margarine for lunch.
I've learned to love salsa on my baked potatoes!

[zhilan]

I'm not much of a fan of beans, which makes me have a hard time finding good recipes since so many have them.

So far I've found cereal with soy milk and sushi to be good, but sushi is so expensive. =(

I also bought some bagels and peanut butter.

Any other good ideas? I think the hard part is the dairy becuase it seems like dairy is just in EVERYTHING.

Oh, do you usually count chocolate? Because I noticed that milk is an ingredient in chocolate but I dont know if that counts or not....

[gzt]

roffle doffle, nice troll, ramesess.

but more seriously, there are lots of great pasta dishes to make. look for vegan cookbooks, your school might have a vegan club, too. there are a billion ways to cook plantains if you get tired of potatoes.

[Akathist]

Ok, I think it is important to be careful about becoming so obsessed with the food restrictions that you lose sight of the purpose of the fast altogether.

If you wanted to be really strict, btw, worshestershire sauce would be off limites.

A good rule of thumb is not to eat things that are obvious ... like a hunk of meat and a tablespoon of dairy spread on your potatoes, etc.

Peanut butter that is "natural" is very fast friendly buy the store brand to save money. Jelly or Jam, same kind of thing, buy what is cheapest. I don't read the incredients on loafs of bread either. Bread is bread.

I like store brand tomatoe soup made with water as a cheap soup to go with PBandJ. (Also, I like PB and bananas, or PB and honey.)

I think the important thing is to eat simply and with thrift so that there is more to give as alms then to focus on such details.

Some thrifty things that might work for some:

Cook old fashioned oatmeal or cream of wheat with water, sweeten as desired. (cheap cheap.) (I had cream of wheat for supper but then, I can't chew right now. So I have been going through a lot of it.)

1 cup dry Lentils cooked, then add tomatoe paste and some garlic powder, salt and pepper, italian seasonings and eat "lentil sloppy joes". (This is good with bread but also with as a topper for potatoes.)

Dry beans (I like kidney) cooked added to regular rice cooked and season with hot sauce and salt and pepper.

Kidney beans cooked from dry (for all the dry beans (except lentils) just soak them in water in your refrigerator overnight or while at school), Just before they are done cooking, "fry"* up some onions, celery and If you like, green peppers in a nonstick skillet. Then combine all of the above, add a couple cans of tomatoes and chili powder and a tablespoon of flour if you like it thicker. (Tastes even better reheated.) (*cook in a dry nonstick skillet)

Roasted vegetables: clean potatoes (white or sweet or both), turnips (if you like them), carrots, onions (in kind of big wedges so they don't burn), Cut things to about all the same size and spread in baking pan that is nonstick (iron skillet works great for this.) Season with salt and pepper and any other seasoning you like. Bake in the oven until browned and to desires tenderness.

Cook spaghetti in just salted water, drain, add warmed up marinara sauce (vegitarian) from a can and some canned mushrooms. I like to add more italian seasonings. (if you want to save even more money, earlier in the day put two or three cans of tomatoes in your slow cooker with seasonings and cut up onions and if you like green peppers. Cook on low all day, this makes a wonderful spaghetti sauce, Add the canned mushrooms when you start cooking the pasta. If you don't have a slow cooker just simmer on the stove for an hour or so while doing housework or homework, stir every once in a while though.)

Three bean salad (fasting style): one can red beans (or kidney beans), one can wax beans, one can green beans. (I like canned it is cheaper and I like my veggies more cooked), half a cup of vinegar (cider is what I use), 1/4 cup of sugar. (combine the sugar and vinegar in a sauce pan, warm until all of the sugar is dissolved, then poor over the veggies.) This tastes better if made several hours in advance. (I like to add onions and frozen brocholi to this sometimes but then it is a veggie salad.) Alternatively you could try the "Fat free" italian dressing on this but that is not as cheap.

If you have a hot air popper, you can have popcorn with no oil. Buying the old fashioned popcorn in the bags makes popcorn really inexpensive. (This sounds so good right now!) I like mine with just salt but you can add different seasonings to get interesting results. BTW, you could try making this with no salt and using some soy milk over it with some sugar for a cheap breakfast cereal.)

Here is some more thrifty recipies:

http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/5graincereal.htm (I have not made this as I prefer simple oatmeal or cream of wheat but saw it and thought others might like it.)
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/italianbeansandrice.htm (skip the oil and use a nonstick pan instead)
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/blackbeansoup.htm (again, skip the oil and instead of chicken broth use vegetable broth.)

http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/splitpeadahl.htm (again, skip the oil. I made this and it was very very good, but I didn't have any cumin. Keep in mind that to save money you can skip seasonings and get an ok result, salt and pepper would have been enough for this recipie if that was all I had.)

If you can have oil that is not olive oil this is cheaper than buying humus: (I have not tried it btw): http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/humus.htm

http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/5canbeansoup.htm (I have not tried this but it looks good, when I can chew beans I am going to try it.)

[jckstraw72]

how could 40 days of shrimp ramen be a bad thing?

[zhilan]

how could 40 days of shrimp ramen be a bad thing?
Haha, I would have said the same thing a few months ago, but I noticed that when I added it as a staple of my diet I put on a weight. Who would have guessed that packaged fried noodles with a salty, MSG powder sauce would not be diet friendly? Go figure!

[authiodionitist]

Ok, I think it is important to be careful about becoming so obsessed with the food restrictions that you lose sight of the purpose of the fast altogether.

If you wanted to be really strict, btw, worshestershire sauce would be off limites.

A good rule of thumb is not to eat things that are obvious ... like a hunk of meat and a tablespoon of dairly spread on your potatoes, etc.

Peanut butter that is "natural" is very fast friendly, but I eat Jiff and don't fret. Jelly or Jam, same kind of thing. I don't read the incredients on loafs of bread either. Bread is bread.

I think the important thing is to eat simply and with thrift so that there is more to give as alms then to focus on such details.


I agree on the 'spirit of the fast' argument. I imagine breaking the Nativity Fast as the rude guest at a party who eats before the host even comes. You know, that guy who mingles with the people there, knows the host is yet to come, and still sneaks into the kitchen to steal some of the feasting foods. What a jerk! (Oh wait, that'd be me when I break the fast...).

I do like the cheap recipes though. They make fasting AND alms possible in this time of waiting. Our waiting for the Bridegroom is not in vain. It's just for 39 more days.

Peace,
-A

[Akathist]

I'm not much of a fan of beans, which makes me have a hard time finding good recipes since so many have them.

So far I've found cereal with soy milk and sushi to be good, but sushi is so expensive. =(

I also bought some bagels and peanut butter.

Any other good ideas? I think the hard part is the dairy becuase it seems like dairy is just in EVERYTHING.

Oh, do you usually count chocolate? Because I noticed that milk is an ingredient in chocolate but I dont know if that counts or not....

Talk to your Priest about this. I avoid chocolate during the fast but there is some chocolate that has no dairy in it. (very very dark chocolate, and cocoa).

It is really important when starting to fast to talk to your Priest. Trying to follow a fast before you are ready can lead to disasterous results in some people. Sometimes you need to work your way into it some at first, and other times, diving in head first is best. Your Priest can best direct you on what he thinks is best.

[Anhelyna]

Actually I sympathise with Ramesses I had wondered about PB & J - but the way they make jam is different to UK stuff - here we would have to be pretty careful about how it was made - the better jams are OK .

Try just cooking some rice [ brown rice takes a lot longer to cook BTW ] and then chopping up lots of veggies into wee bits and adding them - cheap and very very filling.

Here lots of the stuff you yanks have, is just not available and you really really have to think about this fasting stuff

[Ioan cel Nou]

How can you have PB&J?

Peanut BUTTER! Jam = Gelatin!

Peanut butter and jam is fine (though disgusting). There's no butter in peanut butter and no gelatine in jam. Jam is set using pectin which is a natural component of fruits such as apples.


Anyhow.
I would be interested as to what cheap recipes there are as I too am a student.

I have a great fasting recipe book from Romania collected by a presbytera. Many of the recipes in there (such as Chiftele de Ciuperci - which would be kind of flat 'meat balls' made from mushrooms) would be perfectly cheap enough for students. If you give me some idea of likes and dislikes, I'd be be happy to translate some into English. Actually, this thread has inspired me to try to translate the whole thing, but that will take a while. It'd be a good project to practice my everyday, rather than Liturgical, Romanian. I wonder if I can get permission to publish a translation here?


I'm not sure what this 'brown rice' is, it intrigues me.
Brown rice is merely rice that hasn't had the husk removed. Personally, I dislike it intensely, but it's to white rice what wholemeal is to white flour.

Baked beans on toast with a slosh of Worcester sauce.....yum!


Though, apparently the american idea of baked beans are not the same as ours.

Ours are just beans in tomato sauce, nothing more.
This, unfortunately, would be out on strict fast days (unlike the PB&J). The beans are fine but Worcester sauce contains anchovies, so you should only use it on days when fish is allowed.

James

[Silentchapel]

Dark chocolate is fast-friendly. Also, it is quite healthy, although I doubt you worry about cholesterol. You can make nice fasty chocolate creme by boiling some water, then add dark chocolate to it. Leave it for couple of minutes. Then, pour the water out of the pot, and just mix extremly soft dark chocolate with a spoon. Voila! You can use this creme in variety of ways, for all your chocolate cream needs. ;)

[Monica, child of God]

http://vegweb.com/ is a good site with mostly vegan recipes.

Fish is allowed for many days during this fast, so you could make salmon cakes from canned or packaged salmon which is way cheaper than fresh. You just mix the fish with bread or cracker crumbs so it holds together and add onion (green onion is best) and spices to taste. You might need a little water since you probably won't be adding egg. Sometimes canned and packaged fish is salty to watch out. Pan fry in a little oil and serve on bread or with rice and a side of vegetables.

Since you don't like beans you might want to figure out which protein foods you do like. How about tofu? It is cheap and you can puree the silken kind into a creamy sauce base. For a fake alfredo, you blend a box of shelf stable silken tofu with a clove (or two) of garlic, some fake parmesan, nutritional yeast, salt and a little soy milk for consitency. This is good with fettucini or over veggies. It is has more protein and staying power than marinara.

Gnocci is the bomb. I make vegan pesto with fake parmesan, fresh basil, olive oil and pine nuts. Yum! Since I am eating fish again this is quite yummy with some sauteed shrimp or scallops.

I have lots of recipes and meal ideas for meat and dairy free eating.

M.

[InnerPhyre]

Taco Bell bean burritos, hold the cheese. These words will save your life, as it's just about that only fast food item that springs to mind that is ok to eat during the fast.

[ufonium2]

Falafel

Here's the recipe for the Falafel Monster, the vegan equivalent to the Hardee's MosterBurger:

Basically, you take a cup or so of cooked, crumbled falafel, mix with a tablespoon of tahini and a bunch of hummus, spread it on a piece of pita, put some pickle slices on that, add vegetables to taste, and top with another piece of pita.

This comes from my recipe book, "The Fat Vegan," and will probably be included in my next book, "The Broke Vegan." :)

[zhilan]

Talk to your Priest about this. I avoid chocolate during the fast but there is some chocolate that has no dairy in it. (very very dark chocolate, and cocoa).

It is really important when starting to fast to talk to your Priest. Trying to follow a fast before you are ready can lead to disasterous results in some people. Sometimes you need to work your way into it some at first, and other times, diving in head first is best. Your Priest can best direct you on what he thinks is best.
Yeah, I talked to him before I started and he said to do no animal products but oil is ok for now. But I didn't think about some of these other things that sneak milk into them. I'm hoping to be able to talk to him again before I go home for Christmas so I can get clairification.

[zhilan]

http://vegweb.com/ is a good site with mostly vegan recipes.

Fish is allowed for many days during this fast, so you could make salmon cakes from canned or packaged salmon which is way cheaper than fresh. You just mix the fish with bread or cracker crumbs so it holds together and add onion (green onion is best) and spices to taste. You might need a little water since you probably won't be adding egg. Sometimes canned and packaged fish is salty to watch out. Pan fry in a little oil and serve on bread or with rice and a side of vegetables.

Since you don't like beans you might want to figure out which protein foods you do like. How about tofu? It is cheap and you can puree the silken kind into a creamy sauce base. For a fake alfredo, you blend a box of shelf stable silken tofu with a clove (or two) of garlic, some fake parmesan, nutritional yeast, salt and a little soy milk for consitency. This is good with fettucini or over veggies. It is has more protein and staying power than marinara.

Gnocci is the bomb. I make vegan pesto with fake parmesan, fresh basil, olive oil and pine nuts. Yum! Since I am eating fish again this is quite yummy with some sauteed shrimp or scallops.

I have lots of recipes and meal ideas for meat and dairy free eating.

M.
I love tofu! I will check that out. I'm also planning to make a run to the Indian store near me. Indian food is a bit expensive, but at least it's tastey and easy - a nation full of vegetarians is always a good place to look for non-bland fasting food.

[jckstraw72]

veggie burritos are easy to make....i just use corns, beans, rice, salsa, hot sauce, and lettuce, and you can add any other veggies you like.

[eoe]

http://img.shopping.com/cctool/PrdImg/images/pr/177X150/00/01/f2/0d/75/32640373.JPG

[jckstraw72]

surely you jest EOE. Maruchan beats Top Ramen any day.

[eoe]

First image I came across.......

z - are you going to go by the book(tm) or are you going to allow yourself cheese? An extra large pizza with shrooms, onions, peppers and shrooms can last for days if you don't tell anyone that you have it....

I also agree with CF. Hummus and pita (I prefer flatbread myself but....) are what I live off of. Falafel also rocks.

[Lotar]

I'm telling you, it's all about the gnocchi. Toss them in boiling water for ~5min, add some marinara sauce to it, and have yourself a glass of wine (on the wine/oil days).

[Lotar]

Bruschetta is also super awesome.

[Akathist]

I came accross this today and thought I would add it to this thread: http://forum.budget101.com/viewforum.php?f=3

It is vegetarian food on a budget. There are some eggs and oil in some recipies but many others that are fast friendly.

[Paisley]

I was wondering about Jello ... :scratch:

[Akathist]

I was wondering about Jello ... :scratch:

It depends on how strict your SF wants you to be.

My SF says that if it doesn't look like meat or eggs or dairy it is fine and that I am forbidden to look for ingredients to see if it is ok or not. Therefore, I could eat jello.

However, other people are more strict than this and would't eat jello as gelitin is made from an animal product.

[kamikat]

During Great Lent, our church had a potluck singles' dinner and on the flyer, it was requested to not bring items with meat, dairy or gelatine. I assume this means that jello is out. However, you can get veggie "jello" at healthfood stores. It's usually made with agar-agar, which is a seaweed.

[VickiY]

The best "jello" packs are the Jolly Rancher ones...they are made with agar as well. YUM!

[VickiY]

oh...and if you have time during the week, you can always make up a batch of Lenten pancakes or muffins and put them in your freezer.

And any decent pizza place will make you a veggie pizza with no cheese...I do that when i am pressed for time.

[Akathist]

If I am needing some fast food, I buy a veggie burger from Burger King. If you are hungry enough, it tastes good.

(The best seasoning for good is hunger.)

[zhilan]

If I am needing some fast food, I buy a veggie burger from Burger King. If you are hungry enough, it tastes good.

(The best seasoning for good is hunger.)
I just discovered this! Awesome.

[Paisley]

If I am needing some fast food, I buy a veggie burger from Burger King. If you are hungry enough, it tastes good.

(The best seasoning for good is hunger.)
I will have to check this out while traveling. Yesterday, we went out of town, and although hubby is not Orthodox, he was considering my fast :) ... and we stopped at Taco Bell instead of a hamburger place. He ordered me a bean burrito but forgot to have them hold the cheese. Rather than complain, I ate it anyway. He meant well.