The FastDay Forum

A couple of us thought that a separate thread for vegans would be useful.

Here we could swap ideas, talk about what vegan ingredients we use, what's in our store cupboards - and, of course, all our tasty 5:2 dishes!

If we post a recipe, perhaps it might be best if that was done on a separate thread - with the word 'vegan' in the title - and then linked to back here.

Here's what I've got in my cupboard:
Pateole yeast & mushroom spread - I use this virtually every day. If I couldn't get it at my local HFS I'd send for it online.
Meridian green pesto - I've tried other versions, but they're all a bit 'gritty' IMO
Nutritional yeast (nooch)
Vital wheat gluten - for making seitan. I love the stuff!
Free and easy cheese sauce powder - I don't often make the sauce, but I do use the powder in things like seitan, and flavouring mashed potato
Parmazano - grated hard cheese replacement. I've only got a little bit left, and I don't think it's produced anymore. I use it in combination with F&E cheese sauce powder and nooch to make a replacement for parmesan on spag bol, etc.
Alpro custard - lovely stuff

Fridge/freezer:
Usual things like hummus
Linda Mac's sausages - also Fry's, which I prefer, I think (and they're only 58 calories a sausage!). Redwood's non-soya cheese, their bacon (but only for flavour in stews/curries, etc). Morrison's own mince - which I think is the best soya mince I've come across (since Quorn, TBH!). Their sausages were also brilliant - until they started adding egg white!

I've never got on with tofu - although I occasionally treat myself to Cauldron smoked tofu - it's expensive, though.

Alpro choc desserts - Provamel soya cream. Montezuma chilli chocolate. Lidl Fair Trade dark chocolate. Also their chocolate covered marzipan and chocolate liqueurs (although we won't see them again until Xmas). Swedish Glace chocolate ice cream.

Ginger nuts are generally vegan - Oaties (Lidl's answer to Hobnobs - not as sweet, which I like). I make my own choccie biscuits by melting a square of chocolate and spreading it over 3 Oaties. Takes 30 seconds in the freezer and then you're away!

'Eat food - not too much - mainly plants' should be the mantra (except we would say, '...only plants'!

Oh my , Breadandwine, I'm quite awed at your range of cupboard staples... well done starting this thread, I'm just here to 'claim my seat' as a fellow vegan.

I'm a simple eater. I have no special foods in my cupboards. Sometimes I have soya milk in my fridge for a muesli breakfast, but mostly, I'll have my morning porridge which I make with water.

My fast day 'menu' consists of raw veggies - cucumbers, celery, tomatoes, carrots, peppers... - lots and lots of them, I don't get hungry that way, and when I feel like something warm I'll drink tea or veggie broth.

That said, I'll be curious to see other veggies' fasting recipes. Who knows, I might just catch some inspiration?

Thanks again for starting the thread, Breadandwine.

Well hello fellow vegans! Yay, thank you for this thread. I will try to write a list of stuff in my cupboard and fridge here in Sydney! My partner and i are both life long vegos and good cooks. I II have coeliac so we cook all gluten free. I have some great recipes, but the ones I mostly make are all in my head. I will try to share them with you. Have been right into making cashew creme 'cheese' lately! Devastated about Parmezano! Our staples are Polenta, chick peas, lentils, split peas, quinoa, chia, nutritional yeast, nuts, gf pasta, rice, tofu, (I can make you love tofu!) the right recipes. I make a big pot of veg soup for fast days and its so filling. Also found some noodles that are under 20 cals. Cherries tomatoes are 3 cal each!

Hi

Im vegetarian (have flirted with being vegan but found it too difficult.) I would like to cut dairy so im going to try my 5:2 with 2 vegan days. I love tofu so have bought a couple of blocks to roast for my fast days. Will keep an eye on this thread for ideas for fast days.

My fav lo-cal vegan breakfast at the moment is rice cakes with tahini and marmite. Delish.

Im veggie not vegan, but had 2 scrambled eggs the first fast for breakfast, and for dinner had mixed salad with butterbeans soaked in balsamic vinegar, chili flakes and lazy garlic and a drizzle of olive oil, it was delicious.

Hi Bread fantastic post ... I'm just veggie, and no great cook, but always interested in ideas for new yummy veggie food.

You mentioned seitan, I had that made for me in Australia and absolutely loved it - she cooked it in water I think flavoured with marmite. I hadn't been able to get the same ingredients back here and have never tried to make it myself. Please have you a recipe and is it easy to do? Thanks x

Thanks, Sunflower!

Seitan - I had some for dinner tonight, in a chilli non carne - it was really very nice!

Here's my recipe and method:

http://nobreadisanisland.blogspot.co.uk/2010/07/spicy-seitan-sausages.html

I've just noticed I don't have any info about where to get the gluten powder from on the blog. I'll add that tomorrow.

Cheers, B&W

Thanks for that Bread - I can see you have been experimenting. Here is the recipe I was given,(hope you don't mind) it was like a really tasty chicken escalope and was so yummy, moist inside and very tasty. They made it in batches and froze it. They were 7th Day Adventists who eat lots of veggie dishes apparently! Like I said, Ive never tried it as I don't now what torula yeast is, for a start.


Broth - 8 cups water in s/steel saucepan, 1 pk french onion soup (continental brand)2 tablespns Marmite (sanitarium) 1 tea spoon soy sauce.

In bowl put 2 cups water with 1 teaspn marmite

In a bowl combine 2 cups gluten flour + 2 tablespns Torula Yeast

gradually add flour mix to water + stir with fork till forms a thick blob

roll into log shape + cut into portions (10ml)

roll with rolling pin in gluten flour on glad bake (assume parchment paper?)

put in boiling broth then simmer low for 1 hour

allow to cool in broth (takes in the flavour)

dip in so good or egg + breadcrumbs - can now freeze for later

fry in olive oil till golden brown

NOTE when cleaning up don't use wet sponge - use wet paper towel

Hi B & W again, just been looking at your blog and its brilliant! Will definitly try some of your ideas. Do you have a really great recipe for lentil burgers, or are there any you recommend? thanks

I am on my fast today, and so far, just been reading about food!! planning for tomorrow.

I made this aubergine and red lentil dhal the other night on a fast day and even my non-vegetarian housemates love it. I skipped the tamarind and used cumin seeds instead, but I'm sure it would work just as well.

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1364 ... -aubergine

Great stuff, folks!

Here's a vegan cheese sauce recipe - 125 cals!

http://www.52fastdiet.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1653&view=unread#p12868

What a great topic! I have just started plant-based eating today. Thanks for the recipes!

Had a great night out last night, here:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g190730-d1419249-Reviews-Jenny_s_Bistro-Taunton_Somerset_England.html

Beef tomatoes (2 of!) stuffed with risotto for starter. This was a big starter and I left half of one of the tomatoes - with regret, because it was delicious - but I wanted to be able to do justice to my main meal, really.

This was a Thai veg curry with a side order of chips. I managed to eat almost all of this, it was so good! There were only about 8 large chips, which was just as well.

Nothing on the sweet menu for a vegan, but I never mind that nowadays. I came home and had 3 (was only going to have 2, but...) crepes suzette with soya cream and Benedictine!

http://nobreadisanisland.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/pancakes-using-just-flour-and-water.html

OK, the orange sauce was only homemade marmalade with added apple juice and the pancakes were just flour and water - but they were absolutely gorgeous. With the accompaniment of a slug of Benedictine I was feeling no pain! [grin]

One habit I've completely discarded since discovering I won't collapse if I don't eat for an hour or two is to have a couple of biscuits or something about 5pm before eating out. I used to figure that, if I'm not eating until 8, I'd probably faint or something. At the very least I'd be ratty and impatient! How things have changed, eh!

Hi All!
Our cupboard staples are tins of chickpeas, kidney beans, lentils, tomatoes, coconut milk etc. Also, a variety of Indian curry stuff like pastes (for when we're feeling lazy), pickles and poppadums. For sweets, which are simply essential, biscuits (almond and cinnamon atm), and dates. A lot of different nuts and heaps of them, we panic if we get low on nuts.
The fridge: dark chocolate, tofu, homemade pestos, soy cheese, soy milk. Leafy greens ofcourse
The freezer: edamame, wakame, soy protein, homemade meals.

Hi Everyone,

Bron here in Australia - I've been a vegan for 25 years and have been on the 5 2 way of eating for two weeks. Good to see some vegans here! I've bought Dr. Moseley's book and while it's useful, not that great for vegans.

My main reason for eating this way is to try and lose 10 kg which have crept on over the years, and for my overall health. I'm intending to do a lot more juicing and smoothies from now on. I also am trying to eat more raw.

So far after 4 fasting days I've lost .7 kg and while that's ok, I'm a bit disappointed that it's not more, given that Moseley says most people should lose about .4 kg per fast day on average. I did make a huge mistake the other day in smoothie because I added maca, raw cacao and lsa to a smoothie on a fast day, lots of calories which I hadn't realised!

So my question is - what do you all eat on a typical fast day? I'm really interested to read others' actual meal plans....from breakfast through to dinner. Do you drink rice milk with your coffee/tea? I can't drink too much soy milk as I have an intolerance, and don't like almond milk in tea or coffee. Rice milk is high GI, so not ideal for fasting days.

Thanks for any ideas.

Bron