The FastDay Forum

I don't care if Rolos are bad, the last time I ha some was 20 years ago so they won't do any harm

So sorry about the heatwave, @Tracieknits. Maybe you could make some cold soup to change from the salads ? http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20708310,00.html/view-all
The thing is, it's raining way too much here, we don't have a proper summer and the 2 days hot 5 days cold can be exhausting. The temperatures are down to 10°C during the night and today we should have only 19°C

The recipe looks wonderful however I wonder how important is the curry paste ? We have curry powder, turmeric but no curry paste (Indian food is not really usual here). I was also wondering if I could do a kind of chowder in the slow cooker with brocolis and cauliflower. I guess I will need to try some recipes to get used to them. I usually have green lentils, they are more robust and they can be eaten as side dish, the red ones seem to be more on the mushy side


Do you know how a good oven makes a difference in your cooking ? I have a new oven, that heat properly and with convection and oven cooking is so easy and fun ! I am planning on roasting some veg before making a soup with them. I have a gaspacho but I had to put it in the freezer, there is no way I will eat a cold soup today

[Tracieknits]

You can easily make your own curry paste with a mortar and pestle or a food processor. It's a bit more work to make it by hand, but completely possible. Curry paste is just onions, garlic and ginger, mashed up with the dry spices. I find curry paste usually on the British shelves of local supermarkets, but one near me has finally made a shelf for Indian food. Premade curry paste is a timesaver, but honestly, the stuff you'll make fresh with your own onions, garlic and ginger tastes better. The ratio really doesn't seem to matter -- Mash up a small onion with however many garlic cloves you want (somewhere between 1 and 10), and a hunk of grated ginger (any size up to the size of your thumb, or slightly larger). More garlic and ginger will make it spicier. Then you add the dry spices and mix well. Put some oil in the pan and heat it up, then fry the curry paste and start sauteeing your veggies in the paste. I'm sure if you google "recipe curry paste" you'll get loads of more precise instructions.

And if you don't feel like dealing with curry paste, just mince an onion and add powdered garlic and ginger. It will work.

Thank you for the idea on soup! I had forgotten about gazpacho

After a few months of silence, I am back on the forum and fasting regularly as well. I have been pretty busy with dealing with my dad's succession, my mother's illness - and it's not going well at all - and trying to build a small business.

Things were so tough that I was going a wrong path for a while, drinking way too much alcohol to manage the stress and the overwhelming situations. Don't worry, it didn't way far enough for me becoming an alcoholic (I can't drink more than 1 glass before falling asleep, thankfully) but, even with one or 2 drinks a week it's never a good thing when you have a drink to numb the pain you are in.

During that time I couldn't fast. I would try but give up mid afternoon. Because of that and the salty thingy I would eat way too much while having a drink (they sure are a big weakness of mine) I put on a bit of weight that I need to deal with before it goes out of hand. I put on 7 kilos these past few months so, nothing to compare to all the weight I lost 3 years ago but still, it's way too much and it need to be deal with now.

So I decided to go back to my familiar path and do a 4/3. I began slowly these past 2 weeks with a 5:2 and a 16:8 but I feel more comfortable with a full 4:3. It will be Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, leaving the weekend free and with only black coffees/ teas and a soup for dinner.

Today has been easy so far, I will probably make a broccoli soup with a hint of blue cheese for tonight's dinner.

I am happy to be back, it's like coming home after a long time off

Hi @manderley, nice to see you back and soldiering on. Best wishes.

I have been fasting on a regular basis since I last posted here. It's been fairly easy so far and I am nearly back to my goal. I began to smoke again but quit nearly as fast as I began because I didn't like it anymore. When it comes to alcohol, I cut back to no more than a glass on Saturday and Sunday so I am good with that.

It hasn't been a walk in the park, especially as I kind of get bored with my fasts meals but it still gives me comfort to fast on a regular basis. Until Christmas I am doing a 3/4 with nothing else but coffee, tea, water and a homemade soup. Tonight will be a lentils soup/stew (with carrots, onions, garlic all cooking in the slow cooker right now).