So I have decided to actually give something up for Lent this year. I don't consider myself a very religious person so I am going to use Lent as an excuse to challenge myself. I have done something similar in the past--while living at Johns College in Canberra I did a 'reverse' Ramadan. While so many of our Muslim friends were fasting during the day, I decided to fast at night and gave up my beloved pre-bed snack for the month. This was actually really hard.
For the next forty days (starting after Fat Tuesday, of course!), I am going to follow a plant-based, minimally processed diet. This is kinda like being vegan--I will not be eating any animals or animal products--but I will also not eat processed foods. Seth and I already follow a mostly vegetarian diet, and we hardly eat processed foods anyway, but I guess this will make it more official. Here are some rules for myself:
1) Obviously, no meat, fish, eggs, cheese, milk, cheese, etc.
2) No packaged foods like crackers, chips, canned soups, frozen meals, etc. This won't be hard since I never buy these things anyways.
3) Baked goods are ok, so long as they do not contain milk, butter, or eggs, and they were made from scratch (Pillsbury cake mixes are not exactly 'minimally processed').
4) I can eat whatever is served at our Table of 8 group next month. I already told the host I don't have any dietary restrictions and I don't want to burden anyone.
5) Cereal is ok, even though it is packaged
6) No sugar substitutes like Splenda. I usually like to use these for my tea to reduce cavities ;o)
The more challenging points: NO cheese sprinkled on my salads and pastas, NO Laughing Cow cheese wedges, NO Marshmallow Fluff, NO milk or cream for my coffee and tea, and NO YOGURT!!! :o(
Let's see how the 'no yogurt' thing goes...
2 comments:
As usual, I find your blog very inspiring! Your dietary restrictions for Lent seem like a wise idea, but this reader is now extremely curious: what DO you eat on a regular basis, in order to get enough carbs, protein, etc? Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for your interest! Getting enough carbs is the super easy part here--we always eat lots of whole wheat bread (made from a bread machine to reduce the laundry list of unnecessary ingredients found in most store-bought breads), rice, pasta, etc. However, by not having milk and yogurt, I will have to make sure to bump up my beans for protein (lentil soup, tofu, chickpea dishes, minestrone and chili, etc). The calcium will most likely come from leafy greens, such as kale and cabbage, and soy products like tofu and soy milk. You have to make sure, though, that the tofu and soymilk are fortified (soy doesn't naturally contain much calcium). Nothin' to it :o)
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