www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Breaking the Fast!

While fasting, I couldn't help but wonder how those who *choose* to be vegan as their chosen culinary life style, (in other words, always following the Eastern fast) do it?!?!?

In our Risen Lord,
Alice

Short ribs.

I am not a vegan, but to keep my cholesterol level manageable without having to take drugs, I rarely have meat. Some of the lower fat meats like poultry, I never liked to begin with. So, if the church says no meat, I say, "no problem." However, it's the low-fat dairy products that are very hard to give up. Halfway through the fast, I am ready to kill for some good swiss or even a handful of cheese nips. It's so distressing I have to resort to even more dark chocolate to cope. Somehow I do manage to survive the fast. It's not easy being holy and humble.

Charles,
Munching on some good chocolate

Alice,

They do it through the grace and strength of the Lord--through whom we all manage to do anything. It probably helps for them to have community support in their family and social interactions to be strengthened in their decisions. They probably also avoid problems by not surrounding themselves with occasions to fall from their decision (such as stocking the house with foods they don't eat), and by educating themselves better about their decision and why they are doing it. I see a lot of parallel with how we all manage to continue walking in the path we have decided to follow by being Christians.

Joe I can tell you are from the south, just by that

What is really bad they make dark chocolate M&M' s now

Didn't know about the dark M&Ms. I will have to look for those.

Dear Wondering,

I think you missed the point I was making. I was talking about secular people. I was also making a joke.

I am sorry if you are a vegan, and if I offended you. Any dietary rule, for health, vanity, religion, or philosophy is difficult.

As I said, I was simply joking, because we are all so happy to be able to eat meat, eggs, and milk products again.

Regards,
Alice

My roommate is a vegetarian, so I had lots of help avoiding meat. I had to avoid cheese and dairy on my own, though. We had lots of interesting meals... I've actually found I really enjoy vegetarian and vegan fare much more now. I had brunch at a vegan restaurant on Palm Sunday with my veggie friends and loved it. I actually felt guilty that I had now broken the spirit of the Fast by enjoying the food!

Anyway, now that the Fast has ended, I'm looking forward to pizza and chicken wings the most.

Alice,

I'm not vegan or offended. You wondered how any one could do it. I said only by the grace of God can any of us do anything. I'm sorry if my post sounded defensive; it wasn't intended to be.

Now that you mention those who are not aware of the many graces that God bestows on them, I imagine it is much harder. It was just a passing thought I shared about the parallel to the Christian life.

Now back to that banana cream pie we have...
(And to think clowns waste these things on stunts!)

Some Orthodox friends of mine in Australia who are vegetarians sent me the menu they enjoyed and served on Pascha this year:

Paschal Feast

2007



Aperitif



Yellow Glen Pinot Noir Chardonnay [2005 Vintage]



Borsch

Served with

Beetroot Shavings, Sour Cream and Chives



Pierogies

filled with green onion and hard-boiled egg



Hard-Boiled Eggs

stuffed with Aubergene Caviar



Fresh-baked Rye Bread



Accompanied by Absolut Vodka



Vegetarian Chicken Kiev



Served With

Latkes

Asparagus with Lemon and Butter

Sweet and Sour Sauerkraut

Pickled Beets with Horseradish and Sour Cream

Sour Cream Cucumber Salad



accompanied by Yalumba Galway Heritage [1995 Vintage]



Kulich and Pascha



Accompanied by Jacobs Creek Reserve Pinot Noir [2004 Vintage]


It certainly sounds edible!

Some parishioners of mine took me and the two priests who served with us for the midnight celebration on Pascha to dinner last night at one of Dublin's outstanding Chinese restaurants (stop laughing; Dublin has some superb Chinese restaurants). The menu was not vegetarian, the food was delicious, and we sat around enjoying the food and the company for about 4 hours. Luckily, the restaurant staff know us and are used to us being leisurely on such occasions (besides, it was Monday, when they're not crowded).

Prosit!

CHRIST IS RISEN!

Fr. Serge

Re: Dublin's Chinese Restaurants.

Blahoslovy!

I was shocked when I went to Rome and saw all the Chinese Restaurants there!

Charles! Check this out Especially the last two paragraphs.

Cocoa, not tea, calms blood pressure, study says

Mon Apr 9, 4:12 PM ET

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Some may see a cup of tea as soothing but chocolate is more likely to lower one's blood pressure, German researchers reported on Monday.

Foods rich in cocoa appear to reduce blood pressure but drinking green and black tea may not, according to an analysis of previously published research in the Archives of Internal Medicine, published by the American Medical Association.

The drop in blood pressure among participants who consumed cocoa products for at least two weeks was in the same range as achieved by someone taking drugs commonly prescribed to control high blood pressure.

The fall in blood pressure credited to cocoa could be expected to reduce the risk of strokes and heart attacks by 10-20 percent, the report said.

Both cocoa and tea contain polyphenols, a class of chemicals known to help prevent cardiovascular disease that are present in most fruits and vegetables. But cocoa has a different type than tea -- procyanids -- that appear to be more active.

Currently, patients with high blood pressure are urged to eat more fruits and vegetables, although cocoa and tea products account for the bulk of total polyphenol consumption in Western countries, the study said.

But don't start gobbling up chocolate bars just yet, wrote study author Dirk Taubert of the University Hospital of Cologne, Germany.

Treats such as dark chocolate might be substituted for other high-calorie desserts, based on the study's findings, but "we believe that any dietary advice must account for the high sugar, fat and calorie intake with most cocoa products.

"Rationally applied, cocoa products might be considered part of dietary approaches to lower hypertension risk," he wrote.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070409/hl_nm/heart_cocoa_dc;_ylt=Ak04hsveYCHBl9OtoEQANo0DW7oF

Red meat -- mooooo -- and cheeeeesecake

I saw a great croatian recipe I want to try...pork stuffed with prunes and butter and cooked in slivivitz, but my first meal cooked after the fast was mince meat stuffed cabbage rolls..my grandmother would be proud!

Ned