Salad for Dinner

So I just had a salad for dinner.  I am traveling, at an airport terminal with all sorts of yummy fast food temptations.  And I make a salad from the salad bar.  I am becoming one of those weird healthy people, and I like it.  The salad was amazing.  I had a scoop of tortellini with pesto sauce.  I had a few cubes of mozzarella.  There were craisins, sunflower seeds, kalmata olives, a hard boiled egg and a few slices of beets that I diced.  Every bite was like a different dish entirely.  Some bites were salty and nutty - lots of seeds and egg pieces.  Some were very sweet - I must have gotten some beets and craisins.  I felt like I was eating at least five different meals instead of just one continuous flavor (like say, a ham and swiss sandwich).  And yeah, maybe I'm being healthy, but I'm also have an awesomely tasty meal.  The only thing I'm missing is that heavy feeling in my stomach.

And I must give kudos to my latest fast.  You all know I love fasting, dear readers.  This year's fast was a fast from all breads, the entire taxonomy, inspired by this post on Slow Food USA.  I cheated a few times toward the end: once for Seder, and once for the closing of Doc's Little Gem Diner.  But overall, this fast taught me to get a little more creative with my every day meals.  No longer could I go to a sandwich or a wrap for a default, easy meal.  No more pizzas either.  (Nor anymore cookies, muffins, etc, etc).  I was forced to think.  I was broken out of my ruts.  And I think that particular fast gave me the courage, and habit, of not just going to the staples.  So today, when I'm in a hurry at an airport, surrounding by temptation... I circled the salad bar.

Yum!

Fasting

(This is a copy of my post at the Slow Food CNY blog)

Fasting. While this is a blog about food, I want to post about the absence of food. If you think about it, the slowest food possible is the food that never reaches your mouth. ;-) While I am not Catholic, I personally find this time of year a good time to fast. The long of winter is (mostly) behind us, and spring is around the corner. Time to do some internal spring cleaning, I say.

Almost every year, I conduct a carbohydrate fast, or some variety thereof. This year I am trying to fast from wheat, refined sugars, and artificial sugars. The wheat is because I am curious if I have a slight allergy to wheat. The refined sugars are because I want to loose my winter weight. And the artificial sugars are on the list as more of a spiritual objection to the overly sweetened foods we have so readily available to us. I want to cut down on the sweetness. (Sorry, but I am not giving up honey this year.)

Does anyone else around here fast? Do you do it for spiritual reasons or health reasons? (Or both??)