As we continue to wait for all the students to take their seats we’ll keep working on the basics in food. Or in this week’s case, lack thereof. Fasting. This is the season.
Fasting is closely associated with the end of winter-early spring transition. For one, its when certain areas of the world are too cold to grow food and food supplies are low. This old world culture of being with the seasons has always intrigued me. And coincidentally this time also corresponds to religious fasting durations like Ramadan and Lent.
I fell deep with this coincidence in the book Honey From A Weed. The British food writer, Patience Gray has a Waiting to Exhale moment. She falls in love with a sculptor, which I imagined is a very sexy man. She heads out to travel with him and follows him through famed marble quarries that run the length Europe. She speaks on how during the late winter there isn’t much to eat in the mountains where they lived and worked. Its after the deep cold of winter, nothing is growing and whatever delicacies were saved and preserved from the summer have been mostly consumed. Its just down to the basics, simple foods, cucina povera style mixed in with the old world religious traditions. Come spring, the taste of all harvested is more delicious than she can ever remember. I like that, making your body go without to then come back and cherish it deeply. Similar to not eating strawberries until they are in season in your area. Its worth the wait and connects you to nature, and the seasons. I find it extremely important.
More and more people are talking about the importance of fasting for our health. Yogis, yoga instructors to celebs and your favorite foodie friend are all noting the importance of fasting. I agree with the body needing time to process.
A juice fast is something to indulge in. Best when you want have a lazy day in. My regimen consists of a bitter celery juice to start. Like coffee it acts as a slap in the face and gets you going. Plus celery has salts that do not break down and act as a scrub to your gut. Wait 15 minutes before following with anything so it has a chance to do its thing. I follow with a green juice. After a couple hours a beet juice is a nice visual break from the green. About now I’m hungry, a green juice helps that. I’m now coasting. You’re advised to drink lots of water, I do. Also make the highest quality genmaicha I have, and make a little ceremony of it. Rest. Get up and have a natural milk, only homemade or just made, not processed and packaged. Rice, oat, almond, soy and coconut are great to play with, they are way more satisfying than out of the carton varieties. I follow this with a mushroom broth, it hits a savory spot. Before bed I have another natural milk, maybe warmed with pure cacao or an adaptogenic blend. Next day a green juice starts the day then gradually follow it with a coffee or tea and a broth or miso soup for breakfast.
The macro bowl is a good start to your fasting practice. This, the most well rounded meal, it has everything your body needs to balance out (and, is the cover star of my new book, Bright Cooking). Macro(biotic) bowls always have; whole grains, an orange vegetable, steamed greens, a plant-based protein, sprouts, pickles and a sauce. Sauces are limitless, something like a herby tahini or a pulsed vegetable sauce like carrot and ginger. I often find myself having it very simply with just the cleanest sesame oil and a homemade gomashio (sesame salt) or high-grade olive oil and a squeeze of lemon or a sprinkle of nutritional yeast. The flavors are subtle, I enjoy the delicate notes. I do this also for the affects it has on the palate. It makes your taste buds work to find delicate flavors and in turn calibrates them. As a chef its always been important to care for my taste buds.
Assignment
Pick a day to fast, juice or go macro, make tea in an intentional and ceremonial way, meditate (or chant).
Extra credit
Make broth or a sourdough loaf while you’re fasting.
Weekly PSA;
I live in the Lower East Side, a neighborhood rich in artists and creatives. Our neighborhood is collectively looking to grow items in a small lot or rooftop. Please advise if you can help in acquiring some space. DM @brightcooking on Instagram.
Lastly;
I see you, sitting in the first row. Your attendance has been so supportive, an apple for the teacher. Unplanned, unedited and unrehearsed these lessons allow me to connect more personally. A chance to storytell from a career in food and hospitality.
Thank you.
Your macro bowls are life giving! I still remember one you made my sister and I in Tulum. Heaven. x