Strict fasting is heavy load on the body. Judge for yourself: no milk, no cheese, no kefir, no yogurt. Well, of course, no meat, no fish. What to do? First of all, don’t be discouraged: Lenten food can be no less varied and tasty than fast food. Secondly, you will have to get used to the idea that preparing lean food is, as a rule, somewhat more difficult; you will not be able to cook sausages and pasta for dinner. You can’t sit on buckwheat alone for long - you’ll howl. But there is a way out.

Here is a list of products that will help you get through this difficult time:

Legumes make excellent soups, casseroles, puddings, porridges, meatballs and flatbreads, even salads. But be careful: most types of peas and beans must be soaked for at least 6, and preferably 8, hours before cooking, and the water in which they were soaked must be drained. If you don’t do this, you will have to suffer - bloating and other phenomena that are probably familiar to you are guaranteed. Perhaps only lentils do not need to be soaked.

Fresh legumes - like green beans or peas - in our latitudes in winter and early spring can usually only be bought frozen. Of course, they cannot be compared with fresh ones, but for soup or vegetable stew they will do just fine. The main thing is not to let them defrost before cooking.

But it’s better not to get carried away with canned food. In principle, there is nothing wrong with them, the main advantage is that you don’t need to cook or soak anything. I opened the jar and put beans or peas into the soup or stew. But you still shouldn’t be zealous: it comes from a can and comes from a can.

3. Pasta. Try to buy high-quality pasta made from durum wheat - it contains useful substances more, and the figure will not suffer from it. Yes, and cook it “al dente” - “by the tooth”, so that the middle of each pasta remains a little hard.

Of course, chewing pasta on its own, no matter how beautiful and properly cooked it is, is quite boring. But if you make the right sauce for them, it will be a completely different story. Here is the simplest option. Dice a couple of tomatoes (frozen works great!), fry in a frying pan with olive oil, add finely chopped garlic and any herbs - cilantro, parsley, dill, basil. If there is pumpkin seeds or pine nuts - add them too, you won’t regret it. Warm it all up for a few minutes and add the cooked al dente pasta to the pan with the sauce. Mix well, cover with a lid, let stand for just a few minutes and place on plates.

4. Algae
Any seafood products, as well seaweed- especially, it is simply a storehouse of substances necessary for the normal functioning of the body, mainly iodine. If anyone doesn’t know, it is iodine that ensures normal brain function and balance of the nervous system. Agree, it’s not the last thing, especially in the spring.
The most convenient and easiest way to eat this marine vegetation is in the form of salads - with carrots, white cabbage, leeks. However, some craftsmen manage to cook soups from them and even make casseroles.

5. Seafood- squid, shrimp, mussels, scallops and other marine “non-fish” creatures
Whether it is possible to eat sea reptiles during fasting is a vague question. The fact is that when the canons and statutes of the Russian Orthodox Church, in our area no one has ever heard of these cuttlefish. That is why there is no indication in the church charter as to whether, say, shrimp or squid should be considered a fast or fast food. This is worth taking advantage of. Of course, those who decide to fast to the fullest extent of the law will probably not allow such indulgence for themselves, but the unspoken rule among the laity in this regard is this: it is not forbidden to eat soulless and bloodless sea reptiles during fasting. Well, good. Moreover, they are all, as a rule, pure, easily digestible protein. In addition, they are combined with almost any product: with cereals - rice, pearl barley, couscous, even buckwheat; with vegetables (potatoes or cauliflower, for example).

The main question is what should they be and where to buy them? The simplest and most common option is once boiled, frozen and packaged in plastic. This is how they sell mussels, octopus, squid, and shrimp. Easy to store, and the price is usually quite reasonable. If the question of money is not even a question at all, then you can afford to cook livestock that no one has ever cooked before you. You just need to be prepared for the fact that the shrimp will not be the color of a barbie, but a nasty, swamp-gray color; the mussels will be hidden in tightly closed shells, covered with some kind of mud or mucus. It’s better to keep quiet about oysters, because buying them fresh in a Moscow store is almost impossible. So it’s better not to risk it; if you’re on the Cote d’Azur, you’ll eat your fill there.

6. Dried fruits
Dried apples, prunes, raisins, dried apricots, dates are excellent substitutes for all kinds of sweets. And besides, they bring considerable benefits. Prunes, for example, perfectly regulate intestinal function, which is always important when switching to a different diet. Dried apricots and apricots are very beneficial for the heart, blood vessels and nervous system. Dates strengthen the immune system and, in some unknown mere mortal way, protect teeth from caries.
But you shouldn’t overdo it with dried fruits either: they contain a lot of sugar. It may be natural, natural, healthy, but still there is a lot of it, a lot of it. So be careful, know when to stop.

7. Nuts. Extremely nutritious product. They have a lot of fat, a lot of protein, a lot of carbohydrates. In short, a real energizer. But you still need to know when to stop. Some types of nuts, such as walnuts, macadamia nuts, and Brazil nuts, contain record amounts of fat. I guess your pancreas won't say "thank you" to you if you're lost in thought (which is Lenten time in principle, not uncommon) you will eat 200 grams of these nuts per day. So be careful.

8. Soy products: bean curd tofu, soy mayonnaise, soy milk, as well as all kinds of imitation meat products. In principle, there is nothing wrong with them. But the question arises: do you need it? If you decide not to eat meat, not to drink milk, then don’t eat or drink. Why deceive yourself? Soy itself, of course, is extremely healthy. But what they did with it to turn it, for example, into a piece of meat is completely unknown. Another thing is soy sprouts, which, like all sprouted grains, contain a record amount of vitamins. But we must remember that you cannot eat soybean sprouts raw; they must be boiled or blanched. After this, they can already be added to salads, soups, and general stews.

About the main thing. Breakfast
Main problem Lenten meals, usually breakfast. More precisely, the time required to prepare it. Usually it is solved by all kinds of curds, yoghurts and muesli with milk. But, alas. Now you will have to spend a little more time preparing breakfast. However, if you think through the menu in advance, there will be much less hassle.

1. Porridge. Oatmeal and semolina cooked in water or berry juice are no less tasty than those cooked in milk. Try mixing oatmeal with nuts, honey and finely chopped dried fruits and add a little vanilla (vanillin and vanilla sugar are also suitable) - you won’t be able to stop eating.
It’s better to cook the semolina in the evening, in a minimal amount of water, so that it turns out quite cool, and put it in a cool place. By morning it will turn into a surprisingly tender pudding. You can serve it with honey or berry jelly, which can also be cooked the day before.

2. Sandwiches. They can be not only with cheese and ham. Try toasting a piece of bread (preferably with seeds), pouring unrefined olive oil on it, topping it with a slice of tomato, celery and any herbs you can find in the refrigerator. For ease of eating, this entire structure can be covered with another piece of bread or a leaf of green salad.

3. Coffee. For those who cannot start living without a cup of strong aromatic coffee, fasting is a real test. Many, by the way, having taken the path of humility of the flesh, refuse this during fasting. wonderful drink. But this, we note, is a purely voluntary matter, not regulated by the charter. The main significant problem arises for those who are used to drinking coffee with milk - for them the taste of coffee “without anything” will be too sharp. However, if you add a piece of lemon or orange to a cup of coffee, the picture will change dramatically. By the way, many people like to add honey to this “fruity” coffee. But this is definitely not for everyone.

Well, now the most important thing. Even if you are firm in your best intentions, soberly assess your strength and physical capabilities. Work and study take a lot of energy, and the body may simply not withstand the additional load. In addition, food restrictions are not the most important thing during fasting. You don't want to kill yourself by Easter, do you? Then try to limit yourself to some other joys of life. For example, watch less TV.

All types of meat; eggs; dairy products; *fish; sweets containing eggs and dairy products; alcohol, except a small amount of wine on weekends

It is recommended to refrain from eating during the day. From the second to the fifth day of fasting, believers switch to xerophagy: cold food is allowed, not passed heat treatment, and lean bread. Further, from the second to the sixth week, dry eating is observed every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. During holy week Dry eating is observed on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, and wine is allowed on the last day. Hot food without oil: This diet must be followed every Tuesday and Thursday. Hot food with butter and wine: Allowed on weekends.

When approaching the question of food during Lent, it is necessary to take into account that such a change in diet, in principle, is not suitable for everyone. There is no need to fast for people with chronic diseases, those engaged in heavy physical labor, or children. Basic rules for those who fast: you don’t need to starve and completely limit yourself, just remember what and when you should eat.

Vadim Krylov, endocrinologist:

During fasting, animal fat is generally abandoned, but there are also days of relaxation when the intake of fish products is allowed. For some reason, at this moment everyone rushes to fry fish, which causes a blow to the intestines: the body has forgotten what fat is, and it is given such a load. It is better to steam or stew fish without adding oil. Vegetable salads should be seasoned with olive oil.

Men and women: who gets what and how much?

Non-trivial products

For those who like to drink coffee with milk, coconut, soy, almond, oat, and rice milk come to the rescue. These substitutes cow's milk may also be included in the recipe vegetable soups and pasta sauces. Soy milk is considered an adequate replacement for cow's milk - and in terms of content essential amino acids, and even in calcium and vitamin content. In addition, you can find in stores made from soy milk. fermented milk drinks and bean curd (tofu).

Andrey Mosov, doctor:

Soybean sausages contain the same ingredients that are found in regular sausage: phosphates, flavor enhancers. Therefore, they can only be recommended to those who really like this product in itself. For the rest, it's better to choose "soy meat" (textured soy protein) in in kind. In addition, “lean” sausage also contains other, more harmful ingredients, such as hydrogenated fats. In any case, you should carefully study the composition of the selected product.

Food basket for 48 days of Lent

Rye bread (rye-wheat) - 9 loaves (700 g each)
- wheat bread - 16 loaves (380 g each)
- whole grain bread and crispbreads - 2.5 packs (200 g each)
- dryers, bagels - 2 packages (350 g each)
- breadcrumbs - 1 package (250 g)
- flour - 1 package (1 kg)
- potato starch - 1 package
- pasta - 2.5 packs (450 g each)

Peas, beans, lentils - 1 package each (400 g)
- rice - 1 package (800 g)
- buckwheat – 1 packet (800 g)
- oatmeal(flakes) - 1 packet (500 g)
- millet, corn, pearl barley, barley, semolina - 1 package each (350 g)
- muesli, cereal flakes and breakfast cereals - 2 packages (300 g each)
- Soy protein (isolate, textured) and products made from it - 5 packages (250 g each)

How to fast correctly? Caring for the health of the spirit should not go to extremes that harm the health of the body, doctors are sure. If we ignore the religious component of fasting, then we, in fact, have something in between a low-protein diet, a raw food diet and pescatarianism - a type vegetarianism permitting the consumption of fish.

Who is allowed such a diet, even temporary? How not to turn nutrition during Lent into an unbalanced diet and make it harmonious from the point of view of those arriving nutrients, vitamins and microelements? Let's listen to the recommendations of doctors.

How is this post useful?

Temporary absence of animal proteins in the diet or their replacement with plant “analogs” brings the speed back to normal. metabolic processes in the body, facilitates cleansing the body of toxins - metabolic waste. This helps to improve well-being and tone, and prolong life.

A lean “diet” is especially useful for chronic cholecystitis or pancreatitis - only, of course, if you have these diseases, it is better to coordinate your decision to fast with your doctor.

Who should not fast?

Serious restrictions in the usual diet are not recommended:

• pregnant and lactating women;
• children;
• patients with various chronic diseases (peptic ulcer stomach and duodenum, diabetes mellitus, chronic gastritis);
• elderly people;
• people with poor health (for example, postoperative period or after a severe infectious disease).

Lenten menu: what is prohibited?

During Lent, meat, poultry, eggs, dairy products, baked goods made from white flour, coffee, and alcohol are blacklisted. Vegetable oil is allowed with restrictions, lean fish, fish roe and seafood.

Excluding animal products from the diet can cause a lack of iron, zinc, calcium, B vitamins, vitamin D, and amino acids. This, in turn, is dangerous for the development of vitamin deficiency, anemia, decreased immunity, deterioration of hair and nails, general weakness and even depression. How to minimize possible negative consequences diet changes during Lent?

Rules for healthy fasting

Fractional meals
Strict church rules of fasting require one or two meals a day. However, it will be much more comfortable for the body to switch to a new diet if you maintain your usual four or five daily meals.

Beware, raw food diet!
You can't just eat raw foods, so as not to cause digestive problems, although fasting imposes restrictions on cooked food. Vegetables can not only be boiled, but also baked, steamed, stewed, salted, fermented, adding variety to your diet.

How to replace animal proteins?
Proteins are also found in foods plant origin: soy and its derivatives (for example, soy meat or cottage cheese - tofu), lentils, peas, beans, peanuts, pine nuts, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, almonds, cashews. There are a lot of proteins in dried porcini mushrooms and boletus mushrooms. Rye, bran, and wholemeal cereal breads are richer in protein and B vitamins than white bread from wheat flour fine grinding.
Lenten dishes made from vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, and grains will help fill the temporary deficiency of animal protein.

How to replace animal fats?
Vegetable fats, including vital unsaturated fatty acids omega-3 and omega-6, which are not synthesized by the body and must be supplied with food, are abundant in avocados, pine and walnuts, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, various cereals (it is better to cook porridge not from flakes, but from whole grains). Besides sunflower oil worth including in Lenten menu olive, linseed, mustard, cedar and other types of vegetable oils.

How to compensate for calcium deficiency?
Your diet during fasting must include legumes, seeds, nuts, green vegetables and fresh herbs. This means that you should have on your plate every day soybeans, beans, sesame seeds, almonds, hazelnuts, basil, parsley, savoy and white cabbage, watercress and other types of lettuce. Also a source of calcium drinking water: depending on its degree of hardness it contains from 10% to 30% daily norm of this macronutrient.

How to replenish iron deficiency?
Buckwheat, yeast, and rye bread, white and red cabbage, bitter (dark) chocolate.

How to deal with loss of strength?
Fast days are often not easy for metropolitan residents. So as not to appear fatigue, drowsiness, irritability, start the day with a hearty breakfast.
Be sure to include bananas, dates, peanuts, fresh herbs, buckwheat, brown rice, and lentils in your diet. These foods are rich in iron and contain the amino acid tryptophan, without which the body cannot produce serotonin, the hormone of joy.
Complex carbohydrates, of which there are many in porridges, pasta from unrefined flour, potatoes, sprouted wheat grains - good source energy and vigor for the whole day.

Note for those with a sweet tooth
Allowed Lenten delicacies are marmalade, halva, kozinaki, dark chocolate without fillers, honey, dried fruits, baked goods without eggs, milk and butter.

If you decide to fast, consult your doctor, no
Do you have any contraindications for health reasons? If the doctor approves your
solution, consult with him also which vitamin-mineral complex
suits you and take it for the recommended period.

Lenten table recipes

Salad and appetizer recipes

• Caramelized Brussels sprouts salad with strawberries

Soup Recipes

Recipes for main dishes and side dishes

Breakfast Recipes

Lent- time of spiritual cleansing. But it is unthinkable without cleansing the body. How to eat while fasting? What recipes should you include on the menu? And how can we help the body overcome this test without harmful consequences?

Food taboos

Dietary rules during Lent require one to abstain from fast food, that is, products of animal origin. It's about about any meat, eggs, milk, as well as products based on it: butter, sour cream, cottage cheese, various cheeses. Church canons allowed to eat fish on Annunciation Holy Mother of God(April 7) and Palm Sunday (April 9). And on Lazarus Saturday (April 8) you can indulge in some caviar.

Meals by day

How to eat during Lent 2017 by day? The first and final weeks are considered the most strict. These days they eat only vegetables, fruits and bread. On Good Friday you should refuse any food - this is a kind of cleansing of the body by fasting. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, cold food without oil is allowed, on Tuesdays and Thursdays - hot food, also without oil. And on Saturdays and Sundays you can add it to your dishes.

Food for good

To follow the nutritional rules of Lent and not harm your health, try to include as much vegetable protein in your menu as possible. First of all this legumes: beans, peas, lentils, chickpeas, soybeans. A lot of protein is found in rice, oats, barley and buckwheat - prepare porridges and soups from them. Mushrooms, broccoli and garlic can boast protein reserves. Don't forget about nuts in all their variety, as well as sunflower and pumpkin seeds.

Vitamins to help

What foods can you eat during fasting to get vitamins? All available vegetables, fruits and berries. For example, white cabbage can be put in salads and soups, stewed with other vegetables and expressly pickled. Seasonal apples, citrus fruits, grapes, bananas and frozen berries can also be included in the diet, like any dried fruit. And so that the benefits of fasting for the body do not turn into harm, take a suitable vitamin and mineral complex.

Life-giving drinks

Along with food during fasting important role drinks are playing. Give preference to black and green tea, fruit and berry juices, and homemade lemonades. On dry eating days, it is recommended not to drink coffee, compotes and juices. According to the method of preparation, they are considered decoctions, which contradicts the principles of dry eating. But on weekends, drinking Cahors church wine is allowed, of course, in moderation.

Let's hit the salads

Now let's talk in more detail about what they eat on dry eating days. Mainly dry food, cooked without heat or oil. This is where fresh ones come to the rescue. Shred 400 g of white cabbage, add salt, knead with your hands and press with a plate for 15 minutes. When the cabbage gives juice, add a handful of crushed nuts, green onions and parsley to taste. Beat half of the avocado into a liquid puree and pour over the salad. This clever dressing will make it richer and tastier. Delicious salad You can also prepare it from broccoli and cauliflower inflorescences: boil 150 g of each type of inflorescence in boiling water for 3 minutes, divide, place in a salad bowl. Add your favorite spices, chunks of avocado, and the familiar avocado dressing. Pumpkin seeds will also work well in a salad. Bon appetit!

Mushrooms in gold

Delicious and simple food during Lent can be baked in the oven. Cut 4 potatoes and 200 g of champignons (or any other mushrooms of your choice) into slices, add salt and sprinkle with olive oil. Place them on foil in two layers, sprinkle green onions, cover with foil and place in the oven for 30 minutes at 200°C. For lovers of dressings, we suggest preparing an interesting sauce. Beat 2 peeled tomatoes with 2 cloves of garlic, 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper to taste. Pour the sauce over the baked goodies - a hearty lean snack is ready.

Pea joy

How to eat properly during? Get ready different soups from vegetables, cereals and beans. Soak ½ cup of peas in water overnight, then drain and boil until tender. Separately sauté for vegetable oil onion with carrots, 300 g of fresh cabbage. Place the roast with 2-3 diced potatoes into a pan with peas. At the very end, add salt, spices and a bunch of herbs. Rye toast toasted in a dry frying pan is the perfect complement to this soup.

Potato find

Recipes for hot food without oil are irreplaceable during Lent. Like, for example, lean cutlets. Pass 4 potatoes, 2 cups through a meat grinder walnuts and mix with 180 g oatmeal. Add a bunch of parsley and salt with spices to the minced meat. We make cutlets, roll them in flour and bake for 15 minutes at 180°C. You can prepare a sauce for these cutlets. Stew the onion with 3 cloves of garlic in 50 ml of water, pour in a glass tomato juice and simmer for 5 minutes. Add sauce to the cutlets as desired and enjoy an unusual lunch.

Vegetable messages

Vegetable cabbage rolls will fit organically into the Lenten menu. Take 10-12 cabbage leaves, boil them in salted water and beat off the roots. Sauté 2 carrots into strips and an onion into cubes in oil. Mix them with 200 g of boiled rice, 4 chopped cloves of garlic and fill with filling cabbage leaves. We fold them into envelopes, pour a glass of boiling water with 1 tbsp. l. tomato paste and simmer until done. You can cook cabbage rolls in vegetable broth, and tomato sauce add only at the end. Add your favorite ones to the filling, and the cabbage rolls will become even tastier.

Great Lent requires special nutrition, which should be absent from the diet. certain products. This time is intended for good deeds, prayers, searching for measures to become better, and comprehensive cleansing of the soul and body. The beginning of Lent is a chance for spiritual improvement and rest from animal food.

The right approach to fasting

We welcome Lent in 2019 with joy and special inspiration. This is a good chance to improve your spiritual life and learn how to eat right. A daily menu with recommendations will help with this; it is given below. From March 11 to April 27 are the days when Lent will take place. Some dietary restrictions should not be taken as priority task. The spiritual part of fasting is mainly aimed at working on oneself, caring for loved ones, abstaining from judgment, anger, lies, envy and evil deeds, and the food component is insignificant.

You should not restrict yourself in food, practice diets and fasts if you are unhealthy, travel a lot, are weakened, work hard, live in an unfavorable or cold geographical area, are breastfeeding a child or are pregnant. You are allowed to eat everything according to the doctors' recommendations and your needs. Children should also not be forced to lean nutrition, they can abstain from some food only if they themselves strive for this and fully understand the meaning of fasting. As an option, you can try to plan the children's fast before Easter so that the meals are without desserts, sweets and harmful products, it contained less heavy food. This is also a good way to cleanse.

It should also be said about how long Lent lasts, total quantity days in it - 48. Correct preparation consists of gradually lightening your diet, learning to analyze your inner world and learn more about Orthodox culture. Let's try to implement this ancient tradition into our lives. Despite the fact that the essence of fasting is not a diet, the question of correct and varied diet still relevant. Every person who accepts Orthodoxy as their worldview and way of life and undergoes the rite of baptism consciously must understand the topic of fasting. One of best calendars nutrition is presented in this article specifically for your convenience.

Monastic Lenten menu for every day

What foods can you eat during Lent according to the regulations of most Orthodox monasteries:

• different types of vegetables (including pickled and salted vegetables, sauerkraut);
• seasonal fruits;
• mushrooms;
• the whole range of dried fruits;
• cereal porridges cooked in water;
• different varieties of nuts;
• compote based on dried fruits;
• natural kvass;
• homemade jelly.

What not to eat during Lent:

• meat products;
• dairy products;
• eggs;
• bakery;
• all alcoholic drinks;
• candies;
• fish;
• mayonnaise;
• white bread.

Food during fasting by day of the week:

• Monday is a day of dry eating (vegetable and fruit dishes, water, bread, compote);
• Tuesday - hot dishes without oils (stewed vegetable dishes, porridge with water, first courses, for example, rassolnik soup);
• Wednesday - day of dry eating (vegetable and fruit dishes, water, bread, compote);
• Thursday - hot dishes without oils (stewed vegetable dishes, porridge with water, first courses, for example, rassolnik soup);
• Friday - dry eating (vegetable and fruit dishes, water, bread, compote);
• Saturday - dishes seasoned with oil ( vegetable salads, stewed vegetable dishes, first courses);
• Sunday - foods with oils (stewed vegetable dishes, vegetable salads and soups).

There are special days during Lent:

• Clean Monday (in the first week) - fasting;
• 2, 3, 4, 5 (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday) days of fasting - eating bread and water;
• The middle cross environment is the consumption of natural wines;
• Day 40 of the Holy Martyrs - food with vegetable oil and wine;
• Palm Sunday holiday - fish dishes, caviar, wine, vegetable oil.

Meals on Holy Week(final week):

• Maundy Monday, Maundy Tuesday, Maundy Wednesday - a ban on processed foods, raw food days;
• Maundy Thursday - dishes with vegetable oil, wine;
• Good Friday - fasting;
• Holy Saturday - fasting or minimal nutrition with olives, bread, dried fruits;
• Easter holiday - on this day all Lenten restrictions are lifted, you can eat any food.

It should be noted that monastics do not eat meat even outside of fasting, but nevertheless, monasteries provide good food and their diet is rich in nutrients.

Now you have an idea of ​​what foods you can eat during fasting and when you should fast. In fact, there is nothing complicated in planning a diet; for daily nutrition control, you can buy a special calendar, which contains many monastic recipes. We urge you to take the food of Lent seriously and be sure to combine it with spiritual improvement, otherwise there is no need to fast.

List of nutritious Lenten foods for the laity

Here best products nutrition that fits into the framework of Lent and supplies the body with many valuable substances to maintain health, vigor and good mood:

• different types of table vinegars;
• edible seaweed;
• lean bread (lavash or other bread products with a neutral composition);
• tomato paste and ketchup;
• lean mayonnaise;
• adjika and many other sauces;
• all types of nuts;
• all types of seeds;
• pasta and flour products without unnecessary ingredients;
• dried fruits;
• all types of cereals ( good option- porridge with dried fruits);
• mushrooms;
• legumes (for example, lentils, peas, beans);
• fish and caviar (as well as shrimp, squid, all this can be certain days according to the calendar);
• seasonal and exotic fruits(the more variety of fruits, the better);
• seasonal vegetables (you can cook a lot of vegetables from healthy dishes, eat them pickled, salted, for example, cabbage, beets, carrots, celery);
• homemade sweets (fruit and berry preserves, jam);
• lean chocolate;
• milk (coconut, soy and other types);
• drinks (decoctions and infusions of herbs, teas, coffee, jelly, compote, juices, fruit drinks);
• soy yogurt and cheese;
• lean marshmallows;
• marmalade;
• berries;
• Turkish Delight;
• halva and kozinaki;
• sugar and candy;
• Korean dishes (salads).

When does the Great One begin? Orthodox fast, there is no need to suddenly change your diet and fast for a long time. As you already understand, by abstaining from all meat and dairy foods during Lent, lay people do not need to torture themselves and greatly limit themselves. On the contrary, variety and lightness should reign in the home kitchen of Lent. Strict restrictions are intended for highly spiritual persons carrying out a feat.

How to keep an Orthodox fast?

Fasting in the monastery and in the world

We figured out what you can eat during Lent and what to abstain from, and how to properly distribute your diet over the days. You understand that monastic food is significantly different from secular food, since the monastery has a special charter and the most serious restrictions on food. We are ordinary people, strict fast not for us, we can comply fast days at your own discretion, because everyone’s capabilities are different. Thus, by eating right, you will be able to maintain and increase your health.

Leaving the post

It is important not only to start Lent correctly, but also to complete it with dignity. Everyone asks when they can eat after fasting. Typically, all Orthodox Christians begin to eat normally at the onset of Easter. Ideally, after the Liturgy there is a rich meal. It is important not to overeat, but to switch to usual diet gradually. Having completed your fast, you need to go to Easter service. Before communion, Orthodox Christians experience special religious feelings, and after this sacrament they are overcome with enormous, indescribable joy, compensating for all the efforts made earlier.

You will be interested Lenten recipes, we will describe them below.

Recipes for meatless dishes without animal ingredients

Lenten first course - tomato soup

Components:

• water - liter;
• chopped tomatoes - 450 grams and tomato paste - 4 tablespoons;
• canned white beans - 420 grams;
• onions - 1-2 pieces;
• olive oil- 2 large spoons;
• chili pepper - a quarter of a small spoon;
• garlic - 2 cloves;
• wine vinegar - 1-2 large spoons;
• Provençal herbs - 2 small spoons;
• sugar - 1-2 large spoons, as much pepper and salt as you like;
• for croutons - ciabatta or baguette, salt, garlic - 3 cloves, olive oil - 3 large spoons.

In the oil heated at the bottom of the pan, saute the onion for about 5 minutes, add pepper, garlic, fry for a couple of minutes, add tomato paste, fry for another minute. Next, add herbs and tomatoes, then pour in water and wait until it boils. Add the beans, draining the water from them, after cooking for a quarter of an hour, add black pepper, salt, sugar, vinegar. Cook covered for 10 minutes. Cook croutons with garlic in the oven - fry the bread in butter with garlic.

Lenten second course - stewed cabbage and mushrooms

Components:

• cabbage - up to 1 kg;
• champignons - 400 grams;
• vegetable oil - about 3 large spoons;
• salt, pepper, lemon juice - 2 small spoons.

Chop the cabbage and mushrooms as desired and heat the oil in a frying pan. First, the mushrooms are fried, then cabbage is added to them. After pouring a small amount of water, simmer the dish under the lid until the food softens. If necessary, add water. Cooking time ripe white cabbage- about an hour, if it is Chinese or young cabbage - 20 minutes is enough. Ready dish season with pepper, salt, lemon juice, leave on the fire without a lid for 3 minutes to evaporate the moisture.

Second courses for fasting can be quickly and tasty prepared on those days when it is necessary, and with the correct selection of products, the impression of an incomplete diet will not be created.

Lenten salad

Components:

• carrots - 2 pieces;
• tomatoes - 2 pieces;
• cucumber - 1 piece;
• apple - 1 piece;
• onion - 1 piece;
• lemon - half;
• vegetable oil - a large spoon;
• herbs, salt, sugar.

Grate the carrots with a Korean or simple grater. We cut onions, tomatoes, cucumber. Chop the greens, cut the apple, removing the skin. Butter, salt and sugar, squeezed lemon juice - make a dressing from these products, mix everything.

Lenten cookies

Components:

• water - 200 ml;
• flour - up to 400 grams;
• baking powder - half a small spoon;
• salt, sugar, nuts, dried basil or other herbs;
• vegetable oil - 70 ml.

Pour oil into water. Mix flour, salt, baking powder, gradually combine the liquid with the dry component. Keep the resulting dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. From a layer of dough with a thickness of 2 to 4 mm, make any shape - round, diamond-shaped, square, triangular. To make the cookies sweet, dip them in sugar with chopped dried fruits and nuts. For salted cookies, use basil and salt. Bake the cookies, pierced with a fork, in the oven for 15 to 25 minutes at 200 degrees.

Oatmeal cutlets

Components:

• oatmeal - a glass;
• onion - 1 piece;
• potatoes - 1 piece;
• carrot - 1 piece;
• spices, garlic and herbs.

Lenten cutlets are easy to prepare. Leave the flakes in for about 20 minutes hot water. Grate onions, potatoes, carrots, crush garlic with a garlic press, chop greens. Mix vegetables, garlic gruel and herbs with oatmeal, add salt and pepper (you can add any spices). Using a spoon, fry the cutlets on both sides. We also recommend including mushrooms in this recipe and eggs on non-fasting days.

Lenten nutrition is unthinkable without potato dishes and pureed soups. For lunch you can cook hearty cabbage soup, for dinner you can serve pancakes, pilaf, pancakes without animal ingredients. To make your dishes more interesting, you can make lean mayonnaise or various sauces. For a feeling of celebration on ordinary days best solution- Lenten cake or Lenten pizza.

So, we talked about all the generally accepted features of the diet and preparation Lenten dishes. Let there always be light, healthy, tasty lean food on your tables. Don’t forget to attend church services, come to church not only with your troubles and problems, but at any time. free time. It is not difficult for Christians to observe Lent, the main thing is to properly tune in to it.