It’s the last weekday before Cheesefare Sunday and it’s a snow day, so I’m in a big hurry. I already got the breadmaker out and it’s working up a fine, fresh loaf of bread to have with a lot of butter. And I’ve got the pot of tea here with milk in it, and I’ve had my bagel with cream cheese. But I just don’t know how I’m going to fit in the grilled cheese and the baked potato with sour cream and the fettucini alfredo and the ice cream.

Oh well. Just part of the price you pay. And I might as well start that transition now, changing my thinking from all those meat and dairy goodies we’ll have to do without to how to meet nutritional needs within the strictures of the fast. And how do you do that without a lot of Big Cooking, Big Planning … all that?

Not that there’s anything wrong with that if that’s how you usually operate, but I don’t tend to go to that much trouble over what to eat. To orient that much extra attention on my next meal during Lent seems a bit ironic, and judging from the discussion we had at choir practice, others are thinking the same thing.

So here are my thoughts on the food you can do without a lot of fuss and muss. They won’t give you enough variety to take you the whole distance, but they’ll get you by in a pinch.

I’d like to hear from others what works as “fasting fast food” for them. People get pretty resourceful sometimes, and sharing the tips can be very educational.

Emergency kit — things to keep in the car or in your purse

• Packages of peanut butter crackers
• Granola bars — I know the Nature Valley cinnamon one is totally Lenten. I’ll bet there are others

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Things you can grab at a mini-mart

• Bean burrito (check the label). Of course, this only helps if they have a microwave.
• Fruit juice
• Fruit and coffee (my own weird combo, but the bigger mini-marts are starting to have either apples or bananas in them, and if I have that and a cup of coffee, I can go a surprisingly long time without getting hungry)
• Bags of nuts — peanuts, cashews, even the good stuff like sunflower seeds
• Chopped veggies — you have to skip the ranch dressing dip, of course. If you’re in trouble, see if the mart has a little jar of peanut butter. Peanut butter on celery is pretty good.

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True fast-food

This one’s tricky. If you’re being absolutely strict, then there probably isn’t anything you can have at any fast food place. I admit that I don’t get quite that exact — wondering if ingredients have traces of whey, that sort of thing — but still, the only fast-food I’ve found that works is a plain bean burrito and side of rice (hold the cheese) at Taco Bell or the spaghetti marinara with shrimp at Fazoli’s.

But maybe others have suggestions for this?

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Quick meals around the house

• Peanut butter and jelly sandwich — might as well get the obvious choice out of the way
• Vegetarian bean burrito — pick up Amy’s or some other vegan brand, or make your own
• Vegetarian nachos — veggie refried beans over chips, add tomatoes, lettuce, salsa and/or guacamole and heat in a microwave
• Soy milk and cereal
• Vegetarian burgers — 1 minute in the microwave and you’ve got a burger — I love this stuff! Of the Morningstar brand, only the Spicy Black Bean kind is truly Lent-compliant. Not sure for Boca Burgers.
• Hummus and pita — if you make it yourself, you can substitute vegetable oil for olive oil
• Frozen entree? — I think there may be some Lean Cuisine pastas that are Lent-compliant.
• Vegetarian baked beans and toast
• Canned soup — read the labels, but you can usually find split pea, tomato, minestrone, lentil and vegetable soup that are fast-friendly. Having it with a high-grain, high-fiber bread with make it satisfy your hunger longer.

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Snacks

• Fruit — fresh, canned or dried
• Carrots, celery or other snackable vegetables
• Nuts
• Trail mix — it’s usually not that hard to throw your own together
• Animal crackers, Soy Dream non-dairy ice cream sandwiches — unless you’re fasting from all sweets

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Leftovers that are good to have around

• Rice — in a pinch, heating up a little rice and vegetables together can tide you over. For dinner, I can usually make up shrimp fried rice in 10 minutes if I’ve got leftover rice.
• Pasta — same idea. You can add sauce and heat up in a minute. Although it’s a good idea to try to find some protein to add in, like beans, soy crumbles or shrimp.
• Beans and rice — Zataran’s has one or you can make your own
• Homemade soup — much more satisfying than the canned stuff and you can control the ingredients. Orthodixie has a couple recipes HERE and I’ve got a concoction I’ll post soon.
• Sandwich makings — most Lenten sandwiches take a little more thought, but if you have all the makings, you can put them together quickly. My favorite Lenten sandwich HERE, Fr. Joseph’s recipes HERE.
• Jello — As Fr. Joseph mentions, Jello used to have a trace of meat protein in it, but it doesn’t anymore. If you have it with the non-dairy Kool Whip stuff, you’ll have an almost entirely plastic meal. But yummy.

Bon appetit and happy fasting(?)