Eating like Daniel

Good afternoon fellow foodies, and non-foodies!

Today I had a request from Brother Erron Johnson for some "Daniel Fast recipes".
Allow me to explain:

My church is doing a 21-day fast which mirrors the fast which Daniel took in the Bible (in the book of Daniel Chapters 1 and 10). Basically, he eats only fruits, vegetables, and drinks only water. He does not use any sweeteners (honey or otherwise) or yeast (only unleavened bread), and consumes no alcohol or caffeine. His diet is basically a vegan diet that excludes any animal products, as well as what I mentioned before. He does this because he is in deep mourning and prayer because of instructions from God and visions he is exposed to (you can read your Bible if you want more information).

Now, to be honest, I am not partaking in this fast. Having a history with eating disorders in my too near past, I do not want to trigger any temptation to go back to old habits or fall into a relapse by limiting what I eat. I find that being even a little neurotic about my food gets me into trouble, which is why you'll never catch me posting anything about fat content or calorie counts on any of the meals I make. My goal is to be healthy, not to slip back into unhealthy behaviors. I'll be going on a different kind of fast for the next month, which you can read about on my other blog if you like.

I received a very clear message from the Lord to not restrict my own diet, but to reach out to help others who are fasting this month. I really think that the Sprit is calling me to use my cooking and writing skills to assist my church in a technologically creative way! (Why yes, the Holy Ghost is totally up to speed with social networking and internet; I never question that!)

That being said, I still would like to take on the challenge of posting some Daniel Fast recipes for the rest of my fasting Brothers and Sisters at Christ Temple Cathedral Church! It will be a fun practice for me at expanding my recipes and use of natural non-processed ingredients, and hopefully will be helpful to those who are taking this opportunity to fast and pray.

I'll begin my posting later this evening (after I try out a new recipe for dinner!) or tomorrow. For now, visit the Daniel Fast Website for any information or to browse their recipes.

See you soon!