Fasting for Russian Orthodox Christians: Thai-Inspired Peanut Butter Soup

This was a hit at trapeza the last time I took it there!

Thai-inspired peanut soup

Vegetable stock
Peanut butter (I prefer the crunchy kind because the little bits of peanuts add texture)
Coconut milk
Thai spice mix
Spinach, kale, carrots, celery or other vegetables, chopped, grated, or julienned

Put vegetable stock in pot. Add peanut butter and heat. It will look curdled at first but stir and keep stirring until smooth. Add spices and coconut milk to taste. Add chopped vegetables a few minutes before serving if you like them tender/crisp; otherwise add them earlier to cook and add any greens at the last few minutes.

I finished it off with fresh cilantro at the end.

Fasting for Russian Orthodox Christians: Shellfish

Even on no-oil days, Russian Orthodox Christians may eat shellfish. But how to prepare it without oil?

Whether you choose a pot on the stove or something more exotic, shrimp are easy to prepare without oil. For an Asian taste, you can simmer them in coconut milk and curry powder; use your vegetable stock and make them into soup; or add them to rice or rice and lentils. Stir in some cooked vegetables and you have a meal in a few minutes.

If you have shell-on shrimp, don't throw away those shells--yet. First transform them into a court-bouillon by boiling the shells in water until the shells release their flavor, about 10 minutes. Let the broth cool and strain into a container. (Okay, now you can throw away the shells.) Refrigerate, freeze, or use the broth as you would vegetable stock, including saving the broth for when you cook shrimp next.

Fasting for Russian Orthodox Christians: Vegetable Stock

Making your own vegetable stock is easy and fairly foolproof, but what you can do with it during a fasting period?

Make soup: add mushrooms, kale, potatoes, carrots, parsnips, or whatever you have handy. If you like you can thicken this with a little alternative milk (cashew milk works well).

Use as a flavoring agent for rice, lentils, beans, or whatever grains you enjoy such as quinoa, barley, buckwheat. In my house a pot of rice and lentils cooked with vegetable stock instead of water, mixed with a few salad greens to wilt at the end, and perhaps a leftover potato, is a favorite.

You can also use this as a broth to cook shellfish in (more on that next time).

So how do you make vegetable stock? You can use a pot on the stove, a slow cooker, or a pressure cooker.

Add trimmings from vegetables: root vegetable tops, trimmings from asparagus, celery leaves, or whatever else is left over after prepping vegetables. In a pot on the stove or slow cooker, cook until vegetables are mushy. In a pressure cooker, that's about twelve minutes on high. Remove from heat and let cool until you can sip it without burning yourself.

In my house we freeze this as is in freezer bags, so that we can spice it up according to the dish we're making with this. Think beyond salt and pepper; experiment with oriental spices, central American spices, until you find a combination that works for you. You'll find your dinners a lot more interesting!

Fasting for Russian Orthodox Christians: Potatoes

Potatoes without oil, sour cream, cheese, or butter? Yes, they can be delicious!

Mashed potatoes: cook potatoes in your usual way. Add alternative milk (unflavored, unsweetened cashew milk works well here), salt, garlic powder or garlic cloves, black pepper, some dry mustard, and a bit of nutmeg. Mash (with or without skins, up to you). Put under the broiler for a few minutes.

Roasted potatoes: Cut potatoes into small chunks; brush each chunk with mustard thinned down with water. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and fresh or dried rosemary. Bake until they turn brown, correct seasoning and serve. You can use either ballpark (yellow) mustard or spicy brown mustard.

You can even use potatoes to fill vegan pierogi dough or ravioli dough!