2021 Great Lent Meal Plan Helpful Hints

 We have based this Lenten meal plan on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America calendar which not only indicates fast days but also daily Scriptural readings and Saints days. This is a wonderful resource that you can use all year long, and you can consult the calendar by clicking here.

 The following legend is found on each of the fasting days: B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner, D&S = Dessert and Snack. Each day during the fast we suggest 3 meals and snack and dessert ideas. Each date is also identified using either Blue, Purple or Red numbers, and the significance of this colour coding is found on the top right hand corner of each calendar page.

 Regarding oil: The meal plan includes recipes which use either olive oil or vegetable oil. If you are refraining from olive oil on oil-free days (those dates identified in Red) then substitute the olive oil in the recipe for vegetable oil or another type of oil. If you are abstaining from all oils on Strict Fast days, in certain recipes you can replace the oil with water (for example, when sautéing the vegetables for fakes, do so in water instead of oil). In some recipes however this substitution does not work (example, in our halva recipes) and therefore you may need to make adjustments to the meal plan schedule.

 We have also considered that many of us work out of the house during the day and therefore we have suggested lunches that can easily be packed up and either reheated, or served cold or at room temperature.

 If you click on the menu items which are in blue and underlined, you will be taken directly to the recipe post on our website.

 If you see a menu item with an asterix (*) next to it, this means that the recipe is included in the group of recipes found in the second downloadable document named “Additional Lenten Recipes”. It this document you will even find recipes not mentioned in the actual Great Lent Meal Plan. This is to give you even more options.

 The meal plan can be printed out for easy reference, but is ideally used on the computer where you can directly link to the recipes suggested.

For more Lenten Recipes, you can refer to our Recipe List by clicking here. Scroll right to the bottom to find all of our Nistisima (Lenten) recipes.

Kali Sarakosti, Xoxo Helen & Billie

 We will continue to add to our Nistisima recipes during the period of the Nativity Fast; you can visit our website for all of our recipes: www.miakouppa.com

Dates in Blue: Fish, oil and wine is allowed; no meat, dairy and eggs Dates in Red: Strict fast; no meat, dairy, eggs, fish or wine March 2021 Dates in Purple: Wine and oil allowed; no meat, fish, dairy or eggs

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

15 Kathara Deftera 16 17 18 19 20 (first Monday of Lent) B: Toast + Peanut Butter B: Oatmeal with non-dairy B: Fresh fruit, rice cake + B: Toast + jam + Fruit B: Cereal with dairy- B: Toast + peanut and jam milk almond butter smoothie * free milk butter and jam L: Lagana, Taramosalata, L: Mason jar salad with qui- L: Green salad with L: Mason jar salad 2 * L: Fakes Smoothie * Olives, Tomatoes noa and chickpeas tahini dressing and mixed D: Potatoes yahni + pita D: Vegan wrap with L: Calamari with rice D: Fava , Rapini + Lagana D: Briam nuts bread sweet potato and black D: Yemista Fried calamari D&S: Vegan rizogalo, D: Red lentil soup + part D&S: Olives and pita beans * D&S: Vegan date cake D&S: Halva Veggies and hummus whole wheat bread with Smoothie with D&S: Dates stuffed Dates stuffed with almond honey orange juice and berries with almond butter butter D&S: Toast with jam coconut, Fresh fruit

21 22 23 24 25 Annunciation of 26 27 the Theotokos B: Vegan date cake, B: Cereal with dairy-free B: Toast, Peanut Butter + jam B: Cereal with dairy-free B: Smoothie * + toast B: Oatmeal with dairy B: Toast, Almond but- Fruit smoothie * milk L: Briam milk with peanut butter free milk ter + jam L: Yemista L: Fasolatha with tomato D: Fried calamari, French L: Rice with fide + Chick- L: Black-eyed pea salad L: Pasta with lentil and L: Vegan spanakopita D: Spanakoquinoa and D: Pasta with vegetables fries and Rapini pea fritters D: Cod and skorkalia mushroom sauce * D: Mussels with red Grilled octopus D&S: Vegan date cake D&S: Veggies + fava D: Spinach and potato D&S: Vegan banana D: Spinach and rice sauce D&S: Chocolate halva Chocolate halva stew bread soup D&S: Loukoumades D&S: Popcorn D&S: Fruit and nuts 28 29 30 31

B: Fruit smoothie* + B: Cereal with dairy-free B: Oatmeal with non-dairy B: Cinnamon raisin bread Rice cakes and almond milk milk + smoothie butter L: Red lentil and bulgur L: Black-eyed pea salad L: Green salad with tahini L: Roasted cauliflower wraps + Cucumber salad D: Orzo with shrimp dressing D: Gigantes plaki D: Stewed green peas D&S: Vegan rizogalo + choco- D: Fakes + Pita bread D&S: Tiganites D&S: Vegan banana bread late and strawberry cookies D&S: Popcorn Dates in Blue: Fish, oil and wine is allowed; no meat, dairy and eggs April 2021 Dates in Red: Strict fast; no meat, dairy, eggs, fish, oil or wine Dates in Purple: Wine and oil allowed; no meat, fish, dairy or eggs

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 3

B: Toast + jam + Fruit B: Cereal with dairy- B: Cinnamon raisin smoothie * free milk bread + Smoothie * L: Mason jar salad 2* L: Beans and rice L: Pasta with marinara D: Black eyed pea soup D: Pasta with creamy sauce with kale artichoke sauce * D: Yemista D&S: Fresh fruit, olives D&S: Tiganites; Rice D&S: Vegan date cake and pita bread cakes + tahini, honey and pumpkin seeds *

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 B: Fresh fruit, rice B: Vegan date cake, B: Cereal with dairy-free B: Toast, Peanut Butter + jam B: Cereal with dairy-free B: Rice cakes + tahini, cake, almond butter B: Toast, Almond but- Fruit smoothie * milk L: Mung bean soup milk honey and pumpkin L: Three bean salad ter + jam L: Yemista L: Fasolatha with tomato D: Chili lime shrimp lettuce L: Chickpea soup + kou- seeds * + Smoothie * with tahini dressing * L: Vegan spanakopita D: Vegan spanakopita + D: Fried eggplant with to- wraps loures L: Stewed green peas D: Fakes D: Vegan Stuffed egg- Rice with vegetables mato sauce D&S: Veggies + fava D: Potatoes yahni D: Chickpea fritters + D&S: Fruit smoothie * plant D&S: Fresh fruit + Nuts D&S: Vegan oatmeal cups Vegan oatmeal cups D&S: Vegan rizogalo Rice with vegetables Citrus platter with D&S: Chocolate and D&S: Fruit smoothie * pomegranate strawberry cookies

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 B: Cereal with dairy-free B: Toast with jam B: Toast, Peanut Butter B: Fruit smoothie* + B: Tiganites B: Fruit smoothie + Rice milk B: Fresh fruit, rice cake, al- L: Pasta with lentil and + jam Toast with jam L: Spinach and lentil cakes and almond butter L: Peanut butter and jelly mond butter mushrooms * L: Herbed orzo with L: Fakes curry * L: Potato salad sandwich; fresh fruit L: Vegetarian chili * D: Black eyed pea soup chickpeas D: Vegetable mine- D: Vegan pastitsio D: Gigantes plaki D: Vegetarian chili * D: Mung bean soup with kale (saute vegetables D: Fried calamari + strone * D&S: Fresh fruit D&S: Loukoumades D&S: Dates stuffed with D&S: Veggies + hummus, in water) Rapini + French fries D&S: Nuts, veggies Apple and rasp- almond butter and coconut Mixed nuts D&S: Fruit smoothie * D&S: Fresh fruit Loukoumades berry halva Dates in Blue: Fish, oil and wine is allowed; no meat, dairy and eggs Dates in Red: Strict fast; no meat, dairy, eggs, fish or wine April 2021 Dates in Purple: Wine and oil allowed; no meat, fish, dairy or eggs

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

18 19 20 21 22 23 24 B: Toast with almond B: Oatmeal with non-dairy B: Vegan banana bread butter and banana B: Smoothie * + toast B: Oatmeal with non- B: Oatmeal + fruit B: Bagels with “smoked salm- milk L: Vegetable mine- L: Fakes (veggies sau- with peanut butter dairy milk L: Red lentil soup on” L: Mixed green salad with strone * téed in vegetable oil or L: Chickpea wraps + L: Roasted cauliflower D: Fried eggplant with L: Youvetsi with chickpeas tahini dressing D: Apple and almond water) broccoli D: Vegan wrap with tomato sauce + easy D: Eggplant stew D: Spanakoquinoa salad D: Salad with tahini D: Green beans with sweet potato and black greek olive and oregano D&S: Fresh fruit + mixed nuts D&S: Rice cakes + almond D&S: Vegan oatmeal dressing and chickpea potatoes beans * bread Vegan banana bread butter cups; Smoothie * wraps D&S: Vegan oatmeal D&S: Dates stuffed with D&S: Fresh fruit D&S: Fresh fruit + cups almond butter and mixed nuts coconut

25 Palm Sunday 26 27 28 29 30 1st of MAY B: Fresh fruit, rice cake + B: Oatmeal with dairy B: Cereal with non- B: Cereal with dairy- B: Smoothie * + toast Holy Saturday B: Tiganites almond butter free milk dairy milk free milk with peanut butter L: Spanakorizo L: Three bean salad with L: Peanut butter and L: Mung bean soup L: Peanut butter and L: Vegetarian chili * D: Cod with eggplant and potato tahini dressing * jelly sandwich; veggies D: Vegan wrap with jelly sandwich; fresh D: Split pea soup with D&S: Fresh fruit + mixed nuts D: Fakes D: Vegetable mine- sweet potato and black fruit rice Halva with apple and D&S: Toast with jam strone * beans * D: Vegetarian chili * D&S: Dates stuffed with raspberry Mixed nuts D&S: Fruit and nuts D&S: Dates stuffed with D&S: Dates stuffed almond butter and almond butter + coco- with almond butter and coconut nut coconut