Daniel Fast Day 7: Sweet Potato Pancakes, Red Beans & Rice, & Avoiding Cupcakes

Today’s Devotional: “Complete & Perfect Peace -- Isa.26:3 ‘Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.’  We have arrived at the 7th day & are completing our first week of our fast. You are 1/3 of the way there & in case you haven’t realized it yet, the earth is moving & shaking because of your faithfulness to fast & pray. Strongholds are falling to the side & real Kingdom Living is being released in you & the ones you are praying for. 2014 is having a course dug out as a trench that will allow the water of the word of God to freely flow into the purpose of the Lord for your life, & the most powerful thing about this is that He is able to keep you in Perfect Peace throughout the whole process. Seven is the number of Completion & Perfection & this is the day you are living in.”

Hooray—we’ve made it through the first week!  Not without some trials & tribulations, but so far it has been a wonderful experience.  I’ve spent more time doing devotions with my husband, and learning to pray in a less superficial and more eternal way. 

Breakfast: Sweet Potato Pancakes!  I took my pumpkin pancake recipe and tweaked it a bit, leaving out the leaveners, replacing the egg with applesauce, and adding a bit more cinnamon & pie spice to help compensate for not putting in the brown sugar. I also toasted the pecans to help boost their flavor.  Since we can’t have syrup, I spread about a teaspoon of Polaner AllFruit seedless blackberry jam between the two cakes to help give a little boost of sweetness.

Calories: 204, Protein: 5g, Carbs: 34g (for two pancakes) 
NOTE: if you wanted to start your day with a little more protein, you could mix some some protein powder into the batter as well.
Lunch: Spinach salad with…well, a little bit of everything, plus some homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

And in the afternoon, I went to a bridal shower for my friend Amy!  Luckily, the snacks were very Fast-friendly:  fresh fruit, veggie tray, Triscuits (with cream cheese & pepper jelly; unfortunately I didn’t get to have any of that but it looked delicious as always!)… Alas, I couldn’t have any of the delicious looking punch (vanilla ice cream + iced mocha coffee, it looked SOOOOO good), or any of Amy’s cupcakes!  Because yes, it’s THAT friend Amy!  *sigh*  Sooooooo hard to not nom!!!

So… I brought a couple home & froze them for the Hubs & I to enjoy after the Fast! XD

DINNER: Isn’t this a Cajun blog?  Well of COURSE it is!  And what better dish to make while on a Daniel Fast than some Red Beans & Rice! I started this in the Crockpot in the morning so that it would be ready for dinner.

INGREDIENTS:

• 15 oz kidney beans
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 2 cups vegetable stock (sugar free)
• 1 cup water
• 1 Tbsp cajun seasoning
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1 can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 cup portobella mushrooms, chopped (this helps make up for the lack of meat)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp cayenne (if you like a kick)
• 1 cup instant brown rice, dry

DIRECTIONS:
Add all ingredients except the rice to the Crockpot & set to High for 4 hours or Low for 8. 

With 1/2 hour left, add the rice.  It will help to absorb the remaining liquid.  Season to taste & garnish with green onions.

NutriFacts (Makes 6 servings):
Calories: 200
Fat: 1.1 g
Cholesterol: 0
Sodium: 1123mg
Potassium: 421 mg
Carbs: 41 g
Fiber: 9 g
Sugars: 6g
Protein: 6.8 g