But no one knows exactly where they have gone: the Victoria & Albert Museum

But no one knows exactly where they have gone: the Victoria & Albert Museum holds Abuna's crown and chalice, and there are some 600 manuscripts scattered around Britain, including those held in the British Museum and the Royal Library at Windsor Castle; there may be several thousand more in France, Germany, Italy and the US. Last month, writer Martin Bailey revealed that he had discovered a lost painting from Magdala, the Kwer'ata Re'esu, The Striking of the Head, wrapped in newspaper in a Portuguese bank vault. The 16th-century picture of Christ, thought to have been painted by a Flemish or Portuguese artist, is presumed to have been taken by Portuguese emissaries or Jesuits to Ethiopia, where it came to be regarded as sacred and was carried into battle as a talisman. But bits of cauli missed by their blanket of bechamel and cheese and touched by the grill are surprisingly delicious. But can vegetables truly be roasted - apart from spuds and parsnips? Take carrots. Roasted, they simply blacken at the edges, but remain limp, sort of sweet and orange and not really ever cooked enough for me without some water somewhere. I feel much the same about parsnips, too, to be honest, but they at least possess a more interesting taste once the sugars carbonise.

Roasted carrots simply taste like burnt carrots and there's an end to it; better utilised in a stock that requires a little colour. If I liked pumpkin more than I do (pumpkin pie remaining the very worst of American cooking), I might entertain the idea of a wedge of singed butternut squash. I prefer it, however (and then only just), in soft wet lumps in risotto, or mashed and enclosed within ravioli, further sweetened by the bizarre inclusion of crushed amaretti. Fond as I am of a nicely crusted wedge of bubble and squeak, a burnished sprout when caught by too severe a heat is not a pleasant thing. That may just be a combination of not having had any tea, coffee or alcohol for days, along with the algae body wrap (like being the rice inside a sushi roll). But, beneath this, I think there is something to be said for fasting, although I wouldn't choose to undertake it unless it was under the guidance of a clinic, and I don't see the point unless it is part of a larger holistic plan.

A few days down at a health farm that makes fasting - either absolute or partial - a part of its regime is a fine recommendation. Not least because food tastes extraordinary afterwardsShrubland Hall Health Clinic (01473 830404); Grayshott Hall (01428 604331); Dr Asmita Jani (01273 563340). One sees a lot of "roasted" vegetables these days (I even saw a roasted strawberry offered on one jolly menu), the most chic being the wood-roasted variety. Suddenly, at mid-morning, my energy started to filter back and my head cleared.

There had been periods over the weekend when I couldn't concentrate sufficiently to read a newspaper; now it was crystal clear.At the moment, I'm still easing myself out of it and have no great desire to rush back into the maelstrom of coffee, alcohol and rich food And I do have far more energy than when I set out. In fact, this morning, I would go so far as to say I felt fantastic. Fasting was a lousy idea and I was beginning to wonder why anyone ever did it. By this stage, though, I was at Grayshott, where there was the distraction of 70 different treatments to choose from, from aromatherapy to Swedish massage.Tuesday morning, I again woke up feeling grim, went for a walk on the common and came back feeling even worse. Dr Asmita Jani, an Ayurvedic physician, says: "Ayurveda recommends that each individual should observe a fast according to their natural constitutional body type, the imbalance of biological energies, strength, age, season and state of health."I couldn't go any further without taking the plunge myself. So, I began fasting over the weekend, having indulged myself as fully as possible on the Friday night in anticipation. I awoke feeling suitably dreadful on Saturday morning and failed to rally for the rest of the weekend.