Reginette "little queen" Pasta for Our Lady's Queenship

Several past Catholic Cuisine posts have shared ideas for pasta meals based on the symbolism of the pasta shape. There are hundreds of kinds of Italian pastas, and each one has its own special name and each pasta name actually means something.

Mafaldine or malfada, also known as reginette or reginelle (Italian for "little queens") is a type of ribbon-shaped pasta. Mafaldine were named in honor of Princess Mafalda of Savoy which is why they are also called "little queens." The pasta is flat and wide, usually about ½ inch in width, with wavy edges on both sides. The delicately fluted edges remind one of a crown. It is prepared similarly to other ribbon-based pasta such as linguine and fettuccine. On this feast of the Queenship of Mary (August 22) a pasta shape referencing a queen is perfect. It would also be a great pasta to serve up on any of the queen saints' feast days, such as St. Margaret of Scotland, St. Elizabeth of Hungary or St. Helena.

A variety of sauces could be served with this pasta. I chose a sun-dried tomato pesto which highlights the fresh bounty of basil from my August garden. Since August - the month of the Assumption and the one dedicated to the Immaculate Heart - is such a Marian month and is tied to herb harvest in her honor, it was fitting.

Reginette with Sun-dried Tomato Pesto

Ingredients:
10 sun-dried tomatoes
1 tbsp pine nuts
2 tbsp grated parmesan
10 basil leaves
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 oz pasta

Directions:
In a blender, place the tomatoes, pine nuts, cheese, basil leaves and oil and blend at maximum power. Cook the pasta until al dente in boiling salted water, drain and stir in the pesto.

NOTE: Reginette/Reginelle pasta is not one of the most common shapes of pasta available in grocery stores. But I did find it available from Kroger as part of their HemisFares pasta brand. It is also available online and is specialty stores.

Our Lady, Queen of Heaven, Pray for us!

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Trail (of Roses) Mix for the Little Flower's Feast

This summer I came across this cute candy mold for mini roses. I knew it would be fun for a variety of feast days.  They are cute for decorating cakes or cupcakes or just offering plain to snack on.  But The diminutive size reminded me of chocolate/baking chips and the idea of a rose themed trial mix came to mind. I had seen a Valentine themed trail mix recipe, with reds and whites added to the nuts. Based on St. Therese's shower of roses, I changed it to a "trail of roses".

The mix, which I made for St. Therese's (The Little Rose) feast day, would easily fit a variety of other feast days associated with the theme of roses. These are some saints associated with roses or have rose stories (several of which are upcoming this fall and winter):

St. Rita of Cascia (May 22)

St. Elizabeth/Isabel of Portugal (July 5)

St. Rose of Lima (August 23)

St. Therese  (October 1, traditional October 3)

Our Lady of the Rosary (October 7)

St. Elizabeth of Hungary (November 17)
St. Rose Philippine Duchesne (November 18)

St. Juan Diego (December 9)

Our Lady of Guadalupe (December 12)

Trail mix is easy to make and easy to transport, so is a great snack on the go. It is (overall) healthier and an alternative to typical baked or sweet treats for a feast day. I did not use specific measurements, but rather just eyeballed good proportions for each ingredient. Use the ingredients you like and seem fitting for the feast day. I kept it to pinks, whites and lighter colored nuts. The part taking the most time (but still super easy!) was making the candies. Use the manufacturer's instructions. Melt candy melts - I used pink but red or white could be used as well - and pour into molds. Allow time to solidify. It was helpful to place the molds with candy in the freezer for 15 minutes, which allowed the candy to release more easily from the hard plastic molds. 

Trail of Roses Mix

• Dried cranberries
• Coconut flakes, unsweetened
• Rose candy (made with candy molds)
• Peanuts, roasted & salted
• Sunflower seeds, roasted & salted

Other possible ingredients for this theme: dried currants, dried cherries, cashews, sliced or blanched almonds, pine nuts, puffed rice cereal, rice chex

Authors note: I will be putting together some specific additional mix combos for the specific rose feasts and adding those here. 

St. Therese, Pray for us!

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St. Elizabeth Rose Rolls

Roses and bread are both symbols for St. Elizabeth of Hungary (November 17) and St. Elizabeth (Isabel) of Portugal (July 4) so a bread in shape of rose serves as a dual reminder for their feast days. Last year I shared a braided twist rose bread idea but here is another variation on the rose bread for the feasts of St. Elizabeth of Hungary and St. Elizabeth of Portugal. 

This recipe uses the same sweet roll dough from the previous St. Elizabeth Rose Bread idea.

Sweet Roll Dough
1 pkg. dry yeast
½ c. warm water
1/2 c. lukewarm milk (scalded then cooled)
1/3 c. butter, margarine or shortening
1/3 c. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
3 ½ to 4 c. flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water in large bowl. Stir in milk sugar, butter, salt, egg, and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Mix in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. Turn onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. Place in greased bowl, turn greased side up. Cover and let rise in warm place until double, about 1 ½ hours.

Cinnamon Filling
2 T. butter, melted
1/2 c. sugar
2 T. cinnamon 

Mix until all sugar and cinnamon is moistened. 

Make 4 small balls (golf ball size) of dough and roll them out into 3 1/2 inch diameter circles. Overlap dough circles as shown. Sprinkle some of the cinnamon sugar mixture across middle, leaving curved edges clear. 

Roll circles up into rolls as shown. You should end up with rolled dough with both ends fluted. Cut roll in half. 

Place dough in greased muffin tins. Cut/flat end should be down and the pretty, fluted/curved end up. 

Let rise until double (30-40 minutes). Bake in 375 degree oven 14-18 minutes. 

St. Elizabeth, Pray for us!

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Rose Bread for St. Elizabeth of Hungary

Today, November 17, we celebrate the feast day of St. Elizabeth of Hungary. As a queen she felt that she should care for all her people as if they were her children. She was known for her generosity to the poor. Legend says that on one occasion in the middle of winter she left her castle with her apron filled with bread for the poor. On the way she met her husband. He opened her cape to see what she carried and found her apron full of roses, not bread. When he bent to kiss Elizabeth he found her face transfigured with the radiance of heaven. 

Both roses and bread are her symbols, so as we celebrate her today and recall her charity to the poor, what better way than with a rose shaped bread. Braided bread is associated with many Eastern European countries such as Hungary and while this particular style is referred to as Russian Rose Bread, it seems particularly fitting for St. Elizabeth since it is bread shaped in a rose. It can be filled with either a sweet or savory filling.  
This morning we made a cinnamon rose bread for breakfast. It can be made using a generic bread recipe. In this case I made a sweet bread dough. The recipe and ingredients for this one are similar to those shared a few years ago by Charlotte - Hungarian Cinnamon Bread. The main difference is the shaping technique used to end up with a rose shaped bread here. 

Sweet Roll Dough
1 pkg. dry yeast
½ c. warm water
1/2 c. lukewarm milk (scalded then cooled)
1/3 c. butter, margarine or shortening
1/3 c. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
3 ½ to 4 c. flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water in large bowl. Stir in milk sugar, butter, salt, egg, and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Mix in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. Turn onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. Place in greased bowl, turn greased side up. Cover and let rise in warm place until double, about 1 ½ hours.

Cinnamon Filling
2-3 tbsp. butter, softened
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon 

Roll dough into large rectangle. Spread butter over dough, sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. 

Roll up dough tightly along lengthier side. Pinch edge of dough to seal well. Cut the roll in half lengthwise. 

Starting at the top, cross over the strands in an X, repeat crossover to twist the two lengths together into long braid. 

Wind braided strand into a circle keeping cinnamon slits facing upward. Fan open as needed to create rose/flower petal look. 

Place on bottom of greased springform pan. Add springform pan sides. Let rise until double (30-40 minutes). Bake in 375 degree oven 20-25 minutes. 

Additional idea: Make two, one to keep and one to share, in the spirit of Christian charity of St. Elizabeth. 

St. Elizabeth, pray for us.

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Lace Cookie Bowls for St. Anne

As mentioned in the previous Florentine Lace Cookie post, there are numerous saints associated with lacemaking. Those saints who are listed as patrons of lacemaking and or lacemakers includes:

• St. Anne
• St. Catherine of Alexandria
• St. Crispin
• St. Elizabeth of Hungary
• St. Francis of Assisi
• St. John Regis
• St. Luke
• St. Therese
• St. Zelie Martin

Since today is the feast of St. Anne, I am offering a variation on the lace cookies - Lace Cookie Bowls. These delicate and tasty edible bowls are great for fruit or ice cream.

Follow recipe for making the florentine cookie dough from earlier post. In the previous recipe for smaller cookies, small balls were formed. In order to make the lace cookie bowls you need to form much larger balls of dough - approx. 2 inch in diameter.   Place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper, 2 or 3 to a tray as they will spread a lot.

Place in preheated oven - 350 degrees. Bake 1 pan at a time, until the cookies are thin and an even golden brown color throughout, rotating pans halfway through baking time, about 10-12 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for a few minutes until they can be handled. They need to be cool enough to remove from tray but not yet have hardened. While still soft place over a small inverted bowl and press down to form bowl shape.  Let cool until hardened.

Filled with ice cream these are a refreshing treat for a mid-summer feast day. While we used chocolate because it was what I had on hand, another great ice cream choice would be spumoni, which includes both a red (cherry) and green (pistachio) color - the colors associated with St. Anne.  Or any red/green combination - like strawberry ice cream with a sprig of mint or green tea ice cream with fresh raspberries on top. There are many fun and refreshing combinations in those colors.

Enjoy!

Dear Saint Anne, we know nothing about you except your name. But you gave us the Mother of God who called herself handmaid of the Lord. In your home, you raised the Queen of Heaven and you are rightly the model of homemakers. In your womb came to dwell the new Eve, uniquely conceived without sin. Intercede for us that we too may remain free from sins. Amen.

St. Anne, Pray for Us.

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The Lace Cookie - Florentines

With the recent feast of Sts. Zelie and Louis Martin I shared the connection to the lace and lace making. Lace is such a beautiful and delicate textile art and the look can translate to the kitchen to some degree.

July 13 is the anniversary date of Sts. Zelie and Louis Martin and follows their feast day by one day. So since we are still thinking about the Martins, I am adding an additional lace themed treat idea for today. The florentine is a a cookie commonly called lace cookie because of the natural lacy open hole appearance it gets while baking. There are variations on the cookie but the traditional one is almond or other nut based. Candied fruit, coconut, oats are sometimes used in the variations. Sometimes just a honey/sugar and butter base such as these here.

Florentines

1 3/4 cups sliced, blanched almonds (about 5 ounces)
3 tablespoons flour
finely grated zest of 1 orange
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
5 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pulse the almonds in a food processor until finely chopped, but not pasty. Stir together the almonds, flour, zest and salt in a bowl.

Put the sugar, cream, corn syrup and butter in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a rolling boil and sugar is completely dissolved. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. Add sugar mixture to almond mixture and stir just to combine. Cool for 30 minutes.

Scoop rounded teaspoons (for 3-inch cookies) or rounded tablespoons (for 6-inch cookies) of batter and roll into balls. Place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving about 3 to 4 inches between each cookie. They will spread considerably in oven.

Place in preheated oven - 350 degrees. Bake 1 pan at a time, until the cookies are thin and an even golden brown color throughout, rotating pans halfway through baking time, about 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool.

You can serve plain or drizzle with chocolate. You can also put a filling (jam, cream, chocolate, ice cream) between two cookies for a sandwich style. 

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Saint Zélie Martin Lace Effect Sugar Cookies

“The good God gave me a father and mother more worthy of Heaven than of earth.”

Written by St. Thérèse of Lisieux of her parents, Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, who married on July 13, 1858 and whose feast is celebrated today, July 12.

The couple were married for nineteen years before Zélie’s death from breast cancer in 1877. They created a close, caring, family home, where love of God and neighbor were taught and practiced. It was in and by marriage that Louis and Zelie were to gain their own sanctification and set a heroic example for others. Their example illustrates how marriage can be a starting point of the journey to holiness made in the company of a spouse.  St. Louis Martin and St. Zélie Martin were canonized as a couple in October 2015. First time in history that a married couple has been canonized together.

Marie Azelia (known as Zélie) Guerin was born near Alencon France in 1831. This is an area of France renowned for its beautiful lace making.  Zélie was an accomplished lace maker in the tradition and style of the region.  After she married Louis Martin in 1858, they settled in Alencon and conducted their businesses where Louis took on the business management of Zélie’s lace making enterprise.  An example of her beautiful lace can be seen here. 

This is a simple idea to incorporate a touch of subtle lace effect into a cookie for the feast day. Using any sugar cookie recipe, just roll out the dough and cut out basic shaped cookies. Keep the dough a little thicker than you would normally when you cut the cookie as you will be pressing down lace and it will flatten slightly. Place a lace or crochet doily (or any piece of lace with large, deep design would work) over the cookie dough and roll gently but with enough pressure to press the design into the dough. 

Remove lace, place cookies on baking sheet and bake until golden.

As mentioned any sugar cookie recipe (or even pre-prepared refrigerator brands) could be used. If you are looking for a good sugar cookie recipe, I like this one from a Midwest parish cookbook.

Sugar Cookie Dough Recipe

• 2 ¾ C. sifted flour
• 1 t. baking powder
• ½ t. salt
• ¾ C. butter or margarine
• 1 C. white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 t. vanilla

Put softened margarine in large bowl of mixer. Add sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Beat until mixture is light and fluffy. Mix in flour, baking powder, and salt. Blend until smooth. Chill at least one hour. Roll small amount of dough at a time on floured board. Cut into desired shapes. Put on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

While St. Zélie was specifically a lacemaker by trade, there are numerous saints who are listed as patrons for lacemaking and lacemakers. These cookies would be a fitting addition for a treat on any of their feast days. 

St. Zelie, Pray for Us!

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Fiori Rosé

Last year, on the feast of St. Therese and inspired by Charlotte's post for Penne Rosé, we made Fiori Rosé for dinner!   It was quick and easy, and the perfect dinner after a day spent in town.    

I didn't get as far as trying her actual recipe, and ended up just mixing two jars of sauce - one alfredo and one marinara - and serving it over "Fiori" pasta noodles. They nearly jumped off the shelf at me when I was looking for the sauces! How perfect are they for the feast of St. Therese?!

My children loved it and are requesting the same this year.  Whether you will be celebrating her feast on October 1st (her new feast day) or October 3rd (her traditional feast), I hope you all have a very blessed day!

St. Therese, flower of Carmel, Pray for us! 

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Hungarian Cinnamon Bread

For the feast of St. Elizabeth of Hungary today, we made a traditional Hungarian bread called kalacs. I originally found the recipe on Allrecipes and decided to try it as written although the original commenter said that the filling can be altered to suit your taste.

Kalacs (Hungarian Cinnamon Bread)

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 1 1/4 C. warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• melted butter for brushing
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/3 cup brown sugar

1. Place flour, white sugar, salt, and yeast into the bowl of a stand mixer. In a bowl, whisk together egg, melted butter, warm milk, and vanilla extract; pour into the flour mixture. Using dough hook attachment, mix on low until the flour is moistened and a dough forms, then increase speed to medium, and continue kneading until smooth and elastic, 4 to 5 minutes.
2. Place dough into a greased bowl, cover, and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.
3. Punch down dough, turn out onto a floured work surface, and divide into 2 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 1/3 inch thick rectangle. Brush each square with melted butter. Mix together cinnamon and brown sugar in a small bowl, then sprinkle evenly over the two rectangles.
4. Roll each firmly into a log, pinch the ends closed, and tuck them underneath. Place each into a greased, glass loaf pan. Cover, and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
6. Brush the tops of the loaves with melted butter, then bake in preheated oven until loaves are golden brown, and sound hollow when tapped, about 30 minutes.

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Decorating with Heraldry

Heraldry has been defined as the art of blazoning, assigning, and marshalling a coat of arms. I mention it because I recently explored the website, World of Heraldry, which contains a wealth of images for coats-of-arms depicting St. Martin of Tours. Apparently St. Martin is one of the most popular saints used in heraldry. We used the shield images for several feast day crafts and decorations. Catholic Cuisine contributors in the past have used a coat-of-arms to make decorative picks for cupcakes or other treats (Pope Benedict's Coat of Arms Cupcakes).


We did the same today for our brownies, using the variety of images of St. Martin of Tours from the heraldry site. We thought that they really looked like heraldry banners. There are many other saints in the coats of arms on the site. It would be a great place to look when you want to liven up a cupcake or other treat for a feast day.

Upcoming November saints that have images on the heraldry site:

St. Elizabeth of Hungary (November 17)

St. Catherine of Alexandria (November 25)





St. Andrew (November 30)



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St. Elizabeth's Crown

On November 17, our church celebrates the memorial of St. Elizabeth of Hungary. St. Elizabeth was the daughter of King Andrew II of Hungary, and she obediently fulfilled her duties as daughter and wife during her short life. After her husband died, however, St. Elizabeth traded her worldly goods for a life of service to the poor and sick, thus trading her crown of riches for the crown of one of God's chosen. St. Elizabeth shows us how to carry out the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy, and to put other's needs before our own.

St. Elizabeth is also the patron of bakers, and so it is appropriate to spend some time creating a treat by which to remember her. We enjoy this crown cake to celebrate her feast. The cake itself is a Hungarian family recipe from my husband's family and I dress it up with a thick, white icing and bright gumdrops. I found some extra large gumdrops at my grocer, but small gumdrops are just as pretty. The Hungarian flag is red, white and green -- if you can get a bag of candy with those colors in it.

Hungarian Coffee Cake

1 t. cinnamon
1/2 c. brown sugar (not packed)
1/4 c. chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
1 c. butter, softened
2 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 c. sour cream
2 c. flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour a Bundt or ring pan.

Combine cinnamon, brown sugar and nuts. Reserve.

Cream butter and granulated sugar.
Add eggs and beat well.
Add vanilla and sour cream and mix.
Add flour and baking powder and beat for a minute or so until well combined.
Spread half of batter into prepared pan.
Sprinkle half of nut mixture over batter (try to avoid getting sugar against the pan).
Spread remaining batter over nut mixture.
Sprinkle remaining nut mixture over the top.
Bake for 45 to 60 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.
Do not overbake.
Cool for 10 minutes in pan and then turn out onto a rack or plate.
Cool completely.
Frost with white glaze and top with colorful gumdrops.


Glaze:
2 T. butter, melted
2 c. powdered sugar
2 - 4 T. milk
1 t. vanilla extract

To prepare the glaze,
mix in a bowl all ingredients until a thick drizzling consistency,
adding a few more drops of milk if necessary.

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