Alphabet Soup for the Saint Educators

With the upcoming feast of St Elizabeth Ann Seton (January 4), it seems a good time to feature an idea for those saints associated with education.  A hearty vegetable meatball soup is a good one for a winter evening and adding in alphabet pasta is a way to recognize teaching saints. We have several saints this month associated with education, who are patrons of students or teachers or who were teachers themselves, like St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, who opened schools, trained teachers and prepared textbooks for use in the schools.

• St. John Neumann (January 5) is credited with  establishing the first system of parochial in US and opened 100 schools in eight years in Philadelphia while bishop.
• St. Marguerite Bourgeoys (January 12) established an order of teaching sisters in Canada and opened the first school in Montreal. 
• St. Francis de Sales (January 24) is a patron of educators.  
• St. Angela Merici (January 27) founded the Ursuline Order, the first religious order for women dedicated exclusively to the education of girls.
• St. Thomas Aquinas (January 28) is the patron of universities, Catholic schools and students.  
• St. John Bosco (January 31) ran a school for boys and is the patron of youth. 

The saints associated with teaching are numerous and their feast days can be found throughout the year. To find out feast days for other education related saints such as, St. John Baptist de La Salle (April 7), St. Rose Venerini (May 7), St. Mary MacKillop (August 8), St. Madeline Sophie Barat (August 25), St. Gregory the Great (September 3), St. Teresa of Calcutta (September 5), St. Theodore Guerin (October 3), St. Rose Philippine Duchesne (November 18), and more...

You can check out these patronage lists:
http://catholicsaints.info/patrons-of-students/
http://catholicsaints.info/patrons-of-schools/
http://catholicsaints.info/patrons-of-teachers/
http://catholicsaints.info/saints-who-were-teachers/

Meatball Vegetable Alphabet Soup

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp mayonnaise
2 Tbsp bread crumbs
1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 lb lean ground beef or turkey
3/4 cup alphabet pasta
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups beef or chicken broth
1 can (14 oz) pureed tomatoes
1 cup chopped kale (optional)
2  Tbsp tomato paste2 tsp Italian spice

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 °F.

In bowl, combine mayonnaise, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder and ground meat; mix well. Shape into bite-size balls and arrange on 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Bake meatballs in oven for about 20 to 25 minutes or until cooked through. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions, rinse, drain and set aside.

In large saucepan, heat oil and sauté onion and garlic, celery and carrots for about 5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Add broth, tomatoes, tomato paste and Italian spice; bring to boil. [I added chopped kale as an option since it is considered a "brain food" and this is a soup for educators.] Reduce heat and simmer, for 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add pasta and meatballs. Reheat and serve.

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and all patron saints of teachers, education, and students, Pray for us. 

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Bohemian Kolaches for St. John Neumann

John Nepomucene Neumann was born on March 28, 1811, in the village of Prachatitz in Bohemia  which is now the Czech Republic. John, who had always been interested in being a missionary to America and came to the United States at age 25 and was ordained a priest in 1836.  He served the Niagara frontier for several years. He joined the Redemptorists and professed vows in 1842 and was the first Redemptorist to be professed in the United States.

Fr. John Neumann became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1848.  His ability to speak seven languages, German, Czech, English, French, Italian, Spanish and Gaelic helped him to serve his people. In 1852, he was appointed the 4^th Bishop of Philadelphia. His first concern was always the immigrant children. He gave first priority to establishing schools and is credited with setting up the first system of diocesan parochial schools in the United States.  Also during Neumann's administration, new parish churches were completed at the rate of approximately one per month.

Bishop Neumann collapsed and died January 5, 1860.   On June 19, 1977, John Nepomucene Neumann became America's third Roman Catholic saint, and the first American male saint.

His feast day is January 5 and he is the patron of sick children and immigrants.  [Biography]

To remember St. John Neumann on his feast day, a beloved Bohemian pastry, kolaches, make a great treat. A kolache is a sweetened yeast pastry filled with a fruit, cream cheese, or a poppy seed filling. There are probably about as many variations as there are Czech grandmas.  There are many different shapes, sizes and fillings.  From rounds to folded pockets, hand sized to pie-sized, sweet to savory. Some raised, some not. Most seem to agree that the name “kolache” (or kolach, kolace, kolacky) comes from the Czech word for “cookie”.  So I tried my hand at one variation in honor of the Bohemian to American saint, St. John Neumann. 

Kolaches

Ingredients:
2 packages active dry yeast
½ cup sugar, divided
2 cups warm milk (110° to 115°)
5 ½ to 6 ½ cups flour
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup butter, softened
2 cups canned prune, poppy seed, cherry or lemon filling
1 egg white, beaten

Directions:

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in warm milk; let stand 10 minutes. In large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, remaining sugar, eggs beaten, salt, butter and yeast/milk mixture. Mix until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to make a stiff dough.

Turn out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Add additional flour, if necessary. Place dough in greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover; let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Roll the dough into balls.  Place balls on pan lined with parchment paper and brush balls with melted oil. Let rise until dough is light (double height).  

Firmly press indentation in center and fill each roll with a heaping tablespoon of filling. Here is a link to recipes for several different fillings.

Brush dough with egg white. Bake at 350° for 10-15 minutes or until rolls are light golden brown. Yield: about 28 rolls.

PRAYER FOR INTERCESSION OF ST. JOHN NEUMANN

O Saint John Neumann, your ardent desire of bringing all souls to Christ impelled you to leave home and country; teach us to live worthily in the spirit of our Baptism which makes us all children of the one Heavenly Father and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, the first-born of the family of God.

Obtain for us that complete dedication in the service of the needy, the weak, the afflicted and the abandoned which so characterized your life. Help us to walk perseveringly in the difficult and, at times, painful paths of duty, strengthened by the Body and Blood of our Redeemer and under the watchful protection of Mary our Mother.

May death still find us on the sure road to our Father's House with the light of living Faith in our hearts. Amen.

[Edited to add: This is also an idea for celebration of Servant of God Fr. Emil Kapaun, whose remains have been identified and returned to Kansas 70 years after his death as a POW in Korea. Fr. Kapaun was a son of Czech/Bohemian immigrants as well. Sept. 27, 2021]

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