Tuesday, February 9, 2010

St. Valentine's Day Treats

Last year my children and I made some fun and yummy treats for St. Valentine's Day, which I never did post here at Catholic Cuisine so I thought I would share them with you now:

Candy Coated Oreos, Marshmallows, and Pretzels.

First we gathered all our supplies:

(We never did use the M&M's, but here's a great idea for them.)

Next, we melted about half of our white Almond Bark in the microwave. The girls mixed it to make sure it was smooth.



Each Oreo was dipped in the melted almond bark and laid on a cookie sheet, lined with wax paper, to cool.



After that, we added a little red heart, or sprinkles, to each cookie.



The boys choose to dip the pretzels and marshmallows in brown almond bark and add sprinkles.



The girls didn't want to stop with the cookies, so they helped with the pretzels too!



It was all so very easy to make, and everyone had so much fun!



What are your favorite treats to make for St. Valentine's Day?

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Monday, February 8, 2010

St. Josephine Bakhita

We studied St. Josephine Bakhita a few years ago and enjoyed trying a traditional Sudanese tea and dessert at that time. Since my daughter chose St. Josephine for her Confirmation Saint, we now have a wonderful reason to celebrate her feast day every year.

There are a couple of different ideas you could pull from to celebrate this beautiful woman who knew the chains of slavery and the freedom of faith. She was born in Sudan in 1869 and died in a little town in Northern Italy named Schio.

To honor her birth country, you might consider some African foods, or just your regular fare but with a change of venue. A traditional Sudanese meal would be eaten on pillows around a low table. We like to use our coffee table! A small glass of fruit juice is offered to the guests who have traveled to show that they are welcome after their journey. Dinner begins with a soup course which is followed by the main course served on one large tray. The main course is usually eaten with flat bread. No utensils are offered as the entree is expected to be sopped up with the bread.

For dessert, Creme Caramela (also known as flan) is a tasty traditional treat. I am using a box mix this year (Jell-O Flan), but hope to try this recipe soon. (Pictures later.)

You can make your own cinnamon infused tea with regular black tea and cinnamon sticks if you don't have any Twinings Herbal Revive Cinnamon Tea on hand. (BTW... If you are off caffeine or prone to anxiety, you might want to stick with the cinnamon sticks. Cinnamon in high concentration can stimulate the nervous system just like caffeine.)

Another idea for celebrating St. Josephine is to honor the country that gave her the freedom she had long been denied. When she was purchased by an Italian Consul named Callisto Legnani, St. Josephine's life changed. She experienced kindness, cordiality, love and ultimately freedom. Any Italian dish will do to honor the country that gave St. Josephine her first Sacraments and a home. It still might be fun to eat dinner on pillows instead of chairs!

St. Josephine Bakhita, Mother "Moretta" and African flower, pray for us! Pin It

Sunday, January 31, 2010

St. Blaise's Cookies

We have a couple of family feast days coming up at the beginning of February, so for the sake of my sanity I knew we wouldn't be celebrating the feast of Candlemas with any foodie fun. (We will be going to Mass and having some candles blessed, but that's about it.) 

But, like Jessica, I saw these adorable candle cookies over at Family Fun and really wanted to try them. Well, since St. Blase's Day is one of our family feast days, and Pepperidge Farm Pirouettes are easy enough to find I decided to pass on hunting down the cookies used for the base and decided instead to use a simplified version to represent the candles used for the blessing of the throats, which is traditionally done on St. Blase's day.

St. Blase's feast day isn't until February 3rd, but I went ahead and made this little tutorial for the visual people, like me, who might need to see it in pictures to better understand my alterations.

I used:
Pepperidge Farm Vanilla Pirouette cookies
white chocolate chips
mini marshmallows
white sugar
a few drops each of red and yellow food coloring

First, I made my own orange colored sugar by mixing a few drops of red and yellow food coloring with plain white sugar. Tossing it around in a zippered baggie works great plus the kids get a kick out of watching the color change. Not having any powdered sugar on hand to make the glaze frosting they recommended, I melted some white chocolate chips and snipped off the corner of another zippered bag. When my family made gingerbread houses this past year, I learned that melted white chocolate makes an excellent construction substance. It's easy to pipe on and firms up in a jiffy.

Next, cut the mini marshmallows in half on the diagonal and dip the cut end into the orange sugar to create the flame effect.

Use a drop of melted white chocolate to attach the marshmallow to the cookie and dribble some down the top to create the look of melted wax. I used another little drop to attach the two together in an X shape for this picture, but for the feast day, I plan to pick up some red licorice laces to tie them together, just like the candles that will be used to bless our throats on the day.

It is also a tradition in some countries to have some bread blessed on St. Blase's Day to keep on hand for treating sore throats. Long, thin bread sticks might also be a fun way to remember this Holy Helper and are easy enough to add to almost any meal!

Also, if you are looking for a coloring page for St. Blase, you can find one here on my personal blog.


Through the intercession of Saint Blaise, bishop and martyr, may God deliver you from ailments of the throat and from every other evil. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. - blessing of Saint Blaise
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Saturday, January 30, 2010

A Light Dessert for Candlemas


I recently ran across this super cute recipe at Family Fun, which is very similar to the Edible Candles that Mary posted last year.   Aren't they great!?!  I am hoping to make them (or a similar variation, since I don't have the exact cookies needed for the base) with my children this coming week, for the feast of Candlemas.

Ingredients:

Confectioners' sugar
Flower cookie with a center hole (we used Murray shortbread cookies)
Larger cookie (we used Anna's Ginger Thins)
Rolled wafer cookie (we used Pepperidge Farm Pirouettes)
Mini marshmallow
Orange decorating sugar
Red decorating gel

Directions:

Make a simple icing by stirring together 1 teaspoon water and 5 tablespoons confectioners' sugar.

Use dots of icing to attach a small flower cookie with a center hole to a larger cookie.

Dab icing on one end of a rolled wafer cookie and press it into the center of the flower cookie.

For the flame, halve a mini marshmallow diagonally, dip the sticky side of one half in orange decorating sugar, and attach the half with icing. Spoon a few wax drips of icing down the candle's sides and use red decorating gel to embellish the base.


If any one ends up making these, or perhaps Anne's amazing Candle Cake, we'd love to see pictures!  You can either leave a link to your post in the comments, or email a picture to catholiccuisine[at]gmail[dot]com and I'll add them to the bottom of this post!


Update:  Here is a picture of one of our Candlemas Cookies, which we included in our Candlemas Tea.



Hope you all have a happy and holy 
feast of Candlemas! 

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St. Brigid's Bread

February 1st is the day on which St. Brigid is honored, especially among the Irish.

I noticed the other day, when I was posting Recipes for February, that we didn't have anything in the archives specifically for her feast, and was very excited when I received the following recipe from Kathleen at AMDG Academy.  Thank you Kathleen!

Kathleen's family enjoys making this "tried and true recipe" for breakfast, which she says is "simple and a real winner."  It sounds delicious!

I think I'll try baking it to enjoy with my favorite Irish Breakfast Tea while I read Brigid's Cloak: An Ancient Irish Story to my children as suggested in Catholic Mosaic: Living the Liturgical Year With Children!


St. Brigid's Bread

2/3 cup butter
1/3 cup sour milk
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 pkg. yeast
1 egg
1 cup oats
1 cup Bisquick
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. ginger

Heat butter and milk to melt butter in microwave (or melt butter and scald milk.) Add sugar. Allow to cool slightly and add yeast, stirring to mix. Let mixture rest for 10 minutes. Add slightly beaten egg. Mix all dry ingredients and stir into yeast mix. Lightly grease a Pyrex pie plate. Pour batter and bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. When done, allow to cool slightly and serve warm with butter.


*The Irish Beef and Guinness Stew and Irish Soda Bread would be great recipes to serve on the feast of St. Brigid as well!

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Thursday, January 28, 2010

Recipes for February ~ Month Dedicated to Holy Family



The Month of February is dedicated to the Holy Family.

"Nothing truly can be more salutary or efficacious for Christian families to meditate upon than the example of this Holy Family, which embraces the perfection and completeness of all domestic virtues." ~ Pope Leo XIII







February 1st, St. Brigid (Hist.):



February 2nd, Presentation of Our Lord (New and Trad) also known as the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Candlemas Day (Trad):



February 3rd, St. Blaise (New, Trad.):


February 5th, St. Agatha (New, Trad.):

February 11th, Our Lady of Lourdes (New, Trad.)


February 14th, St. Valentine (Trad.)


February 16th, St. Paul Shipwrecked (Malta):

February 18th, St. Bernadette Soubirous (New, Trad.):



February 20th Bls. Francisco Marto & Jacinta Marto (New):

February 27th, St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows (Trad.):


*If I missed anything from the archives, please let me know and I will update this post.  Hopefully we will have some new recipes to share with you all soon, including a compilation of our archived recipes for Lent...  


Lord Jesus Christ, who, being made subject to Mary and Joseph, didst consecrate domestic life by Thine ineffable virtues; grant that we, with the assistance of both, may be taught by the example of Thy holy Family and may attain to its everlasting fellowship. Who livest and reignest, world without end. Amen.

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Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Our Lady of Altagracia Orange Smoothies


January 21st is the feast of Our Lady of Altagracia! Since we are still adjusting to having a new little baby in our home once again, I've had to keep our feast day cooking extremely simple.Our plans for tomorrow are to read and discuss the lovely book A Gift of Gracias: The Legend of Altagracia, and then make Orange Smoothies.  We recently made them during "O" Week, as my daughters learn Along the Alphabet Path, and they were so delicious!

Here is our recipe:

Our Lady of Altagracia Orange Smoothies

6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8-9 ice cubes

Combine all ingredients except ice cubes in blender.
Blend for about 1-2 minutes, adding ice cubes one at a time.
Pour into glasses and serve.


O Sweetest Mother of Altagracia, Admirable Mother, who in your little house of Nazareth, served as a model for Christian mothers and wives. We ask you to bless our homes so that the sanctity and holiness of marriage will flourish in them.


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