Lemon-Lavender Cookies in honor of Our Lady

Lavender:  Mary's Drying Plant

The Legend of Lavender

After Mary had washed Jesus' clothes and was looking for a place to hang them to dry, she saw a gray bush of lavender and on its branches she spread the snow-white baby clothes. The sun and the wind dried the clothes and when Mary came to gather them, the clothes smelled sweet and clean and the bushes were fragrant with a sweet scent that lavender now has. It is said that the fragrance which came from the earthly body of the Son of God was transferred to the plant, giving it its unique scent.  ~ Source

Lavender was said to be one of the plants most loved by the Blessed Virgin because it represented purity, cleanliness and virtue.

Lemon Lavender Cookies

I purchased the cookies pictured above at a local Lavender Farm last week, and they were a perfect afternoon treat to give the kids on the (traditional) feast of the Immaculate Heart this past Wednesday, after sharing the legend of lavender with them.

Since the whole month of August is dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and since I happened to pick a bunch of lavender as well, I think we might try and make some more of our own using a recipe from Better Homes & Gardens.  

  Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon dried lavender buds, ground with mortar and pestle
• 1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, ground lavender buds, finely shredded lemon peel, and salt. In a large mixing bowl beat the 3/4 cup butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add 1 cup powdered sugar. Beat until combined. Beat in as much of the flour mixture as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour mixture.

2. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 10-inch-long log. Wrap log in plastic wrap or waxed paper. Chill for 2 to 24 hours or until firm. 3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut roll into 1/4-inch slices. (We will probably then cut out heart shapes with a cookie cutter.) Place slices 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in preheated oven about 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool.  Makes 3 dozen cookies.

Optional Frosting & Garnish:

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

Dried lavender buds 

Thin strips of lemon peel

In a small bowl, combine the 1/4 cup butter, 1 cup powdered sugar, and the milk. Beat with a wooden spoon until smooth. If necessary, stir in additional milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, to make a frosting of spreading consistency. Spread frosting on tops of cookies and, if desired, garnish with additional lavender buds and thin strips of lemon peel.

Note:  If frosted, place in single layer in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days. Or freeze unfrosted cookies for up to 3 months; thaw and frost.

Elana's Pantry also has a recipe for Gluten Free Lemon Lavender Cookies!

The Daily Offering to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys, and suffering of this day in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world. I offer them for all the intentions of Your Sacred Heart: the salvation of souls, reparation for sins, the reunion of all Christians; I offer them for the intentions of our Bishops and of all Apostles of Prayer and in particular for those recommended by our Holy Father this month.

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Priestly Brownies

Happy Feast of St. John Vianney, Patron Saint of Parish Priests!

How about making these fun Priestly Brownies for your pastor or your family?

Ingredients (Needed items):

Boxed Brownie Mix

T-shirt Cookie Cutter

Powdered Sugar

Black and white decorating gel

1. After baking brownies, place the cookie cutter gently on top.

2.  Sprinkle powdered sugar around the outer edges to highlight the shirt.

3. Use black decorating gel to outline and fill in the shirt.

4. Use black and white decorating gel to draw the priestly collar.

"The Priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus, when you see a priest, think of our Lord Jesus Christ."~St. John Vianney~

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Recipes for August ~ Month Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

The month of August is dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Immaculate Heart is often venerated together with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Just as the Sacred Heart represents Christ's love for mankind, the Immaculate Heart represents the Blessed Virgin's desire to lead all people to Christ.

August ~ Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary:

• O Sacred Heart - How Sweet are Thee
• Immaculate Heart Cake and other ideas from the archives

August 4, Feast of St. John Vianney (New):

• St. John Vianney's Feast Day

August 4, St. Dominic (Trad.):

• Memorial of St. Dominic, August 8
• Raise a Glass to St. Dominic!

August 8, St. Dominic (New): (See August 4)

August 8, St. John Vianney (Trad): (See August 4)

August 10, St. Lawrence (New, Trad.):

• A Quick Little Post for St. Lawrence
• St. Lawrence Grill Cakes

August 11th (New) and August 12th (Trad) ~ Feast of St. Clare:

• St. Clare Cheesecake
• Poor Clares Solemn Vow Cookies

August 14, St. Maximilian Kolbe (New):

• Feast of St. Maximilian Kolbe (Polish Meal)
• Feast of St. Maximillian Kolbe ~ Craft and Dessert

August 15, Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven (New, Trad.):

• Feasting for the Assumption
  
• Blueberry-Strawberry Cobbler in Honor of Our Lady
• Assumption Rolls
• Baked Blueberry & Pecan Crusted French Toast
• Assumption Cupcakes
• Many of the recipes for the Ascension could be used/modified for this feast!

August 18, St. Helena (Trad):

• An Easy Pesto Recipe
• Tomato Basil Mozzarella Salad
• Sundried Tomato Pasta Salad
• Triumph of the Cross Cookie Hunt
• From Thy Bounty Fair - Feast of the Triumph of the Cross

August 22, The Queenship of Mary (New):

• A Crown for our Queen
• Simple Cupcake Crowns 
• More Crown Cakes from the archives

August 23, St. Rose of Lima (New):

• St. Rose of Lima Cookies

(The following three posts were not originally posted for St. Rose, but would adapt wonderfully!)

• Rosy Treats for the Feasts of St. Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe
• Chocolate Roses for St. Thérèse
• Rose Cake and Punch for St. Therese
• You can scroll through all "Rose" themed recipes here. 

August 26, St. Monica (New)

• Feasts of St. Monica and St. Augustine (Dinner Recipe)
  
• Feasts of St. Augustine & St. Monica (Cake Recipe)

August 26, Blessed Mother Teresa's Birthday (Her feast day is coming up in September!)

• Feast Day Plans
• Happy 100th Birthday Mother Teresa 
• Mother Teresa Tea 

August 27, St. Augustine (New, Trad.):

• Feasts of St. Monica and St. Augustine (Dinner Recipe)
• Feasts of St. Augustine & St. Monica (Cake Recipe)

August 29, The Martyrdom of St. John the Baptist (New) and Beheading of St. John the Baptist (Trad):

• Grasshoppers and Honey
• Honey Granola for St. John the Baptist
• St. John the Baptist Locust and Honey Snack
• Grasshopper Parfaits
• St. John the Baptist ~ Locusts and Honey

August 30, St. Rose of Lima (Trad.): (See August 23rd)


Getting Ready for Back-to-School:

• A Patron of Students Back-to-School Treat!

The Daily Offering to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys, and suffering of this day in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world. I offer them for all the intentions of Your Sacred Heart: the salvation of souls, reparation for sins, the reunion of all Christians; I offer them for the intentions of our Bishops and of all Apostles of Prayer and in particular for those recommended by our Holy Father this month. 

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St. Anne's Day Dessert Fruit Pizza

Through the ages she {St. Anne} has been depicted wearing a green mantle and a red dress, colors symbolic of immortality and divine love.  Rev. Edgar Schmiedler in "Your Home: A Church in Miniature" mentions the custom in Louisiana of children of French extraction named Anne wearing red and green ribbons in her honor. These are colors to bear in mind for party decorations on her feast. There is no need to look "Christmasy" by using equal amounts; rather, use cool green for the main color scheme with accents of red. ~ My Nameday - Come for Dessert

This year, in honor of today's feast of St. Anne, we my oldest daughter made a Dessert Fruit Pizza covered with "Red and Green Fruit Ribbons" to celebrate, just like Lisa made last year!  Here's our recipe, adapted from Pampered Chef:

Dessert Fruit Pizza

Ingredients:

• 1 package (18 ounces) refrigerated sugar cookie dough
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese softened
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 4 cups assorted red and green fresh fruit such as strawberries, raspberries, kiwi, green grapes, etc

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F. Place dough on round baking stone and cook 18-20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool. For topping, combine cream cheese and sugar and spread over cookie dough, then start placing on the fruit.

Family Prayer on the Feast of St. Anne:

Father: We all rejoice in the Lord, 

As we keep holiday in honor of blessed Anne, 

Of her whose feast fills angels with joy, 

And sets them praising the Son of God. 

All: Amen. 

Father: Spotless Anna, Juda's glory, 

Through the Church from East to West 

Every tongue proclaims thy praises, 

Holy Mary's mother blessed. 

All: From thy stem in beauty budded 

Ancient Jesse's mystic rod; 

Birth from thee received the Mother 

Of the almighty Son of God 

Father: Let us pray. O God, You were pleased to bestow Your grace upon Anne so that she might fitly become the mother of her who was to bear Your only-begotten Son; grant that we who keep her feast will be helped by her protection. Through Christ, our Lord. 

All: Amen. Christ conquers, Christ reigns!

Sts. Joachim and Anne, Pray for Us! 

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A is for St Anne and for Apple Tart

France, the 'Eldest Daughter of the Church' has always had a special connection to St Anne, since it's earliest days.  If you have ever watched the 4 part documentary Eldest Daughter of the Church (which I high recommend) you will see it begins with St Anne ~ her venerable body being carefully transported from the persecution in the Holy Land, in a boat with Sts Lazarus, Mary Magdalen, Martha and other notable New Testament people.  They have been cast out by their persecutors into a boat with no oars and by the grace of God, arrival safely to the shores of France.  This country was to be the final resting place for St Anne and devotion has spread out from there to all parts of the world, notably Canada, where her greatest shrine stands, in La Côte-de-Beaupré.

Since St Anne's feast day falls in height of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, where fruit is abundant and enjoyed, it comes as no surprise that fruit tarts are a tradition for her feast.  There would be great spiritual symbolism as well, St Anne is the 'fruitful, flowering vine of Jesse' and Mary is the Immaculate  'fruit of her womb'.  Her tomb in Apt, France had been engraved with this symbolism as Frances Parkinson Keyes points out in her book, "St Anne, Grandmother of Our Saviour":

"This design is still visible, in exacly the same form wherein it was graven so many centuries ago. It consists of the flowering branch of a tree, interlaced with a vine bearing both foliage and grapes. To look at it is an experience so moving that, months after gazing at it, this chronicler finds it impossible even to write of it without profound emotion. For it reveals, unmistakably, that when the stone slab was carved, even as now, men and women were reverently reciting the litany which begins:

"St Anne, Grandmother of our Saviour, pray for us." And continues: "St Anne, Root of Jesse, St Anne, Fruitful Vine....pray for us."

St Anne's tomb engraving.

So I have made for my family today a fruit tart ~ an apple tart.  Apple is a very good choice of fruit for St Anne because Eve in the Garden of Eden, corrupted the apple, whereas Mary is the 'new Eve' who restores what is corrupted and Mary is the fruit of St Anne's womb..I think of the typology of the two Eves and think ~ apple.  

I wanted something that was delicious and healthy.   So I found a lovely recipe that is gluten-free with minimal sugar, using hazelnut meal for the crust/base and agave nectar and apple cider with the apple filling.  My husband said, 'well I really enjoyed that', so I think it is a good recipe, just the perfect amount of sweetness and worth trying.  The recipe was adapted by Tamara Duker Freuman at her website here.

APPLE HAZELNUT TART

Flourless Hazelnut Tart Crust

1.5 cup Hazelnut Meal

6 Tbsp of powdered sugar (I used rapadura)

2 Tbsp of butter at room temp 

1 1/2 Tbsp of cream

I just kneaded the ingredients together, popped the bowl in the fridge for 15mins, then pressed the dough into 9" tart dish.  I pre-baked the pie crust in the oven at 375 degrees (for Australia, that would be 190 degrees), for about 5mins or so and then removed it from the oven, ready to fill with the apple filling

Apple Filling

2 lbs (1 kg) Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled and sliced into 1/2" wedges

1/4 cup agave nectar

3/4 cup apple cider

I placed the apple slices into a large frypan, drizzled the agave nectar over the apples and poured in the apple cider.    I popped the lid on the frypan and let the apples cook for about 10-15mins (the time depends on whether you want the shape of the slices kept or you are happy to to let the apple go to mush ~ I did the later).  I then removed the lid and let all the liquid evaporate and then spooned the filling into the tart dish.

I then put the tart into the oven at the same temperature as before and cooked for 25-30mins.  Once out of the oven, I let it cool so that it was mildly warm and served with whipped cream.  I cut the pie to serve 8.

Happy St Anne's Day!

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Transportation Themed Snacks for the Feast of St. Christopher

July 25th is the Memorial of St. Christopher, patron saint of travelers. I'm planning on having a Transportation Themed Snack Time for my kids, in honor of this dear saint, which we will enjoy while reading The Legend of St. Christopher.  I just know my kids are going to love the snacks, and I love that they are all healthy, made with (mostly) real food, and yet are still fun and colorful!

Update: You can see additional pictures here. 

Banana Airplanes

I ran across an idea earlier today (via a google search for airplane snack ideas) and made a trial version this evening.  It was very easy to make and turned out so cute.  I know these are going to be a hit!

Ingredients Needed for Each Airplane:

• 1 Banana 
• 1 Strawberry
• 5 Brown Mini M&M's (3 reg. M&M's cut in half, or 5 raisins, would also work) 
• Whip Cream (I made my own, sweetened with stevia)

Directions:

Slice banana in half lengthwise.   Take one of the halves and slice it at a slight angle about 2/3 of the way through.   Arrange the banana pieces on a plate to look like a plane.   Add the Mini M&M's for the windows, a strawberry for the tail, and whipped cream for the jet stream and clouds.

 Graham Cracker Stop Lights

I made these little stop light snacks for my son's recent Cars themed birthday party.  The kids loved them so much that I think I am going to make them again in honor of St. Christopher.

Ingredients:

• Graham Crackers
• Peanut Butter
• Cocoa Powder
• Red, Yellow, and Green M&M's 

Directions:

Mix some cocoa powder into peanut butter.  (I just added a spoonful or so.) Break Graham Crackers into quarters and spread peanut butter mixture on the top of each cracker.   Add a Red, Yellow, and Green M&M to complete the stoplight.

*If you wanted to skip the M&M's, you could always make these with Strawberry, Apricot, and Kiwi Slices!  I also love the idea for making stoplights with celery sticks, cream cheese, and red, yellow and green bell peppers, cut into circles!  

Apple Slice Cars

I first saw this idea on Pinterest, originally from BentOnBetterLunches, and finally had a chance to try them!  This is yet another super cute snack that the kids will love and is still completely nutricious!  

Ingredients:

• Apples
• Firm Grapes
• Food Picks (I used toothpicks broken in half) 

Directions:

Slice an apple into wedges and trim the core. (I used my Pampered Chef Apple Wedger, which cuts the apple into 10 wedges.) 

For each apple wedge, slice 2 grapes in half, widthwise. Push the pick through one end of the apple and add one grape to each end of the pick, sliced side out.  Repeat with the other end of the apple wedge, adding 2 more grape slices.

Deviled Egg Boats 

We made these Deviled Egg Boats last year for one of our Good Shepherd Garden Parties. They would be a perfect snack for the feast of St. Christopher! 

Ingredients:

• 12 hard-boiled eggs 
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 
• 2 teaspoons vinegar (white or cider) 
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup mayonnaise 
• 2 red, orange, yellow, or green bell peppers 
• Paprika 

Directions:

Peel the eggs, then slice each one in half to make boats. Place the yolks in a medium-sized bowl and mash them with a fork. Add the mustard and the vinegar, then add the mayonnaise, stirring until the consistency is smooth but not soupy.

Next, make the sails. To do this, cut each pepper into 1-inch-wide strips, then cut the strips into 1-inch squares and slice each square in half diagonally.

Fill the egg-white halves with the yolk mixture. Stick the sail upright into the filling and sprinkle with paprika. Makes two dozen.

St. Christopher, Patron of Travelers,

Ora Pro Nobis! 

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A Simple Caramel Applesauce Crown Cake

Happy Feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel!  

Our family is celebrating with a simple Caramel Applesauce Crown Cake in honor of Our Lady baked in a beautiful Marian Fleur de Lis Cake Pan.   

Caramel Applesauce Crown Cake

Ingredients:

1 pkg Namaste Foods Spice Cake Mix 

3 eggs

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup oil

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 fresh apple, grated or chopped (skin left on is okay)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Caramel sauce (optional)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350˚ F. Grease and flour a bundt cake pan.  (I choose a beautiful Marian Fleur de Lis Bundt Pan for our crown cake. )   

Combine all ingredients and mix well.

Bake for approximately 45-50 minutes.  Cake is done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  

Cool for 5 minutes and remove from pan. Cool completely and then top with caramel sauce.

*This cake can also be baked in a 9x13 pan for 35-40 minutes, or 2 -9" round layers for 30-35 minutes. 

*You can find the beautiful Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Statue here. 

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Ora Pro Nobis! 

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