A Partridge in a Pear Tree Pie

When I saw the Partridge in a Pear Tree Pie over at Taste of Home, I knew I had to try making it for our Twelve Days of Christmas Dinner Party on Twelfth Night!    I didn't have a partridge cookie cutter so I just hand cut a design with a butter knife.  I also added some little leaves and cross shapes as well.  It was pretty simple and turned out so cute and delicious.

Partridge Pear Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 can (15 ounces) pear halves, drained  (I used a larger jar of pears)
• 1 package (12 ounces) fresh or frozen cranberries
• 1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple (I used about 1/2 of a large can)
• 1-1/2 cups sugar
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pastry of double-crust pie (9 inches)
• Additional sugar, optional

Directions:

Set aside five pear halves; chop any remaining pears. In a large saucepan, combine the chopped pears, cranberries, pineapple and sugar.

Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 4-5 minutes or until some cranberries have popped. Cool for 30 minutes, stirring several times. In a bowl, combine the flour, salt and cinnamon. Stir in cooled cranberry mixture.

Line a 9-in. pie plate with bottom pastry; trim and flute edges. Spoon cranberry mixture into pastry shell; arrange pear halves on top.

Bake at 400° for 35-40 minutes or until bubbly and crust is golden brown (cover edges with foil for last 15 minutes of baking if necessary). Cool on wire rack.

Roll remaining pastry. Using cookie cutters (or a knife), cut out small leaves, little crosses (optional), and a partridge. Place on an ungreased baking sheet; sprinkle with sugar if desired. Bake at 400° for 6-8 minutes or until golden brown. Place partridge in center of pie with leaves near each pear, and crosses along the edge.

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Turtle Dove Chocolates

Another fun recipe we made for our Twelve Days of Christmas Dinner Party were these delicious Turtle Dove Chocolates!   They are similar to the Pretzel Dots, made with Dove Caramels and Pecan Halves, instead of the Hershey Kisses and M&M's.  You just can't go wrong with salty caramels and chocolate.  YUM!!! These things are very dangerous to have in the house, especially with my New Year's resolutions and goals. Thankfully our children made sure they didn't last long!

Turtle Dove Chocolates

Ingredients:

• 1 bag of Dove Caramel Milk Chocolates
• 1 bag of Butter Snap pretzels
• 1 bag of whole pecan halves (about 30-40 pieces)
• Pretzel Sticks (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.  Unwrap each Dove Chocolate. Lay out pretzels and put one chocolate on each pretzel.

Bake in oven for 3 minutes. After removing from oven, gently press pecan into chocolate, but not hard enough for caramel to come out of the chocolate. Transfer pan to refrigerator for chocolates to harden.

Note: Can you tell that I got distracted talking to a friend on the telephone?  They were left in the oven for about 4-5 minutes and I had caramel oozing everywhere... Whoops!

Optional: Before placing the candies in the refrigerator to harden you can insert pieces of Pretzel Sticks to create a head and legs for your "turtles." Or just leave them as pictured above, with the turtle tucked into his shell!

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Baby Updates and Additional Prayer Requests

Hello to all our dear visitors here at Catholic Cuisine, and a very blessed Epiphany to you all!

I recently posted a prayer request for Kelly (one of my contributors here at Catholic Cuisine from The Careless Catholic) on the Facebook Page and over at Shower of Roses and wanted to give you all an update, along with a few additional updates on other pregnant mommas!

Kelly delivered her precious baby early this morning at 31 weeks.  Her beautiful baby girl weighs 3 lbs 13 oz.  and is 17" long.  Both mom and baby are still in ICU, please continue to keep them in your prayers as they recover!

Sarah, another contributor here at Catholic Cuisine from Amongst Lovely Things, also has some exciting news to share!  I'm guessing it might be quite some time before she is able to share some more of her delicious gluten free creations with all of us.   Please keep her and her new babies in your prayers as well.

Lena, a contributor here from JOYfilled Family, is due with Baby G next month!  Please remember her in your prayers for a safe delivery and healthy baby.

Jennifer, from Conversion Diary, could also really use your prayers and support!  Hallie Lord is collecting donations to send as a gift and help with meals for the Fulwiler Family while Jen recovers.  Please consider donating if you can!

Also, though not pregnant, my own sister (a Catholic wife to a Marine and mother of 4) is in the ICU right now with serious health issues and could really use prayers.

Thank you all for your prayers for these dear women, and for all pregnant women!  May God reward you!!

Jessica     

Prayer for Mothers

Good and Gentle God, we pray in gratitude for our mothers and for all the women of theory who have joined with you in the wonder of bringing forth new life. You who became human through a woman, grant to all mothers the courage they need to face the uncertain future that life with children always brings.

Give them the strength to live and to be loved in return, not perfectly, but humanly. Give them the faithful support of husband, family and friends as they care for the physical and spiritual growth of their children. Give them joy and delight in their children to sustain them through the trials of motherhood. Most of all, give them the wisdom to turn to you for help when they need it most. Amen.

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Gluten Free Twelfth Night Rum Cake

I wanted to make Jessica's Twelfth Night Rum Cake this year but my husband is eating gluten free right now for some digestive health reasons and I felt bad for not making more treats that he could enjoy with us over this Christmas season. So, turning to The Cake Mix Doctor's new gluten free cookbook, I decided to try her Bacardi Rum Cake recipe, just making a few alterations. Here is the recipe as I made it:

Gluten Free Twelfth Night Rum Cake

Cake:

Vegetable oil spray, for misting the pan
1 package (15 ounces) yellow gluten-free cake mix (Betty Crocker)
1/4 cup (half of a 3.4-ounce package) vanilla instant pudding mix
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 Tbl. rum extract
1/4 cup water
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Glaze:

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup lightly packed light brown sugar
2 Tbl. water

1 tsp. rum extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Lightly mist a 12-cup Bundt pan with GF vegetable oil spray.

2. Place the cake mix, pudding mix, sour cream, oil, rum extract, water, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are just incorporated, 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat the batter until smooth, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes longer, scraping down the side of the bowl again if needed. Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan, smoothing the top with the rubber spatula, and place the pan in the oven.

3. Bake the cake until it is golden brown and the top springs back when lightly pressed with a finger, 40 to 45 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, make the glaze: Place the butter in a small saucepan over low heat and stir until melted. Add the brown sugar and water, and stir to combine over low heat until the sugar dissolves and the mixture boils and thickens. Remove from the heat, stir in the 1 tsp. rum extract and let the glaze cool.

My cake was so pretty and puffed when it came out of the oven and then it collapsed. Sad, but still yummy!

5. Transfer the Bundt pan to a wire rack and let the cake cool for 10 minutes. Shake the pan gently, and invert the cake onto a wire rack to cool completely, 5 to 10 minutes longer. Carefully put the cake back in the pan. Using a wooden skewer, poke a dozen holes on the bottom of the cake, about 1/2 way through. Very slowly spoon about 2/3rds of the cooled glaze over the warm cake letting it soak into the holes in the cake before adding more. Insert chocolate coins at this point by slicing into the bottom and inserting an unwrapped chocolate coin into the slit. When the bottom of the cake has absorbed most of the glaze, flip cake back over to a serving plate and spoon the remainder of the glaze over the top.

6.  Let the cake cool to room temperature, 20 minutes longer before slicing and serving.

Happy Twelfth Night!

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Cookie Cutters Tell the Story of Christmas

Back in November Debbie shared an article with me (over at Shower of Roses) that was written by Iris Hammett in the 1940's titled "Cookie Cutters Tell the Story of Christmas."  We have made Nativity Cookies and Starlight Cookies in the past, but I thought this story would be a fun alternative for this year and we finally had a chance to make them today!   We also spent some time making cookies to go along with a couple more of our Christmas picture books, but I'll post about those later.

Cookie Cutters Tell the Story of Christmas

By Iris Hammett, written in the 1940’s

(Published in the Mansfield News Journal)

"It is a story, as suggested by cookie cutters, which are familiar to the younger generation both for their utilization purpose in shaping sweets and as playthings for toddlers. This is their message as interpreted by Mrs. Iris Hammett."

"The oven is heated, the dough is made, and the kitchen table is spread with an array of cookie cutters. But theses are not just ordinary cookie cutters, for they have a story to tell."

"Three (Seven in our case!) anxious little faces look on with great anticipation of receiving a sweet morsel when it is baked. Their dark eyes glisten as they listen to the story of the Christ child as each cutter tells his part."

"First, we make an angel, for it was an angel who came to Mary and told her that she would have a baby boy and should call his name Jesus, for he would save his people from their sins."

"Second, we make a donkey, for it was a little donkey that Mary rode into Bethlehem where the baby Jesus was to be born."

"Third, we cut a star for the star that shone in the East to guide the Shepherds to where they would find the Baby Jesus. The wise men had seen this star in the East and knew it told of the birth of the Savior."

"Fourth, we cut more angels for the angels who sang Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. The angels also brought the good news to the shepherds as they watched their sheep during the night."

"So we make candy cane cookies to represent the shepherd’s staff."

"Fifth, we make a camel because the wise men traveled over many miles of sandy desert on camels that they might find the young child."

"Then we come to some of the cookie cutters which we can’t find in the Bible, but which have wonderful meaning by which we tell God’s love for us. We make a wreath for it is round and has no end, even as God’s love has no end. He gave to us eternal life which has no end. We think of the wreath being made of evergreen and so we frost it green. The evergreen is a symbol of the eternal life which Christ bought for us on Calvary. Then comes the Christmas tree, again an evergreen tree, the symbol of everlasting life. It stays green winter and summer as no other tree. It tells of the love of Christ which goes on and on, and of the eternal life which he gives us if we believe in him as our Savior. And last of all we make the bells, for the bells ring out the glad news that a savior is born this day in the City of David."

"And so, as we bake our Christmas cookies, we see the story of the Savior's birth and purpose in our lives. What a wonderful way to gather the little ones around and tell them of God’s love for us. As we roll and cut the dough and mold it into shape, we tell over and over the story that never grows old."

"Then breathe a little prayer that we are molding young and pliable lives, minds, and hearts into the right form, that they might come to know and love this Christ that was born on Christmas Day."

"My prayer is that my children shall never forget the cookie cutters and the story they told of Jesus, His birth and purpose."

"Thus we keep Christ in Christmas even with the cookie cutters."

Download and print a copy of Cookie Cutters Tell the Story of Christmas here. 

Recipe:
The Best Rolled Sugar Cookies (Found in the Archives)

Our Cookie Cutters:

Nativity Bake Set

Wilton Holiday 6-Piece Mini Metal Cutter Set

Additional Angel, Tree, and Star Cookie Cutters

Our Christmas Story Picture Books:

The Donkey's Dream

The Nativity

Bethlehem

Additional Christmas Books Can Be Found Here

Wishing you all a very Merry 10th Day of Christmas and a Blessed Feast of the Most Holy Name of Jesus!

  

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Vasilopita

The following recipe, adapted from Cooking with the Saints, was submitted by Hi Cookery in honor of the feast of St. Basil the Great. Thank you Highlander and Islander!

January 2: Feast Day of St. Basil

Long before we started blogging, Highlander gave Islander the cookbook “Cooking with the Saints” as a Christmas gift. Vasilopita was the very first recipe she made in the new year and for the Feast Day of St. Basil. Now we can blog about the traditional Greek cake that we bake for a simple new year’s celebration at home.

According to the author, Ernst Schuegraf, “different recipes (for Vasilopita) exist, (but) they all include the hiding of a silver coin in the cake, which is supposed to bring luck to the person who finds it. The head of the family slices the cake and distributes the pieces in a very precise order. The first piece is for St. Basil, the second one for Christ, the third one for the oldest member of the family and on down to the youngest.”

The hiding of the coin represents Baby Jesus hiding from King Herod. Different cultures make cakes with hidden coins, beans or trinkets around this time of the year. Include Vasilopita in your recipe repetoire during the 12 days of Christmas, which come to a close on Epiphany (January 6), and celebrate the new year and the Feast Day of St. Basil with this special cake.

Recipe

(Adapted from Cooking with the Saints by Ernst Schuegraf)

For the cake

• ½ cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 ½ cups flour
• 3 eggs
• ½ cup milk
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¾ tablespoon lemon juice
• ½ teaspoon baking soda

For the topping

• 1/3 cup nuts, chopped (we used walnuts)
• 2 tablespoons sugar

Directions

Line an 8-inch round pan with waxed paper. Lightly grease the bottom and sides with cooking spray or vegetable oil. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugar. Add the flour and mix until it resembles coarse crumbs. Beat in the eggs one at a time until well incorporated.

In a measuring cup, pour the milk then stir in the baking powder. Add this to the flour mixture and blend until smooth. In another small cup or shot glass, mix the lemon juice with the baking soda (it will be fizzy). Add this to the cake batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Place a clean coin (optional) in the batter. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping by mixing the chopped nuts and sugar. When the 20-minute baking time is up, remove the cake from the oven and sprinkle the topping over the cake. Return to the oven and continue to bake for 20-30 minutes until the cake is done. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Remove from the pan and transfer to a cake plate or serving platter.

Notes

• If there is a coin hidden in the cake, let others know about the symbolism—and safety!—before they eat their slice. We usually wrap a silver dollar in waxed paper or foil before including it in the cake batter.
• The cake may be decorated with numbers representing the new year.
• Serve Lakror as the main dish, followed by Vasilopita for dessert, for a full meal on the Feast Day of St. Basil. The recipe for Lakror is included in an earlier blog post.
• The Feast Day of St. Basil is observed on January 1 in the Eastern Orthodox Church; January 2 in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran churches; January 15 in the Coptic Christian and Ethiopian Orthodox churches; January 30 in the Byzantine Rite; and June 14 in the Episcopal Church.
• Bake a galette des rois (3 Kings Cake) a few days later with a hidden bean (instead of a coin) to celebrate Epiphany.

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Lakror (St. Basil Meat Pie)

The following recipe, adapted from Cooking with the Saints, was submitted by Hi Cookery in honor of the feast of St. Basil the Great.  Thank you Highlander and Islander!

January 2: Feast Day of St. Basil the Great

Lakror has an aromatic and tasty ground meat filling sandwiched between layers of crisp, buttery and flaky phyllo dough. Like many special dishes associated around the new year and Epiphany, this meat pie may contain a hidden trinket, such as a coin, to represent the Baby Jesus hiding from King Herod. Traditionally, the one who finds the coin in his/her slice will be blessed with good luck in the coming year!

Recipe

(Adapted from Cooking with the Saints by Ernst Schuegraf)

Ingredients

• 1 ½ tablespoons butter
• ¼ cup onion, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• ¾ pound lean ground meat (we used beef but it is traditionally a mixture of ground beef and lamb)
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• pepper to taste
• ¼ cup fresh parsley, minced
• ¼ cup cooked rice
• 3 eggs
• 1 (8 ounces) package of phyllo dough, defrosted according to the package instructions
• ½ cup butter, melted

Directions

In a skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Saute the onions until transparent. Add the ground meat and stir to break up any large chunks. Season with garlic, salt, oregano and pepper. Drain off any grease.

Mix in the parsley, rice and eggs until well blended. Set aside.

Cut the phyllo dough sheets to fit a 9 x 13-inch rectangle or 10×10-inch square baking pan. Brush the bottom of the pan with melted butter. Lay a sheet of the phyllo dough on the bottom, brush with melted butter, add another sheet, brush with butter again and repeat until half of the sheets (about 10) are layered on top of each other. Spread the meat mixture evenly on this layer. Place a clean coin on top of the meat (optional).

Lay a sheet of phyllo dough on top of the meat mixture, brush with melted butter, add another sheet, brush with butter again and repeat until all sheets of phyllo dough are used. Use a sharp knife to score down the meat pie for easier cutting after it is baked. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees F for 35-45 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven. Slice the pie using the score marks as guides. Serve immediately.

Notes

• To stretch out the filling in the meat pie, feel free to substitute diced potatoes for the rice as an ingredient in lakror.
• Heat any leftovers in the oven instead of in the microwave to retain the crispness of the meat pie.
• If there is a coin hidden in the meat pie, let others know about the symbolism—and safety!—before they eat their slice.
• The Feast Day of St. Basil is observed on January 1 in the Eastern Orthodox Church; January 2 in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran churches; January 15 in the Coptic Christian and Ethiopian Orthodox churches; January 30 in the Byzantine Rite; and June 14 in the Episcopal Church.

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