So very often we look to Lent as a time for renewal and strengthening of our faith. We want to change things about our lives by praying more, by doing things that are good for ourselves and others and to work on pushing out sin from our lives. But when it actually comes to what we are going to do or give up for Lent that is the question that many of us struggle with.
Each week of Lent this year Feeding Our Faith will post a Lenten reflection that you can do by yourself, as a couple or as a family along with a recipe that you could make for Friday. So check back here weekly for that weeks reflection and recipe as we will post the recipe by Wednesday each week so you can go to the grocery store if need be.
Friday of the 3rd Week of Lent 2015
Reading: Mark 12:28-34
Reflection: Love of God and love of neighbor. Two commands that are so very simply stated and yet they are not always the easiest to live out. If we were asked if we loved God I think all of us would say that we do, but yet love of God means that God is placed as the most important thing in our life. Yet so very many times we allow other things to take the place of God, whether it be worries, fear, concerns for things going on in our lives, stuff that we want or countless other things. Love of neighbor is not easy to live out? When dealing with others who are our neighbors we never know what they are going through, what has happened to them or what burdens they may be carrying. So sometimes it is difficult to love our neighbor when our interactions with them may be tense or even volatile. Love of God and neighbor. Two simply stated commands that are not always easy to live out during this Lenten season.
Questions:
1. What are the ways that you can show love to God?
2. Which neighbor do you find difficult to love?
3. Who do you need to forgive during this Lenten season?
4. Do you need to seek forgiveness of others or of God this Lenten season?
Recipe:
Penne a la Vodka
After my first year of graduate seminary down in Houston I got together with some of the guys I was in College Seminary with for a few days. This recipe is a recipe I learned from one of them who was studying in Rome. He said that he often made it himself.
Ingredients:
1 box of Penne pasta
2 tablespoons of Olive Oil
5 cloves of garlic minced
½ cup of vodka
1 large can of Diced tomatoes
1 regular sized can of tomato sauce
1 small can of tomato paste
½ teaspoon of red chili pepper flakes
Your favorite Italian seasonings such as Basil or Oregano
½ cup of Heavy whipping cream
Directions:
In a large stock pot fill the pot with water until it is about ¾ full and put it on the stove on medium high. While waiting for the pot of water to come to a boil grab a large sauce pan or frying pan and put the olive oil in it and heat it at medium. When the oil is hot put the minced garlic in the pan and begin to sauté it. Watch the heat and only heat the garlic until it becomes soft, do not burn or brown the garlic, so adjust the heat accordingly. Next remove the pan from the heat and pour the vodka in and return the pan to the heat. Turn the heat up to high and begin stirring until this mixture comes to a boil. Remove from the heat and light with a long BBQ lighter or a long fireplace match and be careful! Make sure nothing flammable is close by and maybe have a fire extinguisher nearby! How is this for an exciting Friday during Lent!? Keeping the pan off of the stove top yet above the heat gently swirl the mixture in the pan to encourage the alcohol to burn off. Once you have no more visible flames return the pan to the stove top and quickly add all three cans of tomato products. Stir this mixture and bring to a simmer. Add your spices and the chili pepper flakes and continue to simmer this for at least 15 to 20 minutes. Next, put the penne pasta in the pot and boil the pasta until your desired level of doneness. Drain the pasta and then return to the pot but make sure the pot is not on the stove top. Next combine the cream and the tomato sauce and stir until well incorporated. The sauce should have a pinkish hue to it. Combine the sauce with the pasta in the pot and serve immediately.
Friday of the Second Week of Lent 2015
Reading: Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46
Reflection: So how is your Lent going so far? Has it been a struggle? Has it challenged you to prayer, fasting or good works that are not a normal part of your life outside of Lent? Are you noticing any difference in your life or in the lives around you because of what you are doing this Lent? The Gospel speaks about our needing to produce fruit with our lives and with what we have been given. Lent can be and should be a fruitful time for us whether we are drawn closer to Christ through prayer, are able to discipline ourselves through fasting and therefore eliminate unhealthy habits? Have you found ways of doing good for others and for those in need and therefore made someone else’s life a little better? We are still in the early part of Lent and it still can be a very fruitful time for us. Don’t let Lent pass you by without it affecting your life.
Questions for Reflection:
What are the ways in which your Lenten sacrificing is bearing fruit in your life or in the life of someone else?
How are you living the spirit of Lent in fasting, prayer and/or almsgiving this past week and how will you next week?
Friday during Lent Recipe #3:
Shrimp Boil
While I was in seminary down in Houston they would have a big crawfish boil each year. Since I loved to cook I would always lend a helping hand or at least hang around and watch how they did it. Crawfish is not always the easiest thing to get here in North Texas, so years ago I would get together with friends and have a small shrimp boil.
Ingredients:
½ pound of shrimp per person (fresh or frozen are fine; I usually choose the ones with their shell and tail still on, but split down the back with the vein removed to make it easier to peel them)
½ to 2/3 cup of olive oil or butter
3 to 5 tablespoons of Old Bay Seasoning
1 to 2 bottles of Louisiana Hot Sauce
1 cup of salt
1 red potato per person
1 small corn on the cob per person
1 bulb of garlic with the top removed, but the cloves still in the bulb per person
½ lemon per person
1 large yellow onion sliced into thick slices
Directions:
Fill a large stock pot a little over 2/3 full of water and put it on the stove. Turn the heat to high and if using frozen shrimp remove them from the freezer and place them in the sink at this time. While the water is heating up to a rolling boil add the oil/butter, Old Bay, half of a bottle of Louisiana Hot Sauce and salt to the water and stir. At this point taste the water. If it is not spicy enough add more Louisiana Hot Sauce until it is the right level of heat. The water should taste salty, if it is not salty add more salt. As this mixture begins to heat up cut your lemons in half, cut the tops off of your garlic exposing the cloves but still keep the cloves in the bulb. Clean your potatoes and by the time you have all of this done your pot should be getting close to boiling. Once the water is boiling throw in your garlic, onion, potatoes and corn on the cob, then squeeze the lemons so the juice goes into the pot and go ahead and put the juiced lemons in there as well. Bring this back up to a boil and let it boil for 10 minutes. Next, add your shrimp to the boiling pot and stir well. Boil this mixture for 8 minutes or until the shrimp are pink in color and firm to the touch. If your shrimp are frozen you may need to wait until the pot comes back up to a boil, boil it for a few minutes and then check the shrimp for doneness. Remove the shrimp, potatoes, corn and garlic with a slotted spoon and place into a bowl for serving or for something fun, put a table outside and cover it with newspaper and put all of the shrimp and veggies onto this. Serve with plenty of napkins and a loaf of French bread.
*note* If you are using a lot of shrimp and your pot is not quite this big:
You may need to cook the shrimp in several batches. You can add more water to the pot and then bring back to a boil if the level gets low.
Friday of the First Week of Lent 2015
Gospel Reading: Matthew 5:20-26
Reflection: Forgiveness is a word that we all understand. When we have done something wrong, we seek God’s forgiveness. When we hurt someone that we care for, we often seek their forgiveness for what it was that we did to them. But how are we at forgiving others? This Gospel speaks about the need for forgiveness we have in our lives, a forgiveness that is not just limited to us seeking forgiveness for what we have done, but it also includes the challenge for us to be willing to forgive others for when they hurt us. Sometimes that is difficult for us to do because we have a tendency to hold grudges against others, but the forgiveness which God offers to us is a forgiveness that we not only receive but we are called to show to others.
Questions for Reflection:
1. Who in my life right now do I need to ask for forgiveness?
2. Who in my life right now do I need to forgive?
3. If there is someone that I have a difficult time forgiving, do I pray for that person and for the grace I need to be able to forgive?
Recipe:
Salmon Patties
*When I was growing up these were a tasty treat during Lent that gave us a break from grilled cheese sandwiches and fish sticks. But when I was a kid we used canned tuna instead of canned salmon. We still called them salmon patties even though we used tuna, so the first time someone presented me with salmon patties made with actual salmon I was quite confused as to why it was pink and not grey. Enjoy these with salmon or tuna, they are great with either!
1 can of Salmon (14 and ¾ ounce drained with skin and bones removed if there are any)
¼ cup of white onion finely minced
6 Ritz crackers crushed
1 large egg, beaten
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ground pepper
¾ stick of butter
1 tbsp. Mayonnaise (just for back up)
In a large frying pan melt the butter at medium high. While the pan is heating and the butter melting mix the first 6 ingredients in a large bowl. You can use a spoon, or really get into it by mixing it with your hands. As you mix this feel to make sure the mixture is moist, but not too wet. If it is too wet you will want to mix in a few more crushed Ritz crackers. If it is too dry and difficult to form into patties you can add the Mayonnaise. Once the mixture is well mixed form into 6 patties that are about 1 inch thick. Fry each of these patties in the pan with the butter about 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until each side is golden brown. Place the cooked patties on a plate lined with a few sheets of paper towel to absorb the butter. Serve right away! I usually eat these with a little ketchup, but some people prefer tartar sauce or cocktail sauce. They go great with a simple green salad or a fruit salad. These do not go real well as left overs, but they never stayed around long enough in our house for them to be leftovers!
Friday after Ash Wednesday
Reading: Matthew 9:14-15
Reflection: When I was growing up I can remember trying to convince my parents that the hamburgers at school were not made of real meat; therefore it was ok for me to eat them on a Friday during Lent. My Dad would always say that regardless, I would be abstaining from meat because we are Catholic and that is what we do. As time went on and I entered seminary, I began to understand that fasting and abstinence are not just things we do because it is a part of our Catholic culture, they have purpose and reason. Jesus’ response to the disciples of John indicates that there will be times of fasting for us. We fast and we abstain because they give us the opportunity to focus more on prayer and our relationship with God, which brings us closer to Christ by doing without things that we desire to redirect our desire towards Christ.
Questions for reflection:
1. At the beginning of Lent, what will days of fasting or abstinence look like for you?
2. What will you do with the extra time that fasting gives to you?
3. As you abstain from something during Lent, how will your abstaining benefit others?
Over these weeks of Lent we will be posting a recipe along with a Lenten reflection so that you can have something that may be new or different to try for yourself or your family during Lent. Enjoy this Lent as we feed ourselves, and we are Feeding Our Faith!
Friday during Lent Recipe #1
Shrimp Fra Diavolo
Ingredients:
1lb. Medium sized fresh or frozen deveined shrimp with shells on
Salt and Pepper
1 medium yellow onion cut into thin slices
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
½ cup of dry white wine
½ tablespoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon red chili pepper flakes (more if you like things really spicy)
1 can of peeled whole San Marzano Tomatoes
Juice of one small lemon with half of the zest
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 to 2 tablespoons of fresh basil chopped
1 pkg of Linguine
Grated Parmesan Cheese
Directions:
If shrimp are frozen, then allow to defrost in your refrigerator for several hours. Remove the shells and the tails and place the shrimp to the side, but keep the shells handy. Lightly salt and pepper the shrimp. Begin heating a pot of salted water for your pasta. Peel and slice the yellow onion into thin slices.
Remove the tomatoes from the can and leave the tomato juice behind. Cut the tomatoes into small pieces and set to the side. In a large frying pan, put the butter and the olive oil in there and set the heat to medium. After the pan is hot, put the shrimp in there and cook 1 to 2 minutes per side. You just want to cook the outside and give it some color; you want to still leave them so they are not completely cooked.
Remove shrimp from the pan and put the sliced onions in the pan. Cook the onions until they are beginning to soften and have some color to them. Your water should now be boiling. Take the shells from the shrimp and put them in the water and boil them until they turn pink. Remove the shells from the water and throw the shells away. At this point, put your pasta in the pot and boil according to the directions on the package, which will probably be six minutes for al dente pasta. While the pasta is cooking, pour the white wine into the pan with the onions, and then add the chopped tomatoes, the oregano, the juice of the lemon and the lemon zest, the chili pepper flakes and the garlic.
Turn the heat to medium high and cook this mixture until it begins to thicken. If it gets too thick, feel free to add some of the juice left in the can from the tomatoes. Add the shrimp and cook for 2 minutes making sure to mix well so that everything gets well incorporated. Drain the pasta and put the pasta into the pan and mix it with the sauce and shrimp and allow this mixture to cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the basil, mix and serve immediately with Parmesan cheese on top.
Makes 3 to 4 servings