Lent: Holy Thursday

Today is Holy Thursday ... tonight starts the Triduum (the three holiest days of the year) when Jesus fulfills his mission here on earth. Here's an impression of the Last Supper -- when Jesus instituted the Eucharist, something Catholics remember EVERYTIME Mass is celebrated; this is when the bread and wine truly become the body and blood of Jesus Christ! How cool is that????LegoManiac served the Holy Thursday Mass tonight -- the washing of the feet, the commemoration of the Last Supper and the transfer of the Holy Eucharist with reposition of the Blessed Sacrmant in the tabernacle.

An interesting thing we learned this year is the idea of Grundonnerstag from the Germanic countries. Translated loosely, this means "green Thursday"; this is actually a slippage from the original which used the German word "gruen" for grieving or mourning. But, we followed Jennifer's advice from Catholic Cuisine and made only green things for dinner: coleslaw with lots of raisins and toasted walnuts (and homemade dressing) and spinach pie! Wow, that was a hit!

Here's the recipe we used (with our changes in parentheses -- I NEVER can follow directions!)
Spinach Pie

crust for 9" pie (2 shells; we used the Pillsbury shells in the refrig section
(1) 16oz. pkg frozen spinach - thawed
(1) 16oz. container ricotta cheese (we used cottage cheese)
1 cup fresh grated parmesan (we used 1 cup "pizza" shredded cheese)
1 large onion - chopped and sauteed in olive oil
1-2 tsp italian herbs (mix of oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme, marjoram)
3 eggs (we skipped the eggs because I didn't even see them in this recipe; boy, am I getting old!)

Press one pie shell into the bottom and sides of pie dish. Saute chopped onion in oil olive. Add thawed spinach to warm the spinach and mix in the onions. Cool. Add ricotta (cottage cheese) and ricotta into spinach mixture. Spoon into pie pan. Cover with remaining shell. Trim edges and slit top for venting -- we made a cross for the vent. Bake at 400 for 45 minutes -- cover with foil for the last 15 minutes if crust is getting too brown. Without the eggs, this actually tasted very reminiscent of spanakopita! YUMMY!

Recipe: Apple Orange Bread

Last night, being a Friday, we went meatless and "orange-themed": homemade mac'n'cheese, raw carrots, apple-orange bread with butter. It was a great meal but the point of this post is the amazing apple-orange bread.

I was going to make a pumpkin bread for supper; with cream cheese, it's a sensational complement to a meatless meal. However, when checking my recipes, I found a copy of "Virginia's Apple Orange Bread". I have no idea where I got this recipe ... but I must have printed it from somewhere as it has all kinds of personal notes. I tweaked it a bit for my family and it was an amazing addition to dinner (which was a good thing as the homemade mac'n'cheese lacked ... something!) Here's the recipe we made.
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Virginia's Apple Orange Bread (makes 2 loaves)
(preheat oven to 350)

Put in blender:

• 1/2 cup salad oil
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1-1/3 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs

Blend well

• Add 2 apples, cored, chunked, not peeled
• Add 1 orange, cut, seeded, but include peel

Blend for 2 minutes on medium

• 1 cup golden raisins
• 1/2 cup nuts

Blend all for a further 15 seconds

Sift into separate bowl:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cloves

Stir the blended fruit mixture into dry ingredients with a wooden spoon just until mixed. Overstirring will make an overly dry bread. Spray two regular sized loaf pans with oil. Put mixture in them.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Cool and remove from pans. These freeze very well. The bread is delicious with butter, cream cheese or even plain.
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If you know where I got this recipe ... for instance, if it's yours ... please note that it in the comments below. It's so good and I want to give credit where it's due!

Recipe: Salmon Burgers on Homemade Buns

With Lent coming soon, I thought I'd post this wonderful meatless-meal! This is what we had last night and it was a real winner:

Salmon Burgers (makes 9-12 burgers, depending on how large you make them)


Four 6-oz cans salmon, drained & flaked
1/2 c. finely shredded Cheddar cheese
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
2/3 c. lightly toasted rolled oats (10-15 minutes in 350 oven)
1/2 c. chopped celery
1/2 c. mayonnaise
2 eggs
2 tbsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. horseradish sauce

In medium bowl, combine all ingredients until well mixed. Divide into 8-12 equal parts and form 1/2 inch thick patties. Preheat a generously greased griddle (I used butter) or skillet on medium-high heat. Cook a total of 8-10 minutes, turning them after 4-5 minutes. Note: This recipe is good hot or cold.


Homemade Buns for Salmon Burgers (makes 10-12 five-inch-round buns)

· 2 cups milk
· 1/4 c (1/2 stick) butter
· 1/4 c warm water
· 1/4 c white sugar
· 4-1/2 tsp yeast (2 packets)
· 2 teaspoons salt
· 1/4 c ground flax seed
· 1/4 c raw wheat germ (not toasted)
· 2 c whole wheat flour
· 3 to 4 c all-purpose flour, or as needed

DIRECTIONS
Mix the first five ingredients together in a pyrex measuring cup, then microwave until the liquid temperature hits about 110-120 degrees (stir until butter melts completely). Add the yeast, stirring well; set aside until bubbly (5-10 minutes).
Add salt and flaxseed, wheatgerm and whole-wheat flour and enough all-purpose to make a stretchy, sticky dough.
Flour countertop and knead for 5-10 minutes.
Break dough into roughly equal balls – you’ll get 10-12 rolls from this recipe.
Flatten balls slightly and place on greased cookie sheets.
Cover with a towel and allow to rise for 20-30 minutes (until doubled).
Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes.