We've probably talked about this before.

Lent started yesterday. Ash Wednesday, a day when many traditional churches dispense a cross of ashes to a person's forehead to remind us that Christ died for us... and lives for us. And that we are simple beings, from ashes and to ashes eventually.

That seems so very sober. And it is... but it's beautiful, too, for what are we if we don't come to spiritual and emotional terms with mortality? Our own and others?

So Lent is that season of remembrance. It's not commercialized the way Advent is, leading up to a very secular form of Christmas...

And we don't decorate the house for Lent... we wash our souls.

It's like the spring cleaning of our inner selves. We think. We pray. We resolve. We try harder...

We forgive and we ask forgiveness.

Lent can be a season of atonement and a season of doing. Of doing unto others and making ourselves available as needed.

Christ spent 40 days in the wilderness.

We spend those same 40 days in heated homes with stocked cupboards and refrigerators.

And yet we still complain.

How did he do it, I wonder? Was he tempted by all the stinkin' devil offered? Did it look so grand, the chance for amazing, awesome power???

Instead of the cross?



Oh mylanta, I am so gobsmacked by that.

So today we're looking ahead prayerfully. We're searching hearts and souls for how we can be a better person, a better family, a better community.

For God gave his only begotten son to us. To me and you and our families and EVERYONE!!!!

Oh, that God! He's something, isn't he?

I am sending you blessings during this season of prayer and atonement. I pray that your Lenten experience brings you closer to God, to your family, to your friends.... that old wrongs are repaired and new hearts are treasured.

Wishing the full blessing of this Lenten season!



Multi-published inspirational author Ruth Logan Herne is awed by God for good reason... and she does love her coffee and chocolate and diet Mt. Dew, none of which impair her driving abilities and being a true New Yorkers, she's an amazing driver... if she does say so herself!

Follow Ruthy on Twitter, friend her on facebook, stop by her website ruthloganherne.com or email her at loganherne@gmail.com. She loves to hear from folks!

Hello everybody!!

                                        
I think Jan already did beer brats, but I'd never tried them until a friend gave me some hard cider. If you're not familiar with hard apple cider, it's cider fermented with hops. So, beer with apple juice? It certainly doesn't taste like apple cider OR beer, but it's AMAZING for cooking!
                                                            
Here's one bottle. We were mixing varieties, and they did taste slightly different, but I don't think that was a bad thing.

                                                                
Harvest apple variety. We have quite a few nice microbreweries, and they're all of the western side of the state. I don't like beer and my husband doesn't drink, so we don't really go there... but these places have the best food around. Anyway, here's the second large bottle.  We boiled some standard fresh sausages in the beer for about 15 minutes.

Then we put them on a baking sheet and broiled for about ten minutes, or until nice and crispy. MMMMMMM, they smelled so good!
Now, the ones on the left were boiled in water. Some of my kids refused to eat anything touched by beer. Like I'm raising little Baptists! LOL. The ones on the right are the beer version. (You can tell which have been "drinking".)

 This picture really doesn't do it justice...
 So, while the sausages are broiling, add sliced sweet onions to the beer and boil until soft. These have an amazing flavor!
 We ran out of buns and that was fine with me. They were delicious just by themselves. Too bad we do a meatless Lent because I'll have to wait for Easter to have them again!


 Elias is a little too close to that cake.
 Finished product!
 And again!
 Edna had to emerge from retirement because the recipe I used was really lumpy (had softened cream cheese that would NOT mix in by hand). She did a great job! We love you Edna!

That's it for now! Be sure to stop by my facebook author pages Mary Jane Hathaway or Virginia Carmichael for all my books news. And have a wonderful Lent!

Today is March 1st,  and this year it is also Ash Wednesday.

So Happy March and, well, I'm not going to wish you a happy Lent, but I do hope you have a blessed one that is spiritually rewarding.

One of my students was telling me today of the big ceremony they'd had at her church last weekend, locking the Hallelujah banner in a dark crate to keep until it was reopened on Easter. I'd never heard of that tradition, but it seemed very dramatic and it certainly made an impression on her!



So, fish on Ash Wednesday and Fridays.

When I was growing up, eating fish on Fridays (or at least abstaining from meat) was still a regulation (All Fridays, not just during Lent). My husband and I always eat fish on Fridays, not because of any rule, but because we like fish (and maybe family tradition).

So, that got me pondering. If we are supposed to eat fish - to abstain from eating meat - as a penance or sacrifice, what happens when you actually like fish better than meat?

I mean giving up meat on Fridays isn't much of a sacrifice for a person who doesn't really eat it.

And the fish - I mean really - fried fish???  How is that a penance? It's delicious!!!!!

So, I decided to look up some information, and I stumbled across a review of this book.

Why Do Catholics Eat Fish on Friday?: The Catholic Origin to Just About Everything

I love the Amazon description:

Did you know that the origins of Groundhog Day stem from a Catholic tradition? Or that the common pretzel was once a Lenten reward for the pious? Why Do Catholics Eat Fish on Friday is a fascinating guide to the roots of all-things-Catholic. This smart and concise guide will introduce readers to the hidden heritage in many commonplace things that make up contemporary life. The reader-friendly format and the illuminating entries will make this guide a perfect gift for Catholics and anyone who loves a bit of historic trivia.

The review also contained this gem that answered the Why Fish question.

Technically, it's the flesh of warmblooded animals that's off limits — an animal "that, in a sense, sacrificed its life for us, if you will," explains Michael Foley, an associate professor at Baylor University and author of Why Do Catholics Eat Fish On Friday?
Fish are coldblooded, so they're considered fair game. "If you were inclined to eat a reptile on Friday, you could do that, too."

Um, Fried snake anyone????

And DO NOT come on here telling me it's a "southern thing" or a "Texas thing" or I may, I don't know. Scream or something. The idea of eating reptiles, *SHUDDER*.

I guess that would be doing penance!


Okay, so I decided I would try to find a healthy fish recipe to share that did not involve frying, because you know, tradition says we used up all the fat in the house on Mardi Gras.


Actually, confession time. I made this last week because I had some salad that was on its last legs and I'd just gotten some lovely haddock.  But I decided it really would be the perfect Lenten dish.

Except for the pomegranates. I'm still not convinced that it wasn't a pomegranate Eve used to tempt Adam. 


So here goes ~

If you have some lettuce that is wilting, this is a great use. I just dry roasted it briefly to crisp it up.

If your lettuce is fresh, you could easily make the salad with just the uncooked lettuce.

Next, my broiled haddock. Um, it did have butter and lemon on it. I feel like that merits a deduction. (Trying very hard not to sound sacrilegious here).

The lemon made a sort of dressing. I sprinkled pomegranate arils on top because I found a bargain of super, extra-ripe, end of season pomegranates last week.

Doesn't it look pretty?





It tasted delicious.

Which may defeat the point of fish on Fridays.

Anyone have a good reptile recipe?

Hello, everybody! The Fresh Pioneer is back and I have a tasty dish for your Friday in Lent. For those of you who don't practice Lent, a season leading up to Easter, it's tradition to abstain from meat and snacking on Fridays. Some people give up meat and snacks all through Lent, some have bread and water on Fridays, and I know quite a few who only have bread and water the whole forty days. I don't know if I could do that, but I love this ancient practice of following in Jesus' footsteps as he fasted and prayed in the desert for forty days.

So, this follows the traditional recipe except for a few additions. I don't think I've ever cooked tuna casserole before, actually. My kids said they remember having it at a church potluck, but I've never cooked it because it calls for condensed soup, and I have an MSG allergy. So, I made a small side dish that left out the condensed soup.
                                     

 You'll need :
two packages noodles, any kind
fresh broccoli
1 cup cheddar
2 can condensed mushroom soup
2 large cans white chunk tuna in water
1 large can mushrooms
potato chips, if desired
                              
Preheat the oven to 350F
                             
Add chopped, fresh broccoli to a steamer and steam until cooked to the desired amount.
I mixed one batch and added the cheese and potato chips.
                            
At this point my kids are thinking this is pretty weird.
                             
The potato chip loving child is looking teary-eyed at such a waste of good chips. LOL
                                            
The second batch I added Slap Ya Mama spices, broccoli, and left off the potato chips.
 The non spicy, no veggie version is out of the oven and several kids are willing to try it. And... they say it's edible!
 The spicy, broccoli mix is out and everyone says it's delicious!
                                           
It's been a long time since I've had canned mushrooms and they seemed a little chewy-squeaky to me so I might make this again with some sauteed fresh mushrooms, but otherwise... DELICIOUS. For my non MSG dish, I added a few splashes of whole milk, a little more salt, and lots of broccoli. Definitely a filling dish for this cold, rainy day!

Another shot of the goods, which I think is very close to Jan's recipe.
And the cute little grater she brought.
She even brought two containers and I got to choose between red or teal (they both match my decor, so hard to decide) and the measuring spoon for the bucket!

Now, it's Lent so I was making a meatless meal tonight. We don;t eat that much meat, usually. We're more pie and ice cream people. (I'm just kidding. Please don't call CPS.)
So, this recipe is probably pretty standard for salmon patties but instead of cracker crumbs, I added flavored croutons. A friend of mine said she always made them that way and once I tried it, I liked it better!

1 can of salmon (or fresh salmon, which I had, so I used that)
1/3 cup minced onion
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp Old Bay seasoning or other Cajun seasoning (or, seasoned salt, which I used this time because one of my kids asked for "plain" salmon patties)
1 TBS fresh parsley
1/4 tsp fresh lemon juice (my friend uses zest but I never have)
1 cup of crushed crackers (about 20) or a cup of crushed croutons
1 egg
3 TBS of water or chicken broth

 I boiled the salmon instead of roasting it in foil with lemon and garlic like we do sometimes. reserve a half cup of the salted water if you don't use a can of salmon.
 Break into smaller chunks.
 Add onion.
 And croutons and spices and eggs.
 Form into patties. And this is where I left the kitchen since I hate hot grease. My husband took over and look what a great job he did!
 Obviously, this is his plate since it has a big serrano pepper. And beets. I'm not a fan of beets. I had plain salad, some sliced tomatoes and a few slices of fresh lemon..
I had trouble taking this picture because it was steaming up my camera lens.

Wishing you a prayerful Lenten season, everyone!

Here in North Carolina, we've had a mild winter so far. Last week, we even had temps in the 70s. ManO and I've lived in our area long enough to know summer in January or February is a bad sign. There's a winter storm coming right behind all that glorious spring break weather. 

Sure enough, the Jaws music played again. Meteorologists called for a snow possibility and then changed it to an ice storm definitely. Forget Snowpocalypse three years ago, at least that was just snow.

I love snow. Ice is an entirely different matter.

We don't do ice well here in North Carolina. At. ALL. One ice storm we had was a pitiful inch at an early rush hour. People were stuck on I-40 for seven hours, getting out of their cars to do their business behind bushes or just plain old walk home. Children were stranded overnight in schools.  Their teachers and staff stayed with them. They were saints. So you see why we might go a little overboard on cancellations. This time folks heeded warnings and left early...so they could mob the grocery stores.

My beloved snow boots need spikes!

When it comes to storms around here, there are two kinds of people, Pancake people or French Toast fans (as most folks call them, Bread and Milk people). My sister pointed out she has a snow day tradition of waffle making. But waffles are just crazy pancakes IMHO.

Bad weather forecast? French Toast people risk life and limb to get these two items. Plus the eggs which I totally forgot to get more of.

This week's ice storm hit right before Fat/Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day. The tradition of eating pancakes right before Ash Wednesday came from when Christians were required to get all the fat and sweet stuff out of their house before Lent.  No point in being tempted for forty days! Take that butter, flour, eggs, syrup and make pancakes. BUT our community pancake suppers were cancelled all over town. Bummed doesn't begin to describe how we felt.

The good news? I had pancake supper ingredients including gluten free pancake mix, syrup and the last two eggs in the carton. Yankee Belle is full of recipes. I didn't need to go the grocery store. No, let me be honest, I was scared to go. The Publix, Harris Teeters and Food Lions were packed with milk and bread people. Long lines, people fighting over the last of everything, and being impatient because they were sure they were going to get stuck in the storm before they got out of the parking lot. Whew. There's no place like home...so long as there's a stocked pantry.

I didn't have to make a full recipe's worth of pancakes but I did. The great thing about these is they freeze well. And believe me, it's freezing here! Down to lower single digits the rest of the week!

Naked pancakes waiting to be all dressed up!

Pancake Supper Buffet Ideas: Feel free to add your own bacon, sausage, ham and pancake toppings. 

Hawaiian Pancakes   - My favorite pancakes of all time and makes me think of Hawaii, which I need right now. I use Pamela's gluten-free baking mix for this one.

Missy's easy Sweet Potato Pancakes   The great thing about these Southern inspired pancakes is you can use gluten-free Bisquick in the mix.

Ruthy's Pancake Heaven   Our New Yorker knows how to win my heart. Chocolate and peanut butter chips! Need I say more? Yes, it's also easy-peasy as she likes to say, thanks to Bisquick.

So, are you a bread and milk person or pancake person when it comes to storms? Did you go to a pancake supper for Shrove Tuesday?  Do you observe giving up something for Lent or do you plan to mark the days in some way before Easter?

 And whose toes are those? (Dr. Seuss would know.) Julianne's toes! Does she look familiar? No? I'll give you another hint...
 There's her big brother on the left. (See how she adores him?)
                                 
He's got the touch. You stick your face right in there and pretend to eat her fat little cheeks.
 And she laughs her head off! Nothing sweeter than sibling love. But you still can't guess whose baby this is? OK, I'll give you another hint... Remember that post about Artisan Savory Pumpkin Rolls? Our babysitter, Cassey, is magical with children and had been fighting off single dads across the state.... Until one day, she met a cellar rat (his words, not mine!), fell in love and married him. Here's a picture of their little family then...
                                 
So, I've also been juicing several meals a day (that means, fruits and vegetables, not juicing hamburgers, although that sounds pretty good right now). I've kicked the caffeine habit and it wasn't that bad, which probably means I wasn't drinking as much coffee as I thought. But Edna isn't really impressed with the juicing. She needs to create and bake... not liquify.
                                      
I got this great coffee cookbook from the library and she said there was more than just drinks in there.
                          
I try not to look at this picture too closely. *gnaws on own hand*
                             
    And this looks especially delicious!
But in the end, we decided the Coffee Crumb Cake would hit the spot.

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Ingredients:
  Topping
2/3 cup flour
5 TBS butter
1/2 tsp allspice
1 1/2 tsp espresso, ground
1/3 cup sugar
  Cake
4 TBS butter, softened, and a little more for greasing
 1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
Icing
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tbs strong espresso
                                   
 The crew, all assembled.
 
I know this shows four eggs, but I just love our Americuna chickens! The eggs are SO PRETTY.
 I ordered this off Amazon. A great espresso ground and works prefectly in my latte maker!
 I found this little vintage Pyrex at a yard sale. So cute! So tiny! So yellow!
 Ok, mix all the topping ingredients into a bowl, cutting the butter into the flour mix with a pastry tool. You can use a food processor but Edna was giving directions and if it's good enough for Edna, it's good enough for me.
 Set aside the topping. In a bowl, mix the cake ingredients, beating until smooth. (You like my wooden spoon? My sister was scandalized to hear I DID NOT OWN A WOODEN SPOON. Disregarding the question of how I beat my children without one ((kidding!)), how could I cook? Every good cook must have a wooden spoon. And it's true! She got me three. So, now I cook three times as well. :)
 Pour into the greased pan.
 Add topping. Pop into oven.
 Oooo, this frosting smelled SO GOOD.
 The recipe said to leave the cake in for 35 minutes or until a toothpick came out clean, but it it took much longer. Maybe my oven is off. but it didn't start to puff until about 45 minutes and then the toothpick inserted didn't come out clean until close to 50 minutes. Let it set for about ten minutes before cutting. (I forgot this part and the pieces were a little squashed.)
 Gratuitous dripping frosting picture.
 It really was a good recipe, nice and fluffy. Very aromatic but not overwhelming with the allspice and the coffee.
 I'd like to say this is my piece, but I think I ate two... or more... So, saying "my piece" is a bit of a lie! "One of my pieces" is a better term.
 Ok, leaving you with some pictures of the lunar eclipse. It was freezing cold and I was shaking like crazy, but the new camera still was great!
 I love how the color begins to change...
 Almost completely eclipsed...
Just a sliver left! At this point, my camera wouldn't figure out what in the heck I was trying to shoot, and just whirred, unable to find the focus. But I was thrilled with what I got!

 Ok, everyone, have a wonderful Holy Week and I'll see you back here after Easter! Doesn't that sound good? EASTER. It feels like Lent has been exxxxtrrrrrraaaaa long this year. I couldn't help but put out our pysanky a little early.