Courage

Tonight I received a late night call from a friend.

She was distraught over what I too have been dealing with lately: defending our faith against homosexuality.

Everywhere I go I meet people dealing with this disorder: the hair dressers, my culinary class, school clubs... And more and more our culture keeps force feeding the lie that homosexuality is natural, and that we should be accepting, or better yet "tolerating" of it. But no. We cannot remain silent. If you saw a friend drowning, would you not throw them a safety net?

But how does one go about this?  Well, turns out Holy Mother Church is the safety net.

Fr. John Hollowel of Indiana has great YouTube channel full of videos that explore the Church's teaching on the subject.  These videos are from the religion class he teaches, and some homilies. Check them out! Know your faith!

The Guardian

It is always a treat to have friends visit. Especially when you don't see them very often... There is a joy that comes with catching up, as if there could never be too great of a distance between the friendship.

St. Stanisalus

Church touring with a friend. 

Holy Trinity 

Beautiful inside and out!

The children of the world are separated one from another because their hearts are in different places; but the children of God, having their hearts where their treasure is, and sharing only one treasure - which is the same God - are consequently always united and joined together. 
~St. Francis de Sales

Monthly Infant King Novena

O Divine Child Jesus, reign in our hearts! 

O Divine Infant Jesus, I have recourse to
Thee. Please, through Thy Blessed Mother,
assist me in this necessity (mention intention here),
because I firmly believe that Thy Divinity can
help me. I hope with confidence to obtain Thy
holy grace. I love Thee with all my heart and
with all the strength of my soul. I repent
sincerely of my sins and I beg Thee, O Good
Jesus, to grant me the strength to triumph over
them. I resolve never more to offend Thee and I
come to offer myself to Thee with the intention
of enduring everything rather than to displease
Thee. Henceforth, I desire to serve Thee with
fidelity and, for the love of Thee, O Divine
Infant, I will love my neighbor as myself.
 All powerful Infant, O Jesus, I implore
Thee again, assist me in this need. Grant me the
grace of possessing Thee eternally with Mary
and Joseph and of adoring Thee with the angels
in the heavenly court. Amen.

NOVENA PRAYER TO OUR INFANT KING 

Shrine of Christ the King Sovereign Priest 

WWW.INFANTKING.COM 

Novena is to be said the 17th-25th of each month.

Semester #____

Yeah, I've sorta lost count at what semester I'm in, but I'm slowly moving along in my community college culinary program.

This semester I'm studying "Garde Manger" - "to keep to eat."

So far the class has discussed the history of food preservation, caviar (not so tasty on it's own!), appetizers and hors d'oeuvre, cold sauces and condiments (like mayonnaise and mustard), cold soups, plate preservation, and salads. And we are only in the 5th week!  I really can't believe it's going by so fast.

Food preservation.  I always think of canning, but in the food industry, it goes beyond that! Today food preservation consists of the "cold kitchen" or those in charge of the salad station, appetizers, sauces - and the things I mentioned above.  And it's a very important position. 

Condiments for instance: mayonnaise and mustard, help emulsify so many dressings!  Add a little bit of honey mustard to your lemon poppy-seed vinaigrette and you've got a thicker salad dressing! (And oh so good!)

But making mayonnaise from scratch is another story.  After watching a demonstration - that made it look so easy, I confidently walked back to my cooking station and began whisking my egg yolk.  But right after my Chef said "let's see if the entire class can make their mayonnaise perfectly the first time" I started having problems... (fortunately, I wasn't the only one)

You see, all mayonnaise is is an egg yolk, a little vinegar (2 tbl. spoons) and 6-8 oz of oil for each egg yolk.  First, you whisk up the egg yolk and vinegar until slightly foamy  or ribbon stage. (think thick sauce ~ bbq sauce) Then, gradually add your oil in very extremely slowly.  That's where I went wrong.  I added my oil by a steady stream right from the beginning.  When first adding your oil, add it drop by drop.  It should take 5-10 minutes of whisking and gradually adding your oil to incorporate it into the thick consistency you want.  Salt, pepper and lemon juice was added to taste.

In a vinaigrette, the oil and vinegar separate from each other.  But because of the yolk in the mayonnaise, they come together with the help of your whisking muscle.  This is because of a chemical called lecithin found in the egg yolk that makes it an emulsifier.  Fascinating, right?

But besides that mishap, everything else has been going great.  We've made a cherry chutney, a "perfect pesto", yummy mustard, and a mixed berry coulis that was served with chocolate cake.

Next week we start smoking fish and pork!  MmmmMmmm!

"Crown of Roses"

October is the month of the Holy Rosary!

“Never will anyone who says his Rosary every day be led astray. This is a statement that I would gladly sign with my blood.”

Saint Louis de Montfort

The rosary is the book of the blind, where souls see and there enact the greatest drama of love the world has ever known; it is the book of the simple, which initiates them into mysteries and knowledge more satisfying than the education of other men; it is the book of the aged, whose eyes close upon the shadow of this world, and open on the substance of the next. The power of the rosary is beyond description." ~ Ven. Archbishop Sheen

http://www.ewtn.com/Devotionals/prayers/rosary/how_to.htm

Sub tuum

Sub tuum praesidium

confugimus,

Sancta Dei Genetrix.

Nostras deprecationes ne despicias

in necessitatibus nostris,

sed a periculis cunctis

libera nos semper,

Virgo gloriosa et benedicta

Under thy protection

we seek refuge,

Holy Mother of God;

despise not our petitions

in our needs,

but from all dangers

deliver us always,

Virgin Glorious and Blessed.

Warning: I'm fasting today

Maybe it’s because of my doleful given name, but over the years Lent has become one of my favorite seasons.  I have been reading daily mediation from “The Liturgical Year” by Dom Prosper Gueranger to keep me on track this year. So with that being said here’s a little what I’ve read so far:  Holy Mother Church (in her apostolic succession authority) reminds us of the forty days and forty nights of the old testament deluge, the Hebrew people in punishment for their ingratitude in the dessert before they could enter the promised Land, the when God told Ezechiel to lie forty days on his right side as a figure of the siege which was to bring upon destruction in Jerusalem.  It was thus for God chose 40 days for his Son to fast in the dessert.  The act of fasting is pleasing to God and helps purify our souls by denial of the flesh and makes us strong – so that we are worthy to sing the Alleluia once we conquer our enemies: the devil, the flesh and the world! Blessed Lent, everyone! 

Giveaway!

Happy feast of Bl. Jose del Rio who was martyred in Mexico at the age of 14 on this day in 1928. 

Just wanted to let you know about a giveaway going on at Catholic Cuisine!  Comment before the 16th of February, and this apron could be yours!

http://catholiccuisine.blogspot.com/

March for Life 2013

Here's a short video of one of my favorite experiences of this year's March for Life.



P

This video makes me so happy.  Great for those days when you need a little pro-life boost!

(Vatican Radio) Pope Benedict XVI has pledged his support for the March for Life in the United States. Using his @pontifex Twitter handle, the Pope said, "I join all those marching for life from afar, and pray that political leaders will protect the unborn and promote a culture of life." This year's March for Life is marking the 40th anniversary of the US Supreme Court's decision in the case of Roe v. Wade, which made abortion legal in all fifty states. Earlier this week, the Holy Father issued his Message for World Communication Day, in which he called on Catholics to be engaged through all forms of social media, especially new media, in spreading the Good News and building up public discourse. 



Tempura and Quatuor Tempura

Food and Church history...what could be more fascinating?

Fr. Z once posted that...

In the 16th c. Spanish and Portuguese missionaries settled in Nagasaki, Japan.  From their interest in inculturation and out of sensitivity for the ways of the people, they tried to make meatless meals for Embertide, which is a fast time.  They started deep-frying shrimp.  The Japanese ran with and developed it to perfection.  This is “tempura,” again from the Latin term for the Ember Days"Quatuor Tempora".

"Quantuor Tempora" meaning four times a year.  The Ember Day fasts would take place four times a year - with the change of the season.

Missionaries and fusion cuisine!  Awesome!

Now...to find me some authentic Tempura by next Ember Days...

[H/T: Constance]