Recipes for March ~ Month Dedicated to St. Joseph

The Month of March is dedicated to St. Joseph, the husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the foster father of Jesus.

"The silence of Saint Joseph is given a special emphasis. His silence is steeped in contemplation of the mystery of God in an attitude of total availability to divine desires. It is a silence thanks to which Joseph, in unison with Mary, watches over the Word of God, known through the Sacred Scriptures, continuously comparing it with the events of the life of Jesus; a silence woven of constant prayer, a prayer of blessing of the Lord, of the adoration of His holy will and of unreserved entrustment to his providence. It is no exaggeration to think that it was precisely from his "father" Joseph that Jesus learned -- at the human level -- that steadfast interiority which is a presupposition of authentic justice.... Let us allow ourselves to be "filled" with Saint Joseph's silence! In a world that is often too noisy, that encourages neither recollection nor listening to God's voice."   ~ Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus, December 18, 2005

March 1st, St. David (New and Trad.):

• Daffodil Cake for St. David's Day (As well as a couple soup recipes!)

March 3rd, St. Katharine Drexel (New):

• Buffalo Baked Ziti
• Three Sisters Stew

March 4th, St. Casimir (New and Trad.):

• Polish Sugar Cookies

March 7th, St. Thomas Aquinas (Trad.):

• The Feast of St. Thomas Aquinas (Cake can be found here)

March 12th, Feast of St. Gregory the Great (Trad.):

• Enjoying Chant with St. Gregory the Great
• St. Gregory's Cherries (Crisp)

March 17th, St. Patrick (New and Trad.):

Breads

• Blarney Biscuits
• Shepherd's Crook Breadsticks (from Good Shepherd's Garden Party Plans)
• Irish Soda Bread
• Sweet Shamrock Pretzels 
• Shamrock Cinnamon Rolls
• Cinnamon Shamrocks for St. Patrick's Day

 

Appetizers and Side Dishes

• Candied Popcorn
• Irish Spud Strips
• A Sss-snack for St. Patrick's Day
• Pistachio Mallow Salad for St. Patrick's Day
• Rainbow Fruit Platter
• An Irish Flag Veggie Tray

 

Main Dishes

• Irish Beef and Guinness Stew
• Irish Potato Pancakes
• Shamrock Toasties
• St. Patrick's Beans
• St. Patrick's Shamrock Eggs and Fruit Rainbows

 
 

Drinks

• Slainte'
• Saint Patrick's Day Peppermint Candy Shake

Desserts

• Saint Patrick's Shamrock Cupcake Bouquet
• Shamrock Mint Cupcakes
• Other uses for those Saint Nicholas Cookie Cutters!
• Feast Day Sugar Cookies
• "Hills of Ireland" Sundaes
• Shamrock Chocolate Molds would be a fun addition for this feast, and would make a cute and easy decoration for cupcakes, etc.  Here is the link to the inexpensive mold I purchased.   There are all sorts of Shamrock themed baking supplies available including Cookie Cutters, Cake Pans, and Muffin Pans. 

  

March 19th, St. Joseph (New and Trad):

St. Joseph's Altars

• Foods for St. Joseph's Altar
• St. Joseph Altar Blog Fest

Main Dishes

• St. Joseph Salad
• Lily Sandwiches (The lily is a symbol of St. Joseph) 
• Mother Most Pure Calla Lily Sandwiches (The lily is a symbol of St. Joseph)
• Minestrone Soup

Desserts

• St. Joseph Sfinge (Cream Puffs)
• St. Joseph's Staff
• Nativity Cookies
• St. Joseph Raspberry Cream Cupcakes
• Lily Lollipops for St. Joseph
• Gingerbread Tool Box for St. Joseph the Worker

 

St. Joseph's Day Baby Shower

• St. Joseph's Day Baby Shower with recipes for Spinach Potato Frittata, Pesto Crostini, Cream Puff Cake, and Italian Sodas!

  

 

March 24th, Feast of St. Gabriel the Archangel (Trad.):

• Upcoming From Thy Bounty Fair: Angels (With ideas and suggestions!)
• Angel Curls Cookies
• From Thy Bounty Fair - Feasting with the Angels!
• Lily Sandwiches (The Lily is a symbol of St. Gabriel) 
• Blessed Mary Mother of God Brownies (The Fleur-de-lis is a symbol of St. Gabriel) 

March 26th, Annunciation of the Lord (New, Trad.; transferred from March 25, which is Passion Sunday this year.):

• Annunciation Waffles
• Annunciation Blueberry Oatmeal Coffee Cake
• Baked Blueberry & Pecan Crusted French Toast

• Lady Day Feasting (Swedish Waffles and Ukrainian Poppy Seed Bread)
• Lily Sandwiches
• Mother Most Pure Calla Lily Sandwiches
• Marian Blueberry ParFIAT
• Annunciation Pineapple Upside Down Cake
• Bride's Cake with Blueberry Filling
• All Recipes for the Blessed Virgin Mary

Saint Joseph, patron of the Universal Church, pray for us!

Simple Meals for Lent :: Vegetable Spring Rolls

 Photo by Philip Laubner/CRS

This recipe was submitted by Catholic Relief Services. "Sample the food of the Operation Rice Bowl featured-countries with your family and friends by preparing a simple, meatless recipe shared with us by the people we serve around the world. "

Vegetable Spring Rolls 

from Vietnam

Fresh herbs and vegetables rolled in thin rice paper wrappers. The garlic and wine vinegar dipping sauce is the perfect topping for this tangy and tasty meal.

Ingredients:

Sauce

• ¼ cup water
• 1 tsp corn starch
• 2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 cloves garlic, minced and crushed
• 2 Tbsp sugar

Spring Rolls

• 1 cup cooked thin rice noodles
• ½ cup bean sprouts
• 1/3 head of green cabbage, chopped
• 5 green onions, chopped
• ¼ cup carrots, grated or julienned
• ¼ cup fresh herbs (cilantro, basil or mint)
• 1 package rice paper wrappers

Directions:

Combine all sauce ingredients in small saucepan and simmer for 3-5 minutes, stirring until sugar dissolves and mixture begins to thicken. Cool before serving. Cook rice noodles as described on package. Lightly steam cabbage, green onions, and carrots together until slightly tender. Toss noodles, vegetables, and herbs in large bowl. Quickly submerge a rice paper wrapper in warm water and lay on a smooth surface. Place about 2 tablespoons of mix on each wrapper and fold wrapper into shape.

Makes 6 - 8 servings

Photo by Laura Sheahen/Catholic Relief Services

Catholic Relief Services' education programs in Vietnam promote quality education for all people. Finding services and programs for disabled students was a challenge for Giap and his family living in Hanoi. But recently Giap started a web design business after enrolling in a residential school for students with disabilities. There he and his fellow students gained skills and confidence to work in the growing field of web design. With support from Catholic Relief Services, Giap’s school offers programs and accommodations for students who are blind or physically disabled so they can fulfill their potential and realize their dreams. For more information please visit Operation Rice Bowl.

Homemade Muah Chee In 15 Minutes

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Muah Chee which also known as "麻糍" is a very common street food found in local Pasar Malam(night market) which cost about S$1.00 - S$2.00 per box. Since young this has being one of my favourite local snack other than Popiah(spring roll) and Nonya Kueh.

And from what I heard from the older generation they used to make "muah chee" by steaming the glutinous rice flour mixture rather than those shortcut methods that was invested using some modern kitchen gadget such as microwave. So with easy to follow recipe(s) and modern gadget(s) it is not difficult to make our own homemade muah chee as when we like.

MUAH CHEE

(麻糍)

Here with the help of my Happy Call Pressure Pan(HCP) I could easily make my favourite muah chee anytime of the day in less than 15 minutes time. You could control the texture of the muah chee from the amount of water use. For example; to achieve a softer texture the ratio of flour and water will be 1:1 whereas if you prefer more "Q(chewy)" texture you could reduce the water from 1 to 3/4 cup. If you are looking for new flavour you could also add in 1 - 2 tablespoons of black sesame powder into the glutinous rice flour and stir till combine with water.

This is the sample of the peanut powder that I used for making this Muah Chee, you can read more about this HERE.

Chinese version of this post and recipe is available at this link HERE.

(Serves: 2-3 | Preparation: 5 minutes | Cooking: 5-7 minutes)

Ingredients:
1 Cup Glutinous Rice Flour
3/4 - 1 Cup Water
1/2 Teaspoon Sugar
1.5 - 2 Tablespoons Shallot Oil/Cooking Oil

Peanut Coating:
1.5 Cup Peanut Powder
1 - 2 Tablespoons Caster Sugar, optional
1 Tablespoon White Sesame Seeds, optional

Method:-

1. Prepare shallot oil either using microwave method(HERE) or directly from the HCP. (saute 4 thinly sliced shallot with 2 tablespoons of oil in HCP over low heat till golden brown, remove the shallot and leave the oil in the pan)

2. Place glutinous rice flour and sugar in a mixing bowl, slowly stir in water with a whisk till well combined.

3. With HCP on medium low heat together with the shallot oil, slowly swirl in the flour mixture and stir it using a wooden spoon/chopstick or spatula till it begins to form a soft dough.

4. Lower the heat and continue to toss and cook the dough for another 3 - 5 minutes (depending on the heat) till the dough is smooth and slightly transparent on its surface. Remove and set aside on a oiled plate/container.

5. Using kitchen paper towel, wipe off the oil from the HCP and add in the sesame seeds. Toss it over low heat for about 2 minutes(stirring in between) before adding the peanut powder and stir till fragrant(another 2 minutes or so). Set aside to cool for about 3 minutes before stirring in the caster sugar and mix well.

6. Transfer the cooked glutinous rice dough to the peanut mixture, toss well and cut it into bite size pieces and serve.

Lastly if you don't have any HCP or non-stick pan but would like to try making this Asian snack, you could either use the Microwave Method from Little Teochew website(HERE) or Steaming Method at Anncoo Journal(HERE). I am sure either one of this would enable you to have some decent homemade Muah Chee for family gathering or party.