Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent.
Every Lent I fast at least for two days: Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. I fast for approximately 24 hours. So for Ash Wednesday, I eat nothing after dinner on Tuesday evening until dinner on Wednesday evening. I will drink water during that time, but no other beverage. Every hunger pang I feel is a call to pray. When my stomach growls, I also remember that as much as I need food, I need God even more.
For years it never seemed to fail that I had to head to the supermarket on a day I was fasting. Talk about poor planning! Not only did I face extreme temptations to break my fast early as I navigated through aisle after aisle of appealing food, I also faced the extreme temptation to buy far more food than I needed because I was so hungry. After a few years, I learned to plan better: make sure to do my grocery shopping before and after fast days, not during them.
Yet I still faced another challenge – getting dinner on the table on a day I fast. Preparing a labor- or time-intensive meal while in the most difficult final hours of a fast is a struggle. Smelling food, seeing food, handling food can make my hunger pangs more intense – and can make me increasingly cranky. Not a good way to end a soul-nourishing fast!
After a few years, I again learned to plan better. Now I plan for an easy-to-prepare or already-prepared meal to break my fast. One of my favorite easy-to-prepare fast-breaking meals is pasta. All I have to do is make sure I have the needed pasta on hand (I normally have a wide assortment of pasta shapes in the pantry and freezer) as well as leftover sauce in the freezer to accompany it. This means, of course, that I need to plan ahead so I make sure to actually have leftover sauce in the freezer, so we will have spaghetti, ravioli, lasagna, baked ziti or some other pasta dinner in the week or two before a fast day. I’ll prepare extra sauce at that time, and stash the planned leftover sauce in the freezer. Then on a fast day, all I need to do is thaw the sauce in the refrigerator that morning, and right before dinner heat the sauce while I cook the pasta. That’s a great way to have a nourishing meal without adding to the struggle of a fast.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Blizzard Chicken
February of 2010 brought unusually severe weather to our region of the country. During the most stormy week, two blizzards hit, dumping a total of approximately three feet of snow! While it was fun to have off of school and work, build a snowman, and go sledding, it was also a lot of work shoveling.
One day while I was shoveling the driveway and sidewalk yet again, Kathleen decided to create a satisfying dinner. She came up with a winner that warmed my body – and my soul. Blizzard chicken is a great recipe for a cold winter day and when you have some extra time to cook.
3 chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons vegetable oil - divided
5 ½ tablespoons butter – divided
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 medium onion
3 ribs of celery
2 carrots
1 small butternut squash
½ cup flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 ½ cups milk
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Cut up chicken into 1-inch chunks. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the chicken, salt and pepper. Cook until the chicken is fully cooked, and then set it aside.
While the chicken is cooking, dice the onion, cut the celery into ¼-inch slices, peel and cut both the carrots and squash into 1 – 1 ½ - inch chunks. When chicken is cooked, add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet and cook the vegetables for 5-7 minutes stirring frequently, until they are slightly tender.
To make the sauce, melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the flour and whisk, cooking for at least 1 minute. Add the chicken broth and continue to whisk so there are no lumps, cooking for 4-5 minutes until the mixture begins to thicken. Add the milk and nutmeg, then cook (whisking occasionally) until the mixture bubbles around the edges for several minutes.
Butter a large baking dish with the remaining ½ tablespoon of butter. Combine the vegetables and chicken in the baking dish, add chopped parsley and pour the sauce on top. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until bubbly.
Biscuit are a great addition to this delicious casserole.
One day while I was shoveling the driveway and sidewalk yet again, Kathleen decided to create a satisfying dinner. She came up with a winner that warmed my body – and my soul. Blizzard chicken is a great recipe for a cold winter day and when you have some extra time to cook.
3 chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons vegetable oil - divided
5 ½ tablespoons butter – divided
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 medium onion
3 ribs of celery
2 carrots
1 small butternut squash
½ cup flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 ½ cups milk
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Cut up chicken into 1-inch chunks. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the chicken, salt and pepper. Cook until the chicken is fully cooked, and then set it aside.
While the chicken is cooking, dice the onion, cut the celery into ¼-inch slices, peel and cut both the carrots and squash into 1 – 1 ½ - inch chunks. When chicken is cooked, add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet and cook the vegetables for 5-7 minutes stirring frequently, until they are slightly tender.
To make the sauce, melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the flour and whisk, cooking for at least 1 minute. Add the chicken broth and continue to whisk so there are no lumps, cooking for 4-5 minutes until the mixture begins to thicken. Add the milk and nutmeg, then cook (whisking occasionally) until the mixture bubbles around the edges for several minutes.
Butter a large baking dish with the remaining ½ tablespoon of butter. Combine the vegetables and chicken in the baking dish, add chopped parsley and pour the sauce on top. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until bubbly.
Biscuit are a great addition to this delicious casserole.
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