Pancake Day recipes, Shrove Tuesday pancakes, waffles for Mardi Gras

Happy Pancake Day! Also called Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday, it's the day Catholics celebrate in preparation for Ash Wednesday and the sacrificial Lenten season. Catholics give up things for Lent. Traditionally that meant abstaining from meat, dairy, eggs, fat and sugar for 40 days till Easter. So they would use up or "shrive" the house of those foods and make them into pancakes. A house shriven (purged) of temptation symbolizes a soul purged of sin (Catholics also to confession before Lent to ready themselves for the penitential season). Here are delicious pancake and waffle recipes for Pancake Day. You can cheat and use pancake mix--the best is Krusteaz Honey Wheat. Krusteaz uses unbleached and whole grain flour. Pancake Day recipes, Shrove Tuesday pancakes, waffles for Mardi Gras feast

Teach Children Generosity With Printable Lenten Almsgiving Lessons

Catholics, Orthodox and some other Christian denominations entered the penitential season of Lent on Ash Wednesday. From now till Easter, we practice Lenten virtues of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. We give up things in imitation of Jesus's temptation in the desert. We pray to draw closer to God. And we share with those in need. Here are 40 ways kids can give, one for each day of lent. Teach Children Generosity With Lenten Almsgiving Activities, Donations

Catholic Lenten Fasting Ideas for Parents; Teaching Kids About Giving Up for Jesus

Ash Wednesday began the penitential season of Lent for Catholic and Orthodox Christians. Some protestant sects observe Lent too. During this 40-day period, we follow Christ's temptation in the desert, ending with Holy Week and passion, death and resurrection at Easter. During Lent we sacrifice in imitation of Christ. Here are tips to teach kids why we fast and how to give things up for Lent. Catholic Lenten Fasting Ideas for Children 

Lenten Kitchen Cream of Leftover Vegetable Soup

 I'm dieting (95 pounds gone). Husband and daughter are fasting from meat for lent. So the Sachtelebens are exploring vegetarian in a big way. I checked the fridge and found a bunch of veggie scraps. I asked the family how they felt about cream of leftover vegetable soup? It was a hit. Plus, using up leftovers instead of wasting them practices the Lenten virtue of almsgiving, sort of. It means we have more to share. Here's how I made it. Lenten Kitchen Cream of Leftover Vegetable Soup

The Lenten Kitchen Blue Green Algae Superfood Smoothie

I'm not always as health-conscious as I should be, but I've explored nutrition for 35 years (my parents dabbled in Mother Earth News ideas). Now being Catholic I figured lent is a good time to work on healthier vegan and vegetarian eating. One thing I used to hear more of and now don't is blue-green algae (spirulina, cyanobacterium). I've lost 95 pounds and write diet recipes. So I thought I'd reprise spirulina in myBlue Green Smoothie  Diet Recipe Blue Green Algae Superfood Smoothie

Lenten Sacrifice, Zen, Minimalism, Its all Good

The Catholic penitential season of Lent will soon be here. By prayer, fasting, meditation, we seek to imitate Christ's suffering and passion. Those acts give back, too, in physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. They're the deepest Christian expression, but they aren't exclusively Christian. Most major religions have similar elements. No human could really imitate the divine. But it shouldn't prevent us trying. Here's how our family observes lent.   Lenten Sacrifice, Zen, Minimalism, Its all Very Good

The Lenten Kitchen Egg Foo Young and Skinny

 I'm on a mission to lose 100 pounds and I only have seven pounds left. I'm always asked +How-I-lost-weight and I say, it's not a few big things (drugs, surgery) but a lot of little things. One is tweaking recipes with low-calorie food swaps. Here's today's dinner, made at the especial request of my youngest for her after-school power snack. This recipe makes a great meatless Friday lent treat. See my Lenten Kitchen link for more. Egg Foo Young and Skinny--My Diet Recipe that Everyone Likes!

Don't Know What to Give Up for Lent? Try Meat or Junk Food

Still haven't decided what to give up this Lent? A group of Anglican bishops in the UK suggest abstaining from meat for the 40-day Lenten period, says the Huffington Post. I agree that meat is the best thing to give up, but I'd also add sweets, junk food and fast food. Here's why. On Fat Tuesday, also called Shrove Tuesday, says the Christian Science Monitor, people traditionally purged their homes of sweets and meats to fast without temptation. Lent fasts are not just about avoiding temptation and "giving up things," however. We fast to be one with those who suffer, but fasting is about health, too. Read more at Don't Know What to Give Up for Lent? Try Meat or Junk Food