lazarakia – sweet little lazarus breads

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O Lord, wishing to see the tomb of Lazarus—for Thou wast soon to dwell by Thine own choice within a tomb—Thou hast asked: ‘Where have ye laid him?’ And, learning that which was already known to Thee, Thou hast cried to him whom Thou hast loved: ‘Lazarus, come forth.’ And he who was without breath obeyed the One who gave him breath, even Thee, the Saviour of our souls 

Stichera for Saint Lazarus : vespers of Lazarus Saturday

The tradition of baking these little sweet spice breads hails from Greece and Cyprus and go back such a long way. In Greek they are called Λαζαράκια which means Little Lazaruses. They are prepared and enjoyed to celebrate the miracle of Jesus raising his dear friend Lazarus from the dead and are shaped like a man wrapped in a burial shroud. They are a fast friendly treat in that they have no eggs, or dairy.

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best black bean burgers

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Where love is there is Christ – Love. And where humility exists, the Grace of God takes up permanent residence, God reigns and the earth is ultimately transformed into Paradise.

Saint Paisios the Athonite

I’m just guessing that right about now you may be looking for mew Lenten recipes. This is usually when I am. And if you are, these Black Bean Burgers are for you! Normally I am not a fan of making a vegan version of dinners that should be meat… over the years my kids have always balked, but not with these. They are simple, tasty and got a thumbs up from 3 our of 3 of my kids.

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grilled broccolini and cauliflower

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A ‘word’ spoken from the heart of the hermit, as from the Holy Spirit, in the language of the desert, is considered revealed and authentic and the one who requests it, receives it as the fruit of Grace, without elaborating on it in his mind. This ‘word’ from the spiritual father is absolutely necessary for the one who asks. The ‘word’ comes from a soul which is the friend of God, wounded by the love of God, and is spoken in accordance with the measure of ‘thirst’ of the one who asks. As the Holy Mother of God, conceived the Word of God and gave birth to the Theanthropos Christ, becoming therefore the ‘joy of all creation’ in the same way, do the Fathers, because of their purity, conceive the word and transmit it to those who thirst for it, becoming for them their joy…

A Night in the Desert of the Holy Mountain : Metropolitan Of Nafpakos Hierotheos

Fasting for our family these days needs to be an effort in absolute simplicity. If I find I have a lot of time, I will make something that requires for time, but mostly I find myself making tapas style meals for dinner. Leftovers mixed with side dishes and meals prepared the same day. It’s how my German family eat. Dinner is a simple affair – because that is also the time of day when I am getting a little tired.

This Grilled Broccolini and Cauliflower has pine nuts that give it a little nuttiness and goes nicely with the caramelization on the veggies. It is a great side dish because you can grill it in the oven while you prepare the rest of the evening meal.

Grilled Broccolini and Cauliflower with Pine Nuts

Ingredients

  • 1 head cauliflower
  • 3 bunches of broccolini
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 clove of garlic minced
  • pinch of celtic sea salt
  • pinch of pepper
  • 4 tablespoons pine nuts

Preparation

  • Preheat oven to 350F
  • Wash and cut cauliflower into bite sized florets
  • Wash and cut off ends of broccolini (I cut them up and freeze them to use later in mashed potatoes)
  • Place olive oil, pepper, salt and minced garlic in a large mixing bowl and whisk together. Add cauliflower and broccolini to the large bowl and toss to coat evenly.
  • Place vegetables on a large cooking pan and place in preheated oven.
  • Place pine nuts evenly in a saute pan over low heat. Stir constantly until fragrant and a little toasted. Not more than 10 minutes.
  • Bake for 45 minutes or just until the edges get a little crispy and brown..
  • Remove cooked veggies from oven and place in serving dish.

Enjoy!


fast friendly paleo chocolate delight

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To no longer live exclusively for myself, but for God, also means that I now live for my neighbor, loving him as myself. + Elder Aemilianos of Simonopetra

 

My kids often want a sweet during Great Lent.  But I also try to keep sugar to a minimum.

Did you know that sugar is actually a toxin to the body,and  robs you of minerals (1 molecule of sugar takes over 50 molecules of magnesium to digest!).  But most relevant to us about sugar, with two in the house recovering from Chronic Lyme, is that sugar is an immune suppressant.  Not only does sugar  compete with vitamin C for valuable space within your white blood cells.  It has been shown that 1 tablespoon of sugar reduces immunity for hours after consumption.

We have modified our fasting for Great Lent – due to the Lyme and some threats from the doctor.   My doctor said that I am so aenimic due to one of the coinfections of the Lyme that she threatened me with IV iron.  (I have resorted to my least favorite food – liver – but just a few bites a day.  It’s all I can bear.  The iron pills were not raising my numbers sufficiently and despite the taste, I feel better after eating the liver.  Just more proof – and in no way strange – that God made always nourishes better than man made.)

Other than that we are mostly adhering to a very vegetarian Paleo diet.

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We tried this Super moist orange laden chocolate cake yesterday, which you can find at Strictly Delicious.  It is definitely “strictly delicious” and beyond yummy.   I have to share on their behalf.

Normally I cut back the sugar in every recipe but found it wasn’t necessary to reduce it one bit in this cake.

This dessert is fasting and family friendly.  We will be making it again!

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changes underway

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Nourishing Grace took the summer off….  and during that time I really reflected on the blog.  All summer long I had this nagging thought to separate the Holistic Nutrition articles from the soul food.  In August I started a blog called WellNourishedFamily.wordpress.com, but as of yet it is not public.  It is in a state of migration and there is lots of tweaking going on at the moment.

Deep breath.

In the coming weeks, the nutrition and health posts on this blog will be relocated over to my new blog “Well Nourished Family”, but Nourishing Grace will remain with the soul food of Orthodox Christian quotes from scripture, the Holy Fathers and also the occassional reflection.   Future posts from Nourishing Grace will be integrated into the new website -maybe under the header “Beyond Calories”;  however the food and holistic nutrition blog will not be incorporated here.

In the meantime, I offer this little food for thought.  Faith is as much a part of health as food and exercise – that’s not radical.

In his book, For the Life of the World, Father Alexander Schmemman writes:

In the Bible the food that man eats, the world of which he must partake in order to live, is given to him by God, and it is given as communion with God.  The world as man’s food is not something “material” and limited to material functions, thus different from, and opposed to, the specifically “spiritual” functions by which man is related to God.  All that exists is God’s gift to man, and it all exists to make God known to man, to make man’s life communion with God.

It is divine love made food, made life for man.

God blesses everything He creates, and, in biblical language, this means that He makes all creation the sign and means of His presence and wisdom, love and revelation:

“O taste and see that the Lord is good.”

Recognizing that nourishment is beyond protein, carbohydrates, fats and fiber really isn’t edgy or new age.

With the mapping of the human genome, the field of epigenetics bears this out : that nourishment – the food we ingest – affects our gene expression.   Additionally, the Harvard Medical School found that prayer induces immediate positive changes in gene expression .    My recent class on detoxification listed “loss of Faith” as one of the reasons for the buildup of toxins in the body.  Let me tell you, I noticed that one factor more than all the others …

Just as junk food causes good genes to behave badly – so does loss of faith, negativity and stressful situations – especially when prolonged.  That kind of malnutrition affects health.  That’s not theology, just data.

In that sense we can see that nourishment is more than what is on our plate.   Integrative Medicine, modern as it is, recognizes the role of Faith in physical health, ancient as that is.  We are what we eat in every sense of the phrase.   Many turn to eastern philosophies, yoga, Buddhism in an attempt to find some spirituality and quell the hunger yet are still left with the pangs of malnutrition.

The Orthodox Christian Faith stands as a timeless beacon of wisdom, love, fullness and salvation.  It’s the benevolent, girding substance of every day life, seeking communion with God, lifting up all we do to the Glory of God (1 Cor 10:31).   We beseech God daily for our daily bread, the bread of the Kingdom of God, and nourishment for our soul.  Salvation is not about the quality of our  physical food, but people – working out their salvation in the Church.

And I think that is why I decided to separate the blog.  I wouldn’t want someone confusing meal plans with repentance, good complex carbs with salvation or that somehow having a well balanced diet is going to make one a better person.  These are matters of the heart.  Health has many implications, and there are doctors trained in the world of spiritual therapy and operation (spiritual fathers and mothers and some priests),  I do not claim to possess any wisdom of my own – just a family’s life experiences – especially the trials –  channeled through our walk of Faith in the Orthodox Church – that, and  I can also tell you how to make a really good salad and awesome gluten free pancakes that your family will actually want to eat!

The Orthodox Faith permeates the lives lived within her, through God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and the teachings of the Holy Fathers, participation the the Divine services and partaking of the Eucharist, lives are transformed.

That’s good stuff…!

With that I will leave you with one more thought from Father Alexander Schmemman.

“Food is still treated with reverence.  A meal is still a rite—the last “natural sacrament” of family and friendship, of life that is more than “eating” and “drinking.”   To eat is still something more than to maintain bodily functions. People may not understand what that “something more” is, but they nonetheless desire to celebrate it.

They are still hungry and thirsty for sacramental life.”

I hope that all makes sense.  Many blessings to you, your families and those you love…  and please excuse the construction.

Resources:

http://www.pnas.org/content/110/41/16574.abstract

Shanahan MD, Catherine (2011-04-22). Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food (p. 4).