www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Happy Turkey/Tofu Day!

Without meaning any disrespect to anyone on this forum,where is it written that one must eat turkey(or any other meat for that matter)in order to give thanks to the Lord?On that note, last Sunday my Spiritual Father hosted a dinner to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of his monastery.Since there were monastics who never eat meat,as well as Orthodox Clerics who are New Calender,fish was provided at the head table besides meat.I was seated next to a Ukrainian Catholic priest who declined my offer of a pork chop,saying that he was observing the Nativity Fast.

We had a delicious turkey dinner, (with economia given to us by our Archdiocese), but today being Friday, I had to overlook all the leftovers, and in a way though I didn't mind. It was too much food and meat yesterday for me, but tomorrow I will have some of the leftovers, because I feel sinful throwing out food when so many go hungry and homeless.

On Monday, most of us Greek Orthodox will be back into the full swing of the Fast.

The mention of tofu in the headline made me laugh because I had heard of someone springing a "tofu turkey" on their family last year. I actually saw a picture last year of a big block of tofu sculpted as a turkey, but somehow don't think it would make it for me.

On another note, my wife just told me of a recipe that I will obtain for all of you for this fasting period. It's similar to Italian wedding soup but meatless: cooked endive, white navy beans, garlic, vegetable stock, and some other things. She says it's similar to what her mother made at Pascha--that version had veal and endive, chopped hard cooked eggs, etc. I'll try to get it in the next couple days.

BOB

Sounds delish! One of my favorite soups is endive and white bean (it is Italian), though I think it is generally made with chicken stock. I am sure that a rich vegetable stock will be just as good.

One of the most touching gestures/gifts I was ever given was at a retail store I used to work at. The in house seamstress was from Italy, and her 'office' where she sewed all day long was isolated, so I would always make sure that when I didn't have work for a few minutes, to go speak to her...Apparently she must have appreciated this, because one day she cooked up a homemade batch of the aforementioned soup and since we all brought our lunches in, she told me that she set aside some for me to have for lunch that day. It was delicious, but moreso, the thought of her thinking of me like that still brings tears to my eyes.

Alice

ALICE:

I was thinking of our brethren who keep the fasts strictly and thought additions to their collection of fasting recipes might be appreciated.

BOB

Debbie and I enjoyed a break from tradition, we had BBQ St. Louis baby back ribs and Texas brisket with all them fixings...

Dear BOB,

I understood that, and I am sure that all the fasters here, including me, will appreciate the recipe!! I absolutely agree with you that we need more Lenten recipes!!

My point was that it is such a delicious soup, and one that I enjoy, that a vegeterianized version would most definitely be good to have, in order to make it during the Fast...That reminds me of an awesome recipe I have for Pasta Fagiole from an Italian chef (not soup), which has a sauce also made with chicken stock, but instead I make it with vegetable stock during the Fast...

So I think that maybe you misread the intent of my post?

Be well....

In Christ,
Alice

Since our time is now calm. Advent is done simply with the purple and the out door Nativity Stable is placed empty with the wise men at the far end of the porch. Mary & Joseph are not out yet and the stable still holds the animals you would expect to be there.

We take Advent as a calm time and unlike what most people we know do we will
place no Christmas things out till later. I do want to bake and can 8 or 9 gallons of vegetable broth for use later. Being new to the fasting in the East I find it easier to have things pre-made for us in the pantry. Many of the recipes I double and triple then can for another day.

Yes we ate turkey on Thursday. We had salads with shrimp (if you wanted it) on Wednesday & Friday. As a blended family I tend to make things that people can choose from so they make the decision on how strictly they fast and it is not forced on them.

Even for we who ate turkey, dairy etc. on Thursday there are plenty of other days of fasting, now and throughout the year, for which one would welcome some new ideas, or be reminded of old ones. I think it is a good thread to start. I'm presenting marinating tofu for a pasta dish.

ALICE:

The basic outlines of this soup are that you cook your endive until it is limp like cooked spinach. At the same time, you cook your white navy beans in a separate pot in vegetable stock. The beans will give off some starch and thicken the broth. There is an addition of a good deal of garlic and seasonings and then the whole thing simmers for a couple hours to bring all the flavors together. I'll get the specifics and get back to you next week.

Personally, I like a thickened soup at this time of year. It might also benefit from the pasta that looks like rice being added.

BOB

Sounds good to me!

Sounds wonderful! Yummmm!