This Week's Feast

Our kitchen has been torn apart this week. We are having some remodeling done. I was not sure when it would be functional again. We hope by tomorrow we can put the furniture together in time to feast on Saturday. I am so ready to really cook again. Anyway, because of this I am not sure what we will have for our feast. I am thinking about an Italian roast that I found in Gourmet magazine. I believe I can put it in the crock pot. If it turns out decent I will share the recipe. I will do the Olive Garden salad that I shared a few weeks ago, some garlic bread and something great for dessert.What are you planning?

Why so Special?

I have had many conversations with people about Sabbath feasting and very often I am asked, "why is it important that it be so special?" They know things like fine china and gourmet meals do not secure a place for you in heaven. So, why is it necessary to feast with these things? For me, I think this ties in with your view of worship. There is the view that worship is all about how it makes you feel. It tends to be very emotional and what I would call fluff. Then there is the view that it really has nothing to do with your feeling or emotions, but rather a time of covenant renewal with God. It is all about what He desires, really nothing about our desires. When you view it this way i believe you have a higher vision of what it should be. There is an extreme to this view as well. It can become very rote. We do not want that to happen. Just like with most things in life there is a balance. In our home we hold the same view of Sabbath feasting. It is about Christ. Setting His day aside and celebrating with what He has given us. It does not mean there always has to be fine china or gourmet meals. I do not own any fine china and we have been known to celebrate with pizza. But, this meal has been set apart in our home as different.Because we believe this day centers around Christ, we do believe it should be special. I have said this before, I do not think there is room for legalism here. I would rather celebrate with pizza occasionally than not celebrate at all. But, for the most part it the most special meal of the week and one that we look forward to. On a consistent basis we celebrate and encourage our children to know why we celebrate. Just like we are sometimes sick and cannot go to worship, there are times when feasting cannot happen. But, for us it is not the norm. We feel as though something is missing when we do not have a Sabbath feast. I do realize it may be easier for me. We live in a community that encourages Sabbath feasting. Therefore it is very rare that something is planned on a Saturday night, besides feasting in each others homes. I do not mean to say you should never do things on Saturday night. But, I would encourage you to make it a priority to set the time aside to celebrate. I have friends that do it after church on Sunday because Saturday has not worked for them. Whatever works for your family. Just do not be too quick to give up.

This Week's Feast

The end of our week has been very busy with adoption day festivities. Our plan for Saturday night was to celebrate with friends after a game of bowling. We had a lot of fun and feasted on pizza with them. With all of the celebrating the past few days, we were going to stop there, but I then realized we still had steaks that needed to be cooked. You see, part of Isaac's meal was an appetizer of wings from his favorite place. He ate so many that he did not want his steak meal. So, for lunch today we are feasting on steak, roasted potatoes and greens. It has been a joy to me to see how much feasting has become a part of our family. When we first started it was awkward and I definitely could not have pulled of three or four days of celebrating. It has become very natural now. That said, it will be a long time before we party this much at one time again.

Adoption Day!!

March 1 is a very important day in our home. It is the day 6 years ago that Isaac officially became an Etter. Needless to say there will be a lot feasting over the next few days. Tonight will be his favorite meal. His request was steak, mac-n-cheese and greens(yes, you read right,I said greens). His sister and I are making a chocolate cake. It is funny to me how he has precise plans of ways to celebrate this day. Tonight is just for us. But, he is not dumb. He realizes there is a lot of "center of attention on Isaac" room here. So, it was donuts to his class at school, dinner out with his favorite adult that spoils him tomorrow and bowling with family fiends on Saturday.What does this have to do with Sabbath feasting. Nothing really! Except that it is great to see he has learned the value and joy of celebrating with family. Last night he could not wait until tonight. This has not always been the case. I am just really happy today and wanted to share. So, Happy Adoption Day, Isaac!!

Sante Fe Soup

I have said before one way to make things a little easier to feast, is to do simpler meals during the week. This allows more time, money and energy for Sabbath feasting. Soups are great for this. You can through it in the crock pot and not think of it again. I usually double my soup recipes and have lunch the next day and freeze the left-overs. I did this one the other night for guests. Everyone raved over it.

1 can pinto beans
1 can black beans
1 can kidney beans
2 cans white corn drained
1 small can diced tomatoes
1large can diced tomatoes with chilies
1 chopped onion
1 1/2 lb browned ground beef
2 pkg taco seasoning mix
1 pkg Ranch dressing mix
2 c. water

Mix together and simmer. I put it all in the crock pot.

Garnish:
Chopped green onions
Sour Cream
Cheddar Cheese
Tortilla chips

I served it with corn bread and it made a very filling meal. I have heard that Abondante Living sells a Tortilla Soup mix that is really good and VERY quick to through together.

Recipes

Here are the recipes from our Sabbath dinner.

Asian sauce for Salmon

2TBS Dijon mustard
3TBS soy sauce
6TBS olive oil
1/2 tsp minced garlic

Mix all ingredients and spread over salmon. Cook the salmon your favorite way. In the winter I broil it, in the summer i use the grill.
I would actually double the recipe, and have enough to pour over the salmon after placing it on the serving platter. This is a great sauce if you are looking for something light that will not over power the fish.



Spinach Salad

Spinach and other greens
Green onions
1/2 lb of cooked, crumbled bacon
3 eggs boiled and crumbled


Dressing
1c. white vinegar
2TBS bacon grease
2 raw eggs
3/4 c. of sugar
1tsp dry mustard
1/2tsp flour
1/2tsp salt
1/2tsp mayo

Cook all ingregients until it begins to thicken. Remove from heat and let cool.

This dressing was sweet enough that the kids loved it. They did not even realize they were eating spinach.

Bread with dipping oil is always a HUGE hit with my kids. I use a french bauguette and we dip it in oilive oil and seasonings. YOu can buy the seasonings or make your own. They seems costly to buy, but I bought a bottle months ago, we have used it often, and entertained with it. There is still a ton.


Enjoy!

How Much can we Possibly Spill?

WE have had chaotic Sabbath dinners before, but last night took the cake. It started with a spill as soon as we sat down to the table. To make matters worse everyone sat completely still because daddy was doing catechism and you cannot interrupt that! Once that was cleaned up, we attempted to start over. Immediately another spill!! This time Isaac spills Sarah's water into her dip for the bread. Clean up and get new oil. Take two. Zachary's portion of salad makes it to the table beside his plate! Clean up. Take three. Bruce asks would I like to make the toast. I think this was his way of seeing how polite and profound I could be while being at the point of boiling over. By the time we actually ate, the food was cold. By the end of the dinner we had at least two more spills. So, what's the moral to this story? No matter how much you prepare, sometimes you have to abandon your aspirations of a highly liturgical Sabbath feast, and realize even if everyone is wet from spills, we can still celebrate the Sabbath. Do not be discouraged, there is always next week. By the way, the food was actually really good. I will post recipes tomorrow.