This Lent, move beyond attending fish frys, making tuna fish casserole, and ordering cheese pizza! We have some Lent recipes to help you maintain your energy levels while you fast. Before you head to the kitchen, spend time reflecting on these insightful words about fasting found in The Lenten Cookbook By Scott Hahn And David Geisser .
Today, the Church requires two Lenten disciplines: abstinence from meat on Fridays and fasting—one meal and two collations, or snacks—on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
We all know that it is a pious tradition also to give up something enjoyable for Lent. This seems to be most commonly another food (sweets) or drink (alcohol), but technology (smartphones, social media, etc.) is quickly rising as a popular Lenten deprivation.
It goes without saying that the modern practice is much less severe than Christian fasts over the centuries. Although there is great value in fasting in a manner consistent with our brothers and sisters in Christ, we might also consider the Church’s current discipline to be a starting point—a floor rather than a ceiling for our own practices.The point of fasting, after all, is to deprive ourselves enough really to feel it—enough, that is, to make us feel a little desperate, to make us rely on God for spiritual sustenance as we suffer just a little from lack of physical sustenance. Further, the Lenten fast should be training our wills to rein in our unruly desires.
In this regard, it is like a physical workout: If we aren’t pushing ourselves to test our limits (within the bounds of prudence), we aren’t growing. We might consider using that pious practice of giving up something for Lent to expand our fasting horizons. Maybe we could choose something we can’t imagine living without. Maybe we could choose an extra day of the week—Wednesdays and Saturdays are traditional—to fast. Maybe we could work with friends or family members to organize a group fast, with shared prayer and accountability.
One benefit of the Church’s less restrictive rules today is that we can undertake these more challenging disciplines without fear of sin: If we find our self-chosen rules unbearable (or too easy), we can adjust them on the fly. As with
any supererogatory practice (that just means “beyond what is strictly necessary”), we should consult a spiritual director to ensure we aren’t doing more harm than good to our bodies and souls.For many Christians today and through the ages, Lent has been the favorite season of the year. The deprivation from food and drink, combined with prayer, can result in something like a spiritual high that builds over the course of the forty days. And we anticipate and enjoy the indulgent celebration of Easter all the more intensely when we’ve really felt the pinch during Lent.
– The Lenten Cookbook By Scott Hahn And David Geisser
In short, the time is right for a rediscovery of Lent. Perhaps, just as has happened throughout the history of the Church, the habits of the faithful will develop new traditions that will become disciplines of the universal Church in the decades and centuries to come.
3 Lent Recipes To Give You Energy While You Fast
What do you eat to give you the energy you need to get through a day of fasting? Here are three easy recipes to try this Lent.
Energy Smoothie | The Lenten Cookbook
Ingredients:
1⁄2 lb (220 g) mango, chopped
1⁄4 cup (60 mL) orange juice
1 cup (60 g) plain Greek yogurt
1⁄2 cup (120 mL) milk
5 ice cubes
Preparation:
Puree all the ingredients in a blender.
Carrot Soup | The Lenten Cookbook
Ingredients:
1⁄4 cup (50 g) butter
14 ounces (400 g) carrots,
julienned
2 shallots, minced
1 tablespoon raw cane sugar
3 cups (700 mL) vegetable
broth
3⁄4 cup (150 mL) orange juice
2 oranges, filleted
Sea salt
Black pepper, freshly ground
Pink pepper
Preparation:
Melt the butter over low heat in a pot; sauté the carrots and shallots. Sprinkle the raw cane sugar over the vegetables
and let it caramelize slightly. Add the vegetable broth and the orange juice and simmer gently over medium heat for
about 25 minutes. In the meantime, divide the oranges among four soup plates. Puree the soup in a blender and pass through a fine sieve. Season with sea salt and pepper and pour into the plates with the orange fillets. Sprinkle with pink
peppercorns.
Arugula Lentil Salad | The Lenten Cookbook
Ingredients:
1⁄2 cup (100 g) red lentils
8 oz (200 g) arugula
1 red onion, cut into thin rings
1 pear, sliced thin
1⁄2 cup (100 g) plain yogurt
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp passion-fruit vinegar
Sea salt
Black pepper, freshly ground
Preparation:
Bring a pot of water to a boil, add the lentils, and cook for about 10 minutes. Drain the lentils, salt them a little, and
let them cool. Mix the arugula, lentils, onion, and pear and arrange on plates. Mix the yogurt with the olive oil and
vinegar and season with sea salt and pepper. Drizzle the dressing over the salad.
Hungry For More Lent Recipes?
All of these recipes and so many more can be found in The Lenten Cookbook written by Scott Hahn and David Geisser and published by Sophia Institute Press.
The Lenten Cookbook Copyright © 2021 by Sophia Institute Press. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner for any purpose whatsoever without the written permission of Sophia Institute Press.
More Resources On Fasting During Lent
Photo by Dilyara Garifullina on Unsplash
