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Good Friday Hot Cross Buns

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Good Friday marks the second day of the Triduum (from the Latin for ‘three days’), the day on which we commemorate the Lord’s crucifixion and death. The Good Friday liturgies at our monastery (and many others around the world) mark our observance of Christ’s final hours, picking up from Maundy Thursday Eucharist, and continuing through the Holy Saturday Vigil, the Great Vigil of Easter, and carrying us all the way to Easter morning.

In keeping with the solemnity of the day, we remember Christ’s death by bringing to the liturgy of the hours the full range of spiritual depth and beauty found in the ancient texts; we participate in the veneration of the cross, and chant Gospel Passion Narrative. It is a special and holy time, filled with moments of silence, listening, reflection and conviction, as well as a time of joy-filled anticipation.

This day of the Cross marks us with God’s presence, and He marks us for his own.

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Good Friday Hot Cross Buns
SERVINGS
1dozen buns
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
dozen buns
COOK TIME
25mins
PREP TIME
30mins
READY IN
3hrs

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Dissolve the yeast by sprinkling it over the very warm water and add a pinch of sugar to activate.
  2. Heat milk in a medium saucepan over low heat until about 100 degrees F. (but no more than 110 degrees)
  3. In a mixer, fitted with a dough hook, add the warmed milk to the yeast mixture.
  4. Plump the raisins (or currants) and citron in the microwave with a little orange juice; cool and set aside
  5. To the yeast & milk mixture add the remaining sugar, melted butter, egg yolk and extract.
  6. Add the salt, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger to the mixture and continue kneading.
  7. Add the flour, 1 cup at a time, until the dough starts pulling away from the sides of the bowl.
  8. Remove the orange juice from the raisins and citron and discard.
  9. Add the raisins and citron to the dough and mix well. The dough should be slightly sticky and not dry.
  10. Knead until soft and elastic, about 8 min. Shape into a ball.
  11. Brush the inside of a large bowl with butter. Put dough in the bowl and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 hr. 30 min. **
  12. To form the rolls: Pam a 9x13” pyrex pan. Turn the dought out of the bowl and roll into a log. With a dough cutter or sharp knife, divide the dough into 12 equal portions. Roll each of these pieces into a round bun shape, tucking the edges under.
  13. Place them seam side down in the prepared pan, leaving a little space between each roll. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until the rolls are doubled in size, about 45 min. or longer.
  14. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. and prepare your egg wash.
  15. Prepare glaze: In a mixer, combine powdered sugar, milk and vanilla or almond extract and oil until smooth (the oil will give it a high gloss). The icing should be quite thick. If too runny, add more powdered sugar. Transfer icing to a pastry bag or a ziplock bag with a corner snipped off.
  16. Remove the plastic wrap from the top of the rolls and brush the buns with egg wash. Bake rolls until golden brown and puffy, about 25 min. (an instant read thermometer inserted into the roll should read 190 degrees F.)
  17. Ice buns with a thick cross shape on the top of the warm buns and serve.

** Please note:  This dough might take a long time to rise, but be patient...it is worth the wait because they will come out nice and light!

Raspberry and Apricot Almond Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies

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Traditionally, in true Benedictine style, we offer our guests a time of fellowship after a concert in our church. It’s a wonderful time to greet people, listen to how the music moved them, and find out what brought them to our Community at this time.  This past weekend, prior to the first great Cape Cod blizzard of 2016, our choir Gloriae Dei Cantores sang a deeply spiritual and beautiful program at the Church of the Transfiguration – a concert made up of music recently sung on a concert tour in Italy. We ended with a reception, and the menu featured a combination of savory and sweet. Unbeknownst to us, a pastry chef from Falmouth was there, and he delighted in these cookies. He asked for the recipe and then told us that he had worked for Martha Stewart for ten years and that these were the best cookies he had ever had. What a compliment!

Since Lent is just a mere few weeks away, make these quickly before you decide to give up sugar!

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Raspberry and Apricot Almond Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies
SERVINGS
26cookies
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
cookies
COOK TIME
12-14minutes
PREP TIME
20minutes
READY IN
45 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl whisk together flour and salt, set aside.
  2. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, blend together butter and sugar until combined (it will take a minute or two since the butter is cold. If you don't have a paddle attachment that constantly scrapes bowl, then occasionally stop mixer and scrape down sides and bottom of bowl). Mix in almond extract then add in flour blend until mixture comes together (it will take a bit of mixing since the butter is cold, so be patient, it will seem really dry at first), don’t over mix or your dough will be tough
  3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls, or use a small ice cream scoop to form, and place 2-inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet lined with parchment. Make a small indentation with thumb or forefinger in each cookie (large enough to fit 1/4 - 1/2 tsp of jam). Fill each with 1/4 - 1/2 tsp jam. Chill in refrigerator 20 minutes (or freezer for 10 minutes). Bake in preheated oven 12-14 minutes, or until slightly golden.
  4. Cool several minutes on baking sheet then transfer to a wire rack to cool (at this point you can add a little more jam if you'd like to, it just won't be set like the other is). Drizzle cookies with glaze when when cool. Store cookies in an airtight container.
Glaze
  1. Whisk all glaze ingredients together in a small mixing bowl, adding enough water to reach desired consistency (thicker is better). Pour or spoon mixture into a sandwich size resealable bag, cut a small tip from one corner and drizzle over cookies. *To measure flour scoop with measuring cup and level with a butter knife. Don't whisk or sift first and don't spoon into the measuring cup. Recipe source: adapted from www.cookingclassy.com

​​​​Berry Tart With Lemon Curd Mascarpone

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Easter was a glorious day filled with sunshine, beautiful music, and a church decorated with blossoming Spring flowers. The sights and sounds were full of joy and praise, and I felt renewed both in body and spirit – transported to another world that I don’t frequent often enough!
The Sisters celebrated this Easter with a beautiful buffet, many pitching in by making their favorite dish. I signed up to make dessert. I’ve always wanted to try making homemade mascarpone cheese, and since we have three cows that give us a never ending supply of milk and cream, what a great time to try it out. It was delicious! This dessert is perfect for Springtime – a shortbread almond crust filled with sweet and tart lemony cream, and a blend of berries on top – the perfect end to our Easter celebration.
Blessed Eastertide to all!

 

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​​​​Berry Tart With Lemon Curd Mascarpone
SERVINGS
6-8servings
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
servings
COOK TIME
12-15minutes
PREP TIME
20minutes
READY IN
1hr30 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

For the tart crust
  1. Mix the all purpose flour, almond flour, kosher salt and powdered sugar in a large bowl. Add the unsalted butter pieces and work into the flour, creating thin sheets of butter in the flour. Mix the egg yolk with 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl and add to the flour and butter mix. Continue to work with your fingers until the mixture sticks together when pinched. Add another tablespoon of water if needed.
  2. Press the dough into a buttered tart pan with a removable bottom (I used a long tart pan but you can use a 10-inch round pan) or 4-6 individual tart pans with removable bottoms. Prick the bottom with a fork and then refrigerate for about an hour.
  3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the tart for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool completely before filling with mascarpone filling.
For the mascarpone filling
  1. Whip the cream on high with a hand mixer or a stand mixer. Add the softened mascarpone cheese and powdered sugar and beat to mix well. Fold in the lemon curd with a wooden spoon.
  2. In a separate bowl, mix the raspberries and sliced strawberries. Heat the strawberry preserves until thinned and mix into the berries. Spoon the mascarpone into the cooled tart crust and top with the berries. Garnish with mint leaves if desired.

Notes:

**Mascarpone cheese homemade recipe

Recipe Adapted from Foodiecrush.com

Asparagus Risotto

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Risotto is now considered a specialty dish often featured on menus in upscale eating places. It has, however, been a common everyday food in Italian homes for many years. Cooked in different ways to satisfy various tastes, it is almost as popular as pasta in the Mediterranean diet.

It can be prepared as a simple, meatless, light lunch or as an accompaniment to meat or fish for a fuller multi-course meal.

This time of year, spring asparagus especially lends itself to this creamy, cheesy dish to make it an exceptionally flavorful culinary experience.
Asparagus Risotto

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Asparagus Risotto
SERVINGS
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
COOK TIME
50mins.
PREP TIME
READY IN

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Blanch the asparagus
  2. In a 3 or 4-quart saucepan, heat 1 Tablespoon butter on medium heat.
  3. Add the shallots and cook until translucent.
  4. Add the rice and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring until nicely coated.
  5. While shallots are cooking, bring the stock to a simmer in another saucepan.
  6. Add the wine. Slowly stir, allowing the rice to absorb the wine.
  7. Once the wine is almost completely absorbed, add 1/2 cup of hot stock to the rice. Stir until the liquid is almost sticking to the bottom of the pan.
  8. Continue adding 1/2 cup of hot stock to the rice at a time, and cooking and stirring until liquid is absorbed each time.
  9. You will stop adding stock when the rice is tender, but still firm to the bite, about 20-25 minutes.
  10. With the last ladle of stock, add the asparagus. Turn off the heat. Keep the risotto loose. It thickens a lot while it sits.
  11. Gently stir in the Parmesan cheese and the remaining 1 Tablespoon of butter. Add onion salt and pepper to taste.