Gateau Basque for Our Lady of Lourdes!

Gateau Basque ala Hilltop Farm! 

I mentioned in my earlier post that we'd be making Gateau Basque for dessert.  Because it is just IMPOSSIBLE for me to follow directions, here's the recipe as I made it for the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes:

Gateau Basque 

8 servings; pan size: 9" springform

Ingredients:
2 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
8 oz butter, softened (2 sticks)
3 eggs
1-1/4 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup jam (I used Bonne Maman Wild Blueberry for the Blessed Mother!)
1 egg yolk for brushing the top
cinnamon-sugar (optional)

Directions:
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.  Butter the spring-form pan (my pans are NOT non-stick and I highly recommend using these Kaiser ones!) and then set aside.

In a bowl, mix the flours, sugar and baking powder together.  Add eggs and butter, stirring until well-combined.

Take half the dough and spread it in the pan, lifting it up the sides about 1/2" or so.  Pour the jam into the center of the cake, spreading it evenly out to the sides (but leave about an inch or so border so the jam doesn't leak out).

Sprinkle a bit of flour on your work surface and roll the second half of the dough out into a circle that is the same size as the pan.  Place this on top of the jam/dough and ensure the jam is completely sealed within.

Mix the egg yolk with a few drops of water and "paint" the top crust with this mixture.  Optional: sprinkle cinnamon-sugar on top for an added bit of sweet!

Place in the preheated over for about 25 minutes or until the cake is golden and done.  Wait 10 mins and then run a knife round the edge of the pan.  Pop off the spring-form and voila! 

Enjoy!

 

Feast Day: Our Lady of Lourdes!

Enough with the snow ... let's party! 

We're on day seven of the Blizzard of 2010 ... no more snow in the forecast for today, but so much on the ground that we're still on snow days.  But that's ok, especially as today is an especially important feast day for me and mine:  the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Dh and I met at a school named Our Lady of Lourdes ... the family has taken two pilgrimages to visit the Shrine in Lourdes, France ... my maternal great-grandfather is from a small village just above Lourdes ... and whenever we really need to pull out the stops for a prayer intention, we often do a novena to Our Lady of Lourdes!

Here is a beautiful prayer which Venerable John Paul the Great prayed before the Grotto in 2004:

Hail Mary, poor and humble Woman, Blessed by the Most High! Virgin of hope, dawn of a new era, We join in your song of praise, to celebrate the Lord’s mercy, to proclaim the coming of the Kingdom and the full liberation of humanity.

Hail Mary, lowly handmaid of the Lord, Glorious Mother of Christ! Faithful Virgin, holy dwelling-place of the Word, Teach us to persevere in listening to the Word, and to be docile to the voice of the Spirit, attentive to his promptings in the depths of our conscience and to his manifestations in the events of history.

Hail Mary, Woman of sorrows, Mother of the living! Virgin spouse beneath the Cross, the new Eve, Be our guide along the paths of the world. Teach us to experience and to spread the love of Christ, to stand with you before the innumerable crosses on which your Son is still crucified.

Hail Mary, woman of faith, First of the disciples! Virgin Mother of the Church, help us always to account for the hope that is in us, with trust in human goodness and the Father’s love. Teach us to build up the world beginning from within: in the depths of silence and prayer, in the joy of fraternal love, in the unique fruitfulness of the Cross.

Holy Mary, Mother of believers, Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.

Amen.

So, on this snow-day, we'll head to Mass this morning (maybe even get in some Confessions) and we'll make Clafouti tonight.  Clafouti is a wonderful custard/souffle kind of dessert that is made with cherries (which we don't have) so we'll make it with blueberries (which we do have ... and since blue is Our Lady's color, this is more appropriate anyway!).

Holy Mary, Mother of believers, Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us!

Feast Day: Feast of the Archangels ...

... BamBam style!

Mom:  today is the Feast of the Archangels ...

BamBam:  can I color a picture while you read?

Mom:  Of course ... I'm sure I can find a coloring picture online.

BamBam:  Oh, I know ... Raphael of the Ninja Turtles would be perfect ... I'm sure he's Catholic, too!

String Bean, on the other hand, graciously offered to color pictures of the "real" Archangels ... and thank goodness, Waltzing Matilda had just what we needed!

For dessert tonight:  angel food cake with spray whipped cream (BamBam in the store, in a LOUD voice -- "oh cool, I can spray that kind right in my mouth") and blackberries.