Things, as they say, ain’t what they used to be. As the daughter of a former Benedictine monk who, now aged 91, still talks about the delicious food cooked by the nuns during his abbey days, I can see how much things have changed.
Today, priests seldom have housekeepers, cooks, or even nuns to help with the cooking. Many priests who must cook for their community or just themselves, have to ask the age-old question, “What should we have for dinner?”
The urgency of this dilemma came to me after a conversation with a friend, a priest, who – short of time like many of today's overburdened clergy – shares the cooking with the other priests in the community. He told me that one of the hardest things about day-to-day cooking is deciding what to make, along with the relentless task of food shopping.
But whether you are a religious or a lay person – we are all humans in need of sustenance, after all – menu planning is a must if you have a busy schedule. I have a few golden rules for making life – or at least the cooking – less stressful:
For the clergy, weekdays are busy with daily mass, funerals and appointments. Saturdays are popular for weddings and baptisms. Sundays, which are perhaps the clergy’s busiest day of the week, can be made easier when it comes to cooking, through planning and preparation, resulting in delicious food without the hassle.
I hope the following recipe will give you – whether you’re a priest, monk or a lay person – inspiration and make your life a little less stressful. The secret to easy and hassle-free cooking is in the preparation (and don’t forget the blessed salt).
<strong>Roast chicken with rosemary, thyme and pine nuts</strong>
(Rosemary is often used as a sign of remembrance and fidelity, and has long been associated with the Virgin Mary and the Holy Family’s escape from Egypt. One story is that Mary removed her damp robe and laid it on a bush with white flowers to dry while the Holy family rested. Miraculously the flowers turned from white to the blue of Mary’s robe. The bush was then known as rosemary.)
<em><strong>Serves 6</strong></em>
<em>1 large chicken </em>
<em>2 red onions, peeled and cut into quarters</em>
<em>60g raisins soaked in boiling water for 10 minutes and 1tbsp red wine vinegar. </em>
<em>80g pine nuts, lightly toasted</em>
<em>2 sprigs of thyme, leaves only</em>
<em>5 sprigs of rosemary, leaves only finely chopped</em>
<em>Olive oil</em>
<em>Blessed salt – I always used blessed salt in my cooking!</em>
<em>Freshly ground black pepper</em>
<em>300g Basmati rice – follow cooking instructions on packet using the chicken stock</em>
<em>750ml chicken stock</em>
<em>Pinch of saffron stirred into a tbsp of boiling water</em>
Put the onions into a roasting tin, place the chicken on top of the onions and rub the olive oil all over the chicken – be generous. Season well with (blessed) salt.
Roast in a preheated oven, 220c for about 1 hour or until the bird is cooked and the skin is crispy. While the chicken is roasting, cook the rice in the stock, salt and the saffron. Drain the rice and set aside.
When the chicken is ready, remove it from the roasting tin into a large warm dish. Pull the roasted onions into pieces and leave in the tin, do not clean the tin.
Strip all the meat off the bones making sure you catch all the juices in the dish (discard carcass and use for stock) and chop up the crispy skin.
Put the roasting tin over a medium heat and add the herbs, chicken, rice, drained raisins and pine nuts. Gently mix them all together with the cooked red onions letting the rice soak up all the pan juices and heat through.
Taste for seasoning and serve with a green salad. I don’t like my food piping hot: this is a great dish to serve at room temperature.
<em>Potential short cut</em>: You can prepare the chicken ahead of time and set aside, but you may have to crisp up the skin again.
<em>Tip</em>: I always have microwavable rice pouches in the pantry; if you are especially short for time, use one of these and stir through the saffron and about 250mls of chicken stock.
I hope the above helps – and that you (and your fellow diners) enjoy. <br><br><em>Photo: A Benedictine monk prepares a dinner table in the refectory at Pluscarden Abbey, Elgin, Scotland, 20 July 2015. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images.) </em>
<em>Amy Willcock has written nine cookery and entertainment books. Born in Chicago, she moved to the UK in 1980. Specialising in country living, Amy wrote a regular monthly column for </em>The Shooting Gazette <em>for over 19 years, including writing about food and lifestyle.</em>
Things, as they say, ain’t what they used to be. As the daughter of a former Benedictine monk who, now aged 91, still talks about the delicious food cooked by the nuns during his abbey days, I can see how much things have changed.
Today, priests seldom have housekeepers, cooks, or even nuns to help with the cooking. Many priests who must cook for their community or just themselves, have to ask the age-old question, “What should we have for dinner?”
The urgency of this dilemma came to me after a conversation with a friend, a priest, who – short of time like many of today's overburdened clergy – shares the cooking with the other priests in the community. He told me that one of the hardest things about day-to-day cooking is deciding what to make, along with the relentless task of food shopping.
But whether you are a religious or a lay person – we are all humans in need of sustenance, after all – menu planning is a must if you have a busy schedule. I have a few golden rules for making life – or at least the cooking – less stressful:
For the clergy, weekdays are busy with daily mass, funerals and appointments. Saturdays are popular for weddings and baptisms. Sundays, which are perhaps the clergy’s busiest day of the week, can be made easier when it comes to cooking, through planning and preparation, resulting in delicious food without the hassle.
I hope the following recipe will give you – whether you’re a priest, monk or a lay person – inspiration and make your life a little less stressful. The secret to easy and hassle-free cooking is in the preparation (and don’t forget the blessed salt).
<strong>Roast chicken with rosemary, thyme and pine nuts</strong>
(Rosemary is often used as a sign of remembrance and fidelity, and has long been associated with the Virgin Mary and the Holy Family’s escape from Egypt. One story is that Mary removed her damp robe and laid it on a bush with white flowers to dry while the Holy family rested. Miraculously the flowers turned from white to the blue of Mary’s robe. The bush was then known as rosemary.)
<em><strong>Serves 6</strong></em>
<em>1 large chicken </em>
<em>2 red onions, peeled and cut into quarters</em>
<em>60g raisins soaked in boiling water for 10 minutes and 1tbsp red wine vinegar. </em>
<em>80g pine nuts, lightly toasted</em>
<em>2 sprigs of thyme, leaves only</em>
<em>5 sprigs of rosemary, leaves only finely chopped</em>
<em>Olive oil</em>
<em>Blessed salt – I always used blessed salt in my cooking!</em>
<em>Freshly ground black pepper</em>
<em>300g Basmati rice – follow cooking instructions on packet using the chicken stock</em>
<em>750ml chicken stock</em>
<em>Pinch of saffron stirred into a tbsp of boiling water</em>
Put the onions into a roasting tin, place the chicken on top of the onions and rub the olive oil all over the chicken – be generous. Season well with (blessed) salt.
Roast in a preheated oven, 220c for about 1 hour or until the bird is cooked and the skin is crispy. While the chicken is roasting, cook the rice in the stock, salt and the saffron. Drain the rice and set aside.
When the chicken is ready, remove it from the roasting tin into a large warm dish. Pull the roasted onions into pieces and leave in the tin, do not clean the tin.
Strip all the meat off the bones making sure you catch all the juices in the dish (discard carcass and use for stock) and chop up the crispy skin.
Put the roasting tin over a medium heat and add the herbs, chicken, rice, drained raisins and pine nuts. Gently mix them all together with the cooked red onions letting the rice soak up all the pan juices and heat through.
Taste for seasoning and serve with a green salad. I don’t like my food piping hot: this is a great dish to serve at room temperature.
<em>Potential short cut</em>: You can prepare the chicken ahead of time and set aside, but you may have to crisp up the skin again.
<em>Tip</em>: I always have microwavable rice pouches in the pantry; if you are especially short for time, use one of these and stir through the saffron and about 250mls of chicken stock.
I hope the above helps – and that you (and your fellow diners) enjoy. <br><br><em>Photo: A Benedictine monk prepares a dinner table in the refectory at Pluscarden Abbey, Elgin, Scotland, 20 July 2015. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images.) </em>
<em>Amy Willcock has written nine cookery and entertainment books. Born in Chicago, she moved to the UK in 1980. Specialising in country living, Amy wrote a regular monthly column for </em>The Shooting Gazette <em>for over 19 years, including writing about food and lifestyle.</em>
