Download episode 48 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button in the sidebar on catholicfoodie.com. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. $2, $5, $10, or any amount… your donation is appreciated! THANK YOU!

You can find lots of cool stuff over at SQPN Gear: Catholic Foodie aprons, t-shirts, ladies tees, coffee mugs, tote bags. Show the world that you are a Catholic foodie! Head over to SQPN Gear now!

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find the Catholic Foodie at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

the Catholic Foodie on Twitter

***Photo by In Praise of Sardines***

By Kate Daneluk

As a native New Jersian, perhaps the cranberry, one of our major agricultural products, is more important to me than the average American.  But I believe that my love for the seasonal little gems is based on the nutritional and rich, tangy goodness over regional loyalty.  The announcement of the cranberry as a superfood, ridiculously rich in Vitamin C and antioxidants has increased the berries profile.  We now find craisins and juice rising in consumption.  Even so, I dare say many Americans consume cranberries once or twice a year, jellied in a can.  I challenge you all now to explore the seasonal goodness of the cranberry, fresh and whole, the way God made it.

When the fresh berries hit the stand, I grab one for the freezer and one for the fridge.  Unlike typical berries, you will need to treat and cook these to make them palatable.  We do it for meat, onions, garlic, artichokes.  We can do it for the cranberry!

What to do with fresh cranberries?

Throw a handful in any fruit pie.  Especially complimentary to pears and apples.  They’ll cook and sweeten right in the pie.

Add a handful to homemade applesauce at the beginning of cook time for a pretty, pink sauce.  You may need a little extra sugar.

Homemade cranberry sauce is fresher and brighter tasting than any can.

HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE

• 2 C cranberries (picked over and rinsed)
• ½ C water
• 1 C sugar
• pinch of salt

Boil on the stove for 8 – 12 minutes.  The more you boil, the more jelly-like consistency.  Pour into serving dish and cool.

Substitute Orange Juice for water and add orange zest for a sweeter and fun variation.

½ C honey with 2 T of corn syrup may be substituted for the sugar.

Add a 2T of Worcestershire Sauce and an extra ½ C water for a ham glaze.

What to do with leftover homemade cranberry sauce?

Add 2 T to a simple pan sauce for pork chops, chicken, or meaty fish (like salmon or sword fish)

Cut the mayo.  Use as a sandwich spread for chicken salad, turkey and ham sandwiches.

Make a cranberry BBQ sauce for ribs, chicken, turkey, etc.

CRANBERRY BBQ SAUCE

• 1 small onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 T butter (or oil)
• 2 T Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 C homemade Cranberry or Cranberry Orange Sauce
• 1/3 C apple cider vinegar
• ½ tsp cumin
• ½ tsp coriander
• cayenne to taste

Finely dice and sauté onion and garlic in butter until soft.  Add cranberry sauce, Worcestershire Sauce and apple cider vinegar.  Boil gently until thick, 4-7 minutes.  Add spices and cook another minute.  Careful when tasting: HOT SUGAR is HOT!

***Photo by CC Chapman***

There’s nothing like a good stock to add zap and zing to your soups and gumbos. And stocks are so easy to make!

Since this is Thanksgiving time, I have a special turkey stock that I want to share with you. I make this stock right after every Thanksgiving and Christmas. And I use it in my famous Turkey & Andouille Gumbo.

Here’s how I do it:

INGREDIENTS

• 1 turkey carcass and leftover bones from Thanksgiving dinner
• 2 – 3 medium onions
• 3 – 4 ribs of celery
• 4 – 5 cloves of garlic
• 1 tablespoon of black peppercorns
• 2 – 4 teaspoons of salt (depending on amount of water used)
• 4 – 6 cups of water (enough to cover carcass)
• 3 – 4 whole bay leaves

DIRECTIONS

1. Place carcass in a large stockpot.
2. Cut celery into thirds (you want big pieces since you will strain these out later)
3. Quarter the onions
4. Slice the garlic, but not too thinly
5. Cover the carcass with water and throw the celery, onions, garlic, bay leaves, salt and peppercorns into the pot
6. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium
7. Simmer, uncovered, for about 2 hours
8. Remove from heat and skim off fat that has risen to the surface
9. Strain through fine-mesh sieve (reserving the onions and celery for any soup or gumbo that you may be making)
10. Make sure you reserve any turkey meat that has fallen off of the carcass, and pick off any meat that remains on the carcass

I typically use this stock right away in the Turkey & Andouille Gumbo. But you can freeze it if you are not using it right away.

Hint: if freezing, store in multiple quart containers or sealable freezer bags. That way you can pull out only what you need when you need it. And remember not to overfill the containers as the liquid expands a bit when freezing. You wouldn’t want one of those containers to burst in your freezer!

Bon appetit!

***Photo by engnr_chik***

On the menu this week… We have some voice feedback that leads us into another discussion of the Holy Family Institute, particularly the Vow of Poverty. I also share with you the experience of renewing our vows Saturday (on our 11th wedding anniversary). And guess what! Char joins us on the show to discuss this topic! Woo hoo!

We venture into the land of the sweet potato again (where Char makes a second appearance on the show!). I also review Disney’s A Christmas Carol and talk about last week’s MacHeist Bundle, and some of the cool apps I am diggin’ right now.

Oh, and then we have the winner of our contest. Yep. You gotta listen to the show to find out if you are the one!

Join us here on the Catholic Foodie… Where food meets faith!

Don’t forget to check out Inge’s article about the Catholic Foodie: http://taquoriaan.com/2009/10/29/410/

Download episode 47 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button in the sidebar on catholicfoodie.com. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. $2, $5, $10, or any amount… your donation is appreciated! THANK YOU!

You can find lots of cool stuff over at SQPN Gear: Catholic Foodie aprons, t-shirts, ladies tees, coffee mugs, tote bags. Show the world that you are a Catholic foodie! Head over to SQPN Gear now!

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find the Catholic Foodie at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

the Catholic Foodie on Twitter

It’s that time again… Thanksgiving! It is just a couple of weeks away. So, what are you doing for Thanksgiving?

A turkey recipe, sweet potato & apple casserole recipe, feedback, a book review and more! That’s what’s on the menu today. I also share about our upcoming renewal of vows in the Holy Family Institute. Char and I are very excited about this! I hope to post some pics next week.

Here are a few links from the show:

• Holy Family Institute (Official U.S. Site)
• Holy Family Institute on ning.com
• hficoncord.com
• Daughter’s of St. Paul
• Society of St. Paul
• The Catholic Company (Fr. Joe Classen’s Meat & Potatoes Catholicism)
• Emeril’s Pepper-stuffed Turkey
• In Between Sundays (episode 24)
• The Catholic Foodie on SQPN

Download episode 46 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button in the sidebar on catholicfoodie.com. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. $2, $5, $10, or any amount… your donation is appreciated! THANK YOU!

You can find lots of cool stuff over at SQPN Gear: Catholic Foodie aprons, t-shirts, ladies tees, coffee mugs, tote bags. Show the world that you are a Catholic foodie! Head over to SQPN Gear now!

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find the Catholic Foodie at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

the Catholic Foodie on Twitter

***Photo by stevevoght***

Links:

• Biggest Loser Fan Podcast

Subscribe to the feed | Subscribe with iTunes

Soul Food! We are celebrating the Feasts of All Saints and All Souls. This is a time to remember that this earthly life is not the end. There is more waiting for us. This is the time to remember the Last Things (death, heaven, hell, and purgatory). This is a time to remember how important it is to pray for the dead.

In CF45 I share with you some thoughts on death… and life. Death has been a theme in my life the last couple of weeks. A friend of mine died last week. Fr. Thomas Perrier, OSB. He was 54. Died in his sleep. The funeral was Friday and it was beautiful. The church was packed, standing room only. And there were so many priests there! And four bishops! What a prayerful and solemn celebration!

And later that evening I had the opportunity to meet St. Mary Magdalene. That’s right… St. Mary Magdalene. Well, at least her tibia. As you may have heard on my last Audioboo, the relic of St. Mary Magdalene has left Europe for the first time ever. And, of all places, it was brought to my neck of the woods. I took the family Friday night to venerate that relic. Listen to CF45 to find out more!

And then, of course, we have All Saints Day and All Souls. November is a month dedicated to the Poor Souls in Purgatory. We talk a lot about Purgatory on CF45. Take a listen. And then let me know what you think! I would love to hear from you.

You’re not going to believe this, but I totally forgot to draw a name for the contest! Oh well, we’ll do that next week… So make some comments! Go to catholicfoodie.com or sqpn.com.

Download episode 45 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button in the sidebar on catholicfoodie.com. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. $2, $5, $10, or any amount… your donation is appreciated! THANK YOU!

You can find lots of cool stuff over at SQPN Gear: Catholic Foodie aprons, t-shirts, ladies tees, coffee mugs, tote bags. Show the world that you are a Catholic foodie! Head over to SQPN Gear now!

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find the Catholic Foodie at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

the Catholic Foodie on Twitter

Bones? St. Mary Magdalene?

Yes, that’s right! I had the awesome privilege of venerating the tibia of St. Mary Magdalene tonight! As a matter of fact, my whole family had that privilege.

Listen to hear more about it… and to hear about Sunday’s episode of the Catholic Foodie. We are going to talk about All Saints and All Souls, relics, Purgatory and the poor souls… and a few other surprises.

Be sure to join me Sunday, November 1st at 3PM Central on Ustream.

Download episode 44 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button in the sidebar on catholicfoodie.com. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. $2, $5, $10, or any amount… your donation is appreciated! THANK YOU!

You can find lots of cool stuff over at SQPN Gear: Catholic Foodie aprons, t-shirts, ladies tees, coffee mugs, tote bags. Show the world that you are a Catholic foodie! Head over to SQPN Gear now!

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find the Catholic Foodie at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

the Catholic Foodie on Twitter

I can hardly believe it, but I am about to celebrate 1 year of the Catholic Foodie! I published my first episode on November 30, 2008. And November is just around the corner!

I plan on ustreaming at the regular time (3PM Central) on Sunday, November 29th… which is also Char’s birthday! I want to do something special for the 1 year anniversary, but I am stumped on ideas. Do you have any ideas?

If you have a good idea for the 1 year anniversary of the Catholic Foodie, please comment below, email me at catholicfoodie@gmail.com or call me at 985-635-4974.

Thank you!

Photo by mint imperial

A question from Nick Padley of In Between Sundays podcasts leads us into a discussion about how to eat healthily despite our busy lives. I also share some feedback and make a few announcements (including a new contest!).

Here are a few of the links I mentioned on the show, and a few resources for preparing healthy meals on the go:

How to Eat Healthy on the Go

Eating Healthy “On the Go”

Healthy Quick Meals

Over 100 Quick & Easy Healthy Foods

Catholic Vitamins

Catholic Creativity Podcast

In Between Sundays

On the U

The Secrets of FlashForward Podcast

The Daily Breakfast with Fr. Roderick

5th Annual Podcast Awards

Heiner Brau

To leave feedback for the Catholic Foodie, call 985-635-4974 and leave a message. You can also leave feedback for me at catholicfoodie@gmail.com.

Download episode 43 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button on the Catholic Foodie website. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. $2, $5, $10, or any amount… your donation is appreciated! THANK YOU!

By the way, you can find the Donate button on the right side of the main page, just beneath the SQPN banner.

You can find lots of cool stuff over at SQPN Gear: Catholic Foodie aprons, t-shirts, ladies tees, coffee mugs, tote bags. Show the world that you are a Catholic foodie! Head over to SQPN Gear now!

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find us at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

the Catholic Foodie on Twitter

photo by pinksherbet

Are you too busy to eat well? Well… I want to hear about it!

Call me at 985-635-4974 and leave a message. I might just play it on Sunday’s show.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Until then…

Bon appetit!

Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond, Archbishop of New Orleans, conferred the Sacrament of Confirmation on 78 young people in our parish Monday night. I had the pleasure, with the assistance of a number of adult leaders, of preparing these young men and women to receive the sacrament.

And I have to tell you that this was the most reverent, holy, and prayerful Confirmation liturgy I have ever attended. I was absolutely delighted to witness it.

Here is an audioboo of my thoughts concerning the liturgy… and a new TV show that has me hooked: FlashForward…

Let me know what you think. Do you like FlashForward? Do you have any thoughts about the Sacrament of Confirmation?

Photo by ideacreamanuelasPps on flickr.com

What has been the holiest meal you have ever shared? Outside the Mass, that is.

I asked this question the other day on Plurk & Twitter & Facebook, and I received a number of replies. I share some of those with you on episode 42 of the Catholic Foodie.

I also share an amazing story about a dinner party that an old friend of mine hosted. And, somehow, I end up talking about how Char and I met and how – a number of years later – we become united in the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony. Now, how did I get on to those topics?

Here are some of the links I refer to on the show:

• Catholic Roundup
• The Catholic Foodie Fan Page on Facebook
• Campbell’s Coffee & Tea
• Skyline Chili
• Polish Christmas Tradition – Wigilia
• Another resource for this Polish Christmas tradition – Oplatki
• Inge Loot’s photo “Breakfast with a Priest” on Facebook
• Making Music Praying Twice
• The Catholic Digest Fan Page on Facebook
• The Catholic Foodie on iTunes – Please consider leaving a review of the Catholic Foodie if you like the show.
• Deo Gratias
• Chef John Folse Culinary Institute
• 5th Annual Podcast Awards – Nominate your favorite podcasts! Nominations end at 11:59PM on October 18! Please consider nominating some of the many excellent podcasts over at SQPN.com!
• SQPN Connect
• SQPN.com
• Secrets of FlashForward
• FlashForward
• In Between Sundays
• Margarita Island, Venezuela

As I mentioned on the show, here are a couple of pics of a couple of meals that Char and I shared on our honeymoon on Margarita Island, Venezuela. Boy, these pics bring back some memories!

To leave feedback for the Catholic Foodie, call 985-635-4974 and leave a message. You can also leave feedback for me at catholicfoodie@gmail.com.

Download episode 42 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button on the Catholic Foodie website. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. THANK YOU!

By the way, you can find the Donate button on the right side of the main page, just beneath the SQPN banner.

You can find lots of cool stuff over at SQPN Gear: Catholic Foodie aprons, t-shirts, ladies tees, coffee mugs, tote bags. Show the world that you are a Catholic foodie! Head over to SQPN Gear now!

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find us at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

the Catholic Foodie on Twitter

This Sunday’s episode, episode 42, will cover “holy meals,” and I want to hear from YOU!

What to know more? Listen to this audioboo:

Bon appetit!

Catholic Foodie #41… Invite. Inspire. Bloom! On today’s show we welcome Mark and Katy Walker, founders of the new online Catholic website iibloom.com.

We also have a ton of feedback! I also share with you the contents of a package I received from Bro Jerry this past week.

Exciting things are on the menu here at the Catholic Foodie, where food meets faith!

Here are some of the folks that join us on the show:

Capt. Jeff of the Catholic Pilot podcast and sqpngear.com

Nick Padley of In Between Sundays

Bro Jerry of Bro Jer’s Blog

Fr. Seraphim Beshoner, TOR of Catholic Under the Hood

Sarah Reinhard of just another day of Catholic pondering

To leave feedback for the Catholic Foodie, call 985-635-4974 and leave a message. You can also leave feedback for me at catholicfoodie@gmail.com.

Download episode 41 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button on the Catholic Foodie website. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. THANK YOU!

By the way, you can find the Donate button on the right side of the main page, just beneath the SQPN banner.

You can find lots of cool stuff over at SQPN Gear: Catholic Foodie aprons, t-shirts, ladies tees, coffee mugs, tote bags. Show the world that you are a Catholic foodie! Head over to SQPN Gear now!

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find us at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

the Catholic Foodie on Twitter

Char and I are getting ready to go to the Deo Gratias event at St. Joseph Abbey.

Here’s an audioboo about the event:

You can also see some of the items they are auctioning off by going to the website.

I plan to interview a few folks tonight, so I will share more about Deo Gratias with you tomorrow on USTREAM for the recording of episode 41 at 3PM Central.

And until then… Bon Appetit!

Are your kids picky eaters? Do you have a hard time keeping them in their seats during meals? Does your family meal time seem to fall waaay short of that ideal bonding experience that family meals are supposed to be?

If so, you are in for a treat today! We are fortunate to have Kate Daneluk on the show with us. Kate is a homeschooling mom of four. She is also the co-founder with her husband of the ministry Making Music Praying Twice. Kate joins us today to talk about little kids at the table and what we can do to improve our experience of family meal time. I’ll give you a hint… it has something to do with music! Kate shows us that music not only soothes the savage beast, but that it also soothes the picky, fussy, and overly active child at the dinner table.

So, pour your self a cup of coffee and join the conversation. I think you’ll enjoy it, and maybe even take a way a nugget (or two) of wisdom.

For more info on Kate and the work that she does, you can check out her website, of course. But you can also hear her recent conversation with Lisa Hendey on episode 115 of the Catholic Moments podcast. Oh, and before leaving the Catholic Foodie site today, take a look at a recent article she posted here: Music at the Table. It’s really great!

Here is Kate’s official bio:

Kate Daneluk has taught music in Catholic schools and early education programs since 1994, when she graduated with high honors in Theology from St. Anslem College.  Continuing on with graduate work in education, she trained in early childhood music and movement at the Center for Music and Young Children in Princeton.  The mother of four young children, Kate is the co-developer and creative director of Making Music Praying Twice.  Kate provides engaging workshops on faith-inclusive early childhood music and movement for parents, homeschoolers, teachers, and schools.

All this and more is on the menu at the Catholic Foodie, where food meets faith!

To leave feedback for the Catholic Foodie, call 985-635-4974 and leave a message. You can also leave feedback for me at catholicfoodie@gmail.com.

Download episode 40 here or listen to it below:

Please note… there is now a Donate button on the Catholic Foodie website. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider supporting our ministry with your donation. THANK YOU!

By the way, you can find the Donate button on the right side of the main page, just beneath the SQPN banner.

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find us at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

Today we finish up our discussion of COFFEE! We have feedback, a bit of coffee history, and a surprise package from a listener and good friend, Shelly Kelly. Shelly and her sister Lisa are the blogging sisters over at Of Sound Mind and Spirit. If you have never seen their blog before, you might just want to pay them a visit. And what’s inside the package? Well, you’ll just have to listen to find out!

Did you know that coffee started out as a Muslim drink? And at first Christian Europe was not too open to the Muslim’s “Devil’s drink.” But a certain pope tried it, and… he like it! Suddenly coffee took over Christian society in the West. Which pope? Well, you’ll have to listen to find out! Yes, again. I am “encouraging” you to listen to the show. Go ahead. You’ll enjoy it!

A few links from the show…

• Making Music, Praying Twice – Our guest on the next show (Sept. 27) is Kate Daneluk. Check out her awesome site, and call 985-635-4974 with your questions and comments BEFORE the show. Perhaps we can address YOUR question in our conversation. You can also email questions to catholicfoodie@gmail.com. By the way, Kate recently posted an article on the Catholic Foodie, Music at the Table. Kate will join us THIS Sunday at 3PM Central on our USTREAM broadcast. Join us!
  
• iibloom.com – a great new resource for Catholic young adults (By the way, Mark & Katy Walker, founders of iibloom, will be our guests on the October 4th show. Plan on catching that on USTREAM at 3PM Central). Oh, and the Catholic Foodie is an “expert” there on the site.
  
• Campbell’s Coffe & Tea
  
• Lola Savannah coffee
  
• CDM – Cafe du Monde coffee
  
• Coffee history resources from National Geographic
  
• The Pope Who Popularized Coffee
  
• StayLocal.org
  
• Of Sound Mind & Spirit
  
• Chichory
  

I also share with you a bit of my own philosophical thought on coffee and coffee houses. And, believe it or not, I am actually able to work in oysters and Yogi Berra. Unbelievable!

All this and more is on the menu at the Catholic Foodie, where food meets faith!

To leave feedback for the Catholic Foodie, call 985-635-4974 and leave a message. You can also leave feedback for me at catholicfoodie@gmail.com.

Download episode 39 here or listen to it below:

Please note… I announce on this episode that I have just placed a Donate button on the Catholic Foodie website. If you like what you hear and see at the Catholic Foodie, please consider contributing to the improvement of the sound quality of the show. There are a few upgrades that I need to make, upgrades that will dramatically improve the quality of the Catholic Foodie. THANK YOU for considering a donation towards this effort.

By the way, you can find the Donate button on the right side of the main page, just beneath the SQPN banner.

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find us at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

Games, weight loss, saint’s feast days, Mass readings, organizers, to-do lists, voice memos, note-taking and more! It seems that there is an app for just about everything.

But are there any apps for the foodie? You bet. Whether planning a menu, searching for a restaurant, looking for a recipe, trying to figure out what bouillabaisse means, converting measurements, making a shopping list, mixing a drink or even losing weight, there’s an app for it!

Out of the many apps available on iTunes, I picked a few of my recipe favorites to share with you.

Need a recipe?

1. Epicurious – If you are looking for recipes, the Epicurious app is a good place to start. It will also create grocery lists for you! Price = Free

2. Allrecipes.com’s Dinner Spinner – Lots of recipes here too. I use this and Epicurious all of the time! Price = Free
3. MacGourmet Touch – Fantastic! Absolutely wonderful! Amazing! Sounds great doesn’t it? I love this little app. Tons of recipes, and you can add as many of your own recipes as you like. It’s the companion to the desktop application by the same name, and it syncs with the desktop app too. One great little feature… it automatically creates a shopping list for any recipe you choose! Another great feature: you can put it into chef mode and it will display the recipe to you as you cook. Cool! But, it’s Mac-only (which is great for me!). Price = $4.99
4. 5800+ Drink and Cocktail Recipes – Having a party? Want a hot cocktail or coffee drink to keep you warm this winter? You’ll find lots of great ideas here. And step-by-step instructions too! Price = $.99 (free version also available)
5. Todo – This is a great one too. With it you can create all kinds of to-do lists, even grocery lists! And it syncs with a couple of online apps, making it easy to input your to-dos: toodledo.com and rememberthemilk.com. Price – $9.99
6. Barista – This one is for all of you coffee connoisseurs. Recipes for espresso drinks, tips for brewing the perfect cup, explanations of espresso terms and equipment… it’s all in here! Price – $2.99

Want to be healthy?

1. Lose it! – Want to lose weight? With this app you can create a “calorie budget” and track your food intake and exercise to insure that you stay within your budget. Weight loss “on the go!” Price = Free

2.  I Can Has Cheezburger – A funny look at… well, the unhealthy life. Sometimes humor can be a great motivator. Price = $.99 (free version also available)

Trying to decide where to eat tonight?

1. Urbanspoon – Roulet for your dinner decisions. You can also perform regular searches as well. Categorizes restaurants by rating, price, location, and type of cuisine. It’s a fun tool, and in my experience it is very accurate. Price = Free

2. OpenTable – Need a reservation? OpenTable may be your answer. You tell it when you want to eat, what you want to eat, and how many people will be joining you, and OpenTable will list for you all the restaurants that meet your criteria with open reservations. You can also make a reservation right from the app, as well as look at menus and send emails to your friends. This app is designed to work with OpenTable’s website: opentable.com Price = Free

And these are only a few of the foodie apps that are currently available at the iTunes store. And since we foodies are so popular, we can expect more iPhone apps in the near future. These are my favs for now.

Do you have a favorite foodie iPhone app?

Today we talk about one of my favorite things in the whole world… COFFEE!!!!

I drink two cups every morning. Yes, only two. But they are big cups! And since Saturday I have been drinking my coffee out of my new Catholic Foodie coffee mugs! (They will be available over at SQPN Gear soon!)

Just a couple of days ago I put the word out on Twitter, Plurk and Facebook that episode 38 would be about coffee. I asked for input on favorite coffees, coffee shops, favorite brands, etc. I was so amazed by the response! 10 people called in to share their thoughts about coffee!

I share all those comments with you on episode 38!

And I have another special treat for you. You get to listen in on a conversation I had with Campbell Morrison, owner of Campbell’s Coffee and Tea. Not only are they a “green” coffee shop, but Campbell roasts his own beans… daily! We talk about what led him to open the shop and how he learned to roast beans to perfection.

I am so happy that you stopped by the Catholic Foodie, where food meets faith!

Enjoy the episode, and… bon appetit!

To leave feedback for the Catholic Foodie, call 985-635-4974 and leave a message. You can also leave feedback for me at catholicfoodie@gmail.com.

Download episode 38 here or listen to it below:

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

You can also find us at:

SQPN Connect

the Catholic Foodie on Facebook

Photo by Refracted Moments on Flickr.

Goodness! This is a jam-packed episode!

We start off with some voice feedback. If you remember, last episode I requested voice feedback as part of a contest to win a Catholic Foodie apron or t-shirt. Four ladies entered the contest, and the winner is… Well, you’ll have to listen to find out!

A special thanks to Anne in the UK. In addition to the wonderful compliments and the feedback she provided, she also recommended a new beer: Fuller’s London Pride. After hearing her talk about it, I went out and got a bottle. Yes, it is a very good beer. I can see myself enjoying them frequently in the future.

I am very excited that Dominic Catalano of CATgear.com joins us on the show today. He not only produces excellent Catholic apparrel, but he also re-published his grandmother’s 400 page cookbook! He joins us today to discuss Grandma Rosa’s Cookinary Arts.

Fr. Seraphim Beshoner, TOR of Catholic Under the Hood podcast joins us today as well. He delivers to the Catholic Foodie a most excellent idea for a future episode. Of course, I would be honored if he would join me on that future episode as well!

I also share a bit with you about yesterday’s Confirmation retreat and the fantastic lunch prepared by the Knights of Columbus, Council 12906 (St. Peter Catholic Church, Covington, LA). Irwin Marant, Mike Riecke, and Chico Morales delighted 90 Confirmation candidates and about 20 adults with an out-of-this-world jambalaya! Make sure you check out the pics below!

To leave feedback for the Catholic Foodie, call 985-635-4974 and leave a message. You can also leave feedback for me at catholicfoodie@gmail.com.

Download episode 37 here or listen to it below:

Get new episodes of the Catholic Foodie by subscribing for free via iTunes or in another podcatcher. Find me also at SQPN.com.

That’s right! You could win a Catholic Foodie apron or t-shirt!

On episode 36 I announced a contest in honor of the new Catholic Foodie merchandise. This post is just a simple reminder.

So, how do I win a t-shirt or apron?

Well, here’s what I’m looking for: voice feedback!

Simply call 985-635-4974 and leave a message telling me one of two things:

1. Tell me about any tailgating experience you have had. What do you usually eat when you tailgate? Where do you tailgate? What team to you root for? Or anything else about your tailgating experience.
2. Tell me about how food meets faith in your life.

That’s it! Just leave me a message about one of those two things. And your name will go in the hat for a free Catholic Foodie t-shirt or apron.

If you want to see what they look like, go to SQPNgear.com.

Coming soon: ladies’ tees and coffee mugs!

So, what are you waiting for? Call now! 985-635-4974.

By Kate Daneluk of Making Music Praying Twice

<!–break–>

How musical fun can get

the food in our kids and

keep the kids in the seats!

For as long as I can remember, I loved to cook. When my husband and I first married, it was not unusual for dinner to include homemade bread, soup, and two courses plus dessert. Then came our beautiful baby girl. I envisioned the family meals to come. What I didn’t count on was keeping an active child under the age of four in a seat long enough to eat a slice of take-out pizza, let alone homemade spinach quiche.

Now we have four kids, ages 10, 6, 5 and not yet 2. So we’ve been dealing with this issue, nonstop, for the last ten years. I’ve employed several strategies for encouraging kids to eat and sit through dinner. As an early childhood music educator, I may have a few special tricks to share. Music integrates every area of our lives and meals are no exception. Here are some ways our family’s musical tendencies have helped at the table, and how you can sing some peace into mealtime with little ones. 

TIP #1 – AMAZING GRACE

Crank Grace Before Meals up a notch with music

Praying with music engages more brain matter, improves language memory, and releases calming serotonin. Use a song like The Johnny Appleseed Song, For the Beauty of the Earth, Now Thank We All Our God to help children focus before praying our traditional Catholic Grace Before Meals. If you are musically inclined, write a simple family tune or chant for the traditional prayer.

TIP #2 – WHAT’S NEW PUSSYCAT?

A little song to help open the mind and mouth to new foods

Very often, a child’s food aversions are actually control issues, mental blocks, fear of the unknown. My daughter invented this musical game to get her little brother out of his own head. It also got dinner into his mouth!

1. Load 2 forks with the chosen food.

2. Dance the forks around like puppets to this song (sung to the tune of Frere Jacques/Where Is Thumbkin?)

3. Rhythmically pop the food into the child’s mouth on the “eat it up.”

4. It’s a good idea to have an adult or big kid model the gobbling up the first time.

Once you’ve sung this song ten times at your child’s request, half the plate will be gone and the food aversion-induced conflict will be resolved.

TIP #3 - THE UNFINISHED SYMPHONIE

Musical games to play ‘til you’re “all done”

You don’t want to force a full child to eat when he has had enough. But if your child is not finishing a reasonable amount of his meal and begging for snacks and dessert the rest of the evening, he needs to be pushed a little. Use counting songs to help turn the finishing process into a game. Take countdown songs and adapt them to finish off, say ten green beans.

Again, let the older ones model the song showing how fun it is first. Cheer for everyone who finishes the song. Do not eat your child’s food for her or she’ll expect the fun to continue without eating. The song can’t move on without eating the food.

 Or try this one using the fork to point and count. Hum the lyrics for the missing green beans, hmmmm. Eventually, you’ll be humming the entire song.

Both silly songs encourage eating but also keep the pace slow. Slower eating is a healthy habit. A relaxed pace keeps a child from feeling overwhelmed or ambushed by the expectation to eat the suspect food.

TIP #4 – BABY PLEASE DON’T GO

Keeping them in the seats with a family rhythm jam.

If little ones finish earlier than you’d like and you want more family togetherness, you’ll need something hands-on and interactive to keep a 3-year-old’s attention! This is when a quick rhythm jam is needed.

Mom or Dad starts by hand drumming a fun, repetitive beat on the table. (This does not have to be perfect. You are not auditioning for the Mambo Kings.) Then each family member adds in to the rhythm. Think of the Broadway show Stomp. Let’s face it. You have silverware, glassware, wood, feet, hands and fingers at your disposal. You may never have so many opportunities to play that funky music. If you’re eating with chopsticks – watch out! This is so much fun. You can also improvise a sung part or sing a song you know to the beat.

TIP #5 – SING, SING A SONG

Give healthy foods their own theme song.

“I don’t like that!”

“But you eat these all the time. You do like it.”

“I don’t like it now.”

This is the stuff that tries a parent’s patience. It has been my experience that this phenomenon is much less frequent with the foods entering the dining room with their own theme song. I am on constant healthy food theme song patrol and have adapted and invented new ones as needed. Children’s television programs and popular CD’s are filled with healthy-food-promoting songs. The key to successful usage is consistently singing the song playfully every time the food is introduced at the table, a restaurant, the car, wherever the food is offered. Somehow the excitement, singing and dancing overtake the impulse to reject the food.

Here are just a handful of the songs we’ve gathered. Rack your brain for foodie songs you can use and keep your ears open for more!

• Banana - Sesame Street Sesame Street offers several useful songs but the Carmen Miranda-esque version of “Banana” has been our favorite. We’ve also developed an oatmeal song as a variation of this tune.
• Fruit Salad – the Wiggles. The Wiggles have a few foodie songs, but this is the cutest.
• Victor Vito – Laurie Berkner. This cute song features rice, beans, rutabaga, collard greens and spaghetti.
• Animal Cracker in My Soup – Shirley Temple. You can use any crackers and sing anyway.
• Chicken Soup with Rice – Carole King sings this cute song based on the Maurice Sendak poem. We don’t worry if our soup has noodles or vegetables instead. Any chicken soup inspires this one.
• Comin’ Round the Mountain – Oh we’ll all have chicken and dumplings when she comes.. Again, change the lyrics a little to suit your typical menu.
• That’s Amore – Dean Martin. When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie…. Most kids don’t need help eating pizza, but kids really love this goofy song.
• Molly Malone – My kids are big fish eaters. Cockles and Mussels alive alive oh! can take the trepidation out of any shellfish experience and start a discussion about the importance of fresh seafood. Sometimes, when eating from the sea, we’ll change out the words to all different kinds of seafood. This tests our vocabularies and culinary knowledge while including the menu in the song.

Not only will you be encouraging your child to eat, but you’ll be growing the musical home environment. This is important too, but that’s another article. I am, after all, an early childhood music educator first. The Encourager of Spinach Quiche Consumption is a secondary title.

Submitted by Patrick Moore

When I was a kid my father was in the Navy, so we moved around the US with some frequency.  As a result of his service, between 1969 and 1972 we lived in Richmond, California at a small Navy oil storage facility called Pt. Molate, where my father was the Commanding Officer.  My three brothers and I loved Pt. Molate because the house that the Navy provided for us looked out over the San Francisco Bay, and we spent a good deal of our time on the rocky beaches below the house.  A eucalyptus forest rose behind the house up the hillside, and when we tired of the beach we would play in the forest. Eucalyptus is not indigenous to California, at least I don’t think it is, but the base had once been a winery and before Prohibition closed the winery, the winemaster (in whose house we resided) planted eucalyptus trees for protection against the almost constant Pacific winds that rose off of the Bay.  The trees thrived in the environment, and by the time we lived there the forest was well- established and quite large.  The pervasive and pleasant smell of the eucalyptus leaves accompanied the atmosphere already laden with the smell of the salty Pacific.  Suffice it to say that Pt. Molate was a wonderful place for a little boy and I miss it to this day, 40 years later.
 
What does this all have to do with school lunch?  Well, it sets the scene for the fact that my brothers and I attended St. Cornelius Catholic School in Richmond.  There was a cafeteria at the school, but it was never used by the students and as a result, my mother made our lunches every day and we ate lunch at our desks.  This meal took place under the watchful eyes of the Sisters of Notre Dame who operated the school, and eating at your desk was an acquired talent because the desktops were slanted towards your lap.  Gravity being undeniable, most of what you might spill while eating would quickly deposit into your lap, this to the disdain of the formidable Sr. Christine, my first grade teacher.
 
Despite the dangers inherent with such an arrangement, accidents were relatively rare because we could not speak during lunch, at all.  As a result, we were less distracted and able to concentrate all of our mental powers against the constant threat of food falling into our laps.  Add to this scenario the loud strains of John Phillip Sousa marches that were blasted over the school’s PA system during each lunch period.  I suppose this was done to drown out the desultory sounds of chewing and swallowing made by 100s of otherwise silent children as they ate warm, fragrant food brought from home. 
 
The only part of the midday meal not provided from home was milk.  We paid 25 cents a week for milk, and my mother inserted a quarter into our lunch bags every Monday, along with strict instructions requiring immediate delivery of the money to the nuns upon our arrival at school.  Milk was delivered from a local dairy every day, and from the window of Sister Christine’s classroom we could see the dairy van as it pulled into the schoolyard and squealed to a halt outside of the almost entirely unused cafeteria.  The driver would then unload cases of small milk cartons onto the granite stairs that led from the schoolyard to the doors of the cafeteria, where they would sit and sweat in the beating California sun until the school janitor would bring the cases inside and place them in coolers until the lunch hour arrived.
 
I was fond of milk, but could not drink it warm.  To me, drinking warm milk was torture because it always resulted in unpleasant gastric consequences that I quickly discovered were uncondusive to the closed classroom environment that was so carefully stewarded by the Sisters of Notre Dame.  The nuns also required the consumption of every drop of milk on each and every day.  As a result, from the first grade on when the dairy van rumbled into the school yard each day, I prayed the most ardent prayers of my young life.  I prayed to every Saint I could think of.  I prayed to Mary. I prayed to Jesus.  I prayed to God.  I even prayed to St. Cornelius, thinking that as the patron saint of the school, he would take particular notice of me and cause the janitor to move the milk out of the intense sunlight before it got too warm.  The janitor, an ancient relic named Mr. Barnes, did not suffer from a routine schedule, so the milk could sit in the sun for up to an hour on any given day, regardless of the outside temperature and the number of prayers I completed. On those days, my dismay would escalate with each passing moment as lunch approached.  My only line of defense from that point forward was to gulp the warm milk down as quickly as possible and pray further that any audible consequences would “pass” before the end of the lunch period, during which my sounds and identity might be concealed behind the violent strains of John Phillip Sousa.
 
Looking back, I don’t know how I lived through first grade without developing an ulcer.  Fortunately, as I matriculated through second grade and third grade, alimentary maturity began to set in and I was slowly delivered from my daily brush with gastric distress.  In 1972 my father was transferred to the Pentagon and we moved from Pt. Molate to Alexandria, Virginia where our new school, St. Mary’s, used a milk delivery protocol that delivered ice-cold milk to the lunch line every day.  In addition, the students ate together in the basement cafeteria, without censure against speaking and in the total absence of John Phillip Sousa.  Virginia was nothing like California.  We did not live on the beach and there was no eucalyptus forest.  It was the Land of Cold Milk, however, and I loved living there too!

***Photo by jwgreen***

Patrick Moore is a good friend of the Catholic Foodie. I am grateful for his humorous article.

Have you heard about audioBoo?

It’s a pretty cool iPhone app that allows you to record up to 5 minutes of audio and upload it to the audioBoo site so that you can share it with others.

It’s actually "audio-blogging." And it’s a good way to keep up with friends and family.

Here are a couple of my "boos" from today:

The first one was recorded at Chick-Fil-A in Covington, LA. You’ll have to listen to find out more!

The second was recorded while at Char’s godmother’s house. We spent the afternoon there today. Again, you’ll have to listen to find out more!

And give audioBoo.fm a try. If you don’t have an iPhone or iTouch, that’s okay. Sign up and search for your favorite SQPN podcasters and listeners. Many of us are on audioBoo.

You can find my profile here: http://audioboo.fm/profile/catholicfoodie

Click here for a list of recent episodes!

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• ‘Action pictures’ of the marathon
• This running schedule guided me to a successful race

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In his newsletter, Fr. Leo writes:

“please pray for me next week (June 8th and 9th) as I film with Food Network. Pray I don’t say anything stupid, or more importantly, that I don’t cut my finger trying to chop onions too quickly! And if you want to be part of the action, come to the Mass that will be taped by Food Network on Monday, June 8, at Mount St. Mary’s Immaculate Conception Chapel. If we take time for Mass – even if it sometimes feels like a really long Mass – we receive the Food that lasts forever!

Fusion Fajita

The recipe that Food Network wants to highlight is my take on a traditional Mexican Dish – Fajitas! Since I’m Filipino and only part Spanish, but also heavily influenced by all of my travels, I had to throw in an internationally infused flavor to the traditional dish. I have a special marinade to wake up the hangar steak, which is generally a tough piece of meat that can easily dry out if overcooked.

Unfortunately, I probably can’t give you the recipe until after the Food Network filming. For now, you can simply watch another version of my more traditional fajitas that I made with my brother and sister-in-law in their home last year.

So, click here for the video and recipe.”

Fr. Leo has a video podcast in which he reveals his most secret recipes, but be warned! The episodes will make you VERY hungry.

If you subscribe to the RSS feed (link) or via iTunes (link), you will be able to download all the episodes!

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Link: Fitness Rocks! Podcast

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The Washington Post quotes Fr. Leo: ” it’s time to try something new to engage people and their faith. It is part of a movement among traditional Catholics who are pushing what Pope John Paul II called “the new evangelization,” an effort to use mass communication to draw people to the Church.”

According to the newspaper, “Patalinghug is using his role as a budding celebrity chef to preach the importance of the dinner table in family life. ‘The family that cooks and eats together stays together’, he says.”

Congratulations to Fr. Leo and the whole team behind ‘Grace Before Meals’, and if you’ve never watched Fr. Leo’s online videos here on SQPN, what are you waiting for? You can subscribe to his video podcast here.

If you subscribe to the RSS feed (link) or via iTunes (link), you will be able to download no less than 17 new episodes!

NB: the episodes are served by Revver.com; that service seems to have some downtime lately, so if the videos don’t download or the feed doesn’t work, please try again at another moment.

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