Lent From Scratch

Caitlan Rangel invites us to consider how cooking from scratch can help us grow in intentionality, simplicity, and virtue this Lent.

When my friends tell me what they are giving up for Lent, I hear a desire for intentionality, attachment to good things, and simplicity behind what they share. This makes sense—we live in a world that can feel chaotic and confusing.

I’d like to suggest one way we can tap into an intentional, simplifying, virtue building Lent. A Lent that brings us away from immediate gratification and grounds us in obedience to the present. It begins in the kitchen.

Over several years, I’ve started to cook more from scratch. I’ve found that creating habits for health can go hand in hand with creating habits for holiness.

When we begin to make more of our food from scratch, we say no to convenience and yes to craft. We gain knowledge of where our food comes from and grow in love for God and God’s creation. We become curious about how food affects us and learn about how God made plant and animal life to nourish us. We grow in patience, discipline, and sacrificial love through obedience to the work of cooking from scratch for ourselves and those we love.

Now, I’m not suggesting you make everything from scratch—life can be full, and I’m all about the occasional frozen pizza. However, there’s much we can make from scratch and we seem to have forgotten our ability to cultivate craft, health, and holiness in the kitchen.

From-scratch cooking not only helps us grow in virtue and restores health—it can also save money. It could be a beautiful practice this Lent to choose a couple of items to make from scratch and give the saved money to your church or a nonprofit of choice.

I’ll share a few of my favorite foods to cook from scratch. I hope the habit of preparing them brings you and your home closer to our good God this Lent.

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Yogurt

A few months ago, I found myself struggling to buy a tub of yogurt. I stood in the dairy section of our grocery store, staring at the price tag. How could one tub of decent quality yogurt cost so much?

I had never made yogurt and didn’t own an Instant Pot (which seemed to be the easiest way to make yogurt for a rookie like me). But, where there’s a will for probiotics and stewarding finances well, there’s a way!

I borrowed friends’ Instant Pots and was blown away at the taste, ease, and cost savings of making our own yogurt.

I would recommend this recipe from PressureCookRecipes.com for more precise instructions on how to make yogurt and this video for an introduction to making yogurt as a doable part of weekly life.

Baked Oatmeal Cups

These peanut butter banana baked oatmeal cups are like a cross between muffins and baked oatmeal. I like to add a couple of tablespoons of unflavored collagen powder to the batter for a protein boost.

Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Good quality sandwich bread can boast quite the price tag. After trial and error with many sourdough sandwich bread recipes, I have found this recipe from The Feathered Nester to be the easiest and most reliably delicious. It works best if you can prepare the dough in the evening so it can do its bulk rise while you sleep.

Granola Bars

Snacks can be expensive and full of less than nourishing ingredients. This granola bar recipe is easy and oh so delicious. If you add in the nuts, I suggest chopping them finely. I store these bars in the refrigerator to help them hold together.

One-Pan Fish Dinner

I love the simplicity of one-pan or one-pot meals. When all of the food groups happen in one cooking vehicle and dirty dishes are limited, my soul praises the Lord a little bit more.

You can use tilapia or another white fish in this one-pan recipe from the cookbook Run Fast Cook Fast Eat Slow. Rice or crusty bread to soak up the juices can provide a filling and yummy addition.

This Lent, choose a couple of items to make from scratch and give the saved money to your church or a nonprofit of choice. #CatholicMom

As a final thought—when I am chopping, cooking, or folding dough, I often look over to a six-inch statue of the Blessed Mother holding the child Jesus, which stands in a corner of my kitchen. I find consolation and joy in nourishing my family as Mary nourished Jesus. I look forward to incorporating prayer, fasting, and almsgiving from the kitchen with you this Lent.

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