Meatless Meals

This afternoon, I have to sit outside a Chick-fil-A for four hours. It's for a very worthy cause: we're collecting donations for Help Brings Hope for Haiti, Inc. Unfortunately, it's going to be a torturous time due to the fact that because it's Friday and Lent has begun, I can't eat meat! No chicken nuggets, fingers, sandwich with the yummy pickles on it... Sure, the waffle fries are fair game, but it's not the same. There's just something about holding a chicken nugget between my thumb and index finger and scanning the painters pallet of sauces I've laid out before me. Do I go Honey Roasted BBQ? Polynesian perhaps? or to the classic Ketchup? So many choices! It's beautiful.

OK, back to the issue. No meat today! It's Friday and it's Lent. If you've ever wondered why Catholics abstain from eating meat on Fridays during Lent, it's not because the Pope owns Long John Silver's. Abstinence from certain foods has been part of the history of man since the beginning. Abstaining from something helps us refocus on what is important and it cuts out things that might have seemed important. One belief on why meat was chosen is because most people feel that giving up meat (beef, chicken, pork) is an inconvenience. We should inconvenience ourselves from time to time to remind ourselves that God is the top priority and pleasures are a lesser priority.

So what's for dinner tonight? Of course, you can probably open the door to any Catholic church's social hall and belly up to a fish fry. And during Lent the fast food fish sandwich commercials seem to pop up more often than in other times of the year, but if you want to take a pass on the Fillet-o-Fish and make something at home, looking for a veggie recipe can really open up a world of options for you. The other night I made a Vegetable Lasagna that was scrumptious. Here's the recipe , and it's Weight Watchers (pictured above)! I also made this Baked Penne with Roasted Vegetables last week and (thanks to the load of cheese in it) it was tasty as well.

Growing up, we would do the Long John Silver's thing most Friday nights. Looking back on that now, I cringe, but I can't lie - it was pretty good! No matter what you do for your Friday night dinner, try to do something as a family. You'll make meatless memories that can last a lifetime!

-Abby