Lent Menu Recipes

Preparing specific Lent menu recipes is a good idea for Lent since there are restrictions on what you can eat. Lent is the season Catholics celebrate before Easter. It lasts for 40 days, beginning on Ash Wednesday. During Lent, Sundays are not counted as part of the 40 days. The soft pretzels and Hot Cross Buns are traditional Lent foods. The recipes are easy to follow and tasty!

In order to make these Lent menu recipes, you will need: 

Soft Pretzel ingredients:

• One package dry yeast'
• One and a half cups warm water
• One tablespoon sugar
• One teaspoon salt
• Four cups flour
• Kosher salt
• Two egg whites

1. Soak the yeast in the warm water for a while. Slowly add the sugar and salt.
2. Gradually stir the flour into the mixture. Add until the dough becomes stiff.
3. Begin kneading the dough. Work the dough until it is smooth.
4. Allow the dough to rise. It should double in size. It may need to sit overnight.
5. Divide the dough into small pieces. Roll the dough pieces into strips. You can then bend and shape the strips into pretzels.
6. Brush the tops of the pretzels with egg white. Sprinkle with Kosher salt.
7. Bake in a 450 degree oven for about 15 minutes. Allow to cool and enjoy!

Hot Cross Bun ingredients:

• Three fourths cup warm water
• Three tablespoons butter
• One tablespoon powdered milk
• One quarter cup white sugar
• Three eights teaspoon salt
• One egg
• One egg white
• One egg yolk
• Three cups flower
• One tablespoon active dry yeast
• Three fourths cup dry currants
• One teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Two tablespoons water
• Half a cup confectioners' sugar
• Quarter teaspoon vanilla
• Two teaspoons milk

1. Pour water, butter, milk powder, sugar, salt, egg, egg white, flour and yeast into a bread maker. Program the maker to produce dough.
2. When only five minutes are remaining, add the currants and ground cinnamon. Leave the dough in the machine until it has doubled in size.
3. Flour a surface, and lay dough flat. Push down. Cover for about 10 minutes.
4. Divide the dough and shape into balls. Allow to sit before putting in the oven. You want to give the dough time to rise. Normally, it takes about half an hour.
5. Mix the egg yolk with the two tablespoons water. Brush on the buns.
6. Place in the oven heated to 375 degrees. Bake until golden. This will take approximately twenty minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on wire rack.
7. Mix confectioners' sugar, milk and vanilla together to create a frosting. Once completely cool, pour frosting on buns in shape of a cross.