Mardi Gras

Today is Mardi Gras, which is French for Fat Tuesday - also called Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Tuesday. We've come to the end of the Western season of Carnival, which starts on Epiphany (January 6) and ends at Lent. Fat Tuesday is always 47 days before Easter Sunday.

Agenda Today:

1.Choose a theme for Lent

2. Set intentions for Lent

3. Prepare to fast 

4. Make carnival corn soup

5. Make a screen mask

1. Choose a theme for Lent:

My theme this year is Down-to-Earth Simple Living: Over the years, my Lent activities have sometimes been complex, with layers of readings and actions. This year I plan to ease back to the basics of living my life: Eating, playing, home and garden, family and art.

At Lent I allow myself to be slow, simple, and thoughtful. I spend time each day in focused study and prayer. This Lent, I plan to continue to explore my relationship to the natural world, the cycles of the seasons, and down-to-earth living, with the simplest of actions. 

And I generally also choose something to temporarily reduce or cut out of my life, as a reminder that what I truly need is the nurturing of Spirit (I try to choose something to fast from that is a good symbol of how I am trying to grow).

2. Set intentions for Lent

My intentions this year are to:

• Read and Journal: I intend to dive into various web sites that offer information on simple living themes.
• Simple steps: I will set myself some simple living steps for growth each week to become more down-to-earth.
• Creative witness: My theme for this whole year is Witness, so during Lent I will explore simple and creative ways to spread a message of simple living.
• Fast: This year I'm going to fast from meat and dairy as much as possible.

3. Prepare to fast:

If I'm going semi-vegan for Lent, I'm going to need to prepare by setting some pretty solid intentions. The three main reasons people give for wanting to try vegan are to protect animals, to reduce the impact on our planet, and to improve their health.

A report from the United Nations Environment Programme says that “animal products, both meat and dairy, in general require more resources and cause higher emissions than plant-based alternatives.”  The World Health Organization says, “Reducing livestock herds would also reduce emissions of methane, which is the second largest contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide.” A 2021 study found that 57% of global greenhouse gas emissions from food production come from meat and dairy products, and beef contributes the most global greenhouse gas emissions. 

Some stats:

• One burger has a carbon footprint of 4 pounds (about the same as driving 4 miles in a gasoline car).
• Compared to a beef burger, a soy-based vegan burger produces 18 times fewer greenhouse gases, has 40 times lower air pollution mortality rate, uses 91 times less land and 15 times less water.

Okay, I'm convinced. "I intend to eat vegan at least two days a week during Lent, and explore vegan options that are simple and grown locally, because consuming less meat and dairy is one way I can reduce my carbon footprint, and local options have fewer hidden environmental costs."

4. Make carnival corn soup with dumplings:

You can see three dumplings in the center of the bowl.

One place with a fantastic Carnival season is Trinidad and Tobago, an island republic in the southern Caribbean, off the coast of Venezuela. They celebrate for a month, with calypso music, steel band contests, limbo competitions, and fêtes (French for parties), and finish with street parades on Carnival Monday and Tuesday.

This is a favorite Trinidad carnival food, served by vendors outside of fêtes and street parties. It is one of the most delicious soups I've ever eaten.

Ingredients:

• 1 yellow onion
• 1 stick of celery
• 1 Tbsp. fresh thyme
• 1/8-c. fresh cilantro
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 medium potato
• 1 carrot
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• red pepper flakes to taste
• 4 c. vegetable stock
• 1/4-c. dried yellow split peas
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• can of cream-style corn

Dumplings:

• 1/2 c. flour
• 1/4 c. cornmeal
• 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
• pinch of salt
• pinch of cayenne
• 2-3 Tbsp. water

Yield: about 6 servings-

1. Chop the onion, celery, fresh thyme, and cilantro. Mince the garlic. Also, peel and dice potato and carrot.

2. Heat oil in a soup pot. Add onion, garlic, carrot, and red pepper flakes. Sauté 3 minutes. Add the celery, potato, and thyme and cook five minutes more.

3. Add stock, yellow split peas, cilantro. and salt and pepper. Simmer partially covered for about 1 hour.

4. While the soup is simmering, make the dumplings: Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, a pinch of salt and a pinch cayenne, then gradually stir in just enough water to make a stiff dough. Knead until smooth then let sit for 10 minutes.

5. When the split peas are tender, add a can of cream-style corn.

6. Roll the dumpling dough into a thin log, and pinch off small pieces to roll into fat, short worms. Drop them into the soup, and wait until they rise to the surface. If the soup is too thick, add a little water.

5. Make a screen mask:
The Cajun celebration today in rural Louisiana is called the Courir (pronounced Coo-REER) de Mardi Gras, or the Mardi Gras Run. It’s a begging ritual, similar to Halloween; people ride around the countryside on horses, wearing masks and costumes, and beg for ingredients to make a gumbo.

My students with their screen masks.

The traditional disguise is a painted wire screen mask, a conical capuchon (pronounced cap-e-shon) hat, and a raggedy fringed shirt and pants. For instructions, look here.