Our Lady of the Rosary

Sometimes history and faith intertwine and the perspective of the faithful cannot be separated from the events of the day. The Holy League existed. They won a decisive victory over the Ottoman Fleet at the Battle of Lepanto in the Gulf of Patras on October 7, 1571. Of that there is no doubt.

What the faithful believe is that it was through prayer that the Holy League was victorious. It was Pope Pius V who helped to organize a coalition of Christian fleets to take on the Ottoman Fleets in the Mediterranean. Catholics throughout Europe were called upon to pray the Rosary, seeking divine intercession on behalf of the newly formed Christian Navy. They were outnumbered, out skilled and out supplied, yet they were victorious.

The Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary is meant to encourage the Faithful to pray the rosary even in the face of impossible odds. Good will triumph over evil. Love will win out over hate. Miracles are possible. Believe.

Feast to Honor Our Lady of The Rosary
Spain Starter –
Spicy Spanish Garlic Shrimp

Genoa Supper –
Genoa Stuffed Pork Loin Roast
Long Grain and Wild Rice
Sautéed Squash with Garlic-Dill

• 

• 

• 

Italian Dessert –
Blueberry Vanilla Cake with Italian Meringue Frosting

---

Spicy Spanish Garlic Shrimp
1 lb medium Shrimp
Kosher Salt to taste
Black Pepper to taste
5 large Garlic Cloves
3 tablespoons Parsley
6 tablespoons Olive Oil
2 teaspoons Red Chili Flakes
1-1/2 tablespoons Lemon Juice
1-1/2 tablespoons dry White Wine

Shell the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Season with salt and a little pepper.

Peel and slice garlic, set aside. Mince parsley, set aside.

Heat the oil in a in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Add garlic and red chili flakes. Sauté until the garlic starts to brown slightly, about a minute.

Add the lemon juice, white wine and parsley. Add shrimp, sauté until nicely pink, about 2 or 3 minutes per side.

Serve directly from the pan to appetizer plates, drizzle with pan drippings.

---

Genoa Stuffed Pork Loin Roast
1/2 cup fresh Basil
1/2 cup Pine Nuts
6 Garlic Cloves
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese
1-1/4 cups fresh Parsley, divided
1 lb ground Country Sausage
1 cup dry Breadcrumbs
1/4 cup Milk
1 Egg
1 teaspoon Black Pepper
4.5 lb boneless Pork Loin Roast
1/2 cup Water

Heat oven to 350-degrees.

Roughly chop basil, pine nuts, and garlic. Place in the bowl of a food processor along with the Parmesan cheese.  Roughly chop parsley, reserving 1/4 cup. Add remaining cup of parsley to the food processor. Plus to blend into a spreadable pesto.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the ground pork, bread crumbs, milk, egg, the reserved parsley and pepper. Set aside.

Butterfly pork loin by cutting through roast horizontally to within 1/4-inch of the other side. Do not cut all the way through. Open out to roughly a rectangle. Spread the pesto mixture over the pork loin. Place the ground sausage mixture along center of loin. Fold closed, secure with kitchen twine.

Place roast on V-roasting rack fatty side up inside shallow roasting pan. Roast for about an hour.  A nice crust should begin to form.

Add about 1/2 cup water to the roasting pan and continue to roast for an additional 30 minutes, until pork reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees.

Remove roast from oven; tent to keep warm and let rest 10 minutes. Slice to serve.  If desired, serve with pan drippings for added flavor.

Long Grain and Wild Rice
1 teaspoon dry Chopped Onion Flakes
1/2 teaspoon dry Parsley Flakes
1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/4 teaspoon Onion Powder
1/2 teaspoon ground Turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground Cumin
1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 cup dry Long Grain White Rice
1/3 cup dry Wild Rice
2 cups Chicken Stock
1 tablespoon Butter

In a bowl, combine all of the spices. Add both kinds of rice. Stir to blend the rice and seasonings together.

Note: The dry mixture can then be stored in an air-tight container along with cooking instructions for later use or cooked up right away.

When ready to cook, place rice mixture along with all the seasonings into a pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add chicken stock and butter.

Bring to a boil, stirring to combine seasoned rice with the stock. Cover pan, reduce heat to a simmer and gently cook for about 15 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed into the rice.

Remove from heat and fluff with a fork before serving.

Sautéed Squash with Garlic-Dill
2 Zucchini,
1 Yellow Squash
1-2 turns Himalayan Pink Salt (Optional)
2 tablespoons Butter
1 Garlic Clove, pressed
Dash of Dill Weed (Fresh or dry)

Coin cut squash, season with salt (if using), toss and set aside until ready to use.

Melt butter in a large, flat bottom skillet over medium heat.

Sauté squash until warm and crisp-tender, about 10 minutes. Press garlic over squash and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove from heat.

Add a dash of dill, toss and serve.

Blueberry Filled Vanilla Cake with Italian Meringue Frosting
Vanilla Cake
3 Eggs
1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
1/4 cup Melted butter
1 cup Water
1 box French Vanilla White Cake

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour 2 round cake pans, shake out excess flour and set aside.

Place eggs in a mixing bowl. Beat with paddle until pale, about 2 minutes.

Melt butter in a microwave safe dish. Add to eggs. With paddle running, slowly add vegetable oil and water until light and frothy. Add cake mix, blend for 30 seconds on low, then 2 minutes on medium high.

Divide batter between pans. Tap gently to release any air bubbles. Bake in oven for about 20 minutes, check for doneness. If necessary, bake an additional 10 minutes, checking every 5 minutes. Cake should be “just done” since it will continue to cook in the pan after being removed from the oven.

Place the pan onto cooling racks. Let cool 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and allow to cool completely on racks, about 2 hours.

Blueberry Filling
2 1/2-pint baskets Blueberries
1/2 cup Sugar
1 teaspoon fresh Lemon Juice

In a large bowl, mash blueberries. Combine berries, sugar, and lemon juice in heavy small saucepan and heat over high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.

Reduce heat to medium to maintain a rolling boil and continue to cook, stirring constantly until berries are reduced to about 3/4 cup. This should take about 15 minutes.

Pour mixture into a bowl and allow to cool, stirring occasionally. Once cooled, cover with plastic wrap to prevent “skin” from forming on top. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Italian Meringue Frosting
5 large Egg Whites
2 cups Butter
1-1/4 cups Sugar
2/3 cup Water, room temperature
Pinch Cream of Tartar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Separate eggs, reserve yolks for another purpose if desired. Set whites aside.

Cut butter into tablespoons, let soften to room temperature.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring sugar and water to a boil. Continue to boil until sugar syrup reaches the soft-ball stage, 240 – 244 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat whites on low until foam begins to form, increase to medium until foamy. Add cream of tartar, and whip on medium-high-speed until medium to stiff peaks form.

Note: Do not whip to the point that the whites are dry.

With mixer running, add syrup to whites in a slow but steady stream, beating at high-speed. It should take about 5 minutes to SLOWLY add the syrup to the whites.

Add butter one tablespoon at a time, beating until smooth, approximately 4 or 5 minutes.

Beat in vanilla, scrape down sides gently and beat again for 1 minute.

Note: This frosting will keep up to 3 days at room temperature, 2 weeks refrigerated.

To Assemble Cake: Place 1 layer of cake on a cake plate, cut dome to even top. Spread blueberry filling over the top of the cake layer.

Place remaining layer on top of the blueberry filling. Spread Meringue frosting over the top of the cake. Frost sides. Place remaining frosting in a pastry bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe edge around the top of the cake, with another pipping around base if desired. Set cake aside, make fruit to finish cake.

Fruit Topping
1 pint Blackberries
1 pint Raspberries
1/2 jar Current Jelly for Glaze (Apricot Jelly will also work)

Rinse berries, let drain well and pat dry if necessary.

Heat jelly in a saucepan over low heat until melted. Arrange berries on top of cake, brush with glaze.

Refrigerate finished cake up to 6 hours.  Remove from refrigerator about 30 minutes before serving.