Happy Earthy Birthday Saint John Paul II

One Hundred and Six years ago today Karol Józef Wojtyła was born. On October 16, 1978 he was elected as the 264th Pope to the Catholic Church.

Karol was the first pope from Poland, the first pope of Slavic origin and the first non-Italian pope since Adrian VI (1522-1523). Karol chose the name John Paul II when he became one of the youngest popes to be elected. He did so to honor his predecessor, Pope John Paul I, who died just 33 days after his election.

In my mind Pope John Paul II was one of the greatest, if not the greatest, popes to guide the Church. It is no wonder that this beautiful person was declared a Saint. Happy Birthday!

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Today also happens to be a Monday in our house. Mondays are typically kept simple. My guys are back at work, although now Hubby’s remote days are rotating Mondays and Wednesdays instead of every Friday. It means I’ve changed up my routine yet again. I’m glad to have my Fridays to myself again. It’s a big housework day, making sure everything is in order so that I can relax with my love all weekend long. One of the advantages to being the only one retired is that I can get all the mundane chores out of the way so that our weekends are typically chore-free. There’s still the marketing to do on Saturday mornings and Mass on Sundays, but those aren’t really chores. I like going to the market with Hubby. He keeps me in check, otherwise I spend way, way too much money. The last time I went to the market without him, I spent $12.00 on organic eggs. I’m one of those shoppers who doesn’t look for deals or compare prices, I just put things in the cart without any thought.

Since today is Saint John Paul II’s birthday, I thought Kielbasa Sausage would be nice, even if my rendition is very American. I’ll let you in on a little secret – I was going to make diced roasted potatoes to serve with the Kielbasa. But then Hubby and I took a drive up to Jackson to stretch our legs and have a bite to eat. The cafe we chose is a little on the fancy side. They served Smashed Spuds with their burgers instead of fries. I rather liked the potatoes, even if they truly didn’t go well with a burgr. And that got me to thinking . . . Enjoy and have a most blessed, beautiful day!

Kielbasa and Smashed Potato Supper
2 lbs small Yukon Gold Potatoes
Olive Oil as needed
Salt to taste
Black Pepper to taste
2 (12 oz) packages Kielbasa Sausage
1 Red Bell Pepper
1/2 Yellow Onion

Scrub potatoes, place in a large pot covered with about an inch of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a steady slow boil. Cook until potatoes are nearly fork tender, about 8 to 10 minutes depending upon size.

Remove potatoes from the water with a large slotted spoon. Let drain on paper towels to absorb the excess water and some of the steam.

Heat oven to 425-degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, brush with olive oil and set aside.

Once the potatoes have cooled a bit, gently smash with a potato masher or fork. Drizzle tops with oil, season with salt and pepper.

Spread potatoes out in a single layer on half of the baking sheet. Place in the oven to bake for 10 minutes or until just beginning to crisp..

While the potatoes bake, coin-cut the sausage. Stem and seed the bell pepper. Cut pepper into long strips. Cut onion in half. Reserve half for another purpose, peel and sliver remaining half. Set aside until ready to use.

Once the potatoes have been cooking for 10 minutes, remove from oven. Shake pan or turn potatoes. Spread sausage out on the empty side of the pan. Scatter peppers and onions over the sausage. Drizzle with a little olive oil.

Return sheet pan to the oven and continue to roast until the potatoes are tender and the sausage is heated through, about 15 minutes longer or until the Kielbasa is heated through and the potatoes are crisp.

Remove from oven, and serve straight from the baking sheet.

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If then you were raised with Christ,
Seek what is above,
Where Christ is seated at the right hand of God
Colossians 3:1