It’s probably my favorite dessert, so any excuse for crème brûlée is a good one in my book. The feast day of any French saint will do, but somehow the torching part makes it seem perfect for Saint Joan. Also, the fact that multiple nineteenth-century recipe books refer to crème brûlée as “Trinity Cream” or “Trinity Burnt Cream” means we’d be SILLY not to make this amazing dessert part of our Trinity Sunday celebration. (According to recipe historians—a real job, apparently—the name “Trinity” Cream is a reference to its three main ingredients: cream, sugar, and egg yolks.) This is a slightly fussier recipe than I’m up for on an every-day basis, but that’s the beauty of liturgical living for me. I can get motivated to do a fancy feast day meal for an important solemnity every month or two. THAT I can manage. And Crème Brûlée/Trinity Cream can be made ahead of time, which is always a bonus. But, just in case it’s helpful . . . last time I checked, they sell little individual crème brûlées in the freezer section at Trader Joe’s.

The “croque madame” is a French grilled cheese sandwich with ham inside and a fried egg on top. Sounds odd, but it’s SO good. It was my very favorite meal on our pilgrimage to Lourdes a few years back. THEN I realized that the name of the sandwich basically translates to “crispy lady” and I knew it was meant to be a part of our feast day celebration of Saint Joan of Arc. Gruyere is the cheese that’s traditionally used, but swiss works in a pinch.

This old-fashioned dessert is easy for kids to help put together and makes a great addition to a meal delivery for the feast of the Visitation, or any time. It keeps in the fridge for weeks, so your recipients can enjoy it at their convenience! Substitute the dried fruits of your choice.

While no analogy will ever actually explain or actually help us understand the Trinity (so we should probably quit trying) . . . symbols of the Trinity can help us remember and devote ourselves to the mystery of three persons in one God. A three leaf clover has long been used as a symbol of the Trinity, and these tasty three piece rolls are a fun dinner table reminder of this unknowable mystery. Rolling and dunking the dough balls is a good job for kid-helpers.

In the section Trinity Sunday in The Catholic All Year Compendium, I wrote: I have a liturgical living bucket list of crazy foods I would like to someday be able to serve for feast days. They haven’t happened yet because they are difficult to obtain or prepare or are prohibitively expensive. On that list is my dream food for the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity: Turducken. It’s a chicken, stuffed into a duck, stuffed into a turkey (all deboned and sewn back together with various veggies and stuffings in there too). Three birds in one meat. The chicken is meat. The duck is meat. The turkey is meat. The chicken is NOT the duck. The duck is NOT the turkey. The turkey is NOT the chicken. How perfect would that be?

In 1873, Fr. Damien volunteered as a chaplain to the Hawaiian government-mandated leprosy quarantine camps established on the island of Molokai. He served the physical and spiritual needs of the members of the camps and, along with native member-leaders, brought education, arts, order, law, and culture to a forsaken community. Since his death from the disease in 1889, he has been remembered and celebrated by the people of Hawaii. Also called huli huli chicken (meaning “turn, turn”), this tasty Molokai Hawaiian BBQ chicken recipe is great for summer parties, especially with an iconic pineapple upside down cake for dessert.

On the feast day of Our Lady of Fatima, we remember the day the sun miraculously danced in the sky. These cupcakes are a fancy treat to celebrate this great feast of the Blessed Mother! Orange zest in the cupcake batter AND the frosting makes them taste like sunshine, but it’s fun to decorate them that way, too. We recommend dried pineapple “suns” for an elegant topper, but candy corns work for a less-involved decoration!

Popovers are a favorite Sunday breakfast for our family, served with strawberry butter, and bacon on the side. But they are also a lovely accompaniment to meat and soups. I especially love them for the feast of the Ascension. The kids all standing at the oven watching them rise heavenward is liturgical cooking at its finest! These popovers REALLY rise—to about three inches above the pan—so if you’re making multiple batches, use the bottom and middle rack only, and be sure you have enough room between them.

The seafaring Portuguese have a love for shellfish and seafood, and are especially known for mussel recipes like this one. Mussels in the shell make for a FAST, fun, and memorable family meal my kids love. A crusty loaf of bread is lovely to sop up the tasty broth. Serve with a salad and some dancing sun cupcakes for dessert.

Saint Isidore would surely appreciate the ease and flexibility of this casserole. Substitute bacon or sausage, try other cheeses, add diced peppers or mushrooms. Make it the night before and store it in the refrigerator to bake in the morning. Great for family brunch, or as breakfast meal delivery to a new mom.

Authentic Mexican street tacos are simple, delicious, and easy to make at home.

Enjoy some apple pie in honor of Mama Mary, Mother of the Church! Tart Granny Smith apples are complemented by the sweet filling. This pie freezes well!

This Mexican “three milks” cake is light, moist, and not overly sweet, and no feast of the Mexican Martyrs would be complete without one! Can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator, covered, for 3-5 days.

The impressive strawberry-red of these margaritas make them perfect for the feast of the Mexican Martyrs! They are fruity, tart, sweet, and refreshing. Served on the rocks, they are a delicious summer treat! Replace the tequila with a lemon-lime soda for a virgin option.

Your calendar medallions for the month of May!

A downloadable calendar to use with your May Medallions!

Your membership resources for the month of May!

All the saint of the day images for the month of May!

Saint Isidore’s guardian angel used to lend him a hand with his farm work so Isidore could go to morning Mass. Perhaps it won’t look quite so dramatic in our own lives, but when we are willing to give God our time, we often notice we are a little extra productive in return!

Banners like this were used by the Mexican Cristero fighters in their war against the anti-Catholic government of President Calles in 1917. This one features Our Lady of Guadalupe and “Long Live Our Lady of Guadalupe”, the Sacred heart of Jesus and “Long Live Christ the King”, and the coat of arms of Mexico, which depicts a Mexican golden eagle perched on a prickly pear cactus devouring a rattlesnake. This coat of arms symbolizes the triumph of good over evil.

Colorful homemade paper stars like this one are used as party decorations throughout Mexico. Color, cut, and assemble your star, hang it up, and celebrate the sacrifice of the Mexican martyrs!

Show some love for this relatively new Marian feast day by praying this prayer composed in her honor by Pope Francis in 2013.

This tasty casserole is our family’s favorite way to use up old bread and avoid food waste. Hot dog buns to artisanal sourdough, it all gets chopped up and tossed into the dish! The casserole can be made ahead and stored in the fridge overnight. It makes a great dish for the freezer stash, a meal delivery, or a holiday breakfast, and it’s a go-to for us for after-Mass Sunday brunch. I like to set the automatic timer on our oven and have it hot and ready to eat when we get home. I have made up to a quadruple batch at once, increasing the cooking time to 1:10.

Your original 2" calendar medallions for the month of May!!

In 1873, Fr. Damien volunteered as a chaplain to the Hawaiian government-mandated leprosy quarantine camps established on the island of Molokai. He served the physical and spiritual needs of the members of the camps and, along with native member-leaders, brought education, arts, order, law, and culture to a forsaken community. Since his death from the disease in 1889, he has been remembered and celebrated by the people of Hawaii. 

Pentecost is the name of the Jewish festival that was being celebrated in Jerusalem when the Holy Spirit first descended upon Mary and the disciples. It is also called the Feast of Weeks or Shavuot. Originally, this was a spring festival celebrating the first-fruits of the wheat harvest. It also commemorates the giving of the Law to Moses on Mt. Sinai. Tradition says that the people waited so long for Moses to return from Mt. Sinai that the milk curdled and white cheese was left, and so dairy products—specifically cheesecakes and cheese blintzes—are eaten at Shavuot. The whiteness of these dishes serves as a reminder of the purity or holiness of God's Law. These cupcake-sized cheesecakes are quicker and easier than their full-sized counterparts, and the cherry pie topping brings a festive Pentecost-red touch to the traditional white.