A Kitchen Prayer

My Kitchen Prayer

Bless my little kitchen Lord,

I love its every nook,

And bless me as I do my work,

Wash pots and pans and cook.

May the meals that I prepare,

Be seasoned from above,

With thy blessing and thy grace,

But most of all thy love.

As we partake of earthly food,

The table thou hast spread,

We'll not forget to thank thee Lord,

For all our daily bread.

So bless my little kitchen, Lord,

And those who enter in,

May they find naught but joy and peace,

And happiness therein.

Amen

I love this sweet little kitchen prayer. I bought a ceramic plate with this prayer on it many years ago, and it has hung in my kitchen ever since. Whenever I read it, it always fills me with warmth. It reminds me that one way I show love to my family is in my kitchen.

I do like to cook, though it is never anything fancy. I have to admit though, I don't always look at cooking as a way of showing love. I wish I did. Sometimes it just seems like a chore. There is planning the menus, and shopping for food. Then there is cooking, and cleaning up afterwards. It sometimes seems that it's not worth the effort.

Reading the prayer once more, I realize why it means so much to me. It shows me what a blessing my kitchen can be. But it also shows me in order to be a blessing to my family, I need to take my focus off of myself. It points me to where my focus should be, which is on God. When I focus on Him, I focus on His blessings (my family). I focus on serving the ones I love.

A Recipe to Share

I spent last night at my parent's house with my Dad. Soup seemed like a good, quick recipe to make for our evening meal. I made it at home in the morning, so all I had to do was heat it up at dinner time. This a soup my family enjoys (and Dad liked it too).

Italian Bean and Pasta Soup

• 1 can (10 oz) condensed tomato soup
• 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes
• 1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1-2 stalks celery, chopped small
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 3/4 tsp italian seasoning
• 1 tsp basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1/2 pound cooked hamburger
• 1/2 cup uncooked small pasta (I use small shells)

• Open all cans, and empty contents into a large pot.
• Fill empty soup can with water and add to pot.
• Add carrots, onion and celery.
• Measure in butter, garlic powder, italian seasoning, basil, salt and pepper (and red pepper flakes).
• Stir soup gently, and bring to a boil.
• Add the hamburger, and pasta.
• Reduce heat, stirring occasionally
• Allow soup to simmer for 20 minutes to allow pasta time to cook, and veggies to get tender.
• Serve with shredded Parmesan cheese, or croutons on top.

If the soup seems too thick, add water until it is at the consistency you prefer. Every family has different tastes, so feel free to adjust the herbs to your liking, add more onion, carrots, or whatever.

Serve with a salad, or bread of your choice. I made cornbread to go with our dinner.