St. Margaret of York Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
My family loves these cookies! They teach an amazing Saint story & Faith lesson too!
These cookies and their ingredients are also an example of the real food you may enjoy on Light Weigh and Light Weigh One King!
Oven Temperature: 375 Degrees
You will need ungreased cookie sheets.
Makes about 30 cookies.
Ingredients:
3 large *Hormone Antibiotic Cage Free Eggs, beaten
1 ½ c. Sugar
4 squares Unsweetened Baking Chocolate, melted
½ c. *Organic Butter, melted
2 t. *Aluminum Free Baking Powder
2 t. *Pure Vanilla
2 c. *Non-GMO Flour
1 c. Organic Powdered Sugar (evaporated cane juice), sifted
In a large mixing bowl, combine the beaten eggs, sugar, melted chocolate, melted butter, aluminum free baking powder & vanilla. Stir to combine. Gradually add the Non GMO flour to the chocolate mixture, stirring until combined. Cover and chill 1-2 hours.
Shape the dough into 1 inch balls. Roll balls in the sifted, organic powdered sugar to coat generously. Place cookie balls 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 11-13 minutes. The edges should be set and the tops crackled.
Do not over bake – if the tops are crinkled and the centers pretty set – they are done! Using a spatula, place baked cookies on a cooling rack to cool.
*I have placed asterisks by certain items because I have changed the way I cook due to the fact several of my children have developed food allergies. It may seem daunting to change the way you cook and the products you purchase – but you will literally feel the difference! Almost all flour in the U.S. is now genetically modified (GMO) and it is wrecking havoc with people’s health. Regular powdered sugar is full of genetically modified cornstarch made from GMO corn. You may decide for yourself.
ST. MARGARET OF YORK
“St. Margaret of Clitherow shows us what the Founding Fathers of the United States were thinking of, when they called for separation of Church & State.
Margaret was the mother of three children, married to John Clitherow. She was described as beautiful, witty, happy and charming. John and Margaret were both Protestants, but Margaret desired to convert to Catholicism three years into their marriage. John Clitherow let his wife convert, but remained faithful to the new religion of which Queen Elizabeth was the head.
Margaret freely practiced her Catholic Faith, but soon laws were enacted against Catholics. Her husband was fined because she was not attending Protestant services and later because she remained absent, she was imprisoned in York Castle. Margaret was sent to prison several times and once was held prisoner for 18 months. The conditions in the prison were truly unbearable. Cells were damp, infested with rats and vermin and darkness was throughout the prison. Margaret had never been taught to read, and so used this time to teach herself to read.
In 1585, the English passed a law that made it high treason for any Englishman who was ordained a priest to remain in the kingdom, a felony for anyone who harbored or helped a Catholic priest and a crime to send a child outside the kingdom to be educated as a Catholic. Margaret and her husband had sent their son Henry to Douai, France to be trained for the priesthood. When the Council found out about this two sheriffs accompanied by other men entered the Clitherow home looking for evidence against the Clitherows. (This is why we have laws in America requiring search warrants.) Through interrogating a child in the home, the sheriffs discovered a priest hole and items used to celebrate Holy Mass. Everyone in the home was arrested, but all were released except for Margaret, who was imprisoned at York Castle.
Margaret was taken to court and charged with harboring priests. When asked if she was guilty, Margaret replied she had never harbored enemies of the queen. The judge asked Margaret how she wished to be tried? The reply expected was supposed to be “by God and country” but Margaret replied, “Having made no offense, I need no trial.” This was a problem for the court, because unless she gave the correct response, the trial could not proceed. Another judge, Francis Rhodes, who was involved in the condemnation of Mary Queen of Scots, began to insult Margaret and accused her of vile things. Margaret remained calm, repeatedly rejected a trial and refused to acknowledge the Anglican Church of Queen Elizabeth. English law decreed anyone who refused to plead or be tried by a jury was pressed to death, and so the Council pronounced the sentence, “to be pressed”. Margaret accepted the sentence calmly and thanked God that she be allowed to suffer for the sake of the Catholic Faith and said, “The sheriffs have said that I am going to die this coming Friday; and I feel the weakness of my flesh which is troubled at the news, but my spirit rejoices greatly. For the love of God, pray for me and ask the good people to do likewise.”
When John Clitherow received the news of her terrible sentence, he was like a man out of his wits and he wept violently exclaiming, “Let them take all I have and save my wife, for she is the best wife in all England and the best Catholic also!”
The evening before she was to die, Margaret sewed her own linen shroud during the night while she prayed. At 8:00 in the morning, Margaret dressed in her linen garment; surrounded by officers of the law and her executioners, was led to the place of martyrdom, a few yards from the prison. She passed through a large crowd of people who had gathered to see her death. “All marveled to see her joyful, smiling countenance.” She knelt down and prayed in a loud voice for the pope, cardinals, clergy, Christian princes and especially for Queen Elizabeth, that God would return her to the Faith and save her soul.” She lay down on the ground with her arms extended in the form of a cross and a large wooden door was place on top of her. Weights were placed on top of the door and St. Margaret was crushed to death after fifteen minutes. St. Margaret of Clitherow’s last words were, “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, have mercy upon me.” St. Margaret of Clitherow is known as "The Pearl of York."
Separation of Church & State
"The historic account of St. Margaret of Clitherow and her family is an example of a State religion being forced upon its citizens. Separation of Church and State never meant there could be no religion in the public square – it meant the State could not force a State Church (in this case the Church of England) on the people, by requiring attendance, fining, imprisoning or putting to death those who refused to participate in the State religion (Church of England). This is what the Founding Fathers of the United States of America were thinking of and intended to protect Americans from when calling for separation of Church and State.
These cookies are named for St. Margaret of Clitherow, because the ingredients are bittersweet. It must have perplexed the English that they could crush her body, but not her faith. The chocolate in these cookies is bitter and makes them dark, like the martyrdom and cruelty that St. Margaret faced. The sugar makes the cookies sweet, like her faith made her martyrdom sweet. The powdered sugar on the outside of these cookies represents the light of Christ overcoming the darkness. I cannot help but think how much St. Margaret would have loved to bake these cookies for her husband and children, as after God, her family was the most important thing to her. St. Margaret’s love, faith and supreme sacrifice, are humbling reminders to us in these time of political correctness, when stepping out to proclaim the truth and love of Jesus Christ can seem intimidating. St. Margaret of Clitherow needs to be an example for us all.”
Copyright Suzanne Fowler, Building the Family Cookbook 2003
There is a more detailed description of St. Margaret of Clitherow’s life and martyrdom in my Building the Family Saints Feast Day Cookbook, which I wrote to make teaching the Faith easy and fun! Children really remember the stories when the recipe has a connection to the Saint. Please call and order Building the Family Cookbook so it may be in your kitchen too! 1-877-589-3444
