St. Blandina’s feast is celebrated each June. She was a slave of Middle Eastern origin, scorned in Roman eyes, tortured, and executed in France.
Blandina (or Blandine in French) was one of the 48 Christians killed in the summer of 177 in the city of Lyon. It was a time when Christians were being violently persecuted in in the ancient capital of Gaul under the reign of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius.
Interrogated, Blandina refused to deny her faith, saying repeatedly: “I am a Christian, and we do no harm.”
Condemned to the beasts, Blandina was tied to a post in the middle of Lyon’s amphitheatre. The wild beasts refused to touch her, however. Ultimately, she was suspended in a net and exposed to an untamed bull. The furious bull threw her in the air and trampled on her.
After being released from the net, Blandina was slaughtered by an executioner. Her body was then thrown into the Rhone River, the main river in Lyon.
“In them Christ manifests his power”
In 1986, 1,809 years after the event, Pope John Paul II visited Lyon, where the martyrdom occurred. He declares about Blandine and her companions:
They did not want to deny Him who had communicated his life to them and had called them to be his witnesses. We know that there are still many today, and in all parts of the world, who suffer insults, banishment and even torture because of their fidelity to the Christian Faith. In them Christ manifests his power. The martyrs of today and the martyrs of yesterday surround us and support us so that we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.
St. Blandine is also, with St. Martha, patroness of servants.
Saint and salad
So, what does this holy woman have to do with the salad pictured above? Well, Lyon is not only the place where Blandina met her holy end but is also France’s third-largest city. It also happens to be the gastronomical capital of France. And one of its signature dishes is Lyonnaise salad.
LYONNAISE SALAD
Delicious and easy to make, Lyonnaise salad is made with lettuce hearts, bacon, croutons, and poached eggs, and is served warm.
Ingredients(serves 2)
- 4 oz. of bacon cut into pieces
- 1 head of frisée (a.k.a, curled endive) torn into large bits, or 2 handfuls of dandelion greens or baby greens
- Cubed white bread to make croutons. Stale white bread is fine for this recipe.
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, 3 tablespoons olive oil (for dressing)
- 1 teaspoon Mustard
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 2 eggs
Directions: Place washed salad leaves into a large salad bowl.
Cook the bacon bits over low heat with some oil, stirring occasionally, until lightly brown. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel to remove the fat. Reserve the fat in the pan. These crisp bacon bits are called lardons in France.
Toss the bread to the remaining fat in the pan and cook for 5 minutes until they are light and crispy.
Make the salad dressing, combining all the ingredients to get a nice thick sauce.
Poaching eggs: Do this just prior to serving. Boil a large pan of water and add the vinegar. Crack the eggs one at a time and put them in a ramekin or small glass bowl. Slide them into the rapidly boiling water, reduce the heat to medium-low, and poach until the whites are set but the yolks are still soft — about 3 to 4 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the eggs and place on a plate lined with paper towels. If you have problems picturing all this, here is a visual explanation of how to poach eggs.
Assembling the salad: Tip almost all of the croutons and some of the lardons onto the salad leaves. Combine with 2/3 of the dressings, mixing well. Divide into two plates, garnish with the rest of the croutons and lardons, and sprinkle with the remaining dressing. Place the poached egg on the serving dish with a final twist of salt and pepper before serving.
I hope you enjoy this recipe. St. Blandina, pray for us!
And today we celebrate...