When we find ourselves in need, God will always provide. Father Zosimas needed help to honor our friend St. Mary with a proper burial, yet he had no shovel. He prayed and assistance came to him in the form of a lion! His big strong paws would dig for him!
In order to remember our friend Father Zosimas and his work of mercy, let's bake up up some lion cupcakes! You can use your family's favorite recipe or mix, or you can use this lenten one!
Father Zosimas's Lion Cupcakes
Combine: 2 cups flour,
1 cup sugar,
1 Tablespoon baking soda
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon of salt
in a large mixing bowl.
Add: 2 -1/4 cup applesauce, or almond yogurt
1 Tbsp lemon juice (or vinegar)
1-1/2 teaspoons of vanilla.
Mix well, until the batter is fluffy.
Scoop batter into lined muffin tins, half full, and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
When the cupcakes have cooled completely, frost them with your favorite frosting, or this one:
Peanut Butter Frosting for St. Zosimas Lion Cupcakes
1 cup of creamy peanut butter (any nut butter or sunbutter will do)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-3 Tablespoons of non-dairy milk, or water
2 cups powdered sugar
Mix well and frost your lion cupcakes. Now for the fun part, decorating!
Take a box of caramel corn, or even your favorite breakfast cereal flake, and assemble a row of it around the edge to make the lion's mane. Two cheerios make ears and some chocolate chips or a few raisins are the eyes and nose. Ordinarily you can cut a marshmallow in half to make cheeks, or use two discs of white melting chocolate, but during the fast we like to use some dried apricot halves to make the cheeks of our lion! If you choose, melt a few chocolate chips in a bowl in your microwave and spoon the melted chocolate into a zipper bag. Cut the tip off the corner and pipe on a mouth and some dots and whiskers onto his cheeks to make him look complete.