Jacoba's Cookies

This is Sister Lucy Slinger’s recipe for Jacoba’s Almond Cookies. FSPA uses this recipe in bulk to bake cookies for the community to enjoy during liturgical feasts and celebrations. 

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup butter, softened
• 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
• 3 eggs, separated (whites & yolks)
• 1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tsp. almond extract 
• 4 cups white whole wheat flour
• 1 ½ cups almond flour
• 1 ½ tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. Water
• 1 ½ cups crushed almonds; the bigger pieces will be used for topping and the finer pieces will be added to the batter (about half and half, ideally)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until creamy. 
3. Separate your eggs. Save the whites in a small bowl to use later. Add the yolks to the butter mixture. Add the rest of the wet ingredients and beat to mix well. 
4. In a separate bowl, add your flours, salt, and baking soda and mix together. Slowly add the mixed dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, mixing to combine as you go. 
5. Add the more finely chopped almonds to the bowl and mix again. The batter should have a “Play-Doh”-like consistency. If it’s too thin, you can add some more wheat flour. It may be easier to finish up the mixing step with your hands. 
6. Roll the dough into 1 - 1½ inch balls. Dip the top half of each one into the bowl of egg whites and then into the larger pieces of almonds. 
7. Place the dough balls 1½ - 2 inches apart on a lightly greased baking sheet (or use parchment paper).
8. Gently press the cookies with your hand or the bottom of a flat glass to shape them into slightly flatter circles. 
9. Bake at 325 for 14-16 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown. 
10. Cool for a minute on the tray before transferring to a cooling rack. If they are moved too soon they can break. 
11. Enjoy! Leftover cookies or dough can be frozen for later use. 

Story:
“Brother” Lady Jacoba was a close personal friend to St. Francis of Assisi. She would bake these almond-y cookies for him often, but this was just one of many acts of service she performed. More importantly, she would also help him work, tenderly caring for and feeding the poor and disabled alongside St. Francis. She cared for Francis as he was dying, bringing him joy and comfort in the forms of friendship and these delicious cookies.
We make and eat these cookies in celebration of St. Clare’s legacy; her relationship with St. Francis and her fidelity to the teachings of Christ have made her a Franciscan role model. 
St. Clare of Assisi was a devoted and humble servant of God, adhering closely to the example set by St. Francis. The two of them were dear friends and together they achieved revolutionary work, modeling for men and women the pursuit of the gospel life. 
Clare grew up with a disposition towards charity and simple living, giving her meals to the poor and wearing scratchy tunics underneath her nicer dresses. She became a devotee of Christ after refusing to marry at a young age and running away from home to a small, poor chapel called the Portiuncula. Here, she cut her hair, donned simple clothing, and eventually established the Order of St. Clare as more women came to join her and adopted her humble ways of living. This group of women embraced poverty; they owned nothing, not even communally; they slept on the floors, went barefoot, and rarely spoke in order to observe almost complete silence. Clare’s Sisters would say that her face glowed, bright and clear, after she would finish praying.
St. Clare is said to have been the example that proved to St. Francis and other men of faith that women are just as capable as men of enduring the privations inherent to gospel life. Popes, bishops, and cardinals came to visit her at the Convent of San Damiano in Assisi, seeking her consultations. St. Clare was a role model for many women at the time, and many still to this day. We can all draw inspiration from her commitment to her values of simplicity, clarity of faith, and concern for her Sisters.

Invitation:
Watch this YouTube Video and reflect on the value of traits often considered feminine. Sensitive, emotionally intelligent, supportive, nurturing, intuitive - these often go unnamed as conventional strengths, but that’s what they are! 
Lady Jacoba unwaveringly took on charity work previously not associated with women, driven by her love for her late husband. St. Clare was able to demonstrate to a much less open-minded population of religious men and women that a person’s gender does not enhance or inhibit their ability or conviction to follow the teachings of Christ or to model gospel life. Both are recognized as revolutionary actors in the work it took to create safe and welcoming spaces for religious women.