Fat Tuesday Marti Gras Inspired Lunch

Today is Fat Tuesday or Marti Gras in French. This refers to the practice of eating richer, fatty foods and partying before Ash Wednesday and Lent when many religions required fasting and a period of religious obligations associated with the penitential season of Lent. Popular practices on this day include wearing masks and costumes, overturning social conventions, dancing, sports competitions, parades and generally a party atmosphere. Today little S has a Marti Gras inspired lunch.

Main: Star shaped noodles colored during the cooking process into the three main Marti Gras colors, Purple, Gold and Green. The package of noodles was separated into three pots of boiling water each of which had 10 drops of food coloring added and cooked following the package directions. I then rinsed each batch of pasta and kept it separated in three bowls. I added a tbs of butter to each bowl of hot pasta and then spooned each color of butter noodles into the main compartment. I then added Parmesan cheese to the top of the noodles. Using a single slice of Colby Jack cheese I free hand cut a mask shape. I then used the left over pieces from the mask cut and made strips to form the mask fringe. The pasta had cooled enough not to instantly melt the cheese mask by the time I was ready to add the mask to the pasta. Sides: I made confetti from dried cranberries, sun flower seeds and a mini package of M&M's. I then made "beads" by dicing a red apple into chunky beads.