From Warrior to Patron Saint of Youth and Love: St. Sarkis Day

St. Sarkis

The story of St. Sarkis is fascinating. Click here to read more. 

On the feast day of Saint Sarkis the Warrior, a special liturgy is held in all churches named after him. This year, St. Sarkis Day falls on Saturday, February 8^th.

On Sunday, February 9^th, the Divine Liturgy at St. Sarkis Armenian Church in Charlotte, NC will be conducted by His Grace Bishop Daniel Findikyan – a very special occurrence!

Along with this day of remembrance and celebration come two distinctive recipes relating to youth and love: Aghablit (salty cookies or wafers) and St. Sarkis Halva.

With the permission of Lena Tashjian, author of the newly released ‘The Vegan Armenian Kitchen Cookbook’, I offer her St. Sarkis Day Special video and two of her related recipes – vegan style. 

(To view Lena’s informative video, click here, then see her recipes below.) 

Happy St. Sarkis Day!!

Lena Tashjian's Aghablit - salty cookies (L); St. Sarkis Halva, vegan style (R)

Aghablit (Salty Cookies or Wafers)

Mix together 1 ¼ cup flour with 2 or so tablespoons of table salt until combined. Add enough water to make a dough. Roll dough out on a lightly floured work surface to about ¼ to ½-inch thickness. Cut free-style shapes or use cookie cutters. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake at 350°F until golden brown, about 20 to 30 minutes depending on thickness of cookie.

Lena Tashjian’s Vegan St. Sarkis Day Halva

Ingredients:

¾ to 1 cup sugar

1/3 cup water

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

2 tsp. rose water

5 cups vegan marshmallows (gelatin-free)

1 cup walnut halves

2 to 3 cups white sesame seeds (Note: You won’t use them all, but a good amount is needed to coat halva pieces.)

Directions:

Place white sesame seeds in the refrigerator to cool.

In the meantime, combine the sugar and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Once the water boils, reduce heat to low-medium and add the lemon juice.

A few minutes later, add the rose water. Once mixture becomes golden in color, add marshmallows, stirring until completely smooth. Turn off heat.

Pour chilled sesame seeds on a large tray.

While mixture is still hot, pour scoops of it as round and flat as possible, on top of the sesame seeds.

Pour as many scoops as you can fit onto the tray. Place walnut halves in the middle of each scoop. Let the halva cool for 45 seconds to 1minute, as it will be easier to roll and handle. Then fold one side of the scoop over, followed by the other.