Every year, at the end of February, Lent begins, but many do not know exactly what that means. It is not just about having a cross of ashes on your forehead and stopping eating red meat for a little over a month. In reality, it is a season of penance that prepares believers for the celebration of Easter. If you want to know more about this religious festival and what recipes you can use during its duration, here we leave you Lent for dummies. Lent is a period of contemplation and fasting that lasts six weeks. It begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Thursday, although the fast actually continues until Easter Sunday. What many do not know is that, in the Western tradition, Sundays do not count as days of fasting, and are actually days of feasting, so the count is exactly 40 days of Lent.

Tuna Quiche

View full recipe here: http://www.kiwilimon.com/receta/guarniciones/quiche-de-atun Now, what many wonder is, what can you not eat or do during Lent? The truth is that the regulations have varied over time, but nowadays the rules are as follows:

• Fasting: Only one meal a day
• Abstinence: Regarding meat on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and every Friday during Lent.
• Sacrifices: Acts such as quitting smoking, not playing with toys (for children), not drinking alcohol, and even forgetting your favorite social network during this time are welcomed as acts of sacrifice. This expression of faith is not regulated by the church and are actually personal actions of each believer.

Tuna Tostadas al Pastor

View full recipe here: http://www.kiwilimon.com/receta/pescados-y-mariscos/atun/tostadas-de-atun-al-pastor Something interesting within the Lent tradition is the number 40, as it is a figure with significant meaning in the biblical scriptures. Here are some examples:

• Moses sat with God for 40 days at the top of Mount Sinai without food or water while carving the 10 commandments
• The Israelites suffered 40 days in the desert with very little food until they reached what would be the promised land.
• Jesus spent 40 days in the desert fasting and being tempted by the devil.

Salmon Burger

View full recipe here: http://www.kiwilimon.com/receta/pescados-y-mariscos/salmon/hamburguesas-de-salmon-para-cuaresma For those of the Christian faith who follow the rules of Lent, this is a time of appreciation and understanding of the sacrifice of Jesus. It is also a time for others, or as Pope Francis put it better: “Lent is an ideal time to deny oneself things. We would do well to ask ourselves how we can enrich and help others through our own poverty.”

Shrimp Aguachile

View full recipe here: http://www.kiwilimon.com/receta/pescados-y-mariscos/camarones/aguachile-de-camaron-para-cuaresma