Holy/Maundy Thursday commemorates Jesus’ last supper with His disciples and the institution of the Lord’s Supper. With this day begins the so-called Holy Three-Day Period, among the most significant days of the Church year. Zelený čtvrtek (Green Thursday) is how the Czechs and Moravians refer to Maundy Thursday. There are several explanations to the “green”:

• in many places, before the 13th century, green vestments were used for the Mass that day.
• reference to “the Green Ones,” the penitents who, being re-admitted to the Church, wore sprigs of green herbs to express their joy.
• The “grün” in the German name for the day (“Gründonnerstag”, literally Green Thursday) does not derive from the name of the color but is a corruption of the word “greinen” (weinen, to weep).

Dish tradition

A strict fast used to be observed on Green Thursday. Because only a single, meatless, complete meal – free of any food of animal origin – was allowed, only vegetables were eaten. Thus, Green Thursday. The eating of green vegetables is still a customary part of the meals served on this day in many parts of Europe and, to some extent, in the United States. The Czechs and Moravians eat a soup of green herbs, followed by a green salad.

MENDELU Challenge

And now it is your time to take part and help MENDELU create an online Green Cook Book while simultaneously celebrating Green Thursday! Cook either (no-meat and as green as possible in appearance):

• Starter (snacks, soup…etc)
• Main dish
• Dessert

Take a photo, write a short description of your meal and finally send it to the email liliana.podskubkova@mendelu.cz by 02.04.2021! You can cook in pairs to make the challenge more fun! The prizes will be gifted to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners! The more people will participate the healthier and thicker will our online MENDELU Green Cook Book become! When finished it can be ordered by any of you, if you wish to have a copy. Thank you for your participation in advance! If you will have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact: Karina Mashkantseva xmashka1@mendelu.cz