Commemorating Perham’s St. Stanislaus Parish

The parishioners of St. Stanislaus Parish, Perham, Minn., celebrated the first service in their new church on Thanksgiving Day 1922, with their pastor Father Stanislaus Kuzniak presiding at the Mass. Long before that special day, the Polish Catholic population of that area, desiring their own place of worship, founded the St. Stanislaus Society. That was in 1876 under the leadership of John Karsnia. In 1881 the group decided to erect a frame church and saw their dream come true in 1883 — that building served their needs for nearly 40 years.

St. Stanislaus Parish closed its doors Oct. 4, 2009, after celebrating the final Mass with Bishop John Kinney and its current pastor, Father Joseph Herzing, concelebrating. A time capsule, placed in the church’s cornerstone in 1922, which included newspapers, medals and photographs, was opened in honor of the occasion. About 150 households belonged to St. Stan’s at the time; most of them have now joined St. Henry Parish in Perham or other neighboring churches.

St. Stan’s parishioners Fran Johnson and Jean Falk republished the parish’s 1985 Centennial Cookbook to commemorate the closing of the church. A limited number of the cookbooks are still available for $11 plus shipping and handling. To obtain a copy, call Fran Johnson at 218-346-4466.

I’m sharing two recipes from that cookbook today that might help readers use some of their Thanksgiving leftovers. Former St. Stan’s parishioners — now members of St. Henry’s — Verna Dulski and Donna Scheidecker — submitted their recipes for Butternut Squash Bread and Cranberry Bread for the original 1985 cookbook. Consider giving them a try! CJK

Butternut Squash Bread

(Verna Dulski)

2/3 shortening

2 1/3 cup sugar

4 eggs

2 cups butternut squash, baked and mashed

2/3 cups water

3 1/3 cup flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. cloves

2/3 cup nuts, chopped

2/3 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 9 x 5 x 3-inch or three 8 1/2  x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2-inch loaf pans.

Cream shortening and sugar until fluffy, stir in eggs, squash and water. Sift dry ingredients together. Blend into squash mixture. Add nuts and raisins.

Pour mixture into pans and bake at 350°F for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Remove to a rack, cool completely.

Cranberry Bread

(Donna Scheidecker)

1/4 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

1 egg

3/4 cup orange juice

2 cups sifted flour

1 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. grated orange peel

1 cup fresh cranberries, ground

1/2 cup nuts, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan.

Cream shortening and sugar until fluffy, stir in egg and orange juice. Sift dry ingredients together. Blend into creamed mixture. Add cranberries and nuts, if desired.

Pour mixture into pan and bake at 350°F for 1hour or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Remove to a rack, cool completely.