Mrs. Lent or Lady Lent is her name. She is a traditional old Greek woman made from dough. The most obvious characteristic of this woman is her seven legs, which are used as a type of calendar, helping to track the countdown until Easter. She also has no mouth, depicting a season of abstinence.
Each of the seven legs represents one week of Lent, starting with Kathara Deftera (Clean Monday) and continuing until Easter. Every Saturday, one of her legs is cut off. Having no mouth makes it impossible for her to gossip and reminds us it is a time of nistia (lent) from animal products such as meat, eggs, and dairy.
Greek folklore affirms she is friendly and pious; therefore, she holds a cross in her hands while her arms are folded in prayer as a reminder of her faith. Another feature is that she has no ears because they are covered by her Mantila (headscarf), blocking out all unkind words people might say around her.
In some regions of Greece, the tradition is to hide the last leg inside the Easter bread or Tsoureki, and the lucky one who finds it is considered blessed. We create her with agapi (love) for our Greek faith and tradition in our households as she highlights humbleness during our blessed Sarakosti.
Ingredients
- 2-2.5 cups of flour
- 1/2 cup salt
- 2-2.5 tsp cinnamon
- Water (as much as needed)
- Decorations (I used cloves for eyes)
*This is not to be eaten!
Instructions
Combine the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and gradually add water to form dough. Roll out the dough and cut the figures—two large strips for arms and joint shoulders. Add cloves for eyes. Use a fork to make an apron, or however you wish to decorate her. Wipe with a damp cloth after decorating, which will make it shiny. Lastly, bake at 365 until golden.
