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Archive for March, 2013

Irish Coffee and Saint Patrick’s Day

Posted in Uncategorized on 27/03/2013| 8 Comments »

Irish Coffee

Irish Coffee

Saint Patrick’s Day 2013 came and went a few days ago and nearly 400 of you stopped by In an Irish Home to see what really goes on behind the hall door of a typical Irish family. First and foremost, let me say “go raibh maith agat” (sounds like GUR-uh muh HAG-ut and means thank you). I am overwhelmed by your support and greatly appreciate your comments, visits, and decision to “follow” the musings of our family.

Hoping not to disappoint you, we were not in Ireland for Saint Patrick’s Day so I can’t tell you about the fantastic parade in Dublin city centre or the local events that took place around the country. Instead of being home, we decided to do as so many Irish government officials do every year…we headed to one of America’s capital cities…the capital city in fact…Washington, D.C.

Amongst the early blossoming Cherry trees and perfect weather, we visited The White House (albeit just the gates, garden and visitor centre thanks to the sequester), Capitol Hill, all the important historical monuments, the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum, National History Museum and American History Museum, George Washington’s Mount Vernon, and Georgetown. It was a whirlwind week!

In seven days we managed it all with near military precision. Two days were spent flying to and from D.C. and five days were spent taking in the sights {an itinerary will follow in an upcoming blog post in case you ever decide to visit Washington with your family}. When we finally made it back home we DSC00148were all more familiar with American history. We even discovered a few facts about Ireland’s influence on America’s most iconic city. For example, did you know that Irish-born-and-trained-architect James Hoban designed the White House? He did. It seems he won a competition for the job in 1792 and his inspiration for America’s First House is none other than our very own Leinster House in Dublin.

But I digress, the trip was wonderful and it left us completely shattered (exhausted). Come Paddy’s Day all I could think about was making an Irish coffee…with alcohol. I know we {my lovely husband and I} gave up drink for Lent but in Ireland, oddly enough, one gets a reprieve from their Lenten promises on the feast day of Saint Patrick!

So delicious!

So delicious!

Which takes me to the point of today’s recipe post…Irish Coffee. A perennial favourite of the Irish and visitors to Ireland alike, Irish coffee was first created by Joe Sheridan, a chef in the Port of Foyne {airport} in County Limerick, back in the mid-1940s. Legend has it a plane was turned back to Ireland while on its way to America due to bad weather conditions and the weary passengers took refuge in the airport terminal until they could once again depart. Sensing their exhaustion, Mr. Sheridan served hot coffee but made it a wee bit stronger than usual by adding whiskey. When a customer asked if it was a “Brazilian Coffee”, Joe replied “It’s an Irish Coffee”. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Enjoy!

Irish Coffee

For One Cup

Ingredients

1/2 cup/4 fl. oz. strong, hot coffee

1-2 tablespoons brown sugar (Demerara, Muscovado or Turbinado) or to taste

1/4 cup/2 fl. oz. Irish whisky or to taste

4 tablespoons lightly whipped fresh cream

Directions

1. Beat the whipping cream until stiff but not too firm.

2. Pre-heat a glass with freshly boiled water. Leave a metal spoon in the glass so the sudden change in temperature does not cause it to break.

3. After a minute or so, remove spoon, pour out hot water, and fill glass with hot coffee.

4. Add Tubinado sugar to the coffee and stir until completely dissolved.

5. Add Irish whiskey to the sweetened coffee and stir.

6. When the coffee has settled, top with a collar of whipped cream by carefully pouring the cream over the backside of a spoon. The trick is to not have the cream seep down into the coffee. Drink immediately.

For More interesting Irish Coffee stories and ideas, check-out these websites:

http://www.thebuenavista.com/irishcoffee2.html

http://www.pauladeen.com/article_view/irish_coffee_brownie_cupcakes/

http://theboysclub.net/peter/edibles-irish-coffee-ice-pops/

http://www.marthastewart.com/875370/irish-coffee-bar

https://www.vitamix.com/Find-Recipes/F/R/Frozen-Irish-Coffee

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Irish Brown Bread

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 02/03/2013| 7 Comments »

DSC_0346In our home there is almost always a loaf of scratch-made bread in the bread box.

It’s not the fancy white loaf that’s taken hours to make and been left to rise in a warm spot. No. Our bread is the rich, traditional Irish kind that can be whipped up quickly, in one bowl, and takes about an hour to bake. It’s the one that’s always served alongside those delicious wholesome vegetable-based soups found in cafes and pubs around the country and the very same one my lovely mother-in-law would give her twelve children nearly every day for tea time (dinner), before the main course.

I go back and forth baking Soda bread , Brown bread {the recipe below), and a Multiseed brown bread {promise to post soon}. Initially, I only made soda bread because that’s what my mother-in-law taught me to make. Then I added the other two breads because of the extra ingredients {oat groats, bran, and wheat germ in today’s Brown bread and oat groats, bran, wheat germ, sesame, poppy, pumpkin and sunflower seeds in the Multiseed bread} which help to make it even more healthy. Now, it’s a weekly toss up as to what’s in the bread box.

DSC_0357Whichever you try, rest assured your home will smell glorious for the effort. When you take the loaf from the oven, you and your family will want a slice while it’s still hot. And when slathered in butter, and maybe even some homemade jam, you’ll enjoy the nutty flavour, crumbly texture that is only found in traditional Irish bread. Enjoy!

Irish Brown Bread

Makes One Loaf

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups/200g/6oz self-raising flour

2 1/4 cups/300g/11oz coarse brown flour

1/3 cup/2 handfuls bran

1/4 cup/1 handful wheat germ

1/4 cup/2oz oat groats, pan toasted

2 heaped teaspoons baking powder

1 level teaspoon salt

2-3 cups/600-900ml/1-1 1/2 pints buttermilk

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 240°C/450°F/gas mark 9. Lightly oil a loaf tin on bottom and all sides and line with a sheet of parchment paper.

2. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

3. Add enough of the buttermilk to give a moist but not sloppy mixture.

4. Place in a loaf tin and bake for twenty minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 150C/300F/gas mark 2 and bake for an additional hour.

5. Ease bread from loaf tin. Carefully turn it over and tap to see if it sounds hollow. A hollow sound means the bread is fully cooked. If not, return it to the oven for another 10-15 minutes. Do not put it back into the loaf tin, just put it right-side up, directly on the shelf in the oven.

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Lenten Challenge: Friday Meat-Free Meal

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 01/03/2013| 2 Comments »

Photo from Giada at Home Cookery BookLast week’s post on what Irish Catholics eat during Lent was a big hit. Seems there are quite a few of you out there who, like me, need a warm meat-free meal at the end of a Lenten week.

With that in mind, I offer you the following recipe for Pasta Ponza. It comes courtesy of the bright and beautiful Giada De Laurentiis and is found in her cookery book Giada at Home. You’ll forgive me for saying so but I turned instinctively to this particular chef after watching Pope Benedict XVI resign yesterday. The news from Rome and the beautiful images of Italy made me think Italian food seemed appropriate for this Friday’s Lenten Dinner Challenge. Giada herself was born in Italy but was then raised in Los Angeles. Stylistically, she reminds me of our own Rachel Allen.

This recipe is molto bene! Enjoy.

Pasta Ponza

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

Unsalted butter, for greasing

2 cups/12 oz red cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

2 cups/12 oz yellow cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

¼ cup capers, rinsed and drained

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling

½ teaspoon salt, or more to taste

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste

½ cup/1oz Italian-style seasoned dried bread crumbs

1 pound/16oz ziti or other short tube-shaped pasta

1 ½ cups/8oz grated Pecorino Romano cheese

¼ cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley leaves

Directions

1. Place an oven rack in the centre of the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C/gas mark 5. Butter an 8×8-inch baking dish. Set aside.

2. Combine the tomatoes, capers, olive oil, salt and pepper in the prepared baking dish. Toss to coat.

3. Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the tomato mixture. Drizzle the top with olive oil and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is golden. Cool for 5 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender but still firm to the bite, 8 to 10 minutes.

5. Drain the pasta, reserving about 1 cup of the pasta water. Transfer the pasta to a large serving bowl. Spoon the tomato mixture over the pasta. Add the cheese and toss well. If needed, thin out the sauce with a little pasta water. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with parsley, and serve immediately.

* Note: Photo was taken from Giada De Laurentiis’ cookery book Giada at Home.

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