It is your lucky day! Here are delicious recipes with an Irish flare! ☘️
3/15/2025
3/11/2025
Irish Soda Bread Muffins
As much as I love a slice of my Brown Soda Bread to accompany a soup, like Quick Beef and Barley, or a hearty stew, I think I might love these muffins more. They are quick, easy, portable, and delightful.
Like traditional soda bread, these muffins are made with buttermilk or sour cream and baking soda. The chemical reaction between the soda and acid is the leavening agent, so yeast is not required, making these ever so easy to whip up. Freshly baked muffins in about 30 minutes? Sign me up! Currants are also on the traditional list, but they can be substituted for cranberries, chocolate chips, or other dried fruits. Just don't ask me about raisins. Raisins are an inherent dislike in my family. Caraway seeds are also a common ingredient. Sometimes I use them, sometimes I don't. It depends on when and what I serve them with. A slice of good Irish cheddar pairs nicely with the muffins when caraway seeds are added.
Non-traditionally, these muffins are made with white all-purpose flour instead of a combo of whole wheat and white flour. They are also sweeter than soda bread, which makes them perfect for breakfast, brunch, snack, or anytime of the day.
Only two bowls are needed to make the batter. One for the wet and one for the dry. When folding the wet ingredients into the batter, work quickly and gently. Overworked batter results in tough muffins. The batter will be thick, almost like a biscuit dough, and will mound in the paper muffin liners. Sprinkle a bit more sugar on top and bake until golden. Serve warm, while the tops are crunchy and the middle is tender, with butter, jam, or as I already said, a slice of good cheddar.
These muffins are best enjoyed the day they are made, but they can be frozen for up to three months. It's always nice to have a little baked good in the freezer when a craving strikes!
3/09/2025
Sunday Dinner
Brown Sugar Candied Bacon
Crab Cakes with Sweet Red Pepper Curry Sauce
Green Salad with Blue Cheese Vinaigrette
Peach Cobbler Ice Cream
The most important thing to note is to use thick-cut bacon. Regular or thin-cut slices will burn to a crisp. Extra thick-cut bacon will turn out like beef jerky and will not crisp. I like to use a full-size sheet pan lined with foil. A full-size pan will be large enough to cook all of the bacon, and the foil will make for super-easy cleanup. When baked on the rack, the bacon does not need to be turned because the heat is hitting both sides of the bacon. I use a low temperature of 325° F so the bacon does not curl when baking and the fat renders evenly. The baking time will vary slightly because not all thick-cut bacon is exactly the same thickness. Once the bacon is richly caramelized, transfer it to a sheet of parchment paper, and it will crisp as it cools.
We are enjoying candied bacon tonight as a simple pre-dinner snack, but there are so many other ways to enjoy it. It is a no-brainer for breakfast or brunch, but think outside the box and sprinkle it on salads, pile it on sandwiches, garnish deviled eggs, add it to a cheese ball, or jazz up some guacamole! I have even been known to put candied bacon on cupcakes (that's another story). The possibilities of bacon enhancement to a recipe or dish are endless. Ask yourself- what would bacon do? Happy Sunday!
Equipment needed:
3/06/2025
Tart au Citron (Classic French Lemon Tart)
I had other recipes to share this week, but the appetizer and dessert from this past Sunday are recipes that I will not be making anytime soon. So, a Sunday-dinner recipe-sharing week it is!
This tart-oh, this tart. It is a sweet transition from Winter to Spring. Seasonal citrus and a vibrant color are welcome in my kitchen this time of year. This French tart is simple and classic. I use my go-to sweet tart dough and fill it with what is basically lemon curd on steroids. It is enjoyed at room temperature or chilled. Other than a light dusting of powdered sugar, which is optional, you don't need to embellish this tart with anything else. It is wonderful all by itself.
When choosing lemons, whether they are organic or not, select lemons that have a smooth and thin skin vs. ones that have a bumpy and thick skin. The smoother the skin, the heavier the lemon will be, and it will have more juice. Therefore, you won't need to buy as many lemons, and that will be easier on the wallet! I use regular lemons, but you could use Meyer lemons if they are available. Meyer lemons are not as tart, so the filling will be a tad sweeter. And wouldn't you know that almost 13 years ago to the day, I posted my recipe for Meyer Lemon Curd!
The other main ingredient is eggs. You probably have noticed that I use extra large eggs in my sweet and savory recipes. I think you get a little more for your money. Unfortunately, there is a bird flu epidemic and extra large eggs are difficult to find, so you can substitute with large eggs. The filling uses 8 eggs total: 4 whole eggs and 4 egg yolks. So, what do you make with the leftover egg whites? You make Raspberry Chocolate French Macarons, of course!
Equipment needed:
3/04/2025
Goat Cheese and Spicy Salami Stuffed Dates
Did you know that dates are one of the oldest known fruits? Their cultivation in the Middle East dates (pun not intended 😉) back to almost 6,000 BC. Their health benefits and culinary uses are still in use today. Dates, or "nature's candy", are naturally sweet, high in fiber, and rich in antioxidants. If you have been exercising, fasting, or feel your blood sugar level is low, grab a date or two or three. They provide a natural energy boost that you can feel good about without weighing you down.
One of the larger varieties is the Medjool date. It is plump and chewy and has a caramel-honey-like flavor. Once pitted, the Medjool date becomes the perfect vessel for adding more flavor and texture. This recipe is an excellent example, and no cooking is required!. In one bite, your taste buds will explode with sweetness from the date and honey, a creamy tang from the goat cheese, saltiness with a kick from the spicy salami, and a nutty crunch from the pistachios.
This hors d'oeuvre is easy to prepare and can be made in advance, making it perfect for your next party or gathering. Pass them to guests as they mingle during the next social event or gathering, or serve them on a buffet table during a wine party. They are delicious when paired with a nice Pinot Noir or sparkling wine. Just make sure you provide toothpicks or cocktail forks because the other natural sweetener, honey, makes them a little sticky when it comes to finger food.
Notes:
*I only recommend unpitted Medjool dates. They are usually found in the produce section of the grocery store. Dates that are already pitted and bagged are dried out and won't hold their shape well for the filling.
*Goat cheese varies in taste and texture. Look for one that is creamy with a nice tang. Some goat cheeses already have a lemon essence, so taste the cheese first before adding the lemon zest and adjust accordingly. Not a big fan of goat cheese? Substitute with half goat cheese and half cream cheese or just cream cheese.
*Calabrese salami (or is it salame?) is my recommendation, but any spicy salami can be substituted. Can't take the heat? Substitute with a good Genoa or dry Italian salami. Make sure the salami is thinly sliced and finely diced. It will make it easier to fill the dates. And here is why...
*Use a reusable pastry bag fitted with a #12 round tip or a thick plastic sandwich bag with one corner snipped off to fill the dates. This makes it fast and easy. You can use a small spoon, but unless you have an extra pair of hands to hold the date steady, it is a little messy and takes longer.
*Pistachios are my choice of crunch and complement the other ingredients well. The green adds a nice color pop as well. Can you use another nut? Almonds, cashews, walnuts, pecans, and pepitas would be suitable substitutes. Do you have a nut allergy? Just omit the nut.
*Honey compliments the flavor of the date and kind of holds everything in place. Substitutions could be agave nectar or brown rice syrup.
If you do make any substitutions or omit an ingredient, I cannot attest to the end result. What I can be certain of is that recipe now belongs to you 😊. As I always say, make it for you; make it your own. If you do try the recipe with adaptations, please share in the comments below!
3/02/2025
Sunday Dinner
Goat Cheese and Salami-Stuffed Dates
Butterflied Roast Chicken with Warm Bread and Arugula Salad
Tarte au Citron
This is a 3-C Sunday dinner: cheese, chicken, and chocolate citrus. Tonight, I will focus on sharing the middle C with you. Most of you know about my love for a good Roast Chicken, and this recipe definitely gets a 💗 vote from me. It was inspired by San Francisco's Zuni Cafe's popular dish. I keep the overall salad components (chicken, bread, and arugula) the same, but I use my own vinaigrette recipe because that is how I like it.
Butterflying a chicken is a simple process. You need a good pair of poultry shears to cut away the backbone (save the backbone for homemade stock) and a strong hand to press the breastbone when it is skin-side up. This flattens the breasts to the same thickness as the legs, allowing the chicken to roast in a shorter amount of time with even browning all over.
The neat part about this recipe is that the bread pieces are placed under and around the chicken while it roasts. This allows the bread to soak up all of those tasty chicken drippings. Once the chicken is done, the bread cubes will be somewhat crunchy but mostly warm and soft. As delicious as that is, I prefer a crunchier texture, so I place the cubes back into the oven while the chicken rests. I like to use my Homemade No-Knead Country Bread for the bread cubes, but any quality country bread will work well.
I must point out the method for the chicken. It is a dry brine. That means the skin is gently separated from the meat and seasoned. The salt penetrates and tenderizes the dark and white meat, keeping it moist and juicy. The skin, in return, stays nice and crispy. (I shared images of the skin separation process on a whole turkey in the first three step-by-step photos post HERE.) It is preferable that the dry brining of the chicken be done 24 hours ahead, but if you are short on time, you will still get excellent results by dry brining the bird for at least 2 hours.
I use baby arugula for the salad, and although it is widely available in the markets these days, you could substitute it with another sturdy green like Lacinato kale, curly kale, or even baby spinach. (Remember to massage the kale with the vinaigrette to soften the leaves!) They will all work nicely with the vinaigrette, a simple red wine vinaigrette flavored with garlic and shallot. However, I like to take the flavor profile of the vinaigrette to the next level by adding any accumulated chicken juices from the cutting board after it has rested. This is another winner-winner chicken dinner! Happy Sunday!