Tag Archives: irish

Irish Whiskey Cake

17 Thursday Mar 2016

Posted by in Baking, Desserts, Easy, Holidays

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For St. Patrick’s Day, I took our favorite (and super easy) Rum Cake recipe and adapted it with Irish Whiskey and green pistachio pudding to give it a green hue. Say what you will about boxed cake mixes, but the addition of booze sure makes for a moist, rich, and tasty cake! I thought about trying one of those car bomb recipes with whiskey, beer, and irish cream, but the choice was easy when this cake was in the oven in about 10 minutes. When you have a cute baby two feet away it’s hard to concentrate on complicated recipes!

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Shamrock Sugar Cookies with Bailey’s Buttercream

17 Tuesday Mar 2015

Posted by in Baking, Cookies, Desserts, Entertaining, Holidays, LuLu's Classics

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Shamrock Sugar Cookies with Bailey's Buttercream

St. Patrick’s Day is near and dear my heart. Not only for me, but to my mom’s entire side of the family. No…we are not Irish…we just miss someone who was born on March 17th. While St. Patty’s Day is a great holiday when you are thinking about it in terms of Irish Beer, Whiskey, Bailey’s, potatoes, corned beef (gross), and soda bread, I am just quietly celebrating the birthday of one gone too long but most definitely not forgotten.

Grammy

These cookies and this blog exist because of Lois. Or, as I called her…Grammy. She was the best person and the best cook any of us knew, and I think about her every time I make her sugar cookies. I wish I could tell her I was making Shamrock Sugar cookies this year for her birthday, but instead of regular frosting I made ridiculous Bailey’s Irish Cream Frosting. I wish I could tell her I was making her cookies once a month for the entire year, for so many reasons other than the fact that they are the best damn cookies to ever come out of the oven.

Shamrock Sugar Cookies

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Guinness Beer Bread

16 Monday Mar 2015

Posted by in Baking, Boozy, Breads, Holidays

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Guinness Beer Bread

This Guinness Bread is pretty great. Sweet and savory at the same time, slathered with a little bit of Irish butter…perhaps even served with a frothy pint of Guinness? STOP. Just stop it now.

Guinness Beer Bread

I was really happy with how these little suckers turned out. I knew from the dark brown color of the bread that I wanted it to taste like the a-mazing brown bread they serve at the Cheesecake Factory. It came pretty darn close…but this bread has an entire bottle of Guinness in it and it’s homemade with love…so this makes it better than your standard chain restaurant freebie bread! Continue reading →

Pistachio Muffins

17 Monday Mar 2014

Posted by in Baking, Breads, Breakfast, Holidays

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Pistachio muffins

Happy St Patrick’s Day! This year I revisited pistachio muffins. I made them a few years ago, but had found a different recipe out there that I wanted to give a shot. Although some people would never use instant pudding mix in a recipe…that has never been beyond me. There are things like rum cake that just wouldn’t be the same without some good ole’ instant pudding thrown in the mix…judge all you want, but there are worse things in the baking world, in my humble opinion…

Pistachio Muffins

Although March 17th is a great day to wear green, eat green things, drink too much, and do everything as the irish would, today I always think of Grammy before anything else. Today would have been her 83rd birthday. I wish I could ask her what she wanted for a birthday breakfast or dinner and make it for her. I wish I could pour us both a glass of wine, and Cheers to everything she did during her short time here. I wish so many things but all I can really do on a day like today is think of her and miss her.

I can also hope instant pudding in muffins wouldn’t offend her. Hey, she was raising five kids through the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s…Even though she is the best cook any of us has ever known I sure wish I could ask her to share some of her retro doozies.

Recipe
Pistachio Muffins
makes about 12-15 muffins
adapted from Hannah Keeley

  • 2 cups AP flour
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons baking powder
  • 1 box (3.4 oz) instant pistachio pudding
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • a few drops of green food coloring
  • 1/3 cup shelled pistachios, finely chopped/crushed

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and dry pudding mix.

Combine eggs, milk, sour cream, almond extract, and oil; add to dry mixture and mix until just moistened. Stir in green food coloring until combined, then fold in the crushed pistachios.

Fill baking cups until they are almost full.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes in preheated 375-degree oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out clean.

Pistachio Muffins

Irish Soda Bread

11 Tuesday Mar 2014

Posted by in Baking, Breads, Holidays

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Irish Soda Bread

I’ve never had traditional Irish Soda Bread, let alone made it myself…so I am no expert in the soda bread department. But during the month of March I am usually inspired to make festive things that are NOT corned beef and cabbage…believe me, I have tried to like it, but it’s just never going to happen.

Irish Soda Bread

I figured Ina’s soda bread recipe was a good place to start. Since I was looking for a more basic and savory soda bread option, I omitted her addition of currants and orange zest.

Irish Soda Bread

Irish Soda BreadThe result was a super easy, non-yeast bread. It’s pretty dense, and closer to a biscuit in one giant loaf rather than bread. Next time I use this recipe it may honestly be for biscuits instead of one large loaf. Next time I will plan to play around with the fillings more, whether they be savory or sweet. Altogether, I think this is a pretty good base for Irish Soda Bread. I’d love to hear about any soda bread recipes you have tried if you would like to share!

Irish Soda Bread

Recipe
Irish Soda Bread
adapted from Barefoot Contessa At Home
makes 1 large loaf

Ingredients

  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch dice
  • 1 3/4 cups cold buttermilk, shaken
  • 1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is mixed into the flour.

With a fork, lightly beat the buttermilk and egg together in a measuring cup. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture.  The dough will be very wet.

Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and knead it a few times into a round loaf. Place the loaf on the prepared sheet pan and lightly cut an X into the top of the bread with a serrated knife. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. When you tap the loaf, it will have a hollow sound.

Cool on a baking rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.