Shamrock Cookies for St. Patrick's Day

by Sarah J. Gim, Posted Mar 17th 2006 @ 9:50AM

Happy St. Patrick's Day, Slashfood readers!

While we here at Slashfood did the majority of our St. Patrick's Day preparation yesterday, we don't want to forget that today is the actual day to wear a bit of green, indulge in a pint of Guinness, and have a couple of shamrock-shaped sugar cookies! These are simple cookies made from dough sugar cookie dough dyed with green food coloring - use more than a few drops or else they'll be a little pale, like mine were - and piped with white chocolate. Make sure to drink your Bailey's on the rocks after you finish the piping, too, otherwise the lines will be a little squiggly like mine.

So what's the story behind the shamrock anyway? "Shamrock" is derived from the Celtic word "seamroy" for a three-leafed clover. It is considered a sacred plant because it symbolizes the arrival of spring and the idea of re-birth. The shamrock has long been associated with Irish culture because it is believed that St.Patrick used the three-leafed clover to symbolize the Trinity.

The idea of the lucky four leaf clover comes from a legend that the three leave of a regular clover each symbolize hope, faith and love. A fourth leaf on a clover symbolizes luck.

I'll take all the luck I can get, so I made a cookie with four leaves for myself.

Filed Under: Ingredients, How To, Methods
Tags: baking, baking cookies, british isles, clover, dairy, desserts, eggs, europe, four leaf clover, grains, Irish, Saint Patrick's Day, shamrock, St. Patrick's Day, St.Patrick'sDay, sugar, sweets