Jeannette, a Slashfood Flickr user - who also happens to write a fantastic blog, Everybody likes Sandwiches - shared her recipe for colcannon, traditional Irish comfort food made of cabbage or kale, mashed potatoes, and a healthy dose of butter or cream. Jeannette added leeks to hers (onions or chives are often added, as well).
Colcannon can be eaten anytime, obviously, but it's typically enjoyed around Halloween, and some families hide charms or coins in the mixture. The idea is that whomever finds it has luck for the coming year. There's actually an adorable scene that illustrates this concept in In America, a film about an Irish family who immigrates to America.
It's that time of year - a week of green-tinted beer, green-tinged bagels, and an overabundance of green streamers and shamrock-shaped accessories and five dollar Old Navy shirts with clovers prominently displayed on the chest.
What would St. Patrick's Day be without our bizarre, Americanized version of a culture we apparently know very little about? It is our job, as Americans, to mock and exploit the Irish culture by upholding commonly-held stereotypes. And the best way to do this? Through these five products.
Oh: and as a person with a good amount of Irish heritage in her blood, I'm proud to say that I've never ingested that green goo-like substance that McDonald's sells every year around this time. And now I'll brace myself for the inevitable barrage of hate comments from Shamrock Shake devotees...
Fans of Guinness everywhere are facing a bitter possibility: the historic St. James' Gate brewery, which has churned out the black stuff since 1759 may be up for sale. Diageo, the parent company of Guinness announced that its reviewing its brewing operations in Ireland.
The historic site on the River Liffey in Dublin is something of a mecca for Guinness enthusiasts and was once the world's largest brewery. Diageo is considering selling the St. James' Gate brewery and shifting production to a site outside the city. Thanks to a booming real estate market, the historic brewery could fetch up to £2 billion.
While I'm not entirely pleased with Diageo's decision, I am intrigued by the possibility of holding an Irish wake if the sale goes forward.
McDonald's has just announced that they will reduce the amount of salt on their french fries by 50% at stores across the Atlantic in the face of growing concerns about salt consumption from the public. The change will first take effect in Ireland and, since the salt content of fries in the UK as a whole has already been reduced by 24%, it would not take too much to spread the change to the whole area. The fast food chain also plans to eliminate trans fats over the next several weeks.
Apparently, these initiatives are part of a list of "10 commitments" to healthy eating, the environment and other PR-friendly causes that McDonald's is planning to follow to increase consumer confidence in the brand. It must be working, since they have reported an 8.8% increase in European sales in the last month alone. Or, of course, people are just addicted to the burgers.
When the series first began, the Great British Menu offered 14 talented chefs and lots of ideas as to what should be on the menu for the queen's 80th birthday. The final menu is a compilation of tradition and innovation, taking the best dishes suggested by the participants and combining them into a cohesive whole. Various UK countries are represented and so are local ingredients. The final, and ultimate, British menu is:
Starter: Smoked salmon with blinis, woodland sorrel and wild cress (Richard Corrigan, Northern Ireland)
Fish course: Pan-fried turbot with cockles and oxtail (Bryn Williams, Wales)
Main course: Loin of roe venison with potato cake, roast roots, creamed cabbage and game gravy (Nick Nairn, Scotland)
Dessert: Custard tart with nutmeg (Marcus Wareing, Northern England)
The Irish agriculture minister, Mary Coughlan, recently said that "consumers could be divided into 'fuelers,' who use food purely to satisfy hunger, and 'foodies,' who seek out the richest flavors and textures and most interesting and authentic products." This statement followed news that exotic and expensive foods, like Kobe beef and "organic beef goulash for babies" are rapidly gaining popularity in Ireland.
To be honest, I am a little insulted here. I don't like to think that food is so divisive and so black-and-white. Granted, there are people who care more than others, but you don't have to someone who only wants to eat incredibly expensive food, like the $150 Wagyu/foie gras sandwich at Selfridges, to enjoy eating. I don't know about you, but I can enjoy an ordinary burger any time I want to and still consider myself to be something other than a "fueler."
Perhaps Ms. Coughlan should look more carefully at the nuances of being a foodie and consider that a preference for foie gras is not the defining criterion.
St. Patrick's Day may give some an excuse to indulge in a few extra drinks, but mix those drinks into a cake and
you're got a holiday that I can really get behind. Maki, of i was just
really very hungry, has a recipe for Irish Stout Cake with Whiskey Sour
Icing that sounds as delicious as it looks. The cake is nearly black with a white icing, a combination that
bears a striking resemblance to a freshly poured pint of stout. The cake is sweet but restrained due to the presence of
both the stout and a fair amount of unsweetened cocoa powder. All the alcohol in the cake will dissipate during baking,
so there is no need to worry about serving this to children. Maki points out that simply omitting the whiskey in the
icing will make this kid friendly for those children who have mature palates, as well as becoming suitable for adults
who want to enjoy the holiday without having a stiff drink.
In the early and mid 1800’s, rural Ireland did not have a strong tradition of yeast bread
making. Baking was done in the home and, in addition to having limited supplies, time was often at a premium. The use of
baking soda as a leavening agent was quick, effective and it produced a much more consistent result than yeast did. It
caught on quickly and made soda breads a
staple of the Irish diet until commercial bread production began in earnest, though it is still popular in Ireland and
many other parts of the world.
The original soda breads contained nothing more than flour, buttermilk, baking soda and salt. The buttermilk was
leftover from the butter making process and the bread was almost always served with freshly churned butter. Today, the
breads often contain additional ingredients, like sugar, butter, currants or caraway seeds to enhance the flavor of the
bread. Soda bread is heartier than most yeast breads and pairs very well with soups, stews and meat dishes. It also
makes outstanding toast. For an irish soda bread recipe, click here.
No special process is involved in producing this St. Patrick's Day novelty drink. Simply add 5-6
drops of green food coloring to your beer and gently stir. Go for a bright color because a yellow-ish green is off
putting no matter how fast you plan to down your drink. It is also best to go with lighter ales as opposed to a dark
stout, like Guinness. To get a green color out of a Guinness, you would have to add enough food coloring to turn your
teeth green when you take a sip. There are many other Irish beers available to help you get into the St.
Paddy's Day Spirit, even though it might be easier to pick up a six pack of anything that comes in a green bottle to
begin with.
With St. Patrick's Day coming up tomorrow, it's time to get into the spirit. Open your closet and pull out
something green to avoid getting pinched by your friends, then open your fridge and pull out a pint of Guinness. St. Patrick's Day originally began as a Catholic feast day
that celebrated the patron saint of Ireland, but millions of Irish and non-Irish revelers now celebrate it every year.
Is it the religious signifigance? Perhaps for some, but for many it's about the corned beef and the beer - which is
what we like at Slashfood.
Here are some Irish ideas to get you going for St. Patrick's Day:
The
public worries too much about mad cow disease and the dangers of GMOs and not enough about bacteria-related hazards (E.
coli, right), according to a study published in the Journal of Food Safety. The study surveyed 143 food safety experts
in Ireland to gauge their opinions about the public's understanding of food safety issues. According to an abstract of the study, experts had
little confidence in the general population's ability to understand and assess food risks and process scientific
information. Many of the experts surveyed also felt hesitant about speaking in uncertain terms, even when necessary,
for fear that the public isn't able to cope with uncertainties. Others wished they had better guidelines on how to
communicate with the media.
[Via FoodConsumer.org
(note: there seems to be a discrepancy between FoodConsumer's number of experts involved and that of the abstract.)]
St. Patrick's Day might not have the same type of candy-giving connotations as Valentine's Day, but with candy
companies seeing increases in holiday-related sales nearly every year, there certainly is some incentive for them to
celebrate each and every holiday with a special product. See's Candy has a special confection for St. Patrick's Day and
it is one of the most interesting I've seen. Not content to merely see chocolate leprechauns (though they have those, too), See's has come out with a candy potato. The St. Patrick's Day potato is a potato shaped
lump of fluffy, marshmallowy divinity, packed with California walnuts and dipped in chocolate. The whole thing is
rolled in a mixture of cinnamon and cocoa powder to round out the flavors of the candy and balance its sweetness, as
well as to simulate the natural look (dirt) of the spud. I know that the See's divinity is delicious, so I'm looking
forward to getting my hands on one (or two) of these!
Have you ever stashed a Coke in the freezer, hoping to chill it quickly, then forgotten all about it, only to have it explode all over your frozen peas?
Fans of Guinness everywhere are facing a bitter possibility: the historic St. James' Gate brewery, which has churned out the black stuff since 1759 may be up for sale. Diageo, the parent company of Guinness announced that its reviewing its brewing operations in Ireland.
McDonald's has just announced that they will 
When the 
The Irish agriculture minister, Mary Coughlan, 
In the early and mid 1800’s, rural Ireland did not have a strong tradition of yeast bread
making. Baking was done in the home and, in addition to having limited supplies, time was often at a premium. The use of
baking soda as a leavening agent was quick, effective and it produced a much more consistent result than yeast did. It
caught on quickly and made 
No special process is involved in producing this St. Patrick's Day novelty drink. Simply add 5-6
drops of green food coloring to your beer and gently stir. Go for a bright color because a yellow-ish green is off
putting no matter how fast you plan to down your drink. It is also best to go with lighter ales as opposed to a dark
stout, like Guinness. To get a green color out of a Guinness, you would have to add enough food coloring to turn your
teeth green when you take a sip. There are many other 
With St. Patrick's Day coming up tomorrow, it's time to get into the spirit. Open your closet and pull out
something green to avoid getting pinched by your friends, then open your fridge and pull out a pint of 
The
public worries too much about mad cow disease and the dangers of GMOs and not enough about bacteria-related hazards (E.
coli, right), according to a study published in the Journal of Food Safety. The study surveyed 143 food safety experts
in Ireland to gauge their opinions about the public's understanding of food safety issues. According to an 
St. Patrick's Day might not have the same type of candy-giving connotations as Valentine's Day, but with candy
companies seeing increases in holiday-related sales nearly every year, there certainly is some incentive for them to
celebrate each and every holiday with a special product. See's Candy has a special confection for St. Patrick's Day and
it is one of the most interesting I've seen. Not content to merely see chocolate leprechauns (though they 
A fraking amazing Battlestar Galactica cake
Iced Tea 101
Pierogies + cheese + onions + kraut = Parmageddon!
