“Make Your Own St. Patrick’s Day Meal and Dessert”

St. Patrick’s Day is definitely one of my favorite holidays for two reasons: I’m Irish, and I love all of the great food associated with the holiday! Let’s start with the traditional…”Corned Beef and Cabbage.” This dish became popular in the U.S. after Irish Immigrants began using corned beef instead of pork in their dishes. They started this because the cost of corned beef in the U.S. was and still is significantly lower than pork and various other meats. Something must have stuck because there’s no one dish that defines St. Patrick’s Day quite like Corned Beef and Cabbage!

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, cut into wedges
• 4 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
• 1 pound baby carrots
• 3 cups water
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 (3 pound) corned beef brisket with spice packet, cut in half
• 1 small head cabbage, cut into wedges

Directions:

1. Place the onion, potatoes and carrots in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Combine water, garlic, bay leaf, sugar, vinegar, pepper and contents of spice packet; pour over vegetables. Top with brisket and cabbage. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours or until meat and vegetables are tender. Remove bay leaf before serving. (I recommend the full 9 hours because the longer you let it cook, the more tender the meat is..yum!)

Cream Cheese Cookies

Now it’s time for my favorite part of any meal…DESSERT! The recipe you’ll find below is not a traditional Irish dessert. I chose to share this cookie recipe with you because it’s delicious and it also gives you the creative freedom to decorate for any holiday! In this case, I’ll share with you a few fun ways to decorate them for St. Patrick’s Day. Be sure to keep this cookie recipe handy though because they can be great for any occasion!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, butter, cream cheese, salt, almond and vanilla extracts, and egg yolk (Green food coloring may be fun to add for this step!). Beat until smooth. Stir in flour until well blended. Chill the dough for 8 hours, or overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
3. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough 1/3 at a time to 1/8 inch thickness, refrigerating remaining dough until ready to use. Cut into desired shapes with lightly floured cookie cutters (You can find four leaf clover cookie cutters at any local craft supply store). Place 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Leave cookies plain for frosting, or brush with slightly beaten egg white and sprinkle with candy sprinkles (Green ones!) or colored sugar.
4. Bake for 7 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until light and golden brown. Cool cookies completely before frosting.