Chocolate Mint Candy Cookies

These are my contribution to my cookie exchange this year.
I made a "test batch" about 2 weeks ago, and they lasted all of 10 minutes, I swear!!

My sister-in-law, Karen, used to make these every year.
They are my niece, Leah's favorite cookie.

You don't have to sprinkle the candy canes on them, but I thought it made them more festive!

St. Patty's Day Version

Chocolate Mint Candy Cookies

3/4 cup butter

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

2 Tablespoons water

2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips

2 eggs

2 1/2 cups flour

1 1/4 teaspoons soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 packages Andes Mints

Crushed Peppermints or candy canes (optional)

In a saucepan over medium heat, cook sugar, butter and water, stirring occasionally until butter is melted.  Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate chips until melted. Let cool for about 10 minutes.

In your mixer, pour the chocolate batter.  Add and beat each egg one at a time.  Stir in flour, baking sod and salt.  Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.

Roll dough into walnut sized balls and place two inches apart.

Bake for 8-10 minutes. 

DO NOT OVER BAKE.

Place one Andes Mint on top of each cookie, let sit for about a minute to let it get all melty.

Swirl with the back of a spoon.

Top with crushed peppermint if you desire.

Irish Soda Bread

Irish Soda Bread

I am on the Food Committee at Church.

(I know, you're surprised, right?)

We belong to St. Patrick's Parish, so every year St. Patrick's Day is a big deal.

They host a dinner at church, and this year they were looking for people to make Irish Soda bread.

I am not much of a bread baker, but I figured I would give it a whirl.

Turns out, I'm either better at it than I thought, or this recipe was just top notch.

(probably the latter...)

 cooling fresh from the oven

When I wasn't sure which recipe to use, I went to Pinterest to see variations of this traditional bread.

I found the recipe that I used at Green Eggs & Spam

I liked that it had a little bit of sugar to add to the sweetness of it, plus raisins.  

I LOVE Raisins!!

Irish Soda Bread

3 cups sifted cake flour

3 Tablespoons of sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup raisins

1 1/3 cup of **buttermilk

(**I didn't have buttermilk so I made my own using the combination of 1 Tablespoon white vinegar to 1 cup of milk, use after it sits for 5 minutes)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 9 inch cake pan with parchment paper.

Combine all of the dry ingredients in a bowl.  

Add raisins and buttermilk, and combine. Dough is STICKY.

Turn onto a floured board and knead about 10 times. Don't over knead.

Place dough in lined pan, and score an "X" with a knife in the top.

Bake 60-65 minutes.

Cool and slice.

Eat bread in 1-2 days.  

Bread WILL NOT KEEP.

Bailey's Irish Martini

Bailey's Irish Martini

Last Friday when I baked my Irish Cream Cheesecake, I decided to make Italian for dinner.

that sounded weird didn't it? 

"I made an Irish Cheesecake and made Italian for dinner."

Something about cheesecake in general makes me want pasta.... 

maybe because the calorie count is already out the window?

perhaps....

Aaaaaanywhooooo....

It's Friday during Lent, and that usually means fish in our house, but I was craving pasta.

I made a big Cesar's salad, and made some Parmesan Garlic fresh asparagus.

When I can't throw it on the grill, sauteing asparagus in a skillet with a little olive oil, butter and 

garlic always works great!

 I dusted it with a some fresh Parmesan before serving.

For the main dish we had Pasta Pomodoro.

When the hubby came home for dinner, I said, how about a martini?

I already had the Irish Cream on the counter, so we opted for Irish Martini's!!

A Blessing from St. Patrick

"May the road rise up to meet you, 

May the wind always be at your back,

May the sun shine warm upon your face, 

May the rains fall soft upon your fields,

And, Until we meet again,

May God hold you in the hollow of his hand."

Bailey's Irish Martini

recipe from yummly.com

3 1/2 Tablespoons of Bailey's Irish Cream

1 1/2 Tablespoon Whiskey

1 Tablespoon strong (cold) coffee

Put in a martini shaker with ice cubes and shake until chilled. 

Pour into martini glass.

Makes one martini.

shake.pour.repeat.

Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner in the Crock Pot

Corned Beef, Cabbage, Irish Potatoes and Rye Bread

My kids get super excited when I make this meal.  I think I make it once or twice a year.  

I don't know why? It's not like it's hard?

But when March rolls around, I see the Corned Beef front and center in the super market, 

and I know it's time!

There is no mistaking the scent of this cooking in your house!!

Best part...put it in the crock pot and walk away!!

Corned Beef and Cabbage in the Crock Pot

5.5-6 pounds of Corned Beef

1 1/2  cups water

1 head of green cabbage, quartered

3 cans of Irish Potatoes

Loaf of Rye Bread

Place corned beef, juices and all in crock pot, fat side up.

I always buy the corned beef that has the seasoning packets right in it, place those in the crockpot over meat.

Pour water over the top.

Cook on high for about 6 hours.

Reduce to low.

Pour potatoes in.

Place cabbage on top and recover.

Continue to cook for about 2 hours.

Serve with rye bread.

Irish Cream Cheesecake

Irish Cream Cheesecake

I have to tell you how excited I was to be invited to Joan from

  Chocolate, Chocolate and More Chocolate's 

first ever Blog Hop!

When Joan told me that she was having a St. Patrick's Day Blog Hop, I knew I had to join in!

So, I started looking at recipes and I settled on this recipe from Meals.com.

a little slice of Irish heaven

When I started to get the ingredients out to bake, my kids saw that bag of mini-chocolate chips and flocked to see what I was making! 

When they saw the crushed Graham crackers and cream cheese, their eyes lit up when I said 

"cheesecake."

Isn't it pretty adorned with that shamrock lei?

I told them that this wasn't just a chocolate chip cheese cake, but one with Irish Cream.

Of course, they are kids and don't really get the yumminess of Bailey's!!

I told them to just trust me!

if their mouths weren't watering yet, they sure did when the can of whipped cream came out!

Irish Cream Cheesecake

from meals.com

CRUST:

1 3/4 cups crushed chocolate Graham crackers (I couldn't find these, I used chocolate Teddy Grahams)

6 teaspoons of melted butter

FILLING:

3 - 8 ounce packages of cream cheese, softened

1 cup of sugar

4 eggs

1/2 cup Irish Cream liquor

3/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided

1 Tablespoon of flour

Preheat oven to 375 and grease a 9" spring form pan.

Beat cream cheese and sugar in a mixer until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating into mixture well.

Add Irish cream, stir in well. 

Combine 1/2 cup of chips with flour and gently stir into filing.

Pour into prepared pan, and sprinkle remaining chips on top.

Bake 45 minutes.  Edges will be set but middle will jiggle a bit.

Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove and cool in fridge for 3+ hours.

Top with whipped cream, and sprinkles if you like, before serving!

To see all of the other recipes in this blog hop:

Joan, from Chocolate, Chocolate and More Chocolate made Groovy Grasshopper Pie

Debi, from Recipes for my Boys made Colcannon and Irish Stew

Melissa, from Chindeep made Apple & Bramble Cake with Bushmill's Custard

Lesa, from Edesia's Notebook made Corned Beef and Cabbage Soup

Carrie from Carrie's Experimental Kitchen made an Irish Feast

Kimiko from The Beachside Baker made a Shamrock Shake

Please go take a look at these wonderful recipes and food bloggers pages, you will be glad that you did!