I'm Seeing Green

I feel the luck o'the Irish coming on. What are your traditions for St. Patrick's Day? For me in my house, it's more than just soda bread and corned beef and cabbage, but I admit, those are some of the best parts. 

Here are some recipes and an Irish blessing that might put a spring in your step, warm sunshine on your face, more reasons to remember than forget, a life that lasts a hundred more years plus one extra day to repent. 

Cheddar Chive Scones (this recipe is not GF)
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour 
1 tablespoon white sugar 
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 
1/2 teaspoon salt   
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, chilled and chopped into cubes 
3/4 cup whole milk 
1/4 cup chopped spinach  
1 Tsp chopped parsley
6-8 chives, chopped (about 2 tablespoons)
1/2 cup grated white cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 400°F. Whisk the first four ingredients together in a large bowl.
Add the butter to the flour mixture and mix with either your fingertips, a pastry blender, or two knives until it forms the texture of coarse meal.
Add the milk, chives, spinach and cheese and mix gently until just incorporated (the dough may look a bit dry, but allow it to sit for a few minutes and the flour will soak up all the milk).
Place dough on a lightly floured surface and gently press into a circle and 1 inch thick.
Cut the dough into 8 triangles
Place scones on a parchment lined baking sheet, brush with coconut oil or diluted egg/water and bake for 20minutes or until golden brown. Move immediately to a wire cooling rack.





Irish Vegetarian Stew with Cabbage Slaw
2-3 potatoes, I used bakers
4 large carrots, peeled
1 small onion
4 cups water
2 cups broth (I used veggie stock)
1 tablespoon 
2 teaspoons parsley 
1/2 teaspoon thyme
2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper, I used white pepper
2 bay leafs
1 sprig of rosemary or 1/4 teaspoon dry
1/4 cup barley

Chop your potato and carrots in large chunks. Cut onions in dices. Place all ingredients including the barley in a dutch oven or a pot that can go in the oven. Add water, broth, herbs and season with salt and pepper. Cook at 400o for about 40-50 minutes. Check on it and make sure the potatoes and carrots are tender. Place out on the stove. *If you're wanting to steam your cabbage, this is the best time to place inside a steamer on top of the pot with the lid secured over top. You can also just drop the cabbage on top of the stew, it's up to you.

Cabbage slaw
1/2 large head of cabbage, shredded in long strings
1/4 of an onion sliced very thin 
1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup vinegar 
1/2 teaspoon mustard (I used Dijon)
3/4 teaspoon. salt 
1/2 teaspoon sugar 
1/4 teaspoon celery seed 
1/4 cup lite olive oil/grapeseed or your fav oil
Layer cabbage and onions in alternate layers in bowl with tight lid. Sprinkle with 3/4 cup sugar; set aside.
In a small saucepan bring vinegar, mustard, salt, sugar, and celery seed to boil. Add 1/4 cup salad oil and bring to simmer/boil again. Pour over cabbage and put in the fridge immediately. Let the cabbage sit for a couple hours or over night. When you serve your soup, serve the cabbage on the side with a piece of crusty bread. Yum!

*If you prefer a simple shredded cooked cabbage, all you'll need to do it slice your cabbage very thin, place it in a bowl with a sprinkle of salt. Discard the extra juice. Place a steamer over top your pot of cooking stew and place the cabbage inside. Steam cabbage until it's the desired consistency. Season with a little onion salt, and serve hot alongside your stew. Both methods are really delicious. 



Kids and cabbage don't really mix often times. This recipe helps them cope quite easily. The cheesy, buttery crunch satisfies their taste buds. We serve ours with a little toasted bread and some sliced ham. This recipe comes from True Texas. I was glad to find the recipe a few years back. We enjoy it as often as we can.

Cheesy Scalloped Cabbage

1 large head of cabbage
1/2 sweet onion (vidalia)
1 cup cold water
good sprinkling of salt

1/4 cup butter/vegan or otherwise
3/4 cup milk/cashew milk
2 1/2 tablespoons flour
         Gluten Free? I used 1 tablespoon tapioca, 1 tablespoon rice flour and a pinch of cornstarch
1/2lb Velveeta cheese
3 tablespoons white cheddar
1/2 cup butter/vegan or otherwise
1 pkg Club or Ritz crackers
         Gluten free option is Breton 
salt and pepper

Cut cabbage into bite size pieces. (do not shred it, it will not work) Put in a large bowl. Slice your sweet onion and add it to the cabbage as well.
Add cold water and salt. Let it sit while you melt the cheese mixture and then drain it well.

Melt 1/2 stick butter. Add milk and flour and stir until creamy.
Add cheeses. Heat until cheese is melting.
Put cabbage and onion in a 9x13 dish. Add salt and pepper. Pour cheese sauce over cabbage.
Crush 1 pkg of Club crackers/gluten free crackers until firm. Melt 1 stick butter and pour over crackers. Mix well. Sprinkle over cabbage.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until top is brown



I found this recipe on design sponge. It's tasty!

Orechiette & Argula Pesto Pasta
2 cups orecchiette pasta (use a gluten free pasta of your choice, like cappello)
1 can fava beans*
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
1/2 cup Arugula pesto
1 tablespoon minced fresh peppermint
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
Pinch of red pepper flakes
* If you don’t have favas, you can substitute with fresh or frozen peas or lima beans


Arugula Pesto
Ingredients:
4 cups packed arugula
1 cup Parmesan cheese; cut in cubes
Zest and juice of one Meyer Lemon
Two cloves of garlic
1/2 cup olive oil Put all the ingredients in the food processor or blender. Taste to adjust seasoning. Use as a dip for fresh veggies and it is great for pasta, too.


In salted boiling water, boil the orecchiette until done. Using a hand-held strainer, remove the pasta and set aside in a large bowl. In the same water you used to cook the pasta, cook your shelled and peeled favas for 1 minute. They will turn bright green and still have great crunch. After the favas cook, strain them, and place them in the same bowl as the pasta.
In a dry pan, toast the pine nuts until you can smell their flavor. They should smell nutty, but not burned.
In the same large bowl, add the toasted pine nuts, pesto, peppermint, lemon zest, and red pepper flakes to the cooked pasta and favas. Toss together and garnish with a sprig of peppermint and a drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This dish can be served warm or refrigerated and served cold.