St. Patrick’s Day — the Feast of Saint Patrick, La Fheile Padraig — is next Thursday. The cultural and religious celebration each March 17 honors Ireland’s patron saint who was known for spreading Christianity throughout the country during the fifth century. The day is a national occasion on the Emerald Isle, celebrating Irish pride and heritage, but it is widely marked in America, too.
The first parades or celebrations in the United States date back to the 18th century, writes Patrick Tally, professor of history at the University of Colorado Boulder, for nationalgeographic.com. That was thanks to the Irishmen within the British Army in America. In the 19th century, millions of Irish immigrated to the U.S. Like the soldiers who preceded them, they wanted to remember the country they’d left behind. In the early 19th century municipal celebrations of St. Patrick’s Day in places like Boston or New York sprang up and spread to other places with large Irish populations. St. Patrick’s Day gained popularity with non-Irish Americans only “in the latter half of the 20th century,” says Tally, when holidays began to be marketed more aggressively in the thriving post-World War II economy. But celebrate, Americans do. Festivities seem to involve drinking, wearing or dyeing something green. So, why not green food?
Easy being green
The shamrock is often associated with Ireland. Good luck finding a shamrock, but parsley will do for this early morning starter: biscuits topped with a sprig of green. A recipe for biscuits from scratch is in today’s food pages, but you can do this with store-bought biscuits, too, and a few washed and dried parsley sprigs.
Looking for a green appetizer? Baked wonton cups are a crunchy, healthy way to serve guacamole, says gimmesomeoven.com — much healthier than fried chips. Wonton wrappers are pressed into a mini baking cup pan to form “cups” and baked to a golden brown. After they cool, scoop in homemade or store-bought guac and presto, bite-sized appetizer.
For dessert, we like the kiwi parfait recipe found at food.com. Layers of pistachio pudding, thinly-sliced kiwi fruit and Cool Whip fit elegantly into the green theme and are pretty in wine glasses.
Personally speaking
Now I’ll be the first to admit that none of the ideas above are likely to be served up in any native Irish household on St. Patrick’s Day. In Éire — Irish for Ireland — leg of lamb is likely to be on many tables, accompanied by the Irish dry stout, Guinness.
Several years ago, I was fortunate enough to spend time in Ireland. Its culture has fascinated me since I was a young girl. (A late aunt and her elders hailed from County Clare. My Aunt T was the size of a pixie, with black hair and a quick wit. I so wish I’d been able to hear more of her stories.)
My personal food memories of Ireland tend to be of daunting “full breakfasts” — fried tomatoes, baked beans, bacon rashers and sausages. And because my friends and I were based on the Dingle Peninsula, which juts into the Atlantic in the far west, fresh seafood was abundant. I still remember walking the piers in Dingle Town, watching the boats come in, loudly attended by flocks of sea birds.
At least on my trip, there was nary a leprechaun or mug of green beer to be found. And I can’t recall a single shamrock. But we can all be forgiven for wearing beads of green, donning a funny little top hat, or whipping up a pretty parfait next Thursday. However you do it, find a way to join in celebrating a beautiful land whose history is intertwined with ours. On March 17, it’s good to be green.
ST. PATRICK’S DAY SHAMROCK BUTTERMILK BISCUITS
2 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1/3 cup shortening
3/4 cup buttermilk (add a couple of tablespoons of vinegar or lemon juice to not quite 3/4 cup regular milk if you don’t have buttermilk; it’s supposed to curdle so don’t let the lumps scare you)
About 4 tablespoons softened butter
A few sprigs of washed and dried (on a paper towel) parsley
(Source: spaceshipsandlaserbeams.com)
ST. PATRICK’S PARFAIT
Serves 4
1 (3 ounce) box Jell-O instant pistachio pudding mix (4 servings)
2 cups milk
2 kiwi fruits, peeled and thinly sliced
Cool Whip
3 drops green food coloring
Green coarse sugar, for garnish (the kind used on Christmas cookies)
(Source: food.com)
GUACAMOLE CUPS
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Makes 24-36 cups
Wonton wraps
Guacamole, homemade or store-bought
(Source: gimmesomeoven.com)
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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