MARCH'S RECIPES

Cook up some irish!

Barm Brack (Traditional Irish Bread)
Ingredients 2 1/2 cups Mixed dry fruit--currants>>> Dark & golden raisins. 1 cup Boiling black tea 1 Egg 1 teaspoon Mixed spice (see note*) 4 teaspoons Marmalade 1 cup (heaping) superfine sugar 2 1/2 cups Self-rising flour
Directions Place dried fruit in a bowl, cover with the hot tea and let soak overnight. The next day, add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Preheat oven to 375 F. Pour batter into greased 7" square pan and bake in the center of oven for 1 1/2 hrs. Let cool in the pan on awire rack. Slice and serve buttered with tea. NOTE* (Mixed spices: equal parts of cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, and mace. 1. In Northern Ireland and in the Republic, BRACK is the Celtic word for salt and is used to mean "bread". Barm brack is leavened bread, the word BARM meaning yeast. 2. The term "barmbrack" for an Irish fruit loaf or cake does not derive from barm or leaven. It is a corruption of the Irish word "aran breac" (Speckled Bread).

Dublin Coddle
Ingredients 1 pound bacon slices 2 pounds pork sausage links 2 large onions -- sliced 2 cloves garlic 4 large potatoes -- thickly sliced 2 carrots -- thickly sliced 1 large bunch of fresh herbs -- tied with string black pepper hard cider (apple wine) or apple cider fresh parsley, chopped for garnish
Directions Lightly fry bacon until crisp. Place in large cooking pot. Brown sausage in some bacon grease or vegetable oil. Remove and add to pot. Soften sliced onions and whole garlic cloves in fat, then add to pot with potatoes and carrots. Bury the bunch of herbs in the middle of the mixture. Sprinkle with pepper. Cover with cider. Cook 1 1/2 hours over moderate heat; do not boil. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Beacan Bruithe (Baked Mushrooms)
Ingredients Large field mushrooms (or portobellas) 4 ounces Chopped onions 4 ounces Whole wheat breadcrumbs 4 ounces Sausage meat 1 teaspoon Chopped sage Salt and pepper
Directions Wash and peel mushrooms. Remove stalks and discard. Brush mushrooms with melted butter. Fry onions in remaining butter. When tender, mix onion and butter with breadcrumbs, sausagemeat, herbs and seasonings. Divide among the mushrooms. Place mushrooms in a shallow ovenproof dish, pour 4 tablespoons of water into the bottom of the dish, and bake for 15-20 minutes in a moderate oven.

Irish Potato Candy
Ingredients 1/4 cup butter, softened 1/2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 4 cups confectioners' sugar 2 1/2 cups flaked coconut 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Directions In a medium bowl, beat the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add the vanilla and confectioners' sugar; beat until smooth. Using your hands if necessary, mix in the coconut. Roll into balls or potato shapes, and roll in the cinnamon. Place onto a cookie sheet and chill to set. If desired, roll potatoes in cinnamon again for darker color.

Green Punch
Ingredients 2 (3 ounce) packages lime flavored gelatin mix 1 quart hot water 1 (46 fluid ounce) can pineapple juice 2 (12 fluid ounce) cans frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed 2 cups white sugar 4 1/2 cups cold water 2 liters ginger ale
Directions In a large saucepan dissolve the gelatin in 1 quart of hot water. Allow to cool. When gelatin is cool, pour into a large punch bowl, Stir in pineapple juice, orange juice concentrate, sugar and 4 1/2 cups cold water. Pour in ginger ale just before serving.