Split Pea Soup

"Bad hair day (every day)? Stained kitchen towel draped around my entire top half? Whatever. Nothing can get me down." - that's our Isla.  Keepin' it real. 

I’ve documented how much these kids love soup. Also, the utility of leftover Irish bacon. The ever-frugal provider in me loves that I can make a meal that everyone will eat (and ask for seconds of) that is essentially made up of scraps from the fridge and leftovers. The only thing that could make this a better Sunday lunch? S.N.O.W. Tons of it. Oh, and brownies, from our new neighbors - to counteract all of the calories burned making snow angels and shoveling the drive.  Days like this make me feel less sorry for myself that we have to put up with the “bad” weather so many months out of the year. Kids teach you a lot. Mine have taught me to see things differently, to appreciate the wonder and fun in snow, the joy in anticipation of Christmas. I’m still not crazy about digging the car out or tackling most of the items on my December to-do list.  But, instead of just feeling overburdened by the responsibility of buying gifts and fighting the cold, for the past few years, I’m also remembering to enjoy it all a little more.

I really enjoy making this soup and how everyone lingers around the kitchen waiting for it to be ready to eat. Even the kids who, like most their age like something one minute and detest it the next, are guaranteed to eat a big bowl of split pea soup. Why wouldn’t they? It’s like comfort in a bowl.  Perfect for a snow day.

Split Pea Soup

About 8oz of leftover Irish Bacon (cooked)

1 large carrot, cut into small pieces

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1 medium onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 bay leaf

About 3 sprigs of thyme

6 cups chicken stock or broth

1 ½ cups dried green split peas

½ tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Place butter and olive oil in a large heavy bottomed pot over medium heat until butter is melted and starts to bubble.

Add carrots, onion and celery and cook until onion starts to become translucent, about 6 minutes, turn down the heat if vegetables start to brown.

Add garlic, bay leaf, thyme and a little bit of salt and cook about two minutes more.

Add bacon and split peas and stir.

Add chicken stock or broth, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and let simmer for 1 hour to 90 minutes or until peas soften enough to thicken the soup. Serve with fresh parsley, bread or rice.

A Sweet Welcome: Chocolate Biscuit Cake

The cast of characters.

We have some new neighbors across the street. Emmett and I, as is quickly becoming our mother-son tradition, decided to bake something to welcome them to their new home.  We made a huge batch of chocolate chip cookies and then decided to try something new to add to the basket of goodies we were bringing over.

Kelly, a friend of the stores, sent this recipe to my brother-in-law who forwarded it to me. She spotted this cake in many cafes and bakeries throughout Ireland and noticed that everything needed to make it is available at the Irish Boutique.  It’s really a great idea and one that is so easy and straightforward. Emmett will probably be able to make this all by himself soon enough. Let’s face it, he’ll probably do a better job than I did.

If I’m being honest, this was almost a recipe fail. Isn’t it funny how it can be easier to execute a recipe that involves several components and techniques than one that is basically an assembly-only task? Well, I totally rushed through this one and didn’t trust my instincts but you know what? I think it actually worked out for the best. In fact, since I still have NO IDEA what this was supposed to turn out like, I may have executed it perfectly. The bottom line is that the result was delicious and we had a lot of fun making this.

As you can see from the recipe below, it’s a simple process, a lot like making rice krispie treats. The reason I’m not so sure I did this correctly is because, based on the chocolate biscuit cakes I’ve seen before, including, famously, Prince William’s groom’s cake, the ratio of chocolate to biscuits is usually much higher. This was almost all biscuits held together by a little bit of the syrup-butter-chocolate mixture and definitely had more of a crisp cookie-like texture than that of a cake.

I had my doubts about including all of the crushed cookies when I looked at the amount of syrup-butter-chocolate mixture but went ahead and added them all anyway. Truth be told, I’m glad that I did! I loved the texture of this and the fact that I could taste the biscuits without having them overpowered by chocolate. And, for me, it would have been way too sweet if I changed the ratio of biscuits to chocolate.  It’s still quite sweet and boy, did my middle one Isla enjoy her piece.  So did my co-workers who devoured a tin of them in no time. I would like to try this one again using dark chocolate instead of milk and substituting some of the chocolate called for with unsweetened chocolate (though I’m pretty sure the rest of the family will still prefer this version). I know a couple of little people who would be happy to serve as my cookie smashers.

Thank goodness Isla was napping for this. Otherwise I'm sure there would have been a fight for the crown of No. 1 Biscuit Crusher. 

Chocolate biscuit cake

275g (10 oz; 2 ¼ sticks) Kerrygold Irish butter

150ml (about ⅔ cup) Lyle’s golden syrup

225g (8oz) Good chocolate -  Cadbury works very well*

200g (7oz) Digestive biscuits - broken into small pieces*

200g (7 oz) Rich tea biscuits - broken into small pieces

Packet of Maltesers

You can also add a variety of add ins, like smashed up crunchie bars, raisins,  cherries ,nuts etc.

*If  you want it to be more like Prince William’s reduce the amount of biscuits by ½ (about 7 oz).

Line a 2 pound loaf tin with a double layer of parchment paper.  

He flung the rolling pin aside and got in there with his hands. 

Break biscuits into small pieces.

Melt chocolate in double boiler, add syrup and butter and mix until smooth, being careful not to overheat the chocolate.  

Remove from double boiler and add to your bowl of broken biscuits and stir in maltesers.  Combine until evenly coated.

Scoop mixture into prepared tin.  

Place another piece of parchment on top of cake and press down on loaf to remove any air pockets.  

Cover completely and refrigerate for a few hours.  Once chilled you can remove from pan and slice and serve.  

It is a rich tasting cake so start with small slices to serve.

Cornbread Dressing with Winston’s Sausage

When I was a kid, I used to eat so much on Thanksgiving that I would invariably get a stomach ache and spend a good portion of the evening on the couch asking my mom when the pain would subside.  My brother Mark is known to have done this well into adulthood.  It must be genetic, we just couldn’t help ourselves.  These days, I have more self-restraint when it comes to portion size but I still love to indulge in all the special food that we prepare only for the Holidays. Stuffing (or dressing) is one of those dishes. We usually have stuffing, potatoes, corn pudding and Yorkshire puddings on Thanksgiving. Let me know if you think of any other carbs we should consider adding.  As you can see we try to include them all.

I mix it up with the stuffing, trying different variations each year.  I think I am always trying to find a stuffing that is as good as my mom’s.  My mom makes it with the gizzards and actually stuffs the bird.  Hers is the best. Like me, she doesn’t really follow recipes so the only time “I’ve” been able to make her version is when she made it and I helped.  Yes, I should have taken notes but I think I took a bunch of goofy pics elbow deep in turkey-cavity with my brother instead.  Some things you never outgrow. 

Still, I’ve got a good thing going with the addition of Winston’s sausages.  I’ve made versions of this stuffing/dressing with cornbread, brown bread and white bread but always with Winston’s Irish sausages, which got me to thinking, do they even eat stuffing in Ireland? Based on a quick perusal of the internet, I feel pretty confident that they do and that that they regularly add Irish sausages to theirs. Another great idea that, apparently, I was not the first to have (along with 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner, which my brother and I invented in the bathtub WAY before PertPlus hit the shelves). No matter. This stuffing is still really good.

Ingredients

8 cups ½” cubes cornbread

1 pound bulk Winston’s sausage, casings removed

10 tablespoons (1¼ sticks) unsalted butter, divided, plus more for baking dish

4 celery stalks, chopped

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 tbs chopped chives

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 pears or apples, peeled, chopped

¼ cup dried cranberries or cherries

½ cup pecan pieces

½ cup dry white wine (such as Sauvignon Blanc)

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1 teaspoon dried sage leaves

2 cups (or more) low-sodium chicken broth, divided

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 large eggs, beaten to blend

Preparation

Preheat oven to 300°. Divide cornbread between 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Bake, tossing occasionally, until beginning to brown in spots and dry out, 40–45 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up with a spoon, until dark brown, 6–8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a small bowl; let cool.

Reduce heat to medium and heat 8 Tbsp. butter in same skillet. Add onion, celery, and garlic and cook, stirring often, until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.

Add pears/apples and wine, increase heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring occasionally, until wine is almost completely evaporated, about 5 minutes.

Increase oven temperature to 400°. Butter a 13x9x2” baking dish. Combine sausage, onion mixture, dried fruit, pecans, parsley, thyme, sage, and 1½ cups broth in a large bowl.

Add cornbread and toss to combine; season with salt and pepper. Let sit 10 minutes, then add remaining ½ cup broth and toss, adding more broth if needed (bread should be very moist but not soggy).

Add eggs and mix gently just to combine.

Transfer dressing to prepared baking dish and dot with remaining 2 Tbsp. butter.

Cover dressing with foil and bake until heated through, about 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake until dressing is golden and crisp on top, 20–30 minutes longer.

Have a bunch of people you love over to help you eat it all. 

I would love to know what she's thinking... maybe "Ah-ha! THIS must be where I got my blue eyes"?