Bailey's Chocolate Dipped Cookies

#20

Since St. Patrick's Day is just a couple days away, I wanted to find a cookie to compliment that day.

This Bailey's Chocolate Dipped Cookie was the winner.

So make your corned beef and cabbage, follow it with this cookie treat, and don't forget to wear your green!

photo and recipe courtesy of LoveLifeLiz

1 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup Baileys Irish Cream
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup dark cocoa powder
1 tsp cornstarch
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
sprinkles, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
Mix in the Baileys, the egg and vanilla. Beat until well combined.
Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until smooth.
Make balls about 1 tbsp in size and press until slightly flat.
Place on parchment lined cookie sheet.
Bake for 6-7 minutes.
While cookies are cooling melt white chocolate chips in a small bowl in the microwave.
Use 30 second increments, to avoid burning the chocolate
Dip cookies, one at a time into the chocolate. Place on parchment paper, decorate with sprinkles (optional)
Let stand for 20 minutes for chocolate to harden
Store in an airtight container or zipper bag for up to 7 days.

my final product

Corned Beef and Cabbage and Soda Bread

Hope you had a fantastic ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!

I made two recipes this year for St. Patrick's Day that I don't want to forget.

My husband was so thrilled about the meal that he said, "Please make this anytime for me.  Don't wait until St. Patrick's Day of next year to do it again!"

I made a Corned Beef and Cabbage in the crockpot and then made a side of Soda Bread.

Here are the recipes I used...

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Ingredients
2 pounds corned beef
1 tablespoon pickling spices
10 medium carrots, peeled and cut in half
2 small onions
8 medium red potatoes
1 12 oz bottle dark beer (I used a Guiness)
3 1/2 cups water
10 sprigs dried thyme
1 head cabbage, chopped

Directions
In a large slow cooker, place the corned beef on the bottom of the slow cooker (do not rinse off--allow all the juices from the packaging to go inside the slow cooker).
Sprinkle pickling spices on top of the corned beef.
Layer with peeled carrots and onions, followed by whole-medium red potatoes.
Place sprigs of thyme around the slow cooker then pour the beer and water over the ingredients.
Set on low and cook for 7 hours.
Once the corned beef and vegetables have cooked for 7 hours, move around the vegetables to make room for the cabbage.
Submerge the cabbage in as much liquid as possible, place the lid back on the crock pot and place on high for 1 hour.
Slice the Corned Beef against the grain and serve with a grainy mustard.

Irresistible Irish Soda Bread

Ingredients  

 3 cups all-purpose flour
 1 tablespoon baking powder
 1/3 cup white sugar
 1 teaspoon salt
 1 teaspoon baking soda
 1 egg, lightly beaten
 2 cups buttermilk 

1/4 cup butter, melted

Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). 

Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
Combine flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and baking soda. 

Blend egg and buttermilk together, and add all at once to the flour mixture. 

Mix just until moistened. Stir in butter. Pour into prepared pan.
Bake for 65 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the bread comes out clean. 

Cool on a wire rack. Wrap in foil for several hours, or overnight, for best flavor.

Corned Beef Hash

You probably already have your menu made for the big Irish dinner on Thursday! Right? Are you making Shepherd's Pie, Corned Beef and Cabbage, Fish and Chips, or Irish Stew?

But what about breakfast? Are you going to wake up early and fix an Irish breakfast? If so, here is an easy recipe to make!

Corned Beef Hash

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
3 cups finely chopped, cooked corned beef
3 cups chopped, cooked Yukon gold potatoes
Salt and pepper, to taste
Chopped fresh parsley (optional)

1. Heat the butter in a large cast iron skillet on medium heat. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes, until translucent.

2. Add the corned beef and potatoes, and spread the mixture out evenly in the pan. Increase the heat to high or medium high and press down on the mixture with a metal spatula.

3. Do not stir the potatoes and corned beef mixture, but let them brown. If you hear them sizzling, this is good. Use a metal spatula to life up a corner to see if they are browning. Once nicely browned, use the spatula to flip sections over in the pan so that they brown on the other side. Press down again with the spatula. If there is too much sticking, you can add a little more butter to the pan. Continue to cook in this manner until the potatoes and the corned beef are nicely browned.

4. Remove from heat, stir in the chopped parsley. Add freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste.

ENJOY!!!

Mint Fudge Brownies in a Jar

These would be a great St. Patrick's Day treat for neighbors, co-workers, teachers, etc....

Courtesy of Confessions of a Cooking Queen

Mint Fudge Brownies in a Jar You need: 2 dozen 8 oz straight sided glass jars with lids Wooden spoons and baker's twine (optional) Brownie batter (I used Duncan Hines, but you can use homemade if it floats your boat) Hot fudge sauce About 2 dozen Oreos, crushed Mint filling ingredients 8 oz package of cream cheese, softened 1/2 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk 8 oz container Cool Whip, thawed 1 teaspoon mint extract Green food coloring 1. Preheat oven to 350. Ladle a small amount of brownie batter into ungreased jars (you only want it to come up maybe 1/2 inch) and place jars on cookie sheet. Bake until skewer inserted in middle of brownies comes out clean. 2. While brownies are cooling, either make your fudge sauce or heat up your jarred stuff. When it is pourable, carefully pour or ladle a generous amount in each jar on top of the brownies. Allow this to cool. 3. Once fudge sauce has cooled, prepare your mint filling: In the bowl of a mixer, beat cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk until smooth, scraping the bowl as needed. Gently fold in Cool Whip, mint extract and green food coloring until mixture is well blended and desired shade of green is achieved. Carefully spoon mint filling into jars. 4. Top with a generous sprinkling of Oreo crumbs. Twist a lid on to the top of each jar and secure a wooden spoon with twine, if desired. *And make sure you make a few jars for yourself!*

St. Patrick's Day Fresh Herb Dip

Saint Patrick’s Day Fresh Herb Dip

Prep: 15 minutes

Yield: 3 1/2 cups

Ingredients
1 (16-ounce) container light sour cream or reduced-fat Greek yogurt
1 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
2 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Fresh vegetables, crackers

Preparation
1. Combine all ingredients in a container of a food processor; pulse until combined. Cover and chill at least 1 hour. Serve with fresh vegetables or crackers.

Some Fun Facts About St. Patrick's Day

1. Saint Patrick’s Day is actually an international holiday always celebrated on March 17th. It started as a Christian holiday but has become a secular celebration of Ireland’s culture.

2. Believe it or not, the color of St. Patrick was not actually green, but blue. In the 19th century, however, green came to be used as a symbol for Ireland.

3. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the highest number of leaves found on a clover is 14.

4. One estimate suggests that there are 10,000 regular three-leaf clovers for every lucky four-leaf clover.

5. A fun Irish toast: “May your blessings outnumber the shamrocks that grow, and may trouble avoid you wherever you go.”

Courtesy of Make and Takes