A St. Patricks Dinner?Kind of

I made a special dinner tonight for Ted and myself, courtesy of Dave Lieberman from the FoodNetwork recipes.  For Ted, I made Braised Hoisin Beer Short Ribs with Cabbage and Sesame Snow Peas.  For myself, I made sauteed Hoisin Scallops with Cabbage and Sesame Snow Peas. 

Joanne's St. Patricks Celebration Dinner

 I made Irish Soda Bread to complement and a great dessert as a grand finale. We also used Dave Lieberman’s recipe for Silky Cauliflower Soup with Parmesan Crisps.  I did make some adjustments but basically followed his recipes.

Irish Soda Bread:

Using a bread maker, mix together  3/4 cup soy milk +1 TBS malt vinegar (or use 3/4 c Buttermilk if you prefer). Add that to the bread maker bowl and continue to add the following: 1 egg(slightly beaten) + 1 1/2 tsp caraway seeds + 2 cups bread flour + 1/4 cup sugar + 1 1/2 tsp baking soda + 1/4 tsp salt + 1/2 cup raisins + 1 TBS yeast.  Set on Sweet bread or cake cycle (about 2 1/2 hours).

If you make the ribs, start them about 4 hours ahead.  For that recipe, go to this link for Dave Lieberman’s recipe.  That link will actually give you this menu except for the Soda Bread, Cabbage, Scallops and dessert.

Silky Cauliflower Soup with Parmesan Crisps.  I used 1 head of cauliflower, EVOO, 1/2 an onion-chopped, 2 tsp minced garlic, 1 Qt. Vegetable Broth, 1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper to taste.  1 cup grated parmesan for the crisps.

To make the crisps, preheat oven to 350.Spread 1 cup grated parm on a foil lined baking sheet and bake 10 minutes. After letting cool 5 minutes, break in to pieces. Serve with the soup.

To make the soup, chop your cauliflower, discarding the hard inner core and green leaves. Saute the 1/2 onion and garlic for about 3 minutes in EVOO. Add the broth and cauliflower, bring to a boil and let boil 15 minutes until tender. Puree until smooth. Stir in  1/2 cup fresh grated Parm. cheese, salt and pepper and keep warm until ready to serve.

The Sesame Snow Peas:  Trim ends of 1/2 lb of snow peas. In a saute pan, heat 1 tbs EVOO plus 1  tsp sesame oil and saute peas for 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and hold on warm until ready to serve.

The cabbage was simply boiled until tender. I placed in an oven proof dish, salt, pepper to taste with a little SmartBalance on top. Put in a 300 F oven for 25 minutes.

Hoisin Scallops:

Wash 1/2 lb scallops. Dry thoroughly. Salt and pepper. Heat 1 TBS EVOO + a few drops of sesame oil in saute pan over medium high heat.  Add scallops and saute about 3 minutes per side, adding about 1 TBS Hoisin sauce when you flip to the second side. Serve immediately.

What is “Hoisin“:   It’s spicy and sweet. The ingredients on the bottle are…soy sauce, cider vinegar, water, sugar, molasses, miso, thickening agents, orange juice, sesame oil, spices, and ginger. Very tasty. 

Of course there was dessert because we were celebrating…

Pistachio Ice cream with homemade Creme De Menthe Sugar Cookie in a Sugar Cone Waffle Bowl. Topped with Creme De Menthe and a little Bailey’s Mint Cream.

The sugar cookie was simple.  You make a sugar cookie dough. When you roll it out, simply pour about 1 TBS Creme De Menthe in the middle, fold and re-roll to desired cookie thickness (about 1/8 - 1/4 “). Make cut outs and bake.

Don’t you just LOVE celebrating?  It’s too much fun in the kitchen. Have a great night