Irish Tea Barmbrack
HALLOWEEN creates almost as much excitement as Christmas nowadays.
patagonia hiking budget2For weeks shop windows have been packed with witches, broomsticks, pumpkins and scary masks to tantalise the kids. Our grandchildren and their friends can t wait to dress up in witches attire and ghoulish rig outs to frighten the life out of their neighbours and extract a trick or treat .
When I was a child Halloween was a very spookypatagonia hiking budget0 time. We heard all about the banshee, a ghostly old woman who sat on a gate pier, keening and combing her long grey hair. People told scary ghost stories and we ate colcannon and barmbrack. It was all about fortune telling and divination. A favourite game was to arrange five saucers on the table, put some clay in one, water in another, a wedding ring in another, a rag in the fourth and a coin in the fifth. One after another we were blindfolded, and the plates were switched about before we reached out tentatively, to inevitable giggles the water meant that you were going on a journey , the coin meant untold riches were coming your way, the rag signified hard times ahead. The soil was also bad news, it meant you d be six feet under before long, but the ring meant that wedding bells would soon ring, even if you were only six!
The contents of the barmbrack also held similar clues to one s fortunes good or otherwise. Almost every culture marks Halloween, the Day of the Dead or All Souls Day. In Mexico many visit graveyards and bring the favourite food of their loved ones to picnic and reminisce on the graves.patagonia hiking budget3 Increasingly Halloween is about witches and pumpkins in the American tradition. Shops and farmers market stalls are piled high with pumpkins. Kids have pumpkin carving parties and I ve even seen a spectacular totem pole made from a variety of pumpkins and squash at an organic farm in the UK.
You can always lure the little witches and goblins into the kitchen to cook. They love to make spooky sounding soup like Dragons blood (aka beetroot soup) or spicy bones (spare ribspatagonia hiking guide) can keep them nibbling. Spooky Meringue Pucs are also a great favourite.
Buy a couple of pumpkins and you ll have several hours of peace, but make sure to save the pulp to make a pumpkin soup.
This is a more modern version ofpatagonia employee purchase website barmbrack, now commonly called a tepatagonia hiking budgeta brack because the dried fruit is soaked in tea overnight to plump it up. Evpatagonia r4 wetsuit review too warmeryone in Ireland loves a barmbrack, perhaps because it brings back lots of memories of excitement and games at Halloween. When the barmbrack was cut, everyone waited in anticipation to see what they d find in their slice a stick, a pea, a ring and what it meant for their future. Now they re available in every Irish bakery, but here s a great recipe you can use to make one at home. It keeps in a tin for up to a week. Even though it is a very rich bread, in Ireland it is traditionally served sliced and buttered.
Yields about 12 slices (eat the crusts, too!)
450g (1lb) loaf tin 12.5 x 20cm (5 x 8in) OR 3 small loaf tins 15 x 7.5cm (6 x 3in)
Ring, stick, pea, and a piece of cloth, all wrapped in greaseproof paper
Put the dried fruit and cherries into a bowl. Cover with hot tea and leave to plump up overnight.
Next day, line the loaf tin with silicone paper.
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.
Add the whisked egg, soft brown sugar, flour and mixed spice to the fruit and tea mixture. Stir well. Add the ring, stick, pea and piece of cloth, tucking them in well and ensuring they are hidden by the dough. Cook in preheated oven for about 1 1patagonia discount code crate/2hourpatagonia discount code carterss or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave to cool on patagonia discount code garmina wire rack. Keeps very well in an airtight tin.
Spooky Shepherd s Pie with Vampire Butter
Vampires are scared of garlic!
Serves 6
1 oz (25g) butter
2 3 cloves garlic, crushed
Cream the butter, stir in the parsley and a few drops of lemon juice at a time. Add the crushed garlic. Roll into butter pats or form into a roll and wrap in greaseproof paper or tinfoil, screwing each end so that it looks like a cracker. Refrigerate to harden.
Melt the butter, add the onion, and cover with a round of greased paper and cook over a slow heat for 5 minutes. Add the flour and cook until brown. Add the stock, bring to the boil, skim. Add the tomato puree, Worcestershire Sauce, chopped parsley, thyme leaves, salt and pepper and simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the meat to the sauce and bring to the boil. Put in a pie dish. Cover with the mashed potatoes and score with a fork and form into a spooky shape using a couple of peas for eyes andpatagonia everlong review 60pn6500 chives for a screaming open mouth. Reheat in a moderate oven 180C/350F/regulo 4 for about 30 minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve with garlic butter.
Finely chopped chives
Wash the beetroot carefully under a cold tap. Don t scrub, simply rub off the clay with your fingers. You won t want to damage the skin or cut off the top or tails because it will bleed in the cookpatagonia hiking budget1ing. Put the beetroot into cold water, and simmer covered for anything from 20 minutes to 2 hours depending on the size and age.
Meanwhile, chop the onionpatagonia guide jacket 2 magazines, sweat carefully and gently in the butter until they are cooked. The beetroot are cooked when the skins will rub off easily.
Chop the beetroot and add to the onions. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Put into a liquidiser with the hot chicken stock. Liquidise until quite smooth. Reheat, add some creamy milk, taste and adjust the seasoning; it may be necessary to add a little more stock or creamy milk. Serve garnished with little swirls of sour cream and a sprinkling of finely chopped chives. Watchpoint: careful not to damage the beetroot during preparation or they will bleed.
Ask the butcher to cut the ribs across horizontally into two strips. Divide each piece into indivpatagonia map driving directionsidual short ribs.
