Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Nat goes a little wild with the Irish + more bike time

It was St. Patrick's Day today and I went a little crazy on the green stuff. :)
My great, great grandfather was Irish - how cool is that?! So we decided to celebrate!
Actually it started yesterday (Monday) afternoon with a little after school crafting...
BTW, I love how SBG is growing so fast and such a silly, happy girl! Josh and Megan are so in love with her (and the feeling is mutual)...
And the girls were have a fun time putting multiple headbands in their hair!!





I love Michael's craft store!! I dashed in there this weekend and grabbed some fun supplies - a big pack of foam shamrock cut outs, stickers, green felt, shamrock paper straws, St. Patrick's Day ribbon and a set of green chargers. I walked out of there spending less than $20! Score!! :)


So the craft was super simple ----> take the shamrock cutouts and trace them on the green felt. Then cut the shamrocks out of the green felt. After that, decorate them with stickers! Viola! We have our decorations for the dinner table!





We had a lot of fun decorating the table for our traditional Irish dinner (complete with Irish music! Pandora had a great selection...)




Are you wondering about the green drinks? You are going to love the smoothie that I made!

Leprechaun Green Smoothie

Ingredients:

~ 4 cups organic kale
~ 1 cup frozen mango
~ 1 banana
~ 3 oranges (peeled)
~ 4 cups water

Blend and serve with shamrock paper straws! So good and the kiddos LOVED it!!





The book on the table is so wonderful for children! It is all about the history of Ireland. I love this series of travel books for kids. They have so many - New York, London, Paris, Rome etc. Your kiddos will love them or they make a great gift!

I made a traditional Irish dinner! Corned Beef, cabbage, carrots and red potatoes! The corned beef we got from Bristol Farms  - yay for no cooking! The cabbage, carrots and potatoes we steamed at home...






And then we had these yummy (and pretty!) cookies for dessert. I did NOT make them :)





Earlier in the day, I had some quiet time and made a delicious Irish soda bread that the kiddos could eat when Josh and Megan came home from school...
Let me share the recipe that I adapted! I used honey instead of white sugar. I try not to use white sugar when baking (or at all for that matter!)..

First I gathered the ingredients (I forgot to add the baking powder to the picture - oops!!)





In a large bowl, add flour, honey, butter, baking soda and salt...




With two knives, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles a crumbly mixture...





Next, stir in the currants and buttermilk...






Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for about 1-2 minutes or until smooth...




Place dough in a lightly greased iron skillet (or cookie sheet)...





Bake for 30-35 minutes and serve!




Irish Soda Bread
Author: Natrunsfar (adapted from Better Crocker)

Ingredients:

3 tablespoon butter, softened
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup currants
3/4 cup buttermilk

Directions:

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease skillet or cookie sheet
  • Cut butter into flour, honey, baking soda, baking powder, salt mixture in a large bowl  using two knives until mixture resembles fine crumbs.
  • Stir in currants and buttermilk, just until dough leaves the side of the bowl.
  • Knead dough on a lightly floured surface for 1 to 2 minutes.
  • Place on skillet or cookie sheet. Cut an X shape about 1/2 inch deep through the dough with a floured knife.
Bake 30-35 minutes until golden brown.






I had time for a spot of tea with my fresh bread...


And... I had a good workout this evening! 70 minutes on the bike!



I would like to leave you with an Irish blessing...




I hope you had a terrific Tuesday!!

Happiness Is Running Life!

xo,
Natalie

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