May The Luck of a Leprechaun’s Touch Be Yours This coming St. Patrick’s Day on Friday, March 17th.
Looking for a RAINBOW? Find a parade; that is where the magic is to be had. The Pot of Gold is there, just behind a Leprechaun’s smiling face and waving hand. Perhaps the Leprechaun’s lure of old is to be found in the twinkle of a wisened one’s eye, the smile of a child, and a loving gaze.
St. Patrick’s Day has many myths surrounding its origins. It doesn’t matter that it was so long ago that no one really knows all of the stories for a fact. It only matters that we can all be Irish on St. Patty’s Day and have an excellent excuse for some fun.
Here is the prevailing wisdom about St. Patrick’s Day origins.
The main reason for St. Patrick’s Day is that it is a Feast Day to commemorate Saint Patrick, who brought Christianity to Ireland.
St. Patrick is said to have driven snakes out of Ireland. This is most likely metaphorical in that Ireland has no history of having snakes on its shores. To this day, no fossil remains have been discovered. St. Patrick is often painted with his foot on a snake.
The Irish people were plagued by famine at different times, so a feast day is a welcome day indeed! So many Irish left Ireland for the new world in North America in search of a new life that when they arrived, tired, worn out, and dirty from the long sea voyage, they were often looked down upon. However, the Irish immigrants were enterprising and found ways to survive and thrive. In fact, there are probably more of Irish descent outside of Ireland now than inside. Ireland has become one of the most affluent places in Europe.
St. Patrick’s Day is when most of the Faeries and Leprechauns come out to play. They love to tease us with the lure of a pot of gold at the end of every rainbow. No matter how far you travel to find the end of a rainbow, it will vanish before you get there, and so will any supposed pot of gold. The Leprechaun’s lessons here are that this pot of gold belongs in the realm of the intrinsic. We find the gold when appreciating the little blessings we sometimes pass by in our everyday lives.
You may have Irish blood if you have a fondness for…
PARTIES- Woven Baskets – Irish Linens – Spinning, Weaving, and Sewing – Gardening and the Gathering of Food – Fishing – Woodworking – St. Patrick’s Day Tableware and Ceramics and, of course, CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE!
Corned Beef and Cabbage with Green Beer are often served on St. Patrick’s Day. Boiled Beef was initially boiled three times as there was so much salt used in the brine so it would keep during long sea voyages.
Here is a vintage recipe for Irish Stew.
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Old Irish Pot Liquor Stew – CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE
- Make the portions by how many you are serving. Get the victuals from storage in the cellar. Start in the morning, and make a good fire. Mix up a batch of biscuits and set them ready to bake just before the Stew is ready. Leave out the raisins next time; Pa says he likes them plain.
- Take a fair size of beef out of the brine, and rinse. Set in a pot of cold water. Depending on your brine, boil it up three times and discard the water if too salty. Simmer for three hours or until soft.
- Wash and prepare vegetables.
- One Irish potato for each person, plus two extra for unexpected guests or Pa, who usually likes more.
- 5 or 6 healthy sized Carrots
- 3 parsnips
- 1 small turnip – use only half and cut in chunks. Pa doesn’t like too much turnip.
- 3 onions
- Seasoning, garlic, peppercorns, and a bay leaf.
- 1 big head of green cabbage cut into large pieces. Core cut out.
- Make sure to put Potatoes in an hour before the beef is to be done, with onions and carrots. Add the Cabbage at the end when the potatoes are almost ready, so it doesn’t get soggy.
- Call the family to the table. Set up the bowls for the Pot Liquor. Remove beef and vegetables from the pot and place them on the big platter in the middle of the table. Serve a little of homemade horseradish and mustard on the side for those who want it. Slice the beef against the grain. When everyone is set and ready and grace has been said, ladle out the Pot Liquor into each person’s bowl and set it back on the stove to keep hot. Pass the platter. Dip biscuits in the Pot Liquor. Make sure there is a good mug of Stout for Pa.
- Remember to copy this recipe for my daughter Jane so she can make this after she is married.
