St Patricks Day Desert

St Patricks Day Desert - Growing up Irish, I was always surrounded by great Irish food – appetizers, meals, breads, and of course, desserts. During college, I was fortunate to work my way through school preparing deserts as an assistant chef and then full chef at a 5 star restaurant.

Here are some of the best St Patricks Day desert recipes handed down through generations of Irish relatives (on both sides of my family) and ones I’ve picked up along the way.

Dad’s Bread Pudding

This is my father’s St Patricks Day desert recipe for Bread Pudding. It’s still my favorite. Here’s his recipe:

• 3 cups bread crumbs (Dad used day-old or stale bread)

• 1 cup raisons (soaked in water or add 2 tablespoons brandy)

• ¼ pound of butter (melted)

• 1¼ cup brown sugar or 1 cup of brown sugar and ¼ cup of syrup

• 1 cup of milk

• teaspoon nutmeg

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon allspice

Mix butter, sugar and spices together in a pot, and slowly add bread crumbs and raisons. Then add milk, stirring slowly over low heat until it steams.

Sauce:

• Juice of 1 lemon

• 1/8 lb of butter

• 1 cup white sugar

• Boil for 10 minutes and pour over desert

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Barm Brack This is a traditional Irish fruit cake. The postman always got one for the holidays. No list of St Patricks Day desert recipes would be complete without fruit cake.

• 1 ½ cups brewed black tea, cold

• 1 cup brown sugar

• ½ teaspoon nutmeg

• 1 1/4 cups golden raisins

• 1/4 cup chopped candied citron

• 1 1/4 cups self-rising flour (sifted)

• 1 egg, beaten

Place the tea, sugar, raisins and peel into a bowl, cover and leave to soak overnight. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an 8 inch round pan. Put the flour into the fruit mixture, add the egg and nutmeg and mix well. Pour batter into the cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center of fruit cake comes out clean. Remove from pan, and let cool after baking

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Andy’s Cheese Cake This is one of the best cheese cakes I have ever tasted.

• 8 oz cream cheese

• 2 eggs blended

• 2 lemon peels

• 32 oz cottage cheese

• 1 ½ cup sugar

• 16 oz sour cream

Blend together cream cheese, eggs, and lemon peels. Mix in a separate bowl cottage cheese and 1 cup of sugar. Mix both together and cook for 45 minutes at 375 degrees. Mix sour cream and ½ cup of sugar. Pour on top and bake for an additional 8 minutes.

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IRISH COFFEE MOUSSE This St Patricks Day Desert recipe for Coffee Mousse is a traditional favorite.

• 1 cup coffee

• 6 eggs

• 3/4 cup sugar or honey

• 1/4 cup Irish whiskey

• 2 pkgs. gelatin (unflavored)

• 1 ¼ cup whipping cream

• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

• 2 tablespoon slivered almonds or walnuts

Blend coffee, water, vanilla, and 6 beaten egg yolks. Add ¾ cup sugar and ¼ cup Irish whiskey. Add gelatin evenly over mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until gelatin is completely dissolved. Cover and refrigerate until mixture clumps when dropped from a spoon. In another bowl, beat egg whites at high speed until peaks form. In a large bowl beat 1 cup heavy cream at medium speed until stiff peaks form. Reserve ¼ cup heavy cream for garnish. Fold egg whites into whipped cream and blend well. Fold into coffee mixture. Pour the mousse into serving glasses. Beat ¼ cup of cream. When ready to serve, top with whipped cream and nuts.

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Galway Fruit Compote

My father grew up in Galway Co. and so here’s another favorite of our families’ St Patricks Day desert recipes:

• 5 cups fresh fruit – strawberries, raspberries, cantaloupe, apples, pineapple, etc

• 3 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice

• ¼ cup Irish Mist Liqueur

• ½ teaspoon powered sugar

Place fruit in a glass serving dish. Combine Irish Mist with lemon juice and drizzle over the fruit. Sprinkle powdered sugar on top. Stir gently and refrigerate.