drink your dessert … Guinness Crème Anglaise

I don’t drink much Guinness these days, which is a shame, but I have a deep, fond love for the stuff. It goes back to my college days when, tired of watered down $2 pitchers of Coors Light, my friends and I would save our pennies and splurge once in a while on Guinness pints or Black & Tan’s at our local Irish Pub. We’d eat bowls and bowls of free pretzels, play really bad games of darts and coerce Colin the bartender to do handstand push-ups on the bar. I loved that place far more than the cheaper pitcher joint packed with the pretty people. Quirky neighborhood joints with interesting clientele have always been more my thing.

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boozing up your afternoon … Irish Whiskey Cake

It’s that time of the year again.  The time when Chicago dyes its river bright green and the drunks come out to play by the droves.  When everyone is suddenly Irish and people think a green tutu is acceptable day wear.  It’s the time I develop insatiable cravings for corned beef, pints of Guinness and pretty much anything soaked in whiskey.  Which is why I’ve been baking Whiskey Cakes like a maniac.

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split personalities … Soda Bread Tarte Tatin

I learned long ago to never be 100% set in my ideas because you never know what is going to change them. I have great love and respect for the culinary classics but I have seen so many successful riffs off those ideals that I’ve accepted not to rule anything out. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t but it’s always an interesting journey. Failures sometimes lead to the best success stories. If you routinely hit something out of the part on the first try, well then you’re probably not trying hard enough.

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celebrating St. Pat’s proper …. Guinness Stout Floats

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! I’ve always gotten a kick out of this one. In grade school you had to wear green or get pinched.  I’m not sure where that tradition came from but you can be sure I was always wearing green.  Later, it was cheap green beer and quite a lot of it. Could there be anything more disgusting? Later on, as our income levels rose ever so slightly it was beautiful foamy pints of Guinness.  Ah, there is nothing better.  If lucky, the barman would form a clover in the creamy head on top.  To this day, I’m tickled when this happens. A properly poured pint of Guinness is a lovely thing and certainly cause for celebration.

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