Washington DC

• Fado Irish Pub - 808 7th Street NW
• Duffy’s Irish Pub – 2106 Vermont Ave NW
• James Hoban’s Irish Bar – 1 Dupont Circle NW
• Murphy’s of DC – 2609 24th St. NW
• Dubliner – 4 F St. NW
• Kelly’s Irish Times - 14 F St. NW
• Irish Channel – 500 H St. NW

Alexandria, VA

• Murphy’s Irish Pub – 713 King St, Alexandria, VA 22314
• Pat Troy’s Irish Pub – 111 N. Pitt St, Alexandria, VA 22314
• O’Connell’s Irish Pub – 112 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22314
• O’ Shaughnessy’s Pub – 1322 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22314

Arlington, Virginia

• Sine’ Irish Pub – 1301 S. Joyce St, Arlington, VA 22202
• RiRa Irish Pub – 2915 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, VA 22201
• O’Sullivan’s Irish Pub – 3207 Washington Blvd., Arlington, VA 22201
• Ireland’s Four Courts – 2051 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA 22201
• Kitty O’Shea’s Irish Pub – 2403 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA 22201

I know it is not complete so if you know of a pub that I missed let me know.  I will add it to the list.

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The sorbet is sweet and delicious.  Easily the best thing that I have made in the ice cream machine.

Strawberry Sorbet – (from Paula Deen)

• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups water
• 4 pints strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup

Place a medium sauce pan over medium/high heat and add the sugar and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat and allow the mixture to simmer, without stirring, until the sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes.  Set aside to cool completely.

Clean the strawberries and take off their stems.

Place the strawberries and lime juice into a food processor and puree. Press the strawberry puree through a strainer to remove the seeds.

When the sugar syrup has cooled completely add it to the strawberry puree. Add the corn syrup and stir well. Place the strawberry mixture in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to let it cool to around 40 degrees.

Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Sorbet is particularly soft after churning but firms up after freezing.

If you do not have an ice cream machine, pour the mixture into a 13×9 dish and place in the freezer.  Stir every 30 minutes until it is completely frozen.  About 4 hours.

This was one of the best sorbet’s that I have ever had.  It had a great texture, well balanced, and extremely tasty.

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This shot is the ultimate marriage between beer and liquor.

Irish Car Bomb

• 8 oz Guinness Irish Stout
• 1 oz Jameson Irish Whiskey
• 1/2 oz Bailey’s Irish Cream

Pour 8oz (1/2 can) of Guinness Irish Stout into a pint glass. Fill a shot glass 3/4 full of Jameson Irish Whiskey, then top with Bailey’s Irish Cream.

Drop the shot into the beer and chug.

Make sure to chug or else the mixture starts to coagulate.  Not a good thing.  However, when made correctly this shot is creamy and delicious.

Above is the last thing you see before you let loose and party.

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I shaved some slices of Parmesan onto the potatoes for this shot.  It is unnecessary, but added yet another punch of cheese flavor to the dish.

Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

• 2 pounds russet potatoes
• 1 tbs kosher salt
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 tbs butter
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
  
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• salt and pepper for seasoning

Peel and dice the potatoes into uniform sized chunks.  Try to get the potatoes to even sizes so that they all cook in the same amount of time. Place the potatoes into a large sauce pan.  Add the salt and cover the potatoes with water.  Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes fall apart.  This time depends on the size of the potato chunks and your altitude so I am not about to estimate how long it will take.  You will know that the potatoes are done, when you can touch them with a fork and they fall apart.

In a small/medium saucepan add the cream, butter and garlic.  I like to finely grate the garlic into the pan.  I find that the garlic is more evenly distributed throughout the potatoes when when you grate it.  If you don’t have a grater, use a garlic press or finely dice the garlic.  Place the pan over medium low heat until the potatoes are ready.

When the potatoes fall apart, remove them from the heat and drain the water.  Mash the potatoes a bit with a masher and then add the cream.  Continue to mash until you get the consistency that you like for your potatoes.

Next add the Parmesan cheese and mix it into the potatoes.

Taste the potatoes and adjust the seasonings, they may not need anything as the Parmesan cheese tends to be a little salty. In theory every part of the meal should be seasoned to perfection.  But when you simmer gravy, the water evaporates and the flavor intensifies.  So I like to always warn people to remember that the potatoes will be served with a pat of salted butter or covered in gravy that is usually seasoned pretty heavily.  I tend to leave the potatoes needing a little salt but then again this all depends on how they are served.  You do not want everything to come together and taste like a salt lick.

Serve the potatoes with gravy or butter and enjoy!!

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Once container of the jam lasts about 3 weeks in the refrigerator, but in reality it is eaten in a couple of days.

Strawberry Freezer Jam – (from Sure Jell)

• 1lb Strawberries (2 quarts)
• 4 cups sugar
• 1 box pectin (1.75 oz box)
  
• 6 – 1 cup plastic containers with tight fitting lids – (Ball makes perfect 1 cup freezer jars with screw on lids.)
  

The first step is to wash the plastic containers to make sure that they are clean.

Wash the strawberries and remove the stems.

Place the strawberries in a blender or food processor and crush the fruit.  My family enjoys smooth jam so we puree the strawberries.  If you like the jam chunky, lightly crush the strawberries in the food processor.

After crushing the strawberries, measure them to get exactly 2 cups of crushed strawberries.  1 lb should be perfect, but each batch of strawberries is slightly different.  Place the crushed strawberries into a bowl.

Add the 4 cups of sugar to the 2 cups of strawberries and stir.  Let the strawberries sit for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the strawberries are sitting, in a sauce pan add 1 box of pectin to 3/4 cup of water.  Constantly stirring, bring the pectin mixture to a boil.  When it reaches a boil, start the timer for one minute.  Make sure to constantly stir the mixture.  When the minute is up, remove the mixture from the heat.

Add the pectin mixture to the bowl of strawberries.  Stir the mixture for 3-4 minutes or until all of the sugar is dissolved.  If you see grains of sugar, continue to stir.

When all of the sugar is dissolved, pour the mixture into the six containers.  Make sure to leave a half inch gap at the top to allow for expansion.  I find that using a funnel helps to fill the jars without getting the Jam all over the place.  Once the jam is evenly distributed, add the lids to the containers.  Let the jam sit at room temperature for 24 hours so that it sets.  Then place the jam in the refrigerator for 3 weeks or in the freezer for up to a year.

You can refrigerate opened jars of jam for up to three weeks.

I would like to thank my parents for helping me out with this one.  Thanks Mom and Dad.

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Alexandria’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade – Saturday March 6th

The parade starts off at 10:00 with the classic car show.  Followed by the fun dog show in Market Square at 10:30.  The St. Pats Parade goes into full swing at 12:30 with the first float leaving the staging area.  The parade goes down King Street from West St. to Fairfax St.   There will be bands, Irish dancers and floats.  See you there!

Kids in the Kitchen – Saturday March 6th

Kids in the Kitchen is a recipe for a fun-filled day – it is an interactive health and fitness fair all about healthy foods, healthy lives, and exercise!  Bring the kids in your life to take part in nutrition games, cooking demonstrations, and fitness activities.  Special guests for this year’s Kids in the Kitchen include Chef “Rock” Harper, winner of Fox Television’s 2007 Hell’s Kitchen; Andre Carter of the Washington Redskins; and celebrity personal trainer Mark Jenkins!  There will also be certified nutritionists, food allergy experts, and other professionals on hand to answer questions and host demonstrations on how to prepare healthy, nutritious meals and snacks.

Saturday, March 6, 2010, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the YMCA National Capital (1711 Rhode Island Avenue, NW)!

Chocolate Lovers Festival – March 6-7

This is an annual festival that is usually in February, but due to inclement weather has been postponed to this weekend.   Among the events planned each year are the Taste of Chocolate, featuring chocolate vendors selling their wares; the Chocolate Challenge, an arts extravaganza where the medium is chocolate; the Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast featuring chocolate chip pancakes; historic re-enactments; children’s activities; a craft show at Fire Station 3 sponsored by the Auxiliary to the Fairfax Volunteer Fire Department; open houses at historic buildings; and much more.  Located in Downtown Old Town Fairfax this is a go to festival.  Who doesn’t love chocolate.

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The cauliflower got a really nice color and the tips of the florets caramelized nicely to give a great flavor.

Roasted Cauliflower

• 1 cauliflower head
  
• 4-5 cloves of garlic, rough chop
• 1 tbs lemon juice
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Wash the cauliflower and then cut it into bite-sized florets.  Place the bit-sized florets into a 13×9 baking dish.

Sprinkle the garlic, lemon juice, paprika, salt and pepper over the cauliflower.  Drizzle the olive oil over the top of the florets and then toss to fully coat the cauliflower.

When the oven is fully heated place the pan in the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes.  Cook until the tips of the cauliflower start to brown.  When you see the tips starting to brown test the cauliflower with a knife or fork for doneness.  The last thing you want is a nice looking cauliflower that it crunchy.  Don’t worry, if the cauliflower are not done but are starting to brown too much, cover with aluminum foil and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.  The aluminum foil with help keep the color with out over browning and yet still allow the cauliflower to cook.

When the cauliflower is fully cooked remove it from the oven and then cover with with the shredded Parmesan cheese.  Serve family style with your favorite main dish.

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At only $999.00 per pound they are a steal.

The store is the size of a Walmart but is only a grocery store. Along with the greatest selection of food that I have ever seen, the store is themed like a Las Vegas casino.  They have trains running over the dairy department and vines and trees sprouting out of the prepared foods department.  It is like Disneyland for a foodie.  So strolling through the fresh produce section I found a large bin of blood oranges.  I had to pick some up.  They looked perfectly ripe.

Thus, today’s cocktail is the blood orange martini.

Blood Orange Martini

• 2 oz vodka
• 1 oz contreau
• 1  oz simple syrup
• 4 oz freshly squeezed blood orange juice

Simple Syrup

A key ingredient to most cocktails is simple syrup. To make simple syrup place 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar in a heavy saucepan. Place over medium heat.

As you can see the sugar is opaque on the bottom of the pan

Cook until the syrup is hot and the sugar is completely dissolved.

The sugar is dissolved and the liquid is hot

Place the syrup into the fridge until it is needed. As long as it is in an airtight container and in the fridge it should be good for at least 2 weeks.

Blood Orange Martini

In a cocktail shaker, combine vodka, contreau, juice, and simple syrup with ice; shake well. Strain into a martini glasses, and garnish with orange twist.

A little side note – Blood oranges are extremely messy.  They stain everything are extremely juicy.  They got all over my prized Miller Lite t-shirt and the wall.  So be careful when juicing this little buggers.

Drink and Enjoy!!!

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This sorbet is super tasty and is made with freshly squeezed orange juice.

Orange Sherbet - (From Alton Brown)

• 7 ounces sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons finely grated orange zest
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice, approximately 2 to 3 pounds oranges
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups very cold whole milk

I like to squeeze my oranges fresh.  If you try this with store bought orange juice it can be way too sweet as some brands add a tad bit of sugar to the mix to make the orange juice more palatable.

In the bowl of a food processor combine all of the ingredients except the milk and process until the sugar is dissolved, approximately 1 minute.  This amount of liquid will be right at the maximum liquid line in your food processor.  Don’t worry if it goes over the line a little bit.  Mine totally did and my kitchen is still spotless.  (BTW- by spotless I meant no OJ on the ceiling or floor).

Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl and whisk in the milk. Cover the bowl and place in the refrigerator until the mixture reaches 40 degrees F or below, approximately 1 hour.

Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and process until it is the consistency of soft serve ice cream.  The time will vary depending on your model.  Mine took roughly 30 minutes.

You may serve now or transfer to a lidded container and place in freezer until firm, approximately 3 hours.

I would suggest letting the sherbet freeze for a bit as it melts really quickly if you eat it right away.  Sounds weird, but it totally tastes different (in a good way) when it is completely frozen.

This was some of the best orange sherbet that I have ever had.   The zest and freshly squeezed juice gave the sherbet a flavor that could not be compared to anything I have had before.  It was so fresh and tasty.  The only problem is that it is completely gone now.  Dana and I ate it all.  Well, mostly I ate it all.  I let her have a taste though.   You have to try it.

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Slow cookers can be set to low to cook all day or set to high to cook in about 4 hours.  Still slow, but it allows you to prep dinner at lunch.  That way you don’t have to wake up early.

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

• 3-4lb beef roast – I used a round roast
  
• salt and pepper
• 2 tbs vegetable oil
• 3 carrots
• 3 celery
• 1 cup pearl onions
• 2 stalks thyme
• 2 stalks rosemary
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 cup red wine
• 3 cloves garlic

Salt and Pepper the roast.  Heat 2tbs of oil in a large skillet over medium/high heat.  When heated, place the roast in the pan and brown on all sides.

Cut the carrots and celery to about 1 inch lengths and place in the bottom of the slow cooker.  Next add 1 cup of pearl onions to the bottom.  I prefer frozen ones as they are already peeled.  Peeling pearl onions really sucks.

Next place the browned roast on top of the vegetables in the slow cooker.  The veggies will make a nice roasting rack for the meat.

Cover the roast with the beef broth and wine.  Place the thyme, garlic and rosemary around the roast.

Cook on low for 8-9 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.

Remove the meat from the slow cooker and let it rest.

Strain the liquid from the slow cooker into a sauce pan.  Make a slurry out of the flour and milk.  Add the slurry to the sauce pan. Bring to a boil and then reduce and let simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve the roast and vegetables with the pan gravy.

This is a super easy and delicious meal.

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