“There are only two kinds of people in the world,” the Irish saying goes. “The Irish and those who wish they were.” But for 24 hours on a mid-March day, the second half of that saying is blarney! On St. Patrick’s Day, we’re all Irish.

Ever wonder how eating corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick’s Day became a tradition? While there is no dispute that cabbage and potatoes are staples of the Irish diet, it’s been said the vegetables were eaten with Irish bacon, not beef. But apparently Irish immigrants in America couldn’t afford bacon and switched to the cheaper corned-beef brisket, readily available at kosher delis. Others don’t accept this idea, saying the Irish settled in U.S. cities full of German and Polish butchers. Salt-brined beef was a major Irish export for hundreds of years, as well.
Either way, after the bagpipes are heard and parades are watched, on this St. Patrick’s Day millions of people will dress in green, raise a pint and sit down to what they consider the quintessential traditional Irish meal, corned beef and cabbage. Enjoy this recipe!

Corned Beef & Cabbage with Herb Sesame Mustard

10 cups water
1 1/2 cups kosher salt
1 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbsp TSTE Yellow Mustard
3 Tbsp TSTE Pickling Spice
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 fresh beef brisket, 7 to 9 pounds
3 ribs celery, cut in 2-inch pieces
2 large onions, cut in wedges
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 medium red potatoes, halved
5 carrots, cut into thirds
2 small rutabagas or 1 medium rutabaga, cut in 2-inch chunks
1 head of cabbage, cut in 6 or 8 wedges

Combine water, salt, sugar, mustard, Pickling Spice, and garlic in an 8-quart nonreactive stock pot. Boil. Remove from heat and set aside. When cooled, trim excess fat from corned beef and put into the liquid.  You may need to transfer liquids and corned beef to a larger container or bowl (be sure it is nonreactive).  Add cold water to cover beef, if necessary. Use a heavy pottery bowl to weigh corned beef down so it stays submerged in water. Cover pan and refrigerate for 5-7 days. Take out once a day to stir lightly & turn beef as needed.  On the 6th or 7th day, remove beef from brine and rinse well with cold water. Place in a large (8-quart or larger) pot. Cover with cold water and add celery, onions, and 2 cloves of minced garlic. Bring to boil; skim off any residue which develops on surface. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover & simmer for 2 1/2 hours.

Uncover pot and add potatoes, carrots, rutabaga or turnip, and cabbage. An 8-quart pot should be large enough, but if you don’t have room for all of the vegetables, bring another pot of water to a boil, add 1 TBSP salt, and add cabbage or other vegetables which didn’t fit.

Cover the large pot and cook until meat and vegetables are tender, about 1 hour longer. If cooking vegetables in another pot, cook just until tender and keep warm.
Herb Sesame Mustard:
1 cup prepared mustard
2 Tablespoons TSTE Herb Sesame Blend (or to taste)

Combine yellow mustard and Herb Sesame Blend, then chill.  Serve as an accompaniment to corned beef dinner or sandwiches.

Recipe from Jeffrey & Bryan from TSTE Winter Park.

When it comes to St. Patrick’s Day my thoughts turn immediately to Guinness.  I acquired my taste for a good strong stout many years ago when I was lucky enough to travel through England, Scotland, and of course, Ireland.  I can’t resist adding a bottle or two to my winter braises and stews, especially when my pot is filled with sweet root vegetables.  There’s something magical about the combination of the earthy sweetness and the bold bitter stout.  But with all the heavy dishes we roll out in celebration of the Irish this week, I like to add a little quick bread into the mix.  These breads are easy and fast, of course, but it’s the combination of moist cakey sweetness with the strong stout body and flavor that make these breads downright irresistable.

If you don’t have Guinness on hand, you can substitute a good hearty lager (equal measure with the Guinness) with 2 or 3 tablespoons of TSTE Beer Powder to give it some extra body and boost.  Make these now and keep in the refrigerator for the weekend.  Or, just freeze and save them for whenever you’re feeling in need of a bit of Irish luck!

Recipe:  Guinness & Banana and Chocolate Quick Bread
Makes 2 large loaves or 1 loaf and 6 muffins

The combination of flavors and taste here is wonderful.  Rich, moist bread without being overly sweet, and the Guinness and chocolate are the perfect counterpoint.

Ingredients
1 ½ cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoons Chinese 5 Spice
½ cup semi-sweet morsels
4 medium-size firm but ripe bananas, peeled and broken into chunks
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup Guinness Stout

Optional Streusel Topping
½ cup flour
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, cut into pieces and chilled
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
¾ cup chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons Dark Chocolate Sugar (optional)
1 teaspoon Espresso Sugar (optional)

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350° F.  Spray two loaf pans or one loaf pan and 6 muffin tins with non-stick spray.  Set aside.

Optional: Prepare the Streusel Topping.  Place the flour, butter and brown sugar into the bowl of a mini food processor and process until the mixture looks like a fine meal.  Turn out into a bowl, add the walnuts and sugars (if using), and then blend by rubbing the mixture together between your fingers. Repeat until the mixture is combined into pebble size nuggets.  Keep chilled in the refrigerator until ready to use.

In a large bowl use a whisk to thoroughly combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and Chinese 5 Spice.  Set aside.

Place the bananas in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade and pulse several times to break the bananas up.  Process for about 10 seconds until the bananas are pureed.  Add the brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, and oil and process until thick and smooth.

Turn the banana mixture out into the flour mixture and add the Guinness. Using a whisk, blend everything together.  Once the batter starts to form, switch to a large spoon or spatula and mix until the ingredients are just combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared pans.  Sprinkle the chocolate morsels over the top of the batter and with your spatula gently nudge below the surface of the batter. As the bread bakes the morsels will continue to sink and spread through the bread.  Remove the streusel topping from the refrigerator (if using) and sprinkle generously on the top of the batter.  Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let cool on rack in pan for about 15 minutes.  Turn out and let cool completely.

Recipe:  Bourbon Stout Sweet Potato Quick Bread
Makes 1 loaf or 4 mini-loaves

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom seed
½ cup sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons milk
¾ cup Guinness Stout
2 tablespoons bourbon
1 cup cooked and mashed sweet potatoes

Preparation
Preheat oven to 325° F.  Spray a loaf pan or 4 mini-loaf pans with non-stick spray.  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, spices and sugar.  Set aside

In another mixing bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and mix until thick and well-blended.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and using a large spatula mix together until just combined.  The batter will be thick.  Pour (or spoon) the batter into the prepared pan(s).  Bake for 45 to 50 minutes until the top is cracked and the edges are golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean.  Remove from oven and cool on rack in pan for about 15 minutes; remove from the pan and let cool completely.

Who doesn’t love entertaining ideas that are easy to execute, but appear to be difficult?  When it comes to entertaining, at least in my Tasting Room, that’s our mantra.  Super easy, super delicious, but with  that “wow” factor that makes most people think, ‘how’d they do that?’  When you start with phyllo dough you almost always get that “wow” factor.  It has a reputation for being difficult to work with, when actually it’s quite easy to master.  As for filling phyllo?  A little roll and a rub makes all the difference in the world.

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When I was approached by The Spice and Tea Exchange about creating a recipe using one of their products, I was ecstatic. Creating recipes is always a fun challenge.

I was lucky enough to receive two – 1 ounce packs of their Tropical Cocoa Mix. I must say, it is wonderful. The smell alone was intoxicating. Hints of coconut and vanilla were prominent, and it had a subtle fruity taste. It would taste wonderful as a simple mug of hot cocoa, or whisked into a cup of coffee for a morning pick me up.

But being a baker, I wanted to work this interesting ingredient into a dessert.

After a bit of brainstorming and recipe research I came up with a chocolate cupcake to showcase the uniqueness of of the cocoa mix, while still preserving the deep chocolate flavor. To accentuate the tropical flavors I topped the cupcakes with a coconut swiss meringue buttercream. But, a regular coconut or vanilla buttercream would be just as fabulous.

This cupcake will satisfy a chocolate craving and transport you to paradise all in one bite.

What are you waiting for? Get your own tropical cocoa mix today!

Tropical Cocoa Cupcakes

Yields 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1 ounce dark chocolate
• 1/4 cup Tropical Cocoa Mix
• 1/3 cup hot coffee (I used french vanilla)
• 2 tbsp vanilla greek yogurt*
• 5 ounces (1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp) all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 5 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup, tightly packed, light brown sugar
• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
• 1/2 tsp coconut extract

*No greek yogurt? Feel free to substitute whole milk, sour cream, or regular yogurt in its place.

To Make the Cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake papers.
2. Place dark chocolate and cocoa in a bowl. Pour the hot coffee over the 2 ingredients and whisk it all together until very smooth. Add the yogurt and mix until smooth again.
3. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour baking soda and salt. Set aside.
4. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or using a hand mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar on medium for 2-3 minutes or fluffy. Scrape down the bowl. Add the eggs and coconut extract, mixing until just barely incorporated. Scrape down the bowl again.
5. Add the flour and chocolate mixture in 5 steps, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Carefully mix in each addition for 10 – 15 seconds. You do NOT want to over mix your batter!
6. Fill each cupcake liner 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the cupcakes pass the toothpick test. Cool completely before frosting.

Coconut Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Swiss meringue buttercream may be intimidating at first. But don’t worry, you can do it! Have patience, and pay close attention to your egg whites. This recipe makes enough to lightly frost the 12 cupcakes, double it if you like a heavily frosted cupcake, or plan on using this for a layer cake.

Ingredients:

•    1/2 cup sugar
•    2 large egg whites
•    12 tbsp room temperature butter, cut into cubes
•    1/2 tsp coconut extract

To Make the Frosting:

1. In your stand mixer bowl (or other heat proof bowl) over a pot of simmering water, whisk together the egg whites and sugar. Note: do NOT let the bottom of the bowl touch the water, and do not let the water touch bowl! You don’t want to over cook your egg whites. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved and the egg whites mixture is hot (you will need to test this with your finger).
2. Lift up the bowl and dry it off. Using the whisk attachment whip the egg white mixture, starting on low and moving to high, until it is white, doubled in size, and has formed stiff peaks. Note: you will know it’s ready when the bowl is cool to the touch! Do not add any butter until the bowl has cooled down.
3. Switch to the paddle attachment and start slowly mixing in the butter on medium speed. Once all the butter is added mix until it forms one homogenous mixture. It may take a few minutes for it to come together, but it will eventually. Even if it looks lumpy and wrong, keep mixing! It will come together!
4. Once it looks like fluffy, white frosting; mix in the coconut extract and pipe onto the cooled cupcakes.

This post was written by Erin Meyer, author of BigFatBaker.com. You can also find her on Facebook at http://facebook.com/bigfatbaker1 and on Twitter @bigfatbaker.

Part III — Rubs

Sometimes the biggest problem in getting flavor out of our kitchen is just getting ourselves into the kitchen.  Busy schedules limit our time in grocery stores or spending more than a handful of minutes on a meal.  Our demand for flavor keeps increasing as our palates become more and more developed.  Ironically, we want food to have depth, more complexity, but we want it as simple and as fast as possible.  When you cook there are only a few ways you can get more flavor into your food, and only one way you can get more flavor out of it.  From the simplest of seasonings to the most complex sauces, here’s a handy back-pocket-kind-of-guide to help you get the most out of the time you spend preparing your food.

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Part II — Marinades

Sometimes the biggest problem in getting flavor out of our kitchen is just getting ourselves into the kitchen.  Busy schedules limit our time in grocery stores or spending more than a handful of minutes on a meal.  Our demand for flavor keeps increasing as our palates become more and more developed.  Ironically, we want food to have depth, more complexity, but we want it as simple and as fast as possible.  When you cook there are only a few ways you can get more flavor into your food, and only one way you can get more flavor out of it.  From the simplest of seasonings to the most complex sauces, here’s a handy back-pocket-kind-of-guide to help you get the most out of the time you spend preparing your food.

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Part I – Sauces

Sometimes the biggest problem in getting flavor out of our kitchen is just getting us into the kitchen.  Busy schedules limit our time in grocery stores or spending more than a handful of minutes in the kitchen.  But, ironically, our demand for flavor keeps increasing as our palates become more and more developed.  We want food to have more depth, more complexity, and we want it as simple and as fast as possible.  When you cook there are only a few ways you can get more flavor into your food, and only one way you can get more flavor out of it.  From the simplest of seasonings to the most complex sauces, here’s a handy back-pocket-kind-of-guide to help you get the most out of the time you spend on preparing your food.

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All About Roasting: A New Approach to a Classic Art
by Molly Stevens
photos by Quentin Bacon
wine pairings by Tim Gaiser

Reviewed for The Spice and Tea Exchange by Linda Avery.*

Facts: W.W. Norton, 573 pages, $35.00 (or Amazon at $19.17)
Photos: Over 100
Recipes: Over 150
Give to: Carnivores and cooks who want to know the “why?”
Stock up on:  Hard spices and sweet smoky aromatics, such as cumin seed, allspice, clove, and juniper berry; sweet and hot smoked paprika; coarse salt and butcher-cut ground pepper.
Working the Pantry: experiment with smoked salts and meat blends, especially English Roast Blend in the beef recipes.  For the lamb section try Wild Game Blend and Backwoods Hickory Rub.

Roasting is to winter what grilling is to summer.

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This is the time of year to include citrus fruits into just about every meal.  Oranges, lemons (especially Meyer lemons), limes (including those popular little Key limes), and grapefruits are plentiful and easily affordable.  But there’s so much more you can do to enjoy these fruits than just peel and eat!  The aromatic zest can be added to recipes to intensify the citrus taste, or combined with salt and used as a pre-cooking rub or a finishing salt.  The peel – once the bitter pith is removed – can be julienned and then blanched a few times and then cooked in sugar water to create a candied peel.  I use TSTE’s sugars to blend or intensify flavors.  Of course you can cut the segments free from the fruit, or “supreme” the fruit, and simply season your meals with a generous squeeze of citrus juice that remains.  Winter citrus invites us to get busy in the kitchen, and while you’re there, here are some quick ways to preserve that great citrus taste.  I’ve made these techniques – preserving and candying – simple and fast enough that you can do them while making dinner.  You’ll be happy that you did in a few months’ time when you have a bit of that sweet tart flavor on hand, and summer’s hot weather begs for a different kind of “Florida sunshine!”

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The Spice & Tea Exchange brings you this post from guest blogger & Twitter follower Jen Lane, staff writer for Food Lush:

Years ago, I dated a guy who fancied himself a cook.  His opinion of himself could not have been farther from the truth.  The first time he made me dinner, it involved over-cooked noodles topped with canned pasta sauce which had been mixed with spicy steak sauce and not heated.  He topped this masterpiece with a slice of yellow, plastic-like cheese and served it proudly.  I choked down a few bites and tried to be kind.  His next creation was green beans. He’d read something that said it was good make them with coffee, so he’d taken some instant coffee crystals and dumped them into a can of green beans, heated the whole thing in the microwave and served it alongside some rubbery chicken.

Needless to say, that relationship did not last.

Since that first disastrous experiment using coffee as an ingredient, I’ve found some better ways to use coffee grounds, espresso beans and even brewed coffee to make some delicious treats.  TSTE’s Espresso Sugar is a great addition to so many baked goods.  I like it best with chocolate, because, really, is there anything better than the combo of coffee and chocolate?  Not really.

These cookies are insanely easy to make and contain ingredients you probably have on hand at all times.  Whip them up as a treat for your family or co-workers.  The espresso sugar gives them a nice, hearty kick.

EASY CHOCOLATE COOKIES WITH ESPRESSO SUGAR

1 box chocolate cake mix

2 eggs

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

TSTE Espresso Sugar (to taste)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl (or stand mixer), combine cake mix, eggs and butter.  Mix until well-blended, about 2 minutes.   Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, scoop rounds of dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet about an inch apart.  Sprinkle tops of cookies with TSTE Espresso Sugar. Bake 8-10 minutes.   Cool for 1 minute before removing from cookie sheet. 

Jen Lane is the Production Stage Manager at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival.  She loves cooking with her husband Marcus, who would never dream of mixing instant coffee into green beans.  Their four-year-old son, Dean, has inherited the cooking gene and enjoys baking, sprinkling garnishes onto dishes and making antipasto platters.  Yes, really.  Read about more of Jen’s culinary delights at Food Lush.

True love. It’s magical — strange and wonderful at the same time.  It pulls you in and makes you want more.  Some say it feels like paradise.  To me, it actually is paradise… Grains of Paradise.  While on my honeymoon, I fell in love with these quirky little cube-ish red-brown seeds found inside pods that develop from purple and white, trumpet like flowers.  Imagine one tiny little seed that tastes like a combination of a mild black pepper, ginger, cardamom and coriander:  warm, spicy, and just enough of a bitter note to keep everything else in check.  These tiny granular seeds are finally coming into our culinary mainstream.  They’re as strange and wonderful as true love, and worth spending a little time getting to know.

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When it comes to water, boiling or freezing, there is a thing or two to know about doing it properly.  Really.  Since we’ve already tackled boiling, for Valentine’s Day we’ll tackle the finer points of freezing water.  Yes, really.  It’s not that it’s hard it’s just that there is a little technique involved if you want clear ice and that little bit of love to shine through.

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TSTE is happy to share this post from guest & Twitter follower Jennifer Matlock (@threelilpiglets):

I’m not quite sure why, but every afternoon around 3:00 I start feeling this insane urge to snack!  It’s probably leftover from school days when my mom always greeted me off the bus with some nice tasty, sweet treat.  The only problem?  I’m not a little kid anymore and don’t run around the neighborhood burning off all those calories! When I’m craving something sweet, my solution is Blood Orange Tea Spiced Pecans.

2 large egg whites

Most of us will, at some point in the next week, include food as part of our Valentine’s Day celebration.  Be it with a special someone or even just indulging ourselves, food usually finds its way to the heart of every holiday.  Here’s a quick little round up of our favorites for Valentine’s Day, friendly recipes and the right spices, blends and teas to go with.  Great for the inspired cooked, and easy enough for those who might not like to spend a lot of time in the kitchen.  And if you don’t dare set foot in the kitchen, we’ve got a few ideas for you, too!

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Never let it be said we don’t rise up to a challenge.  The place: Alexandria, just after concluding one of their popular Chef Series demo.  The challenge from a guest in the audience, turn TSTE’s Espresso Steak Rub into something other than a pre-grill rub for a great cut of meat.  The inspiration: the candied bacon cashews we were noshing on, which no one could not get enough of (yummy!).  The deadline:  Game Day Sunday.  When you consider that TSTE’s Espresso Steak Rub is a blend of espresso beans, salt, smoked paprika, espresso sugar, among other things, it’s easy to be led in the direction of chocolate.  Dark chocolate, that is.  Espresso flavorings marry perfectly with chocolate so it was easy enough to start there.  I just needed something to temper the smokiness of the paprika, and a meaty nut was the perfect answer.  Considering we had to have this ready for the big game, it seemed that a man-candy was the obvious way to go.  And, boy (pun fully intended) and I glad we did.

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