For the longest time I protested Saint Patrick’s Day by joining forces with the other radical women I knew. And what radical things did we do, you ask? Wear Black. Super lame, I know.
The reason most Boulderites don’t care for St. Patty is because there weren’t any freakin snakes in Ireland in the 400′s! But there were sneaky little pagans running around who worshiped the serpent and its symbolism. I don’t know how heavy handed he was, but Patty boy most certainly did participate in the banishment and murder of Irish folk who resisted being converted to Christianity. Are you starting to get riled up? Ticked off that people have been lying to you?
Hold that thought.
Did you know that Patrick was a slave? Yep. When he was 16 a bunch of Irish hooligans kidnapped him from his home in Romain Britain, and forced him to work as a herdsman for 6 years in Ireland. OK, people. That deserves some respect. I’ll wear green for that. Hell, I’ll even drink something green.
Speaking of a green drink, Nigella Lawson was on NPR this morning and she had the greatest St. Patty’s day martini idea! Ever heard of an Emerald Isle? 1 teaspoon of creme de mint and bitters for every shot of gin. I’ll take a double paleeze.
Back to lad Patty. He had visions, or..er…heard voices. After 6 years in slavery, a voice told him that it was time to run like a bat out of hell and that there was a ship waiting for him. Well what do you know? Patrick fled captivity and found a ship just hangin’ around for him at a port 200 miles away. To that I will force feed you Irish Soda Bread.
For the cute smallish rolls of soda bread, I followed this recipe (click blue letters!) by Simply Recipes. I added 1 cup of currants to really tip my hat to Patrick. I then divided the dough into four…and tadah! Damn big rolls!
For the big brownish looking soda bread, I followed the same recipe as above, but I substituted half of the all purpose flour with spelt flour, and I tossed in a handful of oats for good measure. A little bit more rustic, just to prove that although I am wearing green today, I am still a radical.
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