HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY!
Although St. Patrick’s Day started out as a religious feast holiday celebrating the life of St. Patrick, it has become kind of a mixture of non-religious celebrations steeped in Irish culture, folklore and superstition.
Many St. Patrick’s Day traditions revolve around luck. Ironically, the Irish have been a very unlucky people as history tells. For instance, the rainbow you often see depicted in the St. Patrick’s Day themes, has seven easily distinguishable colors. Both the rainbow and the number seven are symbols of luck.
It is considered lucky to find a four leaf clover or ‘Shamrock’. It has been estimated that there are about 10,000 three leaf clovers to every four leaf clover. According to legend, each of the four leaves represents something: hope, faith, love and luck, respectively.
In the 19th century green became the symbol of Ireland ( also called ‘The Emerald Isle’). The wearing of green on St. Patrick’s Day is considered lucky. Pinching those not doing so began in Ireland many years ago.
The legendary ‘Blarney Stone’, which is set in a wall of a castle in the Irish village of Blarney, is said to have magical powers. Whoever kisses the stone will have powers of persuasion.
Of course, we can’t forget some of the lucky charms associated with all this folklore. If you hang a horseshoe over your doorway, make sure it has the open end up or your luck will pour out. The saying ‘see a penny pick it up and all day you will have good luck’. If you are lucky enough to see a falling star or a ‘shooting’ star, you get to make a secret wish.
With all the serious and concerning things happening in our world today, I thought it would keep things lighter just to acknowledge our Irish friends with some ‘fun facts’ on their St. Patrick’s Day holiday.
For the food tribute of the day, I chose to do IRISH CREAM CHEESECAKES . How can you not love these little treasures!
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cheesecake cups
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- 170 grams cream cheese,
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp Baileys Irish Cream Liquer
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 egg
- few drops of green food color (optional)
Ingredients
Cheesecake Filling
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- In a small bowl, combine flour, sugar & cocoa; cut in margarine. Add water & mix only until combined. Shape into 1-inch balls; press onto the bottom & up sides of lightly greased miniature muffin pans (1 3/4-inch diameter size).
- Preheat oven to 325 F. In a small bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth on medium speed. Add sugar, Baileys Irish Cream, & vanilla & egg; blend well. Fill chocolate cups. Bake 15-18 minutes. If desired top with whip cream.
