I haven’t yet had the pleasure of traveling to Ireland, but Wanderwoman® Tours has!
Headed up by the incomperable and knowledgable Erja Lipponen, Wanderwoman® Tours ,operating out of Camden, Maine, are are exclusively designed for women, specializing in groups of no more than ten.
Wanderwoman® has led tours on nearly every continent and for this trip Erja has really put together a compelling itinerary balancing history, local lore and pleasure in all things local.
This tour of Ireland is based on the life of Grace O Malley, a fierce warrior who commanded an army of over 200 men. She became powerful by her fierceness in battle, ability to lead in combat …. and her prowess in bed. Great way to acquire real estate! So, they’ll visit some of those castles.
Erja chooses historic accommodations and smaller hotels or B and Bs, dripping with charm,and known for superior wine and dining. Yes, Ireland is also known for fine wine and horses. Try riding an Irish Sport Horse or Connemara pony! The pace of this tour is comfortable, yet as challenging as you prefer, with time to ride horseback, walk a beach, visit important archeological sites or go to a market.
Whether you’ve travelled to Ireland before or are a first timer, taking the trip in June with Wanderwoman Tours may be the best travel decision you’ve made in ages!
SAVOY TRUFFLE “you’ll have to have them all pulled out after the Savoy truffle” the Beatles
Truffles are easy and decadent.
Simply, melted chocolate ( choose the best!) mixed with cream and butter. Chill, roll and coat.
THIS RECIPE CAN BE MADE IN THE MICROWAVE
MAKES 24 TRUFFLES
10 OZ DARK CHOCOLATE ( COOKING chocolate, not baking chocolate)
2 TB UNSALTED BUTTER
1/2 CUP CREAM
Combine in a non metallic bowl. Cover and micro wave in several short bursts. Stir until smooth, this is called a GANACHE.
Let it cool in the refrigerator for a few hours.
When cool, roll into bite sized balls and place back in the fridge while you assemble the coatings: cocoa or powdered sugar are popular, I use cocoa with a bit of chili!
Keep the mixture super cold while coating, then place immediately back into the fridge until time to serve…..share and enjoy!
Where can you go to get Moxie filled chocolates for your sweetie?
Artisanal chocolates, hand crafted and filled with locally sourced goodies from suppliers the state of Maine over?
Why, Dean’s Sweets! Run by Dean and Kristen Bingham since 2004, they now have two Portland locations and began their business at home for the love of making chocolates.
With over 30 varieties, I have several favorites and make it a point to drop into their Old Port location when I am shopping in Portland.
Ring in the New Year Right! Serves six, this recipe doubles well and is pretty quick to pull together.
We like whiskey in our egg nog, not the traditional rum. So, that’s how we serve it at home.
I’ve tried it both ways and I much prefer my eggnog “not completely raw”, We use backyard eggs and separate the yolks, beating them with sugar and FRESH nutmeg, and a dash of mace, then cooking them over low heat until you achieve a simmer. Then temper the hot egg mixture into the raw eggs slowly, so as not to curdle. Here’s the recipe:
INGREDIENTS
6 eggs, separated, beat the whites till stiff peaks, set aside
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup whipping cream
2 cups whole milk
1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg, pinch salt and vanilla optional
METHOD
Whisk the eggs and sugar, vanilla, salt in a medium sized bowl until creamy.
In a sauce pan, over medium heat stir together milk, cream and nutmeg/mace until a simmer is achieved.
Slowly add the hot milk to the eggs mixture ( this is tempering)a spoonful at a time, then return the mixture to the stove.
Whisk constantly until thickened a bit ( minute or two), then allow to cool.
When cooled we fold the stiffly beaten whites into the mixture and let everyone add their spirit of choice or this is also delicious “virgin”. Top with a grate if fresh nutmeg
Best enjoyed around the fireplace with loved ones. Cheers!
What does it mean to be authentic? Why do we consider these things as a new year draws close?
Maybe because we’ve seen a few years come and go….and we realize with ever sharpening clarity that there is no time BUT the present and the time is nigh to come to terms with many things, especially being true to oneself
End of life issues come into focus, health strategies ( use it or lose it!) ,personal fears , interpersonal truths and , hey, it’s time to be beginning to live absolutely fully because tomorrow is not guaranteed.
I’ve heard it said “DON’T POSTPONE JOY”. I believe it is time to wear the good clothes or pass them on, lighten up, take the jewelry out of the bank and wear it, make that special recipe to share , volunteer at the food bank, give your attention fully to the moment and exalt every one of them through mindfulness.
Done are the days of people pleasing , I’m more geared now to helping within the community and the needs are many. Learn to be a true friend, a good listener. A fearless learner. An activist.
Living beyond my means because there’s pressure and so much cool stuff to buy? Nah, I asked for a hairbrush, groceries and socks for Christmas. Reduce, reuse, recycle…PAY ATTENTION to the things that matter, like our planet and how we choose to live on it. How can we best make a difference with our relationship to this living breathing thing we call Earth?
Why was it such an obstacle course getting here? To this place of relative peace and clarity? The markers are always there, but the noice ABATES as we gain focus and breathe fully.
If we’re lucky, the path forward becomes clear and a balanced illumination guides us into a new circle around the Sun.
The Snickerdoodle is a Maine favorite all year round, but they really hit their stride at the holidays.
Tangy, chewy and tasting warmly of cinnamon, they’re just plain good. Basically a sugar cookie, I’ve heard them referred to as an Amish sugar cookie and were first documented in the mid-18th century by the Moravians. Cookie historians suspect the name “snickerdoodle” was a bastardization of the German “schneckennudel”, which is a cinnamon spiced dessert.
What makes my recipe a little different is the addition of freshly ground nutmeg, which always is a winner at my house”
The technique is the same as for any cookie.
METHOD
Sift the dry ingredients.
Cream the sugar, eggs and vanilla until very light. This is where I grate in the fresh nutmeg to taste.
Combine the two and chill covered before you form into small balls, which then get coated in cinnamon sugar.
Bake at 350 degrees , preheated, and I would double pan mine.
INGREDIENTS
Here are the amounts needed:
1 c unsalted softened butter
1 1/2 c granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tb. Vanilla
2 3/4 AP flour
1/2 tsp. Baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. Cream of tartar ( for tang and rise)
Dash of salt
Cinnamon and sugar for rolling the raw cookie balls in.
After they are baked, remove to a cooling rack, they should be crinkly, crispy at the edges and with a chewy interior.
Cookie exchanges for the holidays are found the world over. In the USA, the first examples of such a holiday exchange was noted in 1917 during World War 1.
By the 1950s the cookie swap was a fashionable way to create a glamorous gathering, a varied cookie gift box and support other women in the process. Gathering a new recipe or two and enjoying a few hours away from the pre- holiday rush was also a perk.
The concept was to bake one dozen cookies for each woman in the club, and often a few more, just in case. Stories were swapped along with the cookies and everyone took home a mixed collection in a container. Often a luncheon was served. Sometimes clubs even published cookie cookbooks featuring their all-star recipes, garnering funds for the clubs community projects.
Cookies that became popular over the years through these exchanges include gingerbread, snickerdoodles, shortbreads, intricate rolled refrigerator cookies, chocolate chip “toll house”, candy cane brownies, pecan sandies,”melting moments” ( whatever they may be, but I’ll take two!) and Florentines.
It was a convivial gathering, more about camaraderie than competition.
One of my all time favorites, and a Maine staple the year round, is the humble Snickerdoodle.
Tasked with elevating the Thanksgiving table, especially the sweet finish, try my tried and true PUMPKIN GINGERBREAD.
I like to add a few unusual things to make mine extra spicy. Here at Laura cabot Catering we double down on the powdered ginger, grind fresh pepper, chop candied ginger and break out the dry mustard powder as welcome additions to spiciness.
It comes out of the oven trailing pumpkin spiciness and just begs for a hot mulled cider to go with it.
Fast, easy, warming and so fragrantly delicious you’ll want to throw a party!
A TERRIFIC “GO TO” RIGHT THRU NEW YEAR. GREAT FOR HOLIDAY GIFTING.
PUMPKIN GINGERBREAD, 2 LARGE LOAVES
INGREDIENTS
31/2 c. AP FLOUR
2 TSP. BAKING SODA
1/2 tsp. SALT
2 tsp. CINNAMON
2 TB GROUND GINGER
1tsp. CLOVE ,ground
2tsp. Freshly grated NUTMEG
1/4 tsp. FRESH BLACK PEPPER
1/c cup chopped candied ginger a few RAISINS, optional
4 LARGE EGGS1-15 OZ Can of ONE PIE PUMPKIN PUREE
1 1/2 C. SUGAR
1 CUP DR, BROWN SUGAR
1 CUP VEG OIL, I PREFER OLIVE OIL
1/4 CUP. MOLASSAS
1 TPS. FRESH GRATED GINGER
1TP. VANILLA EXTRACT
PREHEAT OVEN TO 350 DEGREES
COMBINE DRY INGREDIENTS, THEN WET IN SEPERATE BOWLS
COMBINE THE TWO. BEAT UNTIL COMBINED.
TURN INTO A GREASED LOAF PAN AND SPRINKLE THE TOPS WITH SUGAR.
The history of the One Pie Company in Waldoboro Maine is a long and varied story. Many folks, albeit older ones, still walking around in Waldoboro worked there at one time or another in the canning factory.
The supply chain in Maine was strong indeed, because vegetable canning companies like One Pie and the fields the vegetables were grown in were steps apart! Waldoboro was, in fact, the supplier of most canned pumpkin and squash in America. Now the squash that’s used across the country at Thanksgiving is likely grown in Illinois . But am I still proud of One Pie’s Maine heritage? You bet I am! Every time I see those cans on a supermarket shelf and read “W. Paris, Maine”, I realize that those Maine roots run deep.
There was a time, between the Civil War and the 1920’s when Maine was an industrial canning powerhouse. Maine supplied all the tinned fish, sardines’s to be precise, in the country and most of the sweet, canned corn. Blueberries, peas, squash and pumpkin were also very much in demand!
It seems that the affiliation with Maine for One Pie is just window dressing now, probably good for business, since Maine is suddenly trendy. But they were forerunners in recognizing the beauty of regional food.
IRELAND
The Snickerdoodle is a Maine favorite all year round, but they really hit their stride at the holidays.
Cookie exchanges for the holidays are found the world over. In the USA, the first examples of such a holiday exchange was noted in 1917 during World War 1.
