Betty, I LOVE the pink tablecloth in your tea setting. If you hadn't told us, I wouldn't have known it was plastic. It is such a pretty colour and goes so well with your beautiful dishes. What I find particularly appealing (besides sweet Hanna and the yummy food!) are the candlestick holders you used...I love candles of all sorts and those are great. Are they crystal? Thanks for keeping this post going, it's a good one! DD

Tea Brack recipe first, then how to make homemade buttermilk. -Grainlady TEA BRACK (source: Irresistible Irish Breads - magazine article by Deborah Krasner) Brack, an Irish word for bread, is often used when referring to fruited mixtures. Tea Brack is a traditional tea bread which is an easy version of barm brack. Makes 1 loaf. 2 c. dark seedless raisins or dried currants (I use currants) 1-1/2 c. firmly packed dark-brown sugar 1-1/2 c. strong brewed tea, chilled 1/4 c. rum (I use 1/8 c.) 2 c. unsifted all-purpose flour 1-1/2 t. baking powder 1/2 t. ground cinnamon 1/2 t. ground nutmeg 1/2 t. salt 1 large egg, at room temperature, lightly beaten 1. Several hours or the night before baking, in large glass bowl, combine raisins/currants, brown sugar, tea, and rum. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit overnight. 2. Heat oven to 325°F. Grease an 8-1/2x4-1/2-inch loaf pan and line with waxed paper. Grease waxed paper. 3. In medium-size bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Slowly beat flour mixture and the egg into raisin mixture just until combined to form a batter. 4. Pour batter into greased loaf pan. Bake brack 1-1/2-hours until browned and cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 5-minutes. Turn brack out of pan and remove waxed paper. Cool brack completely on wire rack. Grainlady note: I use two 7-1/2x3-1/2-inch loaf pans or three 5-3/4x3-3/4-inch loaf pans and reduce the baking time accordingly. This is a very moist bread - more currants than bread, almost. I like the smaller pans so I can cut the bread into thin slices that don't fall apart. If you make it in a regular loaf pan, the slices tend to split and fall apart. -------------------------- I use a large amount of buttermilk when it comes to baking on St. Patrick's Day, so I make a homemade version of it using information from "Natural Meals In Minutes" by Rita Bingham. I use a non-instant powdered milk, but regular commercial milk works VERY well. Homemade Buttermilk To a 1-quart canning jar add 1/2 c. buttermilk and fill the jar with regular milk OR reconstituted powdered milk. Note: You can use commercial buttermilk as the starter, or a reconstituted liquid made from powdered buttermilk, or buttermilk from a former batch of homemade buttermilk - your choice. Stir well and cover (I use a plastic lid designed to use with canning jars). Let stand in a warm place (at least 80°F) until clabbered, about 12-18-hours. Stir until smooth. Refrigerate. Grainlady note: I keep mine in my oven with the light on. The temperature at the opposite side of the oven from the light is about 80°F. You can use homemade buttermilk from a previous to culture the milk for the next batch. Just make sure you use it within 2-weeks. Older buttermilk doesn't work as well as newer buttermilk. If you've ever used reconstituted powdered buttermilk, it's rather insipid, thin, and tasteless compared to commercial buttermilk. The homemade buttermilk is more like commercial buttermilk.

I'm corning our own flat cut brisket this year-- used a recipe from Bob Appetit-- the brine contains Lager-- it's brined for a total of eight days-- will be interesting to see if it's as good as Dad's old corning recipe. Also planning to do a Beer Cake-- it's originally a German recipe but hey if it's got beer it COULD be Irish. Home Cookin Chapter: Heirlooms , Traditional & Ethnic Gugelhupf Bierkuchen (German Beer Cake) ======================================= 1 cup molasses 1/2 cup butter at room temperature 1 (12 ounce) bottle beer 1 cup raisins, plumped and dried 2-2/3 cups sifted all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon baking powder (double action) 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon EACH, ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger (I use 1 teaspoon cinnamon) 1 cup coarsely chopped pecans or filberts, toasted Glaze (see recipe below) . Instructions: Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease and flour a 9 or 10-inch tube, bundt or gugelhupf (sometimes spelled Kugelhopf) pan. Combine the molasses, butter, and beer in a saucepan and heat only until the butter melts. Stir in the raisins or currants and let the mixture cool for 15 minutes. Sift together the dry ingredients. Stir in the nuts. Pour the cooled beer mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until smooth. Pour the batter into prepared pan. Bake in preheated 350° F (180°C) oven for 45 60 minutes (I check at 45 minutes, mine took 50 minutes). Remove from oven and let stand for 15 minutes before turning out on a wire rack. Let cake cool a bit before drizzling glaze over it. GLAZE: Mix 1 cup icing sugar and enough maple syrup (or liquid honey) to moisten the icing sugar to the drizzling stage. Pour glaze over the top of the cake and let it run down the sides.

~~Irish Bread Pudding with Caramel-Whiskey~~ Bread Pudding: 1/4 cup light butter, melted 1 10-ounce French baguette, cut into 1-inch-thick slice s ½ cup raisins 1/4 cup Irish whiskey or apple juice 1 3/4 cups 1 percent milk 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (divided) 1 tablespoon vanilla 1 12-ounce can evaporated nonfat milk 2 eggs, lightly beaten 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon Caramel-Whiskey Sugar: 1½ cups granulated sugar 2/3 cup water 1/4 cup light butter 1/4 cup light cream cheese (2 ounces) 1/4 cup Irish whiskey* 1/4 cup 1 percent milk To Make Bread Pudding: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush melted butter on one side of bread slices, and place bread, buttered sides up, on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly toasted. Cut bread into ½-inch cubes and set aside. Combine raisins and whiskey in a small bowl; cover and let stand 10 minutes or until soft (do not drain). Combine 1 percent milk, 1 cup sugar, vanilla, evaporated nonfat milk and eggs in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk. Add bread cubes and raisin mixture, pressingly gently to moisten; let stand 15 minutes. Spoon bread mixture into a 13-by-9-inch baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Combine remaining 1 tablespoon sugar and t he cinnamon; sprinkle over pudding. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until set. Serve warm with Caramel-Whiskey Sauce. To Make Sauce; Combine sugar and water in a small heavy saucepan over medium high heat; cook until golden (do not stir). Remove from heat. Carefully add butter and cream cheese, stirring constantly with a whisk (mixture will be hot and bubble vigorously). Cool slightly, and stir in whisky and milk. Make 1½ cups. * Substitute 1 tablespoon imitation rum extract and 3 tablespoons water for the Irish whiskey, if desired. Serves 12