Happy St. Patty’s Day, y’all!!! Hope you’re wearing green.
from google images
Last night we enjoyed corned beef, cabbage, carrots and roasted potatoes. Yea, we were a little early in the celebration but that’s what happens when Big Guy has a flight to catch on the actual “holiday.”
And for once, I prepared the same “traditional” meal as I did in the past. Why mess with a good thing?
The crock-pot got to work on the corned beef around lunch time. And as soon as I walked through the door after work I jumped into the kitchen. The cabbage needed an hour to braise in the oven, so I tackled that first. Here’s the recipe: Sweet and Sour Braised Cabbage.
sweet 'n sour cabbage
It’s a combination of savory onions, sweet granny smith apples and cabbage. And it’s delicious. Did I mention there’s bacon in this dish? Oh yes, there’s bacon in there.
hard-headed
Anytime I send Big Guy to the store with a list, I know for a fact, he’ll get the biggest piece of produce possible unless otherwise noted. It must be a “guy” thing. But honestly…this cabbage was about 10 pounds. It was no joke. I about hurt myself with the first cabbage…so I let him deal with the second one. Had I known he was going to get monster cabbage heads, one would have been plenty.
Once the cabbage was good to go and braising away in the oven, I prepared the marmalade-whiskey glaze for the corned beef and carrots. This glaze is amazing. It’s sweet and helps balance out the saltiness of the beef and when it’s roasted…OH.MY…it’s unreal.
pre-glaze
post-glaze
This is where I ran into a problem. I knew this was going to happen and I called my Momma for “back-up.” You see, both dishes needed to be in the oven…but different temperatures. Oh boy. I played around with it and honestly, I simply need two ovens (add that to the wish list…along with a wok). But I made do with what I have.
full house
On the top, garlic potatoes and the corned beef; on the bottom, the sweet ‘n sour cabbage.
perfection
sweet and sour
po-tay-toes
For some reason the beef shredded on us…last year we were able to slice it. Not really sure why, but it didn’t affect the taste.
an Irish meal
Did you know the Irish really have boiled bacon and cabbage? The corned beef thing is an American tradition.
And for dessert...Black and Tan Brownies.
secret ingredient
That’s what makes this an “Irish” dessert.
The bottom (tan) portion is a blondie-like texture. And the top (black) portion is more brownie-like.
tan
black
- an Irish brownie
May your blessings outnumber
The shamrocks that grow,
And may trouble avoid you
Wherever you go.
~Irish Blessing
Mmmm! What a great meal!
Makes me want corned beef! How do you have the time to cook like you do? You amaze me!! Did Big Guy have to suffer in eating the beer brownies all by himself? Poor guy… he really sacrifices himself for you! lol 
It was delicious – the glaze is what makes the dish. And I don’t cook like this every night. I promise. During the week, it’s 30 minutes meals if Big Guy’s around and if he’s not, well, it’s something I throw together and it’s not blog worthy! This was a special treat – Big Guy had a guy from work in town from CA so I was “entertaining,” if you will.
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