St. Patrick's Day Double Post: Irish Shortbread and Mint Sugar Cookies

I didn't just make pretzel bites for our day of St. Patrick's Day performances; I also made Irish shortbread. Amber had asked me one day if I knew how to make Irish shortbread and I said no but I could most likely follow a recipe for it. This basically got the idea in my head that I had to make it for St. Patrick's Day.

My original plan was that I would make a batch then divide it in two: half for performance day and half for work. But I ended up only making about 8 so I figured I'd make something else for work. So I turned to my cookbooks for a sugar cookie recipe (since I wanted to give my hard copies some attention). At the end of performance day, though, I had almost the same amount of shortbread that I'd started with. So I still made the sugar cookies and took both to work on St. Patrick's Day.

Homemade Pretzel Bites

Last year, after an almost 8-year absence, I finally returned to Irish dance. Coincidentally, it was with the same school that I had been with for my first 7 years; it was just under a different director/teacher as my former teacher/the school's founder had somewhat retired from Irish dance (Amber, the new director/teacher, knows Anne through homeschooling so that's how that happened). The day I returned was St. Patrick's Day, a Thursday, with 3 performances.

Apparently, this was a relaxing day compared to their usual (a lot had changed since I left, apparently; I only remember doing a recital when we went through Kent Parks & Rec). This year was more the norm: a weekend full of performances.

To prepare for a day of driving around from performance to performance, I decided to make some snacks for the road (this was also because I didn't know if/when we would eat lunch nor when we would eat dinner). Because of my continuous pretzel kick, I decided on pretzel bites. I even searched for a spider strainer to easily remove the bites from their boiling water bath as I knew the wooden slotted spoon I had wouldn't be effective (finally found one at Bed Bath & Beyond).

Lemon Brownies

I've noticed on Pinterest that lemon seems to be a popular flavor of Italian baking. While it could be argued that most of the food bloggers who call lemon cookies "Italian cookies" don't know what they're talking about, I choose to believe them since my mom and sister-in-law both love the Italian liqueur Limoncello (a.k.a. lemon). So I guess I wasn't too surprised when my mom recently told me that Anthony loves lemon. And while I was indecisive at first, I decided to make him lemon brownies for his birthday. I'd always wanted to make them so why not for my brother's birthday present?

Funfetti Cookie Dough Balls

Ever since she was a little girl, my cousin Carly has loved sprinkles on her ice cream. I remember every year in Chelan, there'd be a container of the stuff in the cabinets that her parents had brought. It's pretty much the only topping she'd have (it's possible this has changed as she's gotten older and she's added chocolate syrup or something but I'm a horrible person who doesn't pay attention so I'm not sure). So when picking out her 16th birthday present, I decided to stick with sprinkles (a.k.a. funfetti). Since I was on limited time and ingredients, I also looked at no-bake posts on my Pinterest boards (because apparently I have no other sources for recipes...) and finally decided on edible cookie dough. Because what teenager/person doesn't like edible cookie dough?

Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've been a bit lazy lately. I have no idea why. All I've wanted to do is sit and watch TV and play as much Cookie Jam as I can. Granted, I have still done some chores and most of the regular stuff I need to do (laundry, weekly grocery shopping) but I probably could be doing more. My only theory is that I (finally!) started my new job in January after almost a year and a half of unemployment. I guess my homebody side isn't getting enough TV and computer time anymore? Anyway, I'm trying to change that. Nothing to do with a belated New Year's resolution (I don't really make those anymore); just mad at myself for not doing much. Hence why this Valentine's Day recipe is over a month late.

Now, on to the (first of many) recipe(s that I'm posting this week)!

Some of my new co-workers decided to have a dessert potluck on Valentine's Day. Being the indecisive person that I am, I first went back-and-forth between doing something or not (I'm always a bit nervous about baking for others). When I finally decided to make a contribution I then couldn't decide what to make. Eventually I decided on red velvet cookies because what other color says Valentine's Day?