Cooking in Ireland

Or maybe I should have said baking in Ireland...

Recipes in Ireland will typically list the dry ingredients in grams, unlike the US (typically cups).
The problem is that they don't sell measuring cups that measure in grams.

Back to science class folks ...
Cups, ml, oz, fl oz are all volume measurements.
Grams, lbs are weight/mass measurements

For most recipes in the US for baking they will say 1/2 cup sugar, 2 cups of flour etc....
1 cup of flour =128 grams
1 cup of oats =85 grams
1 cup of sugar =201 grams
clearly the volume method in the US is much more convenient. The typical Irish way would be to use a scale to weight the dry goods.

After having no luck in store I found this on amazon

Hopefully this solves the cooking frustrations, and makes for some happy baking in the household




Rob

The Portugal post

Our trip was Tuesday to Saturday. Just like Paris we rented an apartment. This apartment was in the Alfama district which is one of the 2 districts not damaged in the 1755 earthquake.  Lots of old homes (apartments?) all attached.  Sun each day; 15C never felt so good (around 60F) the weather was quite pleasant (a little chilly in the mountains but we still made it work in shorts...)

The Portugese love tiles, and the building facades were covered with them.

The streets and sidewalks were also better than your typical asphalt. Small pavers/stones often in black/white patterns.

The buildings are amazingly colorful, pinks, purples, yellows, blues. Tiles and no tiles.

and due to the hilly nature of the region there were tons of places with amazing views, the Castelo de Sao Jorge, The Monument to the Discoveries, The pantheon, etc... a few panos from said locations

We arrived on Tuesday night so only had time for check in and dinner. Wednesday we went to the Castelo de Sao Jorge. We then tried the recommended tram 28; however, it seems like every guide book says this so while the tram was cheap it was packed and with no seats we couldn't see out the windows...
Thursday we were off to Sintra. If we had known what Sintra had to offer we would have spent more time there. A beautiful Moorish castle on one hill and the Pena National Palace on another. There was one more palace we didn't see plus parks, museums, etc... We had decided ahead that we were going to try and get to the beach in Cascais. Unfortunately, it turns out the bus from Sintra to Cascais is slow especially as you close in on rush hour. We did briefly stop at Cabo da Roca (westernmost point in Europe). Eventually we did make it to Cascais, but it was just before sunset. The kids still troopers played on a beach for an hour before the sun went down and bladders gave way.
A nice fish dinner in Cascais and then back home.
Friday, our last full day we walked the town, went to see the Santa Justa Elevator, had some Portugese pasties. Then a tram ride to Belem to see Padrão dos Descobrimentos (monument of the discoveries) which has 33 explorers on it with Vasco de Gama at the front. The view from up top is great .
Saturday was the last day, Stacey had an early flight , and we had a late one We went to the Fiera da ladra (flea market , which supposedly translates as thieves market). We loaded up on momentos - charms, tiles (from 1880s), backpack, linens,... then went to the National Pantheon. Another tall structure with great views of Lisbon.

and so ended our Portugal vacation.
I quizzed Audrey on her rating and she said 9 out of 10 then 10 out of 10.
She says so far 10/10 Wales and Portugal and 9/10 for Paris

 I will upload a plethora of pictures soon
https://plus.google.com/photos/103368911484787026594/albums/5993962619475722465?authkey=CNzZ-IakzMPQMg

Vacations are for sharing...

A vacation is like a fine wine, best shared. Our favorite third wheel joined us in Portugal.
Kids loved having Stacey along (as did the adults).

Here is a montage of Stacey moments
The stacey collection

Rob

St Patrick's day weekend in Ireland

The weekend started with wear your greens on Friday at the schools. The kids came in more than just green, there were tri-color wigs, fake beards, bishop costumes (presumably St Patrick), and many other assorted oddities. We then noticed at night the local church highlighted in green

Saturday of the weekend was business as usual. 2 morning soccer matches then afternoon Gaelic football and hurling practice.

Sunday it was off to the Belvedere house in Westmeath. There we saw some trad music and irish dance, also walked the grounds and of course visited the house. The house was designed by the same architect who designed many of the other great estates in Ireland, so it was interesting to compare.

Monday the local parade. The locals had said it was modest, but it was actually quite good.
There were 2 pipe bands, 4 irish dance schools and all the other local organizations. A good 20-25 groups participating.
We had a quick bite, then grabbed some sweets at the local sweet chop, then a pint of Guiness and some trad music at McMahons. Quick break at home then off to the GAA club. There were Gaelic football challenges (hot the shamrock. kick the ball in the tire, beat the goalie), bouncy houses, and lots of friends. Jack ended up playing almost 2 hours of impromptu soccer which mom settled into the club and had some stew. Then she and Audrey learned to the shoe the donkey at Ceili (impromptu dance session) at the club


all in all a great day and worth being here for

Rob

A new take on Fat Tuesday

So, this morning a friend wished me a "happy Pancake Tuesday" by text.  Honestly I ignored it because 1) we were running late, and 2) because I had no idea what she was talking about.  I went to daily Mass (as I do most days) and found out that tomorrow is Ash Wednesday.  Surprised that it is so soon, but still making no connection to pancakes.

Then when I picked up Jack from school I saw the local restaurant/coffee joint had set up an outdoor pancake stand.  "Hmm" I thought, "perhaps Maria wasn't just making a very obscure joke this morning and this day IS actually Pancake Tuesday".  Jack then comes out of school and tells me that he had pancakes in class (with a choice of Nutella, honey or syrup) in honor of this supposed holiday.  OK, now I believe it exists, but still have no idea what it's about.  So, on to home and Wikipedia.  Aha!  This day is actually called Shrove Tuesday.  And this is why, and more importantly, what pancakes have to do with the whole affair:

The word shrove is the past tense of the English verb shrive, which means to obtain absolution for one's sins by way of Confessionand doing penance. Thus Shrove Tuesday gets its name from the custom for Christians to be "shriven" before the start of Lent.^[4]Shrove Tuesday is the last day of "shrovetide", somewhat analogous to the Carnival tradition that developed separately in countries of Latin Europe.

• In the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, Shrove Tuesday is also commonly known as "Pancake Day" or "Pancake Tuesday" due to the tradition of eating pancakes on the day.

Pancakes are associated with the day preceding Lent because they were a way to use up rich foods such as eggs, milk, and sugar, before the fasting season of the 40 days of Lent. The liturgical fasting emphasized eating plainer food and refraining from food that would give pleasure: in many cultures, this means no meat, dairy products, or eggs.

Now, I don't plan to refrain from eggs, meat or milk (except meat on Fridays) but I might try to lower my rather massive sugar intake. I think it's funny that here in Ireland people "indulge" in what is taken as a common breakfast food in the States.  I plan to follow tradition and instead of meatloaf, we are having pancakes for dinner.  Jack will just get lucky and have them twice.  Super Fat. There you have it.