Try these time-tested St. Patty’s Day favorites

With St. Patrick's Day coming up, we thought it would be great to share some favorite recipes. Stephanie Oehlert, sales and marketing director for assisted living and health care, offered these two recipes that are a tradition in her family.

OVEN BRAISED CORNED BEEF & CABBAGE

• 4 cups beef broth
• 1 corned beef brisket with seasoning packet, 3 to 4 pounds
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 2 large onions, peeled and cut into quarters
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into thirds
• 6 small red potatoes, quartered
• 1 head green cabbage, cut into wedges

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Stir the broth and the contents of the seasoning packet in a roasting pan. Place the beef into the pan fat side up. Spread the mustard on the beef, then sprinkle with the brown sugar. Cover the pan and bake for 2 hours.

Arrange the onions, carrots, potatoes and cabbage around the beef in the pan. Bake uncovered for one hour or until the beef and vegetables are fork-tender. Let stand for 10 minutes. Place the beef and vegetables into a serving dish. Strain the broth mixture and serve with the beef and vegetables.

IRISH SODA BREAD

• 4 – 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 4 tablespoons butter (preferably Irish butter), cut into small pieces
• 1 large egg, slightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice*
• 1 2/3 – 1 3/4 cup milk

*Skip the lemon juice and milk and just use 1 3/4 cups buttermilk if you have it.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

Whisk together 4 cups flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda in a large mixing bowl. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, work the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal or crumbs.

Place lemon juice in a two-cup glass measuring cup and fill up to the 1 3/4 mark with milk. Let milk sit for several minutes to sour. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add the beaten egg and soured milk to the well and mix with a wooden spoon. Once the dough is too stiff to stir, dust hands with a little flour, then gently knead dough in the bowl just long enough to form a ball. If the dough is too sticky, add in a little additional flour.

Shape dough into a round loaf. The dough will be a little sticky and quite rugged looking. Do not over-knead! Work it just enough so that the flour is moistened and the dough barely comes together. Rough and shaggy is good. Over-kneading will result in a tough loaf of bread.

Transfer dough to prepared baking sheet. Using a serrated knife, score top of dough about an inch and a half deep in an "X" shape.

Bake until bread is golden and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped, about 35–40 minutes.

Remove sheet from oven, let bread cool on the pan for 5-10 minutes, then briefly cool on a rack. Serve bread warm, at room temperature, or sliced and toasted.

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