Irish Soda Bread and Sweet Potato Soup

I'm a recipe hound, I collect recipes I never use and ones that look good but need slight alterations (I'm a genius at changing up meat recipes into delicious vegetarian/vegan ones).

I've had this Irish soda bread recipe for years. It is always wonderful if you follow the directions EXACTLY and make sure you cover it with a tea towel/sprinkle the towel with water. This keeps the bread from drying out as it cools, once it is cool it will stay moist for a few days. I love it with good, cream based soups or as breakfast with a small dab of butter, fresh fruit, and fresh brewed coffee.

The pumpkin soup recipe is from a vegetarian cookbook that tended to be more of a "lets substitute meat with dairy" cookbook. Of the 300+ page text, I've used maybe 10 recipes, and only repeated perhaps 5 of them. That being said, this soup is one of the best I've ever tasted. It SCREAMS autumn. This time around I substituted sweet potatoes for the pumpkin (it isn't quite in season yet - well, not in Texas anyway). I actually think I enjoy it more this way than the original recipe. Butternut squash or other fall squashes could be substituted as well. I also used only 1/2 cup of vegetable stock (low sodium) and the rest water. I'm sure it would be better with more stock, but I'm poor and water is cheaper.

I also omitted the spaghetti in the soup since I was using a sopping bread and don't usually eat a lot of grains. I didn't feel like adding Parmesan cheese, so that got left out too this time. I might try the leftovers with cheese tomorrow, we'll see if I'm in the mood.

Important note: I recommend using organic whole milk and real organic butter, not margarine or smart balance-esque substitutes. When I've used oils instead of fats before, the recipes never turned out as moist or as rich. Same thing with substituting reduced fat milk or even yogurt (upon suggestion of a friend - HORRIBLE idea). Organic, or at least hormone free, is better for you and, in my humble opinion, just tastes better. It is somehow sweeter than normal, chemically drenched milk products. Then again, that could all be in my head. But try organic for health reasons at least (if you're able, we are in a recession ...)

Note two: British oz are apparently different from US oz... I learned this the hard way... the US cups for the milk and butter are approx. conversions that yield pretty good results.

Brown Bread (whole wheat Irish soda bread)

3 cups (12 oz) of wheat flour
1 cup (4 oz) of white flour
1-3/4 cups (14 oz) of buttermilk (or sour milk) (works best with WHOLE FAT milk)
1 teaspoon of salt
1-1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda (confusing name for baking soda).
2 ounces (1/4 cup) of butter

1) Preheat the oven to 425 F. degrees. Lightly grease and flour a cake pan. In a large bowl sieve and combine all the dry ingredients. Rub in the butter until the flour is crumbly.

2) Add the buttermilk to form a sticky dough. Place on floured surface and lightly knead (too much allows the gas to escape)

3) Shape into a round flat shape in a round cake pan and cut a cross in the top of the dough. Cover the pan with another pan and bake for 30 minutes (this simulates the bastible pot). Remove cover and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
The bottom of the bread will have a hollow sound when tapped to show it is done.

4) Cover the bread in a tea towel and lightly sprinkle water on the cloth to keep the bread moist. Let cool and you are ready to have a buttered slice with a nice cup of tea or coffee


Pumpkin Soup

1-lb piece of peeled pumpkin (or two 5-inch long sweet potatoes)
4 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped (yields ~ 3/4 cup)
3 cups vegetable stock or water
2 cups milk
pinch of grated nutmeg
1-1/2 oz spaghetti broken into small pieces
6 tbsp Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
salt and pepper to taste

1) Chop the pumpkin into one-inch cubes

2) Heat the butter in a saucepan. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until it softens, about 6-8 minutes. Stir in the pumpkin pieces and cook for 2-3 minutes more.

3) Add the stock or water and cook until the pumpkin is soft, about 15 minutes (a little longer with sweet potato). Remove from the heat.

4) Process the soup in a blender or food processor. Return it to the pan. Stir in the milk and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper. Bring the soup back to a boil.

5) Stir the broken spaghetti into the soup. Cook until the pasta is done. Stir in the Parmesan, sprinkle with nutmeg, and serve at once.

fix me, i'm broken... not that i could blame you

fix me, i'm broken.
not enough for the likes of you and yours
too low for your discerning tastes
rotten to the core, wrapped in pretty celophane
caramel coated, poisonous with every bite.

deep inside i'm nothing.
a shadow of what you must've expected.
a hollow shell, pretty cloak covering
skinned knees and bloodied fingernails
dirt-caked tear-stained cheeks hidden deep
inside the fabric folds away from your gaze.

hitting myself over the head with repeating melodies,
patterns of bad behavior - i try to stop myself
claw at chest and arms but can't hold back
from where i know i'm inevitably going to end up
that familiar dark where i don't know my own reflection.

and you don't know me.
and i don't think anyone ever really did.
or will. or wants to. just a semi-pretty face
on a somewhat attractive frame and build
that you won't even see when the lights go out

guess i was right
self fulfilling prophecy, i made you see me
after all i knew you'd eventually come around
full circle to my way of backwards thinking,
sinking to my knees to beg for one more chance

only good for one thing
and you could've taken that from the first moment
and left me stronger than i am now, broken
by what you've stolen. of course i let you have it.
cause i wanted what you couldn't offer.

a life where i'm worth more than what's between my legs
where whats inside my head is beautiful, divine
where conflicting thoughts and raging insanity
don't wage war inside my fragile mind
where my daily battle isn't fought here alone

but that's all i'll ever be
until i come to terms with me,
and her, and she, and i, and us, and we.
cause how could i really expect anyone to want
something i consider so utterly worthless...

fix me, i'm broken
my heart in pieces on the dusty floor
old superglue didn't hold the cracks,
the slightest hint of pressure and its back down
where it belongs, crunching under your heel

as you walk away

as you don't feel

as you don't notice

as you forget i ever was or am or will be

as you forget all about me

... not that i could blame you.

i never was interesting enough to hold anyone's attention very long.