FRONT BURNER

Taste buds will jig with dot o’ butter

There are many appropriate ways to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day (Monday).

Wearing your favorite green sweater. Attending a parade (did you know Hot Springs is home to the World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade?). Baking a batch of soda bread.

Listening to an Irish band (U2, The Dubliners, The Cranberries). Watching The Commitments, Waking Ned Devine or Gangs of New York.

Drinking green beer is not one of them.

If beer is going to be part of your St. Paddy’s celebration, have some respect for the beer and leave the green food coloring to the cupcakes and kiddie foods.

There are plenty of good Irish beers that need no visual adornment to be enjoyed. Guinness, Murphy’s, Harp and Smithwick’s are relatively easy to find at well-stocked liquor stores or your neighborhood Irish-themed pub.

Or you could just as easily toast the Irish with a finger or two of whiskey.

If you’d rather celebrate in a more unusual, but still authentic route, consider adding some Irish imports to your table.

Homemade soda bread slathered with Kerrygold butter. A cheese platter featuring a variety of Irish cheddar cheeses. Or onion rings (OK, not very Irish) dipped in Ballymaloe Gourmet Irish Ketchup, a sweet and tangy blend of tomatoes, vinegar, sugar, spices, onions and sultanas (sultanas are a type of raisin).

I wasn’t sure what to expect when a publicity representative for Ballymaloe sent a bottle of the condiment for my review.

The ketchup was of similar color to the commercial variety, but it was noticeably thicker and studded with bits of fruit and vegetables.

I first tried the ketchup on french fries. The combination was good, but nothing special. I next tried the sauce on a burger.

The beefy burger paired very nicely with the sweet sauce. The sauce, known in Europe and Canada as Ballymaloe Country Relish, also partners well with cheese and charcuterie.

If sweet is more your style, this flavored butter is delicious on soda bread or melted on pancakes or biscuits.

Honeyed Whiskey Butter

½ cup butter, softened

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons whiskey (Irish whiskey recommended)

Beat butter with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.

Beat in the honey, then slowly beat in the whiskey, a little at a time, beating until the mixture is just mixed. Spoon into a small container with a tight-fitting lid.

Stir before serving. Keeps for 3 days at room temperature.

Refrigeration is not recommended. If you refrigerate it, the whiskey will separate and rise to the surface.

Recipe adapted from Irish Pantry by Noel McMeel with Lynn Marie Hulsman

Food, Pages 31 on 03/12/2014

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