I often lament how busy holidays are. And not even just the big ones — these “B list” holidays are often the worst. (Sorry, St. Patrick’s Day.) But really, if it’s not a school or work holiday, it often seems impossible to squeeze in some celebrating.
So when do we do it? Breakfast.
Oh, what a week it’s been here! Why is buying and selling a home so stressful?! Isn’t there a better way to do this?
If you’re thinking, “Wait! I didn’t know you were moving!”, don’t fret – we’re not even sure we are. But we did happen upon a house we just love so we’re doing everything we can to make it ours. The past week has been an endless parade of offers, showings, back-and-forth with lawyers/realtors/mortgage brokers… I’m emotionally spent.
And, do you know when everyone wants to look at your house? DINNER TIME! We’ve been fast-fooding it up. Jake has declared McDonald’s his favorite, and I’ve been going with it because it means I get a shamrock shake. Those things are seriously like stress relief in a cup.
When I started flipping through pie recipes to celebrate today with, this one jumped out. A pie version of my beloved shake? Too good to be true! But this is actually a really close to the real thing taste-wise – and you could totally freeze the pie to make it even closer!
Everyone here loved it – and with only a few ingredients and about five minutes to prep, it’s a no-brainer if you’re having a crazy week like I am but still want to do a little celebrating – either for pi day or for St. Patrick’s Day!
Looking for more Pi Day inspiration? The Redhead Baker is hosting an awesome link-up of pie recipes – both sweet and savory – from lots of bloggers!
Shamrock Shake Pie
(from Wine and Glue)
Makes 1 pie
2 3-oz boxes instant vanilla pudding mix
2 cups cold milk
1/2 tsp. mint extract
Green food coloring
8 oz. frozen whipped topping, thawed
Graham cracker crust
Whipped cream and cherries, for serving, optional
In a large bowl, whisk together the pudding mix and the milk until the mix is dissolved. Stir in the food coloring (about 15 drops), and the mint extract. Fold in the frozen whipped topping until no longer streaky.
Transfer to a graham cracker crust and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
Top with whipped cream and a cherry before serving, if desired.
I never make it through Lent without doing one pizza Friday so it seems fitting to finish out this year’s Lenten meal series with a pizza. I originally started this series to get away from just ordering a pizza every Friday – it was a bad habit and something we’d do so often it didn’t feel like anything special. Things have really swung the other way – breaking out this Friday pizza was such a treat.
My go-to pizza recipe is on the plain side. It works perfect on the grill or paired with lots of toppings (which we usually load on) but falls a little short for a plain, oven-baked pie. I ran across this recipe when we still had a bottle of Guinness left from St. Patrick’s Day so it was meant to be. The beer adds just the right amount of flavor to this dough to make it perfect for a more plain pie.
Guinness Pizza
(from Baked By Rachel)
Makes 1 12″ pizza
1/2 cup Guinness
1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. olive oil
In a small saucepan, heat the Guinness to 115F degrees. (I used a candy thermometer to keep track.) Stir in the yeast and sugar until dissolved and let stand for five minutes.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour and salt. On low, mix in the Guinness, followed by the olive oil. Add additional olive oil or flour as needed to get a dough ball to form.
Transfer the dough to a greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled, about an hour.
To bake: spread into a 12″ circle, top as desired and bake for 20-25 minutes in a 425F degree oven.