Many of my Irish friends grew up carving turnips to ward off evil spirits at Halloween because pumpkins were not readily available in Ireland until recently. While they didn’t have pumpkins, they did ...

Why is Christian Science in our name? Our name is about honesty. The Monitor is owned by The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and we’ve always been transparent about that. The church publishes the ...

St. Patrick’s Day is Saturday, March 17, and that usually calls for some type of Irish-themed celebration. You will find a good supply of corned beef, cabbage and potatoes in the grocery stores, along ...

It's that time of year when everyone in Bay City is Irish. And those who are Irish are more than happy to come up with ideas to help celebrate the holiday. For example, the Robert T. Shea Senior ...

My cooking is heavily influenced by my Swedish roots, but I’m also part Irish. Because of this heritage, my family has always held a special place in our hearts for St. Patrick’s Day. Most people are ...

This Irish barmbrack recipe from chef Donal Skehan is a traditional way to celebrate the Halloween season "This recipe makes a really beautiful moist loaf which is packed with flavor from the mixed ...

When the boss gently hints that you should do something, it’s prudent to pay attention. Fortunately, the gentle hint I recently received was regarding sharing a recipe for Irish food, so I’m all in. I ...

Ireland has some spooktacular Halloween traditions and one of our favorites has always been the anticipation of who will get the ring in the traditional Barmbrack bread. Barmbrack is a fruit-filled ...

It is time for Barmbrack to grace bread bins and cupboards across the country yet again, and like Halloween itself, the cake has roots in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. The fortune-telling ...

Barmbrack is one of those Irish traditions that is handed down through the generations. The Irish fruit loaf, or cake, is a sweet and sticky treat containing symbolic elements that, according to the ...