St. Patrick’s Day is a time to celebrate with fun, family and food. The weather is edging closer to Spring and everything outside is about to burst into full bloom. In our house, St. Patrick’s Day begins with the surprise that leprechauns have been here- you can tell because there is green “pee” in every toilet bowl! Guess they don’t know how to flush! Tip: a drop of green food color does the trick if you catch my drift Mom. To add “lucky charm” to your day, start your morning with a Top O’ the Morning Irish Coffee (non-alcoholic), and don’t forget to wear something green! For dinner, try the surprisingly satisfying Sham-ROCK Shephard’s Pie and end your meal with Rainbow Bites for dessert. Since everyone benefits from the luck of the Irish this month, try your luck treasure hunting with my simple tips below and see how many treasures you find!
I’ve actually followed a rainbow all the way to the end and it just reaffirmed what I’ve always known. About 15 years ago, my husband and I were driving to my father-in-law’s house and noticed a gorgeous rainbow in the sky. As we continued to drive towards my FILs house, that rainbow stayed with us. At first, we thought it was a coincidence, and at best, we thought we’d see it arch over his house. As we got closer, it looked like it ended in his backyard. I was a giddy kid over joyed with the idea of actually seeing where the rainbow ended. What would I do if I actually saw a leprechaun? Waxhaw used to have a gold mine, what if this was God’s way of telling us there was gold nearby- a real life “diamonds in your own backyard” story? I had so many wild and crazy ideas, but I knew one thing for certain- wherever it ended in his yard, I was going to dig. My FIL is a pretty cool guy, they don’t call him Sweet Daddy for nothing, so even if my husband bailed on me, I knew my FIL would be on board. As we came down his driveway, our eyes followed the arch over the 2-story split level house and down, down, down until it ended- and killed my idea of digging up a treasure. This gorgeous rainbow ended in his 2 metal burn barrel trashcans, which sat on a huge concrete pad. Like they say, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure- which leads me to my next topic: treasure hunting!
Treasure Hunting 101
My love of flea markets and junk shops comes from my grandmother, Sylvia Juanita Glaze, AKA “Toots”. When I would spend summers at her home in Alliance, Alabama, we’d get up at the crack of dawn every Friday and Saturday and hit 2 flea markets and every yard sale in between. She bought any and everything she thought was pretty and her country home was filled with nick knacks, costume jewelry, chandeliers and porcelain dolls- it was a wonderland to me. Even as I think back now, what I wouldn’t give to walk through her treasure filled home again! Over the years, I’ve picked up some tips that’ll help you get up to speed quick if you’d like to try your luck at treasure hunting for yourself.
1-Get inspired before you go
If I want to spruce up my wardrobe with some unique or vintage pieces, I flip through Pinterest for hot trends or colors and have an idea of what I want before I go shopping. This keeps me from getting overwhelmed and helps me focus. Sometimes I find a deal that is too good to pass up, like a $300 gown for $5, I’ll buy it and bank it for a future occasion. Other times, I’ll score a handful of cute dresses or $5 each and feel like I just struck gold.
2-Carry cash in small bills
For yard sales and flea markets, having exact change makes negotiating easier. If they are selling something for $10, but you only want to pay $8, it is easier to just have $8 in your hand to help close the deal. If you have a $10 or $20 bill, they know you have enough to pay full price and may hold out for full price.
3-Be picky
Save yourself the trouble and only buy things in your size with no stains, no missing buttons and no broken zippers. We are all too busy to buy broken things and pretend we’ll fix them later. Buying your real size is also important, trust me, you will not lose five pounds to fit into that dress, so keep it real and buy clothes that fit. When it comes to shoes, if they hurt when you try them on for 5 seconds, then do not buy them no matter how pretty they are. Again, save yourself the trouble of re- donating them next time you clean out your closet. Before you buy that cute nick knack, know where it will go in your home. I see cute things every time I shop, but if I don’t have a place for it, I don’t buy it.
4- Make sure it’s a deal
Last week I scored a $100 espresso maker for $4.99 and yes, I’ll stand there and google the brand to know if it’s a deal or not. Several times I’ve thought I was getting a deal, only to google it and find out I could buy it brand new cheaper than the used item in front of me. I also can see user reviews online and know if the brand I’m looking up is good or not. I also google clothing brands, especially of it’s a brand that looks expensive, but I want to know if their sizing runs small or not. The best part of scoring a thrift store deal is knowing how much you saved.
5-Have fun!
Everyone in the South loves their initials and I am no exception. I love buying engraved glasses with any of my initials on it- it’s like they were made just for me! Once, my husband scored an almost complete set of smokey gray stemmed glasses from the seventies with a ‘T” engraved on them- almost a perfect replica of his “T” tattoo. We also buy initialed glasses and give them to family members as little surprise presents- you can’t beat spending 50 cents on a glass and seeing your loved one’s face light up when you give it to them.
Once you get the fever, you’ll find others who share in this treasure quest and trade tips the “best shops” in nearby towns to check out. For Lancaster, I suggest these for starters: Goodwill-1142 SC-9 Bypass, Hospice & Community Care Resale Shop-121 S. Main Street, The Shops On Main-212 S Main St, Jean’s Shop-1142 SC-9 Bypass and Christian Services-1227 Great Falls Hwy.
Sham-ROCK Shephard’s Pie by Melanie Knight, makes 6 servings
In honor of Keith Richard’s of the Rolling Stones, I’ve re-created his favorite Shephard’s Pie in a #workingmom friendly version. My sister-in law, Shannon Glaze of Travelers Rest, SC, turned me on to Bob Evan’s mashed potatoes over 10 years ago. These ready to eat mashed potatoes are second only to my mom’s homemade dish.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 1 envelope Lipton beefy onion dry soup mix
- ½ can Campbell’s Beef Consume soup (save other 1/2 can)
- 1 -32oz pkg Bob Evan’s Family Size mashed potatoes
- 1 tbls butter- cut into little pats
- Optional- ½ cup green peas for shamrock decoration
- Optional- shredded cheddar cheese for topping
- Optional- remaining ½ can of beef consume to drizzle on top
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Brown the hamburger meat over medium heat until cooked through. Add 1 envelope of the dry onion soup mix and ½ can of beef consume and stir until mixed in. In a glass 9×13 casserole dish, spread the cooked beef out into an even layer. Next, scoop spoons of the mashed potatoes onto the beef and spread out like you are icing a cake. Try not to get beef “crumbs” in the mashed potato layer. If you do, you can just push them through and smooth the mashed potatoes out. Dot the entire top with pats of butter. Next, for each shamrock, make three circles with peas and a stem- repeat to make 3 shamrocks. Bake for 20 mins and serve. My family tops theirs with cheddar cheese. You can also heat the remaining ½ can of beef consume and drizzle on top.
Rainbow Bites by Melanie Knight, makes 20 servings
These little treats are cute and colorful! Directions below are for readymade brownie bites, but you can also make your own with your favorite brownie mix or Kodiak Dark Chocolate pancake mix.
Ingredients
- 20ct Brownie Bites (readymade- found in the bakery section)
- 20 gold Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolate with Almonds
- 1 pack Sweet Tarts Twisted Rainbow Ropes (12ct)
- 1 can vanilla frosting
- Green decorating sugar
- 1 tube white decorating icing
Assembly directions
Ice each brownie with vanilla frosting. Pour a layer of green sugar into a bowl, then dip each brownie top into the sugar until the top is covered in green sugar. Next. Cut each rainbow rope in 2. For each brownie, make a U shape of the rainbow rope and push each end into the brownie. Pipe white “clouds” at the end of each rainbow end. Push the pointy top of 1 Hershey Kiss into the middle of each brownie bite to make the gold coin.
Top O’ the Morning Irish Coffee by Melanie Knight, make 1 serving
For an “adult” coffee, substitute the Bailey’s Original Irish Cream Coffee Creamer (non- alcoholic) for Bailey’s Original Irish Cream Liqueur (contains alcohol). If you find yourself wanting to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day without either of these, just top your coffee with whip cream and sprinkle green decorating sugar on top- no judgement here!
Ingredients
- 1 cup hot, freshly brewed coffee (or 1 shot espresso)
- 2 tbls Bailey’s Original Irish Cream Coffee Creamer (non- alcoholic)
- 1 tbl Torani Vanilla Syrup
- Reddi-wip Original Whipped Dairy Cream topping
- Green decorating sugar for topping
Directions
Gently stir coffee, coffee creamer and vanilla syrup until mixed. Add a swirl of whip cream on top and sprinkle with green decorating sugar. For added flair, use and elegant cup and saucer. I picked this one up at Goodwill.
