Friday, March 17, 2023

Happy St. Patrick's Day

The Chicago River Dyed Green

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! On St. Patrick's Day, I always think about growing up in the Chicago area and the tradition of dyeing the Chicago River green. For six decades, Chicago has transformed the waterway into a shade of bright emerald green by dumping 100 pounds of environmentally friendly dye right into the Chicago River. 

This unique tradition started in 1962 under Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley. He had originally wanted to colorize Lake Michigan until he was persuaded to dye the more manageable Chicago River instead!!!!

An environmentally friendly vegetable based dye is used and the formula is a closely guarded secret.

Two motorboats handle the task, one dumping the powder and the other stirring the water. The green color lasts for several days.


The Chicago River St. Patrick's Day

Sarasota/Venice does not have any comparable tradition, but then everything here is green 365 days a year anyway with all of our golf courses, palm trees, plush lawns, and abundant rainfall. 

I love cucumber soup and it's green, so I plan to make some today. I love cold soups and this is one of my favorite recipes. And I'll get some Irish Soda Bread from Publix. Their bakery is so good!

Cold Cucumber Soup with Yogurt and Dill


Cold Cucumber Soup with Yogurt and Dill

Ingredients

2 large cucumbers (2 1/4 pounds), halved and seeded—1/2 cup finely diced, the rest coarsely chopped

1 1/2 cups plain Greek yogurt

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 small shallot, chopped

1 garlic clove

1/3 cup loosely packed dill

1/4 cup loosely packed flat-leaf parsley leaves

2 tablespoons loosely packed tarragon leaves

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling

Salt

Fresh ground white pepper

1/2 red onion, finely chopped

Directions

In a blender, combine the chopped cucumber with the yogurt, lemon juice, shallot, garlic, dill, parsley, tarragon and the 1/4 cup of olive oil. Blend until smooth. Season with salt and white pepper, cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.

Season the soup again just before serving. Pour the soup into bowls. Garnish with the finely diced cucumber, red onion and a drizzle of olive oil and serve.

(via Food & Wine)

Have a great day.

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5 comments:

  1. I’m usually not a fan of cold soups, but this sounds yummy. Will definitely make this soon!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And yes, love love Publix bakery. Absolutely the best Key Lime pie around.
      Will look for their soda bread. Thanks!

      Delete
  2. May the LUCK 'O the IRISH be with YOU today :) Enjoyed reading about the Chicago River. Thank you kindly for the info. you bring to my inbox !

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  3. I love cold soups too & your recipe sounds wonderful. Thnx!

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  4. Happy St. Patrick's Day, and oh my, that is a very bright shade of green! Your cucumber soup recipe sounds delicious, but it's still a bit chilly here in northern California for cold soup, so I will save your recipe and try it when the weather gets warmer.

    ReplyDelete