Happy St. Patrick's Day!

St. Patrick's Day has been a special holiday for me since I was a kid because it was one of my dad's favorite holidays. Yes, my very Cuban father loved St. Patrick's Day because it reminded him of New York - and let's get real because of the eating and drinking!

Since I was in my teens, my father and I - and sometimes mom - would always go to the St. Patrick's Day parade and celebration here in Miami. OK, so Miami might not be the first city you think of when you thing about a St. Patrick's Day celebration, but we have a parade and a big carnival like event in Downtown. Really. So what if in addition to being able to get corn beef and cabbage or shepard's pie you can also get arepas and Cuban coffee?

Anyway, once I got older and my father retired, every St. Patrick's Day my father would come pick me up at work (if it was a weekend, my mom would come along) and we'd have lunch at a tavern close to work for corned beef and cabbage, green beer (or in my case green Sprite) and an Irish coffee! For years we did this, and I really miss it.

Today I woke up with a mild case of the mean reds, so my husband, God bless him, tried to find a place to get me some corned beef and cabbage. There were several places serving it but they were all packed, or too far, or whatever - so we wound up eating sushi! Hey - it's OK to break a tradition every now and then, right? I just love him for trying.

So, here's hoping the luck of the Irish shines upon you and that you find your pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Slainte!