Hylo; sut mae?

(Hello! How are you?) St. David's Day is on March 1 and we are planning on having Coffee, Tea & Thee time to honor him. Husband's family has some Welsh in their ancestry (Sunshine's middle name is actually a Welsh version of Mary) and I love any reason to make a quiche! Not that the Welsh are particularly fond of quiche, but I have a great recipe for Leek and Cheese Quiche and since the Welsh do have a fondness for that scallion on steroids, it works! I was looking for some St. David's Day crafts and found some really great websites that (taking my cue from the ever-generous Dawn) I thought I would share in case anyone else wants join in the fun.

• First checkout this website packed with fun for St. David's Day. Everything from castles to dragons, legends and folklore. Packed I tell you! We will probably spend most of our time pouring over all the great resources here.
• You can find out a little more about the customs and history of St. David's Day by visiting St. Fagan's National History Museum. Be sure to click on the links at the bottom of the article to find out more about the Welsh national emblem and costumes.
• I found some leeks to color here and here. I think we might cut them out when we are done and wear them around the house!
• Oh, there is a daffodil windmill craft found on the first website I linked to but here it is on it's own. I did a trial one using a 5 inch square and a brass brad for the connecting piece. It doesn't spin like a windmill, but makes a very pretty flower.
• I am always trying to force encourage my kiddos to try new foods and I find that a special feast day celebration usually puts them in a more receptive mood. This Potato Leek Soup gets rave reviews over at Allrecipes!
• Since the children have given up treats for Lent, I want to serve some Welsh Rarebit for Coffee, Tea and Thee time. I haven't decided which recipe I will use, but I thought I would share a few with you all. I think Alton Brown's might be a bit too foreign for my children's palate. These look promising. This one seems the most simple.
• You can find a few more Welsh recipes here and here. And you can peruse 127 of them here!
• The Wales Wide Web has some recipes posted with their traditional names and some added information like this note at the bottom of the rarebit recipe:

  There is an English abomination of this recipe in which beer is used. If you must use beer, keep it for washing your hair!

• I found this website just now but haven't had a chance to look it over. Tell me if you find something good!

Anyway, I hope you have fun poking around some of these websites whether you speak Cymraeg or not. I will leave you with the quiche recipe I mentioned earlier. The recipe for the crust is included, but I have also made my own or used a pre-made crust. Da boch chi ffrind! (Goodbye, friend!)

Cheese and Leek Quiche

Ingredients:
Crust:
1 1/2 C. all purpose flour
6 Tbl. butter
ice cold water
Filling:
4 oz. trimmed leek, thinly sliced
3 oz. Stilton cheese
2 Tbl. butter
3 eggs
3/4 C. milk
pinch of paprika
salt and pepper

Put the flour in a bowl with a pinch of salt. Cut the butter into pieces and rub into flour with your fingertips until it resembles fine bread crumbs. Mix to a smooth dough with 6 -7 tsp. chilled water, knead lightly and roll out thinly on a floured surface. Use to line pie pan, trimming excess. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 375. Melt the butter in a small skillet and saute the leek for 4-5 minutes, until soft but not brown, stirring frequently. Spoon into a bowl, stir in diced Stilton, then spread over the crust.

Beat the eggs and milk together in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Pour over the leek and cheese mixture and sprinkle with paprika. Cook for 30-35 minutes. Let sit before serving.