Irish Pound Cake

For dessert on St. Patrick's Day, I made this pound cake. I'm not sure how authentically Irish it is, but it sure was delicious! I got the recipe from All Recipes and it is a pound cake in the true sense of the word. It's loaded with sugar, butter, cream cheese and refined flour - yikes! But for a special treat one day of the year, this cake hits the spot! Yummy! I topped mine with cut strawberries and a little plain yogurt with brown sugar mixed in. If you're serving this to your kids, like I did, don't worry about the whiskey - it imparts a wonderful flavor, but the alcohol pretty much gets cooked out. This was a nice end to our St. Patrick's Day menu, and it's a dessert that is fitting for a party. **I couldn't locate mace, so I used freshly grated nutmeg, being sure to grate the outer shell of the nutmeg, as I hear that is what mace actually is in the first place!**

Irish Pound Cake
Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
6 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups white sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups self-rising flour
1/8 teaspoon ground mace (or freshly grated nutmeg)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (1.5 fluid ounce) jigger Irish whiskey

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a tube pan.

2. Beat the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the sugar until well blended. The mixture should be noticeably lighter in color. Add the room-temperature eggs one at a time, allowing each egg to blend into the butter mixture before adding the next. Beat in the 2 tablespoons flour with the last egg. Stir in the remaining 2 cups flour until just combined; stir in the mac, vanilla, and whiskey. Pour into the prepared tube pan.

3. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

Dublin Coddle

For our dinner, I made one of my most favorite things to order when I eat at an Irish pub. Dublin Coddle is a perfect blend of meats, onions, potatoes and parsley. It's cooked slowly in a broth until all the ingredients sort of meld together into a flavorful dish. I used homemade chicken stock, but you could use water, since the meat imparts such a wonderful flavor into the liquid. Just give yourself a bit of time, as this meal takes about an hour and 20 minutes from start to finish. Pair with a vegetable and some soda bread, and you have a great meal that will fill your belly with warmth and happiness. This recipe is from my Irish Food & Cooking cookbook.

Dublin Coddle
Ingredients:
8x8mm/1/3-inch thick ham
8 best-quality lean pork sausages
2 large onions, thinly sliced
2 lb Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced
6 tbs chopped parsley
Salt and pepper
5 cups water or chicken broth

1. Cut the ham into large chunks and cook with the sausages in 5 cups boiling water or chicken broth for 5 minutes. Drain, but reserve the cooking liquid.

2. Put the meat into a pan or ovenproof dish with the onions, potatoes and parsley. Season, and add just enough of the cooking liquid to cover. Cover with a tight-fitting lid; lay a piece of baking parchment on top before putting on the lid.

3. Simmer gently over a low heat for about 1 hour, or until the liquid is reduced by half and all the ingredients are cooked but not mushy. Serve hot with the vegetables on top with the traditional accompaniments of fresh soda bread and a glass of stout.

Bacon salad with farmhouse cheese dressing

Lunch for our Irish meal today was this beautiful salad topped with a lovely farmhouse cheese dressing. I was a bit cautious about this salad dressing, but oh my goodness, it was wonderful! The sauteed apples and bacon mixed with the warm dressing was a delight...crunchy, soft and tangy all rolled into one! I made fresh soda bread to go with this salad, and it was the perfect complement. This recipe also came from my Irish Food & Cooking cookbook, and I can't believe I haven't tried it before. Give this one a try, even if it's not St. Patrick's Day.

Bacon salad with farmhouse cheese dressing
Ingredients:
For the salad:
2 tbs olive oil
4 oz. bacon, diced
1 eating apple, cored and chopped
2 small heads of lettuce
squeeze of lemon juice
salt and pepper

For the dressing:
2/3 cup sour cream
1 tbs cider
2 oz Camembert-style cheese, chopped
a dash of cider vinegar

1. Heat 1 tbs of the olive oil in a large frying pan and add the diced bacon. Cook over a medium heat until crisp and golden. Add the chopped apple and cook gently for 1-2 minutes until golden brown and softened.

2. Tear the lettuce carefully into bite-sized pieces.

3. To make the dressing, heat the sour cream, cider, cheese and vinegar together in a small pan over a low heat until smooth and creamy. Dress the lettuce with some of the remaining oil and lemon juice and season to taste, then divide among the four plates. Place the warm apple and bacon on top, then drizzle over the dressing.

Oatmeal Pancakes

For breakfast this morning, I made oatmeal pancakes with pinhead Irish oatmeal and whole wheat flour. Nathan was not a fan because he doesn't like oatmeal, but Micah and I gobbled these right up. These fill you up really fast - I only needed one with my two pieces of bacon and one egg, but the boys each ate three. You can find pinhead oatmeal (or steel cut) in pretty much any grocery store nowadays, and I use it almost exclusively when making oatmeal anymore. This recipe is from my Irish Food & Cooking cookbook.

Oatmeal Pancakes
Ingredients:
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup fine pinhead oatmeal
pinch of salt
2 eggs
about 1.25 cups buttermilk
butter for greasing the griddle

1. Mix the flour, oatmeal and salt in a food processor. Beat in the eggs and add enough buttermilk to make a creamy batter of the same consistency of ordinary pancakes.

2. Thoroughly heat a griddle or cast-iron frying pan over medium-hot heat. When very hot, grease lightly with butter.

3. Pour in the batter, about a ladleful at a time. Cook until set. Flip and cook for 1 minute.

4. Keep the pancakes warm while you cook the others. Serve with rashers (bacon) and eggs.

St. Patrick's Day Menu

Sláinte and Happy St. Patrick's Day, my most favorite day of the year!!! We have had a full day of Irish food, music, poetry and movies! Here is my menu for the day...I'll post the recipes and pictures shortly!

Breakfast:
Irish Potato Pancakes with Rashers and Eggs

Lunch:
Bacon Salad with Farmhouse Cheese Dressing and Soda Bread

Dinner:
Dublin Coddle

Dessert:
Irish Pound Cake

In honor of my favorite Irish poet, William Butler Yeats, I'll post my most favorite poem of his.

Where dips the rocky highland
Of Sleuth Wood in the lake,
There lies a leafy island
Where flapping herons wake
The drowsy water rats;
There we've hid our faery vats,
Full of berrys
And of reddest stolen cherries.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand.
For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand.

Where the wave of moonlight glosses
The dim gray sands with light,
Far off by furthest Rosses
We foot it all the night,
Weaving olden dances
Mingling hands and mingling glances
Till the moon has taken flight;
To and fro we leap
And chase the frothy bubbles,
While the world is full of troubles
And anxious in its sleep.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand.

Where the wandering water gushes
From the hills above Glen-Car,
In pools among the rushes
That scarce could bathe a star,
We seek for slumbering trout
And whispering in their ears
Give them unquiet dreams;
Leaning softly out
From ferns that drop their tears
Over the young streams.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand.

Away with us he's going,
The solemn-eyed -
He'll hear no more the lowing
Of the calves on the warm hillside
Or the kettle on the hob
Sing peace into his breast,
Or see the brown mice bob
Round and round the oatmeal chest
For he comes the human child
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand
From a world more full of weeping than he can understand.

Brotchan foltchep a.k.a. Leek and Oatmeal Soup

I love leeks. Few vegetables are as versatile as the leek. Perfect in a soup, a tart, as roasted on their own or with a variety of other veg, the leek has a wonderfully mild onion flavor that permeates almost any application you choose. I had three beautiful leeks from my CSA this last week and decided I wanted to make soup. Normally, I would use leeks as a base for broccoli soup and potato soup, but I really wanted to highlight the leek, and not have it as just a background flavor.

I ran across this recipe in my Irish Food & Cooking cookbook, and I'm so glad I did. Don't be fooled by the fact that there's only 5 actual ingredients in this soup (other than seasoning). It packs some serious flavor punch. And talk about comforting...oh my goodness. This will become an annual fall/winter soup in our house. I served mine up with some homemade soda bread, topped with apricot jam...the good feelings this meal prompted lasted me well throughout the day. The recipe below is double what I made - next time, I will be sure to have six leeks on hand so I can make the full recipe.

Brotchan foltchep (Leek and Oatmeal Soup)
Ingredients:
5 cups chicken stock and milk, mixed (2.5 cups stock, 2.5 cups milk)
2 tbs medium pinhead oatmeal (Irish oatmeal - you can find this in the grocery store - McCann's is a brand I know and love)
2 tbs butter
6 large leeks, sliced in 3/4-inch pieces
Sea salt and ground black pepper
Pinch of allspice

1. Bring the stock and milk mixture to a boil over medium heat and sprinkle in the oatmeal. Stir well to prevent lumps forming, and then simmer gently.

2. Wash the leeks in a bowl. Melt the butter in a separate pan and cook the leeks over a gentle heat until softened slightly, then add them to the stock mixture. Simmer for a further 15-20 minutes, or until the oatmeal is cooked. Extra stock or milk can be added if the soup is too thick.

3. Season with salt, pepper and allspice. Serve in warmed bowls.

Cheese and Onion Soda Bread

Last night we were trying to eat through the leftovers in the fridge. We had leftover corn chowder and vegetable and bulgur soup. So, I pulled together a salad and made this delightful version of a soda bread. This is a recipe from a book I got on the bargain aisle at the book store. It's called 100 Great Breads by Paul Hollywood. Serve this bread warm right out of the oven with butter. I don't know that it's a traditional Irish soda bread (cheese and onions don't seem too far fetched), but it sure tastes good!

Cheese and Onion Soda Bread
Ingredients:
Scant 4 cups white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
1.5 tsp salt
1.25 cups buttermilk
2 tbs sugar
3/4 stick butter, softened
1 tbs baking powder
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
3/4 cup grated Cheddar cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 425. Line a baking sheet or prepare a baking stone.

2. Put all the ingredients except the onion and cheese in a food mixer and, using a paddle blade and medium speed, blend together for 2 minutes. Alternatively, put into a bowl and mix well by hand for 5 minutes. Add the onion and cheese and incorporate. Don't overmix.

3. Divide the dough into two pieces and tip out onto a lightly floured counter. Shape each piece into a ball, then flatted each with your hand so they are approximately 2 inches/5 cm thick. Cut a deep cross into each, then dust with a little flour and put on the baking sheet or stone.

4. Bake for 3o minutes and serve warm.

Baked Courgettes with Farmhouse Cheese

This is one of my favorite recipes in my Irish Food & Cooking cookbook. It's so easy to do, and so delicious! You can cut back on the butter...it really doesn't need it, but consider trying the real deal at least once to see what you think.

Baked Courgettes (zucchini) with Farmhouse Cheese
Ingredients:
4 courgettes (zucchini)
2 tbs grated hard farmhouse cheese, I used Irish cheddar
2 tbs butter
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice the zucchini in half lengthwise. Butter a shallow baking dish and arrange the zucchini, cut side up, inside the dish.

2. Sprinkle the cheese over the zucchini, and sprinkle over a few knobs of butter.

3. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the zucchini are tender and the cheese is bubbling and golden brown. Serve immediately.

Leek and Bacon Tart

This tart was the hit of our St. Patrick's Day festivities. I must admit, however, that I cheated a little. The recipe for the tart dough in my Irish cookbook didn't look quite as good as my tried and true French Plain Pastry Dough recipe that I use for almost everything. This is Laura Calder's recipe that I've posted before. So, I admit it, I used a French recipe for the tart crust, but I'm glad I did. It's so darn good. The rest, however, is Irish.

Plain Pastry Dough (Laura Calder's Recipe)
Ingredients:
1.5 cups AP flour
1/4 tsp salt
7 tbs chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
4-5 tbs ice-cold water, more if needed
(This fits a 9-10 inch tart shell.)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Combine the flour, salt and butter in a food processor. Pulse until you see the butter start to make little balls. (About 6-8 pulses.)

2. Add the water and pulse until a dough forms. It will not be a perfect round ball, but you'll see it come together. Don't over-process. Remove from the processor and pat into a disk. The dough will be neither sticky nor dry.

3. Put on a floured surface and roll out to fit your tart shell. Line with parchment paper and fill with baking beans. Bake blind for 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Remove the beans and parchment paper. Fill with tart ingredients.

Leek and Bacon Tart
Ingredients:
8 oz bacon, diced
4 leeks, sliced
6 eggs
1/2 cup cream cheese
1 tbs mild mustard
1/2 cup cheese
pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cook the bacon in a hot pan until crisp. Remove bacon from pan. Add leeks to bacon fat and cook for 15-20 minutes over low-medium heat until soft. Remove from heat and combine with the bacon. In a bowl, beat the eggs, cream cheese, mustard, cayenne pepper and seasoning together. Add to the leaks and bacon.

2. Pour filling into tart shell. Top with shredded cheese. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden.

2012 St. Patrick's Day

This year's menu saw some successes and some failures! Oh no! But that's okay - it was a fun day for us in the Larsen household, with the Irish music blaring, the Irish movies playing late into the evening, and the color green abounding in our house (yes, we have Republican/Fenian sentiments here).

So, here was my menu for the day:

Breakfast:
Bacon (not Irish bacon, I'm afraid - I can't stand it - soft and fatty)
Brown Soda Breakfast Scones
Eggs

Lunch:
Leek and Bacon Tart
Baked courgettes (zucchini) with farmhouse cheese

Dinner:
Dingle pies
Vanilla fudge

Here's what went well...breakfast was a hit...brown soda scones were yum (not as good as regular soda bread, but good), and who can go wrong with bacon and eggs. Lunch was the smash hit of the day. The Leek and Bacon tart was TO DIE FOR and the baked courgettes were delicious. Dinner was a bit of a disaster. I made the dough for the handheld pies and it was too much for the food processor. I ended up having to throw it out (heartbreaking - 5 cups of flour down the tube, not to mention the butter), make a different dough version and then make two larger pies, rather than six handheld pies. They turned out well, but because I was frustrated by the point I got the second dough going, I was sloppy with wrapping it around the meat and veggie filling. This caused the dough to be too heavy in some parts, and not heavy enough in others. The vanilla fudge did NOT set up, and it too, went by the wayside. Sigh. But, that's okay. My heart was in it, but the execution was off. I'm determined to try the Dingle Pies again someday and do it the right way.

I will post the Leek and Bacon Tart and the Baked Courgette recipes, but the rest, I'll tuck away until I am more successful with them, unless of course, someone is interested. If you are, post a comment, and I will post the recipe for you.

Brown soda scones

Brown soda scones

Dingle pie

Dingle pie

Irish Soda-Bread Biscuits

As you know, my favorite holiday of the year, St. Patrick's Day, is rapidly approaching. I'm already planning my menu, and I do that by testing recipes to see if they are good enough to make an appearance on my table on March 17. The Food Network Magazine for the month of March had a recipe for soda-bread biscuits that I thought looked interesting. Normally, I make large, round loaves of Irish soda-bread, but the idea of biscuits intrigued me, so I thought I'd whip up a batch to go with my Italian Wedding Soup. The recipe calls for raisins or currants and caraway seeds, but I didn't have either on hand, so I made these biscuits without those. I'm eager to try the recipe with those additions as soon as I can gather them at the store.

I'm delighted with these mini versions. Mine were not as puffy as the picture, so next time, I'll not flatten down the dough quite as much, as much of the charm of soda-bread comes from the lovely dome shape. But these were fast (less than 5 minutes to prepare, and only 15 minutes to cook), fragrant, and were HEAVENLY with Irish butter and honey. I'd say, they will definitely be present in the Larsen household on St. Patrick's Day!

Irish Soda-Bread Biscuits
Ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp kosher salt
2 tbs cold butter, diced
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1 tbs caraway seeds (optional)
3/4 cup buttermilk
**Remember, if you don't have buttermilk on hand, 3/4 cup milk with 3/4 tsp vinegar or lemon juice - let sit for 5 minutes, then stir, and you have buttermilk!**

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, salt and baking soda in a food processor (or by hand in a bowl).
3. Cut in the butter, or pulse in the food processor.
4. Add the raisins and caraway seeds.
5. Add the buttermilk and pulse or mix until a dough forms.
6. Pat out the dough until 1 inch thick, cut into four to six rounds.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Serve with Irish butter and honey and prepare to melt into your chair!

Irish Potato Cakes

I was looking for an interesting side dish to go with our Christmas Eve beef dinner tonight, and I remembered a recipe I found in my Irish Cooking cookbook. These are traditional Irish Potato Cakes, that my book says are normally served with butter and sugar. But I'm serving them as a savory side with a herbed butter. They are super easy to make and oh so yummy to eat.

Irish Potato Cakes
Ingredients:

1.5 lbs potatoes, peeled and boiled
2 tbs butter
Salt
1.5 cups AP flour

1. Peel and boil potatoes. Drain and mash in pot. Add butter and salt. Let cool.

2. Pour out onto a floured surface. Start adding flour as you make a dough. You can use up to 1.5 cups, but just add as much or as little as you need to make a pliable, but roll-able dough. Roll out to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into triangles.

3. On a dry griddle or a heavy cast iron skillet, cook each potato cake for 3-4 minutes, or until they are brown on each side. Serve warm with butter.

Beef and Irish Stout Casserole with Herby Dumplings

Beef and Irish Stout Casserole with Herby Dumplings (recipe courtesy Ireland of the Welcomes magazine)
Ingredients:

2 tbs. sunflower oil
1/2 lb. shallots, peeled and sliced
1 large onion, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1 in. pieces
1 tbs sugar
1/4 cup AP flour
1.5 lbs. good stew meat
2-3 tbs. Irish butter
2 cups Guinness
3/4 cup Beef Stock
Thyme
Bay Leaves
2 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/2 lb. mushrooms (quartered)
Salt and Pepper
Brown Sugar (my addition)

1. Heat 1/2 the oil in a large, flameproof casserole. Add the shallots and fry until nicely browned. Remove to a plate. Add the carrots, onions and sugar and cook until browned. Add to the shallots on the plate.

2. Put the flour into a large bowl and season well with salt and pepper. Add the beef and toss until every piece is thoroughly coated. Put the rest of the oil in the casserole and cook the beef in batches until they are all nicely browned on each side. Remove all the beef to the plate with the veggies.

3. Add 1-2 tbs. butter to the casserole and the remaining flour (left over from the beef) and stir until blended. Gradually add the Guinness , rubbing the bottom of the pan to release all the yummy brown bits. Stir in the stock, followed by the beef and veggies, thyme, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce and any additional salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, part-cover and leave to simmer very slowly on the stove for 1.5 hours. Add a couple tbs. of brown sugar if the Guinness bitter taste is too strong for you (it was for me).

4. Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter in a large pan and fry up the mushrooms. Don't overcrowd the mushrooms. You don't want steamed mushrooms...you want caramelized mushrooms. When the 1.5 hours is up on the casserole, add the mushrooms, part-cover and simmer for another hour. (See below if you want to add the herby dumplings.)

Herby Dumplings
Ingredients:

1 cup self-raising flour
1 large pinch of baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3-4 tbs butter
Thyme
1/2 cup cold water
Salt and pepper

1. Stir the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper into a bowl. Stir in the butter and thyme.

2. Stir in enough cold water to make a soft, slightly sticky dough.

3. Using a spoon, divide the dough into six pieces and drop on top of the simmering stew 25 minutes before the end of cooking.

4. Recover and leave to cook until fluffed up and cooked through.






This stew was AWESOME! Seriously, Andy asked me to make this for his birthday this year. My man is a serious foodie and has a pretty discerning palate...he has to REALLY like something to ask for it on a special occasion. This stew is hearty, a gorgeous dark brown and was WONDERFUL with a thin slice of Irish Brown Bread.

Irish Menu

IRISH APPLE CAKE!!! YUM!!

As promised, here are the pictures and recipes from my St. Patrick's Day menu.

Breakfast:
- Irish Porridge (click HERE for the recipe already previously blogged about)



Irish porridge with an apple, plum, cranberry, walnut and brown sugar compote

- Bacon (400 degrees for 20 minutes)
- Irish Breakfast Tea (click HERE for more on Irish tea)
- Irish Brown Bread with Irish Butter and Lemon Curd

Irish Brown Bread (courtesy of Epicurious.com)
Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons cold butter or margarine
2 cups whole-wheat flour
1/4 cup regular or quick-cooking rolled oats
1 1/2 cups plain nonfat yogurt
Milk

1. In a bowl, mix all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter until mixture forms fine crumbs. Stir in whole-wheat flour and oats.

2. Add yogurt; stir gently. If mixture is too dry to hold together, stir in milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, just until dough holds together; it should not be sticky.

3. Turn dough onto a lightly floured board and knead gently 5 times to make a ball. Set on a lightly greased baking sheet. Pat into a 7-inch circle. With a floured knife, cut a large X on top of loaf. (I put mine in a loaf pan.)

4. Bake in a 375° oven until well browned, about 40 minutes. Cool on a rack. Serve warm or cool.




This really was delicious, but tasted more like soda bread than the Irish Brown Bread we had when we were in Ireland. Traditional Irish Brown Bread uses molasses, but I couldn't find a good recipe that was more authentic. However, this was quite tasty! I will use this recipe again for sure!!!

Lunch:
- Spinach Salad with Asparagus, Green Beans, Chicken, Corn, Black Beans, Walnuts and Dried Cranberries
- Irish Oatmeal Biscuits
- Irish Cheddar

Irish Oatmeal Biscuits (from my Irish Food and Cooking Cookbook - click HERE for more information on that cookbook)
Ingredients:

2/3 cup AP flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 cup fine pinhead oatmeal (or Irish steel cut oatmeal)
1/4 cup Crisco
Water

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a baking sheet.

2. Sieve the flour, salt and baking powder into a bowl. Add the oatmeal and mix well. Rub in the Crisco to make a crumbly mixture, then blend in enough water to make a stiff dough.

3. Turn dough onto a worktop sprinkled with pinhead oatmeal and knead until smooth and manageable. Roll out to about 1/8 inch thick and cut into rounds, squares or triangles (I did hearts). Place on the baking sheet.

4. Bake for 15 minutes, until crisp. Cool on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container lined with baking parchment. To reheat, give them a quick toast in the toaster or oven and they will re-crisp right up.



If you try any recipes from this menu, be sure to try this one. These are a great surprise! Now, you need to understand that these aren't sweet at all - no sugar in the recipe, but for a crisp, hearty cracker (biscuit) that will FILL you up and taste GREAT with a slice of cheese, I've never tasted anything better! I didn't snag a picture of mine, so I took a shot of the ones in the book. Mine looked identical except they were in the shape of a heart, instead of a circle.

Dinner:
- Beef and Irish Stout Casserole with Herby Dumplings
- Irish Brown Bread (see recipe above)

Beef and Irish Stout Casserole with Herby Dumplings (recipe courtesy Ireland of the Welcomes magazine)
Ingredients:

2 tbs. sunflower oil
1/2 lb. shallots, peeled and sliced
1 large onion, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1 in. pieces
1 tbs sugar
1/4 cup AP flour
1.5 lbs. good stew meat
2-3 tbs. Irish butter
2 cups Guinness
3/4 cup Beef Stock
Thyme
Bay Leaves
2 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/2 lb. mushrooms (quartered)
Salt and Pepper
Brown Sugar (my addition)

1. Heat 1/2 the oil in a large, flameproof casserole. Add the shallots and fry until nicely browned. Remove to a plate. Add the carrots, onions and sugar and cook until browned. Add to the shallots on the plate.

2. Put the flour into a large bowl and season well with salt and pepper. Add the beef and toss until every piece is thoroughly coated. Put the rest of the oil in the casserole and cook the beef in batches until they are all nicely browned on each side. Remove all the beef to the plate with the veggies.

3. Add 1-2 tbs. butter to the casserole and the remaining flour (left over from the beef) and stir until blended. Gradually add the Guinness , rubbing the bottom of the pan to release all the yummy brown bits. Stir in the stock, followed by the beef and veggies, thyme, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce and any additional salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, part-cover and leave to simmer very slowly on the stove for 1.5 hours. Add a couple tbs. of brown sugar if the Guinness bitter taste is too strong for you (it was for me).

4. Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter in a large pan and fry up the mushrooms. Don't overcrowd the mushrooms. You don't want steamed mushrooms...you want caramelized mushrooms. When the 1.5 hours is up on the casserole, add the mushrooms, part-cover and simmer for another hour. (See below if you want to add the herby dumplings.)

Herby Dumplings
Ingredients:

1 cup self-raising flour
1 large pinch of baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3-4 tbs butter
Thyme
1/2 cup cold water
Salt and pepper

1. Stir the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper into a bowl. Stir in the butter and thyme.

2. Stir in enough cold water to make a soft, slightly sticky dough.

3. Using a spoon, divide the dough into six pieces and drop on top of the simmering stew 25 minutes before the end of cooking.

4. Recover and leave to cook until fluffed up and cooked through.






This stew was AWESOME! Seriously, Andy asked me to make this for his birthday this year. My man is a serious foodie and has a pretty discerning palate...he has to REALLY like something to ask for it on a special occasion. This stew is hearty, a gorgeous dark brown and was WONDERFUL with a thin slice of Irish Brown Bread.

Dessert
- Irish Apple Cake

Irish Apple Cake (courtesy of my Irish Food & Cooking cookbook)
Ingredients:

2 cups self-raising flour
Good pinch of salt
Pinch of ground cloves
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3-4 cooking apples, sliced
1/2 cup superfine sugar (Baker's sugar)
2 eggs, beaten
a little milk, to mix
Granulated sugar to sprinkle over

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 8 inch cake pan.

2. Sieve the flour, salt and ground cloves into a bowl. Cut in the butter and rub until the mixture is like fine breadcrumbs. Peel and core the apples. Slice them thinly and add to the rubbed in mixture along with the 1/2 cup sugar.

3. Mix in the eggs and enough milk to make a fairly stiff dough, then turn the mixture into the prepared tin and sprinkle with granulated sugar.

4. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until springy to the touch. Cool on a wire rack.



I'm not a huge fan of apple pie because rarely can the crust please me...this was a great alternative! I got the yummy cooked apple taste in a not overly sweet cake! I topped it with a bit of whipped cream. Wonderful end to a great day of food!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

So, by now you know that I am a little psychotic about Ireland, and St. Patrick's Day is no exception. I make an all-Irish menu, listen to all Irish music and watch Irish movies! Even my family thinks I'm a little out there on this one, but they sure don't mind eating the food!! So, here was my menu for the day. I'll post recipes and pics in a bit.

Breakfast:
Homemade Irish Brown Bread
Irish Butter
Lemon Curd
Irish Porridge
Apple, plum, cranberry, walnut, brown sugar and cinnamon compote
Bacon
Irish Breakfast Tea

Lunch:
Irish Oatmeal Biscuits
Irish Cheddar
Spinach Salad with Asparagus, Green Beans, Corn, Black Beans, Chicken, Dried Cranberries and Walnuts

Dinner:
Beef and Irish Stout Casserole with Herby Dumplings
Irish Brown Bread
Irish Butter

Dessert:
Irish Apple Cake


Movie choice of the night: Once

Sláinte (cheers in Irish) and Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

A spot of tea

My mother had two gorgeous china sets in our house growing up. I always adored the green and white set with castles all over it that she got in Bavaria when we were living in Germany. This set is so unique and has a large tea serving set, several small sets and these tiny little adorable creamers! I was in love with this set long before I drank tea. When I got married, my mother gave this green castle china set to me as part of my wedding present...I know...NICE!

I don't often get the chance to have afternoon or evening morning tea in a quiet, deliberate manner, but when I do, it's the bright spot in my day! If you haven't tried it, give it a shot sometime and get out all the fancy stuff - the pot, the creamer, the sugar dish, the cup and saucer...there's nothing quite like it. What kind of tea am I drinking? I think you know the answer to that...IRISH!!!!