Taste of St. Patrick's Day
Everyone's a wee bit Irish on March 17...so why not enjoy one of these tasty treats
Celebrated in more places around the world than any other national festival, St. Patrick’s Day is a day of parades, parties, gatherings, festivals, and “Wearin o’ the Green” all around the globe.
The holiday began as a day of feasting to honor St. Patrick, the foremost patron saint of Ireland, and is celebrated on his reported date of death on March 17. It was made an official Christian feast day in the early 1600s, and spread to the United States in the 1800s and has become a widely-commemorated holiday—both religious and secular, with festivities ranging from the tame to the raucous.
Everyone’s a wee bit Irish on St. Paddy’s Day…so why not join in the fun this year with one (or more) of these easy-being-green recipe ideas! (And yes--we know you're probably not going to big parties this year...but we all have to eat, right? So...Sláinte!)
Colcannon
Ingredients
• 6 lbs yellow or red potatoes
• 1 cup cream
• 1/2 cup butter
• 12 slices bacon
• 2 white or yellow onions, diced
• 1 head of cabbage (approx. 12 cups) (You may also add in/swap out kale, if desired)
• 2-6 tablespoons butter, melted
Instructions
1. Peel and quarter potatoes.
Adapted from Spend With Pennies
2. Halve and core cabbage; chop.
3. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook 12-15 minutes or until fork tender.
4. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a large pan until crisp. Set aside to cool, reserve drippings.
5. Add 2 tablespoons of butter to the bacon drippings. Cook onion and cabbage (and kale, if desired) over medium heat in drippings until onion is translucent and cabbage is tender.
6. Mash potatoes adding cream and 1/2 cup butter as needed. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Gently fold together mashed potatoes, cabbage & onions and chopped bacon. Top with additional melted butter if desired.
Adapted from Spend With Pennies
Irish Beef Hand Pies
Ingredients
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 2 1/2 lbs stew meat, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 2 celery ribs, diced
• 3–4 sprigs of fresh thyme
• salt and pepper
• 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 cup Guinness Irish stout
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 Tablespoons water
• 2 packages store-bought pie crusts
• 1 large egg
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Season your beef generously with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with flour and toss around until all pieces are coated.
3. In a large Dutch oven heat butter and olive oil, over medium-high heat and brown the meat. Make sure not to crowd your meat. You may do this in two batches, if necessary. Remove from Dutch oven and set aside.
4. Next, add onion, carrot, celery, thyme, and salt and pepper to the Dutch oven and saute’ for 5 minutes. Add in the tomato paste and cook for one minute.
5. Add the beef back in along with the broth, Guinness, Worcestershire sauce, fish sauce, and soy sauce. Bring to a boil, then cover and put in the oven for 45 minutes. Remove the cover and cook for another 45 minutes so very little liquid is left.
6. Remove from the oven. Discard thyme sprigs. In a small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and water and add to the beef mixture. Stir together and then season to taste with salt and pepper.
7. Allow beef mixture to cool before filling pies.
To make pies:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Roll out your pie crust on a lightly-floured surface. Cut out two different-sized circles using a 4 inch ramekin and a 1-inch biscuit cookie cutter. Spray the muffin tin and place the larger circle into the muffin tin and press up the sides. Spoon in the filling, leaving a little room at the top. Place the smaller circle of dough on top, and press to seal. Cut a small “x” in the top of each pie.
3. Mix the egg and water together in a small bowl, and brush over the tops of each pie.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the crust is fully cooked through, golden brown, and flakey.
Adapted from Tonja's Table
Guinness Float
Ingredients
• 1–2 scoops of your favorite vanilla ice cream
• 1 can Guinness stout
• chocolate and/or caramel syrup
Instructions
1. Place scoops of ice cream in a glass. Slowly pour the beer over the ice cream, allowing a little time for the foam to subside and then pouring in more to fill the glass. Then, drizzle with chocolate or caramel syrup (or both!).
2. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Chocolate Stout Skillet Brownies
Ingredients
• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 cup butter, cubed
• 1 cup milk stout beer
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 2 large egg yolks, room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup baking cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Vanilla ice cream, optional
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Place chocolate in a large bowl. In a 10-in. cast-iron or other ovenproof skillet, combine butter and stout. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer 10 minutes, stirring constantly.
2. Pour over chocolate; stir with a whisk until smooth. Cool slightly.
3. In another large bowl, beat egg, egg yolks and sugars until blended. Stir in chocolate mixture.
4. In another bowl, mix flour, baking cocoa and salt; gradually add to chocolate mixture, mixing well.
5. Spread into skillet. Bake until set, 25-30 minutes. Cool completely in skillet on a wire rack. If desired, serve with vanilla ice cream.
Adapted from Taste of Home
Homemade Irish Creme
Ingredients
• 1 cup Irish whiskey
• 3 PASTEURIZED eggs
• 1 cup liquid coffee creamer (half-and-half)
• 1 (14 ounce) can condensed milk
• 1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons chocolate syrup
Instructions
1. Add all items to blender or food processor; blend well.
2. Store in closed container in refrigerator for up to two weeks.
Leprechaun Shandy
Ingredients
• 1 cup dark beer (stout or porter work best)
• 1 cup chilled ginger ale or ginger beer
Instructions
1. Place the ginger ale in a pilsner or other tall glass. Pour the stout slowly over the back of a spoon into the ginger ale to create a layer of beer.
Tip: Adjust ratio of stout to ginger beer to your liking. You can also try sparkling grapefruit for a citrusy twist.
