Irish Lamb Stew

Although this is a day (or a few days) late, it's better than never right?  LOL  I'm still getting used to blogging about holiday before they happen, but it kinda looses it's magic when you do that in my opinion.  So as a date yesterday, I made this Irish Lamb Stew as a compliation of different recipes because none of them were what I was looking for.  Is it really that difficult to find a traditional Irish Lamb Stew recipe--apparently yes it is!  Some had tomatoes in it and other had white wine....  Ireland is a meat and potatoes with a pint of Guinness type of place!

{Serve your Irish Lamb Stew over mashed potatoes}

{Silly me grabbed ground lamb and not lamb chunks--oh well!  I used Guinness black lager because it's my favorite}

{Teeny, tiny cabbage!}

{Because I bought ground lamb, I sauted it with the bacon and onions so I could control the chunk size--I liked the cooked flavor it gave the stew though!}

{This recipe makes A TON so half it or invite friends over for good food and beer!}

{After 8 hours in the crock pot--so delicious smelling!}

Irish Lamb Stew

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients

1 pound lamb, chunks or ground
1 pound bacon, cut into chunks
1 medium onion, chopped
2 bottles/cans Guinness
4 cups beef broth
6 cloves garlic,  minced
1 pint mushrooms, sliced
1 parsnip, peeled and diced
1 small cabbage, sliced
1 cup carrots, diced
1 cups celery, diced
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons flour
Mashed potatoes

1. Brown lamb, bacon and onions in a pan; transfer to crock pot.
2. Add remaining ingredients except butter, flour, and mashed potatoes into the crockpot and cook for 6-8 hours on low.
3. About 30 minutes before serving, ladle out as much liquid as you can (about 3 cups).
4. Heat butter in a skillet until hot; add flour and cook to make a roux.
5. Add stew liquid to roux cooking until hot and thick.
6. Add sauce back to stew and heat on high for 30 minutes or until stew thickens.
7. Serve over mashed potatoes.

As we sat down to dinner, with a pint of Guinness, and a themed movie, Ben thought that the stew was still too runny (he exact words were "My mashed potatoes are getting watered down! But the stew is good.")  Don't ever come between him and his potatoes.....  I thought it was delicious; in fact, I'm having some for lunch today :o)

How do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day?

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German Potato and Leek Soup

Germans are well-known for their hardy recipes, and my favorite potato soup does not disappoint!  This is very healthy because it is broth-based rather than milk or cream.  Plus it can be made on the stove or in a crockpot.  This is a vegetarian soup by nature, but ham or bacon bits can be added.

{German Potato and Leek Soup}

{Put everything in a crockpot}

{Leeks!}

{Cut most of the deep green off (this is very tough) and cut the leek in half.  Be sure to wash EVERY layer very well because these are grown in sand!}

{Julienne (strips) leeks}

{Fry leeks in butter}

{Mash potatoes with a whisk or potato masher to release the starch and make it thicker; add fried leeks}

German Potato and Leek Soup

Serves 8

Ingredients

4 pounds Idaho potatoes, peeled and diced

1 cup carrots, peeled and diced

1 cup celery, diced

6-8 cloves garlic, chopped

3 quarts broth (chicken or vegetable)

3 tablespoons dried parsley (1/2 cup fresh)

4 tablespoons butter

6 leeks, cleaned and cut into rings (large onion, diced)

Pinch of nutmeg

Sour cream for topping (optional)

1. Place potatoes, carrots, celery, garlic, broth, and parsley (if using dried) in a crock-pot or pan on the stove top.
2. Cook for 6 hours on low or 3 hours on high if using a crock-pot or for about 1 hour on stove top.
3. Mash mixture with a whisk when potatoes are extremely tender (almost falling apart).
4. Melt butter in a skillet and fry the leeks (or onions) until caramelized; add to soup.
5. Bring soup back to a simmer and season to taste with nutmeg, salt and pepper.
6. Top with sour cream when serving if desired.

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Spicy Garlic and Kale Soup

By now, you all know my love affair with Whole Living magazine, so it shouldn't be a surprise when I saw this recipe of a garlicky white bean stew and decided to make it mainly because it had the magic word GARLIC.  This recipe also had lima beans in it which I haven't had in a while, and Ben wasn't sure he had ever had.  So definitely gave it a try!

{Spicy Garlic and Kale Soup}

{Sauting onions and garlic}

{Adding spices and sauting for 2 minutes}

{Adding remaining ingredients}

{Simmering for 1 hour}

Spicy Garlic and Kale Soup

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter

1 medium onion, diced

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 pound pork, chopped into cubes

1 teaspoon paprika

2 bay leaves

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

16 oz lima beans

1-15 oz can kale greens, drained

1 quart chicken broth

1-15 oz can diced tomatoes, drained

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1. Heat butter in a large soup pot; add onions and garlic until translucent.
2. Add paprika and pepper flakes and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 1 hour or until beans are tender.

Fresh kale can be used--about 2 cups will do.  This soup is very healthy and easy to make.  It can also be made vegetarian by leaving out the meat and using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.  The beans can also be switched up to butter, navy, or cannelini beans.  The spice from the paprika and red pepper flakes gives it a nice zing!

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Tuesday Tip: How to Stabilize a Cutting Board

Ever have a cutting board slide all over the place while you are trying to do something?  Irritating isn't it?  In culinary school it was an on-going issue, and the chefs taught us to place a wet paper towel under the cutting board to hold it in place.  However, being the tree-hugger that I am (yes--I really am!), I knew there had to be a better way.

Lo and behold--the REUSABLE (and washable) cutting board stablizer: non-skid rug mats!

{It's the same material used under rugs to keep them from slipping!  Just lay it on the counter...}

{Put a cutting board on top...}

{And you have a cutting board that will STAY IN PLACE!!!}

No more messes from when the cutting board moves, and if you do spill something on it, throw it in the washer and wash it (air dry it though!)!!!  Easy and cheap!  Not much better than that!

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