St. Patrick’s Day is a celebration enjoyed by Irish and Irish wannabes alike. From coast to coast, the core of the fun lies in creating satisfying, easy-to-prepare fare.
Thumbing through Kevin Dundon’s book, “Modern Irish Food” (Beazley), sparks devilish hunger pangs. Dundon, an award-winning Irish chef and PBS television personality, features recipes for what he calls “modern Irish house cooking.” He explores the classic dishes of his homeland, giving them appealing updated twists.
I love his beautiful-but-simple apple tart. Using refrigerated prepared dough, layer thin apple apple slices on top, slightly overlapping the slices in concentric circles to cover the dough. The flavor of the tart-sweet apples shines through in this scrumptious finale, the crust offering a pleasing texture contrast that compliments the fruit and corrals the rich juices.
But before the dessert, a traditional Irish stew is a must. To accompany the cozy dish, Irish Guinness Brown Bread is an irresistible partner. Cookbook maven and Food Network star Ina Garten has a recipe that comes close to the real deal. Her formula calls for a 9- by-5-inch loaf pan. My pan is slightly smaller at 8½- by 4½-inches. So, when I bake it, I make two, baking the second one in a tiny loaf pan. That puny loaf is for this baker’s secret pleasure.
While Irish Stew is often made with lamb, this recipe uses pieces of beef. (Photo by Getty Images)
Irish Stew
Irish Stew often calls for lamb, generally hearty chunks of lamb shoulder. This recipe uses pieces of beef; they attain lovely tenderness with long simmering. The stew can be prepared up to 2 days in advance. Cool, cover and then refrigerate it. Bring to a simmer before serving.
Serves 4 to 6
INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 pounds stew beef, cut into 1-inch pieces
6 large garlic cloves, minced
7 cups beef stock or canned beef broth
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
2 1/2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped, or peeled pearl onions
2 cups 1/2-inch pieces peeled carrots
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
DIRECTIONS
Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add beef and sauté until brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté 1 minute. Add beef broth, tomato paste, sugar, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaves. Stir to combine and scrape up browned bits on the pot. Bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, then cover and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, melt butter in another large pot over medium heat. Add potatoes, onion and carrots. Sauté vegetables until golden, about 10 minutes. Add vegetables to beef stew. Simmer uncovered until vegetables and beef are very tender, about 40 minutes. Discard bay leaves. Tilt the pan and spoon off fat. Transfer stew to serving bowls. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
— Bon Appetit magazine
Whether it’s classic Irish soda bread or you’ve added a pint of Guinness to the whole wheat mixture, you’ll want to serve that fragrant loaf with a classic Irish butter, such as Kerrygold. (Getty Images)
Ina’s Irish Guinness Brown Bread
Serve this delicious brown bread with honey butter. To make the honey butter, combine room temperature unsalted butter with honey to taste; you can use a mixer to do this or stir by hand with muscle and determination. My favorite combination is unsalted Irish Kerrygold butter mixed with clover honey and topped with coarse salt.
1 loaf
INGREDIENTS
1 cup McCann’s quick-cooking oats (not instant), plus extra for sprinkling
2¼ cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
2¼ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 (11- to 12-ounce) bottle Guinness extra stout beer, at room temperature
1 cup buttermilk, shaken before measuring
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for brushing pan
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Honey butter (unsalted butter combined with honey to taste, topped with a smidgen of coarse salt), for serving
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
In a large bowl, place oats, whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir with whisk to combine. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk together beer, buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Pour wet ingredients into the well. With your clean fingers, stir batter from middle of bowl to the outside, until it is well mixed. It will look more like cake batter than bread dough.
Brush a 9- by-5-inch loaf pan with melted butter. Pour batter into pan and sprinkle top with oats. Put the bread in the oven, immediately turn the temperature down to 400 degrees and bake for 45 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn bread out onto cooling rack and allow to cool completely. Slice and serve with honey butter.
— Adapted from Ina Garten, Food Network
A classic apple tart makes a festive dessert for any holiday party, including St. Patrick’s Day. (Getty Images)
Simple Apple Tart
Serves 6 to 8
INGREDIENTS
1 (15-ounce) package refrigerated crusts, chilled
Juice of 1 lemon
5 to 6 medium-sized Pink Lady or Gala apples
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, melted, divided use
1/3 cup turbinado sugar, divided use
2 tablespoons honey
Whipped cream or ice cream for serving
DIRECTIONS
Adjust oven rack to middle position. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Unroll one of the pie crusts and place on prepared pan. Unroll second pie crust and cut a ring 1/2-inch-wide around the edge of the crust. Cut crosswise into three pieces to make them easier to transfer. Transfer to the edge of the full crust to form a double-layered edge and press in place. Pinch to make a ridge around the edge about 1/2-inch high. Prick with tines of a fork at 2-inch intervals. Place in refrigerator.
Squeeze lemon juice into a medium-large bowl. Peel, core and cut apples into thin slices, placing them as you work in the bowl with the juice and tossing them from time to time to prevent browning.
Remove crust from refrigerator and lightly brush with butter. Arrange apple slices in two concentric circles overlapping them slightly (start with the outside circle). Brush with half of the remaining melted butter. Remove 1 tablespoon of the sugar and set aside to use as garnish; sprinkle remaining sugar over apples. Bake 12 minutes.
Remove from oven (and shut oven door). Brush apples and rim of tart with remaining butter. Drizzle apples with honey. Return to oven and bake 15 to 17 minutes longer. Remove from oven and sprinkle with reserved sugar. Cool at least 20 minutes before serving. If desired, serve with ice cream or whipped cream.
— “Modern Irish Food” by Kevin Dundon
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