St. Patrick’s Day is next week. Look at me being all on top of this holiday thing!
I’m not sure how St. Patty’s Day will be without Boston’s… charm. Toowoomba is just a tad bit smaller. Just a little bit. And the number of Irish people is just a wee bit smaller. I suspect I will have a much quieter St. Patrick’s Day than I have the past few years.
Either way, here are a few recipes from the past 2 years that I’ve had success with. Some are traditional and some are just green. With it being hotter here, I don’t think I will be breaking out the stew. Those Guinness-glazed potatoes are definitely a possibility, though!
I can’t believe I don’t have any desserts!!! I’ll definitely have to work on that this week.
So…This daylight savings thing is kicking my butt in the worst way! Let’s just say that according to my stove clock, I was TOTALLY on time for work today. I think Arizona was right to boycott this non-sense.
Pumpkinhead Beer Bread
With that said, let’s keep this short and sweet, shall we?
I whipped up this beer bread to go along with the Guinness stew I gave you yesterday. It’s SUPER easy and a thousand times better then Soda Bread, which usually comes with raisins. And you know I don’t do raisin. Plus it has booze!
Bread -raisins+booze=St. Patrick’s Day Awesomeness!
(this math problem was brought to you by an English/Art major.)
So the first recipe I’m giving you I made with Shipyard Pumpkinhead. ummmm, yeah. I still have some leftover from Halloween. I’m hoarding it and drinking like, 1 a month to hold me over until October when it’s released again. Or, let’s be real, August, since halloween/fall crap is pulled out in the summer now.
Combine all ingredients and put into a well-greased bread pan. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes.
That’s it! Crazy, right? No rising, no kneading, no nothin’!
ok, now the second one is for Guinness. You can definitely use Guinness in the recipe above. Rachel said it comes out delicious but I was thinking brown sugar might be tastier with the Guinness. So I gave this recipe a try:
12 oz Guinness (Guinness Extra Stout is supposedly vegan according to Barnivore)
1 tbsp oats
1 tbsp butter (Earth Balance)
Preheat oven at 350F
Grease a loaf pan with the 1 tbsp butter.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, ⅓ cup oats and brown sugar.
Slowly beat in the Guinness into the dry ingredients using a wooden spoon or an electric mixer on the low setting. Do not over mix the batter, but make sure that it is not too lumpy.
Pour the batter in the greased loaf pan and sprinkle the 1 tbsp of oats on top ( I totally forgot this step because I was all, COOK FAST SO I CAN EAT YOU!)
Bake the bread for 50-60 minutes. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted, comes out clean. Check at 45 minutes just in case the bread is done early.
Place on a cooling rack until at room temperature.
Mine took longer to cook, about 60 minutes.
Guinness Beer Bread
Both of these are delicious, though I think my favorite is the first recipe. This could just be because I adore Pumpkinhead beer above all others, including Guinness. The Pumpkinhead is sweeter so it just makes a super yummy bread. BUT, experiment with your own breads and let me know what beers work.
Guinness Beer Bread
Would you believe I have TWO more, maybe even three, St. Patrick’s Day-themed recipes for you guys?? I’m am all over this holiday!
PS. I’ve had a few requests for an easier search engine for recipes. I’m looking into adding a Recipage tab, which would help organize things a bit. Stay tuned and if you see some weird, pseudo-complete changes going on, hold tight. It means better things are coming =)
St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner. Tis the season to eat all the irish food we avoid the rest of the year (cause seriously? the irish just dont have the best food), celebrate our 1/64th bit of irish blood and drink copious amounts of beer until we pass out. Oh, St. Patty’s really brings out the best in people!
With that said, I’m totally jumping on that bandwagon and partaking in all the above. Except maybe the drinking copious amounts of beer. Because holding my liquor is not a trait I inherited from my irish ancestors. Lightweights Representin’!
Anyway, here are a few St. Patty’s day recipes from last year: Irish Cream, Corned Beef and guinness-glazed potatoes. I think I am most looking forward to sauteing up those guinness-glazed potatoes. SO yummy. And here are some recipes that may not be typical St. Patty’s day grub but they fit the theme: green monster smoothy, for a nutritional, green, kick to your morning; spinach artichoke dip, a green appetizer for a more casual get together; vegan irish stew, which I totally forgot I had on the blog!; and how about one more? Beer fries.
6 small celery stalks, chopped into bite-sized pieces
16 ounces (1 lb) button mushrooms, cleaned, de-stemmed, and sliced
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
One 11.2-ounce bottle of Guinness Stout*
4-5 medium carrots, peeled and chopped into bite-sized pieces
3 lb (about 3-4 large) Russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
4 cups of Vegetable Stock
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
*according to Barnivore, Guinness extra stout from North America is vegan.
1. Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat until shimmering.
2. Add the onion, celery, and about 1/4 of the mushrooms, stirring frequently until softened, about 10 minutes.
3. Add the flour to the mixture and stir to coat and cook for another 2 minutes.
4. Carefully pour the bottle of Guinness over the mixture, and stir to scrape up any browned bits.
5. Add the remaining vegetables and ingredients and bring the mixture to a boil.
6. Decrease the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for about 45 minutes.
This is super hearty and is perfect served with a thick, warm slice of beer bread. Beer bread you say? Well…you’ll just have to come back tomorrow and get that recipe!
Let me preface this by saying, I know ALL the best blogs are doing Friday Favorites and Product reviews. I didn’t mean to jump on that bandwagon but I started to post my love for Ed Sheeran and it just kept going! So, here are some things I’m loving on right now. I probably won’t do this again:
1. This video. Seriously, can Ed Sheeran do anything wrong? I’m in love.
2. Lush products. Some of their stuff can be pricey but a ton of it is vegan-friendly and most of their stuff is all-natural or close to it. I have far, far too much stuff from this store but my two favorites are : aqua marina face wash and the buffy bar. You can see the aqua marina below. It’s literally clay wrapped in seaweed. It works SO well, though. I actually ditched Proactive and started using that cleanser with the Tea Tree Toner and Grease lightening (both from Lush) and I like the results much better. As for the Buffy Bar- It exfoliates and moisturizes like nothing else and you can use it in the shower. I’m obsessed.
image from Lush.com. Links to products are listed above
3. Vega chocolate protein powder. I’ve been working out like a fiend lately and this stuff is great for a post-gym protein boost! It’s a protein powder that is plant-based and vegan-friendly. I have a recipe coming next week that includes this stuff and you’re going to love it! (hint hint go buy some hint hint)
I bought these little sample packs at whole foods
4. Candy crush. I’m so addicted. I’m not really a video/smart phone/computer game person. I peaked at Zelda back during the n64 days but i cant stop playing this! Currently, i’m totally stuck on level 33. Send help!
5. Veronica Mars. Sometimes, you just need some spunk and bad-ass attitude in your life and V. Mars delivers! “You under-counted the Sassy!”
6. Ugh, I’m sorry- One more song! She and Him’s new single “I never wanted your love”. I almost posted Carly Rae Jepson’s new single, Tonight I’m Getting Over You, buuuut I decided to spare you.
7. And last but not least, these margaritas. I call them ‘When Life Gives You Lemons’ margaritas. I feel like the past two months, life has been handing me lemons by the cart full. Make lemonade, you say? Please! I’ll add those lemons to tequila instead, thankyouverymuch.
“When Life Gives You Lemons” Margaritas based off of the How Sweet Eats recipe for margaritas
2 ounces Grand Marnier
1 1/2 ounces tequila
2 ounces lime juice
2 1/2 ounces lemon simple syrup (recipe below)
sugar for the rim (optional)
lemon or lime slices (optional)
Add Grand Marnier, tequila, lime juice and lemon simple syrup in a shaker with ice. Shake until cold. Serve with sugar rim and lemon or lime slices
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of water
zest from 1 lemon* ( I used fresh meyers lemons. Regular lemons will work, too)
3/4 c. fresh lemon juice
Heat your sugar, water and lemon zest in a small sauce pan until sugar has dissolved. Let simmer for a minute or so to give the sugar water more time to become lemon-y. Remove from heat. Strain the sugar water through a fine sieve to get the lemon zest out. Set aside to cool. Once completely cool, stir in the lemon juice.
*If you don’t have a fine sieve for straining out the zest, you can simply peel the rinds into long strips. This will allow you to pull the rind out with just a fork or slotted spoon. I did this and it worked out fine.
This margarita is delicious. It’s super refreshing and putting the lemon in the simple syrup prevents the whole drink from getting too sour. I think it’s the perfect citrus margarita. If you want more lemon juice, replace the 2 oz of lime juice with 1 oz of lime and 1 oz of lemon. I liked the sweet rim with the sour lemon and lime but salt would work just as well if that’s your thing.
Hit me up with what your obsessed with right now and I’ll check it out. I hope everyone has a great weekend! I’ll be escaping the city life and city drama for a little road trip and mini-getaway 😉
So. The Super Bowl is this Sunday. I’m a tad bitter that neither the Pats or the Dolphins made it in this year. Last year, Welker dropped a crucial pass that very well could have cost them the Super Bowl. I wanted so badly for him to get that Super Bowl ring this year! Then wear it as he was flipping off all the haters. *sigh* Maybe next year…
I’m not really a fan of either team who made it but I know there are still Super Bowl parties to be had. I maybe sorta kinda forgot that the Super Bowl was this weekend so the fact I’m giving you a boozy drink to serve with your artichoke spinach dip, black bean dip or buffalo hummus is pure coincidence. I actually served these last weekend with the sweet potato black bean burgers (also great for the super bowl!) but had them in mind for Valentine’s Day! I was so proud that I was two weeks ahead of the game and was actually giving you a Valentine’s Day recipe early. I mean, these would be so yummy if you wanted to avoid the V-day crowd and have a quiet date-night in. You could have a taco/fajita night in and watch movies. Or, you know, do what I’m planning on doing and smuggling it into a screening of Warm Bodies.
I mean, not really…cause that’s illegal…
BUT it works for a super bowl party, too. Woohoo!
Also, these football cake balls. Sorry, they’re so cute and I couldn’t figure out how to work them into my illegal booze smuggling paragraph.
2 ounces Grand Marnier
1 1/2 ounces Tequila
2 ounces pomegranate juice
2 ounce lime juice
1 1/2 ounces simple syrup
coarse salt for the rim
lime + pomegranate arils for garnish
directions:
For simple syrup: combine equal parts sugar and water, bring to a boil and let sugar dissolve, then turn off heat and let cool completely.
Rim the ridge of your glass with a lime wedge and dip in margarita salt. Fill the glass with ice. In a cocktail shaker, combine tequila, grand marnier, pom juice, simple syrup and lime juice with ice, and shake for about 30 seconds. Pour over ice and squeeze in extra lime slices. Add some pomegranate arils for decoration.
I’m pretty much obsessed with all boozy drinks Jessica at How Sweet Eats makes. Especially if they are margaritas. Or Sangria. I’m already dreaming of drinking a whole pitcher glass of her blood orange sangria this weekend at my Super-Bowl-AKA-Just-An-Excuse-To-Make-Tons-Of-Yummy-Food Party.
What team are you guys rooting for this weekend and what are you going to be making??
Stay tuned next week: I’m hoping to post some yummy nut butters and at least one more Valentine’s Day recipe. Have a great weekend!
wickedvegan.com 