Irish Stew and Irish Champ

17th March, 2011

For many years we have had corned beef and cabbage as our Irish meal for St. Patrick's Day. Last year, however, the corned beef (the only I had ever found in London) was SO SALTY, that we could barely stand it for one meal.

This year I fixed Irish Stew in the crockpot. So easy!

Stew meat
1 bottle Guinness stout
Chopped celery
Sliced carrots
Sliced parsnip
Sliced onion
Garlic cloves

Cooked all day in the crockpot. The last two hours I added approximately 1/2 cup barley and topped up with some water.

Served it with Irish Champ--Mashed potatoes with chopped green onions in them.

Also, had cooked cabbage.

We really enjoyed it!

Dylan's Hot Toddie

Dick's former secretary in London gave him this home remedy that REALLY helps when you come down with a cold/flu.

In a tall glass:
2 shots of whiskey
5-6 cloves
peel of 1 lemon
1 lemon slice
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely chopped

Add hot water, allow to cool slightly and enjoy!

Butternut Squash Turkey Chili and Cornbread

Last night I made one of my favorite meals, chili and cornbread, but each with a new delicious twist making them extra healthy. Both Dick and I really enjoyed them. Both recipes are from Allrecipes.com, but with some adaptations of my own:

Chili

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound ground turkey breast
• 1 pound butternut squash - peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch dice
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 (4.5 ounce) can chopped green chilies
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans petite diced tomatoes
• 1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans with liquid
• 1 (15.5 ounce) can corn niblets
  
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic granules
  

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic; cook and stir for 3 minutes, then add the turkey, and stir until crumbly and no longer pink.
2. Add the butternut squash, chicken broth, green chilies, tomatoes, kidney beans, hominy, and tomato sauce; season with chili powder, cumin, and garlic. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the squash is tender, about 20 minutes.

(Note: The time-consuming part of this is preparation of the squash--Allow time for that!)

Cornbread

• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup stone ground cornmeal
• 1/2 cup wholemeal flour
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon oil
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (225 degrees C). Grease baking container (skillet or 8" square pan).
   
2. In a large bowl, stir the cornmeal, salt and baking soda together. Stir in the egg, buttermilk and oil.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven when top of cornbread is brown and it feels firm to the touch. Turn out on to a serving plate. Cut into wedges and serve immediately with butter.

Coco's Sour Cream Dressing

This used to be my favorite salad dressing. The recipe I had made tons of it! This is scaled down and makes about 2 1/2 cups.

• ¾ Cup Milk

• ¾ Cup Mayo

• ½ Cup Sour Cream

• ¼ Cup Buttermilk

• 4½ tea. cider vinegar

• 1½ tea. garlic salt (use garlic powder for no-salt version)
  

• ½ tea. ground pepper

• 2 TBL grated Parmesan cheese

• Combine milk, mayo, sour cream and buttermilk in medium bowl; whisk until blended

• Place vinegar in cup. Stir in garlic salt and pepper. Add to mayo. mixture. Blend in cheese, and store. May add more Parmesan to make it thicker!