Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at home by trying some healthy, family-friendly recipes for traditional Irish food.
Irish Stew
Traditionally, Irish stew was made with mutton or lamb and lots of root vegetables. Not ready to spend hours cutting up parsnips and turnips? We’ve updated the recipe with pre-cut stew beef and some frozen veggies to go with the fresh ones. It still contains lots of protein, lots of vegetables, and lots of flavor. Serves 6.
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 lb stew meat
- 1/4 c. whole wheat flour
- 1 T minced garlic
- 2 T thyme
- 1 onion, minced
- 4 potatoes, cubed
- 4 carrots, sliced (or 2 c. pre-cut carrot coins)
- 1 rib celery, sliced
- 1, 32-oz carton beef broth
- 1 c. frozen cubed butternut squash
- 1/2 c. frozen peas
Heat oil over medium heat in a Dutch oven or large pot. Dredge meat in flour. Brown meat in oil.
Add garlic, thyme, and onion, and cook till fragrant, stirring occasionally. Add potatoes, carrots, celery, and broth. Turn heat to medium low and cook for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Add frozen vegetables and cook for 30 minutes more.
Irish Soda Bread with Whole Grains
We’ve made Irish Soda Bread with a little more than half whole grains, to meet USDA guidelines for grain consumption. You can use all whole wheat flour if you prefer. Either way, it’s easy to make and a great accompaniment to Irish Stew. We cut our loaf into 20 slices. Adjust the nutritional information if you cut fewer or more slices.
- 2 c. whole wheat flour
- 2 c. bread flour
- 1/2 c. rolled oats
- 1.5 t. salt
- 1 t. baking soda
- 1 3/4 c. buttermilk (or 1 3/4 c. milk mixed with 1 T lemon juice)
- 2 T molasses
- 1/2 c. raisins
Combine the dry ingredients and mix completely. Stir the buttermilk and molasses together. Make a well in the dry ingredients and mix in the buttermilk mixture.
Knead the bread lightly. Form it into a circle. Cut a cross in the top to allow room for rising. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then turn the heat down to 350 and bake for 30 more minutes or until done.
