Tag Archives: Irish

Beef, Soups and Stews

Guinness Pot Roast is Grand

Photo: Pot Roast in Guinness broth

When you think of St. Patrick’s Day, your first thought probably isn’t a pot roast.  In many ways, it is similar to an Irish stew though. Beef, broth, vegetables, and Guinness Stout. So, I thought, why not? The stout not only brings flavor, but it is great to tenderize the beef. Add turnips and kohlrabi instead of potatoes, then throw in some baby carrots and onions, and you have a delicious low-carb meal in one pot.

Guinness Stout Pot Roast

3-1/2 to 4 lb. Pot Roast
1 16 oz.-can Guinness Draught Stout
2 cups Turnips, peeled and cubed
20-24 Baby Carrots
3 stalks Celery, medium-sized
1 Onion, peeled and quartered
2 cups Kohlrabi, peeled and cubed
1 packet LIPTON RECIPE SECRETS ONION Mix or other Onion Soup mix
1 tablespoon Garlic and Herb Seasoning
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2 tablespoon Olive Oil

Heat oven to 325 degrees (F.)

Peel the turnips and kohlrabi and cut each into eighths. Remove the strings from the celery and cut into one-inch pieces. Cut the carrots in half or leave whole. Peel the onion and cut it into quarters.

In a Dutch oven or ovenproof deep pot, add the olive oil and heat over medium heat. Prepare the roast by rubbing it with seasoning on both sides. Sear the pot roast in the hot oil to get a brown char on one side, then flip over and repeat.

Remove the roast, add in the onions and sauté for about five minutes. Return the roast to the pan, then add the Guinness beer and 1/4 cup water along with the Onion Soup mix. Bring mixture to a simmer, then turn off heat. Cover with a lid or with a double layer of aluminum foil. Place in the oven and cook for 1 hour 30 minutes.

Add the vegetables to the pot and cook for another 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours until the vegetables are fork tender.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

To help sop up that flavorful sauce, serve slices of low carb Irish Soda Bread. Get the recipe here.

Desserts, Recipes

Irish Cream Ricotta Cheesecake Tops St. Patrick’s Day

Photo: Irish Cream Ricotta Cheesecake

Do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? Oddly, it’s one of those holidays that tons of people celebrate whether they have even an ounce of Irish blood or not. That’s because it’s fun! Irish music can get your toes tapping or move you to tears. Then you toast the Irish and have another beer or an Irish Coffee or whatever floats your boat. The point is, people get together and have a good time.

The same thing applies to eating some great Irish-styled food on March 17th. Sure, lots of it isn’t actually Irish food, but it’s the spirit (sometimes in actuality) that contributes to the festivities.

While I’ve made an Irish Cream Cheesecake before, here’s a different version drawing on the ricotta-style cheesecake.  I adapted this from the basic recipe and used a combination of real Irish Cream and sugar-free Irish Cream Syrup to give it the yummy flavor. You could make it with all Irish Cream (add about 1 net carb per slice) or with all sugar-free Irish Cream syrup (subtract about 1 net carb per slice). While it makes six good-sized slices, I find that one-eighth of the cake is enough to satisfy me, but I’ve given the nutrition information for both size options.

Irish Cream Ricotta Cheesecake

Adapted by Rene Averett

8 oz. Cream Cheese
1/2 cup whole milk Ricotta Cheese
3/4 cup Sugar Substitute
2 Eggs
2 tablespoons Irish Cream
2 tablespoons sugar-free Irish Cream Syrup
2 tablespoons Low Carb Flour, Almond Flour, or Soy flour,
or 1 tablespoon Coconut Flour
3 tablespoons Butter, softened
1/4 cup Heavy Cream or Sour Cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F.) Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit a 6″x6″ spring-form pan and spray with cooking spray.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese and ricotta cheese until well mixed. Add the sugar, eggs, lemon mix, vanilla, flour, and butter. Mix until smooth and creamy. Stir in the heavy cream or sour cream last.

Pour the mixture in the cake pan and smooth.

Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave for another 30 minutes. Let sit to cool about 10 minutes. Remove from spring-form pan. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to cool before serving.

Makes six to eight servings.

Irish Cream Chocolate Sauce

2 tablespoons Sugar-free Irish Cream Syrup
2 tablespoons Sugar-free Chocolate Topping (Walden Farms)

Mix together and drizzle over the top of each slice as you serve it. Top with a dollop of whipped cream.

To make your own sugar-free chocolate syrup, add 2 tablespoons unsweetened chocolate, 2 tablespoons sugar substitute, and 2 tablespoons hot water together, add a bit of vanilla extract and stir until you have a syrup. To thicken it a little, cook in microwave for about 30 seconds, then stir again and let cool.

Here are more recipes on this site for more St. Patrick’s Day dining options:

Not Quite Traditional Corned Beef Hash

 

 

Photo: Corned Beef Pie Corned Beef Cottage Pie

 

 

Photo: Irish Benedict Irish Benedict Brunch

 

 

Photo: Traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage Corned Beef and Cabbage

 

 

Photo: Irish Soda Bread Irish Soda Bread – low carb

 

 

Photo: Irish Apple Cake Irish Apple Cake

 

 

For even more foods for St. Patrick’s, type in Irish in the search box to get more recipes. Erin go Bragh to you all!

Beef, Main Dish, Recipes, Vegetables & Salads

St. Patrick’s Day is a toast to the Irish

It’s March 17th as I write this and around my house, it’s time to celebrate the tiny bit of Irish blood that runs in my body, although the house mate is endowed with a great deal more.  We love eating foods that remind us of our trip to Ireland and scones, shepherd’s pie, Irish stew, and tea  are great favorites here. While corned beef and cabbage is more American than Irish, we have a go at it also.

I do have a recipe for you for my version of Corned Beef and Cabbage. While not strictly Irish, it is an Irish American dish that originated in New York City. The Irish immigrants used to make a dish with bacon and potatoes, but found that deli cut corned beef from the Jewish market was less expensive and filled the bill just fine. Likewise, cabbage was less dear than the potatoes, so they substituted. Now it’s a common dish in America.

My version of corned beef is baked rather than boiled, although I’ve also grilled it on a BBQ. As for the vegetable assortment, I’ve substituted root vegetables other than potatoes, all of which are lower in carbohydrates. Enjoy this variation on the American traditional dish.

Baked Corn Beef with Root Vegetables

Corned beef baked in Guinness is the best and so simple to do. The cabbage mixes with a delicious assortment of root vegetables to substitute in for the potatoes and bring an assortment of flavors.

1 Corned Beef brisket, about 3 to 4 pounds
1 bottle of Guinness stout
2 tablespoons of olive oil

Preheat over to 325 degrees.

In an ovenproof pot (I use my cast iron pot), add the olive oil and heat. Add 2 tablespoons of crushed garlic and stir. Put the corned beef in, fatty side down and cook for about 10 minutes to sear the meat, then turn the beef over and sear the top side. Flip it over again, add the Guinness, cover and remove the pot to the middle of the oven. Cook for 2 hours. Check for tenderness. If a fork goes in easily, then flip the corned beef over and leave the lid off, so that the fatty side on the top can now brown in the oven. Add 1 cup of water if the liquid in the pot is getting low. Cook for another 40 to 60 minutes. Start your vegetables on the stove at this time.

St. Patrick’s Root Vegetables

1 cabbage, 5-1/2″ to 6″ head, cut into 8 wedges
2 cups of cubed turnips (about 1×1 cubes)
2 cups of cubed kohlrabi
2 cups of cubed rutabagas
2 cups of cubed golden beets
2 drops of sucralose or 1 packet of Splenda
1 cup of beef broth or bouillon
Salt and pepper to taste
Corned beef spices tied in a cheesecloth (usually come with the corned beef)

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add 2 drops of sucralose, broth, and seasonings, reduce to a medium heat then add beets, rutabagas and kohlrabi to cook. If turnip is very porous and tender when you cut it, add it about 10 minutes later. Otherwise, add at the same time as the other vegetables. Cook vegetables about 40 minutes, fork testing for tenderness. When almost done, add the cabbage wedges and cook another 5 to 8 minutes until the cabbage is just tender.

Makes 8 servings

Nutrition Information for Vegetables per serving:
Calories: 74 Fat: 0.5 g Net Carbs: 10 g Protein: 3.4 g

Tip: Don’t cook your cabbage until you’re ready to serve it. If you expect to have two or three servings left over, then save the cabbage to cook when you reheat the vegetables and broth. This will keep it from getting too soggy.

I’d like to wish everyone a  wonderful and safe St. Patrick’s Day, I would like to point you to some of the delicious recipes on the site to help you celebrate in style.

Start with breakfast and this delicious Corned Beef Benedict.  This is  delicious start to the day or a great brunch item.  You can serve it on a muffin in a minute or serve it without bread at all.

 

You can also try  a Corned Beef Hash for your morning start or have
it the day after if you have left over corned beef.  It uses low carb vegetables in place of the potatoes, so you can enjoy this great dish without guilt.

 

LC Irish Soda Bread -It takes a little work and some special flours, but you can enjoy Irish Soda Bread without running the carbs too high. I use low carb baking mix and nut flours to make a delicious loaf.

Scones are a fantastic breakfast or tea option.  I love them and make them frequently.  In fact, I am planning to publish a little book of scone variations that might amaze you. They’re very flexible. Here’s a basic Scone recipe. 

Like a seafood option? Dublin Lawyer is a traditional Irish preparation of lobster that is quite tasty and reminds me of lobster thermidor.

 

Don’t forget the recent addition to this list of Irish Style Pork Stew that is absolutely delicious. And it cooks fairly quickly.

 

 

For dessert, you could try a nice Irish Apple Cake that is very good when served with whipped cream.  It’s simple to make and just needs a little low carb  baking mix and almond flour to make. Both the coconut flour and Vanilla Whey protein powder in the recipe are optional.

Another dessert option is an Irish Cream Cheesecake. This one is small and delicious.  You can make your own low carb Irish Cream or use a commercial one.  The trick is to let it sit for at least several hours in the refrigerator to let the flavor soak in, then let it come to room temperature for about 20 minutes before you serve.

Here are a few more recipes on the site that might interest you, so check them out if you’d like:
     Irish Style Celery and Kohlrabi
     Irish Horsey Sauce – a horseradish recipe
     O’Kelly’s Slim Irish Cream