Looking for a new way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? Try some recipes from restaurateur, chef and food writer Clodagh McKenna, who just released her latest cookbook in the United States, “Clodagh’s Irish Kitchen.”
“I think that Irish food has kind of evolved into its own cuisine in the last 10 years, which is so exciting,” described the host of the popular TV series “Clodagh’s Irish Food Trails,” reached by phone in Ireland.
Too sick to travel for an appearance at the Philadelphia Flower Show, McKenna recuperated with her mother’s home cooking. The chef’s request: “Irish stew, please!”
“It’s what I would call Irish soul food. It’s what I grew up on. We’d have it at least once and week,” she said of the meal made with pearl barley and lamb.
“We have an incredible diversity of lamb in Ireland.”
Meanwhile in Philadelphia, Ali Dunworth, who works with McKenna, took the stage instead and showed the audience how to prepare two recipes from the book: gnocchi and trifle.
In Ireland, “The ingredients are king, and we’re very lucky. I think that’s what makes Irish cuisine so incredible,” Dunworth said. “We’re so small that you’re never far from a great farm.”
And never far from the sea. Both women praised Irish seafood.
“My uncle and grandfather were fishermen,” McKenna said. “I live near the sea and my restaurant is right on the sea.”
Dublin Bay risotto combines her love of Irish shellfish, “certainly the best in Europe,” and a love of risotto from her time in Italy.
McKenna also studied in France and New York City.
“I lived abroad, so I really understand what great products we have in Ireland,” she explained. “We definitely pay homage to our butter.”
“I love Kerrygold butter so much!” McKenna added. “I always bring it with me.”
Another beloved ingredient: Irish cheese.
“I think that we have the best cheese in the world,” Dunworth said.
“Our blue cheeses are outstanding,” agreed McKenna, who serves Cashel Blue sauce atop wild nettle gnocchi.
Nettle “used to be an ingredient our grandmothers used a lot,” Dunworth said. “They’re everywhere. You can’t really buy them. You have to get them yourself.”
No foraging required for Guinness, of course. McKenna counts Guinness cake among her favorite recipes in the book. She also combines Guinness and chocolate in her beef pies.
“Those are heavenly. They’re gorgeous for a Sunday lunch or a dinner party,” McKenna said. “It’s a throwback to Irish soul food, but bringing it to where Irish cuisine is today.”
Irish Lamb Stew with Pearl Barley
This is one of my all-time favorite comfort foods … I grew up having this exact recipe once a week, and I would imagine the same goes for most Irish people. We all have our own variations of Irish stew, and when cooked right, this dish is so delicious. Make a very well-flavored stock, use good-quality lamb and thicken the casserole juices to make a gravy. It’s a fantastic mid-week supper for the whole family. It can be made the night before and reheated.
Ingredients2 tablespoons butter
2 pounds boneless lamb for stew, cut into chunks
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
4 onions, peeled and cut into thin wedges
6 waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 cup pearl barley 2 sprigs of thyme
For the stock:1 lamb bone 1 carrot
1 onion 2 peppercorns 1 bouquet garni
For the roux:2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
InstructionsFirst make the stock: Place all the ingredients in a saucepan with 2 quarts cold water. Bring to a boil and then simmer for as long as possible to bring out the flavor, 2 to 3 hours if you can. Strain the stock and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Place a casserole dish over high heat, melt the butter and add the lamb. Season with salt and pepper and stir until it is a nice brownish color. Transfer to a plate and repeat the process with the vegetables, before also transferring them to a plate.
Spoon all the vegetables, the lamb and the pearl barley into the casserole dish, placing the potatoes on top (you do not want them to get mushy). Remove all the leaves from the thyme stems (discard the stalks) and add them to the dish. Cover with the hot lamb stock and place in the oven for 11/2 hours.
While the lamb stew is cooking, make a roux: Melt the butter in a saucepan and beat in the flour, until it forms a paste. Once the casserole has cooked, ladle the juices from the stew into a saucepan and slowly beat into the roux. Cook, stirring, until thickened and smooth. Then pour the thickened gravy back into the stew before serving. Serves 6.
Dublin Bay RisottoA few years back I spent three years living (and eating) in Italy and ever since I have had an ongoing love affair with risotto. Pairing my love of risotto with my equal love of Dublin Bay prawns makes this quite a dish! The prawns, or shrimp, are the hero of the dish. I live in Monkstown, County Dublin, which looks out over Dublin Bay, where they catch the best prawns in the world … But wherever you are in the world, buy your shrimp as fresh and locally caught as you can.
Ingredients1 pound raw Dublin Bay prawns or large shell-on shrimp
41/2 tablespoons butter 2 shallots or 1 small onion, peeled and finely diced
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
2 cups risotto rice Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2/3 cup dry white wine11/2 cups frozen (or fresh) peas
1 tablespoon freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley
For the stock:Cooking water from prawns or shrimp
1 celery stalk, chopped 1 shallot, peeled and chopped
1 carrot, sliced 1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 bay leafInstructionsIn a large pot, cook the prawns or shrimp in boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on the size, then drain and, when cool enough to handle, shell by twisting the head to remove it and pulling the legs off. Hold the tail and then lift the shell upward and away from the body. Don’t throw out the shells – instead, use them to make a delicious stock by placing the shells back in the water with the other stock ingredients. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 30 minutes, then pour through a strainer. You will need 4 cups of stock for this recipe.
Now make a start on the risotto: In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the shallots or onion and garlic, and cook gently until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the risotto rice, season with salt and black pepper, and stir until the grains are coated in the butter and lightly toasted, 2 to 3 minutes. Increase the heat and pour in the white wine. Let bubble for a few minutes to let the alcohol evaporate, stirring continuously. Add the hot stock a ladleful at a time, cooking until absorbed before adding the next and stirring well between each addition, until all the stock has been absorbed. This will take about 15 minutes in total. After 10 minutes of cooking, stir in the peas, and a minute or two later, stir in the cooked prawns or shrimp and warm through. Just before serving, gently fold in the chopped parsley. Serves 4.
Beef and Guinness Pies with Chocolate
You might not expect to find chocolate in a beef and Guinness pie, but it is a match made in pie heaven! The chocolate gives a silky smooth texture and deep richness to this sublime pie filling, and cuts across the bitterness of the stout. The idea of making your own puff pastry may not appeal when comfort is the order of the day, so I have made this pie with a ready-made butter puff pastry. I serve these pies with Slow-Cooked Red Cabbage.
Ingredients11/2 pounds organic boneless beef chuck, chopped
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil 6 shallots, peeled and diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed 4 portabella mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon finely chopped thyme
1 2/3 cups GuinnessBeef stock or water, as required
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
For the roux:11/2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
For the pie cases:15 ounces puff pastry dough, thawed if frozen
1 large egg, beatenInstructions
Place the beef in a large bowl and sprinkle with the flour. Season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Place a heavy-bottomed saucepan or casserole dish over medium heat and pour in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add half the beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining oil and beef, and again transfer to the plate. Add the shallots, carrots, celery, garlic, mushrooms and thyme to the pan. Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Then add the browned beef to the sweated vegetables and stir. Pour in the Guinness and add beef stock or water as required to cover the ingredients. Bring to a boil and then simmer until the meat is tender, 11/2 to 2 hours.
Make a roux: Melt the butter in a small saucepan with a spoonful of the liquid from the cooked meat. Stir in the flour until you have a smooth paste. Strain all the liquid from the meat, then return the meat to the casserole dish. Slowly beat the liquid into the roux and cook until thickened to a sauce consistency. Add the chocolate and stir to melt. Pour the sauce back over the meat and let cool.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll out the pastry dough on a floured work surface and use it to line four individual pie pans. Cut out 4-by-6-inch circles from the remaining dough to make the lids. Fill each pie to the top with the meat filling, then cover each one with a dough lid. Crisscross the dough lids lightly with a sharp knife. Brush the tops with the beaten egg, then bake the pies directly on the bottom of the oven for 45 minutes, until the pastry is cooked, puffed and golden. Unmold and serve. Makes 4 individual pies.
Wild Nettle Gnocchi with Cashel Blue Sauce
I call gnocchi “Irish dumplings,” since they are made up of potato and flour – two ingredients that we make very well in Ireland! Velvety dumplings cushioned with earthy nettles and smothered in creamy, sweet Cashel Blue sauce and a lovely kick from the cayenne. Nettles are free and can be foraged so easily (with a pair of gloves on!), but if you aren’t as charmed as I am by the nettle, you could use spinach, fresh basil or wild garlic leaves instead.
IngredientsFor the gnocchi:41/2 pounds russet potatoes
1 pound young nettle tips 4 large egg yolks
13/4 cups, plus 21/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the sauce:1 cup heavy cream
1 cup chicken stock 3/4 cup crumbled Irish Cashel Blue cheese, or other strong blue cheese
Juice of 1 lemon 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
InstructionsMake the gnocchi: In a large saucepan, cook the potatoes, whole and unpeeled, in a small amount of boiling water until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain and let cool enough to handle. Then peel and mash them well, or put through a potato ricer into a bowl.
Wearing gloves to protect your hands, in a large pan of boiling water, blanch the nettles for 2 minutes. Drain and pat dry (the sting is removed once the nettles are blanched). Finely chop the nettles and fold them into the mashed potatoes. Mix the egg yolks and flour into the potato and nettle mixture, and season with sea salt and black pepper. Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead lightly until well combined. Shape into three or four balls. Dust the work surface with more flour if necessary. Using your fingertips, roll one of the dough balls into a sausage about 3/4-inch in diameter. Cut the dough into 1-inch pieces – these are your gnocchi. Roll the gnocchi against the front of a fork to create ridges. (This will help hold the sauce on the gnocchi once cooked.) Repeat with the remaining dough balls.
Make the sauce: In a saucepan, combine all of the ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the gnocchi and cook until they have risen to the surface of the water. Tip the gnocchi into a skillet, add the sauce, and gently mix together. Transfer to serving plates and serve. Serves 4.
Recipes courtesy of Clodagh McKenna
Clodagh’s cookbooks* “Clodagh’s Irish Kitchen” is the third cookbook Clodagh McKenna’s released in the United States.
* “Clodagh’s Kitchen Diaries” features “delicious recipes throughout the year” like red velvet cakes for Valentine’s Day, plus dinner party menus, fish-of-the-month dishes and more.
* In “Homemade,” McKenna shares tips, advice and ideas for everything from mid-week dinners to homemade fast food to edible gifts.
