In this weekly series we have been discussing the benefits of a vegetarian diet including:better health, public health, food safety, animal rights, frugal living, global food crisis and the immense contribution of meat/livestock production to climate change/resource depletioin
A prius driver who consumes a meat based diet actually contributes more to global warming than a Hummer driver who eats low on the food chain.
The evidence is strong. It's not simply that meat is a contributor to global warming , it's that it's a major contributor. Larger by a significant margin than the transportation sector. One of the reasons is methane
"Refusing meat is the single most effective thing you can do to reduce your carbon footprint"
I was inspired to create this series by former Beatle and vegetarian advocate Paul McCartney(Macca) who partnered with the Meatless Monday campaign to promote less consumption of meat. We not only discuss the many advantages of a vegetarian diet we also do some cooking, share recipes and listen to great Beatle/McCartney music!
We have two Monday's this week as I couldn't resist having a 2nd annual Irish Pub Crawl to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. Last year we headed to The Brazen Head in Dublin . We lifted a few pints, heard some traditional Irish music and of course tried some updated Irish food. This year we're heading to Belfast in Northern Ireland to check out a couple of well known and not so well known Irish pubs.
The first is The Crown Bar on Victoria St, Belfast. The original The Railway Tavern was renamed and reopened as The Crown Liquor Saloon in 1885 and is the oldest pub in Belfast. The exterior was used in the famous film Odd Man Out Take a look at the beautiful Bar in the website and notice the real time webcam which shows the busy dining room and the very busy bar.
Let's lift our first pint of the night while we listen to some trad Irish music
I wanted to try out some of the food at The Crown and chose this yummy pie
]
MUSHROOMS IN PUFF PASTRY
adapted from Jamie Oliver
1 Pack butter puff pastry (10x10 piece) (The frozen puff pastry works fine here)
1 Egg
1 Clove Garlic
1 Onion
1 lb Mushrooms
Bunch fresh thyme
Salt & pepper
1 cup half & half Cream
Preheat oven to 425F (220C) Unroll your puff pastry to make a large square.
Brush it with egg and then leave to rest in fridge for 15 minutes.
Remove from fridge and lightly score the pastry to mark it. Bake in oven for 10-12 or until golden and all puffy.
Meanwhile in a another pan, heat oil and fry onion. Add mushrooms, thyme salt & pepper and cook for a further 5-10 min or until all the liquid has evaporated from the mushrooms. Lastly stir in the cream; cook for another 5 minutes or until sauce has thickened.
Now take the puff pastry, cut in half (horizontally) and fill with the mushroom mixture and put together and serve. Serves 2 as entree
CHOCOLATE STOUT CAKE
The dessert menu at The Crown varies but at times they have a cake that is similiar to this which I adapted from Bon Appetit
1 cup stout (such as Guinness)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream
6 ounces good semisweet chocolate chips
6 tablespoons heavy cream
3/4 teaspoon instant coffee granules
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter or spray a bundt pan well; make sure you get in all of the nooks and crannies. Bring 1 cup stout and 1 cup butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Transfer cake to rack; cool completely in the pan, then turn cake out onto rack for drizzling ganache.
Ganache:
For the ganache, melt the chocolate, heavy cream, and coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally. Drizzle over the top of cooled cake.
SOFT PRETZELS
This is one of my all time fave recipes and they're awesome with the Guinness Mustard
1 package active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water (105-115F.)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour (if using self-rising flour, omit the 1 t salt)
1 egg, beaten
Serve with Mustard shown below
Dissolve yeast in warm water in large mixing bowl. Stir in salt, sugar and 2 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth (I do this in a food processor with the dough hook) Stir in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. Turn dough into lightly floured surface, knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turn greased side up. Cover, let rise until double, 45 to 60 minutes. (Dough is ready if an indentation remains when touched.)
Punch down dough, cut into 16 equal parts. Roll each part into a rope about 18 inches long. Twist each rope into a pretzel. Place on a greased baking sheet. Brush pretzels with beaten egg and sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake @ 425% F 15-20 minutes or until pretzels are brown. Cool on wire rack. Eat with mustard. Store in container with loose fitting cover. Makes 16
GUINNESS MUSTARD
1 /2 cup coarse-grained Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons regular Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons Guinness stout or other stout or porter
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 teaspoon golden brown sugar
Whisk all ingredients in small bowl to blend. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.
BLACK BEAN CHILI with DARK ALE
not traditional but in the spirit of St. Paddy's, an easy holiday meal
adapted from Vegetarian Times
2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, drained and minced
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 Tbs. ground cumin
1 large onion, finely chopped (1 1/2 cups)
1 medium red bell pepper, diced (1 cup)
5 cloves garlic, minced (5 tsp.)
2 14-oz. cans black beans, rinsed and drained
24 oz. gluten-free dark beer
1 14-oz. can diced tomatoes
1 cup fresh or frozen corn
Heat oil in 3-qt. pot over medium heat. Add chipotles and cumin; season with salt, if desired. Cook 1 minute, or until fragrant. Stir in onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Sauté 5 to 7 minutes, or until vegetables are soft. Stir in beans, beer, tomatoes, and corn. Bring chili to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, uncovered, 45 minutes, or until thick.
LEEK POTATO GRATIN
Terrific St. Paddy's entree h/t to funloving in the comments & The New York Times
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, more for greasing the pan
2 large leeks, trimmed and halved lengthwise
1 1/2 pounds peeled Yukon Gold potatoes or use russet
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 thyme sprigs
1 cup heavy cream
1 fat garlic clove, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
3/4 cup Gruyère, grated.
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 2-quart gratin dish. Wash the leeks to remove any grit and slice thinly crosswise.
2. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, slice the potatoes into rounds, 1/8-inch thick. Toss with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Layer the rounds in the gratin dish.
3. Melt the 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add leeks, remaining salt and pepper, and thyme. Cook, stirring, until leeks are tender and golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Discard thyme and scatter the leeks over the potatoes.
4. Add cream, garlic and bay leaf to the skillet, scraping up browned bits of leeks from the bottom of the pan. Simmer gently for 5 minutes. Stir in nutmeg.
5. Pour the cream over the leeks and potatoes and top with the Gruyère. Cover with aluminum foil and transfer to the oven. Bake for 40 minutes, uncover and bake until the cheese is bubbling and golden, 15 to 20 minutes longer. Let cool slightly before serving.
6 servings.
Some trad music from Kelly's Cellar's Bar in Belfast while we drink our dessert!
STOUT FLOAT
1 tablespoon Stout Syrup, recipe follows, or more to taste
1 scoop vanilla ice cream
1 scoop chocolate ice cream
1 (12-ounce) bottle stout (recommended: Guinness)
Drizzle syrup into a tall glass. Add a scoop each of vanilla and chocolate ice creams. Top with stout and serve immediately, to adults only! Note: Recipe can be easily increased.
Stout Syrup
makes a festive ice cream topping
1 cup sugar
1 (12-ounce) bottle stout (recommended: Guinness)
Bring sugar and stout to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer until thick, about 5 minutes. Let cool before using.
Yield: about 1 1/4 cups
"With A Little Luck" Paul McCartney
"Luck of the Irish" John Lennon
What have you all been cooking? Are you making an Irish feast tomorrow? Please share your recipes and fave Beatle/McCartney music here!
Slan