Happy St. Patrick's Day!

So, Cupcake and I have church tomorrow so we are having St. Patrick's Day dinner a day early. I told her the options, and she chose Beef and Guinness Stew and Colcannon. So we ran to the store this morning and got what we needed. And here it is:

Beef and Guinness Stew
1.5 lb beef chuck (I got a steak, as roasts are twice as big, and way more than two if us need), cut into 1 inch chunks
1 onion, chopped
1/2 pound baby carrots
Salt, pepper and dry thyme
1 bottle Guinness
2 teaspoons vegetable base (no extra liquid)
Dry instant potatoes

Layer beef, onions and carrots in 2.5qt crock pot, seasoning with salt and pepper after beef layer. Sprinkle thyme over the top, then pour the Guinness in. Then swirl the vegetable base paste into the Guinness. Cover, turn on high and cook 4-6 hours (or low for 8-10).

Turn cooker off, and sprinkle in enough potato flakes to thicken as you desire.


Colcannon
1 bunch kale, pulled off stems and torn into small pieces
1 stick butter (I used Kerrygold garlic and chive butter)
1.5 cups potato flakes
Water and milk

Melt butter in a pot and add kale. Cover and cook until tender.

In a large bowl, mix potato flakes and enough water to make very dry potatoes. Add kale and butter from pot. Stir, then add about 1/2 cup milk (more or less to taste). Then add enough water to make potatoes desired texture. Season with salt and pepper.

It is good and warm on this cold, drizzly St. Patrick's Eve. Enjoy!

Zuppa Toscana

This is my favorite soup at Olive Garden. And pretty easy to make at home.

I browned a pound of Italian sausage (hot, mild, sweet...whatever your preference). When it was done, I added a chopped onion. After it softened, I added about a pound of diced potatoes (I used frozen diced potatoes cuz I was feeling lazy) and 4 cups of chicken broth. I then simmered it until the potatoes were tender. Then I added about a half pound of torn up kale. After I stirred it in, I let it simmer another 20 minutes, until the kale was tender and some of the potatoes broke down to thicken the soup. If desired, you can add a bit of red pepper flakes.

I made some pilsbury bread sticks to go with the soup ala Olive Garden...when they were almost done I brushed them with melted butter with garlic powder mixed in. Yummy!