Irish Festivities: Stew, Brown Bread, & Stout Cake

The stew and brown bread recipes were adapted and veganized from a cookbook I picked up in Ireland last year, Irish Soups & Breads. It is a traditional book full of interesting recipes and facts. The stout cake with stout ganache I came up with on my own, though!

Irish Beefless Beef Stew w/ Fluffy Dumplings

* Prep Time: 15 minutes
* Cook Time: 45 minutes
* Ingredients (for stew):

• 1/2 seitan recipe, cooked as directioned, ripped into chunks
• 1 leek, light green and white parts chopped
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 2 medium celery stalks, chopped
• 1 small-medium white onion, chopped
• 1/4 tsp caraway seeds
• 1 2/3 cup porter beer*
• 7 1/2 cups vegetarian "beef" broth*
• 1 1/2 cups button mushrooms, sliced
• 3 tbsp tiny white onions, peeled
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• flour, for dusting seitan
• olive oil, for frying seitan pieces
• 2 tbsp soy butter*
• 2-3 tbsp parsley, to top
• salt & pepper

* Ingredients (for fluffy dumplings):

• 3/4 cup self-rising flour
• 3/4 cup white breadcrumbs
• 3 tbsp butter
• 2 "eggs" prepared by Ener-G instructions*
• cayenne, to taste

 * Recipe (for stew):

1. In a large pot on medium heat, let the butter melt. Add the leeks and onion. 
2. After onions become translucent, add the carrot and celery. Cook until tender.
3. Next, add the caraway seeds, beer, broth, thyme, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Cook for 20-30 minutes.
4. While the stew is cooking, prepare the seitan pieces. In a medium pan, heat the olive oil. While olive oil is heating, roll the pieces of seitan in flour. Brown them in the olive oil and add to the stew.
5. Add the mushrooms,tiny onions, and fluffy dumplings to the stew. Cook for another 10-15 minutes. Remove the bay leaf when done cooking.
6. Top soup with parsley when serving.

* Recipe (for fluffy dumplings):

1. In a bowl, combine flour, breadcrumbs, and cayenne.
2. Mix the egg in a small bowl. Add into the flour mixture followed by the butter. Combine well.
3. Form into small dumpling shapes and add into stew about 10-15 minutes before it is finished cooking. 

* Note: I used a porter beer because I couldn't find a vegan stout on hand that wasn't a chocolate stout. If you can find a non-chocolate stout that is vegan, please use that. Check Barnivore to make sure it is vegan. For vegetarian "beef" broth, I used Frontier broth. The soy butter I used was Earth Balance. Ener-G is a type of egg replacer.

Brown Bread


* Prep Time: 5-10 minutes
* Cook Time: 55 minutes - 1 hour
* Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups course whole wheat flour
• 1 cup oatmeal
• 3/4 cup wheat germ
• 2 "eggs" prepared by Ener-G instructions
• 1 1/2 cups soy milk
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar

* Recipe:

1. In a medium bowl, mix all the dry ingredients. Create a well in the middle of the dry ingredients.
2. In the well, add the soy milk, olive oil, and "eggs". Mix the batter well. If the mix is too thick, add a little more soy milk if necessary.
3. In a greased bread pan, add the batter and smooth the top. Make two diagonal cuts on the top of the bread. 
4. Bake in the oven at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375 degrees and bake for another 40 minutes.
5. Take out of the oven and test to see if done. Bread to cooked by tapping the bottom; if it sounds follow, it's done. One could otherwise use a kebab skewer and poke down the middle of the loaf. If it comes out clean, the bread is done. If not, bake for another few minutes and re-check.

* Note: The mashed potatoes that the bread is with in the picture are made via my recipe here.

Chocolate Stout Cake w/ Chocolate Stout Ganache


* Prep Time: 5-10 minutes
* Cook Time: 50 minutes
* Ingredients (for chocolate stout cake):

• 1 cup chocolate stout beer*
• 1 cup softened soy butter
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 "eggs" prepared by Enger-G instructions
• 2/3 cup vegan sour cream*

* Ingredients (for chocolate stout ganache):

• 1/4 cup chocolate stout beer
• 9 oz. vegan chocolate chips
• 1-2 tsp vanilla extract

* Recipe (for chocolate stout cake):

1. Mix the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients in the well and combine well.
2. In a greased cake pan, pour the batter in. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes.
3. Check the cake after 40 minutes to see if it is done. use a toothpick or kebab skewer and poke the cake to the bottom of the pan. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake it done. If not, place back into the oven until cooked.

* Recipe (for chocolate stout ganache):

1. Bring a small pot to boil. In a small pan, place the chocolate chips inside. Place pan over the boiling water and stir while the chocolate melts. Add the stout and the vanilla extract.
2. Once cake cools, top it with the ganache.

* Note: Most stout is not vegan. Please make sure you check Barnivore before you make this cake. There are a few stouts out there that are vegan. Don't use Guinness! For vegan sour cream, I used Tofutti. 


Well, there you have it. I hope you all have a great holiday! Irish blessings from your part Irish blog doll. xo

Miss Suzy Q

Now to the cooking. When in Groton/New London, the boy and I made stir fry, though I did not take any pictures. It was pretty basic: Asian rice noodles, veggies, vegetarian stir fry sauce. We also made chicken enchiladas and margarita's at the same time, haha.

As stated before, I like to make care boxes. Here is yet another gloriously themed box, Easter! I refused to tote this crap in a suitcase across the country, so I mailed it. Besides, its more fun that way. You all know you like to get homemade packages in the mail to dig through, admit it. (I had enough stuff for him from myself and his mother and his sister - half my suitcase was his stuff, don't ask.) This is not all of what was in the box, but you get the idea. I'm going to make the boyfriend fat with all the baked goodies and candy I send, haha. I put a blueberry cake in there, which I posted about in a previous entry. For the trip, I hand-sewed a drawstring bag in old merchant looking ships (try from like 1700s) and put vegan stout cookies in it (leave me alone, they are sailors and I like themes! - hello look at my care box). Plus, I told him to share. The link is the recipe. As it states, most stout in not vegan. I used Young's Double Chocolate Stout, which is vegan. I'm starting to think it is the only vegan stout out there. The link on the "drawstring bag" text is the tutorial as to how one makes it. Also, I carried homemade fortune cookies with me all the way there. It was hard. I had to put them in my messenger bag and make sure I didn't crush them the whole trip. The things I do for baking and being super girlfriend-y!

Oh, so there was this debacle with a coffee cake I baked around this same time. It sort of went nutty on me. I'm blaming the tin baking trays I use. Nothing ever turns out in the right amount of time or the way it is exactly supposed to be in those. I need to obtain ceramic ones. Let's just say, the nice top caved inside the actual cake, it overflowed as a result in the oven, started to burn on the oven floor, caused the condo to smell like burnt cake, and overall was a mess. But, I salvaged it. I hope it is good?

This summer, I am creating an apartment balcony vegetable garden (as I'll actually be in Chicago for more than a month at a time). I have most of my necessary tools to do so. I will begin in two weeks. It is going to be all organic. My balcony is going to be oh so cute with its vegetables, herbs, flowers, little ducks and bunny garden figurines (I'm so girly, it's sickening), little mosaic solar powered lamps, miniature gas grill, and my sweet bicycle. I am going to have to industrial velcro the figurines and the lamps so they don't blow 21 floors over the edge. Eep.

Couple more links on balcony gardening: More apt. gardening, tips on how & what to grow in hanging baskets, and the Topsy Turvy Hanging Tomato basket (which I really want but unfortunately, I can not hang things). Oh, I ordered my organic seeds from Seeds of Change.

This website is incredible, by the way. I'm in love. Go vintage and old things in general.

Above is my homemade Ginger Carrot Beet (& Sweet Potato) Soup recipe. When I make my own recipes, I don't really follow any measurement levels, I just sort of go with it. So, these directions may be a bit odd, haha, but I bet it will taste good when it is done!

* Prep Time: 15 minutes

* Cook Time: 45 minutes

* Ingredients:

• 1 large beet (diced)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 of a medium onion (chopped)
• 3-4 large carrots (diced)
• 1/3rd small ginger root (minced)
• 2 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 4 cups of vegetable stock
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2-1 teaspoon ground ginger
• dash of onion powder
• dash of garlic salt
• dash of all-purpose seasoning
• dash of oregano
• dash of dried dill weed
• Optional: 2-3 small sweet potatoes (diced)

* Recipe:

1. Add olive oil and all the spices to medium pot. Add chopped onions and sautee until translucent.
2. While onions are cooking, peel the beet and carrots (and sweet potatoes if using). Chop 'em up.
3. As the onions begin to cook, add the garlic and ginger root to the pot.
4. Add the carrots, cook for 5 minutes.
5. Put the beets (and sweet potatoes) in and the vegetable stock. Simmer for 30-40 minutes.
6. Optional: when done cooking, put in a blender to make a puree. I was too lazy, clearly, and it was good just as it cooked.

* Notes: I used black carrots for this recipe which is why the soup base looks so beet colored (black carrots have the same coloring and dying affect that beets have). Okay, so I really like spices (I have a whole freaking cabinent of them), so don't mind me with all my dashes of this and that. You don't have to, I'm just weird, haha. Oh, I had some sweet potatoes lying around so I added those too. Not normal to this soup, I know, but it was good! Ah, and you'll notice in my picture, I don't chop too fine. I like big pieces of vegetables in my soup, but if you are putting this in a blender, I would advise to chop as small as possible.

Indian Spiced Lentils & Vegetables

* Prep Time: 15 minutes
* Cook Time: 1+ hour
* Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 bag of lentils (sorry - my mother gave me the lentils in a baggie, not sure of the measureent quantity)
• 3/4th of medium onion (chopped)
• 3 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 4 carrots (chopped)
• 3/4th of a bag of green beans (chopped)
• 4 small sweet potatoes (skinned and chopped)
• 1/3rd a head of cauliflower (chopped)
• 1 can of diced tomatoes w/ juice
• 5 cups or more of vegetable stock
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• dash of oregano
• dash of all-purpose seasoning
• dash of dried dill weed
• dash of nutmeg
• dash of thyme
• dash of ground ginger root
• several dashes of dried sage
• dash of garlic salt
• dash of onion powder
• dash of garlic powder
• several dashes of turmeric
• several dashes of cumin
• several dashes of dried parsley
• pinch of coriander
• pinch of celery seed

* Recipe:

1. Place chopped onions and garlic in bigger pot with olive oil and the spices. Cook until the onions are translucent.
2. Add the carrots, green beans, sweet potato, cauliflower, and tomato. Cook for 5-10 minutes.
3. Add the lentils and the vegetable stock. Cover lentils + 1 more cup of stock.
4. Cook until the vegetable and lentils are soft. Keep adding stock if it evaporates.

* Notes: I didn't make mine into a soup per say, it was like half submerged or less. I also lacked a can of diced tomatoes, so I used cherry red's that I cut up and squished. Used orange cauliflower too.

Indian Spiced Potatoes & Vegetables

* Prep Time: 15 minutes
* Cook Time: 30-40 minutes
* Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 5 small baby red potatoes (diced)
• 1/2 of medium onion (chopped)
• 1/2 cup of pine nuts
• 1 cup of frozen peas
• 2-3 teaspoons of Dijon mustard
• 3-4 teaspoons of masala
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• dash of oregano
• dash of all-purpose seasoning
• dash of dried dill weed
• dash of nutmeg
• dash of thyme
• dash of ground ginger root
• several dashes of dried sage
• dash of garlic salt
• dash of onion powder
• dash of garlic powder
• several dashes of turmeric
• several dashes of cumin
• several dashes of dried parsley
• pinch of coriander
• pinch of celery seed

* Recipe:

1. Place chopped onions in medium pot with olive oil and the spices. Cook with the pine nuts until the onions are translucent.
2. Add the potatoes and mix well with masala and dijon. Add the water. Cook for 20 or so minutes.
3. Add the peas and cook until they are no longer frozen.
4. Cook until the vegetables are soft.

* Notes: So, this dish should look yellow in color, FYI. Keep adding turmeric if you wish. I personally like it a lot.

Indian Spiced Rice

* Prep Time: 15 minutes
* Cook Time: 30 minutes
* Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups of white rice
• 1/2 of medium onion (chopped)
• 3 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 2 small bell peppers (chopped)
• 1/2 cup of raisins
• 1/2 cup of pine nuts
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• dash of thyme
• dash of ground ginger root
• dash of garlic salt
• dash of onion powder
• dash of garlic powder
• several dashes of turmeric
• several dashes of cumin
• pinch of coriander

* Recipe:

1. Place chopped onions and garlic in medium frying pan with olive oil and the spices. Cook until the onions are translucent.
2. In the mean time, cook your rice in a rice cooker or in the microwave or the stove (follow whatever directions you need for the device you use to cook it).
3. Add the bell peppers, pine nuts, and raisins.
4. Cook until the vegetables are soft.
5. Add to the rice - mix it up well!

* Notes: Again, this should be yellow in color. Add more turmeric if you wish. I used green bell peppers, just fyi.




I was missing curry powder for all the Indian recipes and each should have had at least a teaspoon. Add that to all the dishes if you plan on making these.

Gretschka Kasha (Buckwheat Pilaf)

So, this is a traditional Russian recipe gone vegan. My mother translated it into English for me from my aunt.


* Prep Time: 15 minutes
* Cook Time: 30-40 minutes
* Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups of buckwheat (gretschka kasha)
• 2 cups of water
• 1/2 of medium onion (chopped)
• 3 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 1 medium bell pepper (chopped)
• 2-3 carrots (diced)
• 1/2 bag of green beans (chopped)
• 1/3rd of a block of tofu (diced)
• 3 stalks of green onion (chopped)
• Lots of mushrooms - use a variety! (chopped)
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• dash of parsley
• several dashes of dried dill weed
• dash of garlic salt
• dash of onion powder
• dash of garlic powder

* Recipe:

1. Put the buckwheat in a large pot with water. Let it boil and then turn it down to a simmer. Keep a lid on it the whole time.
2. Place chopped onions and garlic in medium frying pan with olive oil and the spices. Cook until the onions are translucent.
3. Add peppers, green beans, tofu, mushrooms, and green onions to the onion mix. Stir fry it until the vegetables are cooked/soft.
4. Simmer the buckwheat until it is completely cooked and soft. You may need to add more water during this process.
5. When buckwheat is done cooking, add the stir fry vegetables to the pot and mix thoroughly.

* Notes: You should be able to find buckwheat with the ethnic food section of your normal grocery store. It will probably be located near the Jewish food.


Oh, over Easter, I made a carrot cake out of The Joy of Vegan Baking. It was a HUGE hit. I also made some more cornbread, also a hit. I really recommend the carrot cake, yum!


Use Tofutti for the cream cheese frosting of the carrot cake. You should be able to find it at most groceries that have a vegan/vegetarian/special diet section. If not, try a health food store.

Vegan Stout Cookies: 5/5!
Fortune Cookies: 3/5 (these were hard to make and REALLY sugary)
Carrot Cake: 5/5!
Cornbread: 5/5


Until I cook some more!

The Luck of the Irish &... Some Blueberry Cake!

For St. Patrick's Day this year, my friend and I made a vegan dinner before going to see The Tossers (I've seen them 3 times in the past year... I think I may like Chicago Irish punk too much). Before our cooking extravaganza, I had made Irish Soda Bread a couple days before and froze it. I used the recipe out of The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau (check out her website and listen to the podcasts!: Compassionate Cooks).

Note: do not use a bread maker to make the soda bread! I found over breakfast with Colleen (this story is for entirely different blog post - I organized an event at Loyola last week where she came and spoke about veganism!) that it kneads the bread too much. Use a pan and stick it in the oven.

I made about 7 loaves or more of bread that week, mostly Irish Soda Bread, but also the Mediterranean Olive Bread and the Cornbread out of The Joy of Vegan Baking. The overall rating seemed to be that the soda bread and the cornbread were much better than the olive bread, according to my parents (who got one of each of these breads). Also - I do not recommend freezing the bread and then shipping it. Just ship, no freeze. I mail a lot of baked goods now-a-days, so I'm trying to learn about shipping goodies.

The St. Pat's Day meal consisted of Irish Stew and Cabbage and Potatoes gone vegan. I used this Irish Stew recipe, but added some oregano (2 teaspoons) and celery (2 stalks - chopped) to it too.

Cabbage & Potatoes

* Prep Time: 15 minutes

* Cook Time: 40 minutes

* Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons soy butter
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 head of cabbage (shredded)
• 3 Yukon Gold potatoes (diced and sliced)
• 1 white onion (cut up - diced)
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1-2 tablespoons of lager and/or water
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

* Recipe:

1. Add soy butter and olive oil to a medium sized pot and allow to melt.
2. Next, dice and slice the potatoes and add to the pot.
3. Allow the potatoes to become golden brown (10-15 min) and then add the cut up onion, salt, and pepper.
4. After the onions have become translucent (5-8 minutes), add the shredded cabbage.
5. The cabbage will begin to wilt. As it does this, add the red wine vinegar and the lager and/or water.
6. Allow to simmer for 30 minutes.

* Notes: If you feel, add more soy butter or olive oil as the cabbage begins to wilt. Stir during this process and mix it with the onion and potato. For the lager, I use Harp's which is vegan.

Yummy!

So, we ate the stew and sopped it up with the soda bread and had the cabbage and potatoes on the side. Now, dessert was quite special. We made Vegan Irish Whiskey Cake using this recipe. It turned out very good! We used Bushmill's whiskey for it. It was quite soft and delicious. I sold the left over cake at a bake sale that Monday and people were a bit skeptical of the idea of whiskey cake. I had to keep telling them it was coffee whiskey cake. Those that did try it agreed that is was amazing! I also sold Chocolate Stout Cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. Surprisingly not a lot of people knew what stout was? Or they were not expecting it in a cupcake. Make sure your stout is vegan, though! Check out Barnivore!

The other night I made a blueberry cake loaf. I used The Joy of Vegan Baking yet again (I do love that book - it is so well organized!). I recommend using fresh blueberries to frozen ones. The juice liked to melt on me from the frozen ones. Or at least microwave them a bit and drain the juice if you go the frozen route. Check out the result:

Hopefully he keeps as he is currently in off in a box somewhere in route via USPS.

Lastly, I am very into creating care packages. Here is a gloriously themed St. Patrick's Day care box. There was a lot of different random things in the box for the boyfriend but to note there was a loaf of the Irish Soda Bread and some Sugar Cookies w/ Green Sprinkles (I used the Sugar Cookie recipe from Colleen's baking book - told you I love that book). I recommend not over baking them... as I did. I went a smidge too long and they got rather crispy, needless-to-say. My father who also got some said he dunked them in his coffee in the morning and sopped them up with his ice cream at night and they were tasty. Apologies to boyfriend, dad, and boyfriend's dad for hard cookies!!

If you have care box ideas, send them. I'm obsessed. My desire is to be a vegan punk rock Betty Crocker and I think I'm succeeding, haha. Just sent out the Easter one which I will show you pictures of later, I am sure (after he gets it).

Ratings...

Irish Soda Bread: 5/5

Mediterranean Olive Bread: 4/5?

Cornbread: 5/5

Irish Stew: 3.5/5 (I think it could have been better... I feel something needs to be added to the broth. I will probably mess around one day and figure out what!)

Irish Whiskey Cake: 5/5

Vegan Chocolate Stout Cupcakes: 5/5 (everyone loves these things... I have non-vegans asking me for the recipe all the time!)

Blueberry Cake: unknown (no one has had it yet!)

Sugar Cookies: 4/5 (because I fail, I need a rematch!)

Shamrock in the beer foam. <3