Rumor has it that spring is just around the corner, but with snow in the forecast yet again it’s hard to keep the faith. If, like me, you’re starting to tire of heavy stews for Sunday supper, this one is made with chicken for a lighter feel. The bright green peas also add a welcome hint of spring. It’s officially a St. Patrick’s Day dish, as an Irish stout (i.e. Guinness) flavors the sauce.
This stew is easy to prepare — after browning the chicken and cooking the bacon, it all goes into the slow cooker to braise for 4 hours on high or about 7 on low. The peas are added at the end to keep them bright and crisp — no mushy peas here.
While it’s cooking, I set out a green vegetable crudite to snack on. A selection of Irish cheeses, of course. Serve the stew with some Irish soda bread and, naturally, a glass of stout. (Maybe a root beer for the kids, though.) And follow it all with a not-too-sweet Guinness chocolate cake. You’ll be well-fueled to deal with shoveling more snow…. or whatever your St. Patrick’s Day brings.
Recipe: Slow Cooker Stout Chicken Stew
Adapted from Eating Well
Makes 6-8 servings
Ingredients:
- 6 tablespoons plus 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 1/2 pounds chicken thighs, skin removed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 pieces bacon, chopped
- 1 14-ounce can Guinness beer or other stout
- 4 large carrots cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 red potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 cups frozen peas, thawed
Instructions:
- In a shallow bowl, combine 6 tablespoons flour with 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Dredge chicken thighs in the flour and set aside on a plate.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned, 2 to 4 minutes per side. (May need to do this in two batches.) Remove chicken and place in slow cooker.
- Add bacon and cook, stirring, until crisp. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup flour over the bacon and cook, stirring, for two minutes. Add beer and cook, stirring, until flour is dissolved into a sauce. Pour over the chicken in slow cooker. Add carrots, potato, onion, garlic and thyme, spreading over chicken. Pour chicken broth over.
- Cover and cook until chicken is tender, 4 hours on high or 7-8 hours on low.
- 10 minutes before end of cooking time, stir in peas. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
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For many more ways to Eat Your Greens this St. Paddy’s Day (or all spring long!), check out these other recipes from the #SundaySupper bloggers:
Green Light Appetizers and Sides
Getting Greens Through Salads
Entreés That Will Leave You Green With Envy
Desserts and Beverages That Will Make Others Turn Green
Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. Check out our #SundaySupper Pinterest board for more fabulous recipes and food photos.
Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.
Tags: global flavors · recipes · slow cooker · SundaySupper
February 13th, 2014 · 3 Comments
I again lucked out and got assigned snack duty at the foodie tot’s preschool for Valentine’s week. Sure it was for Wednesday, but the impending snow storm made it likely that they won’t have school on the day of, anyway. I had picked up these cute Valentine’s heart mini cupcake liners so muffins were an obvious choice — and I thought a whole raspberry inside the muffin would go over well in a crowd of three-year-olds.
I’m pleased to report that not only did the class enjoy them, the foodie boy yelled “It was AWESOME!” when asked about the surprise packed in his lunch box. These are sweet and simple, and I served them with some baby red pepper slices to continue the naturally red theme.
Recipe: Raspberry Mini Muffins
Adapted from Serious Eats
Makes 24 mini muffins
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup cane sugar
- 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 24 raspberries
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease or place liners in a 24 cup mini muffin tin.
- In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a separate bowl, combine melted butter with sugar and whisk until smooth. Stir in egg, milk and vanilla and mix until well combined. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- With a teaspoon, fill muffin cups 3/4 full with batter. Place one raspberry, open side down, in each cup. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until edges are golden and a toothpick come out clean. Let cool in pan.
Looking for more naturally red Valentine’s inspiration? Here are a few more recipes from around the web.
Tags: baked goods · baking · breakfast · cooking with kids · kids cook monday · recipes
February 7th, 2014 · 3 Comments
There’s nothing like a snow day to get one craving something sweet, and making baked doughnuts lets me feel like it’s a slightly healthier choice than the fried versions. Even if I top it with a rich maple glaze. I hadn’t realized that maple bars were a West Coast thing until reading about an article about them a couple years ago. I can’t recall eating many doughnuts as a child, but realizing that something isn’t available where you now live has a way of spurring a sudden sense of nostalgia. Of course you can get maple doughnuts at Dunkin Donuts, but I’m not a fan of that chemical aftertaste that artificial maple extract imparts. So it’s safer to make my own maple glazed doughnuts at home. As I’ve said before, baked doughnuts are really just muffins in the shape of a doughnut, but the glaze transforms them into a special occasion treat.
We were recently sent some maple syrups and maple sugar from Crown Maple, and I was eager to try out the maple sugar in some baked goods. Unlike the maple sugar crystals I’ve used before, Crown maple sugar is very fine in texture and gives the baked doughnuts just a subtle maple flavor while baking up light and moist with a great crumb. Just take a peek inside.
Recipe: Baked Maple Doughnuts with Pure Maple Glaze
Adapted from Shutterbean
Makes 6 doughnuts
Ingredients:
- 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/3 cup maple sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
for the maple glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/8 teaspoon pure maple extract*
- 1-2 tablespoons whole milk
*Note: If you don’t have maple extract, use 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. It won’t have as rich a maple flavor, but will still be delicious.
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease doughnut pan and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and maple sugar.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together butter, egg, buttermilk and vanilla extract.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until well combined.
- Scoop the batter into a plastic sandwich bag. Snip off a corner and pipe batter into doughnut pan.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until top bounces back when poked. Let cool in the pan for a few minutes before inverting onto a wire rack.
- While doughnuts are cooling, whisk together the glaze ingredients using just enough milk to make it smooth but not so much that it’s runny. I made it slightly thinner and dipped the doughnuts in it, but you risk getting crumbs in the glaze that way. I’d recommend keeping it just thin enough to drizzle with a fork and drizzling it over the doughnuts.
About Crown Maple Syrup: Crown Maple Syrup is certified organic syrup produced from 25,000 sugar and red maple trees on an 800-acre sustainably-managed estate in New York’s Hudson River Valley. They use a unique reverse osmosis system to remove 90% of water from the sap before the evaporation process, resulting in an extraordinarily pure syrup. The syrups, available in light, medium, dark and extra dark amber, are pure and delicious drizzled on pancakes and waffles; I also like to use them in vinaigrette over salad and even in cocktails. You can visit Madava Farms, home of Crown Maple, on the weekends for a tour and tasting — and March is the peak tapping season to see it in action.
Disclosure: We received product from Crown Maple for review purposes; no other compensation was received and as always, all opinions are our own.
Tags: baking · breakfast · cooking with kids · foodietots reviews · kids cook monday
Cooped up with the kids on yet another snow day? Here’s a fun way to think ahead to spring and learn a little something, too. Remember Flat Stanley? The world-traveling paper cut-out has gone digital, and through the Flat Stanley mobile app kids can now explore organic farming thanks to a partnership with Cascadian Farm.
While on the virtual farm tour, kids can explore where their food comes from, what organic means and why organic farming is important to protect the ecosystem. I didn’t even realize Flat Stanley has a sister now, Flat Stella — the foodie tot dressed her Flat Stella in a t-shirt and sporty skirt and they were off to the farm together.
Ready to play? Download the free app, create your Flat Stanley or Flat Stella character and look for the Cascadian Farm logo in the far northwest corner of the US. (Cascadian Farm was founded in Washington’s Skagit Valley.)
About Cascadian Farm: Since 1972, Cascadian Farm® has grown from its original farm in the Skagit Valley to be recognized as a leading participant and champion in the organic movement. Since day one, the brand has been dedicated to organic goodness, making all of its products from organic ingredients. All Cascadian Farm products are made without GMOs or reliance on synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Cascadian Farm offers more than 75 delicious, high-quality organic products including cereals, granolas, frozen fruits, vegetables and potatoes, fruit spreads, granola bars, juice concentrates and more.
Here at the Foodie Tots house, we are big fans of their Cinnamon Crunch cereal. I appreciate that their organic cereals don’t have crazy amounts of sugar, contain no artificial colors or preservatives and are GMO-free.
GIVEAWAY: To spread the word about Flat Stanley’s new organic adventure, Cascadian Farm is offering a prize package (pictured above) to one FoodieTots reader. The prize includes an indoor gardening kit, Organic Stanley to color, and assortment of Cascadian Farm cereal, granola and granola bars. Enter in the giveaway widget below. Contest will end at 11:59pm EST next Thursday, February 6.
Disclosure: Cascadian Farm provided us with product samples and is sponsoring the prize package for this giveaway. No other compensation was received and all opinions, as always, are our own.
Tags: eco-friendly · giveaway · organic
Sunday Supper has long been a tradition around my table, even before I had kids. When my husband and I first moved to DC after college, we hosted friends for supper every week. I had my subscription to Gourmet magazine (rest in peace) and our single friends were willing guinea pigs as I experimented with new recipes. Now, my audience is a little more demanding, but I still believe Sunday Supper is a time to gather around the table and create family memories. So I’m excited to finally join in, officially, with the Sunday Supper Movement — a weekly virtual gathering of bloggers sharing what’s on their family table.
This week, the #SundaySupper theme is Tapas. Inspired by my husband’s favorite dish at our favorite tapas restaurant, gambas al ajillo (shrimp with garlic), I added a couple clementines which are a staple of the season in our kitchen. The bright citrus flavor complements the garlic-infused oil that dresses the shrimp. Delicioso!
Traditionally, tapas are served before dinner (and with a drink), but an assortment of small plates is easily made into a family-friendly supper — I add a salad and make sure to serve with a bowl full of olives and crusty baguette, too.
Recipe: Gambas al Ajillo y Clementina (Shrimp with Garlic and Clementines)
Serves 4
Note: I use a Chilean seasoning, Merkén, that is a smoky pepper blend. You can substitute smoked paprika or red pepper flakes instead, depending on your family’s spice tolerance. Merkén also contains salt, so go lighter on the sea salt if you do use it.
Ingredients:
- 12 ounces frozen shrimp, thawed, peeled and deveined
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly slivered
- 2 clementines, peeled and cut into segments
- 2 tablespoons Sherry or dry white wine
- pinch sea salt
- pinch Merken or red pepper flakes
Instructions:
1. Heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook, watching closely, until edges are golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
2. Add shrimp and cook, turning once until shrimp are pink and opaque. (You may have to do this in two batches to avoid overcrowding the pan.) Season with salt and merken or red pepper flakes. Remove shrimp to serving plate and top with cooked garlic.
3. Add sherry or wine to deglaze pan. Add clementines and sear for another minute or two. Pour clementines and pan liquid over shrimp.
Now for the rest of our tapas party….
Here’s what’s on the Table:
Stuffed Green Queen Olives with Garlic Infused Olive Oil from MarocMama
Cheesy, Tortellini Tapas & Spicy Bacon Ranch Dip from Daily Dish Recipes
Black-Eyed Pea Cowboy Caviar from Shockingly Delicious
Goan Beef Croquettes from Masala Herb
Giardiniera Salad from Peanut Butter and Peppers
Bacon Wrapped Calamari from Jane’s Adventures in Dinner
Patatas Bravas from Supper for a Steal
Caramelized Onion & Gruyere Bites from The Foodie Army Wife
Agave Truffles from Killer Bunnies, Inc
Pear, Brie, and Honey Crostini from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
Tomato Bread from girlichef
Clams in Green Sauce (Almejas en Salsa Verde) from The Little Ferraro Kitchen
Roasted Tomato-Basil Flatbread from Take A Bite Out of Boca
Herb and Citrus Marinated Olives from Magnolia Days
Smoky Paprika Peppers from Small Wallet, Big Appetite
Balsamic Raspberries with Mascarpone Cream from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Gambas al Ajillo from Manu’s Menu
Squid in Garlic Chili Olive Oil from Food Lust People Love
Tortilla Española from The Not So Cheesy Kitchen
Croquetas de Pollo from Cookin’ Mimi
Low-Carb Salmon Croquettes from Yours And Mine Are Ours
Bruschetta Topping from What Smells So Good?
Herb Roasted Almonds from Curious Cuisiniere
Artichoke Heart and Manchego Spread on Fried Garlic Bread from The Wimpy Vegetarian
Tortillita de Camarones from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
Patatas A La Riojana (Rioja-Style Potato & Chorizo Stew) from Cupcakes & Kale Chips
Tortillas De Papa y Atun (Tuna and Potatoes Tortilla) from Basic N Delicious
Pocky Cake Pops from NinjaBaking.com
Chorizo Filled Dates Wrapped in Bacon from I Run For Wine
Manchego-Stuffed Spanish Meatballs from The Weekend Gourmet
Roast Onions with Blue Cheese and Pine Nuts from Healthy. Delicious.
Shrimp and Chorizo Tapas from The Texan New Yorker
Blueberry and Lemon Yogurt Quesada from In The Kitchen With KP
Chorizo with Spicy Sweet Potato Tapas from Soni’s Food
Chorizo and Manchego Toast Tapas from Family Foodie
Roasted Bone Marrow with Citrus Salad from The Girl In The Little Red Kitchen
Mushroom Chevre Crostini from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
Serrano Ham and Manchego Croquetas with Smoked Pimenton Aioli from My Other City By The Bay
Krab Filled Avocado Tapas from from Hot Momma’s Kitchen Chaos
Polenta Crostini Bites with Caramelized Mushrooms: Cicchetti – A Venetian Tapas Tradition from La Bella Vita Cucina
& last but not least, Best Wines To Pair With Tapas from ENOFYLZ Wine Blog
Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter every Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. Check out our #SundaySupper Pinterest board for more fabulous recipes and food photos. Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy! You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.
Tags: global flavors · recipes
