Braised Guinness Lamb Shank Stew

 

This week's lamb stew was half inspired by the recent Hunger Games movie release (The books are so much fun! And addictive.) and half inspired by lamb shanks on sale at the supermarket.  The lamb flavor was incredibly rich in the cooked down stew and the lamb shank was falling-off-the-bone tender.  I didn't like the added sweetness from the dried plums since the stew already had a sweet overtone from the lamb, onions, and carrots.  I would leave out the dried plums next time.  We ate this with plain rice though it would be good with pasta or bread as well.  Another great use for my Dutch oven! :)

Looking for another Guinness recipe?  Try out this tasty bread!

Braised Guinness Lamb Shank Stew
Adapted from bon appetit
serves 2 (with plenty of leftover stew)

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 lamb shanks (about 2 pounds total, one lamb shank per person)
1/4 cup all purpose flour
2 cups chopped onions
2 cups beef stock or canned broth
1 12-ounce bottles Guinness stout
4 carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 cup pitted prunes

1. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large Dutch oven over high heat. Season lamb shanks with salt and pepper. Lightly dredge lamb shanks in flour; shake off excess. Reserve excess flour. 
2. Add lamb to Dutch oven and brown well on all sides. Using tongs, transfer lamb to bowl. Reduce heat to medium. Add chopped onions to Dutch oven and sauté until transluscent, scraping up any browned bits, about 5 minutes. Add reserved flour and stir 1 minute.
3. Return lamb shanks and any accumulated juices to Dutch oven. Add beef stock and Guinness. Cover and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until meat is almost tender, about 1 hour.
4. Add carrots to Dutch oven and simmer uncovered until meat and vegetables are tender and stew thickens slightly, about 40 minutes. Spoon fat from surface of stew. Add prunes and simmer 20 minutes.

Guinness Cheddar Beer Bread

A pack of Guinness beer inevitably found its way into my pantry the week before St. Patrick's Day.  I'm not a great fan of drinking Guinness, but I do enjoy the novelty of baking and cooking with it.  With a few hours of notice beforehand, I made cheddar beer bread to bring to a St. Patrick's Day dinner.  The recipe is quick and easy, unique, and unusually dense.  The loaf felt like a brick and had the moist, dense, chewy texture of banana bread.  The Guinness flavor was evident but still subtle.  The cheese gave it a great saltiness and crispiness at its edges. 

Another great use for Guinness is in this lamb stew. :)

Guinness Cheddar Beer Bread
Adapted from theKitchn
Makes one 8 1/2-inch loaf

2 3/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 (12-ounce) bottle Guinness beer
1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese (about 6 ounces)
2 tablespoons dried dill
2 tablespoons butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Line 8 1/2- x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, or coat with butter.
2. In a mixing bowl, thoroughly whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Pour in the beer and mix until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened. Fold in 1 cup of the cheese and dill.
3. Transfer the batter to prepared pan. Pour the melted butter evenly over top of the dough. Bake about 30 minutes then scatter the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese over the top. Return the loaf to the oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes longer or until a tester inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes.
4. Turn out, slice, and serve warm.

Chocolate guinness and irish cream cupcakes

 I've been eying this recipe for quite a while and finally got around to trying it.  An incredibly moist chocolate Guinness cupcake, filled with Bailey's irish cream ganache and topped with Bailey's irish cream frosting.  The alcoholic flavors played off each other very nicely, each distinctive yet subtle enough to let the chocolate shine.  We had some problems with the ganache separating, but thankfully we were able to recombine the mixture...though the consistency was not quite suitable for ganache.  In the end, we decided to make a second batch.  I'm sure we'll find a good way to use up the first batch, even if it means eating chocolate by the spoonful!  I'm not letting my beloved Ghirardelli 60% cacao chips go to waste!!

Chocolate whiskey and beer cupcakes