In honor of St. Patrick's Day on Saturday I decided I would post a few days of Irish recipes. That is hard to do when you are not Irish! One thing I have learned is only the Irish can cook true Irish cuisine. Their recipes call for ingredients you can't find here in the USA. So I'm going to start with a recipe for Pea and Ham Soup. Ingredients you can find right here in the USA.Ingredients:
1 oz of butter
1 onion, chopped
1 pint vegetable stock (see notes below)*
4 oz of whole milk
8 oz of cooked potatoes, diced
6 oz of frozen sweet peas
4 oz of cooked ham, diced
1 tablespoon of fresh chopped parsley
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon of heavy cream (as served)
Directions: Melt half of the butter and sauté the onion in a saucepan until soft but not browned. Add the vegetable stock and milk then bring to a boil. Add potatoes and peas then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the peas are tender and the potatoes starts to fall apart. Puree in a blender then return to the heat and stir in the ham and parsley. Season with the salt and pepper. Heat through. When placed in the bowl stir in 1 tablespoon of heavy cream and swirl. Serve with fresh baked Soda Bread (tomorrow's post). ~ Chef ~
* There are (2) methods for preparing Vegetable Stock chose whichever method is best for you.Method 1: You will need 4-6 cups of vegetable scraps (mushroom stems & trimmings, onion skins, trimmings from carrots, celery, peppers, asparagus, broccoli stems, zucchini, etc.). 1 bay leaf, some black peppercorn and a clove of garlic. Add all ingredients to a 5 quart pot. Cover with cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce temperature to medium and simmer stock for one hour. Follow directions below for straining and storing.
Method 2: Preheat oven to 450°F. Toss scraps and garlic lightly with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil and place in a shallow roasting pan. Roast for 20-30 minutes (depending on size and variety of scraps) until caramelized, but not charred in any way. Transfer roasted vegetables to a large pot and cover with cold water. Add bay leaf and peppercorn and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce temperature to medium and simmer stock for one hour. Follow directions below for straining and storing.
Straining and Storing: cool stock completely to lukewarm, then strain and discard (or compost) the solids. Pour stock into clean jars, leaving a good half-inch of headspace. Cool completely in the refrigerator. Freeze for up to three months or store up to five days in fridge.
