Recipes

There are many things which we associate with the country of Ireland. One of them is St. Patrick’s Day, which for many people is celebrated as keenly (and in some cases, more keenly) than their own national saint’s day. In some cases, it’s not even a day anymore – there are businesses in Canada who observe entire St. Patrick’s weeks, and spend a whole seven days painting everything green and waking up each morning with a stout-induced hangover!

If St. Patrick’s Day isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you think about the Emerald Isle, then chances are you’re picturing characters from Irish myth and legend. That means banshees, leprechauns, rainbows, and pots of gold. While leprechauns were originally gruesome and terrifying characters, they’ve become a little tamer over the years. You’ll often see them anywhere there’s a casino; the mobile slots game ‘Rainbow Riches’ is one of the most popular of its kind in new slot sites. In fact, the Irish theme is one of the most popular of all the mobile slots genres, tempting millions of players into taking a spin of the reels. It’s not just mobile slots in online casinos or sister sites either; anyone who’s seen the ‘Leprechaun’ series of horror films can testify that the characters are still capable of giving you a scare.

One thing that often gets overlooked when we think about Ireland, though, is the cuisine. People are often hard-pressed to think of any Irish dish other than Irish stew. While it’s a fine stew (especially when done right, which is harder than it looks), it’s not the kind of dish people are likely to get overly excited about. That might lead you to believe that Irish food is boring. To that, we have one response:- Guinness chocolate puddings.

It goes without saying that all kinds of chocolate pudding is delicious, but adding Guinness into the mix takes it to the next level. The Irish stout – which is so widely drunk around the world that it’s now more popular in Nigeria than it is in its home country – might not necessarily seem like the most obvious cooking ingredient, but when it’s used properly it can bring a richness and a warmth that few other alcoholic ingredients are capable of – and so it’s only right that we share the secret with you here!

What You’ll Need

The good news here is that making this delicious dessert isn’t going to take you all day. Preparing everything shouldn’t take you more than half an hour at most, and it cooks in 20 minutes. You’ll need to leave it to chill for an hour before cooking, but this is a recipe that will be ready to eat within two hours of starting to make it. The mix we’re about to describe is sufficient to feed four people. You’ll need:-

150 grams of butter (unsalted);

200 grams of dark chocolate (the darker, the better, but go for at least 70% cocoa), chopped;

3 eggs (large);

90 grams of golden caster sugar;

90mls of Guinness (you could alternatively use another Irish stout, but why would you?); and

Double cream or clotted cream (an optional serving choice).

You’ll also need four 5cm ramekins, and an electric whisk.

How To Make It

This is a simple, three-step process, and you don’t need to be a wizard in the kitchen to get it done. As long as you know how to operate an oven, you should face no problems here!

First, butter the ramekins and put them aside for now. Take the remaining butter and chocolate, and pour them all into a heat-proof bowl. Add a pinch of salt along with it. Take a small pan, fill it with water, and bring the water to the point of simmering (not boiling). Set your bowl of ingredients over the plan, and stir it until everything has completely melted. Once that’s done, take it off the heat, and leave it to cool.

While that’s cooling, it’s time to move on to the eggs and sugar. Place them into a suitably-sized mixing bowl, and use your electric whisk to beat them until they’ve turned pale. If you don’t have an electric whisk, you can do this manually, but it might take you a while! Stop whisking when the mixture has approximately doubled in volume. You should notice a trail beginning to form when the beaters are lifted out of the mixture, which is a sign that you’ve reached the right point. When you’re satisfied with the mixture, gently and carefully fold in the butter and chocolate in with it. Follow that up by pouring in the Guinness, and fold that in, too. When everything’s all together in the mixing bowl, divide it equally between your buttered ramekins, and place them in your refrigerator to settle and chill for one hour.

The last stage is the cooking! Heat your oven up to gas mark 6, or 200C. If you have a fan-assisted oven, go for 180C instead. Have a baking tray on the top shelf of your oven to heat up as the oven warms. Once you’ve reached the desired temperature, place the ramekins directly onto the baking tray, and bake them for twenty minutes. Once they’re done, we recommend allowing them to stand for a minute or two before serving them. This is where the cream comes in; if you like cream, add a healthy spoonful of it on top of the pudding before serving. If you don’t, then serve them naked – they still taste great without it!

Normally when we offer recipes to you, we suggest that they’d go well with a certain color or flavor of wine. That would be inappropriate here though; the only drink you should be pairing with this pudding is a hearty pint of Guinness! This is a dessert that’s perfect for St. Patrick’s Day, Christmas, or just because it’s a boring Tuesday and you fancy giving yourself or your family a treat. You’ll never think of Irish cooking the same way again!

We hope you love this dessert as much as we do; and if you do, why not share it with a friend? Thanks for stopping by to check out our recipe. We’ll be sure to bring you more great cooking ideas soon!

As you know, we like to bring you mouthwatering recipes from around the world every now and then on this page. Today we’re turning our attention to Greece – which is a country which perhaps isn’t as well-represented when it comes to restaurants as it should be. Yes, there are many Greek restaurants out there, but not In anything like the same numbers as Italian, Chinese, Thai or Japanese restaurants. That’s a shame – especially if there isn’t a Greek restaurant in your area. Not to worry though – we’ve got all the information you need to make a great-tasting Greek dish of your own at home!

When you look at Greece, there are primarily three things that it’s known for. In no particular order, they are:-

1. History. Greece is one of the most historically important ancient nations in the whole world. As well as once having an empire, we owe Greece for the invention of many things the world now takes for granted. Where would the world of sport be if it weren’t for the Olympics – which were invented in Greece? The ancient Olympic Games started in Athens in the year 776 BC. When the modern Olympics began, they also started in Greece, this time in 1896. If sport’s not your thing, how about the concept of democracy – the system of government that most civilized countries rely upon? That, too, was invented in Greece over two and a half thousand years ago. If you ever find yourself getting angry at modern politicians, remember to blame the Greeks for putting them there!
2. Myth and Legend. From the serpent-headed Medusa, who could turn you to stone with a simple stare, to the winged Icarus who fell into the sea while flying too close to the sun, Greek myths and legends are full of fascinating, colorful characters. Although the tales are thousands of years old, they’ve been brought alive and told once more many times, and they’re still relevant today. Hercules was last on our movie screens in 2014, for example, and mobile slots websites are full of slots casino which take their inspiration from Greek legends. There are some obvious choices, such as the ‘Zeus: God of Thunder’ mobile slots game which is based on the most famous Greek god of them all, but other characters are also represented. ‘Magic of Pandora’ is a mobile slots game based on the woman who, according to myth, brought sin into the world. ‘Medusa Megaways’ is all about that petrifying Gorgon. They’re at mobile slots websites, they’re in the cinema, they’re on TV – they’re everywhere!
3. Food. That’s why we’re here today, and that’s perhaps what Greece is most famous for now (other than its beautiful beaches and vacation destinations). When we think of Greek food, we think of lamb, and yogurt, and feta cheese. We think of olives, and pasta, and fish. We also think of wine – but that might just be us. Whether you want to choose a bottle of wine to go with the meal we’re about to show you is entirely up to you! Today’s recipe is all about lamb and feta, brought to life with a spicy kick and then skewered for convenience. Here’s how you go about making it.

What You’re Going To Need

Making this recipe will take you 25 minutes from start to finish, so it’s a great choice if you’re looking for something quick and tasty! The ingredients are:-

500 grams of minced lamb;

300 grams of basmati rice (brown);

300 grams of cherry tomatoes (cut in half);

50 grams of feta cheese;

85 grams of black olives (quartered) ;

12 wooden skewers;

1 red onion (large, and half-sliced, half-grated);

1 cucumber (diced);

1 large cup of parsley (chopped);

1 large cup of mind (chopped);

1 lemon (juiced);

1 tablespoon of olive oil, and

1 tablespoon of harissa.

How To Make It

This may seem like quite a lengthy list of ingredients, but it’s easy to make once you’ve assembled everything you need. There are only three steps, and if you follow them to the letter, you can’t go wrong.

1. Immerse all of the wooden skewers in a bowl of water, and leave them there for thirty minutes. While they’re soaking, consult the cooking instructions on the back of your packet of rice, and cook them using the recommended method. When it’s cooked, give it a quick rinse with cold water and then drain it thoroughly before setting it aside.
2. Heat up your grill. While it’s heating up, put your lamb mince into a bowl, and mix it with the feta cheese, the grated half of the onion, the harissa, and any seasoning you wish to add. Make twelve sausage shapes from the mixture (you should have more than enough mixture to do this with), and thread the resultant sausages onto the skewers. Place them onto a banking tray (important note: this should be a non-stick baking tray!), and grill them for between six and eight minutes. Turn them regularly during the grilling process, and keep a close eye on them. When they’ve turned slightly brown, they’re ready.
3. Mix all the ingredients you have left over with the brown rice, and again add further seasoning if you see fit. The rice and the rest of the ingredients are a bedding for your hot skewers to sit on. You’re now ready to serve. Fill some small bowls with the rice mixture, add the skewers on top, and either enjoy them yourself or impress your guests!

All the spice in this recipe comes from the harissa. If you or your guests have a liking for spice, you could increase the amount of harissa in the recipe to give things a little more kick and zing. Be very careful though – harissa is a very hot chili paste, and shouldn’t be trifled with. In practice, it’s better to be safe than sorry when putting it into food!

We hope you’ll find these lamb skewers as delicious as we did, and we’ll see you back here soon for another great recipe idea!