Parties That Cooks Top St. Patricks Day Events with Irish Food

Saint Patricks Day is only a few short days away. While you may not be Irish today, Everyones Irish on St. Pattys Day! At least thats what Im told. For those who prefer to fly by the seat of their pants leaving all weekend planning until 3pm Friday AND those who like their calendar filled with color coded activities days in advance, this list is for you.Weverounded up the best food-filled events in Seattle, San Francisco, Portland and Chicago this weekend!

It is the Feast of Saint Patrick, after all

SEATTLE:
Brews & Bites This beer-tasting cooking class has FUN written all over it. Hosted by Parties That Cook (what a coincidence!) and Hilliards Beer, enjoy a flight of 5 beers sampled throughout the evening of hands-on cooking!

St. Pattis Night Out Join Teatro Zinzanni for a special night of deliciously festive food, Irish drink specials, Irish dancing, the usual comedy, and more!

COCHON 555 This touring culinary competition finally hits Seattle! Celebrating five years of the 555 formula, (five chefs, five pigs, five winemakers) this sustainable farming event is not to be missed!

SAN FRANCISCO:
St. Patricks Celebration Lunch and Show Itdoesntget more authentic than an Irish luncheon hosted by the United Irish Cultural Center! Better than be duped by any ofthese imposters.

Funcheaps Shamrock Streat Bash Afraid of committing to one type of Irish fare? Youre in luck! Dishes available at this food truck event run the gamut of Irish bites. If its corned, green or lucky, youll find it at the SoMa StrEat Food Park!

San Franciscos St. Patricks Day Parade & Festival A parade sponsored by SF Irish pub, OReillys, Baileys and Guinness?! Welcome to Ireland. Expect plenty of Irish food, drinks, dancing and other cultural exhibits.

St. Patricks Day Party at The Irish Bank Last, but not least on this long list of activities is the annual block party hosted by The Irish Bank. Warning: this pub will be swarmed with folks donning green. Dare to face the crowds for the first-come, first-served pub fare? If you like raging parties, this just might be the event for you.

PORTLAND:
Kells Annual St. Patricks Irish Festival You can only expect great things from an Irish Restaurant & Pub hosting its own Saint Pattys weekend festival. But just to give you an idea of whats in store: think Irish dancers, pipers, folkers, drinks, live music, and FOOD!

Sellwood-Morelands 15th Annual St. Patricks Day Festival & Parade Youre sure to find authentic Irish classics including corned beef and cabbage, corned beef sandwiches, shepherds pie, and Irish sausage rolls. Need I even mention the Guinness and Widmer Brewing favorites? Wait, did someone say parade?! Im there.

St. Patricks Day at EastBurn Not sure who Mike is, but hell be slinging his Famous Corned Beef & Colcannon for dinner Saturday and brunch Sunday. Word on the street is he always sells out, so shake off that Guinness hangover early Sunday and see what the buzz is about.

CHICAGO:
The Good Food Festival Who isnt interested in eating good food?! This festival gives you the opportunity to stop by and learn more about awesome local farmers while you do it.

Rockit Bar & Grill Ok. So this listing isnt all about St. Patricks Day, but theres nothing wrong with a weekend of March Madness basketball viewing! Theyre even throwing in live music, Irish drink specials, and all things green. Id go just to see what that includes

If youre weekend is already booked, swing by Rockit Bar & Grill all next week for the 4th Annual Mac Madness. Each day features a uniquely cheesy Mac n Cheese dish. Yes.

Soda Bread at Beverly Bakery Were going to keep it simple with this one. If youre looking for traditional Irish fare this weekend, check out Beverly Bakery. It doesnt get more authentic than Irish soda bread.

Parties That Cook Gets Excited for Pi Day

TODAY IS PI DAY. Im not sure if you can tell quite how excited I am. Silly you. Ivebeen preparing for today all week.Ivebeen to Chile Pies (sweet & savory) in San Franciscos Castro neighborhood twice.Ivedevoured Reeses Peanut Butter Cups as if they were mini pies.Iveeaten cake pops (bleh) and wished they were pie pops (yum!). And like a hawk,Iveswooped in on pies left just a minute too long in the Parties That Cook fridge (tarts count too, Beth). Silly coworkers. At least theyre excited about Pi Day as well. Ill give them that.

As consolation for eating all the pie in a 3-block radius, Im sharing two fantastic pie recipes from the Parties That Cook recipe library.

Savory:
Mini Apple, Roquefort and Caramelized Onion Pies with Honey Recipe

Ingredients
Pastry:
1 1/2 cups AP flour + more for dusting
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
9 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces, frozen if possible
1/3 cup ice water
2-inch round cookie cutters
24-cup mini muffin tins

Apple, Roquefort and Caramelized Onion Filling:
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter 1 onion, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 cup water
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, halved and cored
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme, plus thyme leaves for garnish
3 ounces Roquefort cheese, crumbled
2 Tablespoons honey

Methods/Steps
Preheat oven to 400F

Make Pastry: Place the flour, salt and butter into the bowl of a food processor. Run the machine for 30 seconds or until the mix looks like pea size crumbles. Add the water and pulse just until a dough ball starts to form. A tablespoon or so more of ice water may be needed. Do not over work the dough or the crust will be tough. Gather all of the dough and press into a disk. If you are not rolling the dough immediately, wrap in plastic and refrigerate until ready to use.

Roll and Cut Pastry: Place the dough disk onto a well floured surface. With a floured rolling pin, roll dough to about a 1/4-inch thick. With a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut 24 rounds from disk of dough. You cannot re-roll this dough so cut the rounds carefully and without wasting space between cuts. Gently press dough rounds evenly into the cups of a 24-cup mini muffin tin. Bake crust for 15 minutes. When pie shells come out of the oven, they will have puffed. Gently use a spoon or a fingertip to tap shells back down.

Cook Onion/Apple Mixture: In a saut pan(s), heat the butter over medium-high heat until it is hot and beginning to brown. Add the onions and salt to the pan. Stir to make sure all the onions are coated with oil. Add the water to the pan, reduce heat to low and cover for 10 minutes to allow the onions to soften.

Dice Apples: Dice the halved apple into 1/4-inch cube. Once the onions are softened, add the diced apples and continue cooking, uncovered, until the apples are soft and the onions are golden brown, approximately 15 minutes. Stir to prevent burning. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Add the chopped thyme and Roquefort.

Assemble and Bake Tartlets: Place a heaping spoonful of the filling into each pie shell. Bake in the oven until the cheese is bubbling, about 5 minutes.

Serve: While still hot, drizzle the mini pies with honey and garnish with the thyme buds.

Serves/Makes
Makes 24 Mini Pies

Recipe adapted by Parties That Cook www.PartiesThatCook.com
From Parties That Cook Lead Chef, Mick Dimas.

Sweet:
Seasonal Fruit Potpies

Ingredients
Cream Cheese Pastry Dough:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, un-sifted
3 Tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons lemon zest, finely grated
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 ounces unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, chilled
8 ounces cream cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, chilled

Fruit:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 cups fresh fruit, cut into 1/2 inch pieces if necessary: blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, peaches, mango, apples and plums
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 Tablespoons butter

1/4 cup cream (for brushing dough right before baking)
2 Tablespoons coarse sugar, sprinkling over the pastry
Plastic wrap

Methods/Steps
Make Pastry Dough: Pulse the flour, sugar, lemon zest and salt in a food processor for a few seconds to mix ingredients. Scatter butter cubes over the flour mixture, and pulse until the mixture has the consistency of cornmeal. Scatter the cream cheese cubes over the mixture and process until ingredients just come together in a ball. Shape dough into 2 discs, about 3/4-inch thick. Wrap in plastic and freeze for 15 minutes in the freezer.

Make Fruit: Preheat oven to 375F. Adjust rack to lower third of the oven. Place 12 ramekins on a sheet pan. In a large bowl, combine brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Add fruit, lemon juice and vanilla; gently toss to combine. Spoon about 1 cup of the fruit mixture into each ramekin; dot with a small pat of butter.

Roll Pastry Dough: Roll out one disc of pastry on a lightly floured surface until it is about 1/4-inch thick. Using a 4 1/2-inch round cutter, cut out dough circles that are just a bit larger than the ramekins. Set a pastry circle on top of each fruit-filled ramekin and gently press the pastry down into the ramekin around the edge. Repeat with second dough circle and remaining potpies.

Bake Potpies: Using a pastry brush, apply a light coating of cream over the dough, and sprinkle coarse sugar over the top. Using a small pairing knife, make a couple of slits in the center of the pastry to allow steam to escape. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and the fruit is bubbly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves/Makes
Serves 12

Expand Horizons with Parties That Cooks Indian Recipe: Roasted Chicken with Makhani Sauce

Sometimes you need to spice things up. Step out of your comfort zone, even if only by baby steps. Makhani sauce is really just a butter-based tomato cream sauce something even the most all-American Paula Dean fan can appreciate. Serve the Makhani sauce with chicken, or with Basmati rice and naan for a deliciousvegetarianmeal.This tasty recipe will be making a big splash at our March cooking classes in San Francisco and Seattle. Get ready for exotic Date Night and Brews & Bites classes!

Mini Skewers of Roasted Chicken with Indian Makhani Dipping Sauce
This recipe can be found in our Appetizer Recipe Library

Ingredients
Makhani Sauce (Makes 1 cup):
1 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 Tablespoon minced ginger
1/2 serrano chili, finely chopped
1 Tablespoons ghee, can substitute regular butter
1 green cardamom pods
1/2 inch cinnamon Stick
1 bay leaf
1 8 oz can tomato sauce, about 1 cups
1/2 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
Juice of 1/2 lemon or lime

Chicken:
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, can substitute roasted marble size potatoes for vegetarians
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1/2 Tablespoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
12-20 short bamboo skewers

Methods/Steps
Preheat oven to 400F.

Prepare Aromatics: Finely mince the garlic and the ginger, set aside. Remove the seeds from the serrano pepper then finely dice. Set aside as well.

Make Sauce: In a medium size sauce pan over medium heat, melt the ghee. Once melted, add the cardamom pods, cinnamon stick and bay leaf. Toast spices for 1 minute. Add the garlic and ginger and saut for another 30 seconds. Add in the diced serrano, tomato puree, chili powder, garam masala and salt. Mix well. Allow sauce to come up to a boil and then lower the heat and let the sauce simmer for 10 minutes. Add the sugar and heavy cream and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer for 2-3 more minutes. Pick out the cinnamon stick, bay and cardamom (or strain). Add the cilantro and lemon/lime juice, taste for seasoning. Add more salt and sugar if necessary. When ready to serve, pour the hot makhani sauce into a decorative bowl.

Cube Chicken: Cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes. Place cubes into a bowl and add the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, garlic powder, ginger, chile powder and pepper. Mix well.

Roast Chicken: Transfer the seasoned chicken onto a sheet pan(s) in a single layer. Roast the chicken for about 3-4 minutes. Turn over and cook on the other side until the meat is browning, about 3 minutes more (Alternatively, saut for 5-6 minutes or grill for 3-4 minutes as side until cooked through).

Skewer Chicken: Thread 1 cube of chicken onto a the end of a short skewer or sandwich pick. Transfer to a platter and serve immediately with the dipping sauce.

Serves/Makes
Makes 27-30 Mini Skewers

Recipe created by Parties That Cook www.PartiesThatCook.com

Forget Its Winter with Parties That Cooks Court Bouillon Poached Prawns Recipe

Craving that summer sun? Heck, willing to settle for any season that isnt winter? Weve got a recipe that will trick your taste buds into thinking spring has arrived! With citrus, fresh herbs and prawns, all youre missing is that margarita. We wont tell if you wont.

Court Bouillon Poached Prawns with Herb and Citrus Pistou
This recipe can also be found in our Appetizer Recipe Library!

Ingredients
Court Bouillon Prawns:
10 cups cold water
2 medium carrots, peeled and quartered
2 stalks celery, quartered
1 large onion, quartered
1 head garlic, halved
1 lemon, halved
1/2 bunch parsley
5 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
1 pound medium (26-30 per pound) shrimp
Ice for an ice bath

Pistou (Makes 1 1/2 cups):
1 1/4 cups (fully-packed) fresh parsley leaves
1/3 cup oregano leaves
10 basil leaves
1/3 cup (1 ounce) freshly-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
Zest and juice from 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
2 Tablespoons orange juice
1 large garlic clove, peeled
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Methods/Steps
Make Court Bouillon: Put the water, chopped vegetables, and herbs into a pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat to a simmer, set a cover on top slightly ajar, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Clean Prawns: Using a pair of scissors or shrimp deveiner, cut a slit down the back of the prawns just deep enough to reveal the black vein. Peel the shell away (leave last knuckle and tail intact if possible), rinse shells and to the court bouillon for stronger shrimp flavor, if desired. Once all of the prawns are peeled and deveined, rinse well.

Poach Prawns: Drop the clean shrimp into the liquid and turn off the heat. Cook the shrimp, stirring occasionally, until they curl and turn pink, about 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 minutes (shrimp for cocktails should be cooked a little firmer than for hot dishes). Remove shrimp with a spider from the pot directly into an ice bath to chill.

Make Pistou: Place ingredients listed for the pistou in a food processor. Process until the mixture forms a smooth paste. Add more olive oil if you prefer a looser sauce. Pour into a small bowl for serving and garnish with herbs if desired.

Serve: Arrange a nice pile of shrimp on a platter. Nestle a small bowl or ramekin of the pistou into the pile of shrimp and serve.

Serves/Makes
Makes 26 30 prawns