4 Awesome Recipes for St. Paddy's Day!

by Matt DeMarco

(editor's note:  Matt DeMarco joined our staff a few months ago and he has proven to be an invaluable addition.  Despite his youth (I have socks older than him), his beer knowledge is extensive. Besides being an accomplished home brewer, he is also an excellent chef.  As he mentions below he holds a degree in Culinary Arts.  Peter (owner), Brian (manager), and I (lackey) hope you enjoy these recipes and your St. Patrick's Day festivities.)



With the approaching St. Patrick’s Day holiday, we wanted to share our wealth of knowledge to help you enjoy your day. For those of you who don’t know me that well, in addition to my love of beer I hold a Culinary Arts degree. With my beer and food expertise, I have developed a few beer and food pairings that can be easily prepared at home.

You will notice that I did not include Guinness, Harp, Murphy’s, Smithwick’s or any of the other traditional Irish ales. Each of those beers can be paired with any of these recipes but instead I chose a beer to pair with each course that will best complement each other.  These are only suggestions and there is no right or wrong. The goal is to have fun with it and besides it gives you a reason to drink beer.


Irish Soda Bread

Irish Soda Bread is traditional bread made without yeast. Baking soda and buttermilk cause a reaction that causes the dough to rise. The key to making this bread is minimal mixing and kneading. Around St. Patrick’s Day you will see sweet versions of the bread but this is a rarely seen savory version of the bread. This is one of the easiest types of bread to make. This bread is good on its own with some butter or alongside of a bowl of soup or stew. This can also be used for the toast in the Welsh Rarebit recipe.

6 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 ½ cups buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Pour the buttermilk into the bowl and stir just until mixed. You should have a soft dough. Knead the dough for about 1 minute until everything comes together. Separate the dough into 2 pieces and shape them each into a round loaf. Lightly press down on the top of the loaf to flatten it. Place both loaves onto an ungreased baking sheet. Score each loaf with a knife by cutting a shallow ‘X’ into the top. Sprinkle the tops with a light dusting of flour. Let them rest for 10 minutes before baking. Place into the oven on the center rack for 40 minutes or until the loaves are golden brown. Allow loaves to cool on racks before cutting.

Welsh Rarebit

Rarebit is a traditional Welsh dish consisting of a melted cheese sauce served over toasted bread. Traditionally cheddar cheese is used but you can use any type of cheese you like. This dish can serve as an appetizer or as a nice lunch. You can even serve with a fried egg on top of rarebit for breakfast. The beer can be left out but the milk needs to be increased to ½ cup.

1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
¼ cup whole milk
½ cup stout or porter
1 tsp Dijon mustard
4 slices of whole wheat or soda bread toasted
2 tbsp chopped dill pickles
cayenne pepper to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter and flour and cook for about 2 minutes while continually stirring. Add mustard, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Mix in beer and milk. Add the cheese and mix until all the cheese has melted and the sauce is smooth and creamy. Pour cheese over toasted bread and broil until the cheese is bubbling and golden brown. Sprinkle with chopped pickles and serve immediately.

Welsh Rarebit pairs well with:

·         Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale: A Northwest Pale Ale brewed with Cascade hops. It has a crisp almost bready flavor with a touch a fruit and mild hop bitterness. This beer was made for cheesy dishes. 5.0% ABV / 40 IBUs

·         Flying Fish Red Fish: A West Coast style hoppy red ale with a piney nose. This beer is very balanced for a hoppy red ale and has a creamy mouth feel. There are notes of pine, citrus, and caramel. Great match for any dish starring cheddar cheese. 7.0% ABV / IBUs not available

Ham & Cabbage

Corned beef & cabbage is on the menu everywhere on St. Patrick’s Day. My family has a tradition of ham instead of corned beef. The traditional dish in Ireland is actually pork belly and cabbage because the ingredients were readily available since most families grew their own cabbage, carrots, and potatoes and raised their own pigs. If you prefer corned beef, you can swap it with the pork butt.

3 lbs boneless smoked pork butt (or 3lbs corned beef)
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup bread crumbs
1 tsp dry mustard
1 medium head of cabbage, cut into wedges
1 tbsp dark corn syrup or molasses
4 whole cloves
5 black peppercorns
1 large onion, peeled & quartered (optional)
3 large carrots, peeled & cut into thirds (optional)
6 medium potatoes, peeled (optional)

Place the pork butt in a dutch oven or stock pot. Cover with water and bring to boil and simmer for 90 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix brown sugar, bread crumbs, and mustard. Remove pork butt from water, reserving the water. Pierce pork in several places with a fork. Coat the top and sides of the pork with corn syrup (or molasses). Pat bread crumb mixture on top and side of meat. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Add cabbage, cloves, peppercorns, and any additional vegetables to the water and boil for 30 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Top off water if needed.  Slice meat and serve in a large dish with the cabbage and potatoes.

Ham & Cabbage pairs well with:

·         Rogue’s Irish Lager: This Irish style lager is smooth with a crisp, dry finish. There is a slight green apple taste with a light sweetness to balance tartness. This beer tastes like it is fresh off the boat. This beer was made to float Guinness on it. A great session beer to pair with ham and cabbage or really any Irish food.  5.0% ABV / 28 IBUs

·         Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale: This Irish red ale uses toasted malts to give it a nice crisp almost caramel base flavor. There is a slight fruitiness of plums and citrus followed by a rich herbal earthiness. There is a hint of hops with a little alcohol warmth in the finish. This beer was made for hearty Irish meals. 6.5% ABV / 25 IBUs

·         Troegs Troegenator: A Double Bock, a dark lager, with a strong bready aroma from the malts. A big beer with a warming effect and nice peppery spiciness with a faint hint of brown sugar sweetness. A big beer that pairs with well with the sweetness of the ham. 8.2% ABV / 25 IBUs

Porter Cake

Traditionally, there are not a lot of Irish desserts. This porter cake is a rich & moist fruit cake that is best when made a day or two ahead. This is a fruit cake you will actually want to eat. I suggest using the beer you plan on drinking with it.

3 cups dried cranberries
1 cup golden raisins (or raisins or a mixture of both)
zest of 1orange
zest of ½ lemon
1 ½ cup of stout or porter
2 ¾ cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp allspice
¼ tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Mix the cranberries, raisins, orange and lemon zest, in a large bowl. Add the beer and let soak at least 4 hours or overnight, stirring occasionally. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 7-inch square cake dish. Mix flour, baking powder, spice, and salt into a large bowl. Cream the butter and sugar in a separate bowl for about 4 minutes, until light and fluffy. Stir in the eggs a little at a time, adding a little flour each time. Add the remaining flour. Add the fruit and remaining liquid and nuts to the batter. Mix until a smooth consistency. Spoon into pan, smooth the surface with a spatula. Bake for 1 hour. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake for an additional 1 ½ - 2 hours or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let rest in pan till completely cool. Wrap in wax paper and store in an airtight container.

Porter Cake pairs well with:

·         Dominion Morning Glory: Morning Glory is an espresso stout with a nice aroma of milk chocolate and sweetened coffee. Fairly thin mouth feel with strong coffee and chocolate flavor followed by a mild sweetness. Somewhat dry finish with a hint of vanilla. Nice combination of coffee and chocolate to pair with this richness of this cake. 8.0 ABV / 35 IBUs

·         Bell’s Special Double Cream Stout: This stout uses 10 different malts to give it a creamy, chocolaty & coffee flavor. There is a hint of a molasses sweetness with a dry finish. A smooth stout that starts off with a nice coffee flavor and the chocolate flavors develop as it warms.  6.1% ABV / 50 IBUs

·         Dark Horse Scotty Karate: A scotch ale with a nice caramel aroma. Has a nice caramel sweetness and bready taste from the malts and the hops add a dry, herbal, earthy dimension. The alcohol is well hidden. There are hints of cinnamon and plum which make it a perfect match for this cake. 9.75% ABV / 24 IBUs

And it would not be St. Patrick’s Day without Irish Potatoes. Everybody seems to buy up as many as they can of this sweet coconut treat smothered with cinnamon. My recommendation for pairing a beer with Irish Potatoes is a milk stout such as Left Hand Milk Stout. Left Hand makes this beer as smooth as it gets. There is a faint chocolate taste and a nice sweetness from the lactose. Very drinkable with a lightly bitter coffee finish.

Enjoy the holiday and remember, everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day!