3 Recipes to Celebrate St. Patrick's Day

We are celebrating this week—spring forward to longer days and have fun on St. Patrick’s Day! We're having beef stew, rosemary chicken, and of course, shamrock shakes.

By
Rachel Knecht
Rachel Knecht
Rachel Knecht
Rachel Knecht turned her home baking into a career in 2016 when she began working as the head baker at The Greenbean Coffeehouse in Seattle, WA. Afterwards, she started Baking with Rachel (her blog), began teaching kids' cooking classes, and recipe tested for the cookbook "Let's Stay In" by Ashley Rodriguez.
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Updated May 15, 2025
Rachel Knecht
Single serving of Slow Cooker Guinness Stew with chunky potatoes, carrots and beef
Elise Bauer

For St. Patrick's Day, my elementary school-aged kids built leprechaun traps in the classroom. They were thrilled when they later returned to mayhem caused by the leprechauns. That's so much more fun than when I forgot to wear green to school—I got pinched all day long!

We're skipping the mayhem and pinching at my house this year. Instead, I'll buy the boys a box of Lucky Charms for breakfast along with miniature pots filled with golden chocolate coins.

Beyond chocolate coins and themed cereal, we’ll spend the week noshing on our favorite green spring-inspired and Irish dishes. I wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to make slow cooker Guinness beef stew, and I suggest serving Irish soda bread with the skillet lemon rosemary chicken. If ever there was a week to make shamrock shakes, this is it!

  • Slow Cooker Guinness Beef Stew

    Single serving of Slow Cooker Guinness Stew with chunky potatoes, carrots and beef
    Elise Bauer

    Enjoy tender cubes of beef, carrots, parsnips, and potatoes for an early St. Patrick’s Day celebratory meal. The slow cooker makes this dinner doable on a weeknight. Use Guinness extra stout and not draught for the best full-bodied and balanced flavor.

  • Skillet Lemon Rosemary Chicken

    Skillet chicken.
    Elise Bauer

    Marinate skin-on chicken thighs in an herb and lemon mixture for an hour or overnight, and sear in a skillet. Before popping the chicken in the oven to finish cooking, add garlic and onions. It’s an easy, flavorful meal that would should be served with this Irish soda bread schmeared with a pat of salted butter.

  • Copycat Shamrock Shake

    McDonald’s Shamrock Shake with green sprinkles.
    Elana Lepkowski

    Skip the drive-thru and make a homemade version of McDonald’s Shamrock Shake. Mint extract flavors the vanilla ice cream shake. Top it with a swirl of whipped cream and a maraschino cherry. Make it boozy with a dash or splash of vodka, whiskey, or Irish cream.

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