When March arrives on the calendar, I think I can speak for everyone in Michigan in that we give a silent cheer that spring is on it’s way!
While this cheer is often followed by illness or some other type of germ that befalls us, we still seem to remain optimistic that Spring will be coming. I think in the North we are just always hopefully optimistic that warmer weather is coming – I know I paint such a lovely picture of living here, don’t I?
The Hope of Spring in March
But March arrives, and we do have a few things to look forward to besides just the hope of warmer weather.
1. Maple Sugar Season
While my family does not have maple trees on our property, many neighbors around us do, and it is so fun to see the bags or buckets hanging off the trees collecting sap. My family also enjoys, weather permitting, attending our local Nature Center where they have a whole weekend called the Maple Sugar Festival where they show you how to make maple syrup and you can take walks on the trails with guides and all sorts of maple fun! And really what is better than topping waffles with than REAL maple syrup?
While my family does not have maple trees on our property, many neighbors around us do, and it is so fun to see the bags or buckets hanging off the trees collecting sap. My family also enjoys, weather permitting, attending our local Nature Center where they have a whole weekend called the Maple Sugar Festival where they show you how to make maple syrup and you can take walks on the trails with guides and all sorts of maple fun! And really what is better than topping waffles with than REAL maple syrup?
2. March Madness
I grew up in Indiana. You cannot be a Hoosier without knowing about basketball. Bring out those brackets – who will win this year? College basketball is a blast!
3. St. Patrick’s Day
While I am not Irish, this is a fun holiday to celebrate everything lucky and green! A local city near us has a parade we have attended in years past and there are so many fun food items you can make to celebrate this holiday. (hint, hint, we have a whole Irish food themed recipe roundup coming soon!)
St. Patrick’s Day
So I must admit, I really don’t know much about this holiday! In my college days, I celebrated with green over 21 drinks, in my younger mom days we celebrated with fun green themed food and a scavenger hunt for the kids – but really why is St. Patrick’s Day celebrated?
Lenten prohibitions against consuming meat were waived and people would dance, drink and feast–on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.
Ahh, now I get it! Well, since this is vegan, plant based food blog, you won’t find us waiving the consumption of eating meat, but we think this recipe is in a standalone category of acceptable Irish fare all on its own!
We went with the traditional Guinness beer to marinate these portobella mushrooms and asparagus in – did you know Guinness is now Vegan?
Now, if you are short on time feel free to not marinate them quite as long – but to really let that flavor soak in, I would recommend marinating for 24 – 48 hours! I could really taste that Guinness flavor in a subtle way after 48 hours of marinating the portabella’s. I paired the mushrooms with asparagus and onion – which I also marinated. You could omit these or use different vegetables.
I also topped my salad with cripsy, garlic roasted chickpeas! There are probably a hundred recipes out there for roasting garlic chickpeas. I will share my super simple method below in the recipe details. So simple, yet so tasty.
We hope you enjoy this recipe and are able to incorporate it into your St. Patrick’s Day Irish themed dinner. If you do, we would love to know, use hashtag #badtothebowl and tag us on social media.
Guinness Marinated Portabella Mushrooms (with Crispy Garlic Chickpeas)
Course: MainGuinness marinated mushrooms with asparagus and crispy chickpeas, healthy bowl for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day!
Ingredients
2 large portabella mushrooms1 small sweet onion
1 bunch of asparagus
1/2 cup Guinness Beer
2 Tblsp Soy Sauce or Amino Liquids
1 Tblsp Balsamic Vinegar
2 garlic cloves
1 t. dijon mustard
1/4 t. dried tarragon
1/4 t. dried parsley
1/8 tsp pepper
Additional items: fresh salad greens, roasted sweet potato or squash, avocado slices, balsamic vinegar and garlic roasted chickpeas.
Directions
- Slice mushrooms, cut onion into wedges and snap the woody ends off your asparagus stalks. Place all these into a large ziploc bag or large bowl.
- In a small bowl, whisk together all remaining ingredients.
- Pour over vegetables, zip bag shut and shake to mix really well.
- Place bad in fridge and let sit for a few hours up to 48 hours.
- Preheat grill to medium high heat. Drain vegetables from marinade and place on grill pan. Grill for 25-30 minutes, stirring at least once so they don’t burn. Alternately, you could roast these in the oven at 425 degrees.
- Place on top of your salad greens (or eat by themselves), top with additional items of choice and enjoy!
- Crispy Garlic Chickpeas:
Preheat oven to 425 degree and line a large baking sheet with foil that is lightly sprayed with cooking spray. - Drain and rinse really well 1 can of cooked chickpeas. Use a paper towel to blot them somewhat dry while they are in your colander
- Spread them out on baking sheet and sprinkle lightly with garlic salt and generously with garlic powder.
- Roast for 20-25 minutes stirring once.
