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Hibernian Hunger Project

Food & Drink

Big Night for Fishtown and Port Richmond at Irish Stew Cook-Off

Amateur winner Dan Hazley and second place finisher Phil Bowdren.

Amateur winner Dan Hazley and second place finisher Phil Bowdren.

Dan Hazley has been making his Irish stew for years. “I got the recipe from my aunt Mary, my dad’s sister,” said Hazley. “It’s made with beef. I only get to make it a couple of times a year. I always knew it was pretty good. I just didn’t know whether anyone else would think so.”

So do they? You bet they do. Hazley’s Irish stew was this year’s winner, in the amateur category, of the Irish Stew Cook-Off at Finnigan’s Wake. The savory cook-off is sponsored annually by the Hibernian Hunger Project.

Better yet, Hazley—who represented Ancient Order of Hibernians Division 87 of Port Richmond in the all-you-can-eat event—shared honors with a good friend, chef Mary Kate McCaughey of Fishtown’s great little Irish eaterie called Ida Mae’s (2302 E. Norris St.). Mary Kate picked up a first in the professional category.

Dan may have his aunt Mary to thank, but Mary Kate credits her mother-in-law Veronica. “It’s her recipe,” she said. And it’s as authentic as Irish stew gets. Her husband Feargus, co-owner of Ida Mae’s, is from just outside of Belfast. He’s one of 11 children—the only one to have left Ireland. So when Mary Kate decided to enter the cook-off, she called her mother-in-law. “I said, ‘I need your beef stew recipe.’ She said, ‘Honey, it’s lamb. You don’t make Irish stew with beef.'”

So, like any good daughter-in-law, she listened. Good thing. Her savory concoction was top drawer—and the judges clearly agreed.

Mary Kate can also thank the winner on the amateur side. “I did the air conditioning in their restaurant,” said Hazley. “Their food is just phenomenal. (The Inquirer’s Craig LaBan agreed.) Their chowder is really great. So I suggested that she enter. She’s a neighborhood girl, so it’s nice to see her do well.”

Of course, lots of other folks did well, too. Here are the 2nd and 3rd place finishers:

Professional

2. Finnigan’s Wake
3. Tir na Nog

Amateur

2. Phil Bowdren, AOH Division 51 (Fishtown)
3. Denny Gaw, AOH Division 2 (Horsham, Montgomery County)

Regardless of the objections of Mary Kate’s mother-in-law, more than a few of those stews (including the amateur winner, of course) contained beef.

Probably the most unusual stew was Denny Gaw’s. Denny, the AOH board president, went traditional … but only to an extent. His stew contained lamb as its main ingredient, but his was the only one not gravy-based. “Mine is cream-based,” he said. “I got the recipe 10 years ago. We were in Ireland, doing the Ring of Kerry. We stopped at a restaurant … it was up on a mountaintop, a mom-and-pop place. I ordered this stew, and it was great, so I asked them for the recipe … and they gave it to me! I make it all the time.”

This year’s contestants—six in each category—had quite an appreciative audience. For five bucks, they could sample all the stews in the place. (And a lot of the contestants included a good-sized slab of soda or brown bread.) The place was jammed.

Among the guests sopping up brown gravy out of little plastic bowls was Rowan Fealy, a lecturer in the department of geography at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. He and partner Dr. Laura McElwain, who works for the Ireland meteorological service Met Eireann, had arrived at Finnigan’s earlier in the evening to delivery a presentation on climate change and its impact on Ireland. Happily, they were able to take in the stew cook-off as well. “This is just an added bonus,” Rowan said. “It’s great. It’s got everything an Irish male looks for … beer and food. It’s perfect!”

Another guest was Geralyn Keating, director of the Irish American Cultural Institute in Morristown, N.J. “We came for the lecture, and then we got all this, too,” she said. “It was a winner.”

Of course, the big winner was the Hibernian Hunger Project, which takes the evening’s proceeds and funnels them back into the group’s many local activities, including Aid for Friends. “We do an annual ‘cook-in’ for about 200 shut-ins through Aid for Friends,” said Ed Dougherty the national and Philadelphia county chairman. “Their cooks go away in the sumer, so we go up and do bulk meals for them.”

The ninth annual cook-in takes place at the Aid for Friends facility in Northeast Philadelphia on Saturday, March 29, starting at 9 a.m. and ending … whenever they’re finished. To volunter, contact Donna Donnelly at KDDFAM@aol.com.

Food & Drink

Wanted: The Best Irish Stew in Philadelphia

The 4th Annual Great Irish Stew Cook-Off, sponsored by the Philadelphia Hibernian Hunger Project will be held on Thursday, March 13, from 6 p.m. ‘til 9 p.m. at Finnegan’s Wake on Spring Garden Street. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Hibernian Hunger Project’s Cook-In, being held on Saturday, March 29, at the Aid for Friends facility in Northeast Philly.

The Hibernian Hunger Project got its start right here in Philadelphia in March of 2000 and, since that time, more than 67,500 individual and bulk meals have been prepared, packaged and delivered to organizations like Aid for Friends, the Philadelphia Veterans Multi-Service & Education Center, St. John’s Hospice, and others that feed the elderly, homeless and less fortunate. The Hibernian Hunger Project is now a national charity of the Ancient Order of Hibernians.
 
We are challenging Philadelphia area restaurants and pubs to join in the Spirit of Saint Patrick’s Day and help the less fortunate, while competing for the bragging rights to “Philadelphia’s Best Irish Stew. Previous winners have included the Plough and the Stars Restaurant (2004), McFadden’s Restaurant – Old City (2006) and Chef Josh Landau of Colleen’s on the Parkway (2007).

Amateur winners have included Jude Fanning of AOH Division 39, Phil Bowdren of AOH Division 51 and Ann Marie Parkinson & Kathy Higgins of LAOH Division 1. Past Celebrity Judges have included CBS 3’s Larry Mendte & Bob Kelly.
 
The event is open to the public and, for a $5 donation; you will have the opportunity to sample some of the greatest Irish Stews made in Philly.
 
For more information on the event or to register for the competition, please contact:
 
Ed Dougherty – Hibernian Hunger Project National Chairman @ 215-338-4315
Donna Donnelly – Philadelphia Hibernian Hunger Project Cochairperson @ 215-964-7830
Phil Bowdren – Philadelphia Hibernian Hunger Project Publicity Chair @ 267-254-2219 or philly.hibernianhungerproject@verizon.net

News

Helping the Hungry

By Tom Slattery

On Saturday, July 14 over 80 people including about 20 under 16 years of age turned out at Conwell-Egan High School in Lower Bucks County to pack dinners as part of the Hibernian Hunger Project (www.hibernianhungerproject.org), a proggram established and supported by the Ancient Order of Hibernians.

In a 3 ½ hour session over 6,000 dinner trays were filled, covered, labeled, packed and loaded into a refrigerated truck donated by the Teamsters. These were then sent to the lockers of Aid for Friends for distribution to those in need.

I have noticed over the past two or three years, that these “packing sessions” in Philadelphia and Bucks Counties are drawing more and more youngsters. It is very rewarding to see these kids working along with not only their parents, but also their grandparents. They are learning the pleasures derived from helping those less fortunate, as well as getting a “taste” of their heritage. In addition to earning the respect of their elders, they are also learning that volunteer work and learning can be fun. At Saturday’s session, the Bucks County spokesman called a “timeout” to tell the kids about those unfortunates who would be the benefactors of their work.

The “work force” included two politicians, who were not there for photo ops, but who put in a days work. Congressman Pat Murphy worked one of the packing tables, while Bucks County Commissioner Jim Cawley was out in the kitchen cleaning trays.

The final lesson the kids learned was “clean up after”. Yes, it was impressive to watch the “cleanup operation, which restored the Conwell-Egan cafeteria to its pristine state.

Congratulations to Bucks County AOH Division 1, the Teamsters, and all the volunteers who spent a summer Saturday helping those less fortunate.

News

AOHers In a Stew

Ann Marie Parkinson and Kathy Higgins of LAOH Div. 1 (Center City) served up some of the tastiest stew during the cook-off at Finnigan's Wake.

Ann Marie Parkinson and Kathy Higgins of LAOH Div. 1 (Center City) served up some of the tastiest stew during the cook-off at Finnigan's Wake.

There was something about Josh Landau’s beef stew. Something different, something fragrant and herbal … something wonderful.

Of all the stews at the Ancient Order of Hibernians’ Annual Stew Cook-Off, held last night at Finnigan’s Wake, Landau’s stood out. So I asked him what he put in his beef stew that made it so tasty.

Landau, the garde manger (sous-chef) at Colleen’s at 22nd and the Parkway, wasn’t giving away many secrets about his stew. (Neither was anyone else.) But for the benefit of gastronomic idiots like me, Landau was perfectly willing to share just one secret.

“It’s lamb,” he said. “There’s no beef in it.”

Oh.

But I don’t like lamb, do I?

Well, not until last night, anyway. Seems everyone else knew it was lamb, but my past experience with cooked sheep has been that it tastes more or less like a live sheep smells.

Ah, but I was in the hands of a master. And the judges—amazingly, they were able to tell the difference between a cow and a sheep—concurred with my amateur assessment and awarded Landau first prize.

Landau said he worked hard to tame the usual “gaminess” of the lamb in his stew. How? His lips are sealed. “A little bit of fresh rosemary and thyme,” he acknowledged, not very helpfully. “And garlic … what’s food without garlic?”

The recipe has been in his family, Landau said. (A family that includes the actor Martin Landau, Josh’s uncle.) “I just changed it a bit to suit my own palate,” he said.

The victory was especially grand for Landau, who was competing in the event for the first time. He’d also never made Irish stew before.

Taking second was another first-time contender, the team from the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians Div. 1 (Center City). Representing the division were Ann Marie Parkinson and Kathy Higgins. They had toyed going with a lamb-based recipe. The only other contender using that ingredient was Phil Bowdren of AOH Div. 51 (Fishtown). “We were thinking about it right up until this morning,” said Ann Marie, “but at the last moment, we changed our minds.”

The division had a little help from the Red Rooster Inn in Northeast Philadelphia. “It’s their recipe and mine that we mix together,” Ann Marie said. “I started with theirs, and then I added in some family secrets.”

Winner of third place was Paddy’s Well.

The event is one of the showcases fund-raisers of the Hibernian Hunger Project. Proceeds go to groups like “Aid for Friends”, which provides meals for those in need.