I’m happy to welcome fellow author and friend, Susan G. Mathis, back to Historical Nibbles! Today, she is sharing about her newest release and a stew recipe just in time for the fall/winter season. Welcome back, Susan!

by Susan G Mathis

For thousands of Irish immigrants, and for many children of those families, tragedy came early, from disease, accidents, or poverty, leaving the children alone in cities like New York that could be both cruel and full of compassion. Out of this struggle grew the orphanages, institutions that housed destitute and abandoned children—many of them Irish. The Irish community built its own faith-based orphan asylums, places where children could grow up within their faith and culture. Girls were trained in sewing, cooking, and housekeeping—skills that would prepare them for domestic service in upper-class homes.

For many Irish girls, this was their only path to survival and respectability. They entered the Gilded Age world as maids, governesses, or kitchen staff—serving the very families whose wealth defined the era. Yet within that service, they carried the quiet pride and resilience of their heritage.

In the third book of my upcoming series, Fiona King never meant to step into her mother’s shoes—let alone fill them. She arrives at the grand Westminster Park Hotel on Wells Island carrying nothing but her late mother’s tarnished legacy and a box of handwritten Irish recipes, including her Gran’s Irish Beef Stew (below).

She’s given command of the kitchen—a position for the seasoned chef, not an insecure orphan. Overwhelmed by expectations and haunted by whispers of inadequacy, Fiona is desperate to prove herself worthy. But self-doubt is a ruthless enemy, and the pressures of perfection threaten to consume her. Then a surprise ally enters her world.

Irish Beef Stew

Ingredients

1 1/4 pounds well-marbled chuck beef stew meat, cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks

4 cups of beef stock  

2 cups water

2 teaspoons salt

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

6 minced garlic cloves

1 cup Guinness

1 cup hearty red wine

2 tablespoons tomato ketsup

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon dried thyme

2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon of black pepper

2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 6 cups)

1 large onion, chopped

3 to 4 carrots cut into 1/2-inch pieces (2 cups)

Brown the beef: Sprinkle about a teaspoon of salt over the beef pieces. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.Pat dry the beef with paper towels, add the beef and brown well on both sidesAdd garlic, beef stock, water, Guinness, red wine, tomato paste, sugar, thyme, Worcestershire sauce, and bay leaves. Stir to combine.Bring mixture to a simmer. Reduce heat to the lowest setting, then cover and cook at a bare simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.Sauté the onions and carrots in melted the butterAdd the vegetables to the beef stew and simmer uncovered until vegetables and beef are very tender, about 40 minutes.Discard the bay leaves. Remove fat if needed.Serve hot.

About Irish Rose Orphans’ Christmas:

Get ready to fall in love with seven girls and their unforgettable stories! This heartwarming prequel sets the stage for the upcoming Irish Rose Orphans: A Thousand Islands Gilded Age Series, where seven spirited young women serve the islands’ elite!—author Donna Schlachter

Brooklyn, 1876
At the Irish Rose Orphan Asylum for Girls, seven young women are about to experience a Christmas that will change everything—their last one together before stepping into lives of service among strangers in the Gilded Age. United by trials and an unbreakable bond, they’ve pledged to remain “forever sisters.” But as the season of parting approaches, buried wounds rise to the surface.

Twin sisters Annie and Taryn remain divided by a silent rift. Fiona grapples with the ache of abandonment. Vivian hides her fear of being left behind beneath a cheerful façade. Cassie, ever the want-to-be teacher, tries to steady the group as Isabel and Gloria struggle with the agony of separation.

When Sister Rose invites the girls to prepare their hearts during Advent for a deeper calling, each young woman must face the truth of her past and the hope of her future. A final gift—tin lockets adorned with the Irish Rose—become tokens of hope, courage, and an everlasting sisterhood. This Christmas, seven orphans will discover that no matter where life leads them, love and faith will go with them.

Buy link: Amazon  

Susan G Mathis is an international award-winning, multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate NY. Susan has been published more than thirty times in full-length novels, novellas, and non-fiction books. She has sixteen in her fiction line including, The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy, Christmas Charity, Katelyn’s Choice, Devyn’s Dilemma, Sara’s Surprise, Reagan’s Reward, Colleen’s Confession, Peyton’s Promise, Rachel’s Reunion, Mary’s Moment, A Summer at Thousand Island House, Libby’s Lighthouse, Julia’s Joy, Emma’s Engagement, Madison’s Mission, and Irish Rose Orphans’ Christmas. She is also a winner of more than two dozen book awards, and she’s a published author of two premarital books, two children’s picture books, a dozen stories in compilation books, and hundreds of published articles. Find out more at www.SusanGMathis.com.