The Irish know how to throw a good party and the annual feast of St Patrick’s Day – March 17 – is the biggest celebration of the year.

Paddy’s Day is marked all round the world with parades in Dublin, New York and London. Whether you’re Irish or not, the festival is a great excuse to pull on something green and raise a glass of Guinness to the verdant isle famed for its rolling landscape, music and friendly folk.

Ireland is equally well-loved for its home cooking, with recipes being passed down through generations.

What better way to mark this year’s St Patrick’s Day than by rustling up some traditional grub? We’ve teamed up with Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board, to create a quick and easy menu.

With beef stew to shamrock-shaped cheese biscuits ideal for the children’s lunches, these dishes will help make it a day to remember.

IRISH BEEF AND IRISH STOUT CASSEROLE

(Serves 12) 4tbsp sunflower oil; 500g shallots or button onions, peeled; 1 large onion, sliced; 4 carrots, cut into 2.5cm pieces; 1tbsp sugar; 65g plain flour; 1.5kg Irish chuck steak or Irish braising steak, cut into 6-7cm chunks; 75g butter; 1 litre Irish stout; 300ml beef stock; leaves from three large sprigs of thyme; 4 fresh bay leaves; 4tbsp Worcestershire sauce; 250g chestnut mushrooms, wiped clean and left whole; 250g field mushrooms, wiped clean and thickly sliced; salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Serve with dumplings or mashed potatoes.

Heat two tablespoons of oil in a large, flameproof casserole dish. Add the shallots or onions and fry until they are nicely browned all over. Set aside on a plate.

Add the onions, carrots and sugar and fry until nicely browned. Set aside with the shallots.

Put the flour into a large bowl and season well with salt and pepper. Add the beef and toss together well. Heat another two tablespoons of oil in the casserole and fry the beef in batches until nicely browned on all sides. Set each batch aside with the vegetables as it browns.

Add 25g of the butter to the casserole and stir in the remaining seasoned flour from the bowl. Gradually stir in the stout, rubbing the base of the pan to release all the caramelised juices.

Stir in the stock, followed by the beef and vegetables, thyme leaves, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce and some seasoning. Bring to the boil, part-cover and leave to simmer very slowly on the top of the stove for one and a half hours.

Melt the remaining butter in a large frying pan, add the mushrooms and fry briskly for two minutes. Stir them into the casserole, part cover, and simmer for another hour until the beef is tender.

IRISH FARMHOUSE CHEDDAR SHAMROCKS

(Makes 28-30) 300g mature Irish farmhouse cheese – such as Ardrahan or Carrigaline – finely grated; 200g plain flour; ½ tsp cayenne pepper; 200g butter, diced; 2 free-range egg yolks; salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas Mark 5. Lightly grease two or three baking sheets with butter and line with non-stick baking paper.

Mix the grated cheese, flour, cayenne pepper, half a teaspoon of salt and some black pepper together in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and rub together until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs.

Stir in the egg yolks with a kitchen knife until the mixture comes together in a ball. Tip out onto a work surface and knead briefly until smooth. Roll out on a lightly floured surface to 5mm thick.

Using a shamrock-shaped biscuit cutter – you can find them online – cut out the biscuits and place them spaced a little apart on the prepared baking sheets. Re-knead and roll the trimmings once or twice to make more biscuits. Chill for at least 30 minutes.

Bake for approximately ten minutes or until richly golden around the edges. Remove and leave to cool on the baking tray. Store in an airtight tin once cold.