Mashed potatoes whipped with a green onion infused milk.

Irish Champ Potatoes

Unless Mama Nature intended they be green by her own hand, I'm not big on green colored food for St. Patrick's Day.

Don't get me wrong - I do think it's fun, especially if you have children who can appreciate a quirky green meal, or maybe even a spouse who won't mind the ribbing from their workmates. I love the color green, but I'm not generally too big on using green dye to color things green either.

Well... there might be an exception or two, but essentially my menu of St. Patrick's Day meal ideas is more a mix of traditional Irish food, with Irish-American food, and, well... just good ole regular food that might fit the theme.

Cabbage and Potatoes - Irish Colcannon Potatoes

A traditional Irish dish of simply seasoned mashed potatoes, mixed with cabbage and butter, Colcannon is a favorite of mine and will soon be a favorite of yours!

Irish Colcannon Potatoes

Well, y'all knew I had to sneak in at least one more dish for St. Patrick's Day, and this dish of Colcannon is a very appropriate one that I've been meaning to add since last year. Easily grown in Ireland, potatoes have always been a mainstay of many Irish diets, and often are the star of the meal. This little ole Irish lass does indeed love her potatoes.

Cabbage, caramelized onion, corned beef and pan fried potatoes make a delicious hash.

Corned Beef and Cabbage Hash

So we made a quick and easy Irish Soda Bread, delicious Creamy Potato Soup, and a slow simmered, flavorful Irish Stew made with tender lamb, onions and potatoes, but what American St. Patrick's Day menu would be complete without some sort of cabbage dish?

 

A hearty stew made with lamb shanks and vegetables, perfect for St. Patrick's Day.

Irish Stew

So just in case you've missed it, I have been cooking up a storm over the weekend for our St. Paddy day series. We first made Irish Soda Bread and then some Creamy Potato Soup and our next dish in the St. Patrick's Day meal line-up is an Irish Stew. Coming up is Corned Beef & Cabbage Hash too!  Click the recipe links to check them all out.

I have no idea of the authenticity of this stew, or any other so-called Irish Stew, since it appears that even the Irish may dispute what exactly is authentic and what is not. It does appear that lamb, onion and potatoes are the 3 main ingredients for an authentic Irish Stew, and here we clearly meet that. Anything else is lagniappe in my opinion!

A nicely seasoned, creamy potato soup, garnished with parsley, cheese and bacon.

Creamy Potato Soup

The next dish of our Irish St. Paddy feast ... soup! Or more specifically, potato soup. With potatoes being a major staple food in Ireland, what could be more appropriate for St. Patrick's Day? Creamy, delicious and just plain ole comforting. What better for a rainy day? And of course, serve that with a slice of Irish Soda Bread, and go ahead, dip it right on in that soup!

Here's how to make it.

Peppered Irish Soda Bread with Bacon

 

Bacon topped Irish soda bread, a traditional St. Patrick's Day recipe, gets a little infusion of freshly cracked black pepper.

Irish Soda Bread

I have been cooking up a storm of my own getting some Irish dishes ready to post for y'all for the St. Patrick's holiday. I bet you can't tell by the picture of that pale woman you've seen that I've actually got Irish roots! Once upon a time I actually had some pretty blond hair but it's gotten progressively darker as I've gotten older and shrunk away from the sun worshiper that I once was back in the day.

So I'm Catholic, and I'm part Irish and I live in the south. Surprise!