Recipe Difficulty: Easy

Recipe Tags:

• Colcannon
• Irish Mashed Potatoes
  
• Garlic & Kale Mashed Potatoes
• St Patrick's Day Recipes
• Side Dish

What is Colcannon aka Irish Mashed Potatoes?
Colcannon is a traditional Irish dish made from mashed potatoes and kale or cabbage. The potatoes are boiled and mashed, and the kale or cabbage is cooked separately and then mixed into the mashed potatoes. The dish is typically flavored with butter and milk, and sometimes with onions or leeks. It is often served as a side dish, but can also be used as a filling for pies or cakes.

Colcannon has been enjoyed for centuries. It likely originated as a simple, hearty food that could be made using easily-available ingredients, such as potatoes and cabbage or kale. These ingredients were also a staple for Irish farmers, who often had to rely on them as a main source of nutrition during the winter months. The origins of Colcannon and some variations of the recipe can be traced back to the 17th century, but it became more popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, during the time of the Great Famine in Ireland when potatoes were one of the few available food sources for a lot of people.
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Traditionally, it was often served on Halloween night, and it was believed that finding a ring in your serving of colcannon would bring good luck and a sure sign of impending marriage. And even today, Colcannon is a much-loved dish that is enjoyed as a comfort food, especially around the time of Halloween and St. Patrick's Day.

My Colcannon Recipe Notes (Vegan)

​Kale Mashed Potatoes!!! I'm not reinventing the wheel here.... but thanksgiving is around the corner, and I wanted to cook some different things with that vibe in mind. I'll be honest even when I wasn't vegan, the whole turkey dinner thing to me wasn't all that exciting. Not that it wasn't tasty....I just think I tend to gravitate to globally inspired food compared to traditional North American fare. Though since I'm passionate about cooking and eating nutrient dense food in general, adding kale to mashed potatoes is right up my alley. 

I used olive oil and Earths Own vegan sour cream in my potatoes and garnished them with chopped scallions. I found I didn't need or want butter. They were creamy, rich and delicious, but you don't have to use olive oil and sour cream, use whatever you like best. Vegan Butter, vegan sour cream are both good options just make sure the potatoes are seasoned well with S&P and make them as rich and creamy as you dare. Heck even mash in some vegan cheese if you're feeling crazy. 

Serves 6-8 people

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs potatoes, I leave the skin on (choose a variety suitable for mashing)
• 1 bunch of kale, stems and spine removed, leaves chopped
• 1 head garlic, chopped
• 12 oz vegan sour cream 
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• S & P to taste
• 1 - 2 scallions for garnish, sliced​

Method:

1. Wash the potatoes and cut into even chunks. Place in a pot large enough to hold them and cover with cold water. Season generously with salt.
2. Bring to a boil, and cook until you can pierce easily with a knife.
3. ​Drain potatoes.
4. Return the pot to the burner over medium heat. Add olive oil, kale and garlic to the pot and cook until kale is wilted, adding a splash of water to help it steam if necessary part way through...3-5 minutes. Season with S & P
5. Dump potatoes on top of the kale, and mash together. 
6. Add in sour cream, more salt and pepper and if desired, some vegan butter. 
7. ​Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with chopped scallions. 

This is a simple and beautiful salad you can make using only a handful of ingredients. You want to wait until you have the most beautiful, in season vine ripened tomatoes for this. Flavourless winter tomatoes will not lend well to a dish that is truly celebrating an ingredient when it's at its best. My friend who is a passionate gardener gave me a basket of several varieties of tomatoes she had grown. There was no way I was going to make anything other than this. The tomatoes cut into varying chunks, my cashew basil ricotta, good quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar, sea salt and black pepper & a bit more fresh basil to garnish. HEAVENLY. I really want to share this salad as an example of HOW to use my ricotta recipe. I also use the ricotta in my Zucchini Involtini.

TIPS FOR SUCCESS
This is less of a recipe than it is a list of ingredients that you can just arrange on a plate. The key to this dish being successful is all in the quality of the ingredients. You must use a delicious olive oil, and a balsamic vinegar with some natural sweetness. You need to spend a bit more for quality  but it is worth it (a little goes a long way too). Alternatively for balsamic, you can buy bottles of balsamic glaze fairly inexpensively...I find I like to use them sparingly in different dishes just as a garnish for a touch of added sweet & acidity. I think that would work great in this salad as well.

THOUGHTS ON SALT
If you have a good quality finishing salt, this is the time to use it. Finishing salts are ususally a coarser grind and are meant to be used just as the name implies, to garnish a dish either after it's been cooked or sprinkled on something like this tomato salad. Fleur du sel comes to mind, one of my favourites that I wish I would have had on hand while making this salad. If you have never used or even heard of finishing salt, look into it! Definitely a way to improve your kitchen creations. I just had a pink Himalayan salt so I used that. I wouldn't want to use regular table salt here personally (I never buy regular table salt...for cooking I use flaked kosher salt)

Recipe Difficulty: Easy (just takes a bit of forethought to soak cashews overnight)

Recipe Keywords: Vegan Cashew Ricotta, Basil, Vegan Cheese, Pizza, Pasta, Lasagna, Salad

My cashew ricotta recipes notes
Cashew Ricotta is a simple dairy free plant based alternative to ricotta cheese, and it tastes amazing! Raw cashews are soaked overnight, and then blended with a bit of tofu, hot water, nutritional yeast, olive oil, garlic, miso paste, lemon juice, onion powder, fresh basil & salt. The results are actually incredible. Not all home made vegan cheeses that are this simple result in something I love as much as I love this recipe. It just works. 

If you are new to a recipe like this, making plant based cheese might seem like a bit of a hurdle or even unappealing... But.... I promise you, the flavour is impressive, and it couldn't be more simple to prepare. All you need is a food processor to blend up the ingredients and you will be on your way to making something that's delicious and satisfying all while using good for you ingredients. I find that it is when the ricotta is heated and served in a specific dish is when the flavours are impressive. Just tasting it out of the food processor it is good, but the magic happens later. 

How to use this vegan ricotta
​I originally developed this cashew & tofu based ricotta to use in my Zucchini Involtini Recipe.
 I have also made incredible lasagna, heirloom tomato salad, tomato and caramelized onion galette, and chickpea omelets using this recipe. Things I hope to revisit and share eventually!

You could also simply spread this cashew ricotta on toast (fancy!), use it in sandwiches or enjoy it tucked into wraps, as a filling for phyllo dough and or on pizza/flatbreads. 

Basil
I have tried this ricotta just before adding the basil, and it isn't as good without. It is the fresh basil that takes it over the top and makes it such an epic ingredient in the dishes I've used it in. So while I think it could be fun to try different herbs and variations, I definitely recommend trying it this way first. 

Recipe Difficulty: Easy

Recipe Keywords: ​Easy Pumpkin Soup, Pumpkin Soup without Coconut Milk, Canned Pumpkin

My Pumpkin Soup Recipe Notes
I had an abundance of canned pumpkin hanging out in my cupboards which inspired this soup. I can't think of a more appropriate soup to make in the fall or winter months, when pumpkin spice everything is showing up everywhere you look. I have an affinity for soup making, a passion even. This recipe is easy, and INCREDIBLY delicious.

My Pumpkin Soup is:

• creamy (read below for the secret ingredient!)
• healthy
• flavourful
• spiced with fresh ginger, cinnamon, coriander & cumin
• sweetened with maple syrup
• Gluten Free
• Dairy Free

The creamy factor comes from pumpkin seed butter!!! I feel sort of proud this idea came to me haha. I saw the pumpkin seed butter in the organic section at the grocery store knowing I was making this soup then I quickly connected the dots. I add peanut butter to my African Peanut Stew so I figured this would be perfect. It is! I also add fresh ginger, and as mentioned above.... cinnamon, coriander, cumin & maple to flavour the soup. I think you could add curry powder or whatever spices you prefer really. I'm happy with how mine turned out, though. 

Serve this soup with crusty multigrain bread, or if you want a treat, some buttery biscuits. 
I find the soup rich in the best way. Smaller portions might be nice as a starter or if you want it as the main meal, round it out with your favourite salad. 

For garnish, toasted pumpkin seeds. I don't want anything else. I tired a sprinkle of parsley, and it just detracted from the awesomeness of the soup. It needs nothing else. Toast some pumpkin seeds, chop them up, c'est tout. (Okay occasionally I add a drizzle of lemon oil that someone gifted me)  

My Tips For Pumpkin Soup Success. 

1. Make this pumpkin soup a day ahead. It needs time for the flavours to meld. Same day soup is never as good!
2. You don't want it to be too thick. So often people serve their soups so thick it is more like a vegetable puree, not a soup. Add water as needed. It doesn't want to be watery thin, it will still be a thick and creamy soup, but just saying, I am super picky about the final consistency. (of course, to each their own​)  If you add too much water, no problem, you just gently simmer it until it reduces again. 
3. The day after you make it, reheat the entire soup. You'll probably add a splash of water as it thickens in the fridge. 
   
4. Give it a taste for balance.​ I ended up adding another squeeze of lemon (the right amount of acid is so important; it will cut the richness and act like salt to enhance flavour). I added in a tiny bit more ginger and another pinch of coriander (adds brightness). I find this type of tweaking quite necessary most of the time in soup making. Even if you don't do it, it will still be delicious, but this is my approach. 
   
5. Use a homemade veg stock. I just fill a stock pot with scraps of veg that I save in my freezer. I add water to cover the scraps, and simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour. Then strain and reserve liquid. I don't use a recipe because this is a zero-waste method using up things that typically end up in the bin. To my freezer bag I add scraps of onion (the peel and all), celery, garlic, carrot, mushroom, parsley, thyme, & tomato. 

Can I freeze this Pumpkin Soup?

YES! This pumpkin soup freezes beautifully. For reheating, I just thaw it either in the fridge overnight, or for awhile on the counter. I often plop a container of frozen soup into my pot with a few splashes of extra water. The trick is to keep the heat low and to thaw the soup slowly as it heats up again. Give it a stir here and there. Adjust your consistency with some water as needed. 

Where do I find Pumpkin Seed Butter?
I buy mine at the local grocery store. In the organic section with other nut and seed butters. Alternatively you could find it online, on amazon. OR I haven't done this at home yet, but you could undoubtedly make your own the same way one makes peanut butter, tahini etc. Toast pumpkin seeds (green ones, not the white ones still with shell on!), and blitz them in a food processor until they turn into butter. (This can take awhile, when I make cashew butter it's at least 10 minutes of blending until it breaks down enough to become butter) The brand I use it pictured below. 

Recipe Difficulty: Easy

Recipe Tags:

• Succotash
• Side Dish
• Thanksgiving
  
• Corn & Bean Salad
  

Serves 6

I find this salad tastes best at room temperature, it really lets you enjoy the flavours. I prefer not to serve it piping hot or fridge cold. 
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Ingredients:

• 1 red onion, chopped
• 2 small bell peppers (I used 1 red & 1 green), small dice
• 2 cups corn (approx 3 fresh cobs or from frozen)
• 1 cup frozen edamame 
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tbsp chopped pickled jalapeno (or fresh)
• a couple handfuls chopped fresh mint. (to taste)
• S & P to taste
• Lime Vinaigrette (to taste, recipe below)
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes

Method:

1. ​In a large sauté pan drizzle a small amount of olive oil. The first step will be to toast the corn kernels to develop flavour. Over medium high heat add the corn and stir around until it starts to develop a bit of colour. It will pop so watch out for flying kernels! Remove corn from the pan (you will add it back later) 
2. Drizzle in a couple more spoonfuls of olive oil. Add onion & peppers. Saute over medium high heat until mostly softened. Season with S&P.
3. Add in chopped garlic and jalapeño, cook for a couple minutes.
4. Add Edamame and cook for a few minutes stirring around. (Ideally your edamame won't be completely soft, a bit of texture is good in the finished dish. 
5. Add in corn, and about half the recipe of lime dressing. (Alternatively, don't make the dressing. you could easily add vegan butter or olive oil and fresh lime juice to taste...I like using the vinny though.)
6. Season with more S&P. Let it simmer a bit. It will be juicy from dressing. That's OK.
7. Add in cherry tomatoes last. I let them get warm, but I don't want them to cook down any. 
8. Add a couple handfuls chopped fresh mint. I didn't measure, I used what I had on hand but I think 1/2 cup could be close. Just taste. Lots of freshness is a pleasant contrast to jalapeño and olive oil.