When Irish Eyes Are Smiling On St Patrick’s Day

I know a good many of you will be celebrating St Patrick’s Day on Monday and, if you’re lucky, taking some time away from work to meet and eat with family and friends in the true Irish way.

It can sometimes be a bit tricky to tolerate some of the more traditional St Patrick’s Day fare and you’re bound to be confronted with a whole host of foods tinted green for a devilish meal. If you have some say in the food for the day or have been co-opted to bring along a dish or two then try to make a couple of dishes that you can eat and share happily with others. A soup is always welcome (can be made ahead and quickly reheated) and can solve the problem of the weather – warm, hot, cold or freezing there’s one to suit every eventuality. Consider any of the ones below and simply click on the recipe title to go straight to the recipe.

Pea and Ham Soup with Peashoots and Mint

Cheesy Tenderstem Broccoli Soup

We shall start the day with a toast to our Irish friends and have a glass of Shamrock Smoothie

And then plan to have a meal that is a bariatric take on an Irish main meal favourite Mock ‘Corned Beef’ Hash

Many of our friends will make a meal of some of the essential Irish ingredients of potatoes, ham or bacon and cabbage. What could be nicer than a tender slice of boiled ham served with cabbage, a parsley sauce and spring onion/scallion champ (a kind of mash with chopped spring onions/scallions)?