St. Patrick's Day is usually associated with beer- and lots of it (of course, the origins have nothing to do with drinking, but falling at the end of Winter, is it so terrible to want a pint - or two?). Of course, the healthiest (and less hangover-inducing) drinking is accompanied by good food. Whether you drink or not this St. Pat's, choosing healthy eats on the Irish-American holiday will ensure that you don't have too many regrets the next day.

Red Potato Colcannon

This delicious recipe from Eating Well healthies up traditional colcannon with skins-on red potatoes and just a bit of butter. Instead of fat, it gets it's flavor from white pepper and flavorsome red taters instead of milder white. A good source of fiber, a serving of this dish also has 150% of your RDA for Vitamin C.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound small red potatoes, scrubbed and cut in half
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 cup onion, thinly sliced
• 6 cups green cabbage, thinly sliced (about 1/2 head)
• 1 cup low-fat milk, milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Directions:

1. Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a Dutch oven. Place potatoes in a steamer basket and steam, covered, until just cooked through, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and cover to keep warm.
2. Meanwhile, heat butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add cabbage and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage begins to brown, about 5 minutes.
3. Reduce heat to low. Stir in milk, salt and white pepper; cover and cook until the cabbage is tender, about 8 minutes. Add the cabbage mixture to the potatoes. Mash with a potato masher or a large fork to desired consistency.

Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread

Even if you're not in the habit of baking your own bread, a holiday is the perfect time to do it. And this recipe from A Mingling of Tastes is so easy it will hardly take more time than running to the market to buy a fresh loaf.

Ingredients:

2 c. whole wheat flour (or any combo of whole wheat, whole wheat pastry and Irish style)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 c. buttermilk
2-3 tblspn. honey
turbinado sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk and honey. Add more or less honey, depending on how much sweetness you prefer. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the flour mixture. Stir until just combined.

Sprinkle some sugar in the center of the parchment paper and spoon the dough out on top. Use a spatula to shape it into a circle, roughly 8-9 inches in diameter and 1 1/2 inches high. Sprinkle sugar all over the top of the loaf. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean, and bottom of loaf is browned and sounds hollow when tapped. Cool completely on a rack (at least 2 hours), then cut into slices. Keeps in the refrigerator for 5 days and in the freezer for 3 months.

Go to A Mingling of Tastes to see images of the process step-by-step, as well as additional recommendations for the perfect loaf!

Vegetarian Irish Stew

This veggie take on a tradition Irish stew from Care2 still has plenty of flavor (and Guinness!) and is super-hearty but still meat-free, meaning fewer calories, a lower carbon footprint, and easier on the wallet.

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons olive oil
3 medium leeks, cleaned and sliced (or 2 medium onions, diced)
1 cup cup parsnips, sliced
1 cup carrots, sliced
1 cup potatoes, sliced into chunks
1 cup turnips or rutabagas, peeled and sliced into chunks
1 cup celery, diced
4 cups vegetable stock
2 cups stout beer
1 cup pearl barley
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
A few sprigs each fresh rosemary, fresh thyme and fresh marjoram (or 1/4 teaspoon of each dried)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a large soup pot or dutch oven, saute leeks in the olive oil until translucent. Add the remaining vegetables and cook for a few minutes, stirring to coat the vegetables with oil.

2. Add broth, stout, barley and parsley to pot. Tie together sprigs of fresh herbs with a piece of cooking string and add (or add dried herbs). Bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Simmer for an hour, or until vegetables are tender and stew has thickened, adding water if necessary. Remove herb bundle.

3. Season with salt and pepper, divide among plates and serve with bread.

 

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Federal food regulators pondered Monday whether to say, for the first time, that it's OK to market a genetically engineered animal as safe for people to eat. The Food and Drug Administration is holding two days of hearings on a request to market genetically modified salmon. Ron Stotish, CEO of AquaBounty, the Massachusetts company that made the marketing request, said at the meeting Monday that his company's fish product is safe and environmentally sustainable. Critics, however, call the modified salmon "frankenfish" that could cause allergies in humans and the eventual decimation of the wild salmon population. An FDA advisory committee is reviewing the science of the genetically engineered fish this week and hearing such criticisms as the agency ponders approval. The FDA has already said that the salmon, which grows twice as fast as its conventional "sisters," is as safe to eat as the traditional variety. Whether the public will have an appetite for it is another matter. Genetic engineering is already widely used for crops, but the government until now has not considered allowing the consumption of modified animals. Although the potential benefits - and profits - are huge, many individuals have qualms about manipulating the genetic code of other living creatures. Part of the two-day hearing will focus on labeling of the fish. It is possible that if the modified salmon is approved, consumers would not even know they were eating it. Current FDA regulations only require modified foods to be labeled as such if the food is substantially different than the conventional version, and the agency has said that the modified salmon is essentially the same as the Atlantic salmon. Approval of the salmon would open the door for a variety of other genetically engineered animals, including an environmentally friendly pig that is being developed in Canada or cattle that are resistant to mad cow disease. "For future applications out there the sky's the limit," said David Edwards of the Biotechnology Industry Association. "If you can imagine it, scientists can try to do it." AquaBounty says it would be the first in the world to market genetically engineered fish.The company submitted its first application for FDA approval in 1995, but the agency did not decide until two years ago to consider applications for genetically engineered animals - a move seen as a breakthrough by the biotechnology industry. Genetically engineered - or GE - animals are not clones, which the FDA has already said are safe to eat. Clones are copies of an animal. With GE animals, their DNA has been altered to produce a desirable characteristic. In the case of the salmon, AquaBounty has added a growth hormone from a Chinook salmon that allows the fish to produce their growth hormone all year long. The engineers were able to keep the hormone active by using another gene from an eel-like fish called an ocean pout that acts like an on switch for the hormone, according to the company. Conventional salmon only produce the growth hormone some of the time. In documents released ahead of the hearing, the FDA said there were no biologically relevant differences between the engineered salmon and conventional salmon, and there is a reasonable certainty of no harm from its consumption. FDA scientists speaking Monday said there are very few differences between the modified and conventional fish. Critics have two main concerns: The safety of the food to humans and the salmon's effect on the environment. Because the altered fish has never been eaten before, they say, it could include dangerous allergens, especially because seafood is highly allergenic. They also worry that the fish will escape and intermingle with the wild salmon population, which is already endangered.They would grow fast and consume more food to the detriment of the conventional wild salmon, the critics fear. A wide range of environmental, food safety and consumer groups have argued that more public studies are needed and the current FDA process is inadequate because it allows the company to keep some proprietary information private. Modified foods are regulated under the same process used for animal drugs. "It is outrageous to keep this vital information secret," said Wenonah Hauter, director of the advocacy group Food & Water Watch. "Consumers have a right to know what FDA is trying to allow into our food supply." Dr. Michael Hansen, senior scientist at Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports, says the agency is relying on too little data, much of which is supplied by the company itself. European nations have been much more cautious in embracing engineered foods. Ruediger Rosenthal, a spokesman for Bund-Friends of the Earth Germany, said it is unlikely the modified fish would make it across the Atlantic for sale as many Europeans are very skeptical of genetically modified foods. AquaBounty CEO Stotish countered that the company has more than addressed critics' concerns, and his product has come under much more scrutiny than most food. "This is perhaps the most studied fish in history," he said. "Environmentally this is a very sustainable technology." The company has several safeguards in place to allay concerns. All the fish would be bred female and sterile, though a small percentage may be able to breed. They would be bred in confined pools where the potential for escape would be very low. In its environmental analysis of the fish released earlier this month, the FDA agreed with the company that there are enough safeguards in place. Stotish says the fish would be bred in better conditions than many of the world's farmed salmon, and could be located closer to population centers to help feed more people. The company has also said the increase in engineered salmon production could help relieve endangered wild salmon populations. The company is also arguing that the fish do not need to be labeled as genetically engineered, so the average customer would not know if they were eating the modified product or the conventional product. "This fish is identical to the traditional food," maintained Stotish. "The label could even be misleading because it implies a difference that doesn't exist." If approved, the fish could be in grocery stores in two years, the company estimates. AP-->

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British scientists have decoded the genetic sequence of wheat - one of the world's oldest and most important crops - a development they hope could help the global staple meet the challenges of climate change, disease and population growth. Wheat is grown across more of the world's farmland than any other cereal, and researchers said Friday they're posting its genetic code to the Internet in the hope that scientists can use it as a tool to improve farmers' harvests. One academic in the field called the discovery "a landmark." "The wheat genome is the holy grail of plant genomes," said Nick Talbot, a professor of biosciences at the University of Exeter who wasn't involved in the research. "It's going to really revolutionize how we breed it."AP-->

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