Colcannon with Red Onion Gravy

Colcannon is my favorite winter warmer. It's a traditional Irish dish of mashed potatoes and greens. I like use the darkest, most textured greens I can get my hands on. Spring greens, savoy cabbge, or curly kale as I used here. This is a great way to use up greens lurking unloved at the back of the fridge. Traditionally you should also use leek. I used spring onion here as a substitute, but honestly leeks give such a richer flavour.

When you're making Colcannon, gravy and sausages you want to have 3 pans going on at once. A small frying pan, a saucepan for the gravy, and a steamer or large pot for the potatoes. This is the only way to have everything hot and ready at the same time.

Ingredients for 2 people plus leftovers:

• 4 large potatoes (use 2 large or 3 medium if you don't want leftovers. Ask the greengrocer at your farmers market which varieties are best for mashing)
• 1 bunch curly kale
• 1 bunch spring onions or 2 medium leeks
• 2-4 tablespoons dairy-free margerine, plus 1 knob
• up to 1/2 cup soy or rice milk

Recipe:

1. Boil 2 litres of water in a large pot or steamer.
2. Peel and chop the potatoes into 1 inch chunks and add to the pot or steamer.
3. Heat a knob of margerine in a small frying pan on a low heat. Chop the leek or spring onion and add to the pan to soften.
4. Trim the kale, removing the stalks, as shown above. Chop the leaves into smaller pieces and wash them.
5. When the potatoes are soft enough to squash with a fork, drain them and throw them into a large mixing bowl. Add the kale to the steamer or pot where the potatoes were cooking before.
6. Mash the potatoes with margerine and soy milk. Start with a tablespoon of each and add more as you need to, to get a smooth creamy fluffy mash.
7. When your mash is lump-free, add your leek or spring onion and mix it in. You can now use that small frying pan to heat up your veggie sausages.
8. The kale is ready to add to the mash when it has turned a darker green and gone a bit floppy. Try not to leave it too long or it'll stick together and be hard to mix into the mash. It only takes about 5 minutes and should look like this:
   
   
   
   
   
   For the Red Onion Gravy:

• 1/2 small red onion
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 1 teaspoon molasses
• 1 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon tamari
• 1 tablespoon liquid aminos
• 1 teaspoon brown unrefined sugar or agave (optional)

Recipe:

1. When your potatoes and leek are cooking, heat a little oil in a saucepan. Finely chop 1/2 small red onion and add to the pan on a low heat.
2. Optional - add a little sugar or sweetener as the onions soften to give a caremelised flavour.
3. When the onions start to brown like in the picture above, add 1 ladle-ful of the starchy water steaming/boiling the kale.
4. Stir in the molasses, sage, pepper, tamari and liquid aminos. Don't worry if you don't have all of these things. Just use what you've got. 1/2 teaspoon of yeast extract is a nice addition.
5. Mix 1 tablespoon cornstarch with just enough water to make a smooth liquid, and add this to the gravy. It will thicken up immediately, so add another ladleful or two of the kale-water.
6. Keep the gravy simmering and keep adding the kale-water a ladle-ful at a time until your veggie sausages are cooked, then drizzle all over your meal!