Vicky Berman on Jan 20, 2016

Colcannon - a traditional Irish mashed potato and cabbage or kale dish get's a makeover with the addition of bacon and coconut milk instead of butter or cream. Light, hearty, smokey - a perfect fall side dish. Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free.

I love potatoes. I really do. It doesn't matter how they're prepared or how often they're served - I never get tired of them.

And they're also one of the few foods I frequently crave. When I'm traveling around and eating foreign cuisine for days, weeks or months on end, eventually that potato craving hits me.

It's just my ultimate comfort food. There's just something so familiar about potato dishes that make me feel like I'm home again.

It must be the European roots in me. No matter where I am I always circle back to preparing a potato dish.

Feeling a bit tired of the same old home fries and oven roasted potatoes wedges, I wanted to prepare something new.

Something different.

What nation did I look for to find some potato inspiration?

Ireland.

Knowing that potatoes form the basis for many traditional dishes I knew I would find something that piqued my interest.

Meet colcannon - a traditional Irish dish prepared with mashed potatoes and cabbage or kale and served with boiled ham or Irish bacon.

Potatoes, cabbage, bacon?

Count me in!

To give this old classic dish a bit of a facelift, instead of serving the bacon alongside the potatoes, I decided to mix it right in.

Instead of kale I opted for cabbage, which I lightly sauteed in a bit of reserved bacon grease for additional flavor. To lighten up the heaviness of standard mashed potatoes, instead of using cream and butter, I went with coconut milk.

You would never know the difference and the dish has instantly become healthier and lighter.

The bacon gets crumbled up once cooked and sprinkled right into the mash potatoes like fairy dust.

Is it just me or does everyone else find bacon bits synonymous with fairy dust? The magical impact is the same if you ask me. A flick of the wrist. A sprinkling of bacon. And the dish has been instantly transformed.

It becomes heartier, smokier, meatier, and most importantly more flavorful.

Overall, this classic Irish dish was de-lic-ious. The mashed potatoes were smooth and creamy with a pop of additional flavor from cabbage and bacon.

Colcannon with Cabbage and Bacon

Serves: 4, Cooking time: 20 minutes, Prep time: 10 mins

Ingredients

5 potatoes, peeled and cut into smaller pieces

5 slices bacon,

¼ head of cabbage, halved and thinly sliced

1 tablespoon bacon grease

½ cup coconut milk

Salt/pepper to taste

Directions

Place potatoes in a medium pot and fill with water (making sure water level is one inch above potatoes). Bring to a boil, add salt, reduce heat and simmer, covered until potatoes are cooked through and soft when pierced with a fork (15-20 minutes).

In a separate pan cook the bacon until cooked through and browned on both sides. Drain bacon on paper towels and cut into smaller pieces.

Reserve 1 tablespoon bacon grease and saute the cabbage in bacon grease on medium heat for 5-10 minutes until lightly browned.

Drain the potatoes when cooked through. Add coconut milk to potatoes ¼ cup at a time and mash with a potato masher until smooth.

Mix in cabbage and bacon (reserving a bit of bacon for the garnish).

Garnish with bacon.