Colcannon Cakes, Mashed Potatoes 2.0

This recipe is for Jim.  If I made this once a week, he would be wearing a permanent smile.  To quote, “It’s mashed potatoes, what’s not to love?”

Yes, Colcannon starts off as mashed potatoes, but it is so much more.

What is Colcannon?

This is a traditional Irish dish that combines good ole mashed spuds, and sautéed or simmered greens.  Traditionally it is cabbage and scallions.  After the potatoes have been boiled and smashed up a bit, shredded cabbage that has been sautéed in butter, along with chopped scallions or green onions are folded in.  That’s it.  We love it because it combines two of our favourites, mashed potatoes, and cabbage.  But through the years I have gotten creative with the traditional add-ins.  So today’s version of this mashed potatoes dish is a bit more flavour packed.

All the Shades of Green

Yes, you can play with the greens. I usually always have Lacinato or black kale in the fridge, as well as baby spinach.  If you like these greens, go ahead and add them in.  The baby spinach just needs to be chopped into small bits, and folded in directly to the potatoes. They will wilt under the heat of the potatoes.  The kale will need some sautéing with the cabbage.  As for the cabbage, any cabbage will work.  Use what your family likes.  I usually use savoy since there is usually a savoy cabbage in the back of the fridge from making Cabbage Rolls Like Mama Used To Make.

Other options are shredded Swiss chard or even bok choy or collard greens.  For the firmer, thicker leaved options, just make sure you are shredding or chopping them small enough to soften easily in the pan with the butter.  

Instead of scallions, I like to use leeks.  Leeks add a natural buttery sweetness to the final dish.  And if you want to garnish the finished dish with chives, I am in full support.

Other Flavour Add-ins

My colcannon uses white pepper, nutmeg and a hint of heat in the form of chilli flakes.  The white pepper has a clean peppery heat that balances the creamy goodness of this dish.  Nutmeg is a classic spice to use with both potatoes and greens, so it is a natural in this dish.  And a bit of heat always makes us happy, as it elevates the dish just a bit more.  And yes, while not traditional, I add one or two garlic cloves to the potatoes as they are simmering, not so much that they overpower the dish, but just to give the dish some life.

How To Make Colcannon

First off, have all your greens chopped or shredded.  This will help the dish come together faster.  They can be prepped ahead of time and stored in a sealed container in the fridge.

I always use Yukon Gold potatoes.  They are just such a versatile potato.  And they give all mashed potatoes a lovely golden hue.  Peel and quarter them, and add them and garlic cloves (if using) to salted water and bring to a boil.  Drop to a rolling simmer and cook till tender, about 15 minutes.  Drain. I use a potato ricer to turn them into a fluffy mound that ensures no lumps in the finished dish.  Do you have a potato ricer?  I use it so often, I can’t imagine my kitchen without it. If not, just give them a good mash with a potato masher. Cover the bowl of riced or mashed potatoes with foil and move on to sautéing the greens. 

In a large skillet, heat the butter.  Add the leeks and soften for a few minutes.  Then add all the remaining greens you want to use.  Stir these through the leeks and butter and cook till softened but not a soggy grey mess.  You still want them to have a bit of lovely texture and bright green colour.  Fold this all into the potatoes, along with milk, the nutmeg, white pepper, chilli flakes and a bit more butter.  Add salt now as well.  Use a large spoon or your masher to fold everything together. Taste and re-season.  Garnish with chopped chives if you want. Serve with your favourite roast or grilled meat!  Or just grab a spoon and dig in to the mashed potatoes to end all mashed potatoes!

Colcannon Cakes

So, what if you have leftovers (I know, is that even possible?)  Or what if you want to take the flavours of this dish and turn it into a wonderful carb in the form of a cake for brunch or easy dinner?  Then why not take the recipe from above and turn it into the best mashed potato cakes ever?!

Not unlike making gnocchi from leftover mashed potatoes, making potato cakes, or Colcannon Cakes is just a matter of adding flour, and egg and some more salt to the potato mixture. 

In this case, you could make the original Colcannon dish and store it in the fridge till the next morning to make these cakes. If you want a full version of both, make a double batch of the Colcannon for dinner, and then potato cakes for the week.

Create a dough and then divide them into patties to sauté up in a skillet.  Brown both sides over medium low heat, so that they will cook through all the way to cook the flour and egg, and then they are ready to serve.  Any un-eaten cakes can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for a few days.

We like to serve them with eggs, and a bit of hot sauce.  These would be a fun alternative to the Rösti for my Eggs Benedict. These Colcannon Cakes make for a great lunch with a salad, with smoked salmon, cucumbers, cheese etc. Think of them as a potato replacement for bagels.

A full recipe of the Colcannon will make enough cakes for eight people (two cakes per person depending on how large you made the patties) Working with half, or leftovers should give you between eight or nine cakes, enough for four people.

*Option: If you want to add some flavour, and protein, feel free to crumble in some sautéed bacon, or cooked cubed ham or even chopped smoked salmon before cooking the cakes. 

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Colcannon Cakes, Mashed Potatoes 2.0

The most flavourful, creamy mashed potatoes you'll ever meet, with all the brightness of sautéed greens folded in is already a great side dish. Turning them into potato cakes makes for a perfect brunch or dinner side.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Irish

Keyword baby spinach, cabbage, leeks, swiss chard, Yukon Gold potatoes

Servings 6 servings

Ingredients

Colcannon

• 2 1/2 lbs of Yukon Gold potatoes peeled and quartered, about 1.1 kg
• 1 clove garlic add a second one if you feel like!
• 6 tbsp butter, plus 2 tbsp for folding into the finished potatoes
• 1/2 cup leeks, cleaned white and light green part only, chopped into half moons
• 3 cups of chopped kale, Swiss chard, or cabbage, see Notes
• 1 cup milk or cream
• 1/4 tsp white pepper, or more to taste
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg, or more to taste
• 1/8 tsp dried red pepper flakes, or more to taste
• salt
• 1 tbsp chopped chives

Colcannon Cakes

• About 3 cups of colcannon, chilled
• 1 cup flour, more for dusting hands
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 tsp salt, or more to taste
• 1 cup chopped cooked bacon, deli ham or even smoked salmon, optional
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

Colcannon

1. Have all your greens chopped or shredded or minced as needed, and ready to go.

2. Add the potatoes and garlic cloves to a pot, and cover with cold, well-salted water by an inch. Bring it to a boil, and then reduce to medium and cook until fork tender, about 15 minutes.

3. Drain the potatoes and remove them from the pot to a large bowl. Lightly mash them or rice them and then cover with foil

4. Melt the butter in the still warm pot, add the leeks and sauté for 2 minutes over medium heat.

5. Add the chopped greens, sauté for 3-4 minutes until wilted.
6. Add the greens to the potatoes, along with milk, the white pepper, a bit more butter, nutmeg and chilli flakes and fold until everything is well mixed. Taste and re-season with more spices and salt if needed.
7. Garnish with chives and a dot of butter and serve.

Colcannon Cakes

1. Use leftover colcannon from above, or a fresh batch

2. In a large bowl, mix the colcannon with flour, egg, and salt. Taste and re-season as desired.

3. If you want to fold in chopped cooked bacon, ham or smoked salmon do so now.

4. You will want to chill the mixture for 15 minutes, to make it easier to shape the patties, especially if the colcannon you are using is fresh.

5. Form the mixture into average sized cakes or patties, just remember the thicker they are, the longer it will take to cook through to the centre. If the mixture is too sticky, add more flour until the mixture is easy to work with. Also use flour on your hands to keep the patties from sticking to you. Place them all onto a wax paper lined baking sheet till ready to cook.

6. Once a large sauté pan is actually warmed through over medium heat, add the butter and oil. Make sure the butter and oil are actually ready and not just melted. Working in batches, place the formed patties in the pan without crowding.

   Lower the heat to medium-low and gently fry until golden, about 3-4 minutes. Then flip over. If your patties are on the thicker side, reduce the heat to low so that the outside doesn't overcook before the centre is cooked through. Adjust the heat as you check each side. If they are cooked through but you want more colour, feel free to raise the heat.

7. Place onto a parchment lined baking sheet. If you are making a large batch, store the finished cakes in a 250F oven till all are ready.
8. Serve with hot sauce, eggs, smoked salmon, etc.
9. Leftovers can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for 2 or 3 days, and re-heated as desired.
10. See blog post for more details

Recipe Notes

If using baby spinach, just chop well, and add directly to the mashed potatoes along with all the other cooked greens. The residual heat will wilt them.