So, last Sunday night was my last meal at home for two months. Rehearsals started for Theresa Rebeck's O Beautiful the next day in Storrs, CT. A good send-off meal was in order. You may be wondering why there's a question mark where the picture should be. Well, I made something delicious... but the color is a bit disturbing... so I wanted you to have fair warning!
The chicken-strip schnitzel was delicious, as was the sauce (butter, shallots, capers, garlic, and lemon zest). The green beans "Provençale" (green beans from the garden, tomatoes from the garden, garlic, and a few more capers) were pretty damned good, too. As for the "Colcannon Rouge" or, as the Irish might say, the "Colcannon Dearg," I think it was the best I've ever made... but boy was it purple...
I had some red cabbage left from the party I had catered a few days earlier... I wanted colcannon... and I thought... Why not try it? So I added steamed, shredded red cabbage to mashed potatoes and chives. Delicious! But as I started to combine them, I saw the cabbage begin to "bleed." So if you can get over the Barney-like hue, it's a very full-flavored dish. The color might even be a way to convince reluctant children to try it!