Luck of the Dairy-Free Irish: Recipes for Leprechaun Mint Parfaits and Beef & Cabbage Bake

St. Patrick's Day often slides under the radar for many non-Irish, non-drinking, green-averse people. But for us, every holiday (well, I think we still need to work on some ideas for Groundhog's Day) is a great excuse for some new recipes.

In prior years we have featured a couple of gems, like this recipe for Grass Hopper Mint Chocolate Pie and one for Four Leaf Clover Rolls (a baker's delight!). This year we have two new allergy-friendly recipes to add to the festivities, both of which are from Enjoy Life Foods. This makes them automatically free from the top eight allergens (dairy, eggs, soy, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, fish, and shellfish) and gluten-free if prepared with the recommended ingredients. Though the Beef, Cabbage and Potato Bake is obviously non-vegan, feel free to substitute your favorite veg-ground to make it a strictly vegetarian meal …

Beef, Potato and Cabbage Bake       

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. Ground Beef
• 1/2 cup Celery, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. Tapioca Flour
• 1 (14-15 oz) can Diced Tomatoes
• 1 (8 oz) can Tomato Sauce
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 1/4 tsp. Black Pepper
• 4 cups Raw Cabbage (coarsely chopped)
• 2 cups thinly sliced Potatoes (skins are optional)

Topping Ingredients:

• Enjoy Life Original Bagels (cubed into 1/2" cubes)
• 1/3-1 Tbsp. Granulated Garlic (optional)

Directions:

1) Brown beef and drain the fat.
2) Add celery and onion. Cook for 5 minutes, or until vegetables are cooked.
3) Stir in tapioca flour, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, salt and black pepper. Bring to boil.
4) Place a layer of raw potato slices, meat mixture and cabbage into a 3-quart casserole baking dish.

Directions for Topping:

1) Place cubed bagels on top of mixture (OR in a 1-gallon resealable bag, gently toss granulated garlic with bagel cubs until coated, then place cubes on top of mixture).
2) Cover and bake at 375ºF for one hour, or until vegetables are tender.

Yield: 8 servings

Leprechaun Mint Ice Cream Parfaits

Ingredients:

• 1 pint Vanilla Rice Milk Ice Cream [or your favorite dairy-free ice cream]
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon Peppermint extract
• 1-2 package(s) Enjoy Life Double Chocolate Brownie Cookies, each broken into 4 pieces
• 1/4 cup Enjoy Life® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (optional)

Directions:

1) Soften ice cream and stir in peppermint extract. Stir in Chocolate Chips. Place to freezer to firm, until firm enough to scoop.
2) Place 1-2 broken cookies (4-8 pieces) in the bottom of a parfait glass.
3) Place ice cream on the cookies.
4) Continue to layer with cookies and ice cream until the parfait glass is filled.
5) Top with green Sugar Sprinkles and more Chocolate Chips.
6) Refreeze until firm.

Yields: Dependent upon size of parfait glasses