Irish

(Mashed Potatoes with Cabbage) Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. This recipe for colcannon is thought to have come to the New World in the 1800s, carried by the great waves of Irish immigration.

(Green Onion Mashed Potatoes) Champ is traditionally served with a well in the middle that has a dab of butter melting in it. The potatoes are usually eaten from "outside" to "inside," dipping each bite into the butter. From the Tinakilly Country House & Restaurant in Rathnew, Ireland.This recipe was created to accompany Beef Tenderloin with Spring Vegetables.

This lovely treat is usually filled with simple whipped cream and presented at teatime. Inspired by a dessert from Ballymaloe Cookery School, this one is dressed up with luscious coffee-whiskey cream and coffee-flavored meringues.

Root vegetables are a staple of Irish cooking. They often show up in soups, such as this one from The Courtyard in Schull, Ireland.

Chicken flavored with ham or bacon is an age-old Irish marriage. At Drimcong House in Moycullen, Ireland, the combination is translated into a stunning contemporary dish. Ask your butcher to skin and bone the chicken legs for you, which will make this easier to prepare.

Considered a luxury in the nineteenth century, this ice cream has flourished in the past decade and has become a modern classic in Irish restaurants. But it is easy to prepare at home, too, because the recipe does not require an ice cream maker. In this version of the ice cream, the breadcrumbs are turned into a praline.

Irish bacon, sliced and packaged, is increasingly available at supermarkets. If you find it at the butcher counter, ask the butcher to slice it into 1/4-inch-thick slices.

Pudding is a term that is used interchangeably with dessert in Ireland, so not all Irish puddings are the milk-based treats Americans think of when they hear the word. Here's a fine example: a pretty dessert of bread and assorted sweetened berries are in season, but many people want to eat this delicious pudding even when fresh berries aren't available. Fortunately, frozen ones work just as well. Begin preparing this a day before serving so that it can set up overnight.

Irish chefs are gifted at making something special out of the simplest ingredients. This pretty side dish is a good example.

Gregg Thompson of St. Joseph, Missouri, writes, "A good many years ago, my wife and I enjoyed a beefy curried mousse at Snaffles restaurant in Dublin. The recipe was published in You Asked for It in your January 1972 issue. It's a wonderful dish that I have continued to enjoy through the years, and I believe it should be resurrected." Active time: 5 min Start to finish: 8 hr This is a great hors d'oeuvre to make the night before it's served, and it's best when made with the freshest garlic you can find.

These sweets are enjoyed with coffee or tea at Bewley's on Grafton Street, a Dublin institution that has long been part of the city's folklore and culture.

Barm brack is a dark and fruity yeast-raised cake (barm means "yeast"; brack means "speckled"). Tea brack is the much more common baking powder version.

This version of colcannon, usually a combination of buttery mashed potatoes and cabbage, is a wonderful accompaniment to grilled sausages or Beef Stew with Stout .

"While my husband and I were vacationing in the Cayman Islands, we had the pleasure of dining at Fidel Murphy's Irish Pub on Grand Cayman," writes Regina Stewart of Acworth, Georgia. "We travel a lot and have enjoyed many good Irish stews, but the pub's rendition is the best ever."

There must be as many versions of this—Ireland's national dish—as there are cooks. One thing all recipes should say is that the stew is to be cooked slowly until the lamb is meltingly tender. This stew is the ideal dish to return to after a day in the open air, as it can be made ahead and reheated while cook and guests enjoy the hot punch.

This soup is related to brotchán foltchep, a classic leek and oatmeal soup (also known as brotchán roy) that combines leeks, oatmeal and milk. This version is thickened with potatoes instead of oatmeal and flavored with chicken stock instead of milk. Serve it with savory whole wheat scones or slices of brown soda bread.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Called Dublin coddle, this traditional Irish dish is a quick main course.

The lamb in this recipe is blanched to make a light-colored stew. Active time: 1 1/4 hr Start to finish: 2 1/2 hr