St. Paddy’s Day Cabbage with Caraway and Thyme

The first word used to describe cabbage isn’t generally “decadent,” but when it’s caramelized in butter with leeks, caraway seeds, and thyme,  I’d say decadent is a pretty apt description. It’s maybe not quite as decadent as last year’s St. Paddy’s Day recipe, which fell in the realm of sweets and desserts (Irish whiskey banana bread!), but – as a side dish, it’s pretty damn delicious. And Irish to boot!

Green cabbage is traditional for St. Paddy’s Day, and butter, caraway, and thyme are often used in Irish cuisine. I don’t know if it’s traditional or not, but I happen to like this with a little pinch of ground mustard thrown in for a slight kick. (I actually thought about serving this with a mustard cream but decided the cabbage was so good on its own I didn’t want to overwhelm it with a sauce.)

Serve this cabbage alongside whatever your St. Paddy’s day meal pièce de résistance happens to be. Or, if you are looking to create a vegetarian pièce de résistance, try using this cabbage as a stuffing for baked potatoes and serve them with the mustard cream I almost made (combine mustard, sour cream, and minced fresh parsley). Options abound! (Oh, and you might as well make the aforementioned whiskey banana bread for dessert!)

A couple notes about the recipe:

-This recipe yields 4 cups of cabbage. For Low-FODMAP, a scant 1/2 cup serving is safe.

-I used unsalted butter in this recipe. Feel free to use salted, but if you do, be sure to adjust the amount of salt you add. (Don’t use the full teaspoon.)

-To trim your leeks, cut off the top inch and remove any tough outer leaves. Leek tops (dark green) are low in FODMAPs and the white part is high in FODMAPs. This means the light green part likely has a moderate FODMAP content and you can probably use a little, depending on your comfort level. I used the dark green parts and a bit of the light green from 1 leek and ended up with 2 heaping cups, once trimmed and chopped. Non Fodmappers can use any part of the leek, but I still recommend using at least a little dark green to get some St. Paddy’s day color!

St. Paddy’s Day Cabbage with Caraway and Thyme

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 pounds green cabbage, chopped (about 9 cups)
• 2 heaping cups chopped leek tops, trimmed (see note above)
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• ½ teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1 teaspoon celtic sea salt
• Pinch of black pepper and/or ground mustard, to taste (optional)
• Minced parsley, to garnish (optional)

Directions:

Place the chopped leeks in a bowl, cover with water, and let soak for 10 minutes so all the dirt sinks to the bottom. Scoop the leeks out with your hands, place in a clean bowl, rinse the dirt out of the first bowl, and let soak once more, for about 1 minute, to ensure the leeks are completely free from grit.

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook for about 8 minutes, until browned and tender. Add the cabbage. Cook, stirring fairly frequently, for about 10 minutes; then add the the caraway, thyme, and salt and continue cooking for about 8 minutes more. Taste, season with the optional pepper/mustard if using, and serve.