We're not going to sugarcoat thingsthis may be the strangest St. Patrick's Day in recent history. How many times have you read "unprecedented times" in the past few days? Us too. We're hoping you're all staying safe, healthy and sane. However, if you're looking to brighten up your social distancing experiment with some St. Patrick's Day goodies, we have some ideas below.
Traditional St. Patrick's Day Dishes
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fresh made warm porridge with double cream and orange marmalade in a bowl on jute[/caption]
You can't get more Scottish than
Scottish Oats. Oats have always figured prominently in Scottish culture and cuisine because oats are better suited to their climate than other grains like wheat. Plus, they're delicious and offer fiber and protein! Instead of rolling their oats, the Scots grind them on slow-turning, cool-running stonemills, which is exactly how we prepare ours here at Bob's Red Mill! While we think they're just delicious cooked in milk and water and topped with cinnamon and a little brown sugar, you can add a touch o' the green with food coloring, green grapes, or slices of kiwi. We offer
gluten free and organic Scottish Oats as well!

Another traditional St. Patrick's Day treat is
Shepherd's Pie. Our version is simple to put together, with a mixture of ground lamb, vegetables and spices topped with shredded cheese and luscious mashed potatoes made with our
Potato Flakes. Not into lamb? You can swap in ground beef and make it a Cottage Pie instead.
Scotland's national soup is called Cock-a-Leekie, which is lots of fun to say and even more enjoyable to eat! Our version,
A Different Highland Cock-a-Leekie Fling, combines the traditional chicken broth, leeks and cabbage with Italian sausage,
Steel Cut Oats and seasonings for a rich and flavorful, substantial soup you'll love.

Oat cakes are another traditional Scottish favorite and
Bob's Favorite Oat Cakes are an easy way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day! Made with (of course)
Scottish Oats, these barely sweet cracker-cakes are delicious with a dollop of jam or a slice of cheese as an appetizer or snack.
Irish Soda Bread

Okay, so Irish Soda bread is so popular (and prevalent) that it earned its own category here. Let us count the recipes!
First up, we have a recipe based on our discontinued
Irish Soda Bread Mix. This simple and scrumptious bread is made with All-Purpose Flour, Creamy Wheat Farina, Wheat Germ and Wheat Bran. The best part? It's ready in about an hour. Stir in currants or raisins for an extra-special touch.

This
Gluten Free Skillet Irish Soda Bread is truly deluxe, made with
Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour and flavored with orange zest, rosemary and currants soaked in Irish whiskey. Serve with butter and jam and enjoy it warm from the oven!
Finally, our
Easy Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread is also made with
Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour and currants or raisins soaked in apple juice. This loaf has a wonderful texture and flavor and can easily be made dairy free, to boot!
Cabbage

Cabbage is another mainstay of Scottish cuisine and featured in traditional dishes such as Rumbledethumps (another super-fun word to say!), the Scottish version of Bubble and Squeak, the English breakfast dish. We use it liberally in
Bob's Shamrock Soup, a hearty stew we served at the 2019 Shamrock Run here in Portland, Oregon. Here, aromatic vegetables combine with bacon, shredded cabbage,
Organic Farro, kale and more to create a comforting bowl of deliciousness.
Farro, Cabbage and Lentil Soup is another cold-weather cabbage favorite here at the Mill, made with cabbage,
Organic Farro,
Brown Lentils, greens and aromatics. Top with fresh chopped parsley for some extra green, and replace the bacon with a tablespoon of olive oil and use vegetable broth to make it vegetarian.
Dessert

Now we're getting to the sweet stuff! Our
Matcha Cupcakes with Irish Cream Frosting aren't exactly traditional, but they are sweet, delicious and bright green! Here, a rich yellow cake batter made with
Unbleached Fine White Pastry Flour is colored (and flavored) with matcha, or green tea powder, and then topped with a rich cream cheese frosting flavored with Irish Cream liqueur and dusted with more matcha.
Shortbread has always been associated with Scotland, and it's incredibly easy to make with pantry staples (and butter, of course). This simple
Shortbread Cookies recipe uses a mixture of
Unbleached Fine White Pastry Flour,
White Rice Flour, sea salt, butter and
Cane Sugar to make cookies that are the soul of simplicity.

For shortbread with a sweet twist, try our
Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies.
Organic Unbleached White All-Purpose Flour creates a tender shortbread cookie that we dipped in melted semisweet chocolate.
Finally, for something different, give our
Rye Shortbread Cookies a spin! Made with
Organic Dark Rye Flour and sprinkled with sugar, these cookies have a rich, deep flavor that complements their crisp, buttery texture.
However you're spending your "unprecedented" St. Patrick's Day, we hope you are staying safe and healthy. If you have questions or suggestions for recipes you would like to see, please post them below!