Luck O' The Irish

Well kids it's St. Patrick's Day, and I am auto-publishing this post because chances are I am out somewhere expressing my Irishness. Please note that Irishness is expressed through the following: wearing kelly green, shouting fuckass in a Boondock Saints-esque accent, drinking Killians Irish red, and eating corned beef and ....... wait a second. As I celebrate more holidays as a vegan, I get more and more excited about turning out healthier versions of my favorites. Last year, I celebrated St. Patty's by baking Irish soda bread and making a Guiness beef stew. Now I know that Guiness uses fishscales in its clarifying process and I have decided that beef is no good. However, I was still looking for a way to celebrate my ill-considered Shamrock tattoo.
The good news is that Killian's is listed on Barnivore as vegan-friendly. Barnivore is a great site to check out if you want to know more about what animal products might be lurking in your favorite liquid treats. I also decided that instead of trying to make some sort of elaborate corned tempeh, I would go with a Shepherds pie. The funny thing is that I remember my mom making this once and I turned my nose up at it. Now, however, my palate has refined, and I absolutely devoured this recipe. It made ALOT of food, so I was glad that my sister and her boyfriend were in town to help out.

Shepherd's Pie
1 package soy crumbles
1 onion, chopped
2 c. baby carrots, chopped into slices
1 c. frozen corn
1 c. frozen peas
1 lb. potatoes
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. nutritional yeast
1 tbsp. earth balance, divided
1 c. vegetable broth
1 tsp. soy sauce
1 c. water
3-4 sprigs of fresh rosemary


1. Boil a large pot of water while you prep your vegetables. Peel and quarter your potatoes and cook them until they are tender. Drain most of the water off (leave a little at the bottom of the pan) and mash with  garlic powder and nutritional yeast. 
2. In a saute pan, cook your onions and half a tablespoon of earth balance for about 10 minutes, then add carrots. Stir well and cook until the carrots are starting to get tender. Add corn and peas and cook until everything is warm. Take your rosemary and pull the needles off of the sprig and mix in to your filling.
3. Add soy crumbles and a dash of salt and pepper.
4. Stir in soy sauce and vegetable broth and cook on low for 10 minutes.
5. Pour the vegetables into a large casserole dish, pour about a cup of water in and mix well.
6. Cover with a layer of mashed potatoes.
7. Cut the remaining earth balance into cubes and dot your crust. Add a few more rosemary needles as a garnish.