“Once” is my favorite Irish film, so when I saw I would be publishing a post on St. Patrick’s Day, it was an obvious choice.

I paired it with a vegan version of colcannon, one of my favorite Irish dishes. Prior to this, I had only eaten colcannon with cabbage. I love kale, so when I found it you could also make colcannon with it, it was a no brainer. This recipe is also low FODMAP and gluten-free.

Ingredients
4 red potatoes, halved
1 cup unsweetened original almond milk
4 tablespoons (0.25 cups) margarine
4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
8 ounces kale, chopped
4 fresh green onions, chopped (omit bulbs to make it low FODMAP)

Instructions
Boil the halved potatoes in salted water until they’re soft.

While the potatoes boil, blanch the chopped kale in boiling water for one minute. Drain then set aside.

Chop your green onions while you wait for the potatoes to finish.

When the potatoes are cooked and soft, drain out any remaining water. Mash the soft potatoes together with the almond milk, margarine and nutritional yeast.

Once you’ve got a nice mashed potato consistency, stir in the kale and green onions.

Serve on its own or alongside a vegetarian roast like we did. This is a great dish for spring celebrations like St. Patrick’s Day or Easter.

I should note that most people peel their potatoes for this. I do not for two reasons:
1) I like the texture of the skins.
2) I’m lazy.

The Easy Route
You might be able to find pre-made colcannon or mashed potatoes at a grocery store or restaurant to order for delivery, but it might be hard to find low FODMAP, gluten-free and vegan colcannon. If you get mashed potatoes, you can just add the kale, green onions and nutritional yeast. Another easy swap is to use 4 teaspoons of chives instead of the green onions.

The Pairing
For those who have never heard of “Once,” it is an indie film that follows a vacuum repairman/busker and a street vendor/housekeeper who meet and bond over a shared love of music.

They share their songs with each other and start writing some together, leading to them recording an album, all in the span of about a week.

I love musicals, and one of the reasons why I love “Once” is because it is an unconventional one. Characters don’t break into song with a full crew of back-up dancers behind them like in the classic movie musicals, but they do wander the streets of Dublin singing.

In addition to the music plot, there is a will-they-or-won’t-they romantic aspect to the film that keeps you engaged with the two leads.

“Once” is one of those beautiful slice-of-life films. For me, what makes this one particularly extraordinary is the charisma and chemistry of its stars, Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová.

Hansard and Irglová are both talented musicians for their real-life day jobs, and they collaborated on projects before and after filming “Once.” Following the movie’s release in 2007, they released a second album as The Swell Season and went on tour. (They are currently reuniting for a tour to celebrate the film’s 15th anniversary!)

Further blurring the lines of reality and fiction is the fact that the two lead characters are never given names. In the credits, they’re just “Guy” and “Girl.”

The song “Broken Hearted Hoover Fixer Sucker Guy,” which is casually performed in a bus-riding scene, was completely improvised by Hansard and not at all part of the script. John Carney, the director and writer, liked it so much that he kept it in the film. It is one of my favorite sequences in the film and always makes me laugh.

Whether you’re making colcannon and watching “Once” on St. Patrick’s Day or saving it for another day, Sláinte! (The Gaelic equivalent of saying Cheers!) We recommend enjoying this dinner and movie pairing with a glass of your favorite Irish whiskey.

If you decide to make Oncecannon and/or watch “Once,” let us know! Tag us in your Instagram posts & stories, tweets or TikTok videos: @veg_out_recipes