Healthy St. Patrick's Day Meal

Throwing a St. Paddy's Day dinner is a great way to pay back a bunch of social debts, and it's one of those days when everyone's in the mood for a party. But forget corned beef and cabbage. Not only is it not the most popular menu in the world, it's not even very Irish. The corned beef was almost certainly salted pork - read: bacon - and it was served with cabbage on Easter, not St. Patrick's Day. So forget that. Besides, there are far more appealing Irish foods that have the benefit of not sending your guests home with soaring blood pressure and instantly clogged arteries. Yes, Irish beer is one of them, happily (roughly a drink a day could help bring your RealAge down).

1. Salmon. This flaky pink fish - abundant in Ireland's rivers and lakes - is bursting with omega-3 fatty acids, which help protect against heart disease. Grill or poach, serve hot or cold, with capers or dill or lemon. As the Irish might say, "The health of the salmon to you - a long life, a full heart, and a wet mouth."

2. Brown soda bread. The most authentic versions are made with coarse Irish whole-wheat flour, but you can make this low-fat, high-fiber treat with American ingredients using this super-easy recipe:
4 cups whole-wheat flour
1 cup bread flour
1/3 cup rolled oats
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups buttermilk plus extra
Preheat oven to 450F. Combine all dry ingredients. Using hands, mix in buttermilk until soft dough forms, adding more if needed. Turn out on floured surface and knead lightly. Divide into four rounded pieces and arrange on greased baking sheet. Make a cross on top of each with a sharp knife. Bake about 30 minutes, until loaves sound hollow when tapped.

3. Colcannon. Even cabbage-haters tend to love this Irish dish - traditionally, a mix of mashed potatoes, cabbage, and bacon fat - when it's made this way:
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. butter
1 head of cabbage, shredded
1 Tbsp. mustard
4 cups hot mashed potatoes (made with skim milk, not cream)
In a large, nonstick skillet, sautee the onion and garlic in the butter until translucent. Add the cabbage and sautee, stirring, until tender. Remove from heat, stir in mustard, and thoroughly blend with mashed potatoes.

4. Irish lamb stew. If you want an alternative to fish, you can't go more braugh than lamb; it's the star of Irish country cooking. And this delicious stew from Eating Well has just 7 grams of fat and 187 calories per serving.

5. Beer. Studies show that drinking beer - particularly dark brews like Guinness - may protect you from heart disease and even osteoporosis. In case you need an excuse.

6. Irish coffee. Reputedly concocted to sooth some cranky passengers stuck at Ireland's Foynes Airport in 1942, it mixes strong coffee with splash of Irish whiskey, topped with whipped cream. Today it doubles as a health drink (for non-drivers) as well as a liquid dessert: Moderate alcohol intake is linked to heart health and coffee has plenty of perks, including lowering the risk of diabetes, Parkinson's, and some other chronic diseases. Just use fat-free whipped cream, one of the greatest inventions since you-know-what.

7. "Tae." For those who'd prefer a less-intense ending to the meal, there's nothing more Irish than tea. But a new study has found that adding milk to black "tae" actually cancels out tea's heart-health benefits. Substitute a wedge of lemon. Then say "Slainte!" That's Irish for "To your health."