Meet The Team / Ann Hodgman

St. Patrick's Day cooking is easy if you're a food-coloring addict. Green milk, green oatmeal, green butter, green cottage cheese -- these and everything else can be greened up with a few flicks of that little plastic jar. But what if you don't like using artificial stuff from little plastic jars? Then you need to turn to nature. Luckily, nature seems to favor the Irish: There are tons of healthy green-ifiers out there.

To make green mashed potatoes (that taste exactly the same as regular potatoes): Stir in half a cup of green peas that you've puréed with a tablespoon of milk. If you use frozen peas, they should be defrosted but don't need to be cooked.

Green bread crumbs for chicken: In a food processor, pulse 4 slices of toast with 1/2 cup chopped parsley until you've got, yes, green crumbs. Toss this mixture together with 4 ounces grated fresh Parmesan and 1 crushed garlic clove.