Victoria Wall Harris/Bustle
Food has always played an important role in Donal Skehan's life. Growing up in Dublin, Ireland, Donal's dad ran a local fruit and vegetable shop, which helped spark Donal's early interest in organic produce and sourcing quality ingredients. Although he didn't move directly into the family business, Donal did carve out his own space in the food world by launching a successful food blog that shared his quick, delicious recipes — a skill that serves him even better these days now that he has a wife and young son to feed, plus the family's mutt, Max, to shop for.
"My approach to cooking has quite significantly changed since having a young family," Donal tells Bustle. "We’re a lot more mindful of the ingredients that we’re bringing in. Free-range, organic, non-GMO… that sort of thing is really important to me now."
To learn more about how Donal comes up with ideas for delicious family meals day after day, Bustle partnered with Castor & Pollux® to share a meal that is inspired by Donal's pup Max’s favorite food, Castor & Pollux ORGANIX® Grain-Free Organic Chicken and Sweet Potato recipe. From a flavorful entree made with USDA certified organic chicken, to tasty sides that use fresh produce you can find at your local farmer's market, these recipes are practically guaranteed to leave your crew asking for seconds.
Roast Organic Sweet Potato Chili & Coriander Salad With Peanuts
This punchy sweet potato side dish does just the trick with all the sweet, spicy, and tangy notes Thai cuisine has to offer.
Serves 4
For the sweet potatoes:
- 4 large organic sweet potatoes, cut into rough wedges
- 1 to 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small bunch organic coriander
- ¾ cup roasted salted peanuts, roughly chopped
For the dressing:
- 1 teaspoon caster sugar
- 1 organic lime, zest and juice
- 3 tablespoon fish sauce
- ½ red chili, finely chopped
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Add the sweet potato wedges to a roasting tray and drizzle with the olive oil. Season generously with sea salt and ground black pepper and place in the oven for 40 minutes to roast.
- While sweet potatoes are roasting, prepare the dressing by whisking together the caster sugar, fish sauce, and lime zest and juice until the caster sugar has dissolved. Whisk in the red chili.
- For the salad, toast the peanuts in a dry frying pan until golden-brown. Remove from the pan and grind roughly with a pestle and mortar.
- Place the peanuts, warm sweet potato, dressing, and a small handful of coriander in a mixing bowl and toss to coat.
- Tumble salad on to a serving platter and garnish with more coriander.
Mint, Pea & Feta Salad
For a bit of freshness, Donal created this simple summer salad made with sweet peas, a crumbly feta, and a lemon vinaigrette dressing — all of which go perfectly with grilled meats during the summer.
Serves 4 to 6
For the salad:
- 1 ¾ cup frozen organic peas
- 1 ¾ cup organic sugar snap peas
- 7 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
- Large handful of fresh organic mint leaves, roughly torn
- Organic pea shoots, to garnish
For the dressing:
- 2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Squeeze of organic lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
- 1 garlic clove, finely grated
- 1 teaspoon honey
- Sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing until completely combined; taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.
- Cook the frozen peas and sugar snap peas in a large pan of salted boiling water for 4 to 5 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool completely, then allow to drain thoroughly.
- Place the peas, feta, and mint in a large serving bowl. Add the dressing and toss to combine, then garnish with the pea shoots. Serve immediately.
Castor & Pollux ORGANIX® Grain Free Organic Chicken & Sweet Potato Recipe
"Max is a huge part of our family, and for me it’s really important to feed him with the same quality of ingredients that we feed ourselves," says Donal, which is why Castor & Pollux ORGANIX® Grain Free Organic Chicken & Sweet Potato Recipe makes an ideal dinner option for your beloved dog. Castor & Pollux ORGANIX® is America’s number one organic pet food brand, and all ORGANIX® recipes are certified USDA organic, providing the highest level of safety and quality. The number one ingredient in their recipes is always organic, free-range chicken or turkey, and all recipes are free of antibiotics, added growth hormones, chemical pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, and artificial preservatives. To learn more about Donal, Max, and how Donal finds inspiration in quality ingredients, check out our video below!
This post is sponsored by Castor & Pollux.