Monday, March 16, 2015

Loaded Irish Potato Pancakes (Boxty)


Boxty are traditional Irish pancakes, different than American style potato pancakes in that they are made from half hash browns, half mashed potato. I prefer them to traditional potato pancakes; something about the mixture helps make them a bit less greasy.

The Irish saying goes, "Boxty in the griddle, boxty in the pan, if you can't make boxty, you'll never get a man!"  Sexism and cooking; a great combination!  Happy St Paddy's Day!

Yield: 4-6 servings

Ingredients:
3 cups grated raw potatoes or frozen shredded hash browns
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups mashed potatoes
3 eggs
1/4 cup milk
Salt and pepper, to taste
Vegetable or olive oil, for frying

Directions:
Prepare mashed potatoes using standard methods and set aside to cool (can be made the night before, or used from leftovers).  Toss the grated potatoes with flour in a bowl.  Stir in the mashed potatoes.  In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs and milk, then add to the potato mixture.   Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Heat the oil on a griddle or pan, then drop the potato mixture in large tablespoons onto the hot surface, pressing down slightly to form patties.  Fry on both sides until golden brown, about 5-7 minutes per side.  Drain on paper towels and serve while warm.

Note: I turned these into "loaded boxty" pancakes; with sour cream, crumbled bacon, cheddar cheese and green onions. There are a lot of variations on boxty, so if you're in the mood to experiment, search online for more ideas.  In Ireland, these are traditionally served with breakfast or dinner, so there are a ton of ways to serve this recipe.  Enjoy!

Very Berry Muffins


A super easy muffin recipe!   Use fresh berries in the summer, frozen berries in the winter. For this recipe, I used a combination of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries, but you could substitute other berries such as blackberry, boysenberry, etc.  These smell great while in the oven and taste even better while still warm!

Yield:  approx 15 small muffins

Ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1 cup cream cheese
1 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup diced strawberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen


Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a muffin pan with non-stick spray.  Mix dry ingredients in a bowl.  Add butter chunks and cut into the dry mix with a pastry blender - or, if you're lazy (I like to call it efficient), use an electric mixer to mix until the butter is incorporated into pea sized bits.

In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.  Pour over the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.  The batter will be lumpy.  Fold in the berries and fill a muffin tin or cupcake wrappers about 3/4 full.

Bake for 20-25 minutes longer or until muffins are firm and a clean knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Enjoy!