Tradition demands that corned beef be part of the St. Patrick’s Day feast. If it doesn’t arrive in the form of a boiled dinner complete with cabbage, potatoes and carrots, sandwiches are more than adequate as a time-wise substitute.
Here, the warm, open-face sandwiches are topped with mild, green-veined cheese–an apt tribute to the holiday. Potatoes are an absolute necessity, so in a nod to Irish country cooking, they show up in colcannon as partners with boiled cabbage.
Dessert is whimsical and fun, a lavish creation that only takes minutes to make.
Open-face corned beef and cheese sandwiches with pickled onions
Colcannon
Spinach salad
Ale or stout
Irish cream and oatmeal crumble parfaits
OPEN-FACE CORNED BEEF AND CHEESE SANDWICHES WITH PICKLED ONIONS
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 3 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
1/2 medium onion, sliced paper-thin
2 tablespoons each: cider vinegar, water, sugar
Pinch red pepper flakes
4 slices Irish soda bread or Hawaiian bread
Mayonnaise, spicy mustard
6 ounces thinly sliced lean corned beef
4 ounces Derby sage cheese, thinly sliced, see note
1. Combine onions, vinegar, water, sugar and pepper flakes in small bowl. (Can be made several days ahead, covered and refrigerated.)
2. Heat broiler or toaster oven. To assemble sandwiches, thinly spread bread slices with mayonnaise and mustard; top with portion of drained onions. Top with corned beef and cheese.
3. Broil 6 to 8 inches from heat until sandwiches are heated through and cheese is melted, about 3 minutes.
Note: Derby sage, an English cheese, is flavored and colored with sage leaves. It is available at some large supermarkets as well as cheese and specialty shops. Irish Blarney cheese, widely available at this time of year, or other cheese can be used instead.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories …… 435 Fat ………… 22 g Cholesterol .. 85 mg
Sodium ….. 930 mg Carbohydrates .. 40 g Protein ……. 19 g
COLCANNON
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
12 to 14 ounces tiny red potatoes, scrubbed
Salt
1/2 pound green cabbage, trimmed, cut into
3/4-inch-wide ribbons
3 tablespoons whipping cream
2 tablespoons horseradish cream, see note
2 green onions, thinly sliced
Ground pepper to taste
1. Put potatoes in pan with salted water to cover. Heat to boil; cook until potatoes are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. About 5 minutes before potatoes are cooked, add cabbage to pan. Cook until tender.
2. Drain well, shaking colander to remove as much moisture as possible. Return to pan; briefly place over low heat to dry. Remove from heat and add cream, horseradish cream, green onions, salt and pepper. Coarsely mash with potato masher. Serve at once.
Test kitchen note: If horseradish cream is unavailable, make your own: Mix 2 tablespoons whipping cream with 1 1/2 teaspoons horseradish in small bowl.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories …… 140 Fat …………. 7 g Cholesterol .. 25 mg
Sodium …… 30 mg Carbohydrates .. 16 g Protein …….. 3 g
IRISH CREAM AND OATMEAL CRUMBLE PARFAITS
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
1 pint Irish cream liqueur-flavored ice cream, such as Haagen-Dazs with Bailey’s, see note
4 thin, crisp oatmeal cookies
2 tablespoons Irish whiskey, optional
2 tablespoons caramel ice cream topping
1 cup lightly sweetened whipped cream
1. Put small scoop of ice cream in each of 4 parfait glasses. Crumble 1/2 cookie over each; drizzle with 1/2 teaspoon of the whiskey and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the caramel topping. Add another layer of ice cream, cookies and whiskey.
2. Spoon whipped cream over each. Drizzle remaining whiskey over top.
Test kitchen note: If Irish cream ice cream is unavailable, use vanilla.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories …… 405 Fat ………… 26 g Cholesterol .. 85 mg
Sodium ….. 155 mg Carbohydrates .. 37 g Protein …….. 4 g
