St. Patrick's Day Take 2

As I posted earlier, The Husband requested that I make his favorite Irish dinner more than once a year on St. Patrick's Day. As The Day approached this week, I was not looking forward to making The Dinner again. It is a good meal, but just not one of my all time favorites.

"What can I do to make the most of this meal?" I said to myself. I added a brown sugar and Dijon glaze to the corned beef after it was finished simmering to add a sweet and spicy crust. With a half loaf of Spotted Dog still in the freezer that I could thaw and serve, I made Irish Mashed Potato Rolls as an additional to the bread basket.

No photo of the The Dinner. That is one plate of food I can never make look very appetizing. But, look at those Mashed Potato Rolls. They were amazing! "The highlights of the dinner," said The Husband, "were the rolls and the glaze on the corned beef." The rolls must have be good because he mentioned them before the corned beef. They were moist and slightly dense. A little sweet from the honey and benefited from a brushing of melted butter when they came out of the oven. My Middle One who likes either pb and j crackers or a Caesar salad for lunch each school day offered, "I can't wait to have a sandwich on one of these tomorrow."

I cooked a 4 pound, thick cut corned beef in the traditional simmering manner. When the meat was tender, I placed it on a baking sheet and slathered it with a mixture of 1/3 cup brown sugar and 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard. Baked it in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes and a nice crusty top formed. This is the only way I will make corned beef from now on. Or until I think of something better.

The rolls would be a welcome addition to the next holiday. Make them for Easter.

Mashed Potato Rolls

makes about 24 large rolls

1 medium potato, peeled and cubed
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1/8 cup honey
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
6 cups all-purpose flour

Place potato in a small saucepan and fill with 3 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain, reserving 2 cups of the cooking liquid. Allow the cooking liquid to cool to about 105 degrees. Mash potato and set aside.

It is recommended to make this dough in a standing mixer with a dough hook. It will mix up in no time.

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm cooking liquid. Add the honey, oil, salt, egg, flour and mashed potato. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. The dough will be slightly sticky. It will not form a ball like typically bread recipes. If using a standing mixer - highly recommended - knead on lowest speed until smooth and elastic, about 7-8 minutes.

Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 24 pieces. Shape each into a ball. Place in a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Brush with melted butter. Serve warm.