Learn how to make a traditional Irish breakfast

Potato cakes and scones feature in Irish chef Catherine Fulvio’s morning meal

Video: An Irish treat! A breakfast feast for St. Patty’s Day

Closed captioning of: An Irish treat! A breakfast feast for St. Patty’s Day

Advertise | AdChoices

>>> morning we're celebrating st. patrick's day with a traditional irish breakfast. the makings of a delicious feet that will make irish eyes smile. your book is "italian kitchen" but you are irish and we're doing the irish breakfast this morning. what's the one must have to make it a true irish breakfast ?

>> smoked salmon , farm eggs, irish bacon , cheeses --

>> okay. the list goes on. we're making potato cakes.

>> these are easy to make. you need mashed potato .

>> any potato will do?

>> a good mashed potato . we have a bit of mustard that goes in.

>> you used only egg yokes.

>> you don't want more liquid in it. and we'll put in some of this that goes in like so. you get a nice mix. this turns into a dough like this.

>> do you worry about how much air you get in as you mix it?

>> never overmix potatoes. then we need mixture here to make up. we need lemon juice and lemon zest and chives go in there. here we have a potato cake . these can be served with main course for dinner or they are fantastic with smoked salmon for breakfast with a bit of bacon. then they get fried up like so.

>> how long do they go in there?

>> it's great. if they are brown on the outside, we feel confident they are cooked all of the way through?

>> absolutely. the potato is cooked.

>> while they are doing that, we work on the topping.

>> what we have here are scones. the perfect sweet scones. i have sugar, plain flour , salt and butter in here. you make a well in the center. and in goes your milk. this is whole milk. goes in like so.

>> have to do it with whole milk.

>> absolutely. there is such a knack to making perfect stones.

>> what's the trick?

>> one hand mixing.

>> why does it matter?

>> if you knead that you will have stones and not scones. it's just coming into a dough now. nice and light. there we have it now. and then like so on a floured work surface like so.

>> that's all the mixing you need to do?

>> the air is trapped in there. that's what you want. you give it a bit of wooshing around. it's not a culinary term.

>> it's a technical term .

>> what's this stuff here?

>> egg. cut scones into circles or whatever shape you want.

>> can you use that same circle over here?

>> you can. you can cut with a knife if you wish. i already made some over there in triangles for you.

>> i want to see the other stuff. let's just get right to meat.

>> this is irish breakfast . if you stay in my bed and breakfast back home in ireland, this is what you get. jam with scones.

>> potato cakes. you serve this with salmon?

>> smoked salmon and horseradish cream or whatever you want . lemon cream or whatever you want with it. irish bacon with sausages and scrambled egg .

>> what are these tomatoes?

>> these are just a bit of breadcrumbs and typical with an irish breakfast and mushrooms you may have as well and this is spotted dog .

>> that's a whole other segment. what do you drink with this?

>> tea.

>> this looks delicious. happy st. patrick's day.

Show transcript

TODAY recipes

updated 3/17/2011 5:57:58 AM ET

Print
Font:
+
-

This delicious breakfast will make Irish eyes smile this St. Patrick’s Day. Chef Catherine Fulvio, author of “Catherine’s Italian Favorites,” runs the Ballyknocken Cookery School and House, in County Wicklow, Ireland, and she shared her recipes.

Recipe: Potato cakes with smoked trout and crème fraiche (on this page) Recipe: Sweet scones (on this page)

Recipe: Potato cakes with smoked trout and crème fraiche

Catherine Fulvio

Ingredients

2 pounds potatoes, roosters - really important that these potatoes can be mashed, i.e., not the soapy potatoes
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup or less creme fraiche (may need more if mixture is too dense as it depends on the potatoes available each season)
1 heaped tsp Dijon mustard
3 egg yolks
3 tbsps spring onions, finely sliced
4 tbsps flour to bind, plus extra to roll
Butter and sunflower oil, for frying
To serve
Thinly sliced Irish smoked salmon or smoked trout
Crème fraiche
Chives, finely chopped
Zest of lemon
Juice of lemon, to taste
Black pepper

Preparation

Cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling salted water until tender, drain well and mash with a potato ricer. Add the creme fraiche, egg yolks, mustard, salt and pepper and mix well.

Add the 4 tbsps flour to bring the potatoes to kneading texture. Sprinkle additional flour on the work surface. Place the dough on top and roll to about an inch and a half high. Cut into shapes with a 4-inch scone cutter

In a frying pan, melt the butter and add the sunflower oil and fry the cakes gently on both sides until golden brown.

To serve, mix the sour cream, chives, lemon zest, pepper and lemon juice to taste. Place a dollop on top of each potato cake, followed by the smoked salmon or smoked trout. Garnish with chives.

Serving Size

Serves 4 to 6

search for more recipes in TODAY Food

Print Email Save to my recipe box Go to my recipe box

Recipe: Sweet scones

Catherine Fulvio

Ingredients

4 cups plain flour
2 3/4 tsps baking powder
Large pinch salt
2 level tbsps sugar
1 stick chilled butter
1 1/4 cups milk, approximately
Beaten egg and sugar to glaze

Preparation

There is nothing more mouthwatering than scones straight from the oven, butter melting onto them, a good dollop of homemade raspberry or strawberry jam and topped with freshly whipped cream!

Preheat the oven to 450 F.

Sift all the dry ingredients together. Rub in the chilled butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre and add most of the milk. Mix to a soft dough, adding all of the milk if required.

Turn out onto a floured surface and knead lightly. Roll out to about 1 inch thickness. Dip the cutter into flour and cut the dough into rounds of 1½ inch.

Place scones on a floured baking tray, glaze with the beaten egg and put immediately into the hot oven. In 15 minutes approximately, the scones should have risen and have a golden top. Enjoy with Irish butter and homemade jam!