A few years ago, Mr. HNN and I took week-long trip to Ireland. The only reservations we made the entire trip were for the flight and the car; there would be no other reservations. We decided to just get in the car and drive wherever the damp winds took us.
Despite having not planned a single thing, we saw over 1000km of coastline, stayed in a different town every night, found a pub playing traditional Irish music, took a cooking class, got tickets to a hurling match (the craziest sport I’ve ever seen!), made some friends in Dublin, sang songs with locals in a pub, and even found ourselves in a roadblock of sheep… a couple of times.
If we could do it all over again, I wouldn’t plan a thing 😉
The very first town we found ourselves in was Dingle, a small fishing village on a peninsula in the southwest. It was cold, windy, and raining so we popped into the first pub we found to warm up and grab a pint. As we sat at the bar we could feel the much appreciated heat from the coal-burning fireplace. As it turns out, the pub was also a B&B. In the back corner of the bar, there was a small door that led upstairs to several bedrooms and the breakfast room. Our room was small, but it was clean and warm.
The next morning we walked into the breakfast room, and while our accommodations were modest, the breakfast certainly was not. I ordered the smoked salmon and eggs with boxty and it was absolutely delicious! Boxty is a traditional Irish potato pancake, most common in northern Ireland, though it’s not unusual to see it in other parts of the country. It combines both grated potato and mashed potato, which makes this a fantastic breakfast particularly if you have leftover mashed potatoes. If you don’t have leftovers, not to worry. Simply peel and quarter 1 large potato. Add it to a pot of cool water and bring to a boil. Allow to cook for 20 minutes, then drain, and mash. Add enough heavy cream to give you a creamy texture. Then add salt and pepper to taste. There you have it, you’re ready to make your boxty with smoked salmon, creamy scrambled eggs, and drizzled with an avocado crème fraîche sauce.
- Avocado Crème Fraîche Sauce
- ½ avocado
- ¼ cup crème fraîche
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- Boxty
- 1 small russet potato (about ½ pound), peeled
- 1 cup mashed potatoes
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- Kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- Scrambled Eggs
- 8 large eggs, whisked until frothy
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- Kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- Other Ingredients
- 8 slices smoked salmon
- 2 tablespoon fresh chives, sliced
- In a food processor, combine the avocado, crème frîache, lime juice, 3 tablespoons water, salt, and a few cracks of pepper. Puree until smooth and creamy.
- Lay out a clean tea towel and grate the potatoes using the large holes of a box grater directly over the tea towel. Then gather up the corners and twist to remove all the moisture.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the grated potato, mashed potatoes, flour, baking soda, and salt & pepper to taste. Using your hands, mix until you form a dough.
- Turn the ‘dough’ out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll out to a ½ inch thickness. Using a 3-inch cookie cutter or a drinking glass, cut out the rounds. Reshape and roll out the scrapes of dough until all of it is used.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the butter and olive oil. Once the butter has melted, add the potato rounds and cook until lightly-browned and crispy – about 3-4 minutes per side.
- While the boxty are cooking, you can start working on the scrambled eggs. Heat a large skillet over low heat and add the butter. Once melted, add the whisked eggs. With a spatula, stir occasionally. Turn off the heat just before the eggs are done to your desired firmness.
- To serve – plate the boxty, top the scrambled eggs, a few slices of smoked salmon, drizzle with the avocado cream sauce, and garnish with chives. Serve and enjoy!
I’ll have to try this recipe one day! I just watched Mario Batali make something similar on The Chew 🙂
Ooo… I’ll have to check that out! Thanks!
That sounds like such a fun, stress-free way to take a vacation…to let the adventure take you where it wants to take you. We are planners, my husband more so than myself…we need to overpack and map everything out ahead of time. This smoked salmon and egg boxty looks amazing! It is a satisfying and delicious way to start off the day. And what a great way for you to relive Ireland!
Ha! We’ll my husband and I don’t need to plan trips, but he is definitely an over-packer! He would never admit it, but he always packs way more than me! 😉
What an amazing trip! I am envious of your bravery and adventurous spirit. The B&B you stayed at also sounds so quaint and cozy. This breakfast idea looks incredible – I’ve never heard of a boxty, but now I need to try it! All the components of this dish are heavenly, so this needs to go on my list of things to try asap! Thanks for sharing, Kathleen <3
Thank you my dear 🙂 xxoo
I would love to go to Ireland, and it’s totally on my bucket list of places to visit. Love that you and the hubs didn’t plan a thing! I think I remember you talking about that trip last year! Crazy how quick the year has gone, huh?! Loving this dish, girlfriend! Boxty is soooo delicious, but topping it with some smoked salmon and eggs is totally winning in life! But then you added that avocado creme fraiche! GAHHH Soooo delicious!!! I could eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner. On repeat! Cheers, sweets! xo
Omg, isn’t it crazy how fast time goes by?! Make it stop! 😛
This looks wonderful for breakfast!
Thanks so much, Marla!
That trip sounds amazing! I love that you just showed up with no plan and went where the damp Irish wind took you! I’ve never had a boxty before, but I’m a huge fan of the potato. This looks delicious and your videos are FANTASTIC!
Thanks so much, Rachelle! I’ve been having a great time with the videos 🙂
I want to go to Ireland so badly!!! It’s a quick (and inexpensive) flight from Boston and Hubby and I talk about the possibly of talking the trip all the time. We need to just do it and stop talking about it! lol! Love that you didn’t plan anything too. I over-plan my life and trips all the time, so when we go, maybe I’ll just wing it like y’all did 😉
Love this recipe so much!!! I could eat salmon (smoked or otherwise) every day, especially when it’s on top of a freakin’ potato pancake. Hubby’s going out of town on business for 3 days next week so I’m going to partake in lots of salmon eats while he’s gone (he doesn’t like it….not that it stops me from eating it while he’s here…heehee). Just went to Portland Maine a couple of weekends ago and went to one of my favorite food shops, Browne Trading Company. They smoke their own salmon and it’s spectacular! I bought a bunch of it and I’ll def make your recipe for lunch and dinner one (or two) days next week. Yay me!!!! 🙂
Ha! My husband doesn’t like salmon either, but that certainly doesn’t stop me from making it… as you can see 😛 I hope you guys get the chance to make that trip to Ireland – it’s SO beautiful and the people are just awesome! And if you want to just wing it – it’s a pretty easy place to get around and find places to stay (in the off season). You may want to plan if you’re going during high season 🙂
I love that you and your husband went on that trip without plans. We’ve talked about doing that, but have always chickened out. The adventures you had were your incredible reward for bravery. 😉 I so want to go to Dingle so I can say, “Yeah, we’re going to Dingle.” (Because I have a 9-year-old’s sense of humor.)
I’ve never had nor heard of boxty, but it sounds fantastic. I have a recipe for homemade lox that I’ve been meaning to make for ages and this is just the nudge I needed. Really love this recipe and the whole post, Kathleen.
Have a wonderful weekend! xo
Lol! Don’t worry, Marissa. We were calling each other dingleberries the entire trip. Clearly we also have a 9-yea-old’s sense of humor 😛
omg, I love you guys! that is too funny…
Sounds like a wonderful trip, I’ve not been to Ireland but would love to go one day. This Irish potato pancake looks incredible, love it with the smoked salmon, this would make such a delicious dish for brunch!
I hope you a chance to visit – we had such a wonderful time 🙂
I’ve never had boxty, but I’d love to try your recipe it looks delicious.
Ooo… I hope you give it a try!
Pinned and saved…thanks
Great! Thanks, Lyn 🙂
Loved reading about your Ireland trip. And absoluelty loved this egg boxty, Kathleen. And also loving your videos — so beautiful, bright and angles are perfect. Awesomely made.
Thanks so much, Anu! I’m having a lot of fun with the videos!
What a healthy and delicious way to celebrate St. Patty’s Day! Love all the layers of flavors and really this dish could be eaten for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Loving your fun videos! Subscribed!
Thanks so much for subscribing, Bobbi! xxoo!