Test Kitchen #7: Corned Beef & The Cupcake

Last Tuesday had the distinction of not only being test kitchen day, but Matt’s birthday as well. (Under marital contract, I am not at liberty to release his age, nor should I really have admitted that he even has a birthday. The theory is that he just came into being at some point, much like the Big Bang Theory. But I digress.)

Even though Matt has never been fond of celebrating his birthday, he does have a great love for baked goods, especially cupcakes as long as they’re covering with tons of frosting. I found a cake form at Williams Sonoma in the shape of a giant cupcake and planned the surprise treat as his gift.

I arrived early at Dad’s to start the cake first so that it would be baking while we were making the corned beef hash. No baking secrets here. I went with Duncan Hines Super Moist boxed mixes, chocolate for the top layer and golden yellow for the bottom. It had tons of whipped cream vanilla frosting, some in between the layers with slices of fresh strawberries and a bunch swirled on top. It finished off with rainbow sprinkles and a whole strawberry on top.

After that project was under control we set upon the corned beef hash. Once again, the improvisation method produced the best results. Dad and I were reminded of the Beef Vegetable Turnovers and how great they came out with very little planning. As Dad would say, “We do pretty well when we just wing it.”

Here’s the basic recipe that we downloaded from the web. The major things we added were the green pepper and we swapped in chicken broth when the original recipe called for heavy cream (Yuck!) Dad also had a bunch of cheeses leftover from a three cheese macaroni they had made recently and we sprinkled a small amount of Gruyere on the top before baking.

It was so good; we ate it for lunch with a couple fried eggs. We personally delivered a serving to Mom, who was already having a hectic day in the nurse’s office and was forced to skip lunch. This one is a keeper and the next time there’s an occasion to have a big family brunch, this will definitely be on the menu.


Corned Beef Hash

Ingredients: (About 4-6 Servings)

2-3 cups of corned beef, chopped or diced
2-3 medium boiled potatoes, diced
½ cup chopped onion
¼ cup of chopped green pepper
3 tablespoon of butter
2 tablespoons of dried parsley flakes
¼ - ½ cup of chicken broth
Salt & pepper to taste
A dash of paprika
¼ cup of shredded Gruyere cheese (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 450°

2. Skin potatoes and boil until tender. Remove from water, allow to cool, and cut into small cubes. (If you make the corned beef dinner for St. Patrick’s Day, just make a few extra potatoes and store for later.)

3. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter into a skillet over low to medium heat, sauteing onions and green peppers till soft.

4. Add potatoes, meat and seasonings. Cook until combined and add ¼ to ½ cup of chicken broth, just enough to moisten the mixture.

5. Melt the rest of the butter into a pie plate and pack the corned beef hash into the plate. Sprinkle with shredded cheese.

6. Bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

7. Cut into equal pie-shaped slices.
Consider serving with your favorite type of eggs.

Dad Flips The Eggs

P.S. The Giant Cupcake was a big hit for Matt’s birthday and he enjoyed it for dessert that night and for breakfast the next morning.