Here's a twist on the traditional corned beef and cabbage for St. Patrick's Day... a fully loaded baked potato stuffed with tender braised corned beef, a garlic buttery mashed potatoes, melty Swiss and mozzarella cheese, and topped with slow-cooked vegetables and savory juices.
Preheat oven to 425° F
Cut the corned beef briskets into smaller chunks, each about the size of my fist.
In a large pot over medium-high heat, add a tablespoon or so of olive oil, then add the chunks of corned beef and brown them on all sides. You will have to work in batches to brown them all. Set the corned beef aside once browned.
In the same pot, add your carrots, onions, and celery and sauté for a few minutes letting the vegetables release their juices.
Next, stir in your garlic, then add your beer and stir with a wooden spoon, making sure to scrape up all the good flavor from the bottom of the pot, stirring it in to the mixture.
Next, add the seasonings from the corned beef seasoning packet(s). Now add all the browned corned beef pieces back into the pot.
Pour in the beef broth, then bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to low (it should still have a steady simmer going) and put the lid on. Allow the corned beef to braise right there on the stove top for 3 hours, or until the beef is easily shredded.
While the corned beef is braising, rinse off your baked potatoes and dry them thoroughly with paper towels.
Using a little pairing knife, poke a few holes in each potato to vent them. Then rub some olive oil all over each one and season each of them with sea salt.
Place the seasoned potatoes on a sheet pan and bake them in the oven for 1 hour.
Once the potatoes are done baking, cut off the top of each one and scoop out most of the potatoes from the insides (leaving enough inside around the edge to make the bottoms sturdy. Put the scooped out potatoes into a large bowl.
Melt one stick of butter, then stir in 3 cloves of minced garlic into the melted butter. Add the melted butter to the potatoes in the bowl. Then, add about 1/2 cup of milk to start and season with salt. Mash up the potato mixture, then decide if you want to add a bit more milk. You want them to be sturdy, but smooth. Also taste the mashed potatoes and add more salt until they are to your liking. Set aside.
Once the corned beef is done braising, remove the corned beef pieces from the braising liquid and if there is still an abundance of fat on each piece, just pull it off and discard (it's done its job). Shred the corned beef in a separate large dish, then pour in some of the braising liquid to keep it moist and flavorful.
To assemble the corned beef stuffed twice-baked potatoes, fill each potato skin boat with corned beef, then spread a few scoops of the mashed potatoes over the corned beef. Top with the shredded cheese.
Return the potatoes back to the oven and bake for just another 8 minutes or until the cheese begins to get a little golden brown color.
To serve, place a twice baked potato on a plate and spoon on some of the braising juices and then top the potato with some of the braising vegetables. Enjoy!
