Irish Bangers and Mash with Onion Gravy

Bangers and mash is the familiar term for the age old classic Irish dish of sausages and mashed potatoes.

The sausages are cooked in a hot skillet and a thick onion gravy is made from the pan drippings.

I have made a smooth cauliflower mash for this recipe to keep the carbs down but most of the time I will just make mashed potatoes and keep my fork out of them. This has been the traditional Saint Patrick's Day meal in my husbands Southern family a long time before I came along.

Esposito Sausage (@espositosausage #espositosausage on Instagram, EspositoSausage.com) makes the best fresh banger style sausage I have ever tasted. They are lean, meaty and have the right seasonings. I have been ordering fresh Italian sausage from their pork store in NYC for years. If you move quickly you can get some Irish Bangers in time for Saint Patrick's Day but they are good any time. You will thank me! If you ask, I bet they'll mix up 3 or 4 kinds of sausage in a bundle to ship to you. They have a five pound minimum and ship flawlessly using specialized packaging and dry ice.

On the Italian side, their Sweet Sausage with Provolone and Parsley is amazing, as is the hot and sweet or the one with peppers and onions. One can not go wrong with Esposito! I make sheet pan sausage and peppers at least once a week.

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 pounds banger sausages
• One small whole Cauliflower, cut into 2 inch thick slices
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 3 medium onions, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup red wine - I keep a $10 bottle of merlot red in my fridge for cooking
• 2 1/2 cups beef stock - I use Better than Bouillon and water
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• Kosher salt, to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the sausages and fry until golden brown and firm, turning them from time to time, about 20 minutes.
• Once cooked, place in an ovenproof dish and keep warm until the mash and gravy are ready.
• Arrange cauliflower on a sheet pan and bake in preheated 375 degree oven until fork tender with golden edges, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to food processor, add 2 tablespoons butter, salt and pepper to taste and pulse until smooth. Keep warm.
• Add the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter to the frying pan used for the sausages and slowly cook the onions over medium heat until golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes minutes.
• Stir in the Worcestershire, mustard, red wine, and beef broth, raise heat and boil gently, uncovered, for 12 to 15 minutes, adding a bit of water if gravy reduces too much.
• In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water to form a smooth paste.
• Whisk half the starch slurry into the gravy, raise heat to high and cook until the gravy is glossy and thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add more cornstarch mixture to thicken more if needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm until ready to serve.
• Plate a scoop of mash, with a couple of bangers and ladle over the gravy. Peas are traditional side as a green vegetable if you are inclined.