Lundi: Recipes

My kids hate my mashed potatoes. There; I said it. I usually ask my mother-in-law to bring hers for the holiday feast but this year I want to do it myself. Things are a little different these days.

I know who to go to for help, though, and I'm planning on making a big batch based solely on the recipe of - you guessed it - Martha Stewart. I love Martha so don't start. That woman can cook.

So here's my version of Martha's recipe from The Martha Stewart Living Christmas Cookbook published in 2003 with some notations. Join me in cooking mashed potatoes, won't you?

2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes (according to Martha they make creamier mashed potatoes; russets, she says, are "fluffy but grainy")
1 cup milk or cream (go with cream for the holidays, right?)
4 tbsp unsalted butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Peel potatoes and cut into 1 1/2 inch thick slices. Place slices in a medium saucepan; cover with cold water by 2 inches and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer an cook potatoes about 10 minutes or until fork tender. Drain potatoes and return them to the pot. Place over very low heat to dry; about a minute or two.

Heat milk/cream in a saucepan over medium heat "just until steaming."

Now, Martha says to place a heatproof bowl over simmering water and then put your potatoes through a ricer into that bowl. Sorry, Martha. I plan to use a nice potato masher and the pot the potatoes cooked in. But hey, if you're into making a ban Marie and you have a ricer to hand, good on you.

Stir potatoes until smooth; Martha suggests using a wooden spoon. Now, using a whisk, incorporate butter. Continue whisking as you drizzle in the hot milk/cream. Season to taste - Martha adds a dash of nutmeg as well as salt and pepper - and "whisk to combine."

Martha says: "Serve immediately." If I know good mashed potatoes, though, I bet these will warm up as leftovers nicely.

Thanks, Martha; I can always count on you. Bon appetite ~

Header: Kitchen Maid by William M. Paxton via American Gallery