Tasty’s Ultimate Mashed Potatoes
Recipe Overview
I made Jody Tixier’s & Alexis Deboschnek’s Ultimate Mashed Potatoes from Tasty, and oh my! At first I wasn’t that impressed with them, but they aged well on me. Which is a weird thing to say about mashed potatoes! They are work; they aren’t for a Tuesday after work, school, and sports. But if you’re looking for a restaurant style mashed potato – this is it! Pro Tip – they were exceptionally delicious the next morning with a fried egg.
Ingredients List
Ingredients:
- 2lb yukon gold potatoes
- 1/2 cup whole cream
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 8 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cubed, cold
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- chives, finely chopped, for serving
Step 1: Prep the Potatoes
On a cutting board, peel the potatoes. Place the potatoes in a large bowl of cold water after peeling to avoid discoloration. Cut the potatoes into 1-inch cubes. Add the potatoes to a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 12 minutes.
Step 2: Prep the Cream
In a small saucepan, bring the milk, heavy cream, and garlic to a simmer over low heat. Remove the pot from the heat and strain the cream through a fine mesh sieve.
Step 3: Mash the Potatoes
Drain the potatoes in a colander and transfer back to the pot.
Mash the potatoes with a potato masher, potato rice, or by pushing through a fine mesh sieve with a spatula.
NOTE: I used a shredding attachment for my mixer and it worked great. I made these a second time and used a potato masher and they were not as good – the masher left chunks and the potatoes just weren’t as creamy. Stick with the ricer or shred the potatoes.
Step 4: Mix the Potatoes and Cream
Add the cubed cold butter and salt to the potatoes. Stir to combine. Gradually add the cream mixture to the potatoes, little by little, until fully incorporated.
Top with freshly ground black pepper and sprinkle with chives. Enjoy!
Conclusion
If you watch the video, you can see that I wasn’t impressed with these mashed potatoes on first blush. But after the cameras stopped rolling, and the potatoes aged a little bit, I whole heartedly changed my mind. And truthfully, the next morning they were even better. Note: this made an insane amount of mashed potatoes so we ate them for breakfast & lunch for two days. It is not 4 servings, unless you’re serving giants.
Family Treasury of Jewish Holidays’ Latkes
Recipe Overview
Why mess with tradition? These traditional latkes by Malka Drucker in her Family Treasury of Jewish Holidays book are all you need for the most delicious, crispy and “make it feel like home” latkes.
Ingredients List
Ingredients:
- 3 large Russet potatoes
- 1 small onion
- 2 beaten eggs
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp salt
- Pinch of pepper
- ½ cup vegetable oil
Step 1: Prep the Potatoes and Onions
Wash the potatoes (there is no need to peel them). If you have a food processor, use the shredding disc to grate the potatoes and onions. If you don’t have a food processor, you can use a hand grater but be prepared for a workout.
Step 2: Mix the Latkes
Add the beaten eggs, flour, salt, and pepper. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes to thicken. Pour off the excess liquid.
Step 3: Fry the Latkes
Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan for one minute. Adjust the amount of oil in the pan so that there is enough to cover the bottom of the pan, but not enough to submerge the latkes.
Gently drop about 2 tbsp of potato mixture into pan. You can flatten it softly with your tongs or spatula. When the latkes are brown around the edges (it’s going to be a few minutes), flip them gently and fry the other sides until crispy. Drain them on paper towels. Serve with applesauce and sour cream.
Conclusion
I had never eaten a latke until I met my husband, but now on 20 years (wow, we’re old) they are one of my favorite recipes. There is no need to go to extraordinary lengths with your latkes – simple ingredients allow the flavors to shine.
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Bon Appetit’s Best Green Bean Casserole
Recipe Overview
This is not a quick side dish. It’s a process. It’s from scratch. And it tastes like it. So, if you want some really good green bean casserole, make BA’s Best Green Bean Casserole.
Ingredients List
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds green beans
- Salt & Pepper
- ¾ cup fried onions
Mushrooms
- 1 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced & divided
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
- 4 large sprigs thyme
Béchamel
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 ¼ cups whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 garlic cloves, finely grated
- ½ cup parmesan
Step 1: Cook the Green Beans
Preheat oven to 375°. Working in batches, cook green beans in a large pot of boiling salted water until bright green and half way to tenderness, about 3 minutes per batch. Drain and let cool; trim stem ends.
NOTE: I made this a second time and trimmed the ends before we cooked the green beans. I found it substantially easier to trim the uncooked beans and it didn’t make any difference in the dish.
Step 2: Cook the Mushrooms
Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook half of mushrooms, without stirring, until golden brown underneath, about 2 minutes. Toss and continue to cook, tossing occasionally, until browned on both sides, about 3 minutes more. Add 2 Tbsp butter and 2 thyme sprigs to pan. Cook, tossing occasionally, until butter browns and mushrooms are dark brown and very tender, about 4 minutes longer. Season with salt and transfer to a plate. Repeat with 2 tbsp butter, salt, and remaining oil, mushrooms, and thyme.
Step 3: Make the Béchamel
Melt remaining 2 Tbsp of butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour and cook, whisking occasionally, until roux golden brown and smells mildly nutty, about 4 minutes. Whisk in milk and cream. Increase heat and bring to a simmer, whisking often, and cook until bechamel sauce is thick and bubbling, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in garlic and Parmesan; season with salt and pepper
Step 4: Assemble and Cook
Arrange green beans and mushrooms in a 2 quart baking dish. Pour sauce over (it may not look like enough, but it will get softer as it bakes). Cover tightly with foil and bake until sauce is bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake until casserole is lightly browned on top and around the edges, 15 to 20 minutes longer. Top with fried onions and continue to bake just until onions are slightly darker and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Let sit 10 minutes to set before serving.
NOTE: I just layered the green beans, then mushrooms, then poured the sauce on top because I didn’t know what “arrange” meant. It worked fine!
Conclusion
This recipe ended with me shoveling green bean casserole out of the baking dish and into my mouth. My whole family quickly joined me. I guess that’s all you really need to know about this one. Lol. So long as you have the time and are willing to do a fair amount of dishes, this one is a keeper!
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Awesome and Easy Creamy Corn Casserole
Recipe Overview
Descriptive names that actually describe the product and result?! A seemingly unheard of accomplishment in the land of internet recipes has finally been tackled. LETSGGGO’s Awesome and Easy Creamy Corn Casserole is both Awesome and Easy! It’s soooo simple and just this morning my husband was reminding me how good it was. Seriously, put the kids in charge of making this holiday side dish and free yourself up for the more complicated tasks.
Ingredients List
- ½ cup butter, melted
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 (8.5oz) package dry corn bread mix (I used Jiffy)
- 1 (15oz) can whole kernel corn, drained
- 1 (14.75oz) can creamed corn
- 1 cup sour cream
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350oF. Lightly grease a 9×9 baking dish.
Step 2
In a medium bowl, mix melted butter, eggs, corn bread mix, whole corn, creamed corn, and sour cream. Spoon mixture into prepared dish.
Step 3
Bake until the top is golden brown.
NOTE: The original recipe called for 45 minutes. Granted I used a round dish, but it is pretty similar in size to a 9×9. At 45 minutes the top wasn’t golden brown and the insides were still liquid. I had to bake for an additional 25 minutes before mine was cooked through for a total baking time of 70 minutes. Take a look at the video for a good indication of the coloring to indicate it has cooked through.
Conclusion
With a slight adjustment for cooking time, this Awesome and Easy Creamy Corn Casserole gives you all the things you want in a side dish. Ease. Little prep. And ultimately, deliciousness that everyone will eat. Put this in your rotation for Summer, Fall, and Winter.
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Fondant Potatoes
Recipe Overview
Easy and elegant, just as described. I had never had, or heard of, Fondant Potatoes before I found the recipe from Small Town Woman one Sunday trying to figure out a new way to serve a potato. They were a smashing hit with everyone. The recipe and instructions are straightforward and pretty simple. But this dish is also elevated, yes it’s a potato, but it’s so much more than a potato when you’re done cooking it. A touch of class in what can be an otherwise dreary potato forest.
Ingredients List
- 4 large Russet potatoes
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup butter (cut in tablespoons)
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 cloves garlic sliced
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- kosher salt
- fresh ground black pepper
Step 1: Prepare the Potatoes
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel the potatoes, cutting the ends off flat so that each potato will stand up on its own. Then cut each potato in half.
Step 2: Cook the Potatoes
Heat vegetable oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium high heat. Brown the potatoes on top and bottom. This can take about 6-7 minutes per side.
Step 3: Bake the Potatoes
Remove the pan from the heat and add the butter, chicken stock, sliced garlic, fresh thyme and fresh rosemary. Place in oven and bake until the potatoes are fork tender.
Step 4: Finish the Potatoes
Spoon the butter mixture over the cooked potatoes and sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. For best results serve promptly.
Conclusion
This is the kind of recipe I like. I had no idea what I was doing, but found a recipe that looked good and seemed reasonable to make. And it worked! In real life, nonetheless! Brava!
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Favorite Green Salad with Apples, Cranberries, and Pepitas
Recipe Overview
This delightful harvest salad will stand out perfectly on your Thanksgiving table. Nestled amongst a sea of carbs, this Favorite Green Salad with Apples, Cranberries, and Pepitas from Cookie and Kate breathes a breath of fresh air and lightness into your Thanksgiving palate. It is the kind of recipe I love: quick, easy, low clean-up, and delicious. It’s a win all-around!
Ingredients List
Green Salad
- 5 cups of your favorite salad
- 1 large or 2 small Granny Smith apples
- ⅓ cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup pepitas (green pumpkin seeds)
- ⅓ cup chilled goat cheese, crumbled
Apple Cider Vinaigrette
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ tbsps apple cider vinegar
- 1 ½ tsp honey
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Step 1: Toast the pepitas
In a medium-sized Skillet, toast the pepitas over medium heat, stirring frequently, until they turn golden on the edges and make little popping noises. Transfer the pepitas to a small bowl to cool.
Step 2: Make the dressing
Make the dressing: In a cup or jar (I like to use a measuring cup for easy pouring later), wisk the olive oil, vinegar, honey, mustard, and salt until well blended. Season to taste with pepper.
Step 3: Chop up the apple
Just before serving, chop the apple into thin, bite-sized pieces (smaller than I did in the video). Place your greens in a large serving bowl. Top with sliced apple, dried cranberries, and toasted pepitas. Use a fork to crumble the goat cheese over the salad.
Step 4: Drizzle the dressing on
Drizzle the salad with just enough dressing to lightly coat the leaves once tossed ( you probably won’t need all of it). Gently toss to mix all of the ingredients and serve!
Conclusion
My family ate this salad for two days after I made it for the Holiday Review. The next Sunday when family came over, I made it again and it was a giant hit. Everyone raved on and on about how good it was, because it is! This recipe works in real life!
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