Carbing up to push toward the Summit Part 1 (Potatoes)

Some of you have a love/hate relationship with Mashed Potatoes. You might love 'em and you find them the essential part of your feast. You might hate 'em because you think they are so caloric. I think you should find them a convenient delivery device for delicious gravy and be done with the debate.

Here is a fat/ not so fat version of the delicious gravy delivery device.


Mashed Potatoes


Ingredients * 2 1/2 pounds potatoes (about 6 large potatoes, if I'm being forced to choose for you, Russet Potatoes.)
* 8 ounces of sour cream (or 8 ounces of chicken stock)
* 4 tablespoons butter (or less)
* Kosher salt
* Pepper Tools * Sharp utility knife
* Cutting board
* Large stockpot * Vegetable peeler
* Large spatula
* Potato Masher (or hand mixer)
* Large wooden spoon
* CD, Talking Heads Stop Making Sense soundtrack


Directions

Start the CD

Wash your potatoes in the kitchen and sing along with David Byrne - Réalisant mon espoir. Peel and quarter potatoes and keep in cold water until ready to cook (I'm actually going to recommend a peeler - OXO GOOD GRIPS Swivel Peeler - best peeler, no question. Please note: people from OXO, figure out how to contact me for this plug.)

"Oh, heaven, heaven is a place... a place where nothing ever happens..." - a great line from a song and great zen koan, but I digress. In a large pot, the quartered potatoes and 3 tablespoons salt into a gallon and bring to a boil over high heat. Once the water have come to a boil, lower the flame to medium high and boil potatoes about 15 to 20 minutes, until soft; a knife should go in with almost no resistance. All things being equal, Life During Wartime should be playing.

While you are boiling your potatoes, you need to search deep within your soul - Are you afraid of fat? If you are making these potatoes for Thanksgiving, you are going all the way, so use the Sour Cream and don't dare use low or no-fat. Have your sour cream and butter out to come to room temperature. If you are looking for a 'lighter' version - we're going with the chicken stock, which you are going to bring to a boil and set aside.

Back to the potatoes - drain potatoes well and return to pot. Using a potato masher, mash hot potatoes and two tablespoons of butter until smooth. Slowly mix in about half of sour cream (or chicken stock), just until blended. Season with salt and pepper for taste and add more of sour cream (or chicken stock) until you reach the consistency you like.

Stop here for fluffy potatoes. If you like a creamy potato, keep stirring potato mixture, using a sturdy spoon to press it against sides and bottom of pot. Mix until dense and thick. If you like whipped potatoes (BTW, I don't) use a hand mixer to mash hot potatoes just until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add all the sour cream (or chicken stock), salt and pepper to taste, mixing in short bursts at medium speed. When light and creamy, stop mixing immediately (potatoes can quickly become sticky).

To keep hot until ready to serve, scrape the mash potatoes out of the pot and into a serving bowl, dot top with some (or all) of the remaining butter, cover tightly and keep in a warm place, like the back of the stove. Potatoes will stay hot for at least 30 minutes.

Enjoy your mid life crisis with Once in a Lifetime - "Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down...”



Here's another way to add even more calories - Make a Potato 'Soufflé' with your mashed potatoes (It isn't a real soufflé - we just call it that in our house and since it's my recipe, I get to name it.)

Potato 'Soufflé'

Ingredients

* Mashed potatoes from the previous recipe
* 8 ounces cheese cubed (my family likes mozzarella for this recipe but you can use almost any type of cheese you like)
* 2 large eggs
* 1 cup of Italian flavored bread crumbs
* 2 tablespoons of softened butter


Tools

* 3 quart soufflé dish
* Large spatula
* Sharp utility knife
* Cutting board
* Small mixing bowl
* Kosher salt
* Baking Tray


Directions

Prepare mash potatoes from recipe above but don't turn them out into a serving bowl (leave them in the pot - why dirty another dish, do you have a cleaning staff?) Remove the top oven rack and place a rack on the bottom 1/3 of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350° F.

Beat the eggs and a pinch of salt in the small mixing bowl. Quickly incorporate the beaten eggs into the mashed potatoes (be quick or you'll have scrambled eggs in the potatoes.)

Cut your cheese into dice size pieces. Refrain from playing craps in the kitchen - it's a respectable joint.

Use a butter wrapper or a little piece of parchment paper to keep your hands clean and grease the inside of the soufflé dish with the softened butter. Add the breadcrumbs into the soufflé mold and roll them around to coat the bottom and sides of the mold (this technique is called "chemise"- remember to tell everyone about this. Impress your neighbors). Pour out the remaining breadcrumbs not adhering to the soufflé mold and save (we'll use them later.)

Put a 1/3 of the potato mixture in the mold, lightly pat down to spread out so potatoes are up along the soufflé dish wall. Sprinkle half of the cubed cheese on the potato layer. Add an additional 1/3 of the potato mixture on top of the cheese, once again, spreading out the layer. Again sprinkle the remaining cheese (hold back about 2 tablespoons) on the potato layer. Spread out the remaining potato mixture. Sprinkle the remaining cheese and breadcrumbs on the top of the soufflé. You could stop here and refrigerate the soufflé, covered at this point, overnight and bring to room temperate the next day to finish or you could push on.

Place a small amount of butter on top of the soufflé. Place soufflé on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Increase the temperature to 425° F and continue baking for another 5 minutes. Serve hot.