An important secret to getting through the holidays when you’re hosting is to make ahead when you can! The less you have to fuss over on the big day, the better. These make ahead mashed potatoes can be prepared up to 2 days before which makes them perfect for holiday planning. Just gently reheat (oven, slow cooker, microwave) and they’ll be as creamy and delicious as if you made them moments before.
Hello, all!
The holidays are fast approaching and that means it’s time for me to share a few of my favorite holiday recipes! Some new, some old, but all delicious and excellent for holiday entertaining.
Recently I shared my recipe for honey roasted carrots, a perennial favorite for holidays and celebrations. And today I have a great idea for mashed potatoes.
Mashed Potatoes You can Make Ahead
Why stand over the sink peeling potatoes and then over a hot pot cooking them and then over the pot again mashing them (whew, I’m getting tired just writing this š ) while you are in the middle of Doing All the Things to get dinner on the table when you could have made them the day before?
I know! I always made my potatoes the day of, but I am now fully on board the make ahead train and I hope all of you hop on too!
What do you need?
- Yellow potatoes. Yellow potatoes, like Yukon Golds, have the right balance of waxiness and starchiness to make a light, but creamy mashed potato. And they have the benefit of a buttery flavor!
- Cream cheese. Tang + fat + creaminess. We amp up the creamy texture here.
- Butter. Let’s take the butteriness of the potatoes and ramp it up to 11. The butter also helps guard against the potatoes getting gluey.
- Half and Half. These are holiday potatoes. Leaner whole milk will be underwhelming, but you don’t need heavy cream either. Half and half is a good medium. Enough but not too much. (If you want too much, feel free to replace some or all of the half and half with heavy cream.)
- Salt. Do not forget the salt! I have done so and wondered why my potatoes tasted so flat. And then I salted them. Learn from my mistakes.
How do you make ahead mashed potatoes?
To make ahead mashed potatoes boil diced potatoes in salted water until tender. Drain the potatoes and dry them in the pot. Then mash and mix the potatoes with cream cheese, butter, and half and half. Let cool and keep in the fridge until you are ready to reheat them.
While this recipe is quite straightforward, I do have some info to help you along.
Dice and boil the potatoes
Use an even dice (so that the potatoes are all about the same size), start with cold water, and cook them until a fork goes in easily.
How about steaming or baking? I’ve tried both and find boiling the easiest method. Baking takes forever and then you need to deal with the hot potatoes as you scoop out the flesh. And when steaming large amounts I find the cooking to be uneven, leading to undercooked and overcooked potatoes in the same pot.
Dry the potatoes
This is a key step for extra creamy, not at all watery potatoes! A minute or two heating the drained potatoes in the pot is all you need. Just keep the heat low enough so they don’t brown on the bottom.
Mash the potatoes
I recommend using either of two methods for mashing the potatoes: potato ricer or potato masher. Either will get the job done without overworking the potatoes. The question whether you want super smooth potatoes (ricer) or are fine with a more homestyle potatoes which may have some lumps (masher). Masher is quicker, ricer takes a little longer.
What I don’t recommend is using a mixer. I’ve tried it and sometimes I get lovely potatoes and other times I get gluey potatoes. If you decide to go that way, be careful and mix as little as possible.
Which ricer or masher do you recommend? There are a lot of great tools to use, but if I have to pick my favorites they would be: Chef’n FreshForce Potato Ricer – it’s both easy to use and easy to clean; and Smooth Oxo Potato Masher – very ergonomic and stable.
Fold in the add-ins
Start with the cream cheese and get that mixed in. Then slowly add the warm butter and cream until your potatoes are creamy but just a little too soft.
Why too soft? Because these potatoes are going to sit, which means they are also going to have a chance to absorb some of the liquid. If your potatoes are perfect now, they are going to be a little dry later.
Once your potatoes are good, put them into your container and into the fridge they go! If you are reheating in the oven, put them right in a casserole dish. For microwave or slow cooker, you can use a bowl or storage container. No matter what, get them into the fridge quickly so they cool down quickly.
Reheat the potatoes
Once again I give you choices!
- Microwave: Use a microwave safe bowl, cover with plastic wrap (with holes in it!) and microwave at ~75% power, stirring every 5 minutes until hot.
- Slow cooker: Put the potatoes in your slow cooker and heat on high for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then switch the slow cooker to low and hold them up to 3 hours. (This works for up to 5 lbs potatoes. If you make a larger recipe, heat the potatoes first – carefully on the stovetop or in the microwave before you put them in the slow cooker on low.)
- Oven: Bake in a covered casserole at 350F for 30 minutes. (Split into two casseroles for a double recipe.)
If you try my recipe for Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes, I would love to hear from you in the comments with your experience and rating! And Iām happy to answer any questions you might have.
You can connect with me by subscribing to my emails (see the form in the sidebar or below the recipe card), liking my FACEBOOK page, or by following me on PINTEREST.
– Happy Eating, Annemarie
Creamy Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- 5 lb yellow potatoes, such as Yukon Gold
- 1 1/2 cups half and half
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, plus more for topping
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 3-4 tbsp chopped fresh chives or parsley for topping
Instructions
- Warm the Cream Cheese: Take out the cream cheese and dice it up so it can warm to room temperature.
- Cut the Potatoes: Fill a large pot with water, about half way. Peel the potatoes and cut them into 1 inch dice, keeping the pieces about the same size. As you finish each potato put it in the pot with the water.
- Cook the Potatoes: Add a heaping spoonful of salt to the pot with the potatoes. Then bring the pot to a boil over high heat. Once it's boiling reduce the heat to keep at a good boil (without boiling over). Cook the potatoes until tender when you pierce them with a fork, about 12-15 minutes.
- Heat the Milk and Butter: While the potatoes are cooking, put the half and half and butter in a medium saucepan and heat until steaming but not boiling. Keep the mixture on low until you are ready to use it.
- Dry the Potatoes: Drain potatoes and then put them back on the burner to dry. Heat them for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently until you've cooked off most of the water. Remove the pot from the heat.
- Mash the Potatoes: Add the kosher salt and black pepper to the pot with the potatoes. Either with a potato masher with a potato ricer, mash the potatoes until smooth.
- Add the Mix-ins: Add the cream cheese and gently fold the potatoes a few times to start mixing it in. Add half of the milk mixture and fold that in. Then add the remaining milk mixture and fold everything together until smooth and combined. Be careful not to overmix!
- Chill the Mashed Potatoes: Once the potatoes are mixed, transfer them to a large bowl or casserole dish, make sure they are well covered, and chill in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
- Reheat the Mashed Potatoes: See the notes below for reheating instructions.
- Serve the Mashed Potatoes: Just before serving top with pats of butter and chopped fresh chives or parsley.
Notes
- Reheating the Mashed Potatoes:
- Oven: Cover your casserole dish with foil and heat in a 350F oven for 30 minutes. (If you need to hold them in the oven longer, reduce the heat to 200F once they are hot and you can keep them for another 20-30 minutes.)
- Slow Cooker: Add the potatoes to the slow cooker (don't chill them in the liner!!) and heat on high for 30 minutes, then switch to low where you can hold them for about 3 hours. Stir occasionally. Add more milk if needed.
- Microwave: Use a microwave safe bowl, cover with plastic wrap (with holes in it!) and microwave at ~75% power, stirring every 5 minutes until hot.
- Potatoes: You can switch to russets or use a mix of russets and yellow potatoes.
- Soaking the potatoes: If you are not ready to cook the potatoes right after you dice them, you can keep them in cold water for 3-4 hours before boiling them. I recommend changing the water before cooking if you do this.
- Ricer vs. Masher: Both are great! The ricer will make smoother, fluffier potatoes while the masher is simpler and makes a more rustic potato mash.
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