Mascarpone-Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

Being both a cook and a scatter-brain is a conflicting life to lead. Often times, this means I make something amazing and either a) don’t write it down or b) write it down then lose the paper/document. Today, it was the latter. I made the most amazing orzo dish quite a while ago, and I was finely going to post it, but my recipe is MIA. Plus, I don’t have the faintest idea what quantities of the ingredients I used. So my sister says, “Can’t you just make it up?” Yes, let me give my hundreds of readers a made-up recipe so they can make it themselves and have it turn out horrendously horrible. Needless to say, I will be re-making the orzo recipe later this week so that I can give you the correct measurements and you don’t come after me with pitchforks for posting an inaccurate recipe. Everybody’s happy!

With my original recipe unpostable until further notice, I needed something else. I knew my mother was planning on making mashed potatoes with dinner, so The Smart Cookie Cook intervened, offering to make those taters one step better: Mascarpone-Parmesan Mashed Potatoes. I took a classic comfort food we’ve all grown up shoveling into our pie holes, and doctored it up with a slightly more decadent twist. The mascarpone cheese makes this super creamy and rich, in a way that’s both sinful and heavenly at the same time. The parmesan adds that great cheesy tang, and a kiss of garlic gives you all the flavor you need. These additions are subtle, not taking away from the classic, fluffy mashed taters you know and love. But in combination, they make this side dish something really special.

My Mascarpone-Parmesan Mashed Potatoes are the kind of side you serve when you’re looking to impress. Got critical, impossible-to-please in-laws coming for dinner? These mashed potatoes will make them glad their daughter/son chose you. Did you accidentally aggravate your partner by talking out of your butt? They’ll melt in your arms like mush after one bite of these. Have you been dragged through hell and back then dropped off in a pile of dog crap this week? You’ll forget every little bad thing that happened once you do a mashed potato face plant.

This is the most effective kind of therapy out there: Potatotherapy.

A Few Tips Before You Get Cooking:

1. Fresh herbs are a must!
2. Some people have issues with clumpy, thick mashed potatoes. If your cream/milk is at room temperature, you shouldn’t have this problem.
3. If you really want this to be decadent you can:
   • brown the butter
   • roast the garlic
4. I recommend Yukon golds for an extra buttery flavor.
5. You could do this same thing inside a twice baked potato.
6. Is it too early to start thinking Thanksgiving side dishes?
7. If you use grated parm instead of shredded, you’ll need a lot more of it to get the flavor.

Mascarpone-Parmesan Mashed Potatoes
By The Smart Cookie Cook

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 6 large russet or 8 yukon gold potatoes
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese, softened
• 1 tbsp. butter
• 1 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• optional: fresh chopped basil, for garnish

Directions:

1. In a medium pot of boiling water over high heat, cook the potatoes until fork tender. Drain.
2. Transfer potatoes back to pot or a large mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer on low to beat them just until they break up a bit. Add the salt, garlic, pepper, mascarpone, butter, cream, and parmesan. Pulse the mixer until ingredients began to incorporate, then increase speed to medium and mix until completely smooth and well-combined.
3. Garnish with basil & serve immediately.