Mash Potatoes

The humble mash potatoes can sound quite boring, but with a few variations it can be a stunning side dish (even DT should be able to cook this one!).

Here's what you need:
- 1 kg of Desiree potatoes
- 1 cup of thickened cream
- 125g butter
- salt and pepper to taste

Here's what you do:
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil (large enough to fit all the potatoes in and enough water to just cover them). Peel and dice the potatoes to about 2.5cm chunks/cubes.

When the water is boiling put the potatoes in. A trick to avoid splashing is to make sure that the point of entry is low. Bring the pot down to a gentle simmer and leave for approx 20 minutes or until the potatoes soft (check with a sharp knife).

Drain the potatoes and begin the mashing process. Once half mashed add the cream and butter. Continue mashing until a smooth consistency is reached. If the mash is too dry add some more cream or milk (if you're wanting it to be a bit lighter in calories!).

Suggested variations:
Now here's the fun bit! Mash potatoes now come into a world of their own once they have been varied slightly. Here are my two favourite variations.

Herbed (pictured above) - add some rosemary and dried parsley to the mix. This will give the mash a nice little boost and this is great with steaks and other red meats.

Multi-coloured mash (pictured below) - get some cherry tomatoes (the 'grape' varieties are also great for this variation) and baby spinach leaves. Prick the cherry tomatoes and drop them in boiling water for 20 seconds. Peel the tomatoes and slice them in half. Rip up the baby spinach and together with the peeled tomatoes add them to the mash to make a stunning side dish for any meal.

Have a go and let me know how it turns out!

The tomato mash served with Kangaroo steaks and salad.