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A Lovely Soft Mash with Milk and Bay

I love buttery, cloudlike mash but sometimes I want something softer. I use a floury-textured winter potato beaten with butter and hot milk to produce a snow-white mash suited to mopping up the juices of winter recipes. The quantity of milk will depend on the level of starch present in the potatoes, so I simply stop adding the warm milk when I have the texture I like.

Cooks' Note

You can make a deeper-flavored, more “earthy” version, by melting the butter and milk together, then whizzing them in a blender with a handful of chopped parsley. The mash will be pale green in color.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    enough for 4

Ingredients

medium to large floury potatoes – 6
bay leaves – 5
milk – 3/4 cup (200ml)
butter – 5 tablespoons (75g)

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Peel the potatoes and boil them in deep salted water until tender. Put the bay leaves into the milk in a separate pan and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and set aside. The bay leaves will gently flavor the milk.

    Step 2

    Drain the potatoes, then return them to the pan, cover with a kitchen towel, and let sit for a few minutes. Put the potatoes into a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat with the butter and a little black pepper. With the mixer on slow, pour in the milk, leaving the bay leaves behind, and continue beating until almost sloppy. Season and serve immediately.

Tender
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