A few weeks back it was a cold, dreary Sunday and comfort food was on our menu. Comfort food in the form of Beef and Noodles. And in our house, if those are on our table, there is a big bowl of mashed potatoes right next to them! It's the only way we eat them....no exceptions! So as I ventured into the kitchen, taking the ingredients out of the cupboards, beginning my prep work I remembered one very important detail since the last time I made this meal. One of the two big stock pots I had was scorched, ruined and now resides in a garbage dump somewhere. So I had one pot to prepare the beef and noodles in, but what was I going to do about the potatoes? I could borrow one from my friend 3 doors down, I could drive the 20 minutes to my mom's house and borrow hers, I could head to the Walmart down the street and buy a new one...but to be quite frank, none of those sounded like good options. Why? I don't know if you are grasping just how cold it was this day, (Okay, on the scale of cold, it wasn't freezing, but after a week of 60s and one 80 degree day, 43 felt like the arctic tundra!) and I simply did not want to leave the house. So after the 60 seconds it took me to determine what ever solution I was going to come up it needed to be something "in house", it finally came to be. My Crock-Pot! Of course! Put the potatoes in some water, cook them all day. And then continue as planned. Why not? All I needed was to achieve the same goal as boiling them. Lucky for me, it worked perfectly! I am so glad to have this little tip in my back pocket! How easy when you are cooking a huge meal, or when you have company! Especially since after they are mashed, you can put them back in the slow cooker to keep warm throughout the whole evening. I knew there were more reasons to love my Crock-Pot, and I'm so happy I discovered this one. Because I'm telling you right now, beef and noodles with no mashed potatoes would mean riots at my house!
Crock-Pot Mashed Potatoes
2 1/2 lbs. russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
Water
1/4 c. milk
1/4 c. butter, room temperature
Salt and Pepper to taste
Place potatoes in Crock Pot. Add just enough water to cover. Set on HIGH and cook 4-5 hours until fork tender. Drain. Place in a large mixing bowl. Mash with a potato masher. Add butter and milk. Using an electric mixer, whip until smooth. Add salt and pepper. Stir to combine. If placing back in Crock-Pot to keep warm, turn heat to LOW and stir occasionally. Garnish with extra butter and pepper if desired.
3 comments:
I am SO EXCITED to try this! Frees me up another burner! :)
I am going to have to try this...not because I don't have enough pots, but I don't have enough burners on my stove during the holidays. Thanks for the tip.
Thanks ladies. I agree, not enough burners is a huge issue too, especially while entertaining during the holidays!
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