Creamy, buttery, cheesy mashed potatoes are what food dreams are made of, I suggest making extra, to avoid arguments over who gets seconds.
Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes are hands down comfort food straight from grandma’s kitchen. I am not sure anyone makes potatoes as creamy, fluffy, and as delicious as hers.
As simple of a dish as they are I just can’t quite make mine taste like hers, no matter how much love I try to mash into them. To make up for that I have forged my own path of rich, fluffy, potato goodness.
Cheese makes everything amazing in our house, especially mashed potatoes. The combination of cream cheese, Cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese with heavy cream, sour cream, and butter. You know these are going to be irresistible!
Potatoes are a fairly basic root vegetable. However, you can afford to be picky when it comes to the perfect potato for your mashers. I like to stick with russets for a fluffy mashed potato or yellow potatoes if something a bit creamier is the goal.
For mashed potatoes, I tend to avoid red potatoes. Simply because they are naturally starchier and don’t always mash to the consistency I like. If I’m doing a rustic-style smashed potato though, red potatoes work fine.
It is a tad more work and some elbow grease but I do prefer hand-mashed potatoes. The biggest reason is to avoid the glue-like texture that can happen when they are over-mashed in a mixer. A food mill or potato ricer results in perfect potatoes as well.
I like this potato masher for this style of mashed potatoes. I’m a bit fan of little potato chunks throughout for a great texture. If you’re going to peel your potatoes and want a smoother texture, this masher is another favorite.
I am kind of passionate about my mashed potatoes and have a few more tips to share. Butter and cream cheese should be room temperature – they will mash into the potatoes and incorporate much more quickly than if you use cold straight from the fridge items.
Cheese Mashed Potatoes
More than one kind of cheese is what takes these cheesy mashed potatoes over the top. I have my favorite combination here but feel free to mix it up if you prefer.
- yellow potatoes
- butter
- cream cheese
- sour cream
- garlic powder
- kosher salt
- freshly ground pepper
- heavy cream
- cheddar cheese
- mozzarella cheese
- fresh Italian parsley
Mashed Potatoes with Cheddar
- Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and stir to dissolve. Boil for 10-15 minutes, until you are able to easily pierce with a fork. Take care not to overcook.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and grease a 9×13-inch casserole dish with butter. Drain potatoes and return them to the pot. Add the butter and cream cheese to the potatoes. Use a potato masher or hand mixer to mash the potatoes and incorporate the butter and cream cheese into the potatoes.
- Add the sour cream, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to the potatoes and mix until incorporated. Slowly add in the heavy cream to the potatoes while mixing. Mix until creamy. Last, add ¾ cup of each of the shredded cheeses to the potatoes and mix thoroughly.
- Transfer the potatoes to the casserole dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake until the cheese has melted and the edges are lightly browned.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle with chopped parsley and additional pepper. You have the option to add a few pats of butter to the top of the potatoes once they are broiled.
Vegetable Side Dishes
Cheesy mashed potatoes are rich and delicious all on their own so I like to pair them with lightly seasoned vegetables like blistered shishito peppers or these garlicky roasted green beans.
Pan roasted asparagus is a quick side dish with tons of flavor that you can have on the table in less than 10 minutes. I love serving asparagus because it always feels like I put way more effort into it than I actually did.
Air Fryer Broccoli is another simple and delicious option. The air frying process creates crispy florets with tender stems a nice contrast to the cheesy mashed potatoes.
Family gatherings just don’t seem complete if there isn’t a homemade green bean casserole and whipped sweet potatoes on the table. Lucky for all of us, this is quite possibly the easiest side dish to make.
Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2½ lbs. yellow potatoes cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt for boiling
- ½ cup butter softened
- 4 oz cream cheese softened
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1½ teaspoons garlic powder
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt adjust to taste
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper adjust to taste
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 cup freshly shredded cheddar cheese reserve ¼ cup
- 1 cup freshly shredded mozzarella cheese reserve ¼ cup
- 1 tablespoon fresh Italian parsley chopped
Instructions
- Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and stir to dissolve. Boil for 10-15 minutes, until you are able to easily pierce with a fork. Take care not to overcook.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and grease a 9×13-inch casserole dish with butter. Drain potatoes and return them to the pot. Add the butter and cream cheese to the potatoes. Use a potato masher or hand mixer to mash the potatoes and incorporate the butter and cream cheese into the potatoes.
- Add the sour cream, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to the potatoes and mix until incorporated. Slowly add in the heavy cream to the potatoes while mixing. Mix until creamy. Last, add ¾ cup of each of the shredded cheeses to the potatoes and mix thoroughly.
- Transfer the potatoes to the casserole dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake until the cheese has melted and the edges are lightly browned.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle with chopped parsley and additional pepper. You have the option to add a few pats of butter to the top of the potatoes once they are broiled.
Nutrition
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