Dig into a baking dish filled with irresistibly golden crusted, super creamy Twice Baked Mashed Potatoes. This make-ahead side dish combines everything you love about mashed potatoes, baked and twice baked potatoes; grated cheese, sour cream, crispy bacon, fresh herbs, and a whisper thin crispy crust at the edges.
The only thing better than the taste of Twice Baked Mashed Potatoes is their convenience. You can make it up to three days ahead of time and reheat before serving or you can make it, wrap it tightly, and freeze it for up to a month.
Equipment
chef's knife
Paring Knife or Vegetable Peeler
Potato Masher
Stock pot or Other Large Pot
colander
9-inch by 13-inch baking dish
Cheese grater (or buy pre-grated cheese)
Ingredients
5lbsgolden potatoesor white potatoes
6clovesgarlicpeeled but left whole
2teaspoonskosher salt
½poundbutteror 16 tablespoons or 2 sticks
12ouncescream cheese
1cupsour cream
2cupsgrated cheddar cheeseor monterey jack, colby, Parmesan, or combination of cheeses
⅛teaspoonfreshly grated nutmeg
1poundbaconcrisped, drained on paper towels, and roughly chopped
¼cupminced fresh herbsdivided (I use a combination of parsley, thyme, rosemary, and sage)
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375ºF.
Peel the potatoes and cut them into roughly equal size pieces, about 2 inches. Add the potatoes and garlic cloves to a large stockpot, cover with cold water by 1 inch, and place over high heat.
Bring the potatoes and garlic to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the potatoes and garlic are soft and easily pierced with a butter knife. Turn off the heat. Strain the mixture in a colander.
Place the pan on the warm burner without turning the heat back on. Add the butter and cream cheese to the pan, then return the hot, drained potatoes and garlic to the pan as well. Let the potatoes steam dry for about 5 minutes.
Use a potato masher to thoroughly mash the potatoes until they reach your desired consistency. Mix in the sour cream, grated cheese, nutmeg, and all but 1 1/2 teaspoons each of the crumbled bacon and freshly chopped herbs.
Taste the mixture and adjust with salt and pepper to taste. Lightly grease a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish and scrape the mashed potatoes into it. Use a silicone spatula or serving spoon to swirl the potatoes so there are some peaks to crisp as it bakes.
Bake for 40 minutes, or until golden brown with slightly darker edges. Garnish with the reserved bacon and fresh herbs.
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.