Yukon Gold Potato

Yukon Golds go creamy and crusty at the same time when roasted with caramelized shallots. Although salt and pepper are all this dish needs, a spoonful of gravy on top is certainly welcome.

In Mexican cuisine, rajas refers to thin strips of roasted chiles. Although they commonly spice up everything from stews to tamales, rajas are best when adding a kick to creamy dishes. Here, forest-green poblanos lend a mild, almost fruity heat to a potato gratin.

Fresh fennel, rosemary, and crème fraîche give mashed potatoes added appeal.

Two kinds of potatoes are thinly sliced and combined with cream, butter, cheese, and a mixture of herbs.

Roast the wedges with points facing up to brown all sides.

This hearty potato salad is typically made from sliced potatoes, bacon, onions, and celery. A small amount of bacon fat is used to flavor the vinaigrette that seasons this dish. It is most often served warm or at room temperature for the very best flavor.

In this side dish, the vegetables are dressed in a classic red wine vinaigrette. Chiles add smoky heat.

We always look forward to fresh asparagus at the market. Roasting it with buttery Yukon Golds—and a handful of Parmigiano-Reggiano, of course—deepens the flavor.

A favorite Barese recipe (often named for San Nicola, the guardian saint of sailors), these little packets seal in the fish and vegetable juices, with the potato slices insulating the fish from the heat of the oven and the olives and lemon slices emphasizing its bright flavors.

In the States, we tend to be familiar only with the bready, crisp-topped version of focaccia­, but this Pugliese take on it—towering, savory, and so light it's almost cakelike—will surely become a new favorite. Food editor Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez learned the secret to a springy, rich variety—a potato mashed into the dough—from her husband's cousin Lucia Erriquez (yes, with two r's) Castellana, who comes from Bari. A salty top and tangy tomatoes that go almost buttery on the crust will have everyone reaching for a second piece.

Reheat potatoes for 1 to 2 minutes.

A decadent—but still healthy—vegetarian main.

Four ingredients yield amazing flavor in this clever side. The secret? Caramelizing the shallots, which adds an appealing sweetness to the mashed potatoes.

Since roasting brings out the best in most vegetables, food editor Melissa Roberts decided to throw the potatoes into the oven along with the garlic and parsnips, their companions in this dish. The result is an earthy mash, with chunks of caramelized parsnip and savory-sweet garlic.

You've encountered a million potato-bacon-cheese combos in your lifetime, but in retrospect they all seem to be rehearsals for this one, a classic of Miraglia Eriquez's Calabrian grandmother Mary Pacella, who immigrated to Brooklyn in 1934. Crispness abounds, from the bacon to the slight crust on the roasted potatoes, yielding to creamy, very potatoey interiors.

Slow-cooked, jammy shallots are an elegant and unexpected addition to these buttery mashed potatoes. Making the shallots several days ahead will allow the flavors to deepen and save you time on Thanksgiving Day.

Japanese horseradish gives these a bit of heat. Great with steak or prime rib, too.

Wait until you try these llapingachos. The name may be hard to pronounce ("yop- in-GAH-chos," if you were wondering), but these mashed-potato patties from the mountains of Ecuador have a crisp exterior and a warm, cheese-laced pillowy middle that might be better served by a word that's much easier to say: perfecto.