I love mashed potatoes as much as the next person, but most recipes take a long time—and a lot of elbow grease—to make. So I smash the unpeeled, cooked potatoes with a fork to save time, and I add olive oil and Parmesan cheese to make them rich and velvety. And that’s it!
Recipe information
Yield
6 to 8 side-dish servings
Ingredients
3 pounds red-skinned potatoes, unpeeled, quartered
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Preparation
Put the potatoes in a large pot with water to cover by at least 2 inches. Cover and bring the water to a boil. Continue boiling until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Drain, reserving 3/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Return the potatoes to the pot. Coarsely mash the potatoes with a fork, adding enough of the reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and the oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.
Reprinted with permission from Everyday Italian: 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes by Martha Stewart Living Magazine. Copyright © 2005 by Giada De Laurentiis. Published by Crown Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved.
Giada De Laurentiis is the star of Food Network's Everyday Italian and Behind the Bash. She attended the Cordon Bleu in Paris, and then worked in a variety of Los Angeles restaurants, including Wolfgang Puck's Spago, before starting her own catering and private-chef company, GDL Foods. The granddaughter of movie producer Dino De Laurentiis, Giada was born in Rome and grew up in Los Angeles, where she now lives.
