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Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes

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Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes – Rustic Yukon gold mashed potatoes made with roasted garlic and extra virgin olive oil

Bowl of Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes being mixed with a wooden spoon

The Fall Equinox is this week! That means, Fall officially begins on that day, September 23rd. So if you’ve been resisting the onslaught of pumpkins, fall leaves, and pictures of apple picking, then get ready…it’s about to get a whole lot worse!

The Fall brings about my favorite holiday…Thanksgiving! I have always loved this holiday, mostly because it was the one time we ate some of my most favorite foods in one meal- mashed potatoes, mac & cheese, turkey, stuffing, and yeast rolls. So it’s no surprise that I am already planning my menu for this food-centered holiday.

Today, I am sharing my fool-proof recipe for mashed potatoes. It’s extremely easy, especially if you have a stand mixer. Spoiler alert: you won’t need a potato masher or a food mill for this recipe!

Check out my Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes!

Metal mixing bowl of Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes Casserole dish of Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes

Making mashed potatoes from scratch is surprisingly one of the easiest things you can make. I always assumed you needed fancy equipment and a complicated recipe to make an incredible version of homemade mashed potatoes. But that’s just not the case.

Mashed potatoes are made with a few basic ingredients: potatoes, salt, pepper, cream, and butter. The potatoes are boiled until tender and then mashed with the other ingredients. That it!

Because mashed potatoes are so simple to make at home, it’s that much easier (and tempting!) to make the recipe your own by adding in ingredients that you love.

Enter garlic & olive oil.

Garlic cloves in a pot of olive oil

I’ve been obsessed with olive oil ever since I tried an amazing bottle of it at a local Italian restaurant. It was fruity and flavorful and quickly replaced butter as my condiment of choice when enjoying a crusty loaf of bread.

So when I saw a recipe for garlic & olive oil mashed potatoes from the Barefoot Contessa herself, Ina Garten, I just had to make it.

And it does not disappoint! The mashed potatoes were super creamy and full of incredible flavor. I adapted it a little to make the potatoes chunky and rustic, which I prefer. It also saves you tons of time because you don’t need to peel the potatoes.

This recipe is so super simple. But if you still have your reservations, here are a few tips to help you along the way:

  1. Because olive oil is so important in this recipe, you must use good-quality olive oil. Therefore, spend a little extra on that fancy imported bottle of extra virgin olive oil. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
  2. When boiling potatoes, you need to boil them differently than you would boil, let’s say, pasta. That is, you need to add the cut potatoes to a pot, add enough cold water to just cover the potatoes, and then bring to a boil. This ensures the potatoes cook evenly and efficiently.
  3. After boiling the garlic cloves, I suggest mashing them up on their own before mashing with the potatoes. This ensures you don’t get huge chunks of garlic in the potatoes.
  4. When adding the potato water to the mashed potatoes, I suggest adding half of the amount in the recipe first, mixing it into the recipe, and then adding the rest, if you think you need it. Remember: you can always add more water but you can never remove water if you’ve added too much.

And there you go – your first recipe for your Thanksgiving menu this year! Or hey – it’s such a simple recipe that you can even make it with your weekly dinners. Here’s a photo of me enjoying it with some yummy pot roast.

Pot roast on top Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes with pot roast on top

Print Recipe

Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes

Rustic Yukon gold mashed potatoes made with roasted garlic and extra virgin olive oil.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 cup garlic cloves (about 1 head)
  • 3 pounds Yukon gold potatoes quartered
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons salt plus more for potato water
  • 1 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

  • Peel garlic cloves and place them into a small sauce pan with olive oil. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low until garlic begins to brown. Remove from heat and set aside.
  • Add potatoes to a large pot and fill pot with water, just enough to cover the potatoes. Salt the water. Cover and bring water to a boil. Once boiling, remove cover and cook for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until potatoes are very tender.
  • Remove garlic from oil and potatoes from water and place into bowl of stand mixer. Do not discard oil or water since we will use them later. Pulse mixer with paddle attachment to mash the potatoes and garlic together. If you don't have a stand mixer, simply use a potato masher to achieve this.
  • Once potatoes and garlic are mashed, add reserved olive oil, heavy cream, 1 or 2 teaspoons of salt (to taste), 1 teaspoon pepper, and 3/4 cup of reserved potato water. Mix on low to combine, or use a wooden spoon to combine. If potatoes are too dry, add a little more water until desired consistency is reached. Place in serving dish and serve immediately.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Ina Garten

Pin for later:

Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes photo collage

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Comments

  1. Sophia says

    Garlic & Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes sound like the perfect cozy side dish — love Poor Bunny how the roasted garlic and good olive oil take simple Yukon golds to a whole new level!

    Reply

  5. Snow Rider 3D says

    This Garlic and Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes recipe is amazing! I love how the post combines simple ingredients to create a rich, flavorful dish, especially the change from butter to olive oil which brings new life to the traditional mashed potatoes.

    Reply

  6. Natalie says

    Oh wow. This mashed potatoes look really delicious. I love the addition of olive oil. I bet that makes it so flavorful. I’m seriously craving this potatoes now. Saving the recipe to try.

    Reply

  8. Kelsey says

    I didnt not think mashed potatoes could look any better but these look so good! I love the garlic flavor in them! I know what side dish I will be having this week at dinner!

    Reply

  12. Nicole says

    I L.O.V.E butter, but a good quality, flavourful olive oil is my second favourite. I only make mashed potatoes for holidays, and I’ve added this beautify recipe to the list. I’m sure nobody will miss the butter at all!

    Reply

  16. Anne Murphy says

    I make mashed potatoes fairly often, but I have not used this method to make garlic potatoes. They sound delicious, and since the family loves garlic, I’m going to have to try it!

    Reply

  22. Lisa Bynum says

    If I had to choose a last meal, mashed potatoes would be a part of it! They always have an always will be one of my all time favorite foods. And loading them up with garlic and olive oil?? Oh my word … how delicious!!

    Reply

  23. Meredith says

    Mashed potatoes are one of my favorite holiday sides, and I can only imagine how delicious these potatoes are made with olive oil infused with garlic. Pinning to try this holiday season!

    Reply

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