If you love classic Mashed Potatoes, you've got to try these French Onion Creamy Mashed Potatoes- all the creamy goodness you love with a savory, umami punch from caramelized onions!
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Life Lately: T is flourishing.
T is seriously flourishing now that she is in the toddler room at daycare. She's working really hard at communicating and it's obvious that she's understanding so much of what we say to her as well.
When I get home from being out or get to daycare when I do pick-ups, she immediately runs over to me and yells "Mommy!" It's pretty much the sweetest thing ever! There are times when I pull into the driveway and I can actually see her at the window waiting for me and then she turns and runs over to the top of the stairs (we have around five steps up from our entry area/dining room/dump zone) and is waiting excitedly when I walk in. She does this with J too!
The strange thing is, she calls both J and I mama even though she also sometimes refers to him as daddy as well. We're working on it. T also tries to say her sisters name and sometimes calls her sissy. And of course she tries to say Macie (she loves the dog!). She also knows her grandparents names (or at least their "grandparent names").
T totally adores her sister and follows her around all day long when we're home. Luckily, A also loves this! She is thrilled to take the lead and teach T about everything. She especially loves feeding T. They often crack each other up which then cracks us up.
When T gets home from daycare, she takes off her boots and brings right over to the cube shelf that currently houses shoes. She loves when we chase her and A and they have such a fun time goofing around on our bed at night, crawling, and purposely falling over. This typically leads to an explosion of giggles.
But my T is also a bit mischievous, I actually have to keep her away from the toilets because she likes to stick her hand in and play with the water. Luckily, it's always the "clean" water not a "freshly used" toilet, but its still gross and a hassle to have to wash her hands a number of times in a row.
I'll be very interested to watch her interact with her cousins next month at Christmas and especially to see how she reacts on Christmas morning!
French Onion Creamy Mashed Potatoes:
One Thanksgiving staple in our family is Mashed Potatoes. J takes his mashed potatoes super seriously. Part of that is because he's a super picky eater, so his holiday eating options are always pretty limited. But also because mashed potatoes are pretty darn good- our Thanksgiving Feast just doesn't feel complete without it.
Sometimes it's fun to add an interesting twist to traditional dishes like this. Kick things up a notch, if you will. And since I love the savory, mouthwatering flavor of French Onion soup, I figured, why not combine that with creamy mashed potatoes to add a bit of pizzazz to the usual holiday fare?
Now I'll admit, this is a bit more time consuming than my typical recipes. I'm usually all about quick recipes, but I assure you these are totally worth the extra time involved. You can even caramelize the onions the night before and reheat them before adding them to the potatoes.
I also went ahead and added some French Fried Onions on top of these for a flavorful crunch. If your family is anything like mine, you'll find yourselves battling for those perfectly crispy French Fried onions and for that reason I strongly encourage you to have some extra on the side.
Here are a few tips to make the mashed potatoes even more awesome:
- Go easy on the liquid- mashed potatoes can go from zero to pasty super quickly. Have a light and and slowly add your milk.
- Warm up the milk- speaking of milk, warm it up before you add it. Nobody wants their dinner to be cold, and that includes the mashed potatoes!
- Don't rush the onions- the key to caramelizing onions is go low and slow. So pour yourself a glass off wine, sit back and enjoy the fantastic smell of caramelizing onions, and make sure you stir them here and there! You can even make them the night before and reheat before adding them to the potatoes.
- Taste it as you go- when mixing the potatoes, and really, with any cooking you do- taste them for proper flavoring and add more as you need.
- Use a stand mixer- work smarter, not harder.
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French Onion Creamy Mashed Potatoes
Equipment
- Skillet
Ingredients
Caramelized onions:
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons salted butter
- 4 cups diced onions
- 1 heaping teaspoon sugar
- ⅓ cup white wine
- Salt
- Pepper
- Heaping ½ teaspoon beef base like Better than Boullion Roast Beef base
Potatoes:
- 8-10 large redskin potatoes cubed
- 2 Tablespoons salted butter
- ½ cup warm milk
- Salt
- Pepper
- French fried onions
- Chopped parsley
Instructions
Caramelized onions:
- Melt butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add onions and sugar to a pan and stir to mix.
- Cover for the first 15 minutes, stirring periodically.
- Remove the cover and caramelize for about 45 minutes more, turning often.
- Once the onions are a deep golden brown color, deglaze the pan with the white wine.
- Stir for a minute, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
- Add salt and pepper to taste and the beef base.
- Mix well and reduce for 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat.
Potatoes:
- When your onions are half way through caramelizing, boil the potatoes until cooked through and drain.
- Add the potatoes to the to stand mixer bowl, fitted with the whisk attachment.
- Add the butter, warm milk, salt and pepper to taste and the caramelized onions to the bowl.
- Mix until the potatoes are mostly smooth (be careful not to over mix).
- Transfer to the serving bowl and top with plenty of french fried onions and chopped parsley. Serve immediately.
Notes
- The onions can be caramelized ahead and reheated prior to mixing with the potatoes.
- You can peel the potatoes if you prefer a smoother potato.
- This is best served immediately but will last up to 4 days covered in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Helpful tools:
Another favorite potato side dish is:
Cheddar and Broccoli Twice Baked Potatoes
I also love these potato side dishes:
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