roasted garlic mashed potatoes

There are two tricks to fluffy mashed potatoes: the right potato and minimal mashing. The right potato is yellow-fleshed; leave the baby reds and Idaho baking potatoes for another use. Having said that, if you overmash the potatoes you'll be left with a gummy mess, regardless of the potato you use. I use a handheld potato masher, but even a large fork would work. Just dont put them in the food processor or mixer - it's too easy to overmash!

Serves 6-8

4 lbs yellow-fleshed potatoes (such as Yukon Gold)
1 cup whole milk
6 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon pieces
1 head garlic
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Roast garlic: Heat oven to 375 degrees. Slice head of garlic in half to expose cloves. Place garlic, cut side up, in a small baking dish and drizzle very liberally with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until garlic is very soft. When garlic is cool enough to handle, squeeze cloves into the bowl of a food processor, picking out any skins that fall in. Spoon a few tablespoons of olive oil used in roasting into the processor and puree to create a smooth paste.

Prepare potatoes: Peel and quarter potatoes. In a large stockpot, cover potatoes with cold, salted water. Simmer, uncovered, until very tender, about 25 minutes. While potatoes are simmering, bring milk, butter, salt, and pepper just to a simmer, stirring until butter is melted. Drain potatoes in a colander and return to pot. Add hot milk mixture and roasted garlic paste and mash with a potato masher until smooth.