Several weeks ago, I did something that I rarely do...I made mashed potatoes from scratch!
I was making a Shephard's Pie for supper and as soon as the hubby saw the box of instant potatoes on the counter, he kinda freaked. He cannot stand the texture of instant potatoes.
I have to admit, I'm not a fan of the texture either. But man, they really do cut down on how much time you have to spend in the kitchen and in early August, you don't run the risk of turning your kitchen into a sauna by boiling hot water for an eternity. For me, those two benefits are enough to get me past my sensory issues.
Regardless of the "benefits" associated with instant taters, I decided to be a nice wife and make REAL mashed potatoes instead. It was definately going to throw our evening schedule off but whatever--I was kinda looking forward to real potatoes myself :-)
45 minutes later and the tiny cubes of potatoes were ready to be mashed (and YES, it took that long just to cook them!). Moments later, Justin came into the kitchen and decided I was making the potatoes all wrong...I quickly became quite annoyed as 1) he has NEVER made mashed taters before so any advice he offered was automatically deemed incredible and 2) after nearly 4 years of cohabitation, he should know by now that you do not bother me while I'm cooking! Just let me do my thing and nobody will get hurt :-)
In response to all of his suggestions, I told him to get out, leave me alone or I was going to stop making supper. He must have been hungry because shut his mouth and bolted out of the kitchen! So much for being a nice wife, huh?
I have to admit--the potatoes turned out terrible! I think it had something to do with the potatoes taking 45 minutes to cook--and still not being cooked all the way. Justin is still convinced that I should have listened to him...I'm not sure if that would have been a great idea or made any differenece--but at least it would have made him feel important! lol...
Anyhow, since then I decided to try the Ore-Ida Steam n' Mash potatoes from the frozen aisle.
They're a bit on the pricey side at $3.99 a bag but they are worth every single penny (unless you're feeding an army on a budget)! The bag contains chunks of potatoes that you microwave for 10 minutes--then you just add milk, butter and mash away. It's nearly impossible to ruin them! They also make a variety using new potatoes and the skins are left on--now wouldn't that be a pretty presentation?!
Amazingly enough, the potatoes have the same texture of real mashed potatoes. Justin LOVED them and said he would be more than happy to make them our "staple" mashed tater...and I'm willing to spend the $4 just to have something edible. Looks like we have found our newest culinary olive branch!
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