Cream Cheese Mashed Potatoes in the Crockpot
Video below on how to make these super light, supper fluffy, cream cheese mashed potatoes
I am not sure where you all may fall on the spectrum of how you like your mashed potatoes, but for me, it's wherever light, fluffy and bright falls. These cream cheese mashed potatoes in the crockpot are truly a party pleaser, and a great side dish staple to make before any other food and before things maybe get hectic before meal time, as you can get them mixed up, and set them aside in the crockpot. Because as far as the spectrum of how easy I like making meals for large groups to be, for me it would be wherever super easy so there is time to have a glass of wine falls.
Ingredients/Recipe:
6-8 russet potatoes
1 block of cream cheese (at room temperature)
1/2 stick of butter
1/2-1 C of milk
Putting it Together:
First you will want to peel all of your potatoes, get cut up, and boil on the stove top. Once they are somewhat tender, pour into a strainer to strain out the water.
Then, grab your crockpot, spray the sides and bottom, and add in your potatoes. After this add half of the cream cheese block and the 1/2 of stick of butter. Place on low for 45 minutes, to allow for the butter and the cream cheese to soften.
Following this, using a hand mixer, or if you prefer, a potato masher, mix/mash the potatoes together in the crockpot, just enough to get them partially mashed. Then, add in about a 1/2 C of milk as well as the rest of the cream cheese. Proceed to either mix or mash the potatoes together until they are nicely whipped and creamy. As you mix, if they seem too thick, add in a little more milk as you go, until you reach your preferred consistency.
Once well mixed together, place on warm in the crockpot.
Serving
The lovely thing about having these in the crockpot is that you can eat immediately, or you can wait until meal time, and have them done and ready to go. I highly recommend serving with butter, with other great toppings including sour cream, cheese, chives, or even, dare I say it…bacon. Also, this amount should comfortably serve a group of 6-8. If your numbers are higher, you can adjust potato amount and cream and cheese and butter accordingly. For most, 1 good sized potato per person is a good rule of thumb. A few thoughts on group sizes and adjustments for ingredients:
Up to 8 people- use this recipe as is
10-15 people- use 10-15 potatoes and adjust cream cheese to a block and half and butter to a full stick.
Over 15 people, number of people equals number of potatoes and adjust cream cheese to two blocks and butter to a stick and a half, maybe even 2 depending on your level of like for butter.
Load of Crock Tip(s):
If you like garlic mashed potatoes, consider adding minced garlic in as you are mixing or mashing towards the end.
If you are making these for Thanksgiving or any type of meal that requires some extra attention, an option to reduce time day of is to boil the potatoes the night before, refrigerating them, and then when ready the day off, throwing them in the crockpot. Just remember you may need to adjust time on low since they will be cold from being in the fridge, probably more like an hour and half on low.
If making other dishes with this, this is a good option to reduce the number of items that need to go in the oven.
Happy Thanksgiving, Friends! I hope you all have a fun, safe, and relaxing holiday, and that these potatoes help contribute to the level of ease and relaxation if you are hosting a gathering or bringing dishes to a gathering. And who knows? Maybe with these on the menu there will be time for that glass of wine…I am kidding. There is always time for a glass wine! Happy holidays!