Parmesan Smashed Potatoes

Hold on a sec.  This is a post about potatoes.  What's all that other stuff?  That mushroom deliciousness is Giada's Chicken Marsala, a dish I've made so many times I've stopped counting.  It was the main dish for Doc's birthday meal a few weeks ago, and while the original recipe calls for it to be served on top of linguine, I let potatoes be the supporting cast member in the carb category.  Ok, I didn't make the decision entirely on my own. I had texted Doc, pasta or potato?  So he inadvertently planned his b-day dinner.  Not that sneaky, but I tried.

Doc, Chris, Michal, and I all agreed that these are some delicious mashed potatoes.  When in need of mashed potatoes, I typically default to this recipe from Foster's Market, but when I was thinking about what would pair nicely with the chicken, I wanted to use a recipe with a twist, and this one certainly has that.  The final product was great: tangy thanks to the sour cream, cheesy thanks to the parmesan, rustic texture thanks to unpeeled new potatoes.  I'd still lean towards Foster's recipe for classic mashed potatoes, but try this one out if you'd like your own twist.

Parmesan Smashed Potatoes
from Ina Garten

6-8 servings

3 pounds red new potatoes, unpeeled

• 1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus 2 teaspoons
• 1 1/2 cups half and half
• 1/4 pound unsalted unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1. Place the potatoes and 1 tablespoon of salt in a 4-quart saucepan and add cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer covered for 25 to 35 minutes, until completely tender. Drain. 
2. In a small saucepan, heat the half-and-half and butter.Put the potatoes into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix the potatoes for a few seconds on low speed, to break them up. 
3. Slowly add the hot cream and butter to the potatoes, mixing on the lowest speed (the last quarter of the cream should be folded in by hand). 
4. Fold in the sour cream, Parmesan cheese, the remaining salt, and pepper; taste for seasoning and serve immediately. If the potatoes are too thick, add more hot cream and butter.