These Mashed Potatoes Are Basically Like Cream-Cheese Frosting

Whether it's with cream or extra butter, people are always looking for ways to make mashed potatoes as smooth and rich as they can be. Jeff Mauro, aka the Sandwich King, has a tater trick you'll wish you'd known about a long time ago: cream cheese. The ingredient's mild flavor and thick texture is the perfect tool to make mashed potatoes incredibly velvety. Cream cheese, a stick of butter, and half-and-half are whipped with a hand mixer until fluffy, then combined with diced, boiled potatoes, plenty of garlic, and black pepper.

Already, the potatoes are supercreamy and flavorful (I may or may not have sampled about 10 forkfuls at this point), but the King doesn't stop there; he pours the mixture into a baking dish and drizzles melted butter over the top, baking it until the potatoes are thick and golden brown on the surface. There's a buttery taste in every bite and minced chives add fresh color and crunch. Mauro boldly calls these the "creamiest, butteriest, tastiest mashed potatoes ever," and he definitely isn't wrong. Make these smooth spuds once, and you'll want to bring them to every potluck and holiday gathering you attend — but sharing them will be the hardest part.

Get the recipe: Jeff Mauro's mashed potatoes