Company Mashed Potatoes are incredibly creamy and can be prepped a day ahead and then baked in the oven when you’re ready for them to be served. They’re the perfect side dish for Thanksgiving Day or any other special occasion!
Company Mashed Potatoes
These Company Mashed Potatoes are creamy and oh so delicious AND they’re made the day before your company arrives. That’s right, you don’t have to worry about peeling and mashing potatoes along with getting the turkey cooked and carved on Thanksgiving Day this year.
Today I’m sharing with you one of the easiest recipes that you will ever make for Thanksgiving. And I know you’ll be coming back to the blog the day after Thanksgiving to thank me for sharing this recipe with you!
One of my favorite things to enjoy is mashed potatoes and gravy. In fact, when I was pregnant with our daughter, Olivia, my hubby used to stop at KFC to bring me home a serving of mashed potatoes and gravy at least once or twice a week. I am that obsessed.
But if you’re like me, getting the Thanksgiving meal on the table can be a challenge. Especially if you have to peel around 10 pounds of potatoes…yes, I make ten pounds of potatoes for my family every year.
The Perfect Prep Ahead Side Dish
Two years ago I found this recipe for Company Mashed Potatoes and decided to add it to our menu. It was one of the best decisions I ever made when it comes to food.
You can make these potatoes the day before and then an hour or so before you’re ready to serve dinner, put them in the oven until they are completely warmed through. You can even add chopped cooked bacon and cheddar cheese if you like.
That’s what I did last year. I made two trays of the potatoes and in one tray I add chopped cooked bacon and grated cheddar cheese. It was amazing. The recipe below calls for five pounds of potatoes, so obviously I double the recipe for Thanksgiving Day.
I always use a potato ricer to make my mashed potatoes. It is the best tool for getting lump-free mashed potatoes. But you can use a regular masher or even an electric mixer. Just don’t use a food processor or even a stand mixer. Your potatoes will turn to glue. Trust me, I know this.
How to Make Company Mashed Potatoes
You start by preparing the potatoes like you would regular mashed potatoes. But once you have the extra “goodies” added, place the potatoes in a baking dish that’s been coated with non-stick cooking spray and bake for about 30 minutes or until the potatoes are warmed through.
If you want to make these the day before, you cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and place in the refrigerator BEFORE baking.
They look great on the buffet table. And you don’t have to peel potatoes Thanksgiving morning. There are so many other things you need to be doing instead of peeling potatoes!
You are going to love these creamy Company Mashed Potatoes!
These incredibly creamy mashed potatoes can be prepped a day ahead and then baked in the oven when you're ready for them to be served which makes them perfect for Thanksgiving Day or any other special occasion!
- 5 pounds russet or Yukon gold potatoes
- 1 stick butter plus more for topping
- One 8-ounce package cream cheese softened
- 1 cup half-and-half
- Salt and pepper
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Peel and cut the potatoes and add them to a large pot of water. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are fork tender.
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Drain the potatoes thoroughly in a large colander. Place them back into the dry pot and mash the potatoes using an electric mixer or a ricer.
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Using your electric mixer, add the butter, cream cheese and about 1/2 cup of half-and-half and mash. Adding more of the half-and-half as needed. (I usually use the whole amount).
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Season with salt and pepper.
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Transfer the potatoes to a medium-sized baking dish that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
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Add a few tablespoons of butter over the top of the potatoes and place in a preheated 350 degree oven until the butter is melted and the potatoes are warmed through; about 30 - 40 minutes.
1. If you prepare these potatoes the day before Thanksgiving you will need to cover them with plastic wrap and/or aluminum foil and place in the refrigerator.
2. Reheating takes about 30 minutes or so. I like to take them out of the refrigerator to bring to room temperature for about an hour.
3. You can stir in chopped cooked bacon into the potatoes too!
4. I always double this recipe and use ten pounds of potatoes. We love this recipe that much!
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Lois,
I used to work for a company where I cooked for up to 15 people daily. One thing we were given was instant potatoes, which as I'm sure you know are terrible compared to the real thing. However, messing around on day I added basically the same things to them that you have listed in your Company Potatoes recipe. Makes all the difference in the world. I had people not even know these were instant potatoes. So, if ever in a pinch, try using the instant. You just may like it enough to decide whether or not you really want to peel all those potatoes. Personally, I HATE peeling them and will pawn it off on someone else if possible. Love the blog and am using my daughter's account.
Maureen
These look so good. I love mashed potatoes and gravy. I’m going to have to try these. Thank you for a wonderful recipe.
Thank you Terri!
I will definitely be trying this recipe for Thanksgiving this year! Looks delicious! And I’m all about saving myself some time and trouble by making things ahead of the holiday! Have a great one!
Thank you for visiting today! I would love to know how you and your family enjoyed the recipe!
Peeling potatoes on Thanksgiving is such a chore: I avoid it by doing it the day before and then soaking the potatoes in water in the refrigerator, which also removes the excess starch (bye bye, gluey potatoes). But I love the idea of finishing the mashed potatoes a day in advance and then baking them on the big day. With that cream cheese and half-and-half, these must be positively luscious!
These are definitely a holiday type of mashed potatoes with all the cream cheese and butter! My family loves them and I think yours will too! Thanks for visiting!
Make ahead recipes are a lifesaver. These look delicious and easy. Thanks for sharing at Merry Monday!
Love the idea of doing mashed potatoes the day before. I wonder if you could reheat them in a crock pot? Oven space is at a premium on T’giving day.
Thanks for the recipe!
I think you could reheat them in the crock pot but why not do a trial run this weekend? Report back and let me know. Thanks for visiting!
Haven’t tried yet, but am very excited to. I will use my (very similar) regular mashed potato recipe. Pardon me if I missed it, but I didn’t see the oven temperature to heat the potatoes. Just a note to those who hate peeling: I always use Yukon Gold for mashed potatoes. I scrub the potatoes really well, but never peel them. They’re always delicious. I promise. Thank you for sharing.
Great catch! Thanks for letting me know I left out the oven temperature. I’ve updated the recipe with the correct information. I know you’re going to love this recipe!