Duchess Potatoes

By christoph

Elegant pillows of soft creamy potatoes with a light golden crisp crust.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1/4 cup cold unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon salt, more or less to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Details

Servings 24
Preparation time 45mins
Cooking time 90mins
Adapted from jamesandeverett.com

Preparation

Step 1

Heat the oven to 425°F and position the racks to divide the oven into thirds. Line two baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper and set aside.

Wash and peel the potatoes, cut them into 1½ inch chunks, and place in a large pot. Fill the pot with cold water covering the potatoes by at least two inches and salt generously. Bring the potatoes to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer until the potatoes are knife tender, about 15 minutes.

Drain in a colander and rice the potatoes in to a large mixing bowl (use a potato masher if you do not have a ricer).

While the potatoes are still warm, mix in the egg yolks one at a time, making sure each yolk is completely incorporated before adding the next. Add the butter, cream, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and stir until the butter has melted and the mixture is smooth. The consistency of the mixture needs soft enough to pass through a piping tip, yet firm enough to hold a shape.

Transfer to a large piping bag fitted with a ½ inch star piping tip. Pipe shapes about 2½ inches in diameter directly on to the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about two inches apart (what ever shape you make it is important to make them all about the same size for even baking). If you prefer not to pipe the potatoes, You can drop mounds onto the baking sheets using a spoon, the same method you would use for drop biscuits.

Spritz the potatoes lightly with cooking spray. I dusted this batch with some paprika for a bit of added color.

Place pans in the heated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Rotate the pans top to bottom and front to back and continue baking until the tops of the potatoes are light golden brown, about 10 more minutes. Keep a close eye on your potatoes, the oven time will vary depending on the size and shape, as well as the moisture content.

Let potatoes cool on the baking sheets for two minutes before transferring them onto a serving platter.