Alpine-Style Stuffed Duchess Potatoes

Alpine-Style Stuffed Duchess Potatoes

Have you ever found yourself staring at a mound of mashed potatoes, perhaps nestled alongside a perfectly seared steak or jostling for room on an overfilled holiday plate, and thought, “I love my grade-school gravy moat, but there has to be a fancier, fussier, French-ier way of plating these spuds”? If you answered yes, and aren’t already familiar with pommes duchesse, then it’s time to get acquainted. Duchess potatoes are classic old-school French cuisine: riced boiled potatoes, mounted with egg yolks and butter, and seasoned with nutmeg. This mixture could be used as a base for other potato preparations such as pommes dauphine, which incorporates pâte à choux for airy fried potato puffs, or stuffed into a pastry bag fitted with a decorative star tip, then piped and baked into pretty individual portions of rich mashed potato.

Ingredients
1 whole garlic bulb 1 tablespoon olive oil
2 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 teaspoons salt
4 ounces Roelli Little Mountain cheese (Or a good Swiss Cheese)
1/4 cup butter, melted
4 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
Salt and pepper
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Minced fresh rosemary

Instructions

Heat oven to 400°F.

Remove papery outside from garlic (keeping cloves together). Cut off the top third of garlic bulb; drizzle with olive oil. Wrap tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until garlic is tender. Cool for 15 minutes. Squeeze garlic into a small bowl. Mash with a fork. Set aside.

Place potatoes into a large saucepan; cover with water. Add salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. Cook, uncovered, for 20-22 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Drain. 

Meanwhile, cut Little Mountain into 8 cubes, about 1/2-inch each. Freeze for at least 30 minutes. 

Place potatoes on a 17 x 12-inch baking pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the outside of potatoes dries slightly. 

Mash potatoes. Add the butter, egg yolks, cream, rosemary and reserved garlic; mash until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. 

Line the same baking pan with parchment paper. Coat with cooking spray. 

Pipe or spoon potato mixture into eight 3-inch circles on prepared pan. Place Little Mountain into the center of each. Pipe or spoon potato mixture into mounds to cover. 

Bake for 10 minutes. Brush potatoes with egg wash. Bake for 8-10 minutes longer or until golden brown. Garnish with rosemary.