Instantly Upgrade Mashed Potatoes With This Creamy Cheese

Mashed potatoes are the crowd-pleasing favorite side dish of many a holiday and Sunday dinner. Although they're quite universally loved, they're also a dish that can spark strong differing opinions on what constitutes great mashed potatoes. Plus, it's easy to make mashed potatoes bland. But don't let the discourse discourage you, instead, experiment with unexpected ingredients to make your creamiest, most delectable version ever. For mashed potatoes that put the focus on your seasoning choices and have a light texture, try incorporating ricotta cheese.

If you prefer your mashed potatoes rich and creamy, ricotta cheese delivers without overpowering your other ingredients. Ricotta is fairly mild, so the focus stays on the aromatics and seasonings you bring to the dish, whether that's garlic, or herbs like parsley and oregano, or freshly cracked black pepper. So if you're looking to make a creamy mashed potatoes recipe without any extra fuss, try turning to ricotta.

Ricotta cheese is fantastically versatile, able to be paired with sweet and savory foods alike, making ricotta well suited to your mashed potatoes. You may be more familiar with using sour cream in this side dish, but ricotta works wonderfully as a stand-in, substituting one-to-one. While ricotta lacks the tanginess of sour cream, you lose nothing in texture, as ricotta brings thick viscosity to the mashed potatoes and creates a light and fluffy mouthfeel. While you may be substituting sour cream with ricotta, don't skip out entirely on other dairy products like milk or cream. Mash the ricotta into your cooked potato chunks alongside the milk or cream as the liquids help the ricotta thoroughly combine with the potatoes.

Another reason ricotta belongs in your mashed potatoes? Consider the best kinds of potatoes to use for mashed potatoes, such as Yukon gold. The natural silky texture of Yukon gold potatoes combined with the creamy ricotta makes for a luscious potato match made in heaven. You can even toss the ricotta in a food processor to make it smoother before combining it with the potatoes. 

You could experiment with making your own homemade ricotta, which has an airy texture due to its freshness.  Ricotta salata, on the other hand, may not be the best choice for achieving a creamy mashed potato. Ricotta salata is slightly aged, meaning the texture is more crumbly and firm with an extra-salty taste. Combined with cream and pre-whipped in a food processor, ricotta salata could be successful. But if you want to ensure creaminess, choose fresh whole-milk ricotta as this is the thickest, creamiest ricotta available. 

For a little added sweetness, look out for Italian ricotta. Although a bit on the pricey side, the sweetness and richness of ricotta imported from Italy is well worth the investment. However you choose to season and adorn your mashed potatoes, swap in ricotta cheese next time for a luxurious, creamy mashed potato.