As the result of a conversation with food scientist Shirley Corriher, cookbook author Diane Morgan happened upon a clever, very easy way to make mashed potatoes taste more buttery (without adding any more butter). As she told me, "When making mashed potatoes, it is typical to see a recipe suggesting that the milk and butter be heated together, simmering the milk and at the same time melting the butter. That mixture gets added to the just-mashed, cooked potatoes. Easy enough, right? However, using the same quantity of milk and butter, but heating them separately and adding the melted butter first to the mashed potatoes, you end up with a butterier tasting potato dish. The fat absorbs into the cells of the potato, which have swelled and pulled apart from one another. Then, the milk loosens and flavors the potatoes." Adapted slightly from <strong><a href="dianemorgancooks.com">Diane Morgan</a></strong>.

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