Mashed potatoes, especially, has had a memorable history. It all started in 1771, where a Frenchman, Antoine Parmentier introduced potatoes as a theme for a competition. He won first prize. He cultivated potatoes and even had a group of royal troops toguard his farm near Paris. However, the guards may have not been wary enough, because peasants managed to steal some from the raise. This effectively launched potatoes into French and, much later, European cuisine.

There are many variations of mashed potatoes around the world. Some like it plain; others add cheese, bacon bits and even wasabi. The French add egg yolk and style them ? la Parmentier? in a homage to the man who brought the spuds to them. In England, there are still traditional-style shops selling ?bangers and mash? and ?pies and mash?, favorites among the working class. Aside from that, mashed potatoes are included in shepherd's pie, Colcannon and potato croquette.

Mashed Potatoes Recipe!
In cooking mashed potatoes, you'll need one (1) cup of heavy cream (use low-fat cream if you're watching your shape), half (1/2) cup of salted butter, salt for seasoning and six (6) medium-sized potatoes. The best potatoes for mashing are red and russet Burbank potatoes. They give a rough and unique feel to the end meal. If you don't like lumps in your taters, use Russet and Yukon Gold potatoes. These give a flat and buttery feel to the entire dish.

First, peel of the skin of your spuds. Make sure you take of the eyes, which are flecks of skin embedded in the potato. If you want a country style taste, you can keep about half of the skin, because the skin contains many nutrients, though they're harder to mash later. cover them in cold water to stop them browning over.

Next, cut them to 2-inch chunks and add them to a decent-sized pot. Pour water until the spuds are totally submerged. Adding salt is optional at this stage. Cover the pot and use high heat until water it comes to a boil. Then ease the heat to a easy boil and wait for 15 to 20 minutes. To test if they're cooked, poke one of the potatoes with a knife and it should have no problem entering. If the taters cling to the knife, they need a few more minutes.

Drain the water and allow them to dry, while you heat up some cream and butter in a saucepan at a low temperature. Now comes the fun part; the mashing. Use a food mill or a potato ricer. Avoid using electrical mixers, since they will over-mix the taters and ruin the starch molecules. The starch is what that gives the dish its great feel. Mix them to a nice and lumpy mixture.

Stir in your butter and cream into the bowl. The following stage requires your imagination. Add something that suits your mood into the mashed potatoes. It could be chives, basil, cheese or leeks.

Potatoes are also great for your fitness because they increase glucose tolerance and protect against colon cancer. I bet Sir Walter Raleigh didn't know that when he thought potatoes are only fit to be thrown into animal feed.