Bacon Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes – a delicious take on a favourite side dish! Bacon and blue cheese amp up the classic mashed potatoes with tons of flavour. Creamy, quick and easy to make this mashed potato recipe will become a new family favourite!
We’ve settled into winter here in Winnipeg (also known as Winterpeg), the snow on the ground is here to stay, it feels like -25°C with the windchill, and all I want to do is hibernate. And eat lots and lots of comfort food.
Does anyone else get uncontrollable cravings for warm, carby, cheesy comfort foods this time of year? Every day while at work I tell myself that I will come home and make something super healthy for dinner. But then I get home and all I want is pasta, soup or potatoes. While all those can be healthy, it’s the versions that aren’t healthy that I crave right now. You know – soul warming food.
There’s good reason for it! Number one being that it is just so darn delicious.
Do I really need to give any other reasons?
Enter these mashed potatoes. I’ve been wanting to add blue cheese to my mashed potatoes for what feels like ages. I’ve had it in my recipe ideas list for well over a year but I just hadn’t really gotten around to it until recently. Man, was I missing out on some good potatoes.
Now, I couldn’t just leave it at only blue cheese. No, something meaty, crispy and salty had to be added – bacon. Oh, bacon and blue cheese – a match made in heaven if you ask me. Together they create some of the best mashed potatoes I have ever had in my life.
What ingredients do I need for Bacon Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes?
There are a few ingredients you will require to make this recipe:
- Yukon Gold Potatoes (other potatoes such as red or russet work too but I find Yukon Gold are the creamiest)
- Bacon
- Blue Cheese
- Garlic cloves
- Milk
- Butter
- Green onion (optional)
- Salt and Pepper (optional)
How do I make Bacon Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes?
This mashed potato recipe is pretty easy to make!
You start by boiling the potatoes and garlic cloves in a large pot of salted water until tender. I like adding the garlic cloves in with the potatoes as it softens and cooks them and they easily mix in with the potatoes while mashing.
While the potatoes are boiling, cook the bacon strips in a large skillet until crispy. Set aside, and once they have cooled you can crumble them.
Drain the potatoes and return them to the pot. Reduce the temperature to low heat, and add the milk, butter and blue cheese to the pot. Mash them together until smooth. (Don’t over-mix or they will become gluey.)
Stir in the crumbled bacon, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve topped with chopped green onion and additional blue cheese if desired.
Can I make these mashed potatoes ahead of time?
Yes, you can make this recipe in advance though it is best enjoyed fresh (as most things are)! You can keep it covered over low heat on the stove top, stirring every so often to prevent the bottom from sticking. If you want to make it a few hours in advance, you can transfer it to an oven safe dish, cover with foil and reheat in the oven at 350°F for about 30 minutes or until heated though. You can also reheat in the microwave, by placing the potatoes in a microwave safe dish and cooking in 60 second intervals until heated through, stirring between each interval.
Is the blue cheese flavour really strong in these mashed potatoes?
I don’t find the blue cheese to be overwhelmingly strong in this recipe, though this may depend on the type of blue cheese you buy! Some are stronger than others. In this recipe the blue cheese adds a nice bit of tang and creaminess to the potatoes. If you are concerned, start out with half the amount, tasting and adding more as you desire. If you really love blue cheese then feel free to add even more!
What can I serve with these Bacon Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes?
This recipe is really great as a side dish alongside a main like chicken, turkey, beef or ham! We recently enjoyed it with this creamy lemon pepper chicken. These mashed potatoes would also be a great way to serve up something special on holidays such as Thanksgiving dinner or Christmas dinner!
You could also just have a big serving of these for dinner too ;).
I hope you enjoy these mashed potatoes much as we do!
If you make these bacon blue cheese mashed potatoes please let me know! You can leave a comment below, rate it, post on the Zest & Simmer Facebook page or share photos on Instagram with the hashtag #zestandsimmer. I am always thrilled to hear from you!
Bacon Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 4 large Yukon Gold Potatoes , cut into 1-inch chunks (Red or Russet potatoes will work too, but Yukon Gold are creamiest)
- 5 cloves garlic
- 6 strips bacon
- 1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup milk
- 3 green onions , chopped (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the potatoes and garlic cloves to a large pot of salted water. Boil until potatoes are fork tender, about 15 minutes.
- While the potatoes are boiling, cook the bacon in a large skillet until crispy. Remove to a paper towel lined planed and set aside. Once the bacon has cooled, crumble.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, drain the water and return them to the pot. Reduce the heat to low and add in the butter, milk and most of the blue cheese (set some of the cheese aside to garnish with later). Mash the potatoes until smooth - be careful to not over-mix as they can become gluey.
- Stir in the bacon crumbles and salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve mashed potatoes topped with chopped green onion and reserved blue cheese crumbles as a garnish. Enjoy!
Bacon and blue cheese! This recipe is a terrific way to spruce up everyday mashed potatoes. So much flavour, and who doesn’t love bacon??
Thank you so much Elaine!
Yum! I’m a huge fan of all things blue cheese, so these are definitely going on my menu for next week… I’ve been meaning to make roast beef now that the colder weather is here, and these look like they’d be the perfect side dish!
Roast beef sounds like it would be perfect with these potatoes! What a great sounding dinner Isabelle! I hope you enjoy!
I’m totally making these! I’m always on board with blue cheese, bacon, and mashed potatoes. So putting them all together is perfection.
Thank you Colleen! Enjoy!
Growing up in Winnipeg, I totally get this post. But even when it gets that cold in Calgary (which is more often than I like) I feel the very same desire to hibernate and eat comfort food galore! I love what you’ve done to these potatoes – OMG yummy!
It’s just that time of year for craving those comfort foods!!!! Thanks so much Terri!