Whether you want a creamy comforting side dish for a Sunday supper, or you are hoping to up your mashed potatoes game for Thanksgiving this year, these Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes are just what you are looking for! They are made with tangy yogurt, savory roasted garlic, sweet cream butter and fluffy Yukon Gold potatoes!

close up overhead of the bowl of mashed potatoes, a serving in a blue bowl and foliage on the table

We originally shared this recipe for Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes on November 9th, 2010. We have updated some of the text and photos today.

Table of contents

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

Why We Love Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Call me a rebel, but I am all for mixing up traditional side dishes when it comes to holidays and family meals. While I love classic combos like Roasted Turkey and buttery mashed potatoes, sometimes I like to up the ante and give my dinner guest a bold new flavor experience! That’s where this Garlic Mashed Potatoes recipe comes into play!

We love this recipe both at Thanksgiving and more intimate meals of Roast Chicken and classic sides for Sunday Supper. And I should also mention it is great with other comfort foods like Pork Chops and Mushroom Gravy.

More Favorite Potato Side Dishes

Steamed potatoes with fresh herbs in circular white bowl.

Simple Steamed Potatoes with Herbs
oven roasted potato wedges in bowl

Oven Roasted Red Potato Wedges
Mashed potatoes with chives on top from overhead

Simple Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes
classic potato salad in a white bowl with backlight

Healthy Potato Salad With Egg

Ingredients for Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Yukon Gold potatoes: In culinary school, I learned the importance of using waxy (thin-skinned) potato varieties such as Yukon Gold, Chef’s potatoes or red potatoes for mashed potatoes. These hold together best when boiled and achieve a nice creamy texture when mashed. Floury potatoes such as Idaho or Russets are too starchy and absorbent and become gluey when cream or milk is added to them.

Plain yogurt: We love the tangy flavor of yogurt in mashed potatoes though feel free to use a more rich liquid such as heavy cream or half and half.

Garlic: Garlic is used not once, but twice, in this garlic mashed potatoes recipe. Search for the best and freshest garlic bulb at the store by giving it a light squeeze. It should be firm and not hollow or dry. Any sprouting on the bulb is an indicator that the garlic is old.

Butter: Soften the butter ahead of time at room temperature. We used only 3 tablespoons, but you can easily add more to make these potatoes more indulgent.

Seasonings: Salt and pepper to season. You can use white pepper in yours like I do, but that is totally up to your preference of flavor.

Other Ingredients: You’ll also need a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil for roasting the garlic. Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish add a nice touch. Chives are also a festive touch.

More Roasted Garlic Recipes: Creamy Roasted Cheddar Garlic Soup would make a great opening course for your holiday meal. For garlic lovers this Roasted Garlic Caesar salad is one to bookmark.

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

How To Make Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Step 1: Roast the garlic

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare two heads of garlic for roasting: Leaving the whole garlic head intact, cut the tips off of the top of the head of garlic, exposing the flesh of each clove. Repeat with the second head of garlic.  Place the heads root-side down on a sheet of aluminum foil.  Drizzle oil over the exposed flesh.  Wrap up the heads into a bundle and bake until fragrant and the garlic is tender, about 45 minutes. 

Open the packet to vent and set aside to cool. You can also sub in oil poached roasted garlic confit instead. You’ll want about 1/4 cup of the puree for this recipe.

Step 2: Make garlic & yogurt mixture

When the garlic is cool, carefully squeeze the whole head of garlic to get the roasted garlic cloves out of the skins. In a bowl, mash the garlic with a fork into a smooth paste.  Mash in butter, pepper and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir in yogurt.

Step 3: Cook Potatoes and Mash

Meanwhile, peel the remaining 2 cloves garlic. Cover potatoes and the two cloves garlic generously with cold water in a large saucepan.  Place over high heat and bring to a boil.  Reduce to low heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, 15 to18 minutes. 

Drain the potatoes and return the cooked potatoes to the pot. Mash the potatoes with a potato masher or use a ricer for the fluffiest potatoes.  Add the yogurt mixture and mash until smooth.  Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with parsley.

mashed potatoes with garlic on a gray wooden table with fall flowers and foliage
Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

Serving Suggestions For Garlic Mashed Potatoes

These mashed garlic potatoes will be an instant hit at your Thanksgiving table with the roast turkey, but there are many other occasions to think of them as the perfect side dish. Here are a few more ideas:

FAQs and Expert tips

What are the best potatoes to use for mashing?

We recommend thin-skinned potatoes such as red, white or gold potatoes for mashing. Thin skin potatoes are also sometimes called waxy potatoes and these have a great creamy texture. Russet potatoes, also known as baking potatoes or Idaho potatoes are oval-shaped and have thicker, rough, darker brown skin. These baking potatoes have a higher starch content and a dry fluffy texture. Baking potatoes don’t hold their shape as well when boiled. Russet potatoes are perfect for roasting, rather than boiling.

Substitutions and Variations to Try

Instead of Yogurt: Use milk or buttermilk instead. You might not need as much, so add a little bit at a time, mixing together between each addition.

To Make Richer Mashed Potatoes: Use cream, half and half or sour cream. We also love the taste of cream cheese with the savory roast garlic, add 2 to 4 ounces depending on your taste preference. You can also opt to add additional butter to make these garlic potatoes more indulgent.

Vegan: To make them vegan sub in cashew cream and vegan butter.

Make Ahead, Left Overs and Reheating

Make-Ahead

Roasting a few heads of garlic ahead of time (even a day ahead is fine), makes for a creamy and rich flavor enhancer.  I also toss a couple of crushed garlic cloves in with the boiling potatoes to layer the garlic flavor.

You can also peel the potatoes and place them in water and refrigerate 24 hours in advance.

Leftovers

Place leftover mashed potatoes in a large airtight container and keep refrigerated up to 2 days. You can also place them in a covered casserole dish and refrigerate. Then simply follow instructions to reheat below.

Reheating

Oven: The best way to reheat mashed potatoes is by placing them in an oven-safe dish at 350ºF with extra milk/yogurt and butter. Cook, covered (so the top doesn’t get crispy and dark), until warmed through, about 20 minutes.

Microwave: Alternatively, microwave for a few minutes, stopping to mix and combine as you go. You may need to add a little extra skim milk or cream to thin them out- but they usually soften up nicely once they are hot.

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe
the potatoes in a white bowl and a head of roasted garlic

More Mashed Side Dishes

a blue bowl with rustic red-skinned mashed potatoes with herbs and a pot of red potatoes

Red-Skinned Mashed Potatoes {With Skin}
a white bowl with mashed cauliflower topped with melted butter

Creamy Low Carb Mashed Cauliflower
A white plate with mashed parsnips and carrots on it.

Mashed Carrots and Parsnips
Mashed root veggie puree in a white bowl on a table with hydrangeas in a vase

Vegetable Mash
Five Spice Mashed Sweet Potatoes | Side Dish | Holiday | Vegan | Paleo | Healthy Seasonal Recipes | Katie Webster

Creamy Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Chinese 5-Spice

Garlic Mashed Broccoli

Try Instant Pot these simple Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes to keep a burner free!

At Healthy Seasonal Recipes, we specialize in cooking with fresh veggies and creating weeknight meals. Sign up HERE to get more produce-forward dinner ideas for FREE! If you make this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review. I would love to hear what you thought! Happy Cooking! ~Katie

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
close up overhead of the bowl of mashed potatoes

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 5 reviews

  • Author: Katie Webster
  • Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
  • Yield: 8 servings 1x
Print Recipe

Description

These Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes may be lighter in calories with non-fat plain yogurt, but they are far from light on flavor with layer upon layer of yummy garlic! 

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 2 heads plus two cloves garlic, divided
  • 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2 to 2-inch chunks
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper, preferably white
  • 1 cup plain non-fat yogurt
  • Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare two heads of garlic for roasting: Leaving garlic head intact, cut tip off of garlic cloves, exposing the flesh of each clove. Repeat with the second head of garlic.  Place the heads root-side down on a sheet of aluminum foil.  Drizzle oil over the exposed flesh.  Wrap up the heads into a bundle and bake until fragrant and the garlic is tender, about 45 minutes.  Open packet to vent and set aside to cool.
  2. When the garlic is cool, squeeze the garlic out of the skins into a bowl and mash with a fork into a smooth paste.  Mash in butter, pepper and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir in yogurt.
  3. Meanwhile, peel the remaining 2 cloves garlic. Cover potatoes and the two cloves garlic generously with cold water in a large saucepan.  Place over high heat and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, 15 to18 minutes.  Drain and return to the pot. Mash potatoes with a potato masher.  Add the yogurt mixture and mash until smooth.  Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with parsley.

Notes

Cooking Tip:

Be careful not to overmix the potatoes. As you mash and/or beat the potatoes, more starch gets released. If you overmix you can end up with gluey, dense mashed potatoes that won’t be nearly as tasty. Mash until just combined and no/minimal potato lumps remain for the best and fluffiest result.

  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Method: Stove top/oven
  • Cuisine: American

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 3/4 cup each
  • Calories: 130
  • Sugar: 3 g
  • Sodium: 466 mg
  • Fat: 5 g
  • Saturated Fat: 3 g
  • Carbohydrates: 18 g
  • Fiber: 2 g
  • Protein: 3.8 g

Did you make this recipe?

Make sure you come back to the recipe post to leave a star rating and review.