Comfort Mashed Potatoes

I have a confession to make.  Here goes... I LOVE MASHED POTATOES!  Ok, now that I have that off of my chest I have another confession.  The most depressing part of my Christmas in Minnesota was that there was no mashed potatoes at the big familypalooza.  It felt so wrong.  I had been expecting to eat my weight in potatoes that night.  This is the first year that this sin has been committed, so the next time I take part in this mass family gathering I will be taking care of the potatoes, assuming that no one else has spoken for them.  Anyway, back to my baked potato obsession. 

When I was a kid mashed potatoes were my favorite thing ever.  To be specific, I liked them as a dipping sauce if you will for baby dill pickles.  Gross?  Maybe.  Instant mashed potatoes were probably the first thing that I learned how to master.  I could eat a whole bowl of mashed potatoes smothered in butter for dinner, and in fact that is what I am doing right now (gravy instead of butter though).  I'm posting this recipe not because it is mind-blowing or original (but it's pretty healthy considering the other recipes that are out there), but mainly so that I have a record of it for myself for when I'm craving it in the future.  Which will be all of the time.  No joke.  Poor Al, he doesn't like mashed potatoes.  Hehe.  Rating 7/10.

Ingredients

• 4 russet potatoes- peeled and chopped into about 4 chunks (cut them widthwise not lengthwise, so that the slices are circles, not wedges)
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp room temperature butter
• 1/2 cup hot milk (I used skim)
• pepper to taste

Peel and slice potatoes.  Place them in a large pot with enough water to cover them completely.
Put in 1/4 tsp of the salt and bring the potatoes to a boil.
Once the water is boiling bring the temperature down to medium, cover the pot, and simmer for 15 minutes (or until the potatoes are soft enough to be pierce by a fork).
Drain the potatoes and take this time to microwave the milk.
I used a hand blender to mash the potatoes, but use any method (NOT THE FOOD PROCESSOR) that you like to mash the taters.  Mix in the butter, remaining 1/2 tsp salt, and pepper to taste.