The most comforting mashed potato recipe with Lurpak*

Doesn't this picture just get your taste buds a-tingling for Autumn and Winter foods? I don't know about you, but as the weather gets more dreary and the days become shorter, I turn to old classics in terms of dinners. I also become even more of a potato fiend. I don't know if it's the Irish blood in me (meaning I was raised with potatoes at basically every meal), or the fact that carbs are my no. 1 food group, but I find it hard to turn down a good potatoe-y dish.
Now, mash for me is very much a hit and miss potato style. I think it's probably the hardest to get right, and the hardest to make taste interesting. So, over the past year or so I've been developing my own little recipe to make sure that I don't end up with plain old mashed potato (anyone else got the Bodger and Badger theme tune in their head yet? No?), but something that people would compliment me on if I was enough of an adult to have a dinner party. One day ... 
So, this is what you need to create the perfect mashed potatoes - potatoes (duh. Maris Pipers are my favourite for this) - Lurpak Infusions sea salt and pink peppercorn butter - Mustard seeds - Chili flakes
Method:  - Boil the potatoes for 25-30 minutes to ensure that they are totally lump free.  - Stir the butter in. - Add a teaspoon of mustard seeds and a teaspoon of chili flakes. Stir and leave to sink in for five minutes. - Serve.
I know the whole mustard seed/chili flake and mashed potato combo seems a little odd, but trust me, it tastes gooooood.
How do you make your mash stand out?
*Although there were products gifted to me for this post, it contains my honest opinion and ideas.
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Chipotle Infused Cottage Pie Recipe

As Summer starts to wind down in the UK, I'm thinking ahead to all the gooey, wholesome, toasty meals that I love to make in Autumn and Winter. Here comes the seasons of pies, bourgignon, stew and copious amounts of soup to sort out a rough day. So, when Lurpak asked me to create a recipe with their new chipotle infused spreadable butter* in, my little cooking cogs got a-whirring and I finally settled on the idea of a cottage pie.

Me and my boyfriend don't always eat meat, and when we do it's almost always restricted to chicken or fish. This is basically because it's cheaper and so versatile. It does however mean that any meal like this one is a total treat and I was more than a little excited to get cracking. 

Although I'm not always a big fan of heat, I found that just using this in the mashed potato atop the pie gave the meal a nice kick without scorching your mouth, and it was totally easy to add in. Usually I spend a little while adding a variety of seasoning into my mash to ensure that it's a little nicer than just bland potato, so this sped up my mash creation process a whole tonne as I simply just had to add the butter!

Ingredients: 

- 400g beef/lamb mince

- 1 onion

- 2 carrots

- 1 cup peas

- 1 tablespoon tomato puree

- 500ml beef stock

- 2 garlic cloves

- Bay leaf

- Sea salt and black pepper

- 1 stick celery

- 500g potatoes

- 4 tablespooons Lurpak Infusions Chipotle Spreadable Butter

Method: 

1.) Chop the onion and garlic. Fry the beef, onion and garlic in a pan until the onion is soft and beef is browned. 

2.) Chop the carrots and celery. Add to the pan with the beef stock, tomato puree, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Simmer for 25 minutes. 

3.) Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.

4.) Boil the potatoes.

5.) Once the potatoes are boiled and the filling has simmered, pour the filling into an ovenproof dish. 

6.) Mash the potatoes and add the butter.

7.) Top the filling with the mash potatoes and place in the oven for 15 minutes.

8.) Top with a sprinkling of cheese if you wish and enjoy!

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