Snowball Potatoes (Gluten-Free) Revised

Emily Elizabeth's Note:

Snowball potatoes have a thin outer shell, creamy mashed potatoes inside and gooey melted cheese in the center. What a fantastic new way to eat mashed potatoes! I recommend pairing these with a nice beef entree with a buttery vegetable side. i got the idea for this recipe from Ingrid Hoffman's Snowball Potatoes. When I initially posted this recipe, I simply copied Ingrid Hoffman's recipe directions and only updated the ingredients, assuming that I had followed her directions. After a helpful review, however, I made them again and realized I had strayed much more from the original recipe than I thought! I certainly learned my lesson! I have posted a completely rewritten recipe exactly how I make them! (The directions are very long and detailed, but better safe then sorry!)

• Total Time: 2 hrs
• Prep Time: 1 hrs 10 mins
• Cook Time: 50 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 26

• 4 large russet baking potatoes (if using smaller potatoes like yukon gold, use more potatoes or less milk and butter when mashing)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1/8 cup skim milk
• 2 1/2 ounces low-fat sharp cheddar cheese, white (I use Cabot's 50% reduced fat sharp)
• 1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs, gluten-free (I use crumbs from Bette Hageman's Four Flour Bread and her Tapioca Bread)
• 1/2 cup corn flake crumbs, gluten-free
• Pam cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Put potatoes in a large pot and fill with water until potatoes are just covered. Add a 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are very soft, about 40 minutes.
3. Mash potatoes in a bowl. Add the other tablespoon of salt, butter and milk and continue to mash until blended (add more salt or butter to your taste). Let sit for a few minutes until just cool enough to handle.
4. Cut the cheese in 1/2-inch cubes.
5. Prepare a baking sheet with foil wrap and coat with vegetable spray or rub with oil.
6. Put cornflake crumbs in a small bowl.
7. While mashed potatoes are still warm, form into 2-inch balls and insert 1 cheese cube in center, then roll into cornflake crumbs and place on cookie sheet. Wash hands and dry after every third ball so the potatoes will form evenly and not stick to the cornflake crumbs in your hand. Quantity should make about 10 balls.
8. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, serve immediately.

Reviews

[mandagirl]

These came out awesome for me! I used whole wheat bread crumbs because I didn't have corn flakes, so they weren't gluten free, but everything else I did exactly the same. They held their shape perfectly and my family loved them! **Some potatoes, such as california potatoes, are not as starchy as Russets or Maine potatoes and could cause the balls to loose their shape during cooking because they don't hold the liquids as well and can become watery**

[DreamoBway]

I was so disappointed when these didn't turn out. I followed the directions to a T, and when I pulled them out of the oven after 25 minutes, they were not "snowballs." They were more like "slush." The potatoes didn't stay in ball form and fell into unformed piles. But I think I know why. You said that this was a slightly modified Ingrid Hoffman recipe so I checked out the Food Network website. She doesn't add milk or butter to the potatoes once they've cooked. Though they tasted great (who can say no to milk & butter?!) the potatoes were too mushy to stay in ball form. And we needed way more than one cup of crumbs to cover all the potatoes. I think this recipe can be done but with a few modifications. Thank you for posting a gluten free recipe!