Wasabi Potato Balls

Adapted from Je Mange la Ville, these make a great side dish for steak or salmon. So easy...made them in my toaster oven using leftover mashed potatoes...and the warm, melty cream cheese inside is a nice surprise.

• Ready In: 35 mins
• Serves: 4
• Yields: 8 balls

Ingredients

• 2  cups mashed potatoes
• 1  tablespoon salt
• 2  garlic cloves, minced
• 1  tablespoon  prepared wasabi (to taste)
•  salt and pepper (to taste)
• 1  ounce cream cheese
• 1⁄2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  Asian seasoning (such as Oxo grind it Asian blend with lemongrass and ginger) (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Add the garlic, wasabi and salt and pepper to the mashed potatoes. Get the potatoes to where you like them seasoning-wise, as the amount of wasabi will depend on the strength/age of the wasabi and how much you can handle!
3. Slice up 8 small little cubes of your cream cheese. Add the extra seasoning to the bread crumbs if you are using it and set aside in a small bowl. Prepare a baking sheet with foil wrap.
4. Form the mashed potatoes into eight 2-inch balls. Make an indentation with you finger and insert 1 cheese cube in the center of a ball, then roll it into bread crumbs and place on cookie sheet. Repeat with the 7 remaining balls, rinsing your hands as needed so the potatoes form evenly and don’t stick to the bread crumbs in your hand. It is a truly messy process.
5. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, and serve immediately.