Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes are the ultimate potato side dish for your Thanksgiving or holiday table! This creamy dreamy mashed potato casserole means you don’t have to be trapped in the kitchen this holiday. Prep it days ahead of time then pop it in the oven on the day of–it’s so easy!
What’s in this Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes recipe?
If you’re looking for some Thanksgiving dishes you can make ahead of time, then these easy baked mashed potatoes are exactly what you need. Creamy ingredients, simple seasonings, and an optional topping make delicious potatoes!
- Potatoes: Yukon Gold potatoes are the best for fluffy mashed potatoes with a creamy texture.
- Butter: Softened butter adds richness, moisture, and flavor. We also add cubes of butter on top, which gives them a browned and buttery finish.
- Cream Cheese: Softened cream cheese adds a really creamy texture.
- Half and Half: Use half and half (or whole milk) for an extra splash of moisture.
- Seasonings: I like to use Lawry’s seasoned salt for the best flavor, but you can also use regular salt and pepper. Add in some dried chives if you like!
Pro Tip: If you’d like to add a topping to these make ahead potatoes, mix butter, breadcrumbs, and Parmesan cheese, and sprinkle on top before baking.
What else can I add to these make ahead potatoes?
These make ahead mashed potatoes are essentially a casserole that you can prep ahead of time, then bake and serve. So it’s easy to add some other ingredients into the mix without any extra steps. Add in bacon crumbles, green onions, minced garlic, caramelized onions, or anything you might usually throw on top.
These potatoes can be cooked, mashed, and prepped for cooking up to 2 days ahead of time.
This recipe boils, mashes, and mixes the potatoes, so they’re ready to cook. If you simply want to prepare potatoes to make traditional mashed potatoes on the day of, you can peel and cut them, then submerge them in water (in the fridge) overnight.
This make ahead mashed potato casserole needs 40-45 minutes to bake in the oven at 375°F. If you cook them straight from the fridge, you might need to add 10-15 minutes.
Even though this recipe was designed to be made ahead of time, you can absolutely bake them right after prep and enjoy them immediately.
How to Make Ahead, Store, and Cook
Here’s how to make these mashed potatoes ahead of time:
- Peel and cut potatoes.
- Boil potatoes to soften them up.
- Mash them up with milk, butter, & cream.
- Put the potatoes in a casserole dish, cover, & put them in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake them.
- These can be stored in the refrigerator up to 2 days before cooking in the oven.
- When ready to cook, let them come to room temperature, then place the prepared potatoes in the oven and bake until warmed through.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
After the mashed potatoes have been cooked and dinner has been eaten, you can store leftovers in the fridge or freezer. Store them in an airtight container, and store in the fridge up to 4 days, or the freezer up to 2 months. Reheat in the microwave or oven.
Serving Suggestions
These make ahead mashed potatoes pair perfectly with make ahead gravy, Thanksgiving turkey, and all the rest of your Thanksgiving side dishes!
5-Star Review
“Best potatoes!! Tasty and creamy.” – Margarette
Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
For the Potatoes:
- 5 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes
- ¾ cup 1½ sticks unsalted butter, softened; divided
- 1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup Half-and-Half or whole milk
- ½-1 teaspoon salt or Lawry’s Seasoned Salt per taste
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried chives optional
For the Optional topping:
- ¼ cup 4 tablespoons butter, softened
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
For the Potatoes:
- Preheat oven to 375°F and spray a 2 quart casserole with cooking spray.
- Peel potatoes, remove eyes, and cut into 3” cubes. Steam (or boil) the potatoes just until fork tender, but not falling apart. Remove from heat. Drain the water and place potatoes in the saucepan; mash potatoes one minute over LOW-MED heat to remove the excess moisture/steam from the potatoes. Remove potatoes from heat.5 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes
- If the saucepan is large enough, leave the potatoes in the pan, and add ½ cup butter, cream cheese, whole milk and seasonings. (If the saucepan is too small, place the potatoes in a large mixing bowl to mash.) Mash the potatoes until they are light and fluffy. Season to taste.¾ cup 1½ sticks unsalted butter, softened; divided, 1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened, ½ cup Half-and-Half or whole milk, ½-1 teaspoon salt or Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, ½ teaspoon dried chives
- Spoon potatoes into the casserole dish and bake immediately, or cover and refrigerate up to 48 hours.
- When ready to bake, heat oven to 375°F.
- Cut the remaining ¼ cup butter into smaller pieces and scatter them around the top. (*See below for an alternate topping.)¼ cup 4 tablespoons butter, softened
- Bake, uncovered, for 40-45 minutes or until potatoes are hot.
For the Alternate topping:
- In a small bowl, combine 4 tablespoons softened butter, breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese. Mix together until coarse crumbs form. Crumbs can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge up to 3 days. Don’t add the butter crumb topping until ready to bake the potatoes.1/2 cup bread crumbs, ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Enjoy!
Note: This dish can be made up to two days in advance. If making the potatoes ahead, remove them from the fridge 2-3 hours before cooking. Add an additional 10-15 minutes to the baking time.
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Nutrition Information
Thank you for such a large number of recipes. Delicious desserts is what you need for a good holiday!
Thanks for stopping by and sharing, Sam!
If I can get a jump start on dinner, I’ll do it! These make ahead mashed potatoes are PERFECT for that, and this recipe is delicious! These mashed potatoes come out thick and smooth and so tasty. I’m talking steakhouse quality mashed potatoes here! They are easy to make too, and this recipe makes a lot. Perfect if you’re having company for dinner because you can assemble it the day before and bake it when you’re ready. Who wants to spend the entire time fussing in the kitchen when you have guests? Not this girl! If you’re not having company, there’s nothing wrong with leftover mashed potatoes! I took the leftovers and made a shepherd’s pie with it. YUM!
Thanks for stopping by and sharing, Christine!
Best potatoes!! Taste and creamy.
I’m SO happy to hear you loved them, Margarette!
I LOVE THIS!!!! Is it possible to make ahead and then throw into my crockpot to warm?
I think that would work! Haven’t tried it that way but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. Just stir often to make sure it stays creamy and mixed together.