La purée de pommes de terre façon Joel Robuchon

I was lucky to try the potatoes puree from Joel Robuchon: I was enthralled and immediately wanted to try making some myself. His recipe is all over the web and I learnt that he won lots of prizes for this purée. In brief, the key point is to remove all water and put a jaw-dropping quantity of butter. Here it is.

La purée de pommes de terre, recette de Joël Robuchon

Ingrédients

• 1 kg de pommes de terre (rattes ou BF 15) (rattes potatoes: fingerling with a nutty flavor and smooth, buttery texture)
• 250 g de beurre bien froid (cold diced butter)
• 250 g de lait entier (whole milk)
• gros sel (salt)

Préparation

• Lavez les pommes de terre, mais ne les pelez pas. Wash potatoes but do not peel.
• Dans une casserole remplie de deux litres d’eau froide additionnée d’une cuillerée à soupe de gros sel, faites cuire les pommes de terre à couvert jusqu’à ce que la lame du couteau plantée dedans en ressorte aisément (25-30 minutes environ). Coupez le beurre en petits dés, mais maintenez-les au réfrigérateur. Put whole potatoes in 2L of cold salted water and cook for 25-30 minutes with lid on. Dice the butter and keep in the fridge.
• Dès que les pommes de terre sont cuites, égouttez-les. Pelez-les encore tièdes. Passez-les au moulin à légumes équipé de la grille la plus fine, au-dessus d’une grande casserole. Portez la casserole sur feu moyen, faites légèrement dessécher la purée en la remuant vigoureusement avec une spatule en bois (5 minutes environ). Drain the potatoes, peel, mash them thinly while still warm and transfer in a big pan. Dry the mashed potatoes on medium heat, while vigorously mixing with a wooden spatula; it takes about 5 minutes.
• Dans le même temps, passez une petite casserole sous l’eau, videz-la sans l’essuyer. Dans cette casserole, faites bouillir le lait. Rinse a small pan under water, and boil the milk in.
• A feu doux, incorporez petit à petit aux pommes de terre le beurre très froid, bien dur, et coupé en morceaux, en remuant énergiquement la préparation afin de la rendre lisse et onctueuse. On a small heat, slowly add the butter to the mashed potatoes, mixing thoroughly so that the puree becomes sleek and smooth. 
• Toujours à feu doux, ajoutez le lait très chaud, en petit filet, toujours en mélangeant énergiquement jusqu’à ce qu’il soit entièrement absorbé. Goûtez, salez et poivrez. Still on a low heat, slowly add the hot milk and whisk energetically until you are happy with the texture (more milk makes it more runny).
• Pour rendre la purée encore plus fine et légère, vous pouvez la passer à travers un tamis à toile très fine. You may pass the puree through a thin strainer to make it even more thin and light.

Boiling potatoes with skin on for 30 minutes

Peel the potatoes while still warm

Thinly mash the potatoes (mine were roughly mashed)

Dry the mashed potatoes on a medium heat for 5 minutes

Incorporate 1/4 of the weight of potatoes of cold butter

The purée is becoming silky

Add the hot milk (1/4 again)

Whisking vigorously - I cheated and used the robot

Here it is; mine is not so smooth as I do not have a thin puree-ing tool
but the taste is amazing!!!

Weekend at Florence

Back from a few days in Florence, here are a selection of the pictures we took. 

It was quite hot, actually too much for me.

We found the main cathedral is imposing and has a stunning pattern all around.

The famous Ponte Vecchio bridge and its jewelry shops hanging out over the river.

The famous Michelangelo's David is a common sight over the city.

Inside the rustic-looking Palazzo Vecchio, we were surprised to discover a multitude of finely decorated rooms. 
I was especially amazed by the ceilings.

The panorama from the Duomo is worth the climb in narrow staircases built between
the outside walls and the inside wall of the cupola.

View of the cupola dominating the city, from the top of the bell tower.

Ice-cream was our daily treat.

I discovered that pasta in Italy are often really thick - I loved it!