My daughter, Mary Leigh, loves my mashed potatoes and won’t allow my wife to make them. I’m pleased to have such a hold on her affection. I, too, like creamy, lumpy, buttery, peppery mashed potatoes, without the other flavorings that have become the vogue in recent times.

The variety of potato matters. When the red creamers look good, I get those. Yukon Golds are excellent, too. But white russet potatoes with no trace of green in the skin also come out nice. I boil