Champ (Irish Mashed Potatoes with Scallions)

Directions

1. Cut the potatoes into quarters -- or even sixths -- depending on their size, and add them to a pot of cold water, making sure that the water covers the potatoes by at least an inch or two.
2. Bring the potatoes to a boil over medium-high and continue cooking until you're able to slip a knife through the potatoes with ease. Once cooked, drain the potatoes and put them back in the pot. Cover the pot with a clean dish towel and then cover the towel with a pot lid. (If you don't have a lid that fits, use a cookie sheet.) Let potatoes stand for 5-10 minutes. (Doing this allows steam to escape the potatoes (and get trapped in the dish towel), making them drier and, once mashed, fluffier.)
3. While the potatoes are cooking, slice the very bottom and very tops off the scallions and discard. Then, slice the white and green parts of the scallions into small rings -- approximately 0.25 inches in size.
4. Add the milk to a saucepan and add the scallions to the milk. Simmer milk for 10 minutes then turn off the burner and just let the scallions steep.
5. Once the potatoes have had a chance to steam, put them through a ricer into a bowl. (If you don't have a ricer, feel free to dump them into a bowl and mash them manually.)
6. Add half the milk/scallion mixture to the potatoes and stir together. Cut one stick (1/2 cup) of butter into 0.5 inch slices and add to the potatoes. Stir together. Continue adding milk and butter until the potatoes reach your desired consistency. Even if you do not add all of the milk, do add in all of the scallions. (If you plan to hold the potatoes for a while before serving (or to reheat them), make them on the wetter/looser side.)
7. Add one TBS Kosher salt and as much pepper as you like (I don't usually add any). Taste the potatoes and add additional salt and pepper until they taste good to you.
8. Serve the potatoes hot, but feel free to put them in a baking dish and reheat them in a 350 degree oven if you don't want to serve them right away. If they seem at all dry after reheating, just add a bit of warmed milk and/or butter to them.
9. Enjoy!