Peruvian Purple Potatoes

Peruvian purple potatoes are purple on the outside 

and on the inside. 

Some say that they are the original potato and legend has it that they were kept for the Inca kings when harvested. Peru has an incredible variety of potatoes, but these really catch your attention. I used them once previously when making octopus causa, a Peruvian dish, but when I found them listed in 1001 Foods You Must Taste Before You Die I decided I had to try them again. I have recently been trying various root vegetables and learned that both kohlrabi and celery root are commonly used in mashed potatoes. So I decided to make some Peruvian purple mashed potatoes with 2 kohrabi, 1/2 a celery root and 2 heads of garlic. I boiled the garlic heads in the water with the potatoes, 

kohlrabi and celery root and then removed the garlic shortly before mashing and removed the outer garlic skins. 

I added butter and milk to the mash. 

The kohlrabi and celery root did add texture, so that the mashed potatoes are not as smooth as if they were all potato, and the first thing Judy said when she tasted them was that they had a distinct celery taste, which of course came from the celery root. We had a dinner with some friends and I took some with me. They were quite well received. So the purple makes them fun and the added texture and taste from the kohlrabi, celery root and garlic makes them even more unique.