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Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Recipe Wednesday - Cauliflower "Mash" Potatoes

I've always loved cauliflower, but I've found throughout the years that other lovers of this humble vegetable are few and far between. I guess it's because, on it's own, cauliflower doesn't have a whole lot of flavor. It's a shame, because cauliflower is loaded with vitamin C and very low in calories. A 1 cup serving of raw cauliflower rings in at only 25 calories and 91% of your daily value of vitamin C.

In the past year, cauliflower has finally been getting some respect in the restaurant world, and one of it's most popular uses is as a low-cal substitute for potatoes, like in this cauliflower mashed potato recipe. I found this recipe a few years ago in a cookbook called "Cook Yourself Thin", and I love it. It substitutes 1/2 of the potatoes with cauliflower, but by using yukon gold potatoes, you still get a ton of flavor. Yukon golds have a light buttery flavor that pairs great with the garlicy taste from the scallions. I cooked this dish for a weightloss pot luck and it was a hit! Best of all, the haters won't even know there's cauliflower in it!

Cauliflower "Mash" Potatoes

Ingredients:
1/2 large head of cauliflower, broken into florets (about 8 cups)
1/2 cup nonfat buttermilk
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/2" slices
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup lowfat milk
1/4 pepper
1 tbsp butter
2 scallions, chopped

Place cauliflower in a steamer basket and set over boiling water. Cover and steam for 15 minutes. Transfer to a food processor, add the buttermilk and 1/4 cup of milk and puree until very smooth, about 2 minutes. Meanwhile, place potatoes in a saucpan, add cold salted water to cover by about 2 inches, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain, return to saucepan and heat over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes to dry. Mash with a potato masher. Add cauliflower puree, 1/4 cup milk, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Stir to blend, heat over med-low heat, adding more milk as needed to get the desired consistency. Stir in butter and scallions, and serve.

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