Cauliflower and Potato Mash

Colorful, delicious orange cauliflower blends with white potato for a terrific side dish that is so good!

If you read my Chicken Cordon Bleu post you already know we served it over this beautiful bed of smashed cauliflower and potatoes. To back up a bit I had purchased a huge and lovely head of orange cauliflower which has become our favorite in this household. Using about one third of the head for our Mini Cauliflower Gratin there was the other two thirds to utilize. It ended up that I wasn't entirely in the mood for plain mashed potatoes so I decided to blend the two together.

When the South Beach Diet came out many years ago, mashed cauliflower in place of potatoes was all the rage. At my tiny little food to go restaurant I accommodated my guests by making mashed cauliflower as the alternate choice for regular mashed potatoes. That gave me the idea of what to do with the remaining cauliflower I still had and I am so glad I combined the two. Truth be told I went back in for more they were so good.

Since the original posting in 2014 I've seen so many variations on this theme. You can imagine how great these will be at your holiday gatherings this year. Oh, and if you want to do it casserole style and add in some cheese to ramp up the flavor and that fits in with what you are serving, go for it. I am certain that a cauliflower and mashed potato would be a perfect side dish to a baked ham.

I have adjusted the recipe for using an entire head of cauliflower at this point of revamping this post.

• 1 head cauliflower (use orange if you can find it)
• 9 small white potatoes
• 1/2 stick butter
• 1/4 cup half and half + 2 tbsp.
• 1/2 cup milk
• salt to taste
• black pepper to taste

1. Chopped up the cauliflower removing heavier stems. Peel and slice potatoes about 3/4 of an inch thick.
2. Place both the cauliflower and potatoes in a pot of cold and salted water and boil as you normally would for mashed potatoes, but let them go a few extra minutes.
3. After draining, return the pot to the stove top and over medium low heat allow some more of the liquid to evaporate and add in slices of butter - total 1/2 stick.
4. Turn heat down to low and begin mashing and add in the milk, mashing and stirring. Then add in the half and half, any extra salt and the black pepper. Mash well, stir.
5. Make any adjustment to milk or half and half to achieve the creaminess and texture you want.

We made ours creamy - with some texture and they ended up to be just the perfect side dish. Starch and a veggie together so no other vegetable was needed.

Depending on how much your serving becomes there was enough to feed five comfortably and even more if you have smaller children or people with light appetites. I am basing my pricing on five hefty portions.
Total cost for me was $4.48, feeding five for 89¢ each.