Here’s how to make cauliflower mashed potatoes for someone who super loves mashed potatoes.
If you’ve got my latest cookbook, you know that we are a mashed potato family. So when I decided to make cauliflower mashed potatoes, I knew that they needed to still taste pretty hearty. I also knew that they needed to be easy peasy, because I wanted Darrol Henry to help make them. My toddler does not go in for the delicate or complex in the kitchen.
More cauliflower recipes: Cauliflower Comfort Bake, Quick Pickled Cauliflower
He also doesn’t go in for many vegetables these days, which is part of why I decided to make these. Yes. I am the mom hiding vegetables in her kid’s food right now.
The trick to making cauliflower mashed potatoes that taste like mashed potatoes is to…use potatoes. The ratio that seems to go over well with Darrol is about half and half: two large red potatoes plus 4 cups of cauliflower. The potatoes give this recipe the hearty starchiness that you expect from mashed potatoes while still sneaking in some cruciferous goodness.
How to Make Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes with a Toddler
You don’t need a toddler to make these, obviously, but if you do want to include your kid in the cooking process you totally can with close supervision.
I love any recipe that Darrol can help make. He really likes cooking, and he’s much more into trying new food if he helped me make it, even if it’s in some tiny way. This cauliflower mashed potatoes recipe uses an immersion blender, and he had so much fun helping me puree everything!
Letting a toddler use the immersion blender probably doesn’t sound the safest. Toddlers are not known for their regard for personal safety. When Darrol Henry and I made this recipe, we used the blender part together, with my hand over his. I made it very clear that he should not touch the bottom half of the blender and that if he did then the blender was done. Toddlers don’t care about safety, but they do care about playing a game that they want to play!
Right. So. I got him all ready to roll, pulled over the Learning Tower, and showed him how he could hold the top and push the big button to turn on the blender. Then we worked together to do the puree part of the recipe. He had a blast! We’ve made these a couple of times, and he hasn’t tried to touch the blade once.
Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes Recipe
You can use these anywhere that you’d use mashed potatoes. I’ve used them to top a chili pie and served them alongside baked tofu and gingery sauteed greens.
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 2 large red potatoes, cooked
- 1/4 cup vegan margarine or olive oil
- 1 16 ounce bag frozen cauliflower (cooked according to package directions), or 4 cups fresh florets (steamed)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 3/4 cup soy or almond milk
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- salt and black pepper to taste
Method
- In a large bowl, use a fork or a potato masher to mash the potatoes with the margarine. Don’t worry about getting them super smooth. Some lumps are a-OK.
- Add the cauliflower, garlic and onion powder, and 3/4 cups of the soy milk. Use your immersion blender to puree until you don’t have any big pieces of cauliflower left.
- Fold in the nutritional yeast, and stir to combine it really well. Season with salt and pepper, and serve.
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