green onion & cream cheese mashed cauliflower & potatoes.

In an attempt to make mashed potatoes a little bit healthier, I added cauliflower to the mix. I wasn't ready to completely eliminate delicious mashed potatoes for an all cauliflower dish- although maybe I will try that next time.

4 baking potatoes (suggested: Russet or Idaho)

1 head cauliflower

1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese

1 stick butter

2 t. salt

1 t. pepper

Milk, if needed

Peel 4 potatoes. Quarter the potatoes and put into a large pot. Add water to the quartered potatoes, but just enough water for the potatoes to barely be covered. Bring water to a boil over high heat. Once water is boiling, turn heat to low and simmer for 17 - 18 minutes with the lid on. Rinse the cauliflower. If there is enough room in your pot, place a steamer (sub a wire basket or colander if you don't have a steamer) on top of the potatoes and stick the whole cauliflower head in the steamer for 17 minutes, too. If there is not enough room for the whole head in your pot, cut the cauliflower into bite sized pieces. When there is 5 minutes left on the timer, add the cauliflower to the steamer. Remove the cauliflower, cut into smaller chunks if you steamed it as a whole head. Normally I would just use a mixer for mashed potatoes, but because I wanted the cauliflower to be as smooth as the potatoes, I used a food processor this time. Put cauliflower into a food processor, process. Drain potatoes. Add potatoes to cauliflower in two shifts. Continue to process. You want a smooth consistency. Add 8 oz cream cheese (separate into 4 pieces), 1 stick butter (cut in 1/2), 2 t. salt, 1 t. pepper. Process until all ingredients are blended well. If having trouble processing because it is too thick, add a little milk (1/8 c. at a time). Normally I bake my mashed potatoes, but I thought these tasted fine so this time I didn't. However, if you wanted to have a lighter, fluffier mashed cauliflower and potatoes, then bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

I topped the mashed cauliflower potatoes with green onions, to add a little green to our St. Patty's Day dinner.

xx

Val