Healthier Mashed potatoes?

[kdescalzi]

Hi mamas,

I was wondering what I could add to my mash potatoes to make them healthier. I know the obvious would be to cut back on milk and butter but what things could you/do you add to give this dish a nutritional kick??

[Annie Mac]

Cauliflower! Mashed in with the potatoes.

[mama2toomany]

I must admit the more milk and butter in our mashed tatos the better lol. But my mom is a healthy girl and she says to leave the peel on (she says its healthier that way?), then she uses low sodium chicken broth, instead of the milk and butter, or if she wants more kick to it, she uses FF buttermilk.


Hope that helps.

[crunchy_mommy]

My DH makes awesome mashed potatoes. Instead of butter or milk he adds coconut milk. Add a little black pepper & they are so yummy!!!

[kdescalzi]

Great ideas....dh HATES cauliflower and will not eat them in mashed potatoes Great dish IMO! Keep them coming!!

[serenbat]

We DO skins on, lots of butter, heavy cream, pharm/romano cheese and herbs.

some of us think butter & cream is healthy

[vbactivist]

I add carrots. But also, butter and milk are good for you

[texmati]

I always skip the butter in the potatoes, and then have a chunk of butter on the side. That way I can see it!

[robugmum]

When we leave the skins on we call them smashed potatoes! We use yogurt, goats cheese, buttermilk, cream cheese , basically, whatever we have on hand, as well as butter and broth - the more the yummier! I also will often puree parsnips or cauliflower or any other pale vegetable and add it in.

[amma_mama]

Garlic and spinach mashed potatoes!

I saute the garlic and spinach separately in a little olive oil and mix into "regular" mashed potatoes.

[cristeen]

Originally Posted by serenbat

some of us think butter & cream is healthy

Definitely leave the skins on - a good deal of the nutrients are in the skin. Just scrub them well. Plenty of butter and cream, healthy doses of sea salt and fresh cracked pepper. You can also steam them instead of boiling them to preserve some of the nutrients.

We make mashed cauliflower as a stand-alone dish, don't know that I'd want to mix it with the potatoes, but that's personal preference. But any other veggie stir in - the spinach and garlic sounds fabulous. I've also heard of stirring in mashed beets to make pink potatoes. Stir in braised greens... we used to make a one-pot dish with sausage, veg (broc, asparagus, peas, etc.) and cheese stirred into mashed pots.

[serenbat]

FYI- some people don't know- there are different types of potatoes, some have thin skins, some are more for baking, with tougher skin(baked with skins on potatoes) - I use RED skins for mashed, thin skins for roasted

[chattyprincess]

Agree, I think the butter and milk is healthy, but thats my traditional foods side talking! I always leave the skins on and tend to use a thinner skinned variety like new red potatos or yukon gold. I boil them with skin, drain, then put in butter, a bit of milk and sour cream (this is key to flavor ) salt and pepper and mix away with my hand mixer (im a lazy smasher!)

[KatWrangler]

Well maybe adding spinach or pureed broccoli would be good.

[mamaofthree]

sweet potatoes or yams added in. i love that. along with butter and cream or milk. although buttermilk sounds like a great idea. i agree with leaving the skins on also.

h

[Magelet]

Originally Posted by serenbat

We DO skins on, lots of butter, heavy cream, pharm/romano cheese and herbs.

some of us think butter & cream is healthy

I do them with the skins (for more nutrition), and lots and lots of butter and cream and whole milk and some salt and pepper.

I definitely want to try herbs that sounds yummy (though herbs are really too expensive until we move into a place with enough sun to grow some in a pot.)

[PNCTink]

We put in sweet potatoes as well, but still use butter and whole milk. I've taken to cooking them in the crockpot all day with yellow onion, garlic, and chicken or beef broth. Then I mash them and add the milk and butter. They are so good I want to lick the bowl!

[mommy212]

Add a few tablespoons of flaxseed oil with whatever you are doing... adds some omega 3s in them

[griffin2004]

leave skins on
throw in a few diced parsnips to the boil; they add a lovely creaminess
add a head of roasted garlic
add shredded cheese
add nutritional yeast

[fresh_veggie]

No one's mentioned adding mashed fresh avocado and stirring it up. Maybe I'm the only one who loves that?

Good, healthy fats! Creamy smooth. But I personally consider avocado my 5th food group We don't really do dairy, but ample butter and cream (fresh, non pasteurized, organic) is awesome as well.

I love the sauteed garlic and spinach idea! Yum. And definitely skin-on.

I gotta stop looking at food threads this late at night. I'm tempted to go into my kitchen right now and whip up some of this delicious comfort food, haha!