Faux Mashed Potatoes aka Mashed Cauliflower

I'm always looking for new ways to present fresh vegetables to our children.  The boys love vegetables!  They're the types that will put anything in their mouth and decide after the fact whether they like it!  But Ashleigh, is a bit pickier.  She makes her judgement beforehand based on sight and smell.

The kids have had cauliflower before in stir-fry, vegetable soups and crudite.  So, I thought I would try something different - mashed cauliflower.  Maybe they would even think it was mashed potatoes, which they all love.  Maybe :)  I started by cutting the florets from a head of cauliflower and boiling them in water until they were tender. 

Once the florets were tender, I drained the water and dumped them into my Vitamix blender.  I used the wet blade attachment - the same one used for smoothies. 

I added my seasonings directly into the blender.  Just a little bit of sea salt, black pepper and a dollop of sour cream.

Then I blended the cooked florets until they reached the consistency and appearance of mashed potatoes.

The finished product!

I served the "faux mashed potatoes" with Salisbury Steak & Mushroom Gravy.  So, would it fool the kids - especially Ashleigh?  Not quite!  Even though the mashed cauliflower looked like mashed potatoes, it still tasted like cauliflower!  But that's okay, it was very tasty.  Even though our kids don't always like certain vegetables, I feel its important to keep presenting them anyway.  As the kids get older, their tastes will change and mature.  And as the primary meal preparer, I want to make sure they have every opportunity to explore new tastes!

Mary Ellen

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