Low carb mashed cauliflower with avocado

Jan 18, 2012

One of my favourite foods before going LCHF was mashed potatoes. Since I don't crave carbs anymore, reliving the experience hasn't been too high on my priority list, but I've known you could make mock mashed potatoes with cauliflower for a while now.

(Mmmmmmmm. Taters, my precious!)

Ahem, anyway. Potatoes are all starch, definitely not good for your blood sugar, nor your waistline (french fries are bad not because of the oil, but because of the carbs!) Cauliflower is an excellent low carb substitute which is mostly indigestible fibre. The best thing is that they are the same colour, and mash up pretty much exactly like potatoes when sufficiently steamed. And as with potatoes, the lion's share of the flavour comes from what else you put in with it, not from the mashed item itself.

So I set about to make some mashed potatoes cauliflower and prepare it almost exactly how I would make regular mashed potatoes. Here is the ingredient list:

  • One head of cauliflower, washed and separated into max 2" diameter florets
  • 1/3 cup butter or to taste
  • 1/3 tub of sour cream, fattier the better. I prefer 30% MF (yum!)
  • High fat whipping cream to assist in blending
  • 1 avocado
  • 1 Tbs garlic powder or equivalent in fresh garlic (ha! Like I keep that around)
  • Salt to taste

First, steam the cauliflower good and long. You want them pretty soft all the way through. Don't throw away any stems either! Them's good eatin'! My steamer recommended 19-21 minutes for half a head, so I gave the whole head half an hour. I could have gone even longer.

Next, you need to decide how you're going to mash. You have three options: a) by hand, b) with a hand-mixer or c) with a blender. Option "b" is best, but you'll still need to hand mash it a bit first, of course. In a big bowl or pot add all the ingredients except the whipping cream, hand mash until you can use a hand-mixer without throwing florets everywhere. While mixing, keep adding whipping cream slowly until you get the final consistency you're looking for.

Because I don't have a hand-mixer, I was using a blender. This means you don't need to hand mash first, but it takes a lot more whipping cream to make the mixture creamy enough to blend thoroughly. So your end result is more like mashed cauliflower puree, but still very delicious. If you have a choice, stick with the hand blending. ;)

The secret ingredient is the avocado. It adds just the right amount of plant fat and flavour to make it seem like a super delicious meal all in itself, rather than just a side dish. Melt some shredded or sliced cheddar over it in the microwave and BAM, instant low carb heaven. It was still so hot, but oh so good, that I even got a mild case of pizza mouth because I could not stop shoveling it into my face.

So, how many calories and grams of carbs/fat/protein is this? Well, the recipe makes about four bowls the size of the above. Just one of them was enough to fill me up for dinner. Ah, don't you just love the reduced appetite LCHF provides? My brain knows all the ingredients are foods which are naturally low or no carb, and my body knows how much I should be eating, so who cares? I don't count calories or fat, and neither should you. :P

Know what you can eat, and then for heaven's sake, eat it! If you're eating right (staying away from all digestible carbs), your body will naturally tell you when you've had enough. Hope you enjoy! Leave a note if you give this recipe a try.


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