Mashed Cauliflower, Rutabaga and Turnips – 2 Ways

Low carb winter mash gives starchy potatoes the heave “hoe”!

Roasted Winter Mash - Low carb roasted cauliflower,
rutabaga and turnips by any other name is perfect with
creamed gravy and low carb Wienerschnitzel.

Fall is upon us all and you know what that means, doncha? (Well, except for us…we're in coastal Texas, remember? We're still locked in summer's death grip and 90 degree weather.) But for most of the country, fall is synonymous with soups and stews, and crock pot roasts and slowly baked meats of all kinds, and pan gravies and well, umami out the ying yang!

Comfort food dude and dudette! 

Fall = Comfort Food

And before we know it, Thanksgiving will be upon us and everyone will be scrambling to decide the side dishes that let’s face it ARE the stars of the really big Thanksgiving Show.

I figured we could get started early with a few Thanksgiving sides and Fall/Winter Classics that will free you from the demon starch monster – ol’ Idaho Ike himself, the tyrannical potato. I don’t know how many low carbers’dreams have been squelched by falling off the low carb wagon and having those rusty wagon wheels
roll over them repeatedly, but I’d bet it’s a lot. I also think many men’s fixation with potatoes keeps them from realizing how livable and sustainable the low carb lifestyle is in reality.

Colcannon and Un-Corned Beef Sirloin Cap

“Meat ‘n’ Taters,” that’s my man, Denny’s, motto. And don’t forget our 5 sock monkey “boys” whose motto remains, “Peanut Butter and ‘Nanas and Meat ‘n’ Taters Forever.” During cold weather, they would eat meat and potatoes every night of the week if I let ‘em (and I cooked it of course).

But now days, they are hooked on my Winter Mash or Mashed Cauliflower, Rutabaga and Turnips and don’t even miss potatoes. They don’t care whether I steam them or roast them, just cook and mash ‘em and get ‘em in their belleh!

And I’m ok with that. Cuz I like cauliflower, rutabagas and turnips, too. Maybe not as much as rice (cuz ahem, we’re in Texas and were practically raised on rice, what with living smack on top of the old “rice belt” of Texas), but I love Winter Mash and don’t even miss that old high carb counterpart, Mr. Potato Head – or Ms. Potato Hiney as it should be called in my case, cuz eating too many servings of mashed potatoes contributed in part to my present said hiney.

There’s a reason why I complicate this recipe. Most of you low carbers are familiar with mashed cauliflower. And don’t get me wrong – I love mashed cauliflower in its own right. But it’s still just mashed cauliflower. It will never be mashed potatoes, no matter how hard you squint and squeeze. But the addition of the rutabaga and turnip adds something magical to the cauliflower. It adds TEXTURE. Say it with me now.

Texture. Ahhhhhh.

Mouth feel.

There’s the ticket!

Just add cauliflower to these luscious little
root veg and cruciferous veg.

So why not just spoon up a bowl full of mashed rutabaga and turnips? Well, cuz they’re pretty carby on their own and the cauliflower acts as a low carb extender. You get twice as much for fewer carbs! And that’s a winning ticket my friend.

And you can further complicate things by adding cabbage and leeks to this glorious winter mash and you come out with something so close to perfection this Texas Irish Fluffy Chix just swoons over it! I swear, swoon! Colcannon is well worth making and it's actually a lazy leftover jazzed up in lace curtains and it makes this shanty Irishwoman's heart go pitter pat! I'll give you the recipe soon, I promise!

I always end up doubling either of these Winter Mash recipes because the leftovers are such dynamite. You can eat them again as themselves or morph them into dishes like twice baked fautatoes, fauxtato soup, baked fauxtato soup, fauxtato pancakes – fauxtato gnocchi (which the boys call fauxtato gnocchio after Pinocchio – their hero).

Mashed Cauliflower, Rutabaga and Turnips are a terrific nutritional powerhouse too. Not only are they a super NK (Nutritional Ketosis) side dish, but they could be altered to fit a South Beach style diet very easily to help those people who must control not only carbs, but calories in order to lose weight. They are also chock full of potassium and B Vitamins and have a healthy dose of soluble fiber. Did you know that some types of turnips act as anti-cancer agents when consumed raw (well, that's according to LiveStrong).

Oh hey, in case I forget, here's what Colcannon looks like - recipe coming soon.

Steamed Winter Mash
aka Steamed Cauliflower, Rutabaga and Turnips

Full Recipe: $2.43

Per 1/4 of the recipe: $0.61 each

Recipe By: Copyright © 2012. Susie T. Gibbs. All rights reserved.
Serves: 4    Serving Size: About 1 cup      Yield: 4 cups

Preparation Time: 20 Minutes

Steam Time: 30 Minutes

Start to Finish Time: 50 Minutes

The combination of these root veggies with cauliflower delivers a very "potato-esque" mouth feel and a delicious flavor combination.

Steamed Winter Mash - Cauliflower, Rutabaga and Turnips
a low carb trifecta of nutritional excellence!

Ingredients

• 1 cup rutabaga
• 1 cup turnips
• 2 cups cauliflower
• 2 ounces cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons cream, heavy, liquid
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper -- freshly ground

Optional Garnish:

• 4 teaspoons butter

Wash veggies and peel rutabaga and turnip. Cube into 3/4" chunks.

Cut cauliflower into 1" florets. Don't forget to use the stalk or core of the cauliflower!

Fill bottom of double boiler with 2-3 inches of water. Bring water to a boil and reduce to simmer. Fill steamer basket with cut veggies and add to steamer basket. Place basket over simmering water. Cover with a tight fitting lid and steam 20 - 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife. Reserve steaming liquid in case you want to thin down puree.

Remove veggies when done and add to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the knife blade. Add cream cheese and butter and pulse until almost smooth. Pureeing while still hot will yield a smoother puree. Add cream, salt and pepper and pulse until smooth. Add more cream to achieve desired consistency or use some of the steaming liquid from the veggies in order to add back a little bit of the nutritious vitamin and mineral packed liquid. Adjust seasoning.

Serve piping hot.

Optional Garnish - top each serving with a teaspoon of butter.

Per serving including garnish: 193 Calories; 18g Fat (78.6% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 7.75g Carbohydrate; 2.75g Dietary Fiber; 51mg Cholesterol; 419mg Sodium; 5g Net Carbs.

Serving Ideas: Serve with richly stewed meats or grilled meats as a stand-alone or top with low carb gravy. They’re great as a topping for Shepherd's Pie, Cottage Pie or Chicken Pot Pie. Works great with Corned Beef and Cabbage, too!

SUSIET’s NOTES:

Who needs mashed potatoes when these winter veg taste so satisfying? They work great with gravies or as a stand-alone dish topped with butter. They are the epitome of fall and winter comfort food and are the perfect gravy delivery system (GDS).
Rutabagas act just like potatoes and give a fluffy, potato mouth feel. Turnips add sharpness as well as texture. The three veggies combined make a very credible potato sub. The cauliflower acts to reduce the carb count and extend the volume of the overall dish, because rutabagas are a fairly carby root veggie choice. But the rutabaga and turnip combination act to give the cauliflower a more potato-like mouth-feel.

If you are on a South Beach style diet, it is possible to omit the butter and cream and add chicken broth to achieve the desired consistency. It kills me to tell you that in this scenario, you can substitute Neufchatel (reduced fat cream cheese) to replace the full fat cream cheese.

As written, this dish is an excellent choice for Atkins Induction ('72, '92, or DANDR) and also Nutritional Ketosis as written per Drs. Phinney and Volek.

This dish refrigerates, freezes and reheats great!

  

Roasted Winter Mash
aka Roasted Cauliflower, Rutabaga and Turnips
Full Recipe: $2.63

Per serving including garnish: $0.66 each

Recipe By: Copyright © 2012. Susie T. Gibbs. All rights reserved.
Serves: 4   Serving Size: About 1 cup      Yield: 4 cups

Preparation Time: 20 Minutes

Steam Time: 30 Minutes

Start to Finish Time: 50 Minutes

Roasting the veggies prior to mashing adds a nutty flavor and the roasted garlic increases the complexity of the dish.

Roasted Winter Mash - low carb, roasted cauliflower,
rutabaga and turnips add nutty, roasted garlic flair to
any dinner.

Ingredients

• 1 cup rutabaga
• 1 cup turnips
• 2 cups cauliflower
• 2-4 cloves garlic, in peels
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper -- freshly ground
• 2 ounces cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons cream, heavy, liquid

Optional Garnish:

• 4 teaspoons butter

Preheat oven to 450°.

Wash veggies and peel rutabaga and turnip. Cube into 3/4" chunks. Trim cauliflower and cut into 1" florets. Don't forget to cube the cauliflower stalk for added texture and healthy fiber. Leave the garlic in their peels.

Toss cubed veggies and garlic cloves with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with kosher salt and black pepper.

Roast at 450° for 35-45 minutes, turning once with a spatula half way through roasting.

Cook until veggies are golden color and tender when pierced with a knife.

Remove from oven and add veggies into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the knife blade.

Don't forget the roasted garlic. Add as little or as much as your carb count will allow!

Squeeze garlic cloves to separate the pulp from the peels. Discard peels. Add cream cheese and butter. Pulse until mostly smooth. Add cream. Season with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Pulse until completly smooth. 

Mash should be smooth and without lumps. Add more cream, or chicken stock (if you prefer), or water until mash is the desired consistency. Adjust salt and pepper. It's easier to puree the mixture when it is hot from the oven. If you allow it to cool, the texture will remain coarse and slightly chunky.

Serve piping hot.

Optional Garnish - top each serving with a teaspoon of butter.

Per serving including garnish: 226 Calories; 21g Fat (80.2% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 8.5g Carbohydrate; 2.75g Dietary Fiber; 51mg Cholesterol; 420mg Sodium; 5.75g Net Carbs.

Serving Ideas: Serve with richly stewed meats or grilled meats as a stand-alone or top with low carb gravy. They’re great as a topping for Shepherd's Pie, Cottage Pie or Chicken Pot Pie. Works great with Corned Beef and Cabbage, too! Leftovers make great Fauxtato Pancakes!

SUSIET’s NOTES:

Who needs mashed potatoes when these winter veg taste so satisfying? They work great with gravies or as a stand alone dish topped with butter. They are the epitome of fall and winter comfort food.

Rutabagas act just like potatoes and give a fluffy, potato mouth feel. Turnips add to the texture as well. The three veggies combined make a very credible potato sub. The cauliflower acts to reduce the carb count and extend the volume of the overall dish, because rutabagas are a fairly carby root veggie choice. But the rutabaga and turnip combination act to give the cauliflower a more potato-like combination.

The purpose of roasting is simple. Roasting adds a brown, nutty flavor to your mash. It's completely up to you whether you roast or steam the veg. Honestly, if you're looking for maintaining the most vitamins and minerals, steaming will be better for you. But the roasting adds a complexity to the mash that tastes very satisfying.

If you are on a South Beach style diet, it is possible to omit the butter and cream and add chicken broth to achieve the desired consistency. It kills me to tell you that in this scenario, you can substitute Neufchatel (reduced fat cream cheese) to replace the full fat cream cheese.

As written, this dish is an excellent choice for Atkins Induction ('72, '92, or DANDR) and also Nutritional Ketosis as written per Phinney and Volek.

Fluffy Chix Cook approves this blog post!