For week #46 of my 2018 challenge to try one new whole-food plant-based (WFPB) recipe each week, I tried this simple recipe for mashed potatoes. My inspiration came from this recipe by Cathy Fisher (creator of straightupfood.com) on the Forks Over Knives website.

Ahhh… mashed potatoes. The ultimate comfort food. Mashed potatoes are commonly made with butter, cream, or milk… but they don’t have to be! This version is healthier, simpler, and delicious!

What I like about this recipe (besides the fact that it’s healthy):

• Simple ingredients - potatoes, water, and some common dry seasonings.

• No “milk” of any kind needed, and it still has a nice creamy consistency.

• Mashed potatoes are a favorite with my kiddos. They like to mix them up with other veggies, like green beans, corn, steamed broccoli, asparagus, etc. A plant-based whole food that encourages my kids to eat more veggies?! Score!

What I ended up using/doing:

Note: This is a large recipe. I like to cook in bulk so that we can have leftovers throughout the week. If you don’t want to make as much, simply half the recipe.

Ingredients:

• A 5-pound bag of golden potatoes.

• 10 cups water

• 2 tsp. garlic powder

• 1 tsp. onion powder

• Salt and pepper to taste

Steps:

1. Rinse the potatoes well and cut off the bad spots on the peeling. I leave about half of the peeling on. Golden potatoes have a thin skin and buttery texture, which works well for mashed potatoes.

2. Cube the potatoes. I cut mine into about 1-inch cubes.

3. Add the cubed potatoes, water, garlic powder, and onion powder into a large pot.

4. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat as needed (keeping the water boiling).

5. Boil until the potatoes are tender and easily pierced with a fork (about 15-20 minutes). Avoid over-cooking (or letting them sit in the water too long after you’ve turned off the heat), as this can compromise the texture.

6. Drain the water into a large bowl. (Do not discard the cooking water.)

7. With the drained potatoes in the pot, use a hand-held mixer to mix up the boiled potatoes. Add the cooking water as needed (instead of milk) to achieve the consistency you desire.

8. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

9. Enjoy!