If you would like to wow your guests with an unusual side dish at your next holiday dinner…
This one is for you!
There is nothing I love more than taking classic dishes and shaking them up a little.
Before we get to this beautiful dish…two quick things:
1) Daily Pictures are up. [My excitement got the best of me and I posted them at 12:01 am. Is that nerdy or what?]
2) I am organizing and updating my recipes page.
Hallelujah! Can you hear the angels singing? I sure can.
I fell off the recipe-updating wagon for about 2-3 months, but I hope to get caught up by my 53rd birthday with any luck.
Ok, ok my 50th birthday. So demanding.
Tonight, I updated, organized, and alphabetized my Breads, Cakes/cupcakes/pies, Cookies, Muffins, Raw foods/No Bake, and Other categories!
It is incredible how long the list is getting.
It is also incredible that I remember how to alphabetize.
Or spell alphabetize for that matter.
I still have to update my Dinner, Lunch, Breakfast, and Appetizer categories though. That will be a massive undertaking. I will need a Green Monster to my right and a glass of wine to my left for that one.
I have also added my Project Food Blog posts at the top of my recipes page. If you are looking for any of the recipes I have made for PFB, that is where they are hiding!
Whew. There is hope for me yet.
Tonight, I whipped up a delicious holiday-inspired side dish that will have heads turning, tongues wagging, and drool dripping.
Or people might look at your dish and run like hell. I really can’t guarantee anything here.
Garlic Pumpkin Mashed Potatoes with Spinach
Pumpkin mashed potatoes…with SPINACH! Such a crazy, yet lovely flavour combination. I fell in love with these potatoes as did Eric. The flavours of the pumpkin, garlic, sea salt, and spinach really go lovely with the potatoes.
Adapted from Cake, Batter, Bowl.
Ingredients:
- 7 red potatoes, scrubbed & chopped (or Yukon Gold variety)
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1-1.5 cups pumpkin puree, to taste
- Two handfuls spinach, stems removed & chopped
- 1/2 cup Almond milk
- 2 tbsp Earth Balance or butter
- 1.5 teaspoons kosher salt, or more to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Paprika, for garnish
Directions: Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat and boil potatoes for 18 to 22 minutes or until fork tender. Drain and place in a very large bowl. Meanwhile, heat olive oil over low heat in a skillet and sauté garlic for about 1 minute. be careful not to burn it like I did! Drain and mash potato chunks in the large bowl with a fork. Mix in pumpkin puree, spinach, almond milk, Earth Balance/butter, black pepper, and salt. Makes 5-7 servings.
*Best served immediately- the potatoes tend to get a bit watery (from the pumpkin) if they are put in the fridge.
Recipe note: This is the last pumpkin recipe I am making for a while!!!
Gather the troops!
Cook, drain, and admire the beauty of zee taters.
Also, admire the beauty of your tired hand-me-down pots and pot holders.
New things are over rated.
Now magic happens….
A beautiful unison of two things I never thought I would see together: Pumpkin and Potatoes.
Isn’t that just lovely?
Add in your salt, pepper, spinach, almond milk, and [hopefully not burned] garlic and give that arm a workout.
Sprinkle with Paprika if you dare.
It adds a little flare.
Uh oh, the poet in me is coming out.
I best get myself to bed.
Speaking of sleep, I have been having the craziest dreams lately….and many nightmares about random things! Many of them involve people chasing me or trying to hurt me. I even had a few dreams about Project Food Blog this past week. One of them was that I went to submit my video this coming Sunday and Foodbuzz told me that I handed it in a week late and was disqualified. I tried to show them that my video was uploaded on November 7th, but they didn’t care. Then my head was chopped off.
Ok, that last part didn’t happen, but it could have!
I can go for weeks without remembering any significant dreams and then all of a sudden I have a slew of strange dreams and nightmares all at once and random people popping up from my past. Sometimes I ‘see’ people in my dreams and I think to myself, ‘Where the hell did you come from!?’
Do you remember your dreams much or give much thought to them? Do you think that they mean anything or are they just a product of random thoughts swirling through your mind?
I have been having weird dreams lately too. In fact, I just had one about my grandma. Kinda creeping me out.
I actually love love love dreams, I remember mine every night! This actually annoys the hell out of my friends ;)
I really believe that they mean something, usually it’s not straightforward but if you really think about your dreams you’ll realize that they represent how you’re feeling. Hmm, maybe it’s too early in the morning for me to be explaining things… :P
Anyway, have a great day!
Enjoy those mashed potatoes :) They look lovely!
i TOTALLY believe that dreams or nightmares have meaning: our subconscious is trying to process what is on our minds during the day. when i get stressed out, i still have teaching nightmares…and i haven’t taught in 12 years! it’s very funny sometimes WHO pops up in a dream, and you’re like, whaaaaat??!
way to go on organizing the recipes! thanks so much! there are several from the past few months i really want to try so now i can hit that page instead of searching through your posts (although i would do that since your recipes are THAT divine!)
That dish looks delish!! Perfect for the holidays. :)
I’ve been having weird dreams, too! About people that are no longer in my life…it’s strange. I guess it must mean that there’s something left unanswered about that relationship?
I definitely like to think that dreams mean something, rather than just being a combination of random thoughts and images!
That is so unique and sounds delicious, love the color combo’s.
I have been having horribly vivid dreams lately, but then like 5 minutes after I wake up, I can’t remember them! Oh well…. this could possibly be one of my favorite dishes you have ever prepared. I need to make it immediately!
My dreams are just a random swirl in my head. No way they mean anything!
I am going to have to try this dish! I need something to bring to Thanksgiving dinner at the “in-laws.” There is going to be nothing healthy there, so I need to bring a few things I’d want to eat!
oh my gosh! this looks amazing! :P
I love, love, love the Daily Pics section! What a neat idea!
Wine and a green monster. Breakfast of champions.
I had vivid dreams as a child, but it’s very rare that I remember my dreams now. When I do have strange dreams I usually blame caffeine. Deep, eh?
I have had some strange dreams — the only one that I really remember is one that I have had a few times: I am running up (what seems like) endless flights of stairs and there is a large gorilla chasing me. I have woken up from this dream and fallen back asleep only to be back “in” this dream! It is sto strange.
Ohhh that looks like such a wonderful combination of tastes!! I need to bring some vegan dishes to Thanksgiving dinner (otherwise I won’t be eating, because my family will ensure that there is not only dairy but MEAT in everything from the green beans to the mashed potatoes), and I’d love to bring this…
YUM! I am so using this at Thanksgiving :) Healthier and would definitely be way tastier than plain ol’ potatoes. I love your recipes! It’s like being in a candy shop of healthy vegan food.
Yum, I love this idea! What an excellent way to pack in more of a nutritional and flavor punch!
i have a five year old that hasn’t slept through a night since she was born…..i’m too tired to have dreams! :) lol
i love love love this recipe! i can’t wait to try it! mashed potatoes are my ultimate comfort food.
Oh gosh, I certainly cant take my dreams too seriously because I have very possibly the strangest ones ever! One time I was a hooker in the lost city of Atlantis and people were trying to kill me and in another I decided to open up a Chinese restaurant in a cardboard box on the side of the road. Some very strange things go on inside this head of mine when I’m unconscious! And um…ONLY when I’m unconscious, of course.
oh my word these look heavenly! i have always been pretty good about remembering my dreams, but they usually are unrelated to real life, so i don’t give much thought to them!
I’m not surprised that you’ve been dreaming about PFB! The mashed potatos look great. I don’t normally eat potatos (unless they’re sweet potato) at all because I just find them boring. Spinach and pumpkin sound like a great way to liven them up and boost the nutrition profile at the same time.
I’ve had a few crazy dreams lately. Some have been a bit scary but others have been awesome – like when I dreamed that I met Caitlin (HTP)!! :D
I used to dream that my teeth were falling out! I would have that dream all the time, thankfully I haven’t had it for a while now! :)
I love the looks of that mashed potato/spinach/pumpkin combo. I will definitely give it a try.
Thanks again for your blog, I look forward to it every day :)
I definitely believe dreams mean something. I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve dreamed something and it happened! Of course, I’ve had plenty of nonsense dreams as well ;) But I think the dreams that seem more nonsense than anything mean something too…usually an abstract view into our emotions/life.
Check out www.dreammoods.com sometime. I’m sure you could find some information on your strange dreams!
Thank you so much for the great holiday recipes. I will be cooking for just 2 this year and I am trying to find a nice variety of things that are easy, delicious and healthy. This seems to fit the bill!