You are going to love this simple side dish! Cauliflower parsnip mash is a healthy, gluten free, vegan option and low carb dinner idea! Oh and it’s also a great way sneak in some healthy fiber filled veggies!
This cauliflower parsnip mash reminded me of dinner with my mom as a kid! I love love love homemade mashed potatoes! My mom used to make us a homemade meal every night of the week. I can probably count on one hand the nights we had taco night or spaghetti night. It just wasn’t that often. My mom would make big lasagnas, pot roast and mashed potatoes or some sort of chicken dish with you guessed it mashed potatoes! I don’t think there was ever a week that went by without mashed potatoes!
I have been trying really hard to get more veggies in our diet! Dave and I both really love parsnip fries and I knew I wanted to try mashed parsnips soon. So one day when it was a bit chilly I decided to make a big batch of mashed parsnips with cauliflower mixed in. Why cauliflower? Because it’s so simple to “hide” in food, especially when you are adding butter! Plus I may or may not be obsessed with all things cauliflower!
See my roasted cauliflower guacamole, cauli-oats, roasted cauliflower with tahini and all my favorite cauliflower rice dishes for proof! Oh and using cauliflower secretly in recipes is an awesome trick! Check out this simple broccoli soup, my secretly healthy mac and cheese or this low carb lasagna!
Ok so I’m sure you are wondering how this turned out. AH-mazing is how it turned out. I might have been reluctant to share with Dave because I wanted the entire recipe to myself. But I am nice so I shared them with Dave, and he loved them as well.
I added a bit of fresh thyme to the recipe because I love thyme and potatoes together so I thought why not. And yes, it’s just as good with cauliflower parsnip mash. If you usually have some special way of seasoning your mashed potatoes, feel free to use it here.
I used grass fed butter to get that homemade taste but you could also use Butter Flavored Coconut Oil (affiliate link) to keep this vegan! I used dairy-free milk though since we don’t keep traditional milk in the house. I’m sure you could use whatever you have on hand. Make sure that butter is grass fed, you want quality sources of fat! After all the fat you consume is literally what makes up the membranes of your cells, you want it to be the highest quality possible right?
- 1 lb parsnips peeled and chopped
- ½ head cauliflower
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tbs coconut milk
- 1½ tbs Kerry gold butter or Butter Flavored Coconut Oil (vegan)
- 2-3 sprigs thyme
- Peel and chop the parsnips.
- Remove the florets from the cauliflower.
- Add enough water to cover the parsnips and cauliflower.
- Cover and bring to a boil until fork tender
- Drain and add salt, milk, butter and thyme.
- Mash with a fork or blend with an immersion blender.
What about you?
- What side dish or meal reminds you of your mom?
- Did you eat mashed potatoes all the time when you were little?
- What is your favorite way to eat parsnips?
I have a giant head of cauli in my fridge right now, and I was going to just roast it, but this is inspiring me to do more!
I have all these ingredients handy and so feel like so comfort food. So guess what I am making today. Thank you 🙂
This sounds delicious! I love parsnips (my mum’s roast parsnips can’t be beaten) and I bet the combination with cauliflower works really well.