I have mentioned my mashed cauliflower many times before, but have never posted the recipe for you guys. Well, it seems to be perfected, so here you go!

Everyone seems to love it, even my brother, Danny, who doesn’t like too many vegetables. And, it is a great healthy and light alternative to mashed potatoes. Especially, for those who want to eat more vegetables and a few less carbohydrates.

Mashed Cauliflower

Makes 4 large servings or 6 medium servings.

Ingredients:

• 3, 12 oz. (36 oz. total) packages of frozen cauliflower (the frozen kind seems to get a little softer for mashing), thawed
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2-3 tsp. minced garlic (or about 4 fresh cloves, minced)
• 1 Tbsp. dried parsley (or fresh)
• 1 tsp. ground rosemary
• 4 Tbsp. light cream cheese or reduced fat
• 1 Tbsp. real butter or Earth Balance
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (sometimes I taste it, and end up adding more)
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, steam your thawed cauliflower for about 10-15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, cook your onions and garlic in the olive oil on medium-low until caramelized a golden brown.
3. Add your herbs and seasonings to the onion mixture.
4. When the cauliflower seems soft enough to mash, empty the water from the pot, and put the cauliflower back in that pot over the warm stove-top. Add your onion mixture, cream cheese, parmesan, and butter to the warm cauliflower. Mash with a potato masher (works best) or large serving utensil until it becomes smoother. This will take about 3 to 4 minutes.
5. Taste and see how you like it. At this point, I may add additional herbs or spices, or another pinch of parmesan. You can check your consistency as well. I don’t mind mine chunkier, but others may like it smoother.

You can see that my recipe comes out more yellow in color because I use caramelized onions. You could omit them, and try using some dried onion flakes instead or more onion powder to get a whiter color like a potato. But, I love onions!

I also tried to snazz-up my dining table with some holiday decor.

Picture didn’t come out so great this time, but you get the idea. Used white lights behind the drapes, and used leftover Christmas tree branches in the centerpiece.