Yes, when life gives you rutabagas, make guilt-free low-carb mashed potatoes! How does this magical transformation take place, you might ask? A little buttah and cream cheese can fix anything, y’all. This is a popular recipe with quite a few variations out there, but I like the richness that cream cheese imparts. Rutabaga is easier than cauliflower to work with, and the color and mouthfeel of it is more potato-ey. To address the obvious question: What do I have against potatoes? Their awfully high glycemic load, for one thing. Additionally, the phytonutrients found in cruciferous vegetables like the rutabaga have been shown to fight cancer. Besides, it’s a fun word to say when your roommate asks what you’re doing with that big waxy lump on the counter. Roo-tah-bag-ah!
Creamy Mashed Faux-tatoes
Makes 1 big serving or two small portions
1/4 of a rutabaga, peeled and chopped into 1-inch cubes
boullion cube (I like Rapunzel organic— no scary MSG or modified cornstarch)
2 cups of water
1 roasted garlic clove or a dash of garlic powder
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 oz cream cheese
1 tablespoon parmesan cheese
sea salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Microwave rutabaga chunks, covered, with water and a boullion cube for 12 minutes on high. Test for doneness with a fork. Strain and squeeze out all the water you can with a dish towel (very important)!
Roast the garlic quick n’ dirty in the microwave by peeling off the skin, pricking the clove, and microwaving for 30-40 seconds, or until soft. Heat butter and cream cheese in microwave until butter is melted. Stir together. Add garlic and butter mixture to rutabaga and dump it all into a blender. Puree. This may require violent shaking if you are using a magic bullet like I have. Get the mixture as smooth as possible to eliminate all traces of rutabaga-ey orange chunkiness. Reheat for 30 seconds to keep it piping hot if you need to. It helps the blending process. Stir in parmesan cheese. Taste and add sea salt if necessary. Serve topped with more butter, chives, bacon bits… fortunately, potato toppers are usually low carb!
~6g net carbs
“If you’re afraid of butter, just use cream.”
-Julia Child
brittone2
May 22, 2008 at 11:19 pm (15 years ago)I’m so glad you are blogging! I followed your link from the LCF site. It is so, so nice to have other low carbers coming up with whole-foods based recipes. You rock. I forwarded your recipes to my parents who also low carb 🙂Keep up the good work! I can’t wait to try these recipes!
Lauren
May 23, 2008 at 2:18 am (15 years ago)Thanks so much for stopping by. Whole foods are the way to go! Will try to avoid using anything canned. 😉Hope you and your parents enjoy!
Anonymous
June 3, 2008 at 3:40 pm (15 years ago)Im so loving your blog Lauren. Your recipes and photos are great!Ive just discovered your blog today and will be enjoying your recipes from now on.
Julie
February 25, 2009 at 5:13 am (14 years ago)Hi Lauren,I really enjoy your blog and love the pics you post of your wonderful creations. I tried making mashed rutabagas before reading your blog, and I found them to be very sweet tasting. Does the boullion cube help with that?Thanks!Julie
Teresa A.
August 2, 2009 at 12:20 am (14 years ago)I have made many of your recipes now and my husband and I are so blessed to have found this blog. My husband has lost almost 40 pounds since Feb.2009 doing low carb and some of the food has been so bizarre. Your recipes are great. I am doing fried pork chops and the mashed “taters” now. It is taking forever for the rutabaga to cook up though. I hope I bought the right thing.
Lauren
August 2, 2009 at 12:29 am (14 years ago)Julie – The boullion cube doesn't eliminate the sweetness, but it does add a nice punch of flavor. 😉
Teresa – That's wonderful to hear about your husband's success with low carb! Just keep cooking the rutabagas until fork tender. Sometimes they can take awhile depending on your microwave.
Anonymous
March 18, 2010 at 1:56 am (13 years ago)Thanks Lauren. I have low-carbed for years, sometimes not so successfully from boredom and the sadly faded low-carb product choices. Your recipes put the fun back in to preparing meals. Thanks for introducing me to more ingredient options, such as coconut flour. Yes, it is miraculous! I have tried the banana nut muffins and the ruh-tah-bay-gah. Both are winners.
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March 1, 2011 at 7:52 pm (12 years ago)I love a lot of recipes based in rutabagas, so I think that it is the best vegetable in the world, I would like to plant some in my backyard, so I love your recipe it looks so delicious!22dd
Anonymous
May 9, 2011 at 12:20 am (12 years ago)These are better than mashed potatoes! We love them.
Anonymous
December 26, 2011 at 6:54 pm (11 years ago)This sounds wonderful. However, a main ingredient in the bullion you recommend, yeast extract, has the same effect as msg. “In fact, food manufacturers don't deny that yeast extract contains MSG — it's something that's well-known in the food manufacturing industry. What's going on here is a blatant deception — an attempt to mislead consumers by essentially renaming dangerous ingredients with harmless sounding names such as 'yeast extract' “.
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/001528.html#ixzz1hfULbnqa
Just thought you'd want to know. Thanks for sharing your creative gift with all of us!