South Beach Mashed Potatoes

I turned to steak and potatoes for dinner tonight since that is what I was craving.  I did my research and discovered that one of my favorite steak recipes comes in at 267 calories per serving so I knew we could certainly manage Giada's Flat Iron Steak with Red Wine Sauce.  One of the side dishes tonight was Ellie Krieger's Green Bean Salad which had fresh, steamed green beans tossed with toasted walnuts, chopped parsley, diced red onion and dressed with a light vinaigrette. 

The green bean salad was a very nice side to this dinner, but the item on the plate that looks like mashed potatoes is actually cauliflower, steamed until tender and pureed with a little butter, fat-free half and half and seasoned with salt and pepper.  The first time we had these "potatoes" was probably ten years ago and I still remember how good these were.  The best part is they come in at less than 50 calories per serving.  Don't get me wrong they really don't taste like mashed potatoes, but if you like cauliflower and mashed potatoes, these make a great substitute.

Cauliflower Puree
Serves 4

1 small cauliflower (4 cups florets)
1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 ounce fat-free half and half
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Steam or microwave cauliflower until tender (I steamed mine for about 10 minutes).  Once tender, puree in a food processor adding butter, half and half and salt and pepper to taste.

Adapted from South Beach Diet online

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