Spinach Mashed Potatoes

It was clean out the fridge night. I’d already used up many vegetables and I had a box of baby spinach that needed to be used asap. Obviously I could have simply sautéed the spinach in some garlic and butter but I wanted something fun to go along with our walleye dinner. I wondered if I could successfully add spinach to mashed potatoes and discovered several recipes that looked promising. The one with both Parmesan and cheddar cheese looked like the best idea.

Instead of peeling potatoes and going the long route, I turned to instant potatoes. Gasp! Yes, I do keep them on hand to thicken soups or chili occasionally and I try to keep the code current. My box of mashed potatoes was about to expire so this was a good plan. You could go the long way and make the mash from scratch. Or be lazy like me.

I made the mashed potatoes first. I brought the water, milk, butter, salt and pepper to a boil then stirred in the potatoes.

Chop spinach and add to potatoes

I stirred in the sour cream, melted butter and milk and beat again until they were well mixed.

Stir spinach into potatoes until well mixed and spinach is wilted

I add the chopped spinach, garlic powder and salt and pepper and stirred again.

Add cheeses and stir well until melted. Cover with lid and serve warm.

I stirred in the Parmesan and a cup of shredded cheddar cheese, then taste tested and added a bit more salt to taste. Perfection! My side dish was done! I put the potato and spinach mash into a baking dish and put a lid on it. I slid it into the oven for 20 minutes to wait for dinner.

Spinach Mashed Potatoes

We enjoyed eating our spinach and potato side dish with walleye and coleslaw for dinner. It was a good way to add a few carbs to the meal to satisfy us.

Spinach Mashed Potatoes

Note: because the spinach was raw when I added it to the potatoes, when the dish was in the oven the spinach added more moisture to the potatoes and they were just a wee bit runny. To prevent that, add a few more instant potatoes when mixing or don’t let it sit after mixing. Make it right before serving!