Super Spud Cauliflower Mashed "Potato" Bar

Oh man....I can think back to childhood...I always LOVED when my Mom would bake potatoes and we had "Super Spuds" for dinner.  Giant baked potatoes with all the fixings...and who didn't go to McAllisters in college for those?  I remember those places popping up in every college town around 2000.

In cased you missed this...potatoes are a huge weakness for me; cooked any way possible...seriously.  That would be my favorite food item along with a tortilla.  It's like Forrest Gump and shrimp...baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, french fries, potatoes au gratin, hash browns, potato cakes, scalloped potatoes baked in boursin cheese and cream...those baked french onion soup garlic potatoes, ahhhhhh....but I try to limit my potatoes to purple fingerlings and sweet potatoes for their better vitamin/mineral benefit.  However, cauliflower is truly a great stand-in to the good 'ol russet.  And it is so easy!

I am always looking for ways to simulate those favorites that I don't usually eat anymore and this one is pretty dang fabulous, I must say!  Even being the potato fanatic that I was, I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference her!  This is going into weekly rotation around here!!! ;)

Ok, I did have leftover tenderloin from the weekend, which I had saved specifically for this...but other than that, this barely took minutes of prep!

What you need...
2 heads of cauliflower or 2-3 bags frozen
2 tablespoons butter or ghee
1/3 cup buttermilk
salt & pepper

Remove the core from the heads of cauliflower, wash and place into a pot with about 1" of water, cover, turn to high heat.  When water begins rapidly boiling, cook for 10 minutes, turn off heat.  The cauliflower should be fork tender.  Remove cauliflower from the pot, drain any remaining water from the pot and return cauliflower to the pot, uncovered.  Allow the steam to rise off them for a few minutes.  Cauliflower tends to be wet if you don't allow that steam to escape really well!

For the frozen, add cauliflower to a large glass dish with a lid, add enough water to cover the bottom and microwave for about 7 minutes, stir and return to microwave for about 5 minutes or until form tender. Drain water off and allow the steam to rise off for a few minutes.

Once they are no longer steaming, add butter, buttermilk, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper and begin mashing everything together with a big wooden spoon.   Mash, breaking it up until desired consistency.

If you would like a more whipped potato consistency, you can use an immersion blender to get that!

Preheat oven to 375F.  Once the cauliflower is well mashed and combined, turn out into a lightly greased 9x13 dish.  Bake for 30 minutes.

Plate cauliflower, top with all your yummy topping and serve!

Toppings - Go ALL out here!
Steamed Broccoli florets
Bacon (4 slices on a lined baking sheet right along with the cauliflower, then snipped with kitchen shears)
Cheese (s)
Chives
Sour Cream
Mushrooms (sauteed 2 minutes in olive oil, right before I wilted the spinach)
Steak
Ham
Spinach (same pan as mushrooms, 2 minutes)
Red Peppers
Green Peppers
Meat Sauce
Guacamole
Olives
ANYTHING!!!!!

Buttermilk Cauliflower Mash

Bake for 30 minutes at 375F.

Get all your toppings together...

All the kids even cleaned their plates!