Let me set the scene for you. It’s like, a Wednesday night. We just put the baby down to sleep. I have a loose idea of what I want to make for dinner but it’s not complete. I’m leaning against the kitchen counter drinking tea (yep, still love hot tea in the summer – I balance it out with cold wine) and my husband is sitting at the kitchen island.
“I’m making steak and green beans for dinner. What should I make with them?” I ask.
“Mac and cheese.”
“We don’t have mac and cheese. What else?”
“MAC AND CHEESE.”
“BABE, WE DON’T HAVE MAC AND CHEESE.”
“FINE. Cheese then.”
“Oh my God.”
“I WANT CHEESE.”
“We have potatoes?” I offer.
“Okay. Cheesy potatoes.”
“Cheese doesn’t go with potatoes.” Which actually isn’t true, I just didn’t feel like making something like scalloped potatoes. And I didn’t have all of the ingredients.
“CHEESE GOES WITH EVERYTHING.”
Caps because he was yelling. Or at least speaking in a loud voice. My husband is nothing if not boisterous.
So I thought, okay – cheese and broccoli. And I had yams, not potatoes. But I knew if I said I had yams Scott would have shouted, “WHAT THE HELL IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A YAM AND POTATO?” And like, I don’t even exactly know. They’re both starchy tubers and they both taste good.
So that’s how this came about. I figured it would kind of be like broccoli cheddar potato skins. I had some amazing grass-fed cheddar in the fridge, I’m not sure of the name but you can definitely get it at Whole Foods (which I highly recommend). It’s so good. I don’t eat it a lot, but my husband eats it like an apple (aka like a psycho).
So we’ve got yams, broccoli and grass-fed cheddar. An all-around healthy side dish! Two veggies in one and because the cheddar is grass-fed and organic, it’s not only insanely good but also healthy. And a great way to sneak in broccoli if your kids aren’t fans.
Broccoli Cheddar Mashed Yams
Ingredients
- 1 medium to large Japanese yam peeled and diced
- 2 cups frozen broccoli
- 1 tbsp of butter
- 1/4 cup grass-fed cheddar chopped, crumbled or grated
- milk if needed to thin it out (I did not need)
Instructions
- Boil the yam cubes until tender.
- Add the frozen broccoli until just cooked, only takes a few minutes.
- Drain.
- In the same pan, add the butter a cheddar.
- Add the yams and broccoli on top of the butter and cheddar and let it get all melty.
- Mash it all together.
- Devour.
