Buttery Mashed Potatoes --- without the butter!

It is kind of crazy to me that foods can taste buttery without a single drop of milk product in them!  Artificial flavoring can do that but so can olive oil in a much healthier way.

I used to make mashed potatoes with vegan margarine such as Earth Balance.  Nowadays I use olive oil and soy milk to achieve the texture and taste that keeps my kids coming back for seconds, thirds, and fourths.

Soy Dream Original is another critical ingredient here, at least in my eyes.  Soy Dream is my regular substitute for milk in baking and stovetop cooking especially when I'm making a savory dish.  This brand of soy milk has a mild taste, isn't super sweet or infused with vanilla, and adds richness to dishes. 

Also, I bake - not boil -  my potatoes.  I do this partially because it's easier to slip in several foil-wrapped potatoes next to crisps, brussel sprouts, butternut squash, or whatever else is baking in the oven.  Baking is a better cooking method for retaining the potato's nutrients.  The potatoes will be a little drier but that's where the oil and soy milk come in handy!

Fellow mashed-potato lovers, be warned: my mashed potatoes are a little lumpy, which is how I like them.  They aren't as creamy smooth or fluffy as, let's says, those instant Potato Spuds.  I wanted to fully disclose this because I know there are opposing and very passionate camps of smooth versus lumpy in Potatoland.

Mashed Potatoes
This makes a full 9-inch pie pan's worth of potatoes which was more than enough for our family of four.
 
9 red or Yukon potatoes, washed (You can use about 4 russet potatoes if you like.)
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup Soy Dream soy milk and extra
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sea salt and extra

1. Wrap potatoes in aluminum foil.  Bake at 400 degrees until soft, approximately one hour.
2. Remove potatoes from oven and foil.  After potatoes are cooled off a bit (not burning hot), cut open and peel off the skins.  Alternatively if you don't have time to peel them when they are still hot, reheat them in the microwave.  It's easier to peel a warm or hot potato than a cold one.
3. In a large bowl or deep dish (like a glass pie pan) break potatoes into smaller chunks with a fork or potato masher.
4. Sprinkle garlic powder over potatoes. Add about half the soy milk, 1 Tbsp of olive oil, and 1/2 tsp sea salt. 
5. Mash garlic powder and liquid ingredients into the potatoes.  Use a fork or spoon to scrape potatoes off the edges and mix potatoes.
6. As the liquids combine better with the potatoes, add more soy milk and 1 Tbsp olive oil.  Continue using a masher and fork/spoon to combine ingredients together.
7. Add extra soy milk and mash until you get the desired texture for your potatoes.  Also, taste test the potatoes.  Add more sea salt as needed.  (I used 1 full tsp of sea salt for this recipe.) 

For leftovers, you will need to reheat your mashed potatoes and stir in more soy milk to restore the lighter texture.  Enjoy!