potato

10.02.19

Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup

Posted on by Kelli Avila , Views: 2948

This Instant Pot Potato Soup taste just like a loaded baked potato! It’s creamy and topped with all of your favorite baked potato toppings. This comfort food soup is gluten-free and optionally made dairy-free!

Instant Pot Potato Soup

Is there anything better on a cold, chilly fall night than a big bowl of warm and comforting soup? This Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup tastes just like a baked potato topped with ALL your favorites like bacon, cheddar cheese and chives. It’s creamy and totally satisfying. We tested out a few different ways to make it creamy, without any cream, if that’s what you need. And it’s made super easy, in the Instant Pot, of course!

Ingredients for Loaded Baked Potato Soup

  • Russet Potatoes
  • Chicken Broth
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Paprika
  • Bacon
  • Sour Cream (or Cashew Cream or dairy-free greek style yogurt)
  • Lemon
  • Garlic Powder
  • Chives
  • Cheddar cheese (omit for dairy-free)

Dairy Free Options

We tested this recipe with both a dairy-option that was more traditional to baked potatoes (sour cream) and with two dairy-free alternatives. We loved all three! The sour cream version is more classic. An alternative is to use a dairy-free yogurt, such as an almond milk version. We tested a plain almond milk yogurt and it whisked together with the soup nicely, giving it a nice creamy finish. A third alternative is to use equal amounts of homemade cashew cream here.

Don’t have an Instant Pot? 

While we’re partial to making this in the Instant Pot, here are two other alternative ways to make it without one:

In the Slow Cooker:

  1. Cook bacon until crispy, set aside.
  2. To a large slow cooker add potato, broth, salt, garlic powder, pepper, paprika and stir. Cover and cook until potatoes are tender on low heat for 7-8 hours or high heat for 3-4 hours.
  3. Remove 2 cups of potatoes and set aside.
  4. Using an immersion blender, blend remaining soup. Whisk in sour cream and lemon juice or dairy free alternative and whisk until completely combined.
  5. Add the potatoes back to the pot, stir and season to taste with additional salt and pepper.
  6. Serve soup and top with bacon, cheese, chives and additional smoked paprika, if desired.

On the Stove Top:

  1. In a dutch oven, cook bacon over medium heat until crispy, about 7 minutes. Remove bacon and all about 1 teaspoon of bacon grease.
  2. Add potato, broth, salt, garlic powder, pepper, paprika and stir. Cover and cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.
  3. Remove 2 cups of potatoes and set aside.
  4. Using an immersion blender, blend remaining soup. Whisk in sour cream and lemon juice or dairy free alternative and whisk until completely combined.
  5. Add the potatoes back to the pot, stir and season to taste with additional salt and pepper.
  6. Serve soup and top with bacon, cheese, chives and additional smoked paprika, if desired.

If you like this Instant Pot soup recipe, check out these others:

Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup

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Prep Time 00:10 Cook Time 00:25 Inactive Time 00:15 Total Time 00:50 Serves 4-6

Ingredients

  • 8 pieces of bacon, diced
  • 3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into ½” pieces
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoons garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 4 ounces sour cream or dairy free yogurt or cashew cream
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • Chives, sliced, for garnish
  • Shredded cheddar cheese, for garnish

Directions

  1. Press the saute function in a 6 or 8 quart Instant Pot. Add bacon and cook until crispy, about 7 minutes. Shut off the saute function, remove bacon and all about 1 teaspoon of bacon grease.
  2. Add potato, broth, salt, garlic powder, pepper, paprika and stir. Close the lid, set the pressure valve to sealing and cook on manual high pressure for 12 minutes. Use the natural release for 5 minutes, then release any remaining pressure.
  3. Remove 2 cups of potatoes and set aside.
  4. Using an immersion blender, blend remaining soup. Whisk in sour cream and lemon juice or dairy free alternative (see note) and whisk until completely combined.
  5. Add the potatoes back to the pot, stir and season to taste with additional salt and pepper.
  6. Serve soup and top with bacon, cheese, chives and additional smoked paprika, if desired.

Recipe Notes

  1. If you are dairy-free, you can use equal portions of either a dairy-free yogurt or homemade cashew cream in place of the sour cream. 
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There may be affiliate links in this post! By clicking on them, or purchasing recommended items I may receive a small compensation, at no cost to you! However, I only recommend products I absolutely love and use in my own home! Thank you for supporting Lexi's Clean Kitchen when you shop! See my privacy policy for more information about this, the information we save, and more!
03.14.19

Easy Corned Beef Hash

Posted on by Kelli Avila , Views: 4677

This Easy Corned Beef Hash is the best way to use up leftover corned beef OR the best excuse to make corned beef from scratch! It’s a simple dish that is hearty and comforting, made under 20 minutes with only a handful of ingredients. Top with a fried egg, a splash of hot sauce and this gluten-free and paleo and whole30-friendly breakfast is ready!

Corned beef hashEasy Corned Beef Hash

We don’t know what we look forward to more when it comes to St. Patrick’s Day eats, the actual Corned Beef and Cabbage or the subsequent leftover meal that follows: this Easy Corned Beef Hash. It’s such a hearty, comforting breakfast: meat, potato and eggs. It’s such a classic meal and the best part is that the components are mostly already cooked so it’s just a matter of heating them all up together and topping with an egg, if desired. If you don’t have leftover corned beef laying around, trust us this breakfast is totally worth cooking corned beef for.

This is one of those recipes that really is more of a guideline. If you have leftover carrots, or onions or root vegetables that were cooked with your corned beef you can feel free to add those in! This can also work with any other leftover beef you may have, though it won’t have that classic flavor as it does when cooked with the corned beef. If you have leftover roast beef, pot roast or even steak, you can make this work. If you don’t have any leftover potatoes you can cook up some fresh. Just dice up some potatoes and boil for about 12-15 minutes, or until fork tender. They brown better when they are cold, but fresh cooked will work in a pinch.

How to Make Corned Beef Hash

How do you make corned beef hash from scratch:

  1. Cook some onions
  2. Add cooked corned beef and potatoes and cook for 5 minutes undisturbed, and then flip and cook another 5 minutes
  3. Season with garlic powder and pepper, and add salt if needed.
  4. Serve with eggs!

Why is corned beef so salty?

We talk extensively about the process for brining your own corned beef here, and then go into details about how to cook it from scratch here. If cooked properly (meaning rinsed really well and cooked in enough water) corned beef shouldn’t be overly salty, but when making corned beef hash you definitely want to taste the dish before adding any additional salt!

Corned beef hash recipe

If you like this breakfast recipe, check out these others:

Easy Corned Beef Hash

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Prep Time 00:05 Cook Time 00:18 Total Time 00:22 Serves 4

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, small dice
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1-½ cups leftover corned beef, fine dice
  • 16 ounces leftover potatoes, about 12-14 small potatoes, diced
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Eggs, for serving (optional)

Directions

  1. Heat a large cast iron or non-stick skillet over medium heat. Once hot add oil and onion. Cook until soften, about 8 minutes.
  2. Add butter to the pan and turn up heat to medium high. Add beef and potato and stir to combine. Then let cook, undisturbed for 5 minutes. Flip over the hash and cook on the other side for another 5 minutes, or until the hash is heated through.
  3. Add garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste and serve with hot sauce and a fried egg (if desired)

Recipe Notes

  1. This can also work with some other cooked cuts of beef like brisket or pot roast.
  2. To make fully dairy free feel free to sub in ghee or additional oil in place of the butter.
  3. If you are using an oven proof skillet you can also crack a few eggs inside of the hash after step 2 and cook under the broiler for a few minutes until the eggs are cooked!
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There may be affiliate links in this post! By clicking on them, or purchasing recommended items I may receive a small compensation, at no cost to you! However, I only recommend products I absolutely love and use in my own home! Thank you for supporting Lexi's Clean Kitchen when you shop! See my privacy policy for more information about this, the information we save, and more!
03.12.19

Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage

Posted on by Kelli Avila , Views: 7805

This Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage comes out so just as tender and flavorful as the stove top version, but in half the time! This corned beef dinner with cabbage, potatoes and carrots is a the perfect dish for a classic for St. Patrick’s Day.

Instant pot corned beefInstant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage

Who doesn’t love a good boiled dinner, also known as corned beef and cabbage? This classic St. Patrick’s Day dish shouldn’t just be relegated to a once-a-year-meal though, because corned beef is so good, especially when you brine it yourself! The leftovers alone are worth making this meal for! We turned to the Instant Pot to make this dish to cut the cooking time in half and ensure the perfect fork tender brisket and from here on out will be cooking it this way.

What is corned beef?

Corned beef is simply salted or cured beef. It’s topically a brisket, but can also be an eye roast. It’s put in a brine with lots of salt, some sugar and spices like juniper berries and mustard seed. Once it’s done brining, typically 5-10 days later, it’s cooked! We delve into more details in this post here!

How do you cook corned beef in the Instant Pot?

It’s as easy as rinsing the corned beef, placing it in the Instant Pot on a trivet with a lot of water, cooking on high pressure for 85 minutes and then a natural release! We place the additional vegetable in the leftover broth for a quick 4 minute cook. Typically it can take 3-6 hours to cook a corned beef, so using the Instant Pot is really a time saver in this recipe.

Corned beef instant pot

What is in the spice packet for corned beef?

Honestly, anything can be in those spice packets that sometimes come with commercially prepared corned beef. Which is why we advocate making your own (or buying a high quality one). If the corned beef is brined properly all of the flavor should already be inside of the meat! If you aren’t sure that is the case with yours, we used these spices in our brine:

  • juniper berries
  • cinnamon
  • whole cloves
  • peppercorn
  • bay leaves
  • mustard seed

We recommend rinsing the corned beef very well to get off the excess salt in the brine before you cook it. This is true whether you make your own brine or buy store bought. Otherwise you’ll end up with a really salty corned beef.

Instant pot corned beef and cabbage recipe

Can you overcook a corned beef?

You can certainly cook it incorrectly! A corned beef, whether it is a brisket or an eye of round cut should be cooked low and slow, unless you are using a pressure cooker, in which case cooking under pressure keeps it tender. Traditionally this type of meat is tenderized first with the brine, and then it is submerged in liquid and cooked slowly over a long period of time. A slow cooker is also a great way to cook this type of meat. If you cook this type of meat very quickly with high temperature it will seize up and be tough.

What can you make with leftover corned beef?

Leftover corned beef was made to be turned into corned beef hash! It’s also great sliced thin when cold and turned into sandwiches. During testing we also used some of the leftover meat for a stir fry and for a soup!

Corned beef and cabbage instant pot

If you like this Instant Pot recipe, check out these others:

Watch the video:

Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage

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Prep Time 00:05 Cook Time 1:29 Inactive Time 00:25 Total Time 1:34 Serves 4-6

Ingredients

  • 3-4lb corned beef brisket (look for nitrate free or make your own here)
  • 4 cups water
  • ½ head green cabbage, sliced into 4 wedges
  • 12 ounces small red potatoes (about 8)
  • 4 large carrots, peeled and sliced on the bias about 2”
  • Parsley, for garnish

Directions

  1. Rinse the corned beef really well to remove any excess salt.
  2. Place a trivet (preferably one with handles) in a 6 or 8 quart Instant Pot. Place corned beef inside with 4 cups of water and cover.
  3. Cook on high pressure for 85 minutes. Release pressure naturally for 20 minutes and then release any remaining pressure.
  4. Remove corned beef with trivet and set aside and keep warm.
  5. Place the cabbage, potatoes and carrots inside. Cover and cook on high pressure for 4 minutes. Use the manual release.
  6. Slice corned beef against the grain and serve with vegetables, mustard and parsley garnish.

Recipe Notes

  1. If using the 6 quart you may need to slice the corned beef in half to fit. Slice in half and stack each piece next to each other, but not on top of one another
  2. After cooking if you wish to remove the fat cap on the brisket, feel free to do so.
  3. Too cook on the stove top:
    1. In a large pot add the brisket and cover with enough water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat, and then reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 2 hours. Check periodically to make sure the water hasn't reduced below the beef, and if it has add more as needed.
    2. Add cabbage, potatoes and carrots and cook for 1 more hour or until the meat is fork tender.
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There may be affiliate links in this post! By clicking on them, or purchasing recommended items I may receive a small compensation, at no cost to you! However, I only recommend products I absolutely love and use in my own home! Thank you for supporting Lexi's Clean Kitchen when you shop! See my privacy policy for more information about this, the information we save, and more!
02.18.19

Sheet Pan Kielbasa Sausage and Sauerkraut Dinner

Posted on by Lexi , Views: 9572

This Sheet Pan Kielbasa Sausage and Sauerkraut Dinner has unique flavors and is an easy way to get dinner on the table. Aside from prepping up a few veggies it’s largely hands-off cooking which means more time in your life! It’s Paleo and Whole30 friendly and will be a hit with the whole family.

Sheet Pan Sausage and Veggies

Sheet Pan Kielbasa Sausage and Sauerkraut Dinner

Another Sheet Pan Dinner for the win! We love the unique flavor combination in this Sheet Pan Kielbasa Sausage and Sauerkraut Dinner! The cauliflower, potatoes and smoky kielbasa are complimented nicely with the sweet apples and sour sauerkraut. It’s easy to throw together using only a sheet pan and your oven! This would also make a good meal prep lunch as well! Make a double batch to serve as dinner and few make ahead portions or make the whole batch for lunches.

And sauerkraut is a great way to get a nice hit of probiotics naturally so we always love to sneak in these foods whenever possible. Plus, if you’ve never tried the combo of salty sausage with sweet apples and umami sour sauerkraut, we promise you’ll love it.

Sheet pan sausage and vegetables

Whenever we make sheet pan recipes we always try to harness what makes this oft overlooked cooking tool amazing: it produces perfectly cooked food that doesn’t require much attention other than to set a timer and add in ingredients. The recipe sometimes indicates moving the food around the sheet pan, and this is because depending on how you position the food it uses different cooking techniques. In this recipe we first have the cauliflower, potatoes and apples spread out evenly on a pan so that they can roast. Next we have you pile them close together to finish cooking with the power of steam and add the kielbasa, with a splash of oil on top to help bring the flavor all together. And finally we like cooking the kielbasa whole because it gets a nice crisp skin.

Kielbasa sheet pan recipes

Tips for sheet pan cooking:

  • Sheet pan dinners are the best. Make sure to read the recipe all the way through (of course) and plan to use a timer! This way you can truly walk away from the oven and not have to worry about when you need to add anything for the next step.
  • Do the prep ahead of time: Cut cauliflower and onions the night before and mix with oil and spices, then you only have to cut apple and potatoes once you are ready for the actual cooking.
  • Use the correct size sheet pan. When we say sheet pan we are referring to the rimmed half sheet pan which is 18″ by 13″. The size of the sheet pan matters because you do not want to overcrowd the pan when cooking, so if you are using a smaller sheet pan you may need to use 2 to achieve the same result.

What is Kielbasa

Polish kielbasa is traditionally made from ground pork. Kielbasa (from Polish kiełbasa) is any type of meat sausage from Poland, and it’s a staple of Polish cuisine.

What are the best sausages to buy

We purchased natural nitrate free Kielbasa at Whole Foods. If that isn’t an option we like to shop organic and local whenever possible for our sausage! Ask your local butcher if you can’t find the quality you want in your local market.

Kielbasa and sauerkraut dinner

If you like this recipe, try these other sheet pan meals:

Sheet Pan Kielbasa and Sauerkraut Dinner

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Prep Time 00:15 Cook Time 00:43 Inactive Time 00:02 Total Time 01:00 Serves 4

Ingredients

  • 1 onion, sliced
  • ½ head medium cauliflower (about 12 ounces), cut into florets
  • 12 small baby yukon gold potatoes (about 1” big), halved
  • 2 fuji, or other crisp apple, cored and cut into 6 pieces each
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • Pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
  • 1-12 ounce polish kielbasa
  • 1-½ cups sauerkraut, semi drained

Directions

  1. Pre-heat oven to 400ºF.
  2. On a sheet pan combine onion, cauliflower, potatoes, apples, oil and all the spices and toss to combine and then spread out evenly.
  3. Bake for 25 minutes, stirring halfway through.
  4. Remove and move all of the vegetables towards the middle of the sheet pan, creating a small pile. Place kielbasa on top and drizzle the sausage with a bit of avocado oil and place back in the oven for 15 minutes.
  5. Remove from oven and place 1-½ cups of sauerkraut on one side of the sheet tray and continue to bake until the sauerkraut is just slightly warmed, about 3 minutes.
  6. Remove and let sit until the kielbasa is cool enough to handle, about 2 minutes. Slice kielbasa into ¼” slices on the bias and divide sausage and veggies into four portions. Serve with whole grain mustard.

Recipe Notes

  1. If Whole30 check to make sure your kielbasa is compliant.
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There may be affiliate links in this post! By clicking on them, or purchasing recommended items I may receive a small compensation, at no cost to you! However, I only recommend products I absolutely love and use in my own home! Thank you for supporting Lexi's Clean Kitchen when you shop! See my privacy policy for more information about this, the information we save, and more!
10.01.18

Roasted Chicken Dinner (SO EASY!!!!)

Posted on by Kelli Avila , Views: 17190

This Roasted Chicken Dinner recipe is the perfect one-pan-meal. The tender and juicy chicken is roasted with garlic and herbs and the accompanying vegetables are baked underneath the chicken. It’s a hands-off meal that is easy to prep, so satisfying and versatile as it can be made with any veggies you have on hand. Made in partnership with my friends at Shenandoah Valley Organic!

roast chicken dinner

Roasted Chicken Dinner

Look no further, this is your dinner tonight! This Roasted Chicken Dinner is such an essential recipe that everybody should have in their back pocket! It features a bunch of in-season vegetables roasted with garlic underneath an herb and butter chicken that is made easy with hands-off roasting and can be made for a weeknight dinner or a dressed up for a fancy meal. Sometimes simple is the best, and this classic recipe is it.

I love this because you can also customize with whatever vegetables you have on hand. Here we used the classic combo of carrots, potatoes and onions (which caramelize and add a special layer of flavor) but really you can use any seasonal vegetables like fennel, parsnips or butternut squash!

roast chicken dinner recipe

What is the best way to roast a whole chicken?

We love to roast the chicken and the fixins all in the same pan! It’s easy prep and easy clean up. Simply:

  1. Add vegetables to the bottom of the pan with oil and salt.
  2. Prepare the chicken by removing giblets and excess fat, season and place in pan.
  3. Bake!

how long to bake a whole chicken

I am so happy to partner with my friends at Shenandoah Valley Organic to bring you today’s whole Roasted Chicken Dinner recipe! SVO is my go-to trusted chicken company because they pride themselves in producing the highest quality chicken grown on family-owned farms.

Their chickens are humanely raised and fed a diet free from animal byproducts, pesticides, and antibiotics. On their website you can see where all of the farms are located, so you know just where your chicken was raised! Pretty cool if you ask me!

roast chicken with vegetablesUse their easy store locator to find where you can get this amazing quality chicken near you! Plus, I just love the taste of this chicken! It’s just superior!

How do I season my roast chicken?

We went with classic flavors of herb and butter! We used the herbs from my garden: sage, thyme and scallion. We also went heavy on the garlic with 9 whole cloves both on the chicken and with the vegetables. And of course, lots of salt and pepper.

We use butter in this recipe, but if you are dairy free give it a try to use avocado oil in it’s place.

Tools we used for this recipe:

whole chicken recipes oven

If you like this entire meal recipe, check out these others:

Watch the video: 

 

Roasted Chicken Dinner

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Prep Time 00:10 Cook Time 01:10 Total Time 01:20 Serves 4

Ingredients

Directions

    1. Pre-heat the oven to 425º F.
    2. Place the potatoes, 8 garlic cloves, onion, and carrots, in a large cast iron pan or roasting pan. Toss with avocado oil, salt, pepper and spread out on pan. Make a small hole in the middle for the chicken to be placed. 
    3. Prepare the butter spread by finely chopping 1 teaspoon of both the fresh thyme and the sage, and 1 tablespoon of the scallion, and mincing 1 garlic clove. In a small bowl add fresh herbs, garlic and softened butter to combine.
    4. To prepare the chicken remove the giblets and remove any excess fat or feathers. Salt and pepper both the outside and the inside of the chicken. add remaining scallions, thyme and sage to the cavity. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Place chicken in the middle of the vegetables and spread the herb butter all over the skin of the chicken.
    5. Place in the pre-heated oven and roast until chicken registers 165, or until juices run clear, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. 
    6. Let chicken rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
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    There may be affiliate links in this post! By clicking on them, or purchasing recommended items I may receive a small compensation, at no cost to you! However, I only recommend products I absolutely love and use in my own home! Thank you for supporting Lexi's Clean Kitchen when you shop! See my privacy policy for more information about this, the information we save, and more!

    This post is sponsored by Shenandoah Valley Organic! All thoughts and opinions are always 100% my own! I love the integrity of their products and think you’ll love them too. Thank you for continuing to support LCK and the brands I work with!

    07.24.18

    Classic Mashed Potatoes (Paleo + Vegan)

    Posted on by Kelli Avila , Views: 14055

    These classic mashed potatoes are everything you want in that comforting and warm side dish, but lightened up to include chicken broth and olive oil. They’re soft and creamy, paleo, vegan and a cinch to make!

    easy mashed potatoes

    Classic Mashed Potatoes

    Mashed potatoes is such classic dish to serve along side hearty meals, like roasted turkey or fried chicken. It traditionally relies on heavy cream or milk, and lots of butter to get it’s creamy flavor. For our lightened-up version we use chicken broth and extra virgin olive oil to make these dairy free, without compromising on the flavor or texture.

    how to make mashed potatoes

    What can you use in place of milk in mashed potatoes?

    You can replace milk with chicken broth, nut or seed milk, or coconut milk.

    Classic mashed potatoes with gravy

    This week we’re taking a trip down south and dishing out a new recipe each day to complete the ultimate Southern Fried Chicken Dinner! Each day this week we’ll be sharing a recipe to complete an epic southern dinner!

    Stay tuned for the rest of the week for the Ultimate Southern Dinner:

    How do you make the perfect mashed potatoes

    Classic Mashed Potatoes (Paleo + Vegan)

    Print shopping list
    Prep Time 00:05 Cook Time 00:25 Total Time 00:30 Serves 4

    Ingredients

    Directions

    1. Place potatoes in a medium sauce pan and cover with cold water 1" above. Bring to a boil and then lower to medium-high heat and cook until fork tender, about 15-20 minutes.
    2. Drain potatoes in a colander.
    3. Place chicken broth and olive oil in the same sauce pan and heat until hot. Place the potatoes back in the sauce pan with the heated chicken broth and mash with a potato masher until smooth. Add salt, pepper, onion powder and stir to combine. 
    4. Serve hot with scallion garnish.

    Recipe Notes

    1. We recommend yukon gold or red bliss potatoes here and like the skin left on for these mashed potatoes, but feel free to peel if you prefer to leave them out. It's important to keep the dice on the potatoes about the same size so they cook evenly.
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    There may be affiliate links in this post! By clicking on them, or purchasing recommended items I may receive a small compensation, at no cost to you! However, I only recommend products I absolutely love and use in my own home! Thank you for supporting Lexi's Clean Kitchen when you shop! See my privacy policy for more information about this, the information we save, and more!

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