Just Add This To Mashed Potatoes For An Instant Fall Upgrade

Autumn means brightly-colored leaves, thick sweaters, and cozy, stick-to-your-ribs side dishes like mashed potatoes. If you've ever wanted to try something brand-new with your spuds, this fall-ish twist might just create a unique repast that's hard to forget.

After boiling a pot of roughly 2 pounds of peeled, washed, chopped taters until they're fork-tender, drain them and season them with salt and pepper. Then mix in a little butter, milk and sour cream, Greek yogurt, or cream cheese. Then comes the secret ingredient: a can of 100% pureed pumpkin, a vegetable you should definitely be mashing, which is added after the potatoes are thoroughly whipped and then mixed into the side. 

The addition of the festive gourd brings a new depth of flavor to the treat. While plain blended pumpkin pulp can be light on flavor, adding its signature sweet earthiness to the creamy, rich, starchy taste of the potatoes will make the final results even smoother. To perk up that pumpkin taste, adding spices one associates with pumpkin pie — such as ginger and nutmeg — or even tossing in some maple syrup, brown sugar, or vanilla will really amp up its sweetness. 

Want to add even more flavor to your pumpkin-laced side dish? Here are some tips for making the very best mashed potato and pumpkin mix-up you can. To double underline the pumpkin-centered flavor, you can make an herbed pumpkin gravy using more pureed pumpkin. You can also replace your milk with buttermilk to make your mashed potatoes extra creamy, throw in shredded cheese (cheddar and parmesan work well in particular), or add herbs like sage or thyme to the mash at the end. You can even make a butter mixture with the herbs and add it in pats to the top of the mashed meal. 

This is a versatile and flavorful nosh, so you can do all kinds of inventive things with it. The salt and savor of umami sauce will add a new twist to the earthy flavors already present in the combination. And if you want even more savory goodness to the treat, you can top the food with a herb-laced crouton bread topping. No matter how plain or fancy you get with it, as Thanksgiving approaches and families gather for filling meals, now's an excellent time to get out an old-fashioned potato masher and add this easy dish to your cooking repertoire.