C4 Puree
For whatever reason, I found myself with a disparate assortment of vegetables once that were all at risk of spoiling in the near future, so I mixed them all together, and it turned out pretty well. So well, in fact, that this is picture is from the second time that I've made it. Too bad I didn't have any parsnips during either attempt, though. Then it could've been Soviet Puree, because for people that refer to yucca as cassava, the initials of the main ingredients would've been CCCP.
That was an awful pun, even by my standards. But this puree is pretty nice, and the name works better, anyway, since the chili pepper flakes do give it a good kick.
Ingredients:
1 kg yucca root
3 medium carrots
1 cauliflower
2 cups of broth of choice (or water)
3 Tbsp butter
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tsp chili pepper flakes
salt, to taste
(optional) other seasonings, such as black pepper, crushed herbs, etc.
Directions:
Peel the yucca root, and chop it into chunks, trimming out the central fiber.
Put yucca in a pot of water over high heat.
Once the water comes to a boil, let it simmer for 20 minutes before draining through a colander.
Peel the carrots, and chop them into chunks. Place them in a different pot (important to avoid contamination from the chemicals drawn out of the yucca during boiling).
Chop the cauliflower into florets, and place them in the pot with the carrot chunks.
Add broth (or water) and 2 Tbsp of butter.
Put the pot over high heat, bring to a boil, and allow it to simmer until the vegetables are fork tender, usually about 25 minutes.
Once the vegetables are tender, take the pot off from the heat. Do NOT drain it.
In a large bowl, make a puree with yucca (which should be cool enough to handle by now), minced garlic, chili pepper flakes, salt, seasonings, and 1 Tbsp of melted butter. I use an immersion blender, but a hand mixer or perhaps even a handheld masher could work as well. This should be a very thick mixture, so do not be alarmed if it is rather chunky at this stage.
Add the other vegetables and broth gradually, adjusting the proportions until the desired texture is reached. The listed quantities tend to give a somewhat runny puree, so if you are looking for something closer to a typical mashed potato texture, you will likely have some broth left over. This can be set aside for future use.
If desired, garnish with some ground black pepper, crushed herbs, or chili pepper flakes.
