Kale Mashed Potatoes with Fried Shallots

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The best food inspirations often come from the Interwebs. I stumbled upon a couple of kale mashed potatoes recipe online yesterday and thought I'd mesh them up (haw haw) and make a hybrid version. The first recipe came from Ginger Beat, with her garlicky kale mashed potatoes. The second recipe came from 101 Cookbooks, with kale and olive oil mashed potatoes.

Here's my take on this dish:

• 2 large russet potatoes
• 1 bunch of kale, stems removed and chopped
• 3 tablespoons of olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 4 cloves of garlic, sliced
• 1 shallot, sliced thin
• 1/4 cup of dried white navy beans or cannellini beans, soaked for at least 1 hour (or 1/2 of a 15-ounce can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed)
  
• salt to taste

Bake potatoes in 400 degree oven until a paring knife can be inserted easily, about 45 minutes. Boil beans in a large pot of water seasoned with a pinch of salt until tender, about 1 hour. Boil kale in a large pot of water until tender, about 20 minutes. Reserve some of the liquid from boiling kale.

Heat up olive oil in a small sauce pan, then add sliced garlic. Fry garlic slowly until browned, about 8 minutes. In the meantime, peel the potatoes and pass them through a ricer. It's important to press the potatoes while they are still hot, otherwise you may get a grainy texture. Mash cooked white beans to a fine paste or pass them through a ricer. Add beans and kale to the potato and set aside.

Remove garlic from olive oil. Add sliced shallot and fry until brown and crispy, about 5 to 10 minutes. Pour oil with shallot into the potato mixture. Season with salt. Mash the mixture together. Drizzle in about 1 additional tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil. If the mixture is not creamy enough, add some of the kale liquid and mix until smooth.

I know there's no butter or cream in this recipe, but I don't think anyone will be disappointed with this (relatively) healthy mashed potatoes. It's not as creamy as your regular butter and milk variety, but it's light, rustic and flavorful.