In My Kitchen December 2025- Florida

Yikes. It's December already? Where is the time going? 

I'll be joining Sherry at Sherry's Picking and other bloggers for her IN MY KITCHEN  share... where anyone can join in.

Here's some of what's been happening in my kitchen this past month. 

Mashed Potatoes and Mushroom Gravy

Thanks for stopping by. If you are looking for easy and healthy plant-based gluten-free recipes, you have come to the right place. Today's recipe features potatoes. 

Air-Fryer Potato Poppers

Got potatoes? 

If you like potatoes, you'll love these delicious roasted mashed potato poppers. They are really easy to make and are baked, not fried.

Mashed Potato and Carrots with Rosemary

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Mashed potatoes are one of my favorite comfort foods. This combination of steamed yellow gold potatoes and carrots are mashed and then topped with fragrant fresh rosemary (or dill). This quick and easy recipe is vegan and gluten-free.

 I cubed and steamed the two vegetables until soft and then used an immersion blender to mash them till smooth and creamy. It literally took seconds to blend with the immersion blender. 

This is a delicious yet simple side dish that everyone will love. Personally, I dd not feel it needed any milk to make it creamy. However, if you do like it creamier, you can use a little nut milk such as almond milk before blending. 

Don't Eat Carbs? Read This-

If you have given up eating carbs and potatoes, you may be interested in watching some of Dr. McDougall's Youtube videos explaining the importance of starch in our diet for weight loss.

In addition, there are a variety of individuals who have followed his starch oriented diet for weight loss and have had AMAZING results in weight loss and improved health in every aspect. 

It convinced me. 6 weeks ago, I started his diet. After years on a low carb diet and giving up my favorite foods such as potatoes and rice, I now eat them in quantity and enjoy them every day. 

Lost 12 pounds

Did I mention that in the last 6 weeks of changing nothing else but my diet (I always have walked 4 miles a day every morning), I am now down 12 pounds and LOVING my meals. I'm eating healthier than ever, feel satiated, and have tons of energy. It's a plant-based diet without oil (but does include fats such as avocado, nuts, seeds)

If you have difficulty understanding this idea and think that starch is bad (which by the way that concept was promoted by business and  industry not science,) Plentiful Kiki ( link), who lost 70 pounds on this diet has a number of Youtube videos that follow her journey with ideas and recipes. 

Another inspring individual is on a Youtube channel called, The Jaroudi Family. Brittany, who publishes the channel, also lost 70 on the Starch Solution diet. Both look terrific and have been following a higher carb  vegan non-inflammatory diet for years now. I've also read testimonials from hundreds of people of all ages and genders on the plant-based Forks Over Knives website. 

Of 

Of course the diet includes lots of beans, vegetables, fruits, etc. 

Some examples of my meals 

Breakfast: 

Steel-cut oatmeal, with cinnamon, 2 chopped walnuts, and 1/2 sliced banana

Other meals: 

• I eat baked potatoes stuffed with black beans and salsa, a big salad, and a side of broccoli. 

1. Another example is vegetable chow mein(recipe link) with blanched almonds and a big portion of rice. 

• Or I might eat a big bowl of vegetarian chili with rice and vegetable soup. 
• Or I might eat a bowl of lentil soup, lentil flatbreads(recipe link) with oil-free hummus. 

I will continue to report my weight loss and how I feel. 

After 6 months I plan to redo my bloodwork to see if my high cholesterol (232) and high blood sugar (110) have come down on this diet. I have been a vegan for two years and a vegetarian for 39 or more years, but I ate a lot of vegan convenience food and desserts.

There is a book called Managing Diabetes that documents many diabetics who have eliminated or controlled their type 2 diabetes on a similar higher starch diet. 

Anyway for those who just want a simple delicious mashed potato recipe - this is delicious and easy. 

I added steamed carrot for extra nutrients, color, and appeal. -you can leave out the carrots if you want. 

Ingredients: 

6 yellow gold potatoes, scrubbed and quartered (with skin) 

2 carrots, sliced thick 

2 cups of water for steaming

1 tablespoon of fresh rosemary or fresh dill 

Directions: 

Steam the potatoes and carrots in a steamer basket in a pot on the stove or in the Instant Pot.  ( I steam in the IP for 5 minutes). 

When done, pour off water and using an immersion blender, blend the potatoes and carrots until smooth and creamy about 30 seconds. 

Sprinkle with fresh rosemary.