Our Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls recipe feature potatoes mashed with just enough butter and milk, topped with a healthy mix of ground turkey, onions, peppers, spinach and turkey bacon for a hearty dish to enjoy while watching the big game. Disclosure: This Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls post is sponsored by the Idaho® Potato Commission in conjunction with a social media campaign through Sunday Supper LLC. All opinions are my own.
It’s almost time for the big game! In addition getting ready to cheer for your favorite team, that means planning some great food options for a crowd of hungry football fans.
Recipes featuring Idaho® potatoes can be the MVP of your game day lineup! Hearty Idaho® potatoes can be served in so many ways, combined with flavors your fans will cheer about.
Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls
We made some delicious Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls for our special game day fare with golden Idaho® potatoes. Golden Idaho® potatoes have a naturally creamy flavor, so you just need a modest amount of butter and milk to make mashed potatoes when using them.
I cooked up turkey, onions, spinach and turkey bacon in a skillet as the golden Idaho® potatoes boiled. These healthy and flavorful ingredients added great taste to our Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls, while keeping the “healthy” going in the title!
Idaho® Potato Benefits and Serving Options
There are a lot of great reason to choose Idaho® potatoes, whether it be for a game day feast or simple weekday supper. Here are three reasons Idaho® potatoes are my choice for potatoes:
- They make the best mashed potatoes, with great consistency and taste. The golden Idaho® potatoes were definitely awesome in our Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls.
- Idaho® potatoes have a strong commitment to quality, including research on the latest growing techniques and food safety issues.
- Our family has always had a preference for Idaho® potatoes. My Irish American family, no stranger to potatoes, always chose Idaho® potatoes when I was growing up. So it’s no surprise I make the same choice when I’m at the grocery store!
OK, this is kind of like a point #4, but Idaho® potatoes are so versatile, and that definitely is a great quality for a game day crowd! While you could certainly build your big game plan around my Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls, there are a lot of other options too.
You might try setting up a potato bar, using mashed potatoes or baked Idaho® potatoes as your base, with all kinds of topping options. Spread out some cheese, bacon, sour cream and may some avocado alongside the potatoes and let people top the potatoes off as they choose.
Idaho® potatoes can also be the star ingredient of a hearty casserole; potatoes are great combined with baked melted cheese! I also love a good potato soup, and think that our Irish Potato Cabbage Soup with Bacon and Cheddar might be game day worthy.
Those are a few of my ideas to get your wheels turning. The Sunday Supper tastemakers have many more for you, with a variety of Idaho® potatoes. After my recipe instructions, you’ll find links to their recipes along with information on how to connect with Idaho® potatoes online.
Pairings for Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls
There certainly tend be a few beers cracked open during the big game in our experience. I would say a good lager would be a suitable pairing for our Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls.
We did test our a wine pairing for those that might like some vino as they watch the big game and enjoy their Idaho® potatoes. We opened a Cote du Rhone blend of Syrah and Grenache grapes, and it worked reasonably well. I would say a Merlot would be a good, straightforward pairing for the Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls as well.
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Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls
Golden Idaho® Potatoes mashed with just enough butter and milk, topped with a healthy mix of ground turkey, onions, peppers, spinach and turkey bacon for a hearty dish to enjoy while watching the big game.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- FOR THE MASHED POTATOES
- 3 lbs Golden Idaho® Potatoes, peeled and quartered
- ½ cup 2 % milk plus 1 tablespoon milk reserved
- 3 tbsp butter plus 1 teaspoon butter reserved
- salt & pepper to taste
- FOR THE GROUND TURKEY TOPPING
- oil spray
- 2 strips turkey bacon
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 red or orange bell pepper
- 1.5 lbs ground turkey
- ¾ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp ground fennel
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- 6 to 8 olives, sliced
Instructions
- Begin boiling water for the potatoes. Add the Golden Idaho® Potatoes when the water is boiling. The potatoes will take about 20 to 25 minutes to be tender and ready for mashing. Prepare the turkey topping as the potatoes boil.
- Put a large skillet on medium high heat, and spray with cooking oil. Add the turkey bacon, and cook until it is browned on both sides, about 10 minutes. Remove the turkey bacon and place on a plate with a paper towel on top to absorb excess grease. When the bacon has cooled, break it into bite sized bits.
- Add the olive oil to the skillet used for the turkey bacon, and heat on medium. Add the onions, and cook until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the bell pepper and cook for a few more minutes.
- Push the onions and peppers to the side of the skillet, and add the ground turkey to the center. Add the garlic powder and fennel. Cook the turkey, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes.
- When the turkey is almost cooked through, stir in the baby spinach and the balsamic vinegar. Cook for a few more minutes until the turkey is cooked through. When the turkey is cooked and the spinach wilted, keep warm on low heat as you make mashed potatoes.
- As the turkey cooks, check the Golden Idaho® Potatoes for doneness. The potatoes are done when they are tender and easily pierced with a fork, which should take about 20 to 25 minutes boiling time.
- When the potatoes are cooked, drain the potatoes.
- Return the drained potatoes to the pan, immediately mash the potatoes with 3 tablespoons butter and ½ cup milk. Add salt and pepper to taste; go easy on the salt as the turkey topping has good flavor. Adjust butter and milk quantities as needed, but you shouldn’t need much more butter than called for to make delicious mashed Golden Idaho® Potatoes.
- When the potatoes are mashed to your liking, add the remaining milk and butter to the top of the potatoes. Cover the potatoes and keep on low heat until ready to serve.
- When everything is ready and you are set to dish up the mashed potato bowls, give the potatoes a good stir to incorporate the extra butter and potatoes. Take a generous scoop of potatoes and place in a bowl. Top with a scoop of the turkey mixture, then sprinkle a few olive slices and bits of bacon to serve. Enjoy!
Keywords: potato bowls, recipes with ground turkey
Connect with Idaho® Potatoes Online
Sunday Supper Recipes with Idaho® Potatoes
Fingerling Potatoes
- Cajun Taters & Sausage by Cosmopolitan Cornbread
- Cheesy Bacon Potato Bite-Sized Snacks by Life Tastes Good
- Fingerling Potato Bacon Flatbread by Family Foodie
- Potato Football Candy by Shockingly Delicious
- Slow Cooker Buffalo Potato “Wings” by Food Done Light
Golden Potatoes
- Healthier Mashed Potato Bowls by Cooking Chat
- Persian Lamb Stuffed Potato Cakes by Caroline’s Cooking
- Potato Salad Tortilla Bowls by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
- Pulled Pork Potato Skins by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
- Steak and Potato Pizza by Grumpy’s Honeybunch
Red Potatoes
- Buffalo Smashed Potatoes by A Mind “Full” Mom
- Cheesy Sausage Stuffed Red Potatoes by Serena Bakes Simply From Scratch
- Cuban Garlic Mojo Potato Salad by Go Epicurista
- Tempura Cheesy Potato Balls by Cricket’s Confections
Russet Potatoes
- Best Potato Wedges by Moore or Less Cooking
- Buffalo Blue Cheese Potato Bites by Dizzy Busy and Hungry
- Loaded Curly Fries with Gouda Cheese Sauce by Casa de Crews
- Potato and Chive Mini Waffles by My Life Cookbook
- Potato Blue Cheese Tartlets by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
- Potato Nacho Stacks by The Wimpy Vegetarian
- Bacon Parmesan Potato Pavé Squares by Sunday Supper Movement
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Denise Wright
I love healthier versions of dishes but this looks so good it you wouldn’t even know it was healthier. I might eat this for dinner this week!
Cooking Chat
Thanks Denise! it is still scrumptious, just some modest tweaks to give it the “healthier” in the name!
Dorothy at Shockingly Delicious
Now THIS is my kind of dinner bowl! Packed full of good stuff and greens! I’m sharing on Facebook, you know where. Nice being at the spud football buffet with you!
Cooking Chat
Thanks for the feedback and sharing, Dorothy! will have to go like that share on FB.
Liz
A win-win recipe! My hubby would get his mashed potatoes and I’d get a lightened up meal! A delicious meal at that!
Nettie Moore
This looks like my kind of healthy!
Caroline
I always use a fairly small amount of butter with good potatoes and I agree it’s great you’d never know. Love all the toppings.
Cooking Chat
Thanks Caroline!
Cindy Kerschner
Nice looking mashed potato bowl. I’d love ground turkey for a change!
Serena
This looks so good! My family will love it!
Cooking Chat
Thanks Serena!
Constance Smith
This looks amazing!!
Marion Myers
The Gold potatoes are my favorite for mashed potatoes. You can’t beat that creamy texture! This bowl sounds amazing, David. I know my husband would be thrilled with this combo for sure. Thanks for sharing!
Cooking Chat
Thanks Marion, the gold do mash perfectly!
Kristin @ Dizzy Busy and Hungry
I love that this recipe is healthier, it will help me stay away from all the other high calorie snacks!
Jodi Crowley
The perfect comfort food!