4-Ingredient Cottage Cheese Mashed Potatoes
These cottage cheese mashed potatoes are creamy, delicious, and packed with protein! The best part is that it's made with just 4 ingredients and no heavy cream! It's a light, high-protein twist on the classic recipe. Perfect as a holiday side dish for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner!
Equipment
- Large saucepan or pot
- Blender or immersion blender
- Potato peeler
- Potato masher
Ingredients
- 3 lb Yukon Gold potatoes
- 1 ½ cups cottage cheese
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp chives chopped
Pantry staples
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Prep the ingredients. Wash, peel, and dice the potatoes into large chunks or quarters.
- Blend the cottage cheese in a stand blender, food processor, or with an immersion blender until it’s smooth and creamy.
- Boil the potatoes. Add the diced potatoes to a large pot. Pour cold water over the potatoes until they are just covered. Add 1 teaspoon of salt.
- Place the pot on the stove on high heat. Let the water come to a boil (about 20 minutes).
- Reduce the heat to low-medium and let the potatoes gently simmer until they are fork-tender (about 15 minutes).
- Drain the potatoes in a colander. Do NOT rinse the potatoes after draining. Return the potatoes to the pot. Place the pot back on the stovetop on low.
- Melt the butter in the microwave in 30-second intervals.
- Mash the potatoes. Add warm melted butter and blended cottage cheese on top of the warm potatoes.
- Mash the potatoes, cottage cheese, and melted butter together using a wooden spoon, potato masher, or immersion blender. Don’t overmix the potatoes! Taste and add extra salt if desired.
- Serve and enjoy! Top with chopped chives or mix the chives into the potatoes. Scoop the mashed potatoes into a bowl. Serve with gravy or a pat of butter if desired.
Notes
- Blend the cottage cheese first: I highly highly highly recommend blending the cottage cheese separately first before adding it to the potatoes. During my first trial, I made the mistake of adding the cottage cheese straight from the container and using an immersion blender to mix the potatoes + cottage cheese at the end, but it just turned out a curdled mess.
- Add more flavor: You can customize these mashed potatoes so many different ways! Stir in roasted garlic or some shredded cheddar cheese.
- Make it lighter: Swap butter for olive oil for a lighter version — the potatoes will still turn out creamy and delish!
- Holiday tip: These easy cottage cheese mashed potatoes hold up beautifully on a buffet table. Keep them warm in a slow cooker on “low” for up to 2 hours before serving.
- Serving suggestions: Top with gravy or sprinkle on some chopped chives. You can eat it with roasted turkey, meatloaf, meatballs, or with some greens.