Written by Alicia. Originally published at The Humble Foodie. Cross-posted with permission.

Cauliflower was never my favorite vegetable. As a child, I would only condescend to eat it when it was generously covered with Thousand Island dressing. When I started to learn about the Paleo lifestyle, I found that cauliflower was in many recipes–not exciting. But as I kept experimenting, I realized that cauliflower is one of the most versatile vegetables out there! From cocoa-toasted cauliflower to primal pizza to this roasted vegetable mash, the many possibilities of cauliflower may surprise you. The bright color and hearty consistency of this roasted vegetable mash would make it a great addition to a Sunday dinner of other comfort foods for vegans or Paleo/Primal folks alike.

Good Thyme Roasted Vegetable Mash–Serves 4-6
Prep time: 12 minutes
Cook time: 30-40 minutes

1 head cauliflower
5 medium carrots
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
2-3 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
optional: 2 tablespoons broth

Preheat oven to 350 degree. Cover two baking sheets with aluminum foil and set aside. Wash cauliflower and carrots. Cut cauliflower into “clouds” (strips of about 1/4-1/2 inch thick); peel carrots, halve, and chop into 2-inch segments. In a large mixing bowl, toss vegetables with olive oil, then spread on the two baking sheets. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for 30-40 minutes or until vegetables show lightly darkened spots and are fork-tender.

Remove vegetables from oven and add to the work bowl of a food processor. You can do this in two steps if your food processor is on the small side. Add thyme and broth if using. Process for 30-60 seconds. The mash will stay quite thick, especially if you omit the broth. You may need to open the bowl and redistribute the mash using a spatula, then reprocess and repeat. Process until the mash has a fairly uniform texture with small vegetable chunks. Remove and garnish with thyme as desired.

Alicia is a recent college graduate, aspiring radical homemaker, and one half of the creative cooking team at HumbleFoodie.com, a blog full of recipes for aspiring cooks and experienced foodies alike. Her love of food has led to experiments in gardening, preserving, and (mostly) gluten-free living on the Paleo diet. When not in the kitchen, she can usually be found hiking, writing letters, or curled up with a stack of Young Adult novels.