I received some lovely zucchinis, mini potatoes, and broccoli (along with lots of other produce) in last week’s organic produce delivery box. Just that same morning, I watched an episode of Barefoot Contessa on recreating chicken hash from Truman Capote’s famous Black and White Ball. My mouth started salivating as soon as I saw Ina putting the finishing product together, and I began thinking about making chicken hash that same night using some of the produce I received.

Here is the recipe. A couple things that I did different: I used zucchini instead of red bell pepper, you can add whatever you like to the mix. And because I didn’t have the time to roast the chicken, and also I only had two pieces of boneless skinless chicken thigh on hand, I simply boil them in water until completely cooked through, cube them, toss them in the pan of potatoes to brown. The chopped basil was added at the end along with the scallions and parsley.

I had a few potatoes left, so I wanted to make mash potatoes. I’ve been traveling and eating junky in this past month, so when I do have time to cook, I try to cook healthier. To make a very healthy, but still smooth, velvety, and satisfying mash potatoes, you only need 4 ingredients, not counting salt and pepper. Here is what I did –

~6 mini potatoes
stems from 3 bunches of broccoli, cut to smaller pieces
4-6 tbsp of greek yogurt
garlic powder to taste, or 1 clove of garlic, minced
salt and pepper

• Boil the potatoes and broccoli stems until fork tender. (Note: The broccoli will be done long before the potatoes, either throw them in the boiling pot a few minutes before the potatoes are done, or boil them in different pots)

• Drain the potatoes and broccoli, put in a medium bowl.

• Add 4 tbsp of yogurt, garlic or garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste.

• Using an immersion blender, blend mixture until smooth. Add more yogurt if the mixture is too chunky.

• Taste the mixture and adjust accordingly.

Note: To make a slightly unhealthier version, you can add some butter, and some shredded Parmesan cheese.