Leslie, are potatoes bad for you?
By themselves, potatoes are a healthy food. One medium sized potato -- with the skin -- has 129 calories, zero grams of fat, 4 grams of fibre and 17 milligrams of vitamin C. And it's an excellent source of potassium, a mineral that helps keep blood pressure in check. In fact, one medium potato has twice as much potassium as a serving of spinach!
Sweet potatoes are more nutritious than white potatoes -- and they're a little lower in calories. Unlike white potatoes, sweet potatoes have plenty of beta-carotene, an antioxidant linked with cancer prevention.
But depending on how you cook potatoes -- or what you add to them -- they can quickly become a high calorie and high fat side dish.
What about classic mashed potatoes…how do they rate?
Mashed potatoes are made with butter, whole milk or cream and salt and pepper to taste.
Let's start with the worst -- mashed potatoes made with butter and heavy cream. And let's consider a portion size that people typically eat -- 1 to 1.5 cups.
- Mashed potatoes, made with butter and cream, 1.5 cups, 380 calories, 22 g fat, 830 mg sodium
If you add 1/2 cup of gravy to these potatoes you'll bump the calorie count to 440 and fat to 24 grams! Consider that this side dish has as many calories and as much fat as a McDonald's Double Cheeseburger!
Some people like to add extra butter to their mashed potatoes at the table. Keep in mind that 1 tablespoon of butter adds 100 calories. Calorie-wise, now you're talking a McDonald's Big Mac!
You'll save calories if you make mashed potatoes with milk instead of cream and you downsize your portion to 1/2 cup.
- Mashed potatoes, made with butter and low fat (1 per cent) milk, 1/2 cup, 75 calories, 4 grams fat, 333 milligrams sodium
How do other potato dishes score in terms of nutrition?
Let's start with some of the most decadent.
- Twice Baked potato, large 450 calories, 12 g fat, 666 milligrams sodium
- Scalloped potatoes, 1 cup 216 calories, 9 g fat, 820 milligrams sodium
- Baked potato, 1 medium 129 calories, 0 g fat, 17 milligrams of sodium
- Baked sweet potato, 1 medium 103 calories, 0 g fat, 41 milligrams sodium
What are some ways to make our Thanksgiving mashed potato experience healthier?
There are plenty of ways to enjoy mashed potatoes this weekend that aren't laden with fat and calories.
- For starters, use less butter; use it only to flavour not to achieve a smooth consistency. Use more milk -- 1 per cent instead of whole milk -- to add creaminess.
- You can also substitute evaporated milk or fat-free sour cream for heavy cream to add that silky texture.
- Use Yukon Gold potatoes instead of Russet potatoes. Yukon Gold potatoes have a buttery flavour and creamy texture which allow you to get away with less butter.
- To reduce butter, add fresh herbs for flavour such as parsley, thyme or chives. Or mash a head of roasted garlic into the potatoes.
- Try making a root vegetable mash that includes potatoes. This side dish has plenty of flavour. You won't need much butter and you certainly won't want gravy to hide the taste. Great combinations include potato-turnip, potato-parsnip, and potato-celery root (celeriac).
- Watch portion size. If you're counting calories stick to 1/2
