Over the course of the next month and a half, most of us are going to be running around with a panicked glint in our eyes as we try to get everything done for the holidays. Food can be one of the most stressful aspects of this November-December stretch. Luckily Kim O'Donnel, the washingtonpost.com food blogger extraordinaire, recently wrote a cookbook to help us all come through the trials of holiday cooking with honors.

The book is called A Mighty Appetite for the Holidays: Kitchen Tricks for the Feasting Season and it is full of terrific tips, stories, techniques and recipes (you can buy it here). She offers advice on how to brine a turkey, gives a 7-day cooking timeline for Thanksgiving and also includes a section on what to cook if you find yourself alone on turkey day.

One of the recipes that jumped out at me from the book fits nicely into the alternative side dish category we've been talking about lately. It's for a Parsnip-Potato Mash and seems to be a good way to mix up your regular old potato mashers. The recipe is after the jump. Parsnip-Potato Mash
from A Might Appetite for the Holidays, page 24

Estimate 1-2 medium potatoes per person, waxy skinned varieties (i.e. no Idaho baking varieties), cleaned and quartered.
For every two potatoes, add 1 parsnip, cleaned and roughly chopped.
1-7 ounces of buttermilk, depending on desired creaminess
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
Salt and pepper to taste

Boil potatoes and parsnips in salted water and cook until tender. Drain veg, reserving cooking liquid as backup and toss into a large mixing bowl. With a hand masher, begin mashing and gradually add rosemary, garlic and buttermilk. Mash until you arrive at desired texture anx creaminess. Cooking liquid can be added if you want less dairy but a flavored liquid. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve immediately. Can be made in advance and reheated.