Mashed cauliflower is a tasty low-carb or keto alternative for mashed potatoes. This version is extra flavorful because everything is roasted in the oven. It only takes 5 ingredients for a healthy, delicious side dish!
It's naturally gluten free and using your favorite non-dairy milk, it can also be easily made vegan.
I love making this with weeknight dinners because cauliflower is high in fiber and a great source of antioxidants.
My preferred way to prepare most vegetables is roasting. I put them on a sheet tray in the oven at 400F for 20 minutes which roasts them. Roasting adds extra flavor because it caramelizes the natural sugars in the vegetables. Roasting also pulls out water from the veggies which can many times improve the texture.
This same method of roasting is what I use to make this creamy mashed cauliflower side dish. Most mashed cauliflower recipes have you boil the cauliflower. But, boiling adds water to the vegetables so when you go to mash them, they can be more watery or grainy.
Roasting means we're extracting water and we can get a super light and fluffy mash that's just like regular mashed potatoes.
I also add a clove of garlic to the roasting pan which adds so much depth and flavor to the mashed cauliflower.
After you've roasted the cauliflower, because it's pretty delicious on its own, we don't need to add a lot of extra ingredients. Salt, milk (or your favorite milk substitute), and a little bit of olive oil are all you need to finish this dish.
I use a food processor to blend up the cauliflower. Generally, I'll have to scrape down the sides a few times to get everything evenly blended.
I use macadamia nut milk for the milk, but you can use any milk or cream you'd like based on your dietary needs and preferences.
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Creamy Mashed Cauliflower
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 - 6 servings
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: American
Description
Mashed cauliflower is a tasty low-carb or keto alternative for mashed potatoes. This version is extra flavorful because everything is roasted in the oven. It only takes 5 ingredients for a healthy, delicious side dish!
Ingredients
- 9 cups fresh cauliflower florets (35 oz / about 2 medium heads, trimmed)
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- ¼ cup avocado oil, divided
- 1 ¼ tsp salt, divided
- ½ cup milk
- ¼ tsp pepper
- Butter for melting on top, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F
- Place the chopped cauliflower and cloves of garlic onto a baking sheet and toss with half of the oil (approx 2 Tbs) and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt.
- Put the pan of cauliflower into the oven at 400F for 25 minutes until the cauliflower is tender when you spear it with a fork and just a little browned on top.
- Remove the cauliflower and garlic on the sheet tray from the oven and transfer to a food processor. Add the remaining 2 Tbs oil and the ½ cup of milk to the processor and blend until the desired consistency is reached. You may need to take off the lid of the processor and scrape down the sides a few time to get all of the larger pieces processed. If you like a thinner mash, add more milk a Tablespoon at a time.
- Add additional salt to the mashed cauliflower to taste.
- Transfer the mashed cauliflower to a serving dish and top with pats of butter and cracked black pepper if you'd like.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 154
- Sugar: 5.9 g
- Sodium: 282.2 mg
- Fat: 10.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 14.6 g
- Fiber: 5.6 g
- Protein: 5.8 g
- Cholesterol: 0.2 mg
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!