This Cheesy Cauliflower Casserole is easy to make with frozen or fresh cauliflower, sour cream, and cheddar cheese in only 30 minutes.
It is a perfect side dish for potato lovers that fits well in gluten-free, keto, and low-carb diets.
Ingredients
Frozen cauliflower
Sour cream
Cheddar cheese
Green onions
Salt and black pepper
Baconโoptional
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Featured Comment by Sally :
"This is delicious and I make it a lot."
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This cheese cauliflower bake is a delicious vegetable side dish with tender mashed cauliflower in a flavorful cheesy sauce using all-natural products.
Easy to modify by using a different cheese or adding flavor with your favorite spices and herbs. This 30 minutes to complete and is easy enough for novice cooks.
๐จโ๐ณHow to Make Cheesy Cauliflower CasseroleโStep by Step
1. Preheat the oven to 375ยฐ convection or 400ยฐ conventional.
2. Use frozen cauliflower and cook 1 pound of cauliflower florets in the microwave. Follow the instructions on the package.
2b. For Fresh Cauliflower: One medium head of cauliflower (about 2 pounds) will trim out to about 1 pound of well-trimmed florets.
Place the fresh cauliflower florets in a large microwave-safe bowl with a couple of tablespoons of water. Cover the bowl loosely but not tightly. Cook on high until tender, 4 to 5 minutes, then drain.
3. Prepare a 6 by 9 baking dish or a 9 by 10 Corningware casserole dish with PAM cooking spray.
4. Slice 3 green onions.
5. Move cauliflower to the large mixing bowl and mash with a potato masher or forks. You could also use a mixer or food processor, but you are NOT trying to cream this. Add sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, green onion, salt, and black pepper. Bacon is optional.
6. Mix well and pour the mixture into a prepared baking pan. It may be refrigerated or cooked now.
7. Cook in the oven until the top is brownedโabout 20 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
Related recipes to try
If you are trying to follow a low-carb diet, check out these popular low-carb recipes. Start with super easy Low Carb Tortilla Pizza and add some crunch with Low Carb Parmesan-Sesame Crackers. And top it off with Splenda Lemonade by the glass.
Or try some other cauliflower recipes like Garlic Mashed Cauliflower and Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower.
Making ahead
You can freeze cauliflower casserole after assembly but before cooking or freeze leftovers after cooking sealed airtight for three months.
To reheat or cook, thaw completely.
Storage of leftovers
Sealed airtight in the refrigerator for three days or feeze for 3 months. Reheating in the microwave, but we prefer the oven.
What cauliflower to use
This is a perfect frozen cauliflower recipeโno need to thaw the cauliflower. Just cook it according to the package instructions.
The recipe is for one pound of florets, but bags have gotten smaller. Now, most frozen cauliflower comes in 12 oz. bags. If you use 12 oz., please adjust other ingredients.
You can use fresh cauliflower. One medium head of cauliflower (about 2 pounds) will trim out to about 1 pound of well-trimmed florets.
You should precook the fresh cauliflower in a microwave or boil it.
For the Microwave: Place the cauliflower florets in a large microwave-safe bowl with a couple of tablespoons of water. Cover the bowl loosely but not tightly. Cook on high until tender, 4 to 5 minutes, and drain.
๐ Recipe
Cheesy Cauliflower Casserole
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Ingredients
- 1 lb frozen cauliflower
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
- 3 green onions - sliced thin
- ยฝ teaspoon salt
- ยผ teaspoon black pepper - coarse ground
- 3 slices bacon - optional. Cooked and crumbled.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ยฐ convection or 400ยฐ conventional.
- Use frozen cauliflower and cook 1 pound of cauliflower florets in the microwave. Follow the instructions on the package. For Fresh Cauliflower: One medium head of cauliflower (about 2 pounds) will trim out to about 1 pound of well-trimmed florets.Place the fresh cauliflower florets in a large microwave-safe bowl with a couple of tablespoons of water. Cover the bowl loosely but not tightly. Cook on high until tender, 4 to 5 minutes, then drain.
- Prepare a 6 by 9 baking dish or a 9 by 10 Corningware casserole dish with PAM cooking spray.
- Slice 3 green onions.
- Move cauliflower to the large mixing bowl and mash with a potato masher or forks. You could also use a mixer or food processor, but you are NOT trying to cream this. Add sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, green onion, salt, and black pepper. Bacon is optional.
- Mix well and pour the mixture into aย prepared baking pan. It may be refrigerated or cooked now.ย
- Cook in the oven until the top is brownedโabout 20 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- Make it "loaded" by adding 3 slices of cooked and crumbled bacon.
- It reheats well in a microwave, but we prefer the oven.
- Pan size. I usually use a 7 X 10 Corning Ware dish. A 6X9 or an 8 X 8 would be good, or anything in about that size range.
- Since this was originally published, many bags of frozen cauliflower have "shrunk" to 12 oz from 1 pound. The recipe will need to be decreased by 25% ย if that is what you have. Cooking time will be about the same.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
ยฉ 101 Cooking for Two, LLC. All content and photographs are copyright protected by us or our vendors. While we appreciate your sharing our recipes, please realize copying, pasting, or duplicating full recipes to any social media, website, or electronic/printed media is strictly prohibited and a violation of our copyrights.
I was initially inspired by my Cheesy Potatoes with Real Potatoes when we wanted a smaller non-potato casserole side dish over ten years ago and repeated many times since.
Editor's Note: Originally Published February 25, 2010. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Susan Reed says
I loved how tasty, quick and simple this recipe is! Thank you!
Sylvia says
I just made it with frozen cauliflower, I didnโt squeeze out the water so it came out watery. The sour cream didnโt sit well with me so I might use Greek Yogurt and maybe cream cheese. I would definitely make this again with some tweaks to suit my taste. Thanks for the recipe.
Leah says
I made it with fat free Greek yogurt replacing the sour cream and it came out well. I used an 8x8 Pyrex casserole dish and it needed to be baked at 375 for 40 min not 20 in order to brown. Totally crave-worthy!
Lisa says
This was great! Used a little less cheese though.
Kate says
These were so good! My husband hates cauliflower. I gave him a bite and he immediately went and grabbed a plate to get a serving! :)
Vicky says
Tried this tonight and it was great left out sour cream for less calories and was still delicious
jen says
What size pan did you use?
DrDan says
I usually use a 7X10 (approx.) Corning dish but that is about equal to a 9 inch round cake pan. The size of the dish doesn't matter much.
DrDan says
I have seen similar recipes with cream cheese but not my taste. A common substitute for sour cream is plain yogurt but I have not tried it here. If you try the yogurt, please post the results here. Inquiring minds want to know. I would give it a trial run soon and not depend on it working well for Thanksgiving without testing.
Michelle says
This sounds great, thinking of taking for Thanksgiving! Is there anything I could use instead of sour cream?
Jen says
This was awesome! I love funeral potatoes, but these were so similar. My husband isn't a big cauliflower fan and he loved them.
Mrs. Leeberg says
This recipe is beyond delicious! It has become a staple side dish ever since we started eating low carb high fat. Sometimes I add a little bacon and/or Uncle Dan's ranch seasoning to it, just to change it up a bit. Thank you so much for sharing!
Jane says
I was wondering if you knew the calories, etc. for a serving. I made it and my family loved it.
DrDan says
1090 per recipe which is 272 per serving assuming 4 servings but those are large servings This is low carb not low fat. You can decrease that by about 20% if you use lower fat sour cream and cheese.
Thanks for the note and rating
DrDan
Karen Dwyer says
It's even more delicious with lots of bacon crumbled into it!
Meredith Brasca says
Very tasty! I was in a bit of a hurry, so I put in in the microwave for 5 minutes, stirred it, and then into the oven for 5 to brown the top. My dad - who does not like cauliflower, liked this. He likes a bit of crunch so I sprinkled some panko crumbs on top and hit broil for 1 more minute. Came out great.
jen says
Love the panko crust idea! I'm trying this tonight
Chelsea says
Do you think this could be made in a crock pot? If so, any suggestions on cooking times/temps?
DrDan says
Most things "can" be cooking in a crock pot. Since nothing is raw except the onion (which doesn't matter much) it is safe. So you just need to get it hot enough to melt and combine ingredients. I will just guess 1 hour on high and then check it since it may take 2 hours. If you try it please post your results. We like the browned top so I won't be doing it.
DrDan
carolyn says
yummm can't wait to try so easy. Thanks. I love CC