This keto cauliflower mash is better than mashed potatoes. Change my mind. Just kidding – you can’t. A bold claim, but I stand behind it. And believe me, nobody is more surprised than I am at how delicious this low carb cheesy cauliflower puree is!
If you’ve tried keto cauliflower mash or cauliflower puree before and found it lacking, I totally feel your pain!
I’be been on various low carb diets since the 90’s (1990’s – I’m not THAT old), and had heard many people tout mashed cauliflower as an acceptable substitute for mashed potatoes. I’d tried it a few times and always…..meh, not so great.
I think part of the problem for me is that keto cauliflower purees always seem too watery and don’t have that true starchy mouth feel of real potatoes. I had long ago put mashed cauliflower in the category of “better than nothing but nowhere near as good as mashed potatoes.”
Steaming or boiling the cauliflower always ends up in a watery, greyish, flavorless mess. If that’s been your experience, then I’m excited to introduce you to this keto cauliflower mash recipe – where I solved the problem by microwaving the cauliflower uncovered, which concentrates the flavors and also allows a lot of the liquid to evaporate while cooking, leaving you with a much thicker end result.
In addition to the consistency issue, my other problem with low carb cauliflower mash recipes has always been the funky, skunky flavor natural to cauliflower. The addition of a strong Irish cheddar cheese made all the difference! It embraced the funk and transformed it into a complex flavor that I couldn’t get enough of!
The naturally sweet flavor of the cooked cauliflower paired with the extra sharp cheddar in this cauliflower puree made regular mashed potatoes seem boring and one note by comparison. And I’m a person who loves mashed potatoes!
If you’re on the fence, and are worried about being disappointed yet again by another keto mashed cauliflower recipe claiming to replace mashed potatoes, then I implore you to scroll down and the read the comments of all the people who were skeptical at first, but had their minds blown when they gave this cauliflower puree recipe a try.
Then be sure to let us know what you think!
Tips for Making the Best Cauliflower Puree
Be sure to watch the recipe video in this post to see how we do it, and how easy it is – even when making smallish batches.
First, try to choose a head of cauliflower that feels heavy, and has tightly packed florets. If the head is loose and there is a lot of visible stem, you will likely end up with a grainy cauliflower mash from the thick membrane on the outer stem. If using stems and they seem thick, peel them with a paring knife to get that membrane off and you will be rewarded with the creamiest cauliflower puree of your life.
Second, be sure to trim your cauliflower into pieces that are no more than 2 inches in size. If you cook the cauliflower and there are some tiny pieces and some huge pieces, you will inevitably be left with some that are overcooked and shriveled, as well as some cauliflower pieces that are left raw in the middle – that will also result in a grainy puree.
If you can’t get Irish cheddar, a decent brand of extra sharp grocery store cheddar (like cabot or Cracker Barrel) will do – but don’t use the cheapest brand, or anything pre-shredded, or you won’t get nearly enough flavor to balance out your cauliflower mash.
Which Appliance Works the Best
If you read through the comments you’ll find that people did not have great results with blending this cauliflower mash in a food processor. If it’s what you’ve got, then it’s better than nothing, but you’ll find that it will not produce a creamy, smooth cauliflower mash – it’s just not built for that.
My favorite way to make this cheesy cauliflower mash is in my Nutribullet because I can easily shake up the cup to redistribute the cauliflower pieces while blending.
When making larger batches, I have made it in my trusty Blendtec blender (and back in the day my Vitamix) with good results, but it can be annoying to have to remove the lid multiple times to stir the mixture with a spatula to get it to blend. Since we are looking for a nice, thick consistency to our cauliflower mash, we don’t want to add more liquid to make it blend too easily or it will be a very loose puree.
So for that reason my favorite appliance for making this recipe is the NutriBullet, or some other kind of bullet style blender.
More Delicious Cauliflower Mash Recipes
- Bacon & Smoked Gouda Cauliflower Puree
- Cheddar Leek Cauliflower Mash
- Garlic and Chive Cauliflower Mash (Dairy free and SCKC friendly)
- Jalapeno Popper Cauliflower Mash Casserole
- Pepperoni Pizza Cauliflower Mash Casserole
Now you’ve got all of your keto side dishes covered, but if you’re in need of more keto dinner ideas to serve with this cauliflower mash, check out this post of keto dinner recipes next!
Cheesy Cauliflower Mash – Keto, low carb
- Total Time: 17 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups 1x
- Diet: Diabetic
Description
This Keto Cheesy Cauliflower Puree is so thick, creamy, and delicious, you’ll never miss mashed potatoes again!
Ingredients
- 1 large head of cauliflower
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 ounces Dubliner Irish Cheddar or other sharp cheddar cheese
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Clean and trim the cauliflower, breaking it into medium sized pieces.
- Place in a microwave safe bowl with the cream and butter.
- Microwave, uncovered, on high for six minutes.
- Add the garlic powder and stir to coat cauliflower with cream/butter mixture. Microwave for another six minutes on high.
- Check that your biggest florets are fork tender, if still hard, microwave another 5 minutes.
- Remove from the microwave and spoon the cooked cauliflower and any liquid into a magic bullet or high speed blender.
- Add the cheese and puree until smooth.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Category: Keto Side dish
- Method: microwave
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/2 cup
- Calories: 148
- Fat: 11g
- Carbohydrates: 4g
- Protein: 6g
New to the low carb lifestyle and need some help? Try my free 3 day kickstart plan to get into ketosis fast! Then follow it up with any of my 12 free weekly menu plans – complete with shopping and prep lists!
You can also download all five of my ebooks, loaded with tasty original low carb recipes in a special bundle for just $19.99!!!
SanLynn says
Ahh! LOVE <3 I’m a potato girl but watching the calories and carbs lead me to your post. I did some sub’s fat free half & half for heavy whipping cream, light butter spread, and reduced fat sharp cheddar. Fan-tab-ulous. Thanks for sharing :o)
Mellissa Sevigny (sevimel) says
SanLynn so glad you liked it! I’m going to try the low fat version since a lot of people say it’s great – definitely wouldn’t mind reducing the calories some! Thanks for the feedback!
Anonymous says
Has anyone ever tried making this with frozen cauliflower florrets? I have a large bag in my freezer and was wondering if it would work? This sounds good!
Mellissa Sevigny (sevimel) says
A few people have tried with good results! Thaw and drain it first, then cook it in the microwave (alone) for 5 minutes and then drain again. THEN add the cream & butter, cook for another 4-5 minutes until soft and blend with the cheese. I haven’t tried it that way myself yet but a few people commented here and on facebook that it worked well! Let us know! Hope you like it!
Jessica C. says
AMAZING!!! If in doubt, MAKE THIS!! I just made some, and am eating it as I type! I did use organic SKIM milk instead of cream and you would never know the difference, it’s so creamy and delicious. I was never a huge fan of cauliflower mash, only because I used a mixer and it never turned out creamy and I ended up just wanting real potatoes even more, I promise this does the trick! I will crave this and potatoes will be a thing of the past!
Mellissa Sevigny (sevimel) says
Thanks Jessica! I’m so glad you liked it! And it’s awesome to know that the skim worked instead of cream for all of my low fat peeps out there! I know exactly what you mean about cauli mash having been a disappointment in the past and just making you miss potatoes more! I’m thrilled this did the trick for you! :)
It's Just Me says
I saw this on Pinterest – I’m doing Dukan so low carb, but low fat. So I used Fat free canned milk, butter flavored pam spray, fat free cream cheese and fat free cheddar cheese – Oh YUM!!! What a treat. And my husband liked them too! I dressed them up with some chopped green onion and fat free sour cream. I will be making these all the time. Totally got my ‘gotta have something starchy’ craving taken care of!
Mellissa Sevigny (sevimel) says
Thanks for the comment! Glad it worked for you even in a low fat version! I wondered if it was all the fat that made it taste so good – good to know it’s still delicious even without it! :)
Mellissa Sevigny (sevimel) says
Hey A, I’m sorry it was a disappointment for you! I’m pretty sure I know why and hopefully this helps. A mixer no matter how strong will never get a perfectly smooth puree. You have to use a blender, magic bullet, or a food processor on high. The mixer will break it up some but then just moves it around, it won’t bread down the clumps enough. Try it again in one of the other appliances I mentioned if you have one and let me know how it works out! Don’t give up after this one mishap – it’ll be worth it! :)
Anonymous says
I had the same problem and the blender I was using wouldn’t move it around. It just kept getting jammed up in the bottom. I’ll try the Magic Bullet…don’t have a food processor yet.
That said – the taste is great! so I’m still eating hte lumpy stuff today :)
Michelle
Maggie says
Mine is lumpy, too–but that’s because I made a newbie mistake and didn’t cook my cauliflower long enough! I kept thinking it was burning up in there–so mine’s a little lumpy, BUT it’s STILL GOOD. That’s how good this mash is.
Anonymous says
I am not sure what I did wrong but I put my cauliflour in for much longer and it still wasnt very soft and still did not mash up. I have newer microwave that works good and I have a kitchen aid commercial mixer. I have no idea mine was chunky.
Mellissa Sevigny (sevimel) says
Yay! So glad you loved it! I do love it most with the dubliner cheese too when I can find it!
Anonymous says
Just stumbled upon your website looking for some new and exciting ways to expand my low carb recipe repertoire. Oh my! this was amazing!! I’ve made cauliflower mash a few times and tried to pass it off as a substitute for the old fave but… it’s still just mashed cauliflower. Tasty because I love cauliflower but doesn’t quite satisfy that comfort food mashed potato thing. This IS IT!!!! My new favourite mash. I happened to have some Dubliner cheese (which I just discovered last summer-love it) and I used half & half cream, veggie salt and freshly ground pepper. Whizzed it all up in the Vitamix and went straight to veggie heaven. So simple- so delicious. Thank you so much!
Anonymous says
Thank you Mellissa! I also, made an small change to the recipe and I used non-fat cream cheese and non-fat butter, which work wonderfully!
Mellissa Sevigny (sevimel) says
I Love goat cheese! I wondered how it would taste but hadn’t tried it yet! Thanks for the idea, I’m going to try it in my next batch! Just ate some for dinner and yesterday I had it for breakfast! Can’t get enough of the cauli mash lately!