Cheesy Cauliflower Casserole from 101 Cooking for Two

Name: Cheesy Cauliflower Casserole
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 1 lb frozen cauliflower; 1 cup sour cream; 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese; 3 green onions (sliced thin); 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (coarse ground ); 3 slices bacon (optional. Cooked and crumbled.)

Recipe Table of Contents

4.37 from 60 votes

Everybody will love this baked cheesy cauliflower casserole recipe. A delicious vegetable side dish for any meal that is easy to make and ready in 30 minutes. And it is perfect for gluten-free, low-carb, and keto diets.

cheesy cauliflower casserole on white plate

Table of Contents

Why you will love this recipe
How to make this recipe
The Cauliflower
FAQs
📖 Low-Carb Recipes
🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
📝Full Recipe

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Why you will love this recipe

Tender mashed cauliflower in a flavorful cheesy casserole using all-natural products.
A great vegetable side dish for potato lovers.
It fits well in gluten-free, low-carb, and keto diets.
It only takes 30 minutes to complete and is easy enough for novice cooks.
It can be made ahead and stored.
Add the optional bacon to make it a "loaded cauliflower casserole."
Easy to modify by using a different cheese or adding flavor with your favorite spices and herbs.
Perfect for casual or fancy meals.
The whole family, including the kids, will love this cauliflower casserole.

I was initially inspired by my Old Fashion Cheesy Potato Casserole when we wanted a smaller non-potato casserole side dish over ten years ago and repeated many times since.

How to make this recipe

Preheat oven to 375° convection or 400° conventional.
Cook cauliflower florets in the microwave.
Slice green onions.
Mash the cauliflower with a potato masher. A food processor can be used, but you want some texture, not creamy.
Add cheddar cheese, sour cream, green onion, salt, and pepper. Add bacon if using. Stir well.
Mix well and pour the mixture into a prepared baking dish.
Bake until the top is browned—about 20 minutes.
Let set for 5 minutes before serving.

The Cauliflower

This recipe is perfect for frozen cauliflower florets. No 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.

FAQs

Can cauliflower casserole be frozen?

Yes. 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.

How to store and reheat leftover cauliflower casserole?

Sealed airtight in the refrigerator for three days. Reheating in the microwave, but we prefer the oven.

📖 Low-Carb Recipes

Easy Low Carb Pizza

Low Carb Parmesan-Sesame Crackers

Garlic Mashed Cauliflower

Simple Splenda Lemonade

This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.

🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions

cauliflower with onions cheese and sour cream

Preheat the oven to 375° convection or 400° 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.

Slice 3 green onions.

Prepare a 6 by 9 baking dish or a 9 by 10 Corningware casserole dish with PAM cooking spray.

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 a prepared baking pan. It may be refrigerated or cooked now.

Cook in the oven until the top is browned—about 20 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

📝Full Recipe

Cheesy Cauliflower Casserole

From Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

Tap to leave a Rating

4.37 from 60 votes

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Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Servings #/Adjust if desired 4

Ingredients

US Customary - Convert to Metric

▢ 1 lb frozen cauliflower
▢ 1 cup sour cream
▢ 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
▢ 3 green onions - sliced thin
▢ ½ teaspoon salt
▢ ¼ teaspoon black pepper - coarse ground
▢ 3 slices bacon - optional. Cooked and crumbled.

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375° convection or 400° 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 a prepared baking pan. It may be refrigerated or cooked now.
Cook in the oven until the top is browned—about 20 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

See the step-by-step photos in the post. Some recipes have an option to display the photos here with a switch above these instructions but the photos DO NOT print.

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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% if that is what you have. Cooking time will be about the same.

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

Serving size is my estimate of a normal size unless stated otherwise. The number of servings per recipe is stated above. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.

Course : Main Course|Side Dish

Cuisine : American

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Editor's Note: Originally Published February 25, 2010. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.