GAPS Legal Twice Baked Cauliflower "Mashed Potato" with Cheese Recipe
Stop whatever dinner plans you have and go buy a cauliflower! This recipe is the best side dish I have ever had... and I don't even really like cauliflower that much!
Every time I think about it I involuntarily smile and say "yum" to myself (or out loud).
It may be the butter.
Truly, this is a scrumptious recipe. And you can make it dairy-free by using lard (or ghee) and omitting the cheese. It's still delicious that way.
You can make this recipe as a side for a larger party, or make a batch for just yourself to re-heat as leftovers (but not in a microwave... see this post about reheating without a microwave). This recipe is just as good (if not slightly better) when reheated.
In these pictures I used a deeper dish. This works great but the cheese-to-potatoes ratio is sometimes a bit thin, so if you have a choice I would recommend using a dish that is more shallow. Or you can always added some extra grated cheese to each serving immediately after serving, or when reheating.
This dish goes great with poultry (Thanksgiving is coming!), but also pairs with steak.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Twice Baked Cauliflower "Mashed Potatoes"
This recipe can easily be halved!
Ingredients for Twice Baked Cauliflower
14 cups of Cauliflower (for me, this was 1 large and 1 medium cauliflower)
1 cup of Butter or Lard
1 tsp of Salt
5 oz Cheddar Cheese (If you are the GAPS Diet, omit the cheese until you are on Full GAPS.)
Directions for Twice Baked Cauliflower
Preheat your oven to 350. In a large pot, add about 1 cup of water. Place a steam basket in the bottom.
Cut cauliflower into cubes for quick steaming. You can also steam the head whole if you need to.
Remove the stem of the cauliflower. It’s too fibrous to eat. Once you’re past the stem of the cauliflower, you can also break the florets off instead of cutting them.
Steam the cauliflower for 15 minutes. Check every 5 minutes to make sure you have enough water and aren’t burning the bottom of your pan. The cauliflower only needs to be soft enough to go in a food processor because they’ll be baked again.
Working in batches, add cauliflower to food processor and process until smooth or riced.
Add riced cauliflower to a baking safe dish, with a lid if you have one.
Add your butter or lard to top of the cauliflower and stir.
Smooth out the top of the cauliflower.
Put in the oven covered at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes and bubbling.
Slice or grate your cheese while you wait.
After 40-50 minutes, when the cauliflower is bubbling, remove from the oven. Immediately add cheese to the top.
Bake uncovered for 5-10 additional minutes to melt and slightly brown the cheese. Enjoy!
Twice Baked Cauliflower with Cheese
ingredients:
- 14 cups of Cauliflower (for me, this was 1 large and 1 medium cauliflower)
- 1 cup of Butter or Lard
- 1 tsp of Salt
- 5 oz Cheddar Cheese
instructions:
How to cook Twice Baked Cauliflower with Cheese
- Preheat your oven to 350. In a large pot, add about 1 cup of water. Place a steam basket in the bottom.
- Cut cauliflower into cubes for quick steaming. You can also steam the head whole if you need to.
- Remove the stem of the cauliflower. It’s too fibrous to eat. Once you’re past the stem of the cauliflower, you can also break the florets off instead of cutting them.
- Steam the cauliflower for 15 minutes. Check every 5 minutes to make sure you have enough water and aren’t burning the bottom of your pan. The cauliflower only needs to be soft enough to go in a food processor because they’ll be baked again.
- Working in batches, add cauliflower to food processor and process until smooth or riced.
- Add riced cauliflower to a baking safe dish, with a lid if you have one.
- Add your butter or lard to top of the cauliflower and stir.
- Smooth out the top of the cauliflower.
- Put in the oven covered at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes and bubbling.
- Slice or grate your cheese while you wait.
- After 40-50 minutes, when the cauliflower is bubbling, remove from the oven. Immediately add cheese to the top.
- Bake uncovered for 5-10 additional minutes to melt and slightly brown the cheese. Enjoy!