vegan Mashed Cauliflower is tasty comfort food, and a low carb alternative to classic mashed potatoes. from the holiday table to a weeknight dinner! also: how to roast garlic
recipe originally published September 21, 2011
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Low carb comfort food
Vegan Mashed Cauliflower is THE low carb comfort food side dish. With a short ingredient list and an easy, approachable method, this has become a favorite dish at our house.
Cauliflower in general has become one of my favorite foods. Extremely adaptable, cauliflower provides a base for most flavors you want to pair with it. Also versatile in its form – air fried, riced, steak, and one of my favorites – mashed.
Cauliflower is high in fiber and nutrient dense, and is a low carb alternative to grains and in this case, potatoes. Especially in the winter months but honestly – year round, I crave mashed cauliflower. It is one of our regular weekend meal prep recipes that we love to use all week, in comfort bowls and as a side dish.
How to make this recipe
I use two methods – steaming the cauliflower and boiling the cauliflower. I can usually fit two chopped heads of cauliflower in my large two tier bamboo steamer, and sometimes it is just easier to boil the chopped cauliflower in a large pot.
An important tip for the cooked cauliflower: once it is cooled enough to touch, squeeze as much water out of it as you can.
The next step can be a couple of methods also:
- texture: mashing with a potato masher if you want some texture
- smooth: blending with a stick blender or food processor
Continue reading for flavor variations.
A shortcut in making mashed cauliflower? Buy the frozen florets or riced.
How To Roast Garlic
Roasted garlic has incredible flavor. We roast garlic weekly at our house – I use it in recipes, I spread it on a baguette, I add it to salads. Just a couple simple steps brings you buttery soft, rich garlic cloves.
- Preheat oven to 400 °F
- Using a sharp knife, carefully slice the top from the bulb of garlic
- Place whole bulbs of garlic on a piece of foil
- Drizzle with olive oil
- Wrap garlic in foil
- Roast at 400 °F for 40 minutes
Ingredient Variations
- Extra Protein: add cannellini beans! drain and rinse one can of beans (I suggest a cannellini, great northern, or other light color bean, unless you don’t mind grey mashed cauliflower…)
- Extra Flavor: add hummus! add dairy free cream cheese or cheese! my two favorite vegan mashed cauliflower ingredient additions add great depth of flavor and extra creamy texture.
Meal Prep and Storage
How long does Mashed Cauliflower last? My rule for freshness is generally 3-4 days. I have enjoyed this vegan mashed cauliflower all week.
This is an excellent meal prep recipe. I make a double batch and we enjoy it most of the week with lunches and dinners. Once cooked, set cauliflower aside to cool. Transfer to a glass container with a sealing lid, and keep refrigerated.
More Vegan Cauliflower Recipes
- Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower: always a super popular dish to serve! tangy, spicy, and irresistible, you’ll want to plan for a double batch.
- Vegan Creamed Spinach: a steakhouse classic, veganized. the heavy cream component has been replaced with a delicious nutmeg cauliflower sauce you will love!
- Easy Bean and Rice Enchiladas: cauliflower rice is the star of this super easy weeknight meal. make ahead to put in the oven as soon as you get home!
- Cauliflower Cashew Confetti Salad: a vibrant dish full of great color and texture! a perfect potluck recipe. Layers of flavor and crunch with a bright lemony shallot dressing.
- Shiitake Cauliflower Risotto Stacks: fancy and flavorful, this dish has a few steps – and is one hundred percent worth it!
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Mashed Cauliflower
a tasty low carb alternative to mashed potatoes. straight up comfort food you will crave.
Ingredients
- 2 heads fresh cauliflower, greens removed and trimmed
- 1/3 - 1/2 cup dairy free milk *see note
- 2-3 tablespoons vegan butter
- 1 teaspoon Himalayan sea salt
- 2 teaspoons fresh cracked black pepper
- 1 bulb roasted garlic
Instructions
- Chop / break cauliflower into small pieces.
- Steam, roast, or boil until soft, 20-25 minutes (I used a bamboo stacked steamer).
- In the pot you steamed or boiled in, mash cauliflower with milk, butter, salt and pepper.
- Add roasted garlic cloves, mash to combine.
- For a smoother texture: purée in batches in high speed blender or food processor.
- Transfer to serving bowl.
Notes
dairy, soy, gluten and potato free, vegan, low carb
*adding milk:
start with 1/3 cup, and add by the tablespoon or so as you mash, to reach the creamy consistency you prefer.
- For Added Protein: add cannellini beans! drain and rinse one can of beans (I suggest a cannellini, great northern, or other light color bean, unless you don't mind grey mashed cauliflower...)
- Flavor Additions: add hummus! add dairy free cream cheese or cheese! my two favorite vegan mashed cauliflower ingredient additions add great depth of flavor and extra creamy texture.
HOW TO ROAST GARLIC
Roasted garlic has incredible flavor. We roast garlic weekly at our house – I use it in recipes, I spread it on a baguette, I add it to salads. Just a couple simple steps brings you buttery soft, rich garlic cloves.
- Preheat oven to 400 °F
- Using a sharp knife, carefully slice the top from the bulb of garlic
- Place whole bulbs of garlic on a piece of foil
- Drizzle with olive oil
- Wrap garlic in foil
- Roast at 400 °F for 40 minutes
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 80Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 223mgCarbohydrates: 6gNet Carbohydrates: 2gFiber: 4gSugar: 2gProtein: 3g
nutrition calculations results vary by calculator, are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to replace medical advice or treatment.
about Kristina:
Kristina is spabettie! She found cooking at an early age, and created spabettie in 2010 to share vegan recipes. Kristina turned her culinary training into sharing vibrant vegan food! Read more…
spabettie / Kristina Sloggett is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Jennifer says
Thank you for this recipe! I ate it as a soup and it was delicious! Glad I found the recipe!
Kristina Sloggett says
you are welcome, Jennifer – happy you enjoyed!
Gretchen says
I made this tonight, with the hope I could it to my children under the guise of “potatoes”. Unfortunately, I was out of white beans, and left them out. Although the cauliflower came out creamy and delicious, it were also extremely spicy. Akin to a very hot radish. Just curious if anyone else has run into this. I ate mine, but they really burned! Maybe it was the beans that adds the balance?
Thanks for the great idea though. I hope your father’s appointment went well.
spabettie says
I’m sorry to hear this – leaving out the beans essentially cuts the volume of the recipe in half, so maybe cutting the amount of garlic in half would have helped (I am thinking the spicy came from the garlic?).
Kristi Rimkus says
I hope your father is doing well. We love mashed cauliflower in this house. We usually mix it with potatoes, but I like your bean idea!
spabettie says
thank you – we found out a bit more today, one more biopsy to go… I really like combining the cauli with beans – more protein! 🙂
Kristi Rimkus says
I hope your father is doing well. We love mashed cauliflower in this house. We usually mix it with potatoes, but I like your bean idea!
Kath (My Funny Little Life) says
Perfect comfort food! I want to make this with pumpkin and carrots and probably celeriac as well! Yum yum yum 😀
spabettie says
yes, pumpkin and carrots would be great in here – and give it a great color too!
Hannah-lyz says
Good luck! I hope it all goes well 🙂 My dad doesn’t like vegetable, so I often sneak cauliflower into his mashed potato and don’t tell him! He used to do the same to me as a kid, hiding veg and beans in the pasta sauce. About time I returned the favour!
spabettie says
haa, good for you for doing that now for him! 😉