This one’s an easy recipe that takes about 40 minutes to make, it’s excellent for meal prep, and you can have it as a main or a side. Check out our best vegetable sides recipe collection!
Ingredients
Instructions
1. Cook the cauliflower
Serving suggestions
Make Ahead & Storage
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It still definitely falls into comfort food despite being low-carb, thanks to the super creamy cheese sauce. It will satisfy your wildest cravings. Also, the recipe is straightforward to make in 3 steps: Even the pickiest of eaters are going to love this recipe. It’s a wonderful way to add more veggies to your diet. However, we did test this with both, and the fresh cauliflower keeps a more al dente texture and absorbs less water. Overall, fresh cauliflower produces better cauliflower mac and cheese.
Butter + flour + milk
Butter, flour, and milk make a quick creamy base sauce to melt the cheese in and coat the cauliflower. You can easily use vegan butter and plant-based milk to make the recipe vegan. We used unsweetened soy milk. To make the recipe gluten-free, substitute cornstarch (always read the label to ensure it’s 100% gluten-free) for the flour.
Cheese
We are looking for the best combination of meltability and flavor for mac and cheese. The challenge is that cheese that melts well (younger cheese with more water content) usually has a mild taste, and cheese with a strong flavor (more mature with less water content) doesn’t melt well.
Safe bet
Traditionally, cheddar cheese (or sharp cheddar cheese) is used for mac and cheese because it perfectly balances meltability and flavor. And to be honest, it works wonderfully in this recipe too. Cheddar melts wonderfully, it’s a little sharp but not overly so, and you can get a block and easily grate it yourself. Also, cheddar will give you a flavor and color closest to the original mac and cheese you grew up with.
Something new
Having said that, if you want to try something different, or if you want to make a vegan cauliflower mac and cheese, there are many alternatives to cheddar cheese. You can use a mix of fontina (or gruyere) and parmesan for an incredible, refined, yet crazy cheesy and comforting flavor with sharp notes and off-the-charts umami. Make sure you melt them in the white sauce with the heat off for the best results. Or you can mix shredded Colby and grated Pecorino Romano. The Colby melts wonderfully, giving that creamy orange finish; the Pecorino adds the tang and herby, slightly spicy flavor. Other cheeses that melt well are Monterey Jack, American, cream cheese, and gouda, but their taste isn’t the richest, so I would pair them with a more mature and flavorful cheese like Parmesan, Pecorino, or Cheddar.
Tips for melting
When it comes to melting the cheese, remember that pre-grated cheese won’t melt as well as a block of cheese that you grate yourself at home. This is because the pre-grated stuff is mixed with stabilizers and additives that won’t allow the cheese to melt completely. We tried this and struggled to get a velvety smooth cheese sauce. To fix that, pour the sauce and the cheese into a blender and go at it for a minute. The result will surprise you. A perfectly smooth cheese sauce you’ll want to drink out of the blender jug (joking, don’t do that).
For vegans
I had minimal hopes when I set myself to veganize this recipe because vegan cheese doesn’t melt that well and doesn’t taste like cheese. However, I was blown away by the result, and I am very excited by the vegan version of this cauliflower mac and cheese (that’s the one you see in the pictures, by the way). Challenge number 1: vegan cheese doesn’t taste much, so you’ve got to add something else to boost flavor. Our recommendation is to double the salt, add 4 tablespoons of nutritional yeast, and double the garlic powder. You’ll get a rich and pleasant cheese flavor this way. Challenge number 2: most vegan cheese doesn’t melt well. If that’s the case for you, don’t panic. Transfer the sauce with the partially melted cheese into a blender and go at it for a minute. You’ll get a wonderfully creamy, cheesy sauce perfect for this cauliflower mac and cheese.
Salt and pepper
We recommend using sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Garlic powder
This one’s optional. If you use good quality cheese, you won’t need it. But if you use cheaper or vegan cheese, I recommend adding some garlic powder.
Nutmeg
This is also optional and somewhat less traditional. However, nutmeg is the perfect flavor match with cauliflower, cheese, and creamy dishes, so we recommend it. We wouldn’t make this dish without it. It should take about 10 -15 minutes, but it depends on the cauliflower, so check with a fork if yours is ready. When ready, drain it and set it aside. While cauliflower boils, make the sauce. Alternative: want a more crunchy, smokey cauliflower mac n cheese with a tender-crisp texture? Roast the cauliflower florets in the oven, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and seasoned with olive oil and salt, for 30 minutes at 400°F or 200°F. Oven-baked cauliflower works well in this recipe and keeps a nice crunch and flavor.
2. Make the cheese sauce
In a saucepan, melt the butter, add the flour, and whisk on low heat for about 1 minute. You should see the mixture bubble and turn golden brown. Pour in the milk while whisking, then set the heat to medium and stir for a few minutes until the sauce thickens. Tip: to speed things up, you could warm the milk in the microwave before adding it to the saucepan. When the sauce has thickened but is still very much pourable, turn the heat off. Add salt, black pepper, grated nutmeg, and shredded or grated cheese. Stir until the cheese melts fully, and you get a silky smooth cheese sauce. Tip: If your cheese clumps up and doesn’t blend fully, you can blend the sauce with an immersion blender or transfer it into a regular blender and go at it for a minute till it’s velvety smooth.
3. Bake the dish
Transfer the boiled or roasted cauliflower to a baking dish or casserole dish. We use an 11×8-Inch one. Pour the cheese sauce on top, moving the cauliflower around the dish so that the cheese sauce gets into all nooks and crannies. Cover with a layer of shredded or grated cheese if you like that golden brown thin cheese crust on top. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F or 180°C for 10 minutes. Then set the oven to broiler function and broil until the cheese on top melts and makes that irresistible golden brown cheese crust.
Lemon “chicken” tofu (tofu, lemon, corn starch, garlic, rosemary, flour).Lentil wellington (mushroom, carrot, celery, lentils, walnuts, tomato paste).Vegetarian meatballs in tomato sauce (tofu, olives, walnuts, cornstarch, oregano).Mushroom tofu cutlets (button mushrooms, tofu, porcini, white wine, garlic).Fried tofu in a crispy leafy salad (tofu, cornstarch, garlic powder, paprika, chili).
Lemon Tofu
Fried Tofu
Mushroom Wellington
Tofu Meatballs
Shaved Brussels sprout salad (Brussels sprouts, walnuts, dried cranberries, maple syrup).Red cabbage slaw (red cabbage, carrots, green apple, walnuts, mustard, maple syrup).Fennel and orange salad (fennel, black olives, orange wedges, pine nuts, olive oil).Chickpea salad (chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, corn, black olives, cucumber, mustard).Tomato salad (heirloom tomatoes, basil, red onion, balsamic vinegar, olive oil).Green bean salad (green beans, tomatoes, shallots, mustard, olive oil, dairy-free feta).
Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad
Chickpea Salad
Green Bean Salad
Tomato Salad
Also, if you have people over, you can assemble the dish up to a day in advance and keep it in the fridge wrapped in plastic. Then, bake it a bit longer if it comes from the refrigerator. Refrigerator: keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Freezer: let it cool down completely, transfer it to a freezer-friendly container, and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw: defrost over several hours in the fridge. Reheat: reheat in a preheated oven at 400°F or 200°C for 10 -15 minutes or in the microwave for 2 minutes.
Creamy cauliflower soup (cauliflower, nutmeg, garlic, onion, thyme, potato).10-minute cauliflower rice (grated cauliflower, parsley, salt, pepper).Cauliflower curry (cauliflower, coconut milk, ginger, garlic, curry, turmeric, chickpeas).Lighter cauliflower alfredo sauce (cauliflower, milk, dairy-free ricotta, parsley).Cauliflower lentil salad (canned lentils, cauliflower, cumin, parsley, maple syrup, mustard).
Cauliflower curry
Cauliflower Soup
Cauliflower Lentil Salad
Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce
Roasted Zucchini
Air Fryer Asparagus
Roasted Fennel
Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”jRiLhPeJ” upload-date=”2023-02-23T06:38:32.000Z” name=”Cauliflower Mac and Cheese.mov” description=”Creamy, cheesy, satisfying, and packed with tender cauliflower florets; this cauliflower mac and cheese is a winter dinner favorite when you feel like a warming and comforting meal.
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This one’s an easy recipe that takes about 40 minutes to make, it’s excellent for meal prep, and you can have it as a main or a side. ” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]
