I like mashed potatoes. They are a great comfort food, but I enjoy how much lighter my “fake” mashed potatoes made with cauliflower taste so I thought I’d share this recipe with you to get your thoughts. In full disclosure I keep playing with this recipe and am open to suggestions.
The recipe comes together in three stages and can be made in 15-20 minutes depending on your prep. It is even easier to make if you purchase already chopped or riced cauliflower. For this recipe, you will need a blender or something to help purée the vegetable as well as the following ingredients:
- Cauliflower (1 lb)
- 2-3 tablespoons of butter
- 3-4 cloves of garlic (I used roasted garlic)
- 4-5 tablespoons of sour cream
- pinch of kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
- 1/4 cup of grated Parmesean cheese
- 1/3 cup of water
- Olive oil
Step 1 Prep: Preheat your oven to 425 degrees, and divide the cauliflower in half. Half of the cauliflower will be roasted and half will be steamed. If you buy a head of cauliflower, cut the florets into roughly even sizes (smaller is better because it will cook faster and be easier to blend).
Step 2 Cooking: Drizzle olive oil over the cauliflower and sprinkle a few pinches of salt then place the baking tray in the oven. Riced cauliflower (shown above) will only need 5-7 minutes. When the edges start browning take it out. Larger florets will need more time so adjust accoringly.
Steam the other half in the microwave by adding a 1/4 cup of water, salt and half the butter cut into small pieces. Seal the bowl with wrap and set at high for ~3 minutes. When there is approximately one minute remaining, take out and stir the vegetable and put back into the microwave to finish.
Step 3 Blending: Let the cauliflower cool for 2-3 minutes then add to your blender along with the remaining amount of butter, Parmesean cheese and garlic. I used four roasted garlic cloves, but in the future I will use more, because I like the flavoring. Blend briefly then add the sour cream and additional seasoning and blend or fold in and mix together – taste as you go and add more sour cream and seasoning to your liking.
