Cauliflower Casserole

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword cauliflower-casserole-recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Total Time 50

Servings servings

Calories 360kcal

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Spray a large rimmed sheet pan with cooking spray.
Chop and divide cauliflower florets into bite size pieces. Arrange in a single layer on the prepared pan Spray the cauliflower with cooking spray and sprinkle lightly with salt. Roast in the oven for 15 minutes or just until fork tender. (Alternately, steam the cauliflower florets then roughly chop them into bite size pieces.)
While the cauliflower bakes, fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. Remove to doubled paper towels to drain grease, then chop.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl use a whisk to combine the cream cheese, heavy cream, mayonnaise and sour cream with the seasoned salt, black pepper, granulated garlic and garlic powder. Whisk until fully combined.
To the cream cheese mixture add the cauliflower, bacon, 2 cups cheddar cheese and green onions. Use a large rubber spatula to stir until fully combined.
Lower the oven temperature to 375°F. Spray a 13x9-inch casserole dish with cooking spray.
Pour the cauliflower mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese and top with french fried onions.
Transfer to the preheated oven and bake for 35-40 minutes until bubbly and golden brown.
Let stand 5 minutes, then serve garnished with green onions.

Cauliflower - I typically use fresh cauliflower for this dish due to the moisture content in frozen cauliflower. Should you choose to adapt using frozen, you'll need around 8-10 cups, after streaming. Pat dry with paper towels to try and remove as much moisture as possible.
Boiling Cauliflower - For this recipe, we don't want to add moisture as you would when you boil the cauliflower. If you prefer to steam, that works, but roasting is my top pick.
Topping Options - For the topping, I used french fried onions, but you could use crushed croutons, dried breadcrumbs, panko breadcrumbs or Ritz crackers, if desired. To keep it a low-carb recipe, omit the french onion topping.
Cheese - The sky's the limit with cheese. You can use mozzarella cheese, swiss cheese, monterey jack, mild cheddar cheese, colby jack cheese, gruyere or spicy pepper jack cheese. Basically, you can use any cheese you like in this recipe.
Fresh Herbs - You could add fresh parsley or fresh chives to the sauce or use them for garnishing in place of green onions for this loaded cauliflower casserole.
Broccoli - You may opt to use half cauliflower and half broccoli.