Cauliflower Casserole

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This cheesy loaded cauliflower casserole recipe is my go-to side dish for weeknight dinners, potlucks, and even holidays. My family, friends, and even kids all love it. I always get asked for the recipe — so here it is! And while I like to sneak this veggie into many meals in unexpected ways, this cauliflower bake is my absolute favorite. It reminds me of a loaded baked potato, but is also a lighter take on comfort food.

Why You’ll Love My Cauliflower Casserole Recipe

• “Loaded” with flavor – See what I did there? 😉 With creamy cheddar cheese sauce, bacon, and green onions, this dish has all the flavors you love in a loaded baked potato.
• Quick and easy – My cauliflower casserole recipe uses simple, natural ingredients you can find at any grocery store, and takes only about 30 minutes from start to finish. Must be why I make it so often?
• Major comfort food factor, but lighter – Just like my cauliflower potato salad and cauliflower mac and cheese, replacing the starch with cauliflower works amazingly well when the sauce is right (and it is). This dish is naturally low carb and gluten-free, but feels like you’re eating potatoes!
• Minimal cleanup – Many casserole recipes leave a lot of dishes to wash, so I absolutely love that I just need a bowl and a baking dish to make this one.
• Versatile for any occasion – It’s quick enough for a weeknight, but crowd pleasing enough for a potluck or holiday meal. Even the leftovers are amazing the next day.

Ingredients & Substitutions

Here I explain the best ingredients for my loaded cauliflower casserole, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.

• Cauliflower – I use fresh cauliflower (cut into florets), but frozen will also work (but takes longer to roast). You can take a shortcut and use bagged florets from the produce section, but it’s not my favorite thing to do because they tend to be different sizes.
• Butter – I wouldn’t normally use it for roasting, but since I roast the florets in a baking dish, the butter adds extra richness and never burns for me. You can use olive oil or avocado oil if you’re concerned about it.
• Heavy Cream – Thins out the sauce and makes it rich. You can also use half and half. Other milks, such as almond milk or regular dairy milk, are not ideal, as the sauce will be too thin. If you want to try one of those to lighten it up, use less.
• Sour Cream – For that classic “loaded” experience! I prefer to use full-fat sour cream, but lower fat sour cream or even plain Greek yogurt works as well. I’ve also made this with cream cheese when I ran out of sour cream. Just melt it in the microwave first, and add a little extra heavy cream for the right sauce consistency.
• Garlic – I love the taste of fresh minced garlic, but have also used jarred minced garlic to save time. If needed, you can substitute 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder instead.
• Cheddar Cheese – Shredded sharp cheddar cheese adds that classic loaded baked potato flavor to my cauliflower casserole recipe. I use a pre-shredded variety (all about convenience over here), but you can shred it yourself if you like. You can also opt for other types of shredded cheese, but to me the dish loses some of that “loaded potato” vibe if you do.
• Bacon – I typically use leftover oven baked bacon, air fryer bacon, or even microwave bacon, but ready-made bacon bits are an easy time-saver. You could also replace the bacon with cooked turkey bacon for a lighter option.
• Green Onions – For a pop of color and flavor. Fresh chives also work, if you prefer something more mild.
• Sea Salt & Black Pepper

How To Make Cauliflower Casserole

I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.

1. Roast the cauliflower. If you’ve seen any of my other cauliflower recipes, you know that I’m a big fan of roasting cauliflower! So, let’s do this. In a large mixing bowl, toss the cauliflower florets with melted butter (or oil of your choice), salt, and pepper. Transfer to a casserole dish or sheet pan, and roast in a preheated oven until fork tender. (You can boil, steam the cauliflower, or even make Instant Pot cauliflower instead and then drain it, but roasted tastes better!)
2. Make the sauce. In the same bowl (wipe it down first but no need to wash), whisk together the sour cream and heavy cream, until smooth. Add the garlic, cheddar cheese, bacon, and green onions. Season to taste with sea salt and pepper, if needed.

3. Mix the cauliflower with the sauce. Add the roasted cauliflower to the cream cheese mixture, and stir to combine. (Feel free to try it here if you can’t resist, I often do!)
4. Assemble and add toppings. Return the cauliflower to the casserole dish. Top with more cheese and bacon.

5. Bake the cauliflower casserole. Place the dish in the oven and bake until the cheese on top is melted. This goes pretty quick! When it’s done, I like to sprinkle it with more green onions for a pretty finish.

My Recipe Tips

• Make sure your florets are uniform in size, and not too large. Consistent sized pieces ensure that they cook at the same rate. And the sauce mixes in better if your florets are small or medium, rather than large.
• Roast in the casserole dish to save on cleanup time. Although roasting on a sheet pan is a little bit faster (more airflow), I prefer to cook the vegetables in the same baking dish I’ll use for the actual cauliflower casserole. Fewer dishes to wash = win!
• Go light on the salt. When mixing the sauce and adjusting salt to taste, keep in mind that the sauce will get saltier as cheese melts later. The right amount will vary depending on your preferences and the brands of cheese you use, but oftentimes I don’t even need to add extra salt to the sauce. (I do always salt the cauliflower before roasting, though.)
• Add protein for a one-pan meal. Turn this into a full dinner and call it a day! Simply stir in about 2 cups of shredded chicken or cubed chicken breast, leftover turkey, or cooked ground beef or sausage. I typically increase the amounts in the sauce by 50% to account for the added meat.

Storage Instructions

• Store: The leftovers from this dish are great the next day! Keep them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The cauliflower does soften a bit, but I still think it tastes delicious.
• Meal prep: One of my favorite things about this loaded cauliflower bake is that I can make it in advance — so convenient for holidays when cooking is hectic, or weeknights when I know we’ll be home late. Just assemble the whole thing, cover with plastic wrap, and store in the fridge for up to 2 days. Bake it fresh right before serving. Keep in mind that it does take longer if you place in the oven directly from the fridge.
• Reheat: You can warm up the entire casserole in the oven at 350 degrees F, or reheat individual portions in the microwave.
• Freeze: I’ve frozen this dish both before and after baking, and both ways work quite well. This was a bit surprising, since there is so much dairy, but it just works! The cauliflower casserole keeps well in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before heating if you can, or you can bake from frozen at 325 degrees F, but it takes a while.

Serving Suggestions

I’ve served this loaded cauliflower casserole in dozens of ways over the years — it goes with just about anything! Try it with one of the options below, or choose one of my other healthy dinner recipes:

• Chicken – Simple baked chicken legs make a nice main dish with this, or make healthy chicken breast at the same oven temperature, so you can cook them together. When I want something even faster and more hands off, I make Instant Pot chicken drumsticks.
• Beef – Since we’ve got major comfort food vibes going on with this casserole, beef is one of the best main dishes to go with it. I like to keep it simple and serve it with juicy burgers or a sirloin steak.
• Pork – Make some quick air fryer brats or juicy cast iron pork chops while the cauliflower casserole is in the oven.
• Salad – Since this dish is so rich, you can even serve it as your main entree! When I do this, I tend to balance it with a colorful pomegranate salad or a light arugula salad on the side.

More Cauliflower Casserole Recipes

Cauliflower is one of my favorite real-food “fillers” for casseroles! Here are a few other ways I like to do this:

Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole

Pesto Chicken Casserole

Cabbage Roll Casserole

Pizza Casserole

My Baking Dish For This Recipe

You might have seen this baking dish in many of my recipe photos, because it’s the one I use the most! It’s durable, heats evenly, and looks elegant when I bring it to the table. And it still looks new after all these years.

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Cauliflower Casserole (Loaded Style!)

Bake this cheesy loaded cauliflower casserole recipe with sour cream, bacon, and cheddar in just 30 minutes. Tastes like loaded potatoes!

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 20 minutes

Total: 30 minutes

Author: Maya Krampf from Wholesome Yum

Servings: 6 (adjust to scale recipe)

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Ingredients

Tap underlined ingredients to see the ones I use.

• 1 large head Cauliflower (cut into small florets) ▢
• 2 tbsp Unsalted butter (melted) ▢
• 1/2 tsp Sea salt (plus more to taste, see step 4) ▢
• 1/4 tsp Black pepper (plus more to taste, see step 4) ▢
• 2/3 cup Sour cream ▢
• 1/4 cup Heavy cream ▢
• 2 cloves Garlic (minced) ▢
• 1 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese (shredded, divided) ▢
• 6 tbsp Cooked bacon (crumbled or chopped, divided) ▢
• 1/4 cup Green onions (chopped, divided) ▢

Instructions

Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (232 degrees C).

2. In a large bowl, toss the cauliflower florets with butter. Season with sea salt and black pepper.

3. Transfer the cauliflower to a small 1.5 quart (1.4 L) casserole dish in a single layer. (Roasting in the baking dish saves on dishes, but you could also roast on a sheet pan to make it faster.) Roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes if using a sheet pan, or 25-30 minutes if using the baking dish (stir halfway through if using this method), until crisp-tender.

4. Meanwhile, in the same bowl, whisk together the sour cream and heavy cream, until smooth. Stir in the minced garlic, half of the cheddar cheese, half of the bacon, and half of the green onions. If desired, season sauce with sea salt and black pepper. (Don't over salt — it will get more salty as the cheese melts later.)

5. When the cauliflower is done roasting, take it out and leave the oven on. Add the cauliflower to the bowl and mix with the sauce.

6. Return the cauliflower mixture to the casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese and bacon.

7. Bake for 5-10 minutes, until the cheese melts. Top with remaining green onions.

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Try More Of My Recipes

• 
  Pizza Casserole
• 
  Zucchini Casserole
• 
  Yellow Squash Casserole
• 
  Air Fryer Cauliflower

Maya’s Recipe Notes

Serving size: 3/4 cup

📖 Want more recipes like this? Find this one and many more in my Low Carb Holiday Cookbook, Keto Ebook Bundle, and Winter Ebook Bundle!

Nutrition Facts

Amounts per serving. Serving size in recipe notes above.

Calories 353

Fat 30.9g

Protein 12.3g

Total Carbs 8g

Net Carbs 5.8g

Fiber 2.2g

Sugar 3.2g

I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keywords: cheesy cauliflower casserole, easy cauliflower casserole, loaded cauliflower casserole

Calories: 353 kcal

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