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If you’re craving a side dish change, skip the spuds and try these Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes. It’s an easy way to eat more veggies and they taste almost as good as the real thing!
Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes are a great side dish to keep in your back pocket. Whether you want a change from regular mashed potatoes or are serving a friend or family member with dietary restrictions, these are an easy substitute.
Be sure to use a mixer when mashing up the potatoes. If you do it by hand, they might be gloppy (that’s an official culinary term, right?). Or you can use a whisk, but bring the force of a thousand tornados to whip them into the right texture.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Cauliflower: You can use fresh or frozen cauliflower in this recipe.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a large saucepan, add cauliflower florets , water, and 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until easily pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes.
- Drain well and return cauliflower pot. Mash well, then stir in heavy cream, butter, thyme, and salt and pepper to taste (I like ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper).
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes 6 cups of Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes, enough for 8 servings, ¾ cup each.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: The cauliflower can be chopped and stored in the refrigerator a few days in advance.
- Garlic: Add a few cloves of roasted garlic for even more flavor.
- Cheese: Stir in grated Parmesan, shredded cheddar, or whatever cheese you are craving.
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Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 3 pounds cauliflower about two medium heads, cut into florets (see note 1)
- 3 cups water
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup butter cut into 1/2" cubes (½ stick)
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme (or 2 teaspoons dried thyme)
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, add cauliflower florets , water, and 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until easily pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes.
- Drain well and return cauliflower pot. Mash well, then stir in heavy cream, butter, thyme, and salt and pepper to taste (I like ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper).
Recipe Video
Notes
- Cauliflower: You can use fresh or frozen cauliflower in this recipe.
- Yield: This recipe makes 6 cups of Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes, enough for 8 servings, ¾ cup each.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: The cauliflower can be chopped and stored in the refrigerator a few days in advance.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is the Executive Chef and CEO of Culinary Hill, a popular digital publication in the food space. She loves to combine her Midwestern food memories with her culinary school education to create her own delicious take on modern family fare. Millions of readers visit Culinary Hill each month for meticulously-tested recipes as well as skills and tricks for ingredient prep, cooking ahead, menu planning, and entertaining. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the iCUE Culinary Arts program at College of the Canyons.
Would you happen to know the serving size for this? I count calories and I see the calorie about just not the serving size.
Hi Amanda, we will make this and measure the total yield and get you a real serving size! I’ll post it here and email you when we figure it out. Thanks! -Meggan
Do you think that the cauliflower would break down well in a KitchenAid mixer with the whisk attachment? That’s how I whip boiled potatoes. Well, I guess I’ll just do the experiment. . .
Hi David, I’m not sure. If I can get my hands on some cauliflower, I’ll try it out. Or let me know what happened! Hopefully it all went well. Thanks! -Meggan