Filled with cheddar cheese and baked in muffins tins, this low carb, gluten-free side dish uses mashed cauliflower instead of potato. A great accompaniment for any healthy meal.

I have to admit, I spent most of my life sadly underestimating cauliflower. I’ve always liked it and it’s been in my vegetable rotation for many years. But for 37 odd years, I had really only eaten it steamed or raw. Maybe in the occasional stir-fry. I had no idea how versatile a vegetable it truly was. It was just the plain white vegetable that graced my plate with a pat of butter and a sprinkle of salt and pepper, or sometimes hanging out on the crudite plate, often left behind with the mushrooms while the pepper and carrots got gobbled up. And although I liked it very much and ate it willingly at any time, I didn’t give it much credit for being interesting and adaptable.

And then…I became diabetic. And discovered low carb. And food blogging. Suddenly a whole new world of cauliflower goodness opened up to me. Mashed cauli in place of mashed potatoes? Cauliflower rice? Cauliflower pizza crust? Really, truly, this funny white cruciferous vegetable had so much more going for it than I ever thought.

So when I saw a recipe for Mashed Potato Puffs from Cinnamon, Spice and Everything Nice, I instantly wondered if I could make them with mashed cauliflower. I wanted to use my Sour Cream & Cheddar Mashed Cauliflower as the base but I knew they’d need something to give them a little more structure. I happened to have a few leftover egg whites, so I decided to whip those to stiff peaks and gently fold that in. And then I baked them similarly to the potato puffs and crossed my fingers.

The outcome, although not exactly like a potato puff, was utterly delicious. Cauli has a higher moisture content than potato, so these were almost like puffy, cheesy mini frittatas. My husband and I loved them and they passed the test with all 3 kids so I’d say they’re a winner.

Please see my Cheesy Cauliflower Puffs on A Sweet Life Diabetes Magazine.