Thursday, February 17, 2011

Cheesy Bacon "Potato" Bake

This bake is the most luscious, cheesy, flavorful way i've ever eaten cauliflower! I have always liked cauliflower prepared in any way, but this dish blew me away. A good friend who HATES cauliflower stopped by and had two big servings! It is a great side dish to chicken or steak and it's good enough for company. Enjoy!








Ingredients:

1/2 medium head of cauliflower, cleaned and separated into florets
5 slices of thick cut bacon cooked and crumbled
3 green onions including green tops, sliced finely
4 oz cream cheese (I used Philadelphia)
1/4 cup sour cream (I used Daisy)
1 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
salt and pepper to taste
paprika to sprinkle on top, optional but adds a pretty color



Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. In a large pot with half a cup of water, steam cauliflower until tender (about 15 minutes) Turn off the heat.
3. This is a very important step please don't skip it! Drain the cauliflower and add back to the hot pot. There will still be residual heat on the pot and that heat will help dry the excess moisture from the cauliflower. Mash the cauliflower roughly. It's better if it's not completely smooth.
4. Add the cream cheese to the cauliflower and stir until completely combined. Add the sour cream, green onion, bacon, and extra sharp cheddar. Mix until completely combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Add the mashed cauliflower to an oven safe pan. And top with paprika.
6. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until it is hot and bubbly. Serve.


This recipe yields 6 servings each with 3.1 Net carbs.

I used fresh cauliflower for this recipe because I prefer the taste and texture. But you could use frozen if you wish.

This bake would be fantastic with chopped ham instead of bacon.

I think the extra sharp cheddar makes a huge difference to the quality and flavor of this recipe.

This dish would also be great as a main dish!

10 comments:

  1. Okay,this sounds and looks very delicious. My only fear is that I will eat more than one serving.

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  2. Hi Ladyj2011,

    The bake is very rich and filling so maybe you'd be satisfied with one serving. You could always divide it up into 6 servings and store them, that way you'll only eat the one serving. And if you do have more than one serving it's ok because one serving only has 3.1 carbs! Hope you get to try it and like it!

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  3. My husband and I made this the other night. It was great. Thanks for sharing!

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  4. This recipe is THE BOMB!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I ate a serving and it was so filling I was STUFFED. Thank you!

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  5. I have been looking for a copycat recipe of Houlihans(ruby tuesday like restaurant on the east coast) California mashers for years! This recipe is almost an exact replica! You are amazing! Thank you! Please, we need more new recipes! I am such a fan of this site!

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  6. Thank you so much! Just made this, it was delicious! Please keep the low carb recipes coming :)

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  7. Awesome recipe! It was so rich and flavorful! One of my favorite low carb side dishes!

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  8. This is delish!! A great addition to the meat and cheese world of low carb!! Thanks!

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  9. Made this as a side for pork chops tonight. Yum! My husband and I LOVED it. Even our very picky 8-year-old had two servings!! No way it serves 6 in our household though. More like 4. :)

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