Cauliflower Tots

I love to have a dip-able side dish (like fries) with some foods… burgers, chicken strips and so on. I make lots of “fries” (zucchini, eggplant) but I like variety….

Scroll past recipe to see how to use this as gnocchi.

Even my potato loving husband and my non-keto friends have enjoyed these.

Cauliflower Tots

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of riced cauliflower (frozen works fine)
• 1/3 cup sharp cheddar (sub other cheeses for different flavors)
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (green can kind)
• 2 Tbsp almond flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 tsp salt
• pepper
• Seasoning to taste (garlic, chives, seasoning blends…)
• *Can be thickened with a couple tbsp of pork panko if desired.

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Microwave cauliflower rice for 2 minutes on high, covered.
3. Drain and squeeze any excess moisture from cauli-rice (Important)
4. Pulse in food processor, not quite to the point of paste or puree. Leave slightly chunky (this makes them better, but not necessary)
5. Put finely chopped cauliflower into a bowl and add the cheese, Parmesan, almond flour, seasonings.
6. Stir until ingredients are well-combined.
7. Add the egg and stir until the ingredients are mostly coated with egg.
8. Use a Cookie Scoop  or a one-tablespoon measuring spoon to scoop out rounded spoonfuls of the mixture and place on a parchment paper covered pan. Can also be hand formed to “tot” bites.
9. Bake 15 minutes.
10. Carefully turn each cauliflower tot over and bake 15 minutes more, or until tots are nicely browned on both sides.
11. Serve hot; these are best served right out of the oven.

• These can be made in mini muffin tin, but I find they get destroyed when trying to flip. 

Gnocchi

If you puree the mix to a finer texture (step 3) and form smaller bites (step 8), these can be used as gnocchi, and covered with your favorites sauces.