I’ve really really been trying to curb my pasta dependency (addiction?) lately. One of the easiest ways to do that is to just swap vegetables for the pasta, but I’m not really into spiralizing or zoodles, so I’m exploring other ideas. (You may have noticed my Roasted Eggplant with Meat Sauce last week, same idea.) This week I was craving mac and cheese and I know a lot of people do cauliflower mac, but I decided to take it up a notch and roast my cauliflower with a spicy and smoky blend of spices first. OMG WIN. This Spicy Roasted Cauliflower with Cheese Sauce is the 💣.
Adjust the Heat
If you don’t want spicy, simply leave the cayenne pepper out of the spice mix and you’ll still have a deliciously smoky and garlicky cauliflower that will go really well with the cheese sauce. 👍
No-Roux Cheese Sauce
I made a “quick” cheese sauce for this, which uses evaporated milk to emulsify the cheese instead of a flour and butter roux. If you don’t want to go that route, you can make my 5-Minute Nacho Cheese Sauce instead. My only regret with this quick cheese sauce is that because I made such a small amount I have 2/3 of a can of evaporated milk leftover, which I now I have to find a use for. Any ideas??
Evaporated Milk is a MUST.
And no, sadly, you can not use almond, coconut, cashew, or even plain milk for this. Evaporated milk is needed to get the correct emulsification action. If you’re looking for a vegan cheese sauce, this one from Minimalist Baker looks good, although I haven’t tried it. She’s really good about testing, re-testing, and testing recipes again until they are 💯, though.
Spicy Roasted Cauliflower with Cheese Sauce
Servings 2Ingredients
Spicy Roasted Cauliflower
- 1/2 Tbsp smoked paprika ($0.15)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.03)
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.03)
- 1 lb. frozen cauliflower florets ($1.59)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.13)
Quick Cheese Sauce
- 1/2 cup evaporated milk ($0.26)
- 1 Tbsp butter ($0.13)
- 4 oz. sharp cheddar, shredded ($0.90)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. In a small bowl combine the smoked paprika, garlic powder, cayenne, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper.
- Spread the frozen cauliflower florets out onto a baking sheet (no need to thaw first), then drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle the spices over top. Toss the cauliflower in the oil and spices until they are fairly evenly coated.
- Transfer the seasoned cauliflower to the preheated oven and roast for 30 minutes, stirring once half way through.
- About half way through the roasting time, begin the cheese sauce. Add the evaporated milk and butter to a small sauce pot. Heat over medium, while stirring, until the butter has melted and the evaporated milk is hot. This should only take a couple of minutes.
- Turn the heat under the evaporated milk to LOW and begin whisking in the shredded cheddar, one handful at a time, making sure the cheese is fully melted before adding the next handful. Once all the cheese is melted into the evaporated milk the sauce will thicken. If it’s still very liquidy, keep the sauce over low heat and whisk constantly until it thickens. Often the cheese appears to be completely melted, but it has not yet totally emulsified. Remove the cheese sauce from the heat until ready to serve.*
- Once the cauliflower has finished roasting, divide it into bowls or place it in a serving platter, then pour the cheese sauce over top. Serve immediately.
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Roasted Cauliflower with Cheese – Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 400ºF. In a small bowl combine 1/2 Tbsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/4 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper.
Place a pound of frozen cauliflower florets (no need to thaw) on a baking sheet and drizzle 1 Tbsp olive oil over top. Sprinkle spices onto the cauliflower and then toss them until they are coated in oil and spices. Roast for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, stirring once halfway through.
Toward the end of the roasting time, begin the cheese sauce. This sauce is SO FAST and easy, but it does get a little grainy as it cools, so make sure to make it just before serving. It does smooth out again if gently heated and whisked, though.
Add 1 Tbsp butter and 1/2 cup evaporated milk to a small sauce pot. Heat and stir over medium heat until the butter is melted and the evaporated milk is hot. Once hot, turn the heat down to low and whisk in 4 oz. shredded sharp cheddar, one handful at a time, making sure the cheese is fully melted before adding the next handful. Once all the cheese is melted in and the sauce is hot, it will thicken like the photo above. If the sauce gets too thick, simply whisk in another splash of the evaporated milk.
When the cauliflower is finished roasting, plate it up and pour the cheese sauce over top. Serve immediately. If the cheese sauce has cooled too much to pour before the cauliflower is finished, it can be smoothed out again by whisking over low heat.
DIG IN! Seriously so delish. Oh, and these servings are pretty big. If you are doing this as a side it would be more like 3 or 4 servings.
Made this once as the recipe said and it was delicious! I had extra ingredients for the cheese sauce and happened to have frozen Brussels sprouts instead. The Brussels sprouts made an awesome version too!
I use evaporated milk for my smoothies when I run out of milk or the milk has gone bad, a good way to use up the rest of that can. Thanks for the great recipes! ☺️
I learned from one of Jenny Rosenstrach’s books that you can add the flour to milk to keep it from breaking in a sauce. I didn’t have evaporated milk so I tried that trick with regular milk and it worked great! I mixed in the 1 TBS of flour to the milk, then added that to the melted butter. It is perfectly smooth! Just wanted to share. :)
This is much better than the steamed cauliflower with cheese sauce I had planned on making!
Hi, this recipe looks great! But I was wondering if I could substitute the frozen cauliflower for fresh?
Yes, you definitely can. :) You may need to roast it slightly longer, though, since frozen cauli is blanched before freezing.
I must report – I made your Indian style creamed spinach a few days ago (YUM) and I was looking for what to do with the leftover evaporated milk for dinner tonight … this was perfect!! I had a bag of frozen cauliflower already in the freezer and used the rest of the evaporated milk I had left – love when that happens! You’re a lifesaver when I need dinner ideas Beth!
I never would have imagined that roasting ANY frozen veggie would ever work out as intended. I would think it’d turn into a mushy mess; I’m shocked to know I can use frozen. 😀😀😀
I eat this by itself with or without the cheese sauce, so so good
This looks yummy. I will sub out the cheese sauce for a vegan option with nutritional yeast cheesy sauce. Thank you so much for sharing.
This was easy and delicious. Didn’t add the cheese sauce. Yummy without it!
I love this recipe and it made an awesome meal paired with your curried chickpeas with spinach. Thank you so much!
This is mac & cheese without as much guilt. So good & affordable. It’s in the rotation. Thanks so much!
Evaporated milk is perfect in your morning coffee! Back when I was on WIC, we had a lot of it, so I actually made home made creamer with vanilla extract, a little sugar, and non-fat evaporated milk (but any evaporated milk works fine). Shake it up in a jar and it lasts a week in the fridge!
Do you have any recommendations for pairing with this? I really want to make this, but I also feel like I need a full meal…
I have made this a couple of times with shakshuka or eggs in purgatory as the main, with a salad on the side as well. Delicious!
Yum! I love this simple cheese sauce. Love. I am going to try this on spaghetti squash next. And try not to only eat this moving forward.
This was delish and so easy – my frozen cauli/broccoli mix shrunk quite a bit so I think you could almost double the veg for the amount of cheese sauce. But it was perfect other than that!