This Creamy Cauliflower is an easy side dish with a flavourful sauce that makes it more palatable for those picky eaters. It tastes even better heated up the next day for leftovers.

I hated cauliflower with a passion until I was in my 20s. Why? I don’t really know. Maybe it was the smell as they were cooking or how they looked. Now? Love it. I can’t get enough cauliflower and use it often in recipes. Isn’t it funny how tastes change as you age?

Before I wouldn’t dream of enjoying cauliflower as much as I do now, but with recipes like this one, and Air Fryer Cauliflower Bites, it’s hard not to make something with cauliflower when it is this tasty!

Why You’ll Love This Yummy Creamy Cauliflower

Comfort food with the creamy sauce
The sauce “hides” the veggies a bit so you can get those picky eaters to try it again
An easy side dish to take to a potluck, party, or get together
Quick and simple to add to a weeknight dinner meal
Made with minimal ingredients and in 3 simple steps
You only need 30 minutes to make this tasty dish
Great recipe to use for meal prep

Ingredients

The full printable recipe card with measurements and instructions is found at the bottom of the post.

Cauliflower
Sour cream
Dijon mustard
Mayonnaise
Pepper
Cheddar cheese
Lemon juice
Fresh parsley

How to Make Super Easy Creamy Cauliflower

That’s right, you really only have three incredibly simple steps to follow before you’re munching on some tasty Creamy Cauliflower.

Step One: Preheat the oven to 375F. Bake cauliflower on a baking sheet for 10 minutes.
Step Two: While baking, stir together the rest of the ingredients in a bowl.

Step Three: Transfer cauliflower to a casserole dish. Pour sauce over top. Bake for another 10 minutes or until the cauliflower has reached your desired tenderness. Serve hot and enjoy.

Equipment Needed

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Creamy cauliflower in a baking dish with a wooden spoon.

What to Serve With Your Cauliflower with Sauce

We served this Creamy Cauliflower with some baked chicken. It would also make a wonderful side to your next Thanksgiving dinner.

Hopefully, with the addition of the sauce, it will entice some picky eaters to try it and maybe even to convert them to cauliflower fans.

Here are some other recipes you can serve this Creamy Cauliflower with:

Recipe Tips and Tricks

When placing your cauliflower on your baking sheet, I like to line the baking sheet with aluminum foil so it makes clean up easier.
Don’t overcrowd the cauliflower on the baking tray.
You can mix broccoli and cauliflower for this recipe if you like.
You can freeze this incredibly simple dish, see my suggestions below.
If desired, you can easily double or even triple this recipe, scale it as needed, to feed as many people as you need to.
This is also a great dish you can use for meal prepping as the leftovers are almost even more delicious as the creamy sauce soaks into the cauliflower, bringing it even more fantastic flavor as leftovers the next day.

Variations and Substitutions

The Dijon mustard is a powerful addition to this creamy sauce for the cauliflower. If you aren’t a fan of the strong flavour of Dijon mustard, just use less of it or simply omit it.
You can use full mayo and sour cream or the light versions of either if preferred.
Feel free to swap out the sour cream or mayo for plain Greek yogurt for a slightly healthier alternative.
Top this creamy dish with regular breadcrumbs, Panko breadcrumbs, and other types of shredded cheese if desired.
Add some fresh chopped parsley to the dish as a garnish.
Try swapping out the shredded cheddar cheese for other options like Monetary Jack, Colby Jack, or Mozzarella Cheese.

Storage Instructions

Store any leftover cauliflower with the sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days.

You can reheat the leftovers in the microwave. Make sure to give the sauce and the veggies a good stirring up before and after you reheat them in the microwave.

Can I Freeze?

You can freeze this dish if needed. Once the cauliflower has cooled off completely, transfer the leftovers to a freezer-safe bag or freezer-safe container with lid before labeling it and storing it in the freezer.

You can freeze leftovers for up to 2-3 months.

Remove them from the freezer and place the container or bag in the refrigerator overnight to thaw. Once thawed out, you can reheat this dish in the microwave or on the stovetop.

Keep in mind that the consistency of the sauce and veggie may change once thawed after freezing.

Why is my roasted cauliflower mushy?

If after roasting the cauliflower in the first step, your cauliflower seems mushy, this is most often caused by overcrowding the baking sheet pan with your cauliflower.

Is it necessary to boil cauliflower before cooking?

It all depends on what you plan on doing with the cauliflower and how you plan to cook it. For this recipe, we chose to roast it in the oven for ten minutes before we baked it with the creamy sauce.

This just helps the cauliflower have a little crisp to it before adding the sauce to it, so it doesn’t end up being too much of a mushy mess.

Creamy cauliflower on a plate with a fork.

Cauliflower Recipes

Here are a few more recipes for you to try if you’re now a cauliflower fan!

Air Fryer Cauliflower
Instant Pot Cauliflower Soup
Cauliflower Bake
Keto Cauliflower Ziti
Honey Dijon Baked Cauliflower (I loved the Dijon mustard in this dish so much, I had to make this spinoff one and it’s sooooo tasty!)
Beef Picadillo Shepherd’s Pie
Cauliflower Soup with Bacon
Mashed Cauliflower

You’ll also like this Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries and Bacon and Brussel Sprouts with Lemon & Pancetta.

What are your thoughts on cauliflower? Love it, hate it or meh?

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4.56 from 9 votes