Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (2024)

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by Ciara Attwell, Updated

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Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (1)

Delicious vegetarian nuggets for kids packed with super nutritious cauliflower!

Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (2)

Does anyone else have chicken nugget obsessed children? My kids absolutely love them and the more lower the quality of nugget the better in their eyes! We do make chicken nuggets quite a bit at home but recently I’ve started making these Cauliflower Nuggets too, in an effort to eat a little less meat and generally get the kids eating more veggies.

Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (3)


I have to be honest and tell you that my kids are not the biggest fans of cauliflower but they do eat cauliflower cheese so I thought I would make these nuggets super cheesy and generally a bit more kid-friendly!

They are really easy to make although you do need a food processor to mix all the ingredients together. You could try cutting the cauliflower up very finely and mixing all the other ingredients by hand, but the texture may be a little different and definitely not as smooth.

Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (4)

The nuggets are super soft, meaning they are perfect finger food for toddlers and babies. If you prefer them to be crispy then you could always roll them in an extra coating of breadcrumbs and fry them rather than bake them.

Looking for ways to get your fussy eater to eat a better variety of food? TryPick Plates.These round divided plates have five compartments to be filled with a wide selection of food groups and choices of ingredients. Perfect for making food fun, interesting and appealing to picky eaters.

Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (5)

If youtry this recipe yourself please do let me know what you think. Or tag me in a picture onInstagram. I’d love seeingyourpictures so much!

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Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (6)

Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets

★★★★★ 5 from 7 reviews

  • Author: Ciara Attwell @ My Fussy Eater
  • Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (7)Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (8)Cook Time: 17 mins
  • Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (9)Total Time: 22 minutes
  • Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (10)Yield: 3-4 1x
  • Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (11)Category: Main Meal
  • Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (12)Cuisine: European

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Description

Delicious vegetarian nuggets for kids packed with super nutritious cauliflower!

Ingredients

  • 350g / 12oz cauliflower
  • 50g / 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
  • 100g / 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
  • 1 medium egg
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder
  • ½ tsp mixed dried herbs

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 200c / 390f and line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone non-stick mat.
  2. Chop the cauliflower into small pieces and cook it by either boiling or steaming it, which ever is your preference.
  3. Once the cauliflower has cooked add it to a food processor and blitz until it has broken down into small pieces. Add the rest of the ingredients and blitz again just enough until they are all combined. You don’t want to over-blitz the mixture!
  4. Place one large spoon of the mixture at a time onto the baking tray and mould into a round shape. I make about 12 nuggets from this but it will depend on what size you want them to be.
  5. Bake in the oven for 12-14 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving as this will help them to keep their shape.
  6. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 48 hours.

If you liked this recipe you may also enjoy:

Lentil Veggie Nuggets

Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (14)
Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (15)

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Comments

  1. Emily says

    Super creamy and full of flavour. I didn’t put the mixed herbs in just in case my fussy 2yr old didn’t approve but I did add onion powder as well as the garlic powder. He happily ate them with tomato sauce. Mine came out very smooth and soft texture

    Reply

  2. Emily Hilden says

    Two kids, one really fussy and the other no so.

    These are great as they say they can only taste the cheese and not the cauliflower, as the fussy one would go nowhere near them if it involved veg. Will defiantly be making these again.

    Reply

    • Vicky says

      Fantastic!

      Reply

  3. Jill says

    My daughter loves these! I mixed a little broccoli in as well. Thanks for the recipe 🙂 I’m making them for the second time tomorrow.

    Reply

  4. Wendy says

    Hey, thank you so much for sharing out this brilliant idea! But, I was wondering how was the tenderness or the texture of the nugget? does it as tender as the chicken nugget or it has a softer texture? Also, is it possible to replace cheddar cheese with parmesan cheese?

    Reply

  5. Kristin says

    Hi. OMG this recipe looks great! I was wondering if I would be able to mix this with broccoli and carrots?
    Thankn you for sharing!!

    Reply

    • Ciara Attwell says

      Possibly yes. Maybe swap some of the cauliflower for those veggies!

      Reply

    • Ciara Attwell says

      Dried mixed herbs or dried oregano!

      Reply

      • Carine says

        Looks really good!! I am making it now for dinner!! Will let you know how it goes. Thanks.

        Reply

  6. Maya says

    These went down a storm with all of us! Really good.

    Reply

  7. Millie says

    My 3 year old loved these and she usually hates anything with cauliflower in it. Big success!

    Reply

  8. SJ says

    Hi can these be frozen??

    Reply

    • Ciara Attwell says

      Yes you can freeze after cooking!

      Reply

  9. Chlo says

    Im so glad ive found this recepie! Thanks so much for posting, im going to make some tomorrow 🙂

    Reply

    • Ciara Attwell says

      Glad you like them Chlo!

      Reply

  10. Emma says

    Just wondering if anyone has tried freezing these yet?

    Reply

  11. Jennifer says

    Which dried herbs do you use?

    Reply

    • Ciara Attwell says

      Its just a packet of mixed dried herbs but oregano or italian herbs would work well too

      Reply

  12. Alanna says

    I was wondering if you could use a different cheese. I have feta which I have never tried or eaten before but had bought it to try making savoury muffins for baby led weaning x

    Reply

    • Ciara Attwell says

      Hi Alanna, its certainly worth trying but I haven’t tried the recipe myself with other cheese so can’t say for certain if it would work well. Please do come back and let me know how it goes though!

      Reply

  13. AisT says

    Hi, I was just wondering if I can skip boiling or steaming the cauliflower, since we’re baking it anyway? Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!

    Reply

    • Ciara Attwell says

      I haven’t tried it that way so can’t say for sure. Also if the cauliflower is not cooked Im not sure how you will get it to stick together?

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Cauliflower Cheese Nuggets - My Fussy Eater | Easy Family Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Why does cauliflower cheese go watery in the oven? ›

Cauliflower cheese can go watery if the cauliflower is overcooked. Overcooked cauliflower releases water, which will seep into the rest of the dish. So even if your sauce was thick when it went in the oven, if its in there too long, the water from the cauliflower will cause it to go watery.

Why did my cauliflower cheese sauce split? ›

Cooking the cauliflower cheese at too high a temperature can sometimes cause the cheese to split, resulting in a slightly oily, grainy texture. A split sauce can also be avoided by removing the sauce from the heat before adding the cheese.

What pairs well with cauliflower cheese? ›

The best side dishes to serve with cauliflower cheese are crispy green beans, gluten-free bread, roasted potatoes, sautéed mushrooms, steamed broccoli, garden salad, garlic bread, caramelized carrots, grilled asparagus, rice pilaf, zucchini fritters, quinoa, potato wedges, eggplant parmesan, pulled pork, and fresh ...

Is cauliflower cheese a main meal? ›

Cauliflower Cheese is a British dish that is served as a side or even as a main (vegetarian!) It's a cauliflower bake, smothered in a creamy cheese sauce that's popped in the oven until bubbly and golden.

How do you keep cauliflower cheese from being watery? ›

Drain well

Make sure you drain the cauliflower really well after it's boiled up and before you add it to the dish, otherwise it will end up too watery.

What will adding lemon juice to the water for cooking cauliflower do? ›

Food Science

Cauliflower contains some phytonutrients, these nutrients may react with iron cookware and gives the cauliflower a brownish color. To prevent this add some lemon juice to the cauliflower or to the water in which it is blanched.

Why does cauliflower cheese upset my stomach? ›

The culprit behind the stomachaches is cauliflower's fiber content, which becomes most troublesome when you increase your fiber intake too rapidly without giving your body time to adjust. Stomachaches join other side effects of overloading on fiber.

How do you fix a broken Mornay sauce? ›

The Fix Is Simple—Add Water Back.

Here's how fix a broken sauce: Add about ¼ cup of water to the pan and reheat the sauce to a vigorous simmer, whisking constantly. The bubbling action will help re-emulsify the butter and bring back that thick, glossy sauce.

How do you get the liquid out of cauliflower? ›

Once the riced cauliflower has been cooked (or thawed), transfer it to a clean, thin dishtowel. Wrap up the steamed rice in the dishtowel, twist it up, then SQUEEZE all the excess moisture out!

Can you reheat cauliflower cheese twice? ›

Ideally, we should all eat food straight after it has been cooked. This is when it's at its freshest and likely to taste the best. In terms of food safety, however, so long as you reheat the food at the correct temperature and for the correct duration of time, it can in fact be safely reheated multiple times.

Why can't you freeze cauliflower cheese? ›

It can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the fridge until ready to cook. It is possible to freeze cauliflower cheese but unfortunately the sauce can sometimes turn thin and sligtly watery on defrosting, so we prefer not to freeze the dish if at all possible.

Why can't you reheat cauliflower cheese? ›

Can you reheat cauliflower cheese? Yes you can, and it will taste fine… But just be aware that it will dry out a little and the cauliflower will be a little bit softer… not a deal breaker, but definitely not as good as fresh! Simply place any leftover cauliflower in a lidded container and refrigerate.

Do people have cauliflower cheese at Christmas? ›

Yes! Not with Xmas dinner but often with pork and chicken. It's fine with gravy as long as the cheese sauce is not runny. shysal I've had both on the same plate in the past but made sure the gravy didn't touch the cauliflower cheese.

How long does cooked cauliflower cheese last in the fridge? ›

How long can you keep Cauliflower Cheese in the fridge? Once you've put it out, ideally you should eat it within 4 hours. If you allow any leftovers to cool, make sure to refrigerate in a container with a lid and chill. You can keep leftovers of Cauliflower Cheese in the fridge for approximately 3 days or so.

How do you keep cheese from getting watery? ›

Our top recommendation is cheese paper. Cheese paper is the waxy paper your cheese often comes in when you get it from your local cheesemonger. Coated in both wax and a porous layer of plastic on the inside, cheese paper allows your cheese to breathe without being totally exposed and losing its precious moisture.

How do you get water out of cooked cauliflower? ›

The trick with cauliflower is: Don't cook it till is too soft. just 4 or 5 minutes but taste to be sure. then drain into a colander, (sieve with big holes) and leave to drain for a few minutes, asking every minute. tap dry with a little kitchen paper or a clean tea towel.

How do you make cheese less watery? ›

Use cornstarch or all-purpose flour.

You can thicken cheese sauce further by adding more flour or even using a couple of teaspoons of cornstarch.

Why does my cheese get watery? ›

No need to worry – the liquid on the outside of your cheese is just excess moisture, or liquid whey. Wipe off your cheese with a napkin or paper towel and enjoy! It's common for naturally-aged cheeses to develop a small amount of moisture inside their packaging.

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