Keto Twice Baked Loaded Mashed Cauliflower
Published November 17, 2019 • Updated February 25, 2026
This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure policy.
I rebuilt twice baked potatoes with cauliflower and honestly forgot I was eating low carb. Crispy crumbled bacon, cheddar, green onions, and a pork rind crust on top of fluffy cauliflower faux-tatoes.
I have been making loaded mashed cauliflower for years, and this twice-baked version is the one my family actually requests as a side dish. Not because it is “healthy” (they do not care about that), but because it tastes like loaded baked potatoes without the carb crash afterward.
The biggest thing I have learned making this recipe over and over is that the paper-towel press is the single most important step. After you drain the cooked cauliflower, sandwich it between paper towels and squeeze out every bit of liquid you can. Skip this and you get watery mash. Do it right and you get thick, creamy faux-tatoes that hold up under a mountain of toppings. I cannot overstate how much this one step changes the texture.
One thing I do differently from most cauliflower mash recipes is cook the florets in chicken broth instead of water. It builds flavor into the cauliflower itself so you are not relying on cheese and bacon to do all the heavy lifting. The broth, butter, and garlic simmer together for about 5-8 minutes, and the cauliflower soaks up that savory base before it ever hits the food processor.
After blending with cream cheese and parmesan, I fold in cheddar, crumbled bacon, and chopped green onions. Then the whole thing goes into a casserole dish. Here is where the “twice baked” part comes in: I top it with more parmesan and ground pork rinds before baking at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. The pork rinds give you that crispy, golden crust that breadcrumbs would, but with zero carbs. It is my favorite trick for keto casseroles.
If you love cauliflower sides, I have a whole lineup. My keto cauliflower gratin goes heavier on the cheese sauce, and keto cauliflower mac and cheese is the one I make when I want something closer to comfort pasta. For something lighter, try roasted air fryer cauliflower or cilantro lime cauliflower rice.
For your holiday table or next potluck, this pairs well with keto sweet potato casserole and keto stuffing. And if you want another mashed side option, my mashed turnips are a great low carb swap too.
A medium head of cauliflower is roughly 2 pounds, which is what I use every time. Reader Nikki K asked me about this because her store’s heads had shrunk, and that weight is the sweet spot for this recipe. If your head is smaller, just eyeball it and adjust.
Explore hundreds of keto recipe videos with step-by-step instructions, tips, and tricks to make keto easy.
Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter -
2 garlic cloves, minced
-
1 head of cauliflower, chopped into florets
-
1 cup turkey stock or chicken broth
-
2 oz cream cheese
-
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
-
½ teaspoon salt
-
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
-
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
-
6 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
-
1/4 cup chopped green onions
-
2 tablespoons ground pork rinds
Step by Step Instructions
Step by Step Instructions
Preheat oven
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Melt butter
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
Smell the garlic
Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Steam cauliflower
Pour in cauliflower florets and chicken broth. Simmer on medium heat until cauliflower is tender, about 5-8 minutes.
Press out liquid
Drain fluid. Squeeze out excess fluid from the cauliflower by placing it between two paper towels. For thick mashed cauliflower, try to get as much fluid out as possible.
Blend
In a food processor or blender, combine the cooked cauliflower, cream cheese, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Puree until smooth.
Add cheese and bacon of course
Add cheddar cheese, bacon, and green onions to the mashed cauliflower. Stir to combine. Transfer to a casserole dish and top with remaining parmesan cheese. Sprinkle ground pork rinds on top.
Bake
Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Nutrition disclaimer
The nutrition information provided is an estimate and is for informational purposes only. I am a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.); however, this content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your physician or other qualified health provider before making any lifestyle changes or beginning a new nutrition program.
Your Macros. Your Recipes. Calculated in 60 Seconds.
Get personalized keto macros and instantly see which recipes fit your targets. No more guessing what to eat.
Get My Macros + Recipes →Frequently Asked Questions
How much does one head of cauliflower weigh?
I use a medium head, which is roughly 2 pounds. Reader Nikki K asked me this exact question because her store's heads had gotten smaller. If yours is on the small side, just grab a second small one to make up the difference. I have tested this enough times to know that 2 pounds is the sweet spot for the right thickness.
Can I freeze keto loaded mashed cauliflower?
I have frozen this and it reheats well. The cream cheese base holds up better in the freezer than sour cream does (I have tested both). Let it cool completely, then transfer to a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. When you are ready, thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. The pork rind topping softens, so I sprinkle a fresh layer on before reheating.
Can I use sour cream instead of cream cheese?
I have made this both ways. Sour cream gives you a tangier, more potato-like flavor that I actually prefer sometimes. Use the same 2 oz amount. The texture comes out slightly looser, so make sure you really press the moisture out of your cauliflower first. My only note is that cream cheese freezes better if you plan to make this ahead.
Can I skip the pork rinds on top?
You can, but I would not. The pork rinds are what give this the crispy, golden crust that makes it feel like a real twice-baked potato. They add zero carbs and all the crunch. If you skip them, try extra parmesan on top instead. I have also used crushed almonds in a pinch, but the pork rinds are my go-to.
Can I use an immersion blender instead of a food processor?
I have used an immersion blender, a food processor, and a regular countertop blender for this. They all work. The immersion blender is my pick for weeknights because there is less cleanup. Just make sure you blend long enough to get a smooth puree. A hand mixer works too but leaves it slightly chunkier, which some people actually prefer.
How do I reheat this from the fridge or freezer?
From the fridge, I cover with foil and bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes until hot in the center. From frozen, thaw in the fridge overnight first, then bake the same way. I always add a fresh sprinkle of pork rinds on top before reheating because they lose their crunch. A quick 2 minutes under the broiler at the end gets that bubbly, browned cheese top.
Is there a way to make this recipe dairy-free?
I have not tested a fully dairy-free version of this specific recipe, but I think it could work. Swap the cream cheese for cashew cream or a vegan cream cheese, use nutritional yeast in place of the parmesan, and a dairy-free cheddar for the loaded toppings. The bacon and pork rind topping are already dairy-free, so those stay. The texture will be a little different, but the broth-cooked cauliflower base does most of the flavor work here.
Whenever I would see loaded mashed potatoes on a menu, I would order it. This was before I went keto, of course. But I love mashed potatoes and when you add cheese and bacon, they become next level! I had to create a low carb loaded faux-tato version using cauliflower instead! This loaded mashed cauliflower is a side dish I like to make around the holidays. It’s so rich and creamy. This twice baked cauliflower is heaven paired with turkey or prime rib. And it’s lighter than regular loaded potatoes.
This recipe starts by making my incredible recipe for 
Achieving thick mashed cauliflower is key to making a great loaded cauliflower side dish. Cauliflower tends to absorb moisture as it cooks, so it’s important to get out all that excess moisture in order to have thick, creamy cauliflower mash. I like to use a paper towel to do this.
Simply place your cooked cauliflower in between sheets of paper towels and press to release the excess fluid. The more moisture you wring out, the thicker the cauliflower mash.
I prefer to use a 
I've tried at least four different cauliflower mash recipes this year looking for one that actually holds up as a side dish. This is the one. The pork rind crust on top is what separates it from every other version I've made, that crunch you get at the end of a bite is exactly what's been missing. The base is fluffy enough that I stopped thinking about what it isn't.
My mom made twice baked potatoes every Sunday growing up and I haven't had them in two years since going keto. Made this last week and when I pulled it out of the oven, the cheddar and bacon smell just hit me out of nowhere. Took me right back to her kitchen. Didn't see that coming. I'd knock off half a star because I didn't squeeze nearly enough liquid out of the cauliflower the first time and mine came out a little loose, but the flavor was completely there.
Smell memory is wild. And yeah, the squeeze is where the first batch always goes loose - two passes with a kitchen towel gets out way more than one.
Tried so many cauliflower mash recipes and they all end up watery. Never seen the step where you squeeze out the liquid after steaming. That's literally why this one has actual texture. The pork rind crust got me to try it, but the texture is why I stayed. Not going back.
I kept putting this off because I didn't think cauliflower could actually do the loaded baked potato thing. It can. The texture wasn't watery at all, and with the bacon and cheddar on top I didn't feel like I was missing out on much.
The loaded part matters. Once you've got the bacon, cheddar, and green onions on top, nobody's thinking about the cauliflower.
My cauliflower mash always goes watery no matter what. Pressing the liquid out first finally fixed that. The pork rind crust is new to me too, haven't seen it anywhere else.
Once you press it, you can't go back. The pork rind crust I've never seen replicated anywhere else either - pretty sure I made it up.
I've tried probably four or five cauliflower mash recipes and they all hit the same wall: too watery, falls flat. Steaming in chicken broth and then actually squeezing out the liquid was the fix (that step matters way more than I expected). Came out fluffy, held its shape on the plate. The pork rind crust is what all the other versions were missing -- that crunch against the creamy filling is the whole thing.
The squeeze step is everything. Skipped it once and the whole thing puddled on the plate. Pork rinds are the part that keeps me from going back to the other versions.
My husband has made his feelings about cauliflower mash pretty clear in the past (his exact words were 'it tastes like sadness'), so I wasn't setting high expectations when I made this Sunday. He went back for a second scoop before I even sat down. I think the pork rind crust on top is what got him, it adds this crunch that regular mashed potatoes never had. Only giving it 4 stars because mine came out a little watery (I don't think I squeezed out enough liquid from the cauliflower), but that's a me problem and I know how to fix it next time.
'It tastes like sadness' is the funniest thing I've read today. Glad the pork rind crust got him. It's the part that doesn't read as cauliflower at all.
My husband went back for seconds and spent five minutes interrogating me about the potatoes. He thought the pork rind crust was some kind of crispy breadcrumb. Telling him it was cauliflower was the best part of my night.
Ha, it really does look like panko when it toasts. Five minutes of interrogation tracks.
My mom made loaded twice baked potatoes every Sunday when I was growing up, and I honestly didn't think I'd find anything like them after going keto. The cauliflower with the bacon and cheddar on top hit that same note, somehow. Saved this one.
Sunday loaded potatoes are a hard bar to clear. The pork rind crust is the part that usually does it - that crunch you forgot you were missing.
Brought this to a book club potluck and one of my friends spent five minutes interrogating me about whether it was potato because she was convinced I was lying about the cauliflower. The pork rind topping really seals the whole illusion. I'd probably add more bacon next time, but that's on me for being greedy.
'Greedy' is the right instinct. I do 8 slices when I'm making it for a crowd. The 6 in the recipe is the floor, not the ceiling.
Made this as a side for Sunday dinner and my husband walked past while I was plating it and said 'that's not potatoes.' Technically correct. He sat down and went quiet, which in our house means the food is doing its job. The pork rind crust on top is what got him, I think. Making this again Thursday.
Ha, 'went quiet' is the best review. The pork rind crust does that to people.
Hi Annie,
Quick question, I am ready to make this recipe yet since the weather change the cauliflower heads have shrunk! So was wondering if you have a ratio of how much cauli I should use (grams/ounces). I would really appreciate it! Thanks for your great recipes!
I don't know exactly but it looks like a medium head of cauliflower is around 2 pounds
I can't wait to try this recipe with your tips & tricks. I've got some mashed potato extract that I wanted to try too! Haven't been a fan of the cauli-taste but with strong seasonings it's tolerable (Spanish Rice).
Ooh that extract could work here. The cream cheese and parmesan are already covering most of the cauli-flavor, so between those and the loaded toppings it might actually get there. Report back.