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GET IT NOWWhy This Cauliflower Stuffing Always Makes My Holiday Menu
This cauliflower stuffing surprised not only my carb-loving extended family, but even me. Over the years, I’ve found so many ways to use cauliflower to make healthier versions of comfort food — from cauliflower mac and cheese to mashed cauliflower — but I was definitely skeptical that making stuffing with it would satisfy. When almost everyone went back for seconds, I knew I had a winner. Here’s why it’s earned a permanent spot on my list of must-make healthy Thanksgiving recipes:
- Classic savory holiday flavor – This cauliflower stuffing has all the cozy, herby taste you’d expect from traditional stuffing. The mix of herbs, garlic, and seasonings shines a lot more than what you put them on, and unlike the bread version, I love all the caramelized flavor in this one.
- Feel-good side dish – There’s no bread here at all, so it’s naturally low carb and gluten-free. And I love that this veggie-packed side leaves me feeling light instead of, well, stuffed. I did include a few variations below if you want to make it heartier.
- Easy prep – This low carb stuffing only takes me about 10 minutes to throw together, mainly with pantry staples.
Even the cauliflower skeptics will be asking for seconds. Make it with me!
“This turned out so good with so much flavor! Loved the mix of textures in it. Going to add this to my Thanksgiving menu this year.”
-Abby
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best ingredients for my cauliflower stuffing recipe, what each one does, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Cauliflower – I use a big head and chop it into small florets, so they caramelize better in the oven. If you like yours a little crisp-tender, you can leave them bigger. Frozen cauliflower florets work fine, too.
- Aromatics – A.k.a. onions and garlic! They get irresistibly caramelized and are one of my favorite flavors in this cauliflower stuffing.
- Celery – For crunch! Feel free to add other veggies that go well with fall flavors, like celeriac, fennel, carrots, or mushrooms. If you choose to add any root veggies, cut them very small so that they soften by the time the cauliflower does.
- Olive Oil – I love the flavor of olive oil in this, but if you want something richer, butter or ghee works really well too.
- Spices – I keep it classic with , salt, and pepper.
- Herbs & Spices – I use poultry seasoning plus extra dried thyme and ground sage, but both of those are in the seasoning so you could just use more of that if you like. You’ll also need sea salt, black pepper, and fresh parsley to finish. If you prefer to use fresh herbs instead of dried, you can swap in 1/2 tablespoon EACH of fresh thyme, rosemary, and sage.
- Pecans – For a nutty flavor and crunch. I recommend chopping them pretty small, so you get a little in each bite. You can also swap in other nuts, like walnuts or almonds, or skip them if you need it nut-free.
How To Make Cauliflower Stuffing
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Mix and season. In a large bowl, combine the cauliflower, onions, celery, and garlic. Drizzle with the oil, sprinkle on the seasonings, and toss together.
- Roast until tender. Spread the mixture out on a parchment-lined baking sheet (I use two if it’s crowded). Pop it in the oven and roast until the onions are soft and starting to caramelize, and the cauliflower gets a little golden on the edges.
- Finish. Sprinkle the cauliflower stuffing with parsley and pecans right onto the pan, give it a stir, and roast a bit longer until the nuts are toasty, the cauliflower is golden, and everything smells amazing.
My Recipe Tips
- Spread everything out in a single layer. I usually use this pan that fits everything just right, but if I’m doubling the recipe or want extra browning, I grab a second sheet or use my extra large pan.
- Check for caramelization before adding the pecans. The best timing can vary depending on the size of the florets, your pan, and even your oven, and the pecans can’t handle toasting for too long before they’ll burn. So, make sure the cauliflower and onions are nicely caramelized before you add the nuts.
- The flavor of this cauliflower stuffing tastes even better the next day. The cauliflower does get softer, but the flavors meld together and improve.
Cauliflower Stuffing
My cauliflower stuffing is a healthy twist on the classic, packed with roasted veggies, herbs, and so much flavor. Perfect for Thanksgiving!
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Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
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Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (232 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or line with foil and grease well.
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In a large bowl, stir together the chopped cauliflower, onions, celery, and garlic. Toss with olive oil, poultry seasoning, sage, thyme, sea salt, and black pepper.
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Spread the mixture in a single layer on the lined baking sheet. (You may need two sheets depending on the size. You want as many of the cauliflower florets and onions in contact with the pan as possible.) Roast in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the onions are soft and cauliflower is starting to brown a little.
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Add the fresh parsley and pecans to the pan, and stir everything together. Roast for 10-15 more minutes, until the pecans are lightly toasted, cauliflower is well browned, and onions are starting to caramelize.
LAST STEP: Leave a rating to help other readers, or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram. I’d love to hear from you!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 cup
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you get the best texture and flavor.
- Store: Leftovers keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. You can also toss them in my leftover Thanksgiving casserole.
- Meal prep: You can chop all the veggies ahead of time and stash them in the fridge. You can also prep the whole dish 1-2 days ahead.
📖 Want more recipes like this? Find this one and many more in my Low Carb Holiday Cookbook and Keto Ebook Bundle!
I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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Cauliflower Stuffing
Recipe Variations
Want to mix things up a bit? Here are a few easy ways to change up this cauliflower stuffing:
- Stuff it inside a turkey – Cook the recipe as written, then stuff it into your turkey (like in this easy turkey recipe). It gets very soft inside the bird, so I only recommend this if you’re into that texture.
- Cauliflower rice – Swap the florets for cauliflower rice. Since it cooks much faster than florets, I prefer to add it to the pan in the last 10 minutes.
- Sausage – Brown your favorite sausage on the stovetop and mix it in with the vegetables before roasting. While you can certainly make this version for Thanksgiving, I particularly love it for a one-dish fall meal on other days.
- Pomegranate – Pomegranate arils are one of my favorite add-ins for a sweet, juicy contrast. Toss them in after baking.
Serving Ideas
If you’re wondering what to serve with it, here are some of my favorite ways to make this cauliflower stuffing part of a full meal:
- Turkey – I usually make my garlic butter turkey or a spatchcock turkey (one of the favorites among my team). If you’re hosting a smaller gathering, try my turkey roll or air fryer turkey breast.
- Comforting Mains – It’s just as good alongside cozy dishes like slow cooker pot roast, sirloin roast, or pork tenderloin. I love how it soaks up all the juices on the plate.
- More holiday Favorites – Drizzle it with gravy, serve it next to my healthy sweet potato casserole and roasted green beans, and don’t forget the sugar-free pecan pie for dessert.
88 Comments
KC
1This recipe is okay when you first make it but if you let it sit in the fridge overnight, it tastes AMAZING the next day. Once all of the flavors get a chance to meld and marinate, it’s absolutely delicious. I ate a huge bowl with some eggs for dinner. Will definitely make again!
Alex
1Just made this for thanksgiving and it was excellent!!
Abby
1This turned out so good with so much flavor! Loved the mix of textures in it. Going to add this to my thanksgiving menu this year.
Julia
1I tried making this stuffing to see if I wanted to serve it for thanksgiving, UMMMM YES!! So delicious and practically guilt free! Thanks so much for posting!
Journa Liz Ramirez
1Keto cauliflower stuffing is a new favorite! It is so satisfying and flavorful. I’ll surely have this again. Thanks Maya for this highly recommended recipe!
Tanya W
1I love this recipe, it’s as delicious, if not more so, than the traditional New England sage dressing that my mom made for made dad every Thanksgiving and most Christmases growing up. It satisfies that craving for dressing “like Mom’s”, and my desire to eat healthier. It’s easy to make, I add in extra garlic and sage, of course! It’s a hit with my family too, even the younger ones!
Andrea
0Made it today and everyone liked it! The onions got burned (maybe I cut them too small?) but it still tasted good.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I’m glad it tasted good, Andrea! Yes, the onions were probably too small so you can cut them a little bigger next time.
Ruth
0Really want to try this! Question – sliced onions – did you cut them in half before oven cooking? TIA
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Ruth, Yes, I cut them into half moons or you can do quarter moons.
SB
0This was absolutely a dish of delish! I served it beside salmon. It is so versatile though! I can see it next to many of our keto dishes! I will be making this again soon! ?
Lise
0This was a great substitute for turkey stuffing for our Christmas dinner. I thought I was going to miss my normal stuffing, but this tasted great!
Lottie m
0Fab
Dora G
0This recipe is amazing!! I added chopped carrots as well. Thank you!
Margaret
0This was amazing and I found a way to cheat by buying precut cauliflower florets
Jen
0This was great! My husband is a lover of traditional stuffing and he thought this was fantastic! My only tip is to keep an eye on the last 5 minutes. I should’ve pulled mine out 2 minutes earlier but it was still awesome.
Margaret
0Can’t wait to make. Is it ok to chop the veggies ahead of time and put them in a big container? Together?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Margaret, Yes, that would work.
Jane
0This is a very good dish but taste nothing like stuffing, I’ll keep looking.
Elaine K.
0This sounds amazing! When you say we can use cauliflower rice instead of florets, do you mean to add the cauliflower rice raw (with the nuts and parsley), or cooked according to your cauliflower rice recipe?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Elaine, Yes, the rice would be raw at this step.
Karen Merchant
0We might like this as an everyday side dish, but not as a replacement for bread stuffing at Thanksgiving. We think that the healthy low carb sweet potato casserole may be more satisfying as a Thanksgiving side dish. We disagree with several reviewers that it tastes better leftover; the flavors were more intense and the texture better on the first day.
KateM
0EXCELLENT! Seriously good hummus and so good for our bodies. Flavor keeps developing if you can keep from eating it the same day.
Rhonda
0This blew my mind ? I’m in love??this was awesome & a keeper ? thank you Maya for another good one ❤️??
Amy
0Has anyone tried making this with frozen florets? I was planning on making this tomorrow but the store was out of fresh!
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Amy, I have never tried that but let me know your results if you do.
Teri
0When your recipes call for one large or one medium head of cauliflower, would you kindly include how many cups that translates into so that I can use the bagged florets instead for convenience? Thanks!
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Teri, A large head of cauliflower is usually equal to 6 cups.
Anonymous
0Haven’t tried it yet, had to leave a rating before I could see the rest…
Sharon
0I made this for Thanksgiving & it was incredibly satisfying. I am the only vegan in our family & I’m also trying to be mindful of the rising HbA1c levels of my siblings. Everyone LOVED it! To make it more appealing to the die-hard carnivores, I added Beyond Meat Hot Spicy Italian Sausage (not a health food but hey, it was Thanksgiving ;-D ) and 2 portobello mushrooms. Thank you so much for sharing this excellent recipe – I think it will become a Thanksgiving staple from now on! Now I need to explore your site to find other great substitutions.
Cathy Strobeck
0I made this for myself at my Thanksgiving dinner, and it was so good! I was able to pass on the cornbread dressing (which is my absolute favorite!) and stick to my keto plan, even through this meal, which is really hard to do! Thanks for the substitute that made that possible!
Andrea Zatuchney
0Can I use almonds instead of pecans?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Andrea, Yes, you can substitute almonds for pecans.
Tracy
0Cant wait to try it. Sounds delicious.
Kim
0How many grams is a 1/2 cup serving? It is easier for me to track by weight rather than cup.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Kim, My servings sizes are by volume only. You can calculate it by weighing the whole recipe they made and dividing by the number of servings.
Ginger
0My husband and I are trying to take the carbs out of our diet and found your recipe. I was completely skeptical but we love our stuffing. This was absolutely DELICIOUS! If you had to eyes closed, you’d swear it was traditional stuffing, and even with them open, the cauliflower mimics bread. I added mushrooms and turkey sausage. Called my mom and sister the next day to say “you have to try this”! My husband ate the leftovers as a healthy lunch. Can’t thank you enough, it is a game changer for us!!
Laura
0I made this recipe this year, because I always make my stuffing with sausage, I used Butcher Box sausage about 1 lb. it was awesome. People ate this up faster than the normal bread stuffing. We had a small crowd this year but it fed us 6 nicely. Thank you so much for such an amazing stuffing. This will now be made not only for thanksgiving but with Chicken dinner too. Yum!!
Richard Coben
0Maya, I’m new to your blog but I’ve rapidly become a big fan of your Keto recipes. I made this recipe for Thanksgiving dinner to serve with my spatchcock turkey along with your pan fried green beans recipe and cheesecake recipe from your book that I recently bought and everything turned out delicious . Thanks for all your hard work and wonderful recipes. I’m looking forward to trying out more of your new ones. Happy holidays.
Lindsay
0This was SO good! Added sausage and mushrooms. I didn’t have parsley or poultry seasoning and it still turned out delicious. Thanks for the awesome recipe!!
Robin
0Can sausage be added to this cauliflower stuffing? My husband’s sugar level is dangerously close to being diabetes. His doctor said lower his carb intake. This life change is very recent. I always put sausage in my stuffing & this recipe would be great if it can include the sausage without ruining it. Thank you for the recipes do or gravy, mashers & stuffing. You’ve saved our Thanksgiving this year. Any chance you have a low carb pumpkin pie recipe? I’m cool with a pumpkin mouse too. There’s one must substitute & that’s no dairy. I’m dairy intolerant, not lactose intolerant. Which leads to another question. Can margarine be used in both the mashers and stuffing?
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Robin, Yes you can add sausage! Just be sure that the brand you buy is either low or no sugar added. Here is my Pumpkin Pie Recipe. Just be sure to use the dairy-free option. Margarine is not usually a healthy option due to the hydrogenated vegetable and seed oils used. I would recommend using ghee (if you can tolerate it) or butter flavored coconut oil in place of butter in the recipes.
Andrea
0I’m curious about the sausage. Do you brown it first and just mix it in with everything else after they roasted or do you let it roast in the oven too? Will it cook fast enough?
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Andrea, If you want to add sausage, you’ll want to cook it first in a sautee pan and then add it to the rest of the ingredients.
Adrienne
0I’m nit a fan of cauliflower but this was an awesome recipe I will never make regular stuffing again
Janet
0Can you use frozen cauliflower rice in place of the florets?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Janet, Sure, you can if that’s the texture you’re going for.
Renecha
0So good! I’m reviewing in between bites because I didn’t want to forget to give this one a rave review. I love the flavors! I added about 8 ounces sliced mushrooms as others had suggested and that was a wonderful addition. Granted you do not get the texture of stuffing but the flavor is definitely there. And just like that, half a tray was gone… and I’m the only one eating it!
Thank you for another delicious recipe! I’ll be making it again soon.
Monika
0I am planning on making this for Thanksgiving. You say to make it then stuff the turkey with it but makes it “very” soft. Is it possible to skip baking it and cooking it in the Turkey instead or cooking it half way then stuffing the turkey so that it won’t be “very” soft?
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Monika, This isn’t recommended. It is too difficult to monitor the temperature of the turkey and the stuffing on the inside. It really is safest to cook them separately.
John
0This would be good with sage and sausage.
Millican Pecan
0I love KETO! This recipe is just what I’m looking for and I found it while looking at your other recipes. I am learning to cook Keto and I remember a recipe my mom used for her stuffing, using pecans. This is perfect, thank you for sharing.
Mariberh
0This recipe was fabulous! I served it at a family potluck and everyone loved it, even the non keto eaters
Terry
0Can you make this ahead of time and freeze it?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Terry, I have never attempted to freeze this specific recipe, but if you cook and then freeze in an airtight container you should be good to go.
Eydie
0Hi there, can you make this in a frying pan on the stove top and still get the same effect? I too only have one oven and would like to have the turkey cooking while stuffing is being made.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Eydie, Yes, you can do that. You’d need to steam the cauliflower to soften it a bit first before frying.
Elissa
0Thank you for making a simple keto friendly recipe that I could share with my son’s gluten free, vegan girlfriend. We both enjoyed it so much. I’ll have to make a double batch as it was the first side dish to disappear.
Maria
0I added two strips of bacon, some chopped chicken liver, and mushrooms. And OMG I had to stop my self from eating it all at once.
Aimée
0Maya, I’d left a comment after making this fabulous stuffing for Thanksgiving and receiving such glowing compliments. I’m super happy I made extra because it makes the most amazing next-day-frittata! As I mentioned in my earlier comment, I made the addition of pre-cooked pork sausage with sage to the stuffing recipe. This morning, I warmed up some of the left-over stuffing in a hot oven for 10 minutes, then added it to a skillet on the stovetop. I poured whisked eggs over it and cooked on low heat, finishing it under the broiler for a couple of minutes. It was so delicious that I will intentionally make extra next time, too, so that we can feast on it the next morning. Many, many thanks for generously sharing your recipes!
Aimée
0Thank you for sharing this fabulous recipe. I made it for Thanksgiving instead of the traditional bread-based stuffing and everyone much preferred it. In fact, they raved. 🙂 I made one addition so that it was similar to our former stuffing: During the last 15 minutes, I added about 225g/8 ounces of pork sausage with sage that I had pre-browned on the stovetop. Your recipe has now been added to the master Thanksgiving recipe list. Thank you!!!
Kerry
0Absolutely delicious!! I was so excited when I found this recipe and now it is going to be my yearly tradition!!
Lena
0Great Alternative! (Made it ahead and my grown non-keto daughter suggested I make another batch!)
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you so much, Lena! Glad to hear that!
Wholesome Yum A
0Would this still be yummy if I make it a day ahead of time? Or will it be mushy reheated?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Amanda, It would be just a little mushy, but it’s pretty soft to begin with, so think it would still be good made ahead.
Charlotte
0Maya, I love your guidance and recipes and commitment and your site. But cauliflower masquerading as something else (pizza crust? stuffing?) is a seriously disgusting taste. For the life of me, I cannot understand why this is such a popular phenomenon.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Charlotte, Feel free to make the recipes that work best for you. I actually think cauliflower is delicious as a stuffing or a pizza, but everyone’s tastes are different.
Sarah
0This is delicious but it doesn’t taste like stuffing at all.
If you guys want a keto stuffing, use pieces of cauliflower pizza crust instead of just chopped cauliflower.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Sarah, Of course the texture will be cauliflower, since that’s what it is, but it should have the flavors of stuffing herbs and spices. Cauliflower pizza crust sounds like a great idea for stuffing, though! Here is my easy recipe for cauliflower pizza crust – it has only 3 ingredients.