Amazing cauliflower snack that kids and adult will love. These Cauliflower Parmesan Crisps are made with a few easy ingredients that many people will already have at home. All you need is a head of cauliflower, block of Parmesan cheese, dry parsley flakes, and some garlic powder.
Cauliflower Parmesan Crisps
Raise your hand if you’re addicted to cauliflower!
I have both my hands raised because I LOVE cauliflower. There is always a head of cauliflower in my fridge. If I don’t have anything prepared for myself for lunch, I quickly make some roasted cauliflower in the oven.
Roasted cauliflower if often my choice for a fast side dish or a quick lunch. It’s very easy to make and all I need is a head of cauliflower, olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
I preheat the oven to 425, cut cauliflower florets off the stem, and mix it with some olive oil, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. After that, I just spread it evenly in a rimmed baking sheet and bake for about 20-25 minutes.
No joke, it’s the simplest form of cooking cauliflower and the most delicious.
That is not the only way I use cauliflower, of course. I add it to stir fry, casseroles, make rice out of it, and even pizza crust.
Last time I was making cauliflower pizza, I got an idea for a snack made out of cauliflower and cheese. I wanted to make little bites of cauliflower that would be cheesy and crispy on the outside.
Starting out as if I was making cauliflower pizza crust, I made a few modifications to make these little cauliflower Parmesan crisps. They made a tasty snack and I bet kids will love these. My 1-year old sure did!
TIPS FOR MAKING THESE CAULIFLOWER PARMESAN CRISPS:
Use block Parmesan cheese and grate it freshly yourself. This will ensure that the cheese melts better. Don’t use dry grated Parmesan cheese because it will not melt. (Some grocery stores do have freshly grated Parmesan off the block in the deli section.)
Much like cauliflower pizza crust, make sure to squeeze all liquid out of the steamed, ground cauliflower.
To make cauliflower crisps the same size, I used a cookie scoop to measure the “dough.” I used #40 cookies scoop but you can choose to use a different one.
Once cauliflower crisps are baked, let them cool before taking them off or they might break.
When making the crisps, pat the “dough” down and fix the edges as you flatten it. The edges will crack as it spreads but they are easily fixed.
What is the best way to squeeze liquid from the cauliflower?
The best thing to use when you need to squeeze the liquid from cauliflower is cheese cloth. I like to fold cheese cloth in two (sometimes even more) to make finer mesh.
What if I don’t have a cheese cloth?
What you are looking for is fine mesh to squeeze out the liquid without squeezing part of cauliflower through the holes. There were a few times when I ran out of cheese cloth, then I used clean veggie saving bags. They are made from fine mash material and worked perfectly. So look around your kitchen, you might just have something you can use. Make sure it’s clean and it’s fine mesh material.
Can I prep them ahead of time?
Yes, you absolutely can.
You can prepare the cauliflower “dough” and refrigerate it in an air-tight container. (Up to step 5.)
You can prepare it the night before and bake the next day or prepare in the morning and bake in the afternoon or evening.
How can I reheat these crisps?
Just like so many other things, this snack is best eaten fresh from the oven but, it CAN be reheated.
The best way to reheat it is in the oven. Heat oven to 425 and pop them in on a baking sheet for just about a minute or two, until hot.
You can also reheat them in a dry cooking pan, on stove-top. Preheat a cooking pan over medium-high heat and re-heat the cauliflower crisps for about a minute on each side.
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Cauliflower Parmesan Crisps
Ingredients
- 3 lb head of cauliflower 1 average head of cauliflower
- 3/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp dry parsley
- salt optional
Instructions
- Cut cauliflower florets off the stem.
- Steam cauliflower florets until tender. (10-15 minutes)
- Place steamed cauliflower florets in a food processor and pulse a few times until it looks like fine crumbs. (Make sure there are no chunks left.)
- Transfer cauliflower crumbs in a doubled cheese cloth and squeeze out all the liquid. (You may have to let it cool a bit or it will be too hot for you to squeeze.)
- Place cauliflower in a mixing bowl and add Parmesan cheese, dry parsley, and garlic powder. Mix well, until all evenly incorporated. (Taste to see if you want to add salt. Parmesan cheese is quite salty and you may feel like it's enough salt.)
- Preheat the oven to 425 and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Use a cookie scoop to scoop out cauliflower "dough." Press it into a ball with your hands and place it on the baking sheet. (I used #40 scoop.)
- Press down to flatten the "dough" into a thin disk, fixing the broken edges. The goal is for the disks to be only about 3 millimeters thin.
- Repeat with all the "dough." You will get about 12 pieces.
- Bake for 15-17 minutes, until deep golden brown.
- Let the cauliflower crisps cool before taking them off the baking sheet. Use a spatula to gently scoop them up.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Cathy Worley says
Thanks for all of the special recipes that I would have never thought of Love the healthier alternatives !!!
lyuba says
Thank you, Cathy!
Marjorie V Weir says
I’m thinking (have not done it, but have with yogurt) you could toss the riced cauliflower in a strainer overnight so the excess liquid drips through. Thanks for all the great recipe ideas!
lyuba says
(I’m sorry, answered wrong comment before.)
That’s a great idea. Plus it will take care of prep time ahead so it can be quickly made the next day. Thank you, Marjorie!
Cindy says
Will this recipe work with frozen riced cauliflower?????
PamelaB says
I can see these adding that extra touch to a salad or bowl of soup! Love it!
Thanks for the idea of using cauliflower to make a Parmesan crisp more nutritious.
Pamela
lyuba says
Oh yes, it would be great with soup! I will try in next time 😉
Thank you!
Ana says
Hello, do you think this recipe would work with dry curd cottage cheese? They look fantastic!
Maria says
Hello there! These look delicious! Was woudering if these can be made with vegan cheese
lyuba says
Hi Maria!
I’m not very familiar with vegan cheese. The reason I use Parmesan cheese is because it does have a melting point but is doesn’t add much moisture to the crisps while they are baking. So if you will try vegan cheese, see if there are harder ones. You will still be able to enjoy this snack but they may not retain shape as well and might just have different texture.
Sorry I wasn’t too much help!
Karen sederquist says
Parm! Crisps
Karen sederquist says
Thank you for the cauliflower park crisps, can hardly wait to make them! Love your recipes. I needed some help with recipes to enjoy some snacks as well for new ideas. Please keep them coming!!!
lyuba says
I hope you like them, Karen! I can hardly keep my hands off them 🙂
Thank you!!
Terri says
Can you use the frozen already diced cauliflower instead of fresh?
lyuba says
Hi Terri!
I don’t see why not 🙂 Just thaw it in the fridge and you should be good.
DonnaT says
So, it’s 162 calories per crisp..right? I wonder where the 6 gm of sugar comes from, do you know? These just look so good, I know I’m gonna have to go for it.
lyuba says
Hi Donna!
It looks like the head of cauliflower has 26 grams of sugar in it. That’s according to this recipe program that calculates the nutritional facts. I looks like amounts of sugar range from size to cooked vs raw. But it’s all from cauliflower.
Lynn Davis says
what recipe program do you have that calculates the nutritional data in a recipe please?
lyuba says
Lynne,
I use the program that is in the WP Recipe Maker program that I use for the recipe cards on the site. I’ve checked cauliflower nutrition with the google calculator one as well (It came out the same). I definitely put in the oz because the amount of sugar and carbs do vary according to size. I’ve read that cooking it also changes nutritional information and also how you cook it. I would imaging that some of the sugar is also drained off with the liquid when the steamed cauliflower is squeezed out. But there is not way to check exactly.
Theresa says
It’s 162 cal “per serving”. The entire recipe makes 4 servings/12 crisps, so 162 cal for three crisps.
Elaine Williams says
I have the same question . What is a serving size?
Lydia says
I would love to try these, they look so good. I make cauliflower pizza all the time. Just a clarification though, will this recipe only make 12 crisps? I feel like it should make more.
lyuba says
Hi Lydia!
It does make 12 crisps that are about 3.5-4 inches in diameter. I used an average size head of cauliflower. You can always double the recipe for a bigger family 🙂
Paramita Jaswal says
Can these crisps be made with any other cheese?
lyuba says
Hi Paramita! If you were to substitute cheese, I’d go with another hard cheese to it doesn’t add too much moisture. Maybe Asiago or Pecorino.
Karen Bavin says
Love that you number your steps. Makes following directions so much easier. These are going to be a HUGE hit in my house.
lyuba says
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you, Karen!!