Cauliflower Cakes with Marinara

What’s not to love about these Crispy Cauliflower Cakes with Marinara Sauce? These amazingly easy-to-make, husband-approved Cauliflower Cakes will be one of those sinfully delicious, flavorful. Yet, almost guilt-free snacks you’ll love to eat with your favorite Marinara Sauce.

Yesterday was one of those days I was craving cauliflower, yet I also wanted something snack-orientated. I decided to look at a few recipes on Pinterest but didn’t see much I was interested in snacking on. I was in one of those dipping something in Marinara Sauce moods, so I decided to make these cauliflower cakes and fill my snacking requirements.

Look how crispy and delicious these Cauliflower Cakes look when they come out of the oven. I have to admit I snatched one of the Cauliflower cakes up immediately to test it out as soon as it cooled enough to test. Hit the spot too. The crunchy outside, soft inside, was a perfect texture combination to my taste buds.

The one thing I love about these Cauliflower Cakes with Marinara Sauce is that I could efficiently serve them just plain Jane with Marinara Sauce or make them look like a fancy eye-catching appetizer for my dinner guests, by simple toppings and garnishes as you can see from the image above and the one below–easy to accomplish either one.

Equipment needed for Cauliflower Cakes with Marinara

• A steamer pot with the basket

• Food processor or chopper

• Mixing bowls

• Measuring spoons and cups

• Cheese grater

• A scooper or large tablespoon

• Sharp kitchen knife

• Large or small muffin tins

• Hot pads

• Bakers rack

Ingredients you will need for Cauliflower Cakes with Marinara

• Three cups of cooked cauliflower florets

• One cup of panko breadcrumbs

• 1/2 of a cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese

• 1/4 of a cup chopped parsley

• 1/4  cup of sliced scallions

• One teaspoon dried Italian herb blend

• Kosher salt to own taste

• freshly ground black pepper to own taste

• Two eggs,  lightly beaten

• Cooking spray

• Favorite Marinara Sauce heated

Tips on choosing cauliflower:

• Choosing the right cauliflower: Cauliflower heads should be firm and tightly closed. White varieties should be very pale, with no dark “sunburned” spots. Reject any heads that show signs of softness. That’s the start of spoilage.

• Storing cauliflower for later use: Though it seems durable, cauliflower is extremely perishable. Keep it tightly wrapped in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator.

Time-saving techniques: 

• If you are running short on time, you can use organic frozen cauliflower to substitute the fresh cauliflower. Just let the cauliflower thaw beforehand or defrost in the microwave oven. That will cut out about 6-8 minutes from the recipe.

• Some stores even carry the organic frozen riced cauliflower, which will cut out another step in the Cauliflower cake recipe saving 2-3 minutes.

• Look for grated Pecorino Romano cheese in the deli section at the market to save about 4 minutes on the recipe.

Step by step instructions for Cauliflower Cakes with Marinara

1. Be sure to Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F ahead of time.

2. In a food processor or food chopper, chop the cooked cauliflower florets until they are in tiny pieces, do not puree the cauliflower. You are looking for a coarsely grated texture. (see my time-saving tips for the cauliflower cakes.)

3. In a large glass mixing bowl, combine; cooked and chopped cauliflower, 2 cups of panko breadcrumbs, 1 of a cup of Parmesan-Romano cheese blend, ½ of a cup chopped parsley, ¼ of a cup sliced scallions, Kosher salt to taste, freshly ground black pepper to taste, and three lightly beaten eggs, stir to combine the ingredients.

4. Pretreat the large or small muffin tins with cooking spray to prevent the cauliflower cakes from sticking.

5. Scoop an even amount of the cauliflower batter in each small muffin hole and press down to form a little cake. (I filled mine to the top of the shaft with an ice cream scoop.)

6. Bake in a preheated oven of 400° F for 18-20 minutes, depending on your oven.

7. Remove the metal muffin tins from the oven and let them slightly cool on the bakers rack or heat resistant surface before removing the cauliflower cakes from the muffin tin. They should quickly come out of the pretreated tin, but if you are having an issue using a teaspoon to lift out the Cauliflower cakes.

8. Serve with your favorite Marinara Sauce while warm.

Don’t forget to use the Pin and Print Options to save this recipe for later!

© Heidy L. McCallum and The McCallum’s Shamrock Patch, 2021-2013 unauthorized use and duplication of content/ material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and owner are strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Heidy L. McCallum and The McCallum’s Shamrock Patch with proper and specific direction to the original content.

Sharing is caring!