Cauliflower Buns
The day I "met" this recipe was during my 2nd week without fruit and other sugars (because of my Quitting Sugar Challenge). Dark times. Probably one of my toughest moments related to food. I was desperate to find something new and fulfilling to eat. Just around that period, somebody talked about "cauliflower buns" in the Wildfit community and I started immediately my research. Enlightenment! Amazing recipe, just what I was looking for!
I tried a few recipes and options, but the base was mostly similar: it's a grain-free and dairy free recipe, where the main ingredient is ground cauliflower. There are a few variations for the type of flours or spices to add, but I settled for eggs and almond meal as the “glue”, to keep the buns soft and make sure they’re still perfectly gluten-free and keto friendly.
This recipe it's very easy to do, the only thing that takes time is processing the cauliflower (to make the perfect "cauliflower rice") but if you have a powerful food processor or you find pre-made cauliflower rice, then your preparation time is going to be significantly shorter.
The result is a fragrant bun that you can toast and serve with your favourite veggies, burger or guacamole sauce. It is also very tasty on its own, as a snack or to eat next to a salad. Have fun with the many combinations!
Ingredients (makes 7-8 buns)
600 gr cauliflower (or pre-made cauliflower rice)
4 tbsp ground almonds
2 eggs
2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp chili powder
1/3 tsp salt
2 tbsp sesame seeds
(optional 2 tbsp grounded flax seeds)
If you didn't find pre-made cauliflower rice, take the whole cauliflower and use a food processor to turn the florets into cauliflower rice (do it in batches). Use a cooking towel to squeeze the access water out of the cauliflower.
Place the cauliflower rice in a big bowl, add the spices and salt and mix with a spatula. Then add the eggs (slightly beaten in advance) and mix well. Optionally, add the ground flax seeds if you feel like the mix needs a little more "glue". Let it rest for 10 minutes.
Make 7-8 buns with your hands. First create a ball shape and press well with your hands to make the buns very compact. Sprinkle the top with sesame seeds.
Lay onto baking sheet and bake on pre-heated oven at 190 C for 40 minutes.
You can serve the buns like this or if you prefer a "burger bun" result let them cool down, slice in half and grill them in the oven (sliced side up) for 5 minutes.
TIPS: You can add 2 tbsp of ground flax seeds in case your mix needs a little extra glue to hold the buns together. Otherwise you can use more flax seeds and remove the eggs to turn the recipe into a vegan bun. In this case ground 6-8 spoons in total of flax seeds, mix with 3 tbsp of water and wait 10 minutes before adding to the cauliflower rice.
