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A simple-to-make side dish or snack, these ‘Everything Bagel’ Cauliflower Rolls are where healthy meets delicious! Using simple ingredients, and our favorite vegetable we like to magically transform, these rolls have been a fan-favorite for years!

A plate of cauliflower rolls.

Paleo Cauliflower Rolls

Cauliflower can do just about anything these days if you wish it hard enough! And these “Everything Bagel” flavored Cauliflower Rolls have been a magical recipe here on the site for over 7 years now! We’ve been re-making some of our most beloved recipes lately so more of you can find them, and these rolls definitely deserve top billing! While the recipe has stayed the same, we’ve added more tips and step-by-step photos to help you make it!

So you might be wondering…what are cauliflower rolls? And do they taste like regular rolls? And let me say straight off the bat, these are “rolls” made from cauliflower. They absolutely taste like cauliflower. So if you don’t like cauliflower at all, these might not be for you. If you are on the fence about cauliflower, or you are looking for ways to incorporate it more into your life then these are definitely for you.

This recipe uses finely processed cauliflower, bound together by eggs and baked up to make a really lovely side dish to serve along with dinner, or veggie-filled snack. Some people have had success in using it as a bun for a burger, but I much prefer to eat it as-is and served it with dinner.

This recipe is a healthy, low carb, paleo-friendly, roll alternative!

A plate of cauliflower rolls.

Ingredients Needed

Common Substitution Questions

We’ve had lots of questions about substitutions over the years. If your question isn’t answered here, check out the comments thread!

Cauliflower: This recipe as written is only for fresh whole cauliflower. You cannot use pre-riced cauliflower as it isn’t fine enough. If you did want to use pre-riced cauliflower, you’ll have to process it more in the food processor. We do not recommend using frozen cauliflower, as it will have too much excess moisture.

Eggs: This is the primary binding ingredient for this recipe. Some have had success using a flax or chia egg substitute, but we imagine that it can be a bit crumbly compared to the recipe as written. Please feel free to share if you make an egg substitute for this.

Almond Flour: A lot of people have commented below about using alternative flours, so feel free to see what has worked for others. If you need this to be nut-free, oat flour should work in place of almond flour.

Coconut Flour: This is a very absorbent flour, so if you wanted to attempt to replace it, you will likely have to triple the amount of flour that you plan to use. For instance, there might be some success with using 3 tablespoons of additional almond flour, but we haven’t tried so we can’t guarantee it will work. Please let us know if you experiment.

Seasoning: Go ahead and swap out the Everything Bagel Seasoning for whatever type of seasoning you’d like!

Step by step photo to make cauliflower buns.

How to Make Them

The most important step in this recipe is starting with the right kind and the right amount of cauliflower! Start with a fresh, whole cauliflower and pulse it in a food processor until it is finely ground, about the size of a grain of quinoa. You may have more than you need, so make sure to measure out only 3 cups. Set aside any leftover cauliflower for another use, such as adding it into an omelet or a smoothie!

Next add the 3 cups of fine cauliflower to a bowl along with the flours, some seasoning and eggs. Mix it up together until it’s well combined, and measure out about 1/3 cup of the mixture. Roll it into a ball and press down slightly to make a roll shape, since they won’t change shape in the oven. Then place on a baking sheet!

Then mix together your everything bagel seasoning, if you are making it yourself, or grab your store-bought seasoning and put about 1-1/2 teaspoons of the seasoning on top of each roll, and gently press it in to make sure it adheres while it’s baking.

And finally, bake in the oven until it’s lightly golden and set all over.

Cauliflower Rolls FAQ

We’ve had lots of questions of the years! We’ve added them here to help you have success with this recipe. If you have a question and you don’t see it answered here, feel free to add it to the comments below!

Does this have the texture of bread? Not quite! It’s cauliflower, and it’s really tricky to make cauliflower have the same texture as bread. This is, however, a healthier wheat roll alternative!

Does it taste like cauliflower? It does taste like cauliflower.

Can I use pre-riced cauliflower? No. This recipe needs finely processed cauliflower, and the stuff you buy at the store won’t be fine enough.

Can I use frozen cauliflower? Unfortunately no. It has too much moisture in it.

Can I use an alternative flour? We recommend sticking with the suggested flours. However, if you have a nut allergy, we’ve had success swapping in oat flour in our other recipes, so you might try that here, though we haven’t tested it on this. Check out the comments for more suggestions on flour alternatives that others have tried.

Can I omit the eggs? Eggs are the binding agent in this recipe, and they’re pretty important. However, some people have had some success with a chia or flax egg substitute. We haven’t tested it though.

How long will they last? These cauliflower rolls are best consumed fresh, the day they are made!

A bite of a cauliflower bun.

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A plate of cauliflower rolls.

'Everything Bagel' Cauliflower Rolls

4.50 from 6 votes
A simple-to-make side dish or snack, these 'Everything Bagel' Cauliflower Rolls are where healthy meets delicious! Using simple ingredients, and our favorite vegetable we like to magically transform, these rolls have been a fan-favorite for years!
Servings 6
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 head cauliflower about 1-1/2 lbs, cut into florets
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons almond flour
  • 1 tablespoon coconut flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon poppy seeds
  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1 teaspoon dried minced garlic
  • 1 tablespoon dried minced onion
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Add cauliflower to a food processor, and pulse until the cauliflower is finely ground, about the size of a grain of quinoa. Add three lightly packed cups of processed cauliflower to a large bowl, and set aside any leftover for another use.
  • To the bowl add in eggs, almond flour, coconut flour, garlic powder, and salt and mix together until fully combined.
  • Scoop 1/3 cup of the cauliflower mixture, form it into a ball and place it on the baking sheet. Gently press to flatten it slightly. Repeat with the remaining mixture.
  • Mix together poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried garlic, dried onion and coarse salt in a small bowl. Divide the mixture evenly on top of the cauliflower rolls, pressing it in slightly.
  • Bake for about 30 minutes, or until golden brown.
  • Remove from baking sheet and let cool directly on a cooling rack.
  • Serve as a snack or as a roll along with dinner!

Notes

If you don't have a food processor, you could grate the cauliflower florets on the largest hole of a box grater. Just take care to not include any large pieces if they break off while grating. It still must be as fine as the photos indicate.
You cannot use pre-riced cauliflower as it is not fine enough.
If you already have Everything Bagel Seasoning, feel free to use that here.
These cauliflower rolls are best consumed fresh, the day they are made!
This recipe was originally published in 2013, and republished with new photos in 2021.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/6 recipeCalories: 58kcalCarbohydrates: 3gProtein: 3gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 62mgSodium: 281mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1g
Keyword: Cauliflower Rolls
Author: Lexi

 



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Comments

  1. It would be great to know how much the cauliflower you use weighs – I’ve seen massive ones like small basketballs and teeny ones like big baseball size!

  2. These came out very soggy and taste like old leftover cauliflower the next day. It would probably be better to cook the cauliflower a bit first and squeeze out as much water as you can.

  3. I made these today, overall great taste. But the center seems to be very doughy and I don’t know how to make it crispy. I tried broiling it after cutting it in half for about 10 minutes and it just wouldn’t crisp, any suggestions?

  4. Made these used flax seed and chia seeds for topping.. They came out fantastic..used them with a burger. Can’t wait hank you enough for a satisfying recipe.

    1. update to above post: just made this with flax eggs and brown rice flour. delic. totally delic. i’ve got this posted on my waytogohealthy facebook page, if anyone wants to see more! thanks so much, lexi!

  5. i can’t wait to try these. It would help a lot if the amount of riced cauliflower was listed in ounces. The would eliminate a lot of the guess work!

  6. Yes, I too am wondering about an egg free version. Also, do you have a photo of what the dough looks like prior to being baked?

  7. Would apple sauce work as a substitute for the eggs here? Or perhaps a store bought egg substitute? To make them vegan.. thanks

  8. I just made there, and these are most definitely my new favorite food. I used 3 TB of almond flour, otherwise recipe as is. I have bottles of the “everything” mix from my favorite bagelry, which is delicious and glad to be able to use them in a recipe. Also, baked for about 40 minutes 400 degrees. Batter was easily made into balls and do not spread much, if at all.Thank you!

  9. Instead of 1 tblspoon coconut flour 2 of almond flour can I just use 3 Tbl of Bob’s Redmill GF all purpose flour?

  10. Hi Lexi,’
    I just made these and s a previous baker mentioned, I made 4 and they are pretty good size but the amount of time on the recipe really isn’t enough time. I may have baked them 45-50 minutes and the center was still a bit moist so they are back in the oven on the rack without the pan another 10 min. The kitchen smells amazing!!! I can’t wait to try them this weekend. Will let you know how the extra time goes.! Thanks!

  11. OMG I am so excited to try these! I make lots of cauliflower pizza crust but never rolls. Can’t wait to eat these with goat cheese and smoked salmon!

  12. I have just poped these in the oven. The batter(?) seems very very wet and very crumbly. Perhaps my cauliflower was too big? or the method I used to rice it made the cauliflower too wet… I’m not sure, but I’m hoping these come out okay. I’m going to try baking them a little longer (per the post from the person a while ago) and I might try broiling them to make them a little drier. They smell awesome, if nothing else.

    Also, I didn’t have dried minced garlic, I just had the refrigerated in oil kind. I squeezed as much liquid out as I could and used it anyway. It seemed to make the topping stick to the rolls really well, so I didn’t have to mush it in much. I’ll post again and let you know how they come out.