Low Carb Taco Casserole

Low Carb Taco Casserole is a keto friendly, KID friendly, gluten free twist on taco night. Layer some seasoned roasted cauliflower with mildly spiced taco meat and tangy cheddar, for the perfect combo.

Happy Taco Tuesday! Although, every Tuesday is happy when there are tacos (or taco-related dinners) in store, right? While feeling tacos this week, I didn’t have any taco shells or tortillas in the house — how does this even happen? — but did have a cauliflower that was starting to go. This inspired me to throw together today’s low carb variation on taco night: Low Carb Taco Casserole.

Roasting the seasoned cauliflower before incorporating it into the casserole adds so much flavor, balancing nicely with the mildly taco seasoned meat and tangy cheddar + sour cream. Satisfy all of your taco cravings, without all of the carbs! Or, just use this opportunity to sneak a veggie into your kids on taco night…

Low Carb Taco Casserole

Ingredients

– for the cauliflower

One small head of cauliflower (chopped into about 1.5 lbs of florets)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp seasoned salt

– for the beef

1 lb 80/20 or 85/15 ground beef
2 tsp minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp onion powder
Sea salt, to taste

– to assemble

1/2 cup sour cream
1.5 cups shredded cheddar, divided
3 green onions, chopped

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and chop the cauliflower into bite-sized florets.

Add the cauliflower florets to a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle cauliflower with olive oil, and sprinkle with smoked paprika & seasoned salt. Stir to coat, then spread out into a single layer.

Roast cauliflower at 400 degrees for 25 minutes or until tender, stirring halfway through.

While your cauliflower is roasting, brown the ground beef and minced garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat until beef is cooked through, breaking up as you go.

Drain the beef. Stir in chili powder, cumin, onion powder, and sea salt, along with 1/2 cup water. Simmer until liquid is almost entirely absorbed, stirring occasionally.

Once the cauliflower is roasted, spray a small casserole or baking dish with cooking spray. Remove the roasted cauliflower from the oven and transfer it to a large bowl. Stir in the sour cream and 1/2 cup shredded cheddar until the cheese is melted and everything is well-combined, then add the cauliflower mixture to the prepared baking dish.

Spoon the cooked ground beef evenly on top of the cauliflower. Sprinkle the casserole with one cup of shredded cheddar, then top it with chopped green onion.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, or until cheese is nicely melted. Serve your low carb taco casserole by itself, or with taco fixings of choice. (Me, I of course chose avocado!)

Note: You want a good sheet pan full of cauliflower, but if you have extra today, just save the florets. Steam them up & top with a little cheddar cheese for a simple side dish tomorrow.

Taco-bout your low carb goodness…

This mild & kid-friendly taco casserole isn’t spicy, but does sport a lot of flavor. You could easily kick yours up a notch with a little cayenne or taco sauce, because, like all good tacos, low carb taco casserole is customizable to your own taste — And, it’s both gluten free & keto friendly.

You could play around with the basic idea of this low carb casserole, too: Add a little red bell pepper for sweetness, or go with Italian seasoning/oregano/mozzarella instead of taco seasonings/cheddar, to change up the flavor profile. It’s OK to play with your food! 😉

Low Carb Taco Casserole, printable recipe

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