Cauiliflower, Low-carb, sauce, Vegetarian, yougurt

Cauliflower balls with yogurt sauce – Polpette di cavolfiore con crema allo yogurt

I love "polpette" in all their forms! These are made with cauliflower and a small potato. The secret (as for cauliflower gnocchi) is to squeeze all the water out of the cauliflower once cooked. I tried this recipe many times before I was happy with the result. But here it is finally, and I'm happy to share it with you! To serve the "polpette," I prepared a yogurt sauce. I love the combination, and I hope you will like it too!

Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min

$4-6 total*

12 cauliflower balls

Ingredients

For the cauliflower balls:

1 medium head of cauliflower
1 small potato
20 g (1/2 cup) freshly grated parmesan cheese
10 g (1/4 cup) provolone cheese
2 whole eggs
1 cup panko or breadcrumbs (or a mix)
1 pinch of marjoram (optional, but good to add)
1 tbsp chopped parsley
a pinch of salt
black pepper
extra virgin olive oil spray

For the sauce:

4 tbsp greek yogurt
1/2 tbsp mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon mustard
1 lime, juiced
1 tbsp water
a pinch of salt

Preparation

Wash the cauliflower and cut it into florets. Wash, peel, and dice the potato.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once the water boils, add salt and boil the cauliflower florets and cubed potato for about 12-13 minutes.
Set aside the cauliflower and potato to cool (about 10 minutes).
Once cooled, put the vegetables in a dish towel and squeeze out as much water as possible over your sink. Squeeze the towel in different parts as water keeps coming out.
Place the squeezed vegetables in a food processor with cheese, 1 egg, marjoram, parsley, salt, and pepper. Pulse until smooth. Taste and add salt if needed.
Shape the mixture into balls with your hands or with the help of a small ice cream scoop.
Beat the other egg with some salt and pepper.
Coat the balls with the egg mixture first and then with the bread crumbs.
Air frier option: spray the balls with the extra virgin olive oil spray and cook into the air frier at 390 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 7-8 minutes, shaking the air frier basket every 2-3 minutes.
Oven option: place parchment paper on a baking tray and lay out balls in a single layer. Spray with the oil and bake for about 30-40 minutes at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) until lightly browned, flipping the balls after 20 minutes. Finish cooking broiling for 5 minutes.
While the cauliflower balls are cooking, prepare the sauce by mixing all the ingredients.

Serve the warm cauliflower balls with the yogurt sauce.

Tips & notes

If you have a small air fryer, cook the cauliflower balls into batches.
If you don’t have an air fryer but would like to have a crispier version of the balls, consider pan-frying them. They will stay crispier longer than when cooked in the oven.