Cheesy Cauliflower Rice Balls

by Kayla Berman on June 26, 2020 10 comments

I am ashamed to admit that there have been times in my life that I didn’t eat cheese. I literally cannot believe that that was ever me, because a life without cheese is a life I simply do not want to live. Dramatic? Yes. True? Also yes. Give me cheese in any form and I will be extremely happy. But like if you give me it in the form of little crispy oven baked bites of deliciousness that also have sneaky veggies? I am done for. And that is exactly what these Cheesy Cauliflower Rice Balls are!! They are a true cheese lover’s dream. A scrumptious appetizer that will be sure to impress anyone you serve it too, plus these little bites even have a touch of health in them!

What you need for these Cheesy Cauliflower Rice Balls!

These cauliflower rice balls are actually pretty simple! They do not require many ingredients at all and are actually incredibly easy to make.

Frozen Cauliflower Rice: You are obviously going to need cauliflower rice for these balls! I used a frozen 10 oz package. However, if you make your own cauliflower rice or simple want to use finely chopped cauliflower I’m sure that would work as well!
Garlic & Onion: These two are pretty self explanatory too! I use garlic and onion in almost all my savory recipes, they just give such a delicious flavor.
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese: I told you guys that these are cheesy! They are so so cheesy and it is so so delicious. And we of course have to use mozzarella cheese to continue with the Italian flavors that we’ve got going on!
Egg, Flour, & Panko: These are all needed to bread these rice balls! I used a three step process … so first you coat in the flour, dip in the egg, and then finally coat with the panko breadcrumbs! I used all purpose flour and I think panko breadcrumbs produce the best look and flavor, but you could use any breadcrumb you like.
Olive Oil: Olive oil is used in a couple different steps throughout this recipe! It is used in the beginning to sauté up the garlic & onion and is also used to coat the balls a little before baking. This helps them to get all crispy & golden!
Seasonings: I kept it simple, but still delicious here with just salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.

How to make these Cheesy Cauliflower Rice Balls!

Another thing I love about these Cheesy Cauliflower Rice Balls is that they are oven baked. This makes for a crispy little bite that isn’t as heavy as one that is deep fried.

Set the oven to 400 degrees.
Chop up the onion and garlic cloves.
Add the olive oil to a pan over medium to high heat. Add in the garlic and onion and sauté with salt, pepper, and italian seasoning until soft and fragrant.
Then add in the cauliflower rice. Since the cauliflower rice is frozen, there will be a decent amount of liquid. Sauté until all the liquid is cooked off and the rice is soft. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
Remove the cauliflower mixture from the stove and add to a mixing bowl. Add in the mozzarella cheese and combine.
Roll the cauliflower & cheese mixture into 12 (approximately tablespoon sized) balls.
Add the egg to one bowl and whisk, the flour to another, and the panko breadcrumbs to another.
Bread each ball by first coating evenly in the flour, then in the egg, and then in the breadcrumbs. Place the finished balls on a baking tray.
Drizzle or lightly dip the balls in some olive oil. You don’t want too much oil, but just enough to help the balls get crispy & golden.
Bake for 10 minutes, flip the balls, and then bake for another 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and enjoy! I recommend serving with some marinara sauce.

Check out some of my other recipes!

Connect with me!

If you make these Cheesy Cauliflower Rice Balls or any of my other recipes I would absolutely love to know! Tag me @wellnessbykay on instagram, so I can see and share your recreations!!