I’m sure you’ve seen or tried the Cauliflower Gnocchi at Trader Joe’s. Jack and Justin love it, but it’s got potato starch. I don’t eat potatoes because they’re a nightshade and a big trigger food for me. I love gnocchi and I love cauliflower and I’m so glad I finally made my very own Paleo Cauliflower Gnocchi. It’s not a low carb food, but definitely lower carb than regular pasta, and also with more nutrients.
This Cauliflower Gnocchi uses a whole head of cauliflower and cassava (or yuca root) flour, along with 1 large egg. That’s it! Simple and delicious and totally legit! 
What is Gnocchi?
It’s a variety of pasta made of flour, eggs, and potato. They’re little dumpling really. A ball rolled on a fork to create the indentations. Like all fresh pasta (not dry) they boil very quickly. They’ve got a slightly fluffy look to them once cooked with a doughy consistency in the center. I like to pan-fry mine too. This adds a bit of a crust and really elevates the texture. For homemade paleo noodles, check out this recipe.
For another cauliflower pasta dish check out this low carb recipe.
No Special Equipment Needed
You don’t need a pasta maker, you don’t need much. A pot to boil water, a blender, colander, large bowl, and a fork! I like to use a pastry mat to work on with dough, it helps the cleanup. However you can put down some parchment paper that works great too, just make sure to tape it down to your counter so it’s not moving around on you.
Gluten Free Pasta Dough Stages
It’s important to have a visual on what the dough looks like in each stage. Use the images below to guide you as you work through the recipe!
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Paleo Cauliflower Gnocchi (no potato, nut free)
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 100 pieces 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Pasta
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Easy and delicious cauliflower pasta! This paleo gnocchi is allergen friendly and very authentic!
Ingredients
- 1 large head of cauliflower
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/4 cup cassava flour (more for dusting)
Instructions
- Bring a 5 large pot of water to a boil. While it heats up cut your head of cauliflower into pieces.
- Add the cauliflower and salt to the boiling water. Boil for 10-15 minutes, until fork tender.
- Drain the water and place the tender cauliflower while still hot – very carefully – in a blender.
- Add the egg to the blender and blend on high until smooth. It should be a very thick puree.
- Use a spatula to transfer the puree into a large bowl. Let it cool down for a few minutes, stir occasionally to help this along.
- Add in 1 cup cassava flour and mix in with a spatula until the mix begins to resemble dough. Slowly add in the remaining cassava flour until you’ve got a solid dough texture. If it’s very sticky, add 1 tablespoon more flour at a time, until it’s not.
- Knead the dough and make ball, transfer it to a dusted work area.
- Flatten the ball to make a rectangle shape. Cut the regtangle into 5 even pieces.
- One at a time, roll each piece into a long tube, about 1/4 inch thick.
- Slice the tubes with a knife to make square shapes pieces, about 20 per piece. Dust the pieces with flour then roll them on a fork to make the gnocchi. See the video below.
- Repeat with all of the dough, to make aprx 100 pieces total.
To freeze: spread your fresh gnocchi on a sheet pan or tray and put in the freezer until hard. Transfer to a ziplock bag. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To cook: follow the same instructions as above.
To pan fry: heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat until it comes to temperature. Add in 2 tablespoons of butter. Add as many pieces of gnocchi to the pot as will fit without them touching. Cook without disturbing for 2 minutes then turn over gently with a tong and cook another 2-3 minutes. Add in minced herbs and garlic or shallots and more butter if desired and saute to coat. Repeat with remaining gnocchi.
To boil: Bring 3 quarts of water to boil in a 5-quart pot. Salt generously. When the water is at a rolling boil, add the gnocchi to the water and boil until most of them float. Drain immediately and rinse with cool water. At this point, you can add sauce or pan-fry!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: About 10 pieces
- Calories: 112.1
- Fat: 1.2g
- Carbohydrates: 24.3g
- Fiber: 3.8g
- Protein: 2.9g
Keywords: cauliflower gnocchi
Amy says
These look delicious! I look forward to eating them once I can eat eggs again.
REK981 says
This looks amazing!!
Cristina says
IT IS! Just made more!
Lisette Owen says
Hi! These look so good. Do you think these can be made ahead of time and frozen before cooked?
Cristina says
Yes, instructions for freezing them are listed in the recipe 🙂
Heather says
Is there a substitute for the cassava flour?
Cristina says
No, I haven’t tested the recipe with another flour
Theresa Chivers says
Looks DELICIOUS! Do you think this would work with frozen, riced cauliflower?
Cristina says
Yes, but I would not add water. Just heat up to thaw, you will need 4-5 cups. Then blend with the egg.
Kayla says
Just made these and they were delish! Recipie and pics were easy to follow and happy I have a few batches cooking in the freezer to have later! We dont have a Trader Joe’s in my area and I have been DYING to try Cauliflower Gnocchi! Thanks so much for this recipe!
Cristina says
yyeayyy thank you
Gina says
This is the first recipe that I followed from here that turned out a complete failure for me. Drained and blended cauliflower with one egg had consistency of purée or soup. Adding 1 cup of cassava flour did nothing. I doubled and then tripled the flour and the stuff was still a sticky mess. So now I have a big blob of watery cauliflower dough in my fridge that I don’t know what to do with 🙁
Cristina says
Hi Gina, did you watch the recipe video on YouTube? It’s pretty straight forward. How large was your cauliflower? How long did you boil it? Was the cauliflower hot or cooled down when you added the egg in? What brand cassava flour are you using?
Gina says
Thank you for reading the comments and checking in :). I followed the recipe off this blog page, so the only video I found and watched was the clip on how to shape the gnocchi with a fork. I boiled for 12 minutes, drained and blended the cauliflower immediately while it was still hot. Somehow the resulting mass was way more liquid than what you describe in the recipe so in retrospect, it makes sense than one cup of flour wasn’t enough to get it to be dough-consistency. I used generic cassava flour I got off Amazon.
Cristina says
The recipe starts with one cup, then you add in 1/4 cup, and more as needed, since cauliflower heads vary in size. So it could be that it just needs more flour. I always use Otto’s cassava flour, I find that it yields the best consistency. Here is a FULL recipe video which should also help you trouble shoot -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GWuIdy1i00&t=4s
Jill says
I loved this recipe! Even my husband liked it and he doesn’t normally like any of the Paleo or AIP food that I make. The only reason I gave it four stars is that it was a very time-consuming process for me to make the gnocchi And my kids didn’t love it. I think it was a texture thing for them. Mine came out a little bit gooey when I boiled them. I cooked them each of the three ways. I boiled some, sautéed some and I did a batch where I boiled first and then sautéed. I think my favorite were the ones that I boiled first and then sautéed. This definitely yelled at a lot of gnocchi. I have a huge bag that I froze for future meals. I had a really enormous head of cauliflower so I had to use a ton of cassava flour to get it to the right consistency. I’m not even sure how much I ended up using in the end. I would definitely make this again, although I will do it when I’ve got a night free to shape the gnocchi while watching a really good movie or something!
★★★★
Jen says
Loved this receipt! I was intrigued and they remind me of Perogies. I made mine with butter, garlic, salt, pepper and green onions. FABULOUS!
★★★★★
Cristina says
Yeahhh!! Thanks so much
Barbara Schulman says
Looks great! Can a gelatin “egg” be substituted for a real egg to make this AIP?
Cristina says
I’m not sure, I haven’t tested that.