Anyone else crave buffalo-flavored everything and anything? Truthfully it was never my jam until I got pregnant and now I basically crave buffalo sauce on everything: from my morning eggs to buffalo chicken wraps and yes, even in my mac and cheese. With winter and football season upon us, it’s the perfect time to eat all things buffalo-flavored.
What could be better than buffalo cauliflower + mac and cheese having a delicious little baby? The answer: not much. I opted to make this buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese recipe vegetarian but you can always feel free to add in some cooked, shredded or cubed chicken. Tony especially loved this one, even though he’s not a huge fan of cauliflower.
I lightened up this recipe just slightly by adding the boost of veggies and skipping the heaviness of cream cheese, but you can absolutely make it more indulgent with extra cheeses and even a drizzle of my blue cheese dressing on top (omg, yum).
Give it a try and let me know what you think in the comments below! xo.
What is buffalo sauce?
In case you’re wondering what makes this mac and cheese recipe to the next level, it’s buffalo sauce. Buffalo sauce is traditionally made from hot sauce (usually a cayenne pepper hot sauce), butter, vinegar & extra spices.
The flavor can be mild or spicy, so you can truly make this buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese your own! My two favorite buffalo sauces are this brand and this one.
Everything you’ll need to make buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese
You’ll of course need some glorious buffalo sauce, plus some easy pantry staples to make this incredible vegetarian buffalo mac and cheese with cauliflower.
- Cauliflower: a trendy boost of veggies you’ll feel good about eating.
- Pasta: feel free to use any pasta shape you’d like – even gluten free! I love shells or cavatappi, but traditional elbow macaroni noodles would be perfect.
- Butter: you’ll need some butter to create the cheese sauce and the crunchy breadcrumb topping.
- Flour: the cheese sauce is also made with a bit of flour. Feel free to use an all purpose GF flour if you’d like.
- Spices: we’re using onion powder, garlic powder, salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.
- Milk & cheese: I like to use unsweetened cashew or almond milk, but you can use any milk you’d like. Plus, plenty of sharp cheddar cheese! I think blue cheese crumbles would also be delicious on top.
- Buffalo sauce: the one and only. Feel free to use a mild or spicy buffalo sauce.
- Panko breadcrumbs: we’re topping this bad boy with a panko bread crumb mixture to give it that crispy, delicious topping. Here’s a gluten free option.
Can I make this gluten free?
Absolutely! Simply use gluten free pasta, gluten free all purpose flour and gluten free breadcrumbs.
Can I make this buffalo mac and cheese vegan?
I haven’t tested out a vegan version of this buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese, but I think it would work just fine using your favorite vegan cheddar brand or use my vegan cashew cheese sauce. Vegan butter is a great option for the topping, or you can simply omit the breadcrumb topping!
Customize your buffalo mac and cheese
The great thing about this creamy vegetarian buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese recipe is that it’s super easy to customize with your fav mix-ins.
- Make it spicy. Use a spicy buffalo sauce like this one, spicy shredded cheddar cheese, and/or add some jalapeño slices or chopped jalapeno to the cheese sauce.
- Boost the protein. Feel free to stir in some cooked, cubed or shredded chicken, bacon or even some chickpeas. Who doesn’t love a buffalo chicken mac? It’s a great way to use up rotisserie chicken!
- More veggies, please. Looking to up the veggies in here? Try roasting some brussels sprouts with the cauliflower and add it in. You could also throw in some spinach before baking!
How to make buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese from scratch
- Roast your cauliflower. You’ll kick off the recipe by roasting that cauliflower to perfection.
- Noodles & sauce. While the cauliflower is roasting you can boil your noodles and make the delicious cheese sauce.
- Gimme the buffalo. After pouring your cheese sauce on those noodles, stir in plenty of buffalo sauce and add the cauliflower to your noodle mixture.
- Top & bake. Pour the buffalo mac and cheese into a prepared baking dish, top with the remaining cheddar cheese and the breadcrumb topping, and bake until golden!
Make it ahead of time
Crunched for time? You can easily make this vegetarian buffalo mac and cheese ahead of time!
- Prepare the mac and cheese fully up until the point where you add everything to a baking dish.
- Cover the baking dish with foil and place it in the fridge until you’re ready to bake it.
- Finally, bake it when you’re ready! You may need to add a few more minutes of baking time. FYI: This mac and cheese can be prepped up to 3 days ahead of time.
Storing tips
You can store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. Simply reheat in the microwave.
I would not suggest freezing this recipe as the cheese sauce won’t likely reheat well.
More delicious recipes using buffalo sauce
- Buffalo Chicken Meatballs with Bleu Cheese Yogurt Dip
- Cheddar-Stuffed Buffalo Chicken Meatloaf
- Buffalo Mac and Cheese Stuffed Zucchini Boats
- Avocado Buffalo Chickpea Salad Wraps
- Buffalo Tuna Melt Stuffed Peppers
- Vegetarian Three Cheese White Bean Buffalo Dip
- Buffalo Zucchini Chicken Burgers
Try these wonderful pasta recipes
- Incredible Caramelized Onion Spinach Chicken Pasta Bake
- A Simple, But Fabulous Stove-Top Mac and Cheese (with optional herby golden bread crumbs!)
- The Best Healthy Turkey Lasagna You’ll Ever Eat
- One Pan Lightened Up Hamburger Helper
- One Pot Cheesy Mushroom Spinach Beef Pasta
Get all of my pasta recipes here!
I hope you love this creamy, delicious buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese recipe! If you make it be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Buffalo Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- For the cauliflower:
- 4-6 cups cauliflower florets
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil
- Freshly ground salt and pepper
- For the mac and cheese:
- 8 ounces dry pasta shells or cavatappi (or any pasta you’d like, gluten free if desired)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup all purpose flour (or sub whole wheat or GF all purpose flour)
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 ¾ cups unsweetened cashew milk, almond milk or regular milk
- 6 oz sharp cheddar cheese (about 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese)
- ½ cup medium to hot buffalo sauce
- For topping:
- 2 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded and reserved for the topping (or about ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese)
- ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- To garnish:
- Green onion, (green part only)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Add cauliflower, drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss well to coat the cauliflower in the oil. Roast for 25-30 minutes or until tender and slightly golden, flipping cauliflower halfway through cooking. Keep heat in the oven.
- While the cauliflower is cooking you can boil your noodles and make the sauce: boil the noodles in a large pot until al dente, according to the directions on the package. Once done cooking, drain and return noodles to the large pot.
- While the noodles are boiling, make your mac and cheese sauce: in a large skillet, add butter and place over medium heat. Once butter is melted, whisk in a little bit of the flour and then slowly add in milk, a little bit at a time, alternating with the flour and vigorously whisking away any lumps. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes stirring every so often, until the sauce thickens up a bit. Stir in garlic powder, onion powder, salt and LOTS of freshly ground black pepper.
- Next add in 6 ounces (or about 1 ½ cups) of shredded sharp cheddar cheese to the sauce and stir until completely melted. Pour the cheese sauce over the noodles, then add in buffalo sauce. Stir to completely coat the noodles, then add in your roasted cauliflower and stir again.
- Spray a 2-quart baking dish or 9x9 inch or 11x7 inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray, or grease with olive oil or butter. Pour in the cauliflower mac and cheese and spread out. Top with remaining ½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese if you like extra cheesiness!
- In a small bowl, mix breadcrumbs with melted butter. Sprinkle breadcrumb mixture on top of casserole and bake for 25 minutes or until breadcrumbs are golden brown. Serves 6.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
This post was originally published on February 1st, 2021, republished on February 2nd, 2023, and republished on February 5th, 2025.
YUM! Very tasty and love the crunchy topping. So good.
One of our favs!
10/10! It was perfectly spicy and cheesy. Made with 2% milk and macaroni noodles. The crust was nice and crispy on broil. Can’t wait to make again ☺️
Incredible! I’m not a big Mac and cheese fan, but adding hot sauce into it was pure gold. So far I have not come across a recipe from the website that was not 10 stars-worthy. ❤️
Amazing! The kick of heat makes this one extra special 🙂
I made this recipe half vegan w/ almond milk, regular cheddar cheese and it was DELICIOUS! Can’t stop eating it. Next time I will try an all vegan version; I think it will be just as good.
Ahh! This sounds SO good, I am so glad you found this recipe and it turned out great for you 🙂
So delicious & easy! We added shredded chicken. Will become part of our dinner rotation meals! 😊
So yummy! I have never made mac & cheese with unsweetened almond milk. I think my GI track appreciates less dairy. I just sprinkled about 1/4 cup panko on top rather than adding the extra butter. Also left out the 2 oz cheese on top. Next time I will saute 1/4 minced onion in the butter for the sauce like my usual mac & cheese recipe does. Will definitely make again. May even try to get my husband to try it with the cauliflower!
Love this recipe! We added broccoli as well – delish and semi easy to make!
This was such a tasty dish! I used chickpea pasta and it held up! Will definitely be making this over and over!. It was a huge hit at my house!
We love this recipe – it’s always on the rotation in our house 🙂 I want to make it for a superbowl party – do you think I could put together the dish in the morning (up to step 5) and then bake in the evening?
Thank you so so much for this recipe. Sounds like a delicious twist on a classic dish. Right?? Can’t wait to try it and see how it turns out.
One of my favorite recipes from your site,so easy and delicious!
This recipe is so good. It’s the second time I am doing it. So easy and I like prepare it 1-2 before cooking it. I will definitely try spreading the cheese from a cheese block,
Thank you so much
So glad you love this one, Naomie!
Wonderful spin on ordinary Mac and cheese. So easy to prepare and so tasty😀
Another to die for weekly recipe in this house! So full of flavour ! And the best way to make my son eat a vegetable!
Hahah YES love those sneaky veggies! Thanks for the review, Miranda 🙂
Very hearty and delicious even without any meat added. I needed 4 TBSP of butter in using King Arthur gluten free flour to be able to whisk. I also need a few more splashes of milk. I also didn’t put the panko topping as I was trying to keep gluten free but I will be adding them next time and then I think it’ll be 5 star! Lol
Thanks for sharing, that all sounds great! Excited for you to enjoy it again 🙂
This is phenomenal! I used only half the Buffalo sauce so it wouldn’t be too spicy for my toddler, I wasn’t sure how he’d react to Buffalo sauce. We all loved it! Next time I think I’ll use less pasta + a little less cauliflower so it’s more saucy.
This was a 15/10 delicious! Everyone had seconds & I can’t wait to make this again. I added some onion powder and garlic powder in with the butter/panko mixture at the end, and the bread crumbs were to die for.
Wooohooooo! So happy to hear you loved it! Bet it was amazing with the onion and garlic powder in the topping 🙂
Run, don’t walk and go make this right now! Made it for the first time for thanksgiving, and it was rated #1 dish by the whole family. Luckily I made two batches, because everyone went back for seconds and thirds! This will forever be a thanksgiving staple and easy dinner (will try to add shredded chicken!)
Made this for dinner tonight. There were some snarls beforehand about the cauliflower, but once it was on the table, everyone loved it. There was nothing left. Made a green bean salad to go with it. My husband’s comment, “this is the best cauliflower I’ve ever had”.
Honestly? My fave Mac n cheese recipe EVER (and I’ve tried a lot). We used hot buffalo sauce and it was the perfect amount of heat and cheese. Likely my boyfriend’s favorite thing that I’ve made. Will be making this again soon, no doubt!
Omg I’m SO glad to hear that!! Glad you guys both loved it 🙂
I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Perfect for fall and game day!
Made this for dinner earlier this week and it was absolutely delicious! I’m normally not a fan of baked Mac and cheese, but this was creamy and was great as leftovers for lunch. I also loved the addition of cauliflower! Will make again
Awesome! So happy you loved this one 🙂
I just made this for dinner and it is DELICIOUS! Not hard at all either. Thank you so much for this wonderful dinner.
Yay!! Happy you loved it, Alisa!
So easy and delicious! It was great reheated, too, which many times Mac and Cheese gets gross when reheated! Keeper!
Oh yes totally know what you mean, happy you loved this one!!
This was such a hit with my husband!! We love this and rotate it into our meal plan often. So comforting and a great reminder of childhood, with a grown up twist.
Yes, my thoughts exactly! So glad to hear you guys are loving it 🙂
Perfect amount of Buffalo flavor, Love being able to add meatless dishes to the rotation!
Delicious!!! Will def be making it again. Thank You for the creative recipe.
You’re welcome, I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it!
This looks amazing! Do you you think unsweetened vanilla almond milk would be okay or would you recommend getting the plain unsweetened? Can’t wait to try!
I’d recommend plain so that it doesn’t add any strange sweetness to the dish 🙂 Enjoy!
This was great! The hidden cauliflower makes me feel better about eating Mac & cheese!
Absolutely! Gotta love the sneaky veggies 🙂
Another winner! Even the meat eaters in my house couldn’t stop going back for seconds and thirds. Love how easily customizable it is too — I added brussell sprouts with the cauliflower and loved the added taste and texture. This will absolutely be added to our dinner rotation! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Love it! Perfect dinner 🙂
Made this for dinner last night – great recipe! We love both mac and cheese and buffalo caulflower so this combo solved for both! The crunch from the cauliiflower adds a nice texture to the dish that we loved and adds a healthy element to an indulgent dinner 🙂
I didn’t have any milk on hand so used half/half & water as a sub. For mac and cheese, I always grate a block of cheddar instead of the pre-bagged stuff as it has far less oil and lends to a creamier texture. The scallions were a nice add and next time, if we want to be a bit more decadent, we may add some crumbled blue cheese on top 🙂
Love that! And yes, hand-grated cheese is always better 🙂
I’ve never been disappointed by one of Monique’s recipes and this one is no different. The flavor was delicious and I loved the mix of the pasta and roasted cauliflower! I found myself eating it out of the pan as I put the leftovers away. A definite add to the usual recipe rotation!
Amazing! Glad you loved it 🙂
Added broccoli with the cauliflower and it was amazing! Not too cheesey and not too spicy. Definitely will be worked into my dinner rotation!
Perfect! Love that idea.
This recipe is EXCELLENT! I have now made it twice. First time I added chicken. Delicious! Made it again tonight and added red onion and bacon. Spectacular! I’ll be making this recipe for years to come.
I completely agree! Tried both the chicken and bacon versions and loved both!
So happy to hear that! Sounds delicious 🙂
Delicious and easy to make. It’s a great comfort food. I used hot Buffalo sauce and it was the perfect hotness.
Yum! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
Mmm! I was so happy I could use several of the same ingredients for this recipe that I used the other day for your Buffalo Cheddar Chicken Meatloaf. I used Chobani’s Zero Sugar Oat Milk & the roux was simple! Thank you for another amazing recipe. 🙂
This was tasty! I wasn’t sure if by Buffalo sauce, you meant straight hot sauce (like Frank’s) or Buffalo wing sauce, which usually has butter and maybe some other stuff in it, so is probably a little milder. I used 1/2 cup straight Frank’s, which was a little too much heat for me. I think with 1/3 cup it would have been fine. For my picky son, I just made mac and cheese using the same recipe (no Buffalo sauce), with roasted cauliflower on the side. I look forward to making this again!
Another winning recipe! I personally love cauliflower, so this recipe hit the spot. But if you aren’t a cauliflower fan, it would probably be overpowering.
Glad you enjoyed!
SO GOOD even my picky teenager had seconds, I used whole milk bc that is what I had on hand.
Perfect! So glad it was a hit!
Loved this recipe. Used almond flour instead of the suggested flour and it still turned out, just had to use 1/2 cup. Love the veggies in the pasta, add great flavor and texture. The green onion makes the dish.
Perfect! I’m glad that worked out well 🙂
This recipe was magical!!! The only changes I made were to add a bit more onion and garlic powder but otherwise, I stayed true to the recipe. I love that it combined two of my favourite dishes into one bowl of deliciousness!!!!
Perfect! So glad you loved it!
So delicious and quick & easy to make! The buffalo sauce is a great addition to mac n cheese and I love that it sneaks in some good veg too. Will definitely be part of the regular rotation in our house.
Absolutely! Glad you enjoyed 🙂