Cauliflower Crust Pizza - a repost

Because I have a lot of new readers who may not be aware of the wonder that is Cauliflower Crust Pizza, I thought I’d repost it today so nobody has to miss out on the deliciousness. I originally got this recipe from The Lighter Side of Low Carb (Cleochatra does amazing things with cauliflower) and continue to enjoy it on a fairly regular basis. What’s not to like about a flourless pizza that tastes just as good as any other pizza I’ve ever had? I hope you will give it a try!

I do believe I have died and gone to low-carb heaven.

As promised, I made the pizza with the cauliflower crust that I mentioned in an earlier post. It was truly delicious. And surprisingly filling! Of course, it could very well have been all that cheese that made it so heavenly, but, whatever – it was wonderful. Had I known how easy it was to make, I’d have tried it a long time ago.

For the adventurous among you, here’s the recipe:

Cauliflower Crust Pizza

1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower

1 egg

1 cup mozzarella cheese

½ tsp fennel

1 tsp oregano

2 tsp parsley

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray.

In a medium bowl, combine cauliflower, egg and mozzarella. Press evenly on the pan. Sprinkle evenly with spices. Bake at 450 degrees for 12-15 minutes (15-20 if you double the recipe).

Remove the pan from the oven. To the crust, add sauce, then toppings and cheese. (If you are adding meat, make sure it is cooked first.) Place under the broiler at high heat just until the cheese is melted.

And that’s it. I steamed a whole head of fresh cauliflower in a small amount of water in the microwave for 6 minutes. I should have just used frozen, but this worked out fine.

You can then use a hand grater or a food processor to rice it. I used a food processor and it was super fast. You can get one cup out of roughly half of a medium-sized head of cauliflower. I also used an Italian spice blend, rather than the three spices suggested.

I decided to go “bare bones” the first time and only topped with pizza sauce and more mozzarella. It was perfect. I cut it into four pieces and I’m not going to lie to you – I ate all four. Even though I was technically full after two. Here’s a low-carb “oink, oink” for ya.

The only advice I would give you is to check the bottom of the crust before you remove it from the oven the first time (prior to putting on the toppings). It was starting to really brown around the edges and I was afraid I was burning it, so I took it out at 12 minutes. As it turns out, I should have gone at least 15 because the bottom wasn’t browned and crispy like I think it’s supposed to be. (MJB note: I’ve learned in subsequent bakings, that it NEVER gets browned on the bottom; I don’t know where I got the idea that it was supposed to.)

I riced the remainder of the cauliflower and vacuum-sealed it so it will be ready next time. Which will probably be tomorrow.

P.S. The above picture is not mine, although mine actually came out looking almost exactly like that - I browned the cheese a lot more.

ETA: I should have mentioned that the ingredients list above is just for the crust. To finish the pizza, you will need pizza sauce and more mozzarella. Plus whatever other toppings you might want to add. If you eat meat, try diced pepperoni - delish!