Everyone talks about comfort food when the weather gets cold.  And typically, it is heavy calorie dense food.  Not that there is anything wrong with that.  However, I like to eat food that feels and tastes good, but is dense in goodness.

To that end, I made a Cauliflower Crust Pizza.  And instead of typical red sauce and pepperoni, I made it with pesto, prosciutto, sautéed mushrooms  and fresh mozzarella.  Full of flavor and vegetables, it satisfies without weighing you down.

If you are looking for the identical crust as regular pizza- almost, but not quite.  I am working with modifying the recipe to deliver that same bite.  I can tell you that this is delicious.  And no bloated tummy.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust: 

Ingredients:

4 C riced Cauliflower  (Hack: you can buy this frozen at the grocery store)

1 tsp dried basil OR 1 tsp Tuscan style Italian Seasoning.  find it in the spice aisle.

1 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp garlic powder

pinch of salt

2/3 C shredded parmesan cheese

2/3 cup shredded mozzarella  NOT fresh!

1 egg

+ whatever you want for toppings; pizza sauce, pesto, sausage, olives, etc

 Here We Go:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F

Chop up medium head of cauliflower; throw away the stems and rice the cauliflower in your food processor.  Hint: should look like grains of rice.

Microwave the cauliflower for 8-9 minutes.  You want it to soften.  Place the cooked cauliflower on a clean white towel and wring out the water.  And wring again.  And again.  The more water you get out, the crisper the crust.  When done, will look like a dough ball.  (observant people: you can see that I added the oregano to the cauliflower prior to microwaving)

Place the cooked cauliflower, spices, cheeses, eggs and salt into a bowl and mix together.

Put a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Spray with non-stick butter spray. Place cauliflower (Note: I like to break this into 3 personal pizzas- can vary the toppings to offer different flavors)

Put in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.  Edges should start to brown and the center set.  Then flip over and bake for 4-5 minutes more.  Remove from oven and let cool.

Turn the oven down to 350 degrees F.

Add toppings to your crust and then bake in 350 degree oven for 3-5 minutes.  I then turn on the broiler to get the cheese to get those golden brown crunchy pretty bits.

 

Note: I am playing with the recipe to see if I can make it a bit more “crusty”.  Playing with almond flour and egg whites for more lift.

This is delish.  And yummy.  And. SO. GOOD!

Enjoy!

 

Terri