Cauliflower Crust Pizza
Why not use veggies to create a low carb pizza crust? Cauliflower makes the perfect crust and is in season in Illinois during the months of August through September.
Serves: 2 (Serving = 1/2 the pizza)
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 medium head cauliflower (3.5 cups, washed and stem removed)
- ¼ cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup finely shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 large egg
- 1 clove garlic, minced (1-2 teaspoons) or ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Toppings
- 4 Tablespoons lower sodium pizza sauce (choose gluten free for GF version)
- 8 slices of turkey pepperoni (check to make sure gluten free for GF version)
- 10 spinach leaves
- ¼ cup chopped yellow pepper
- 2 Tablespoons shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Add half of the cauliflower to food processor and process until fine, about 30 seconds (cauliflower should look like crumbs). Transfer cauliflower to a microwave safe bowl. Add remaining cauliflower to food processor and again, process until fine, about 30 seconds. Add that cauliflower to bowl with other cauliflower (you should now have about 3-3 ½ cups of cauliflower crumbs). Cover bowl with microwave safe plastic wrap and heat cauliflower in microwave 4 minutes on HIGH power . Once cauliflower is cool enough to handle, wrap cauliflower in tea towel, paper towel or cheesecloth and wring all the moisture from cauliflower (about 1/3 cup or more).
- Return strained cauliflower to bowl, add Parmesan and mozzarella cheese, basil, oregano, egg, and garlic and toss mixture with your hands until evenly combined.
- Place parchment paper on baking sheet and pat mixture into a 6 by 12 inch triangle keeping the crust 1/3 inch thick (keep it snugly pressed together.) Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and top with pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese and desired toppings (if using fresh herbs, add them after cooking pizza). Return to oven and bake 10-15 minutes longer until cheese has melted and is golden.
- Allow to cool several minutes then cut in half. Serve warm.
To make bariatric diet friendly:
- Make into 3 small pizzas and double the amount of turkey pepperoni.
- Bariatric nutrition information (1 small pizza, makes 3): Calories 168, Total Fat 7.5g, Sat Fat 4g, Sodium 541mg, Total Carbohydrate 11g, Fiber 3g, Protein 15g