Luckily my cousin-in-law (that's a correct term, right?) posted rave reviews of a recipe for cauliflower crust that she fixed. It jogged my memory, and her pizza looked so good I thought I'd give it a try, too.
This is not a crust you can pick up and eat like a Chicago-style thick-crust pizza. It's something you eat with a fork. But it is flavorful and delicious, and yes, even my kids ate it! (Although they were puzzled when they asked what was for dinner and I answered with a distinct question in my voice: "Um, pizza? Sort of?"
This recipe is from Eat. Drink. Smile.com. It's faster than whipping up your own pizza dough (which is what I usually do), but the verdict is out on whether or not it's technically "healthier" since it's got quite a bit of cheese in it. I guess it just depends on what evil you're trying to avoid: wheat? gluten? Go with the cauliflower. Trying to avoid dairy and/or saturated fat? Stick with the traditional crust.
I doubled the recipe below and made two pizzas -- a cheese and turkey pepperoni one for the kids and a veggie one for Zach and me. Saute any veggies you want on the pizza beforehand since the toppings aren't in the oven for long. I did peppers, onions, spinach, mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes.
This pizza was fun to make and tasty to eat. It's worth trying just to say you made pizza with a cauliflower crust!
Cauliflower Crust Pizza
Ingredients:
1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp crushed garlic
1/2 tsp garlic salt
olive oil (optional)
pizza sauce, shredded cheese and your choice of toppings*
Directions:
To "Rice" the Cauliflower:Take 1 large head of fresh cauliflower, remove stems and leaves, and chop the florets into chunks. Add to food processor and pulse until it looks like grain. Do not over-do pulse or you will puree it. (If you don't have a food processor, you can grate the whole head with a cheese grater).
Place the riced cauliflower into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 8 minutes (some microwaves are more powerful than others, so you may need to reduce this cooking time). There is no need to add water, as the natural moisture in the cauliflower is enough to cook itself.
One large head should produce approximately 3 cups of riced cauliflower. The remainder can be used to make additional pizza crusts immediately, or can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week.
To Make the Pizza Crust:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup cauliflower, egg and mozzarella. Add oregano, crushed garlic and garlic salt, stir. Transfer to the cookie sheet, and using your hands, pat out into a 9" round. Optional: Brush olive oil over top of mixture to help with browning.
Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.
Remove from oven. To the crust, add sauce, toppings and cheese. Place under a broiler at high heat just until cheese is melted (approximately 3-4 minutes).
Enjoy!
*Note that toppings need to be precooked since you are only broiling for a few minutes.
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The date is set.
We have a few brave souls who are set to start the 21-day Ultimate Reset cleanse with us on Monday, May 14. If you'd like to join us (and will pinky swear not to cheat), send me a message to learn how you can join us. It's going to be...I don't know what it's going to be yet, but it will definitely be interesting.
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Workout of the Day
Les Mills Pump Revolution
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