Savory - Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Don't diss it till you try it. My eyes have been opened, and cauliflower is officially my most-stocked kitchen item. (Funnily, I used to hate it as a kid. Oh, how times change.) Cauliflower is a surprisingly robust food; since it has a very mild taste, it can be used as a base or substitute for a number of recipes, and Pizza crust is one of them. (Mashed Potatoes is another, but more on that later!)

This crust does definitely not a traditional pizza make, but it's honestly quite delicious in its own less-chewy, more-decadent way. So here you have it, in case you're staying away from wheat, flour, gluten, grains....or anything else that's not cauliflower, give this recipe a try (crust recipe taken from the 20/20 Lifestyles Recipe Page)!

Ingredients:

Serves 4

Crust:

1 head cauliflower

1/3 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese

1/4 tsp salt

4-5 big cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp onion powder

2 tsp Italian seasoning

2 tbsp ground flaxseed

1/2 cup egg whites

Toppings:

Tomato paste or Pesto sauce

1/2 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese

1 oz turkey pepperoni 

4 oz chicken breast

6-8 cherry tomatoes

To Make:

~ 30 minutes

- Preheat oven to 425 with a baking tray inside.

Bonus: purple cauliflower!

- Wash cauliflower and cut into florets. Dry as best you can, and either use a food processor or your amazing knife skills to dice the florets very finely. It should consist of very tiny flakes by the end.

- Place the cauliflower grains on a dish with a paper towel lining, and microwave for about 4 minutes. 

- Try and drain as much water as possible (the drier, the better the crust, otherwise will be more mushy)

- Cut a piece of parchment paper and spray a thin layer of cooking spray on top. Remove baking tray from oven.

- Mix the cauliflower well with all other crust ingredients, and pat down on the parchment paper in a pizza-crust shape. Try and get it as thin as possible (about 1/8-1/4") without holes appearing. Make sure the edges are not jagged, and then carefully transfer parchment and crust to the warmed baking tray.

To Bake:

25 minutes

- Bake the crust at 425 for 15 minutes, then remove.

 Look at that glorious crust. Look at it!

- Add toppings of choice, including a sauce (tomato, pesto, etc) and cheese. My faves include turkey pepperoni, chicken and a few tomatoes :)

- Bake pizza for a further 12-15 minutes.

And that's it! Serves 4.

Nutritional information will vary with pizza toppings

Approximate Nutritional Information for the crust (per portion):

120 cals
5.3 g fat (2.4 g saturated)
15 mg cholesterol
332 mg sodium
7.3 g carbs (2.7 g fiber, 2.6 g sugar)
10.7 g protein

With toppings in this post, nutrition will be roughly:
300 cals
14 g fat (5 g sat)
18 g carbs (6 fiber, 10 sugar)
30 g protein