recipes {cauliflower pizza crust}

pizza is one of mark's & my all time favorite food. back in the summer we would pick up a pizza from our favorite spot in town, nicolitalia, every friday night & we would pair it with a redbox. mark & i both could honestly eat pizza every day, but choose not to because it isn't the best food for ya. ha.

so as you all know, i am always on the look out for healthy options & substitutions for great, but typically unheathy, food! cauliflower is a veggie that i have realized can be used for lots of high carb foods. remember when i used cauliflower to make cauli-fried rice??? well, i used this wonderful vegetable to make a pizza crust tonight!

recently i had been reading lots of recipes & reviews on cauli-crust & i was only hearing positive things...so, tonight i took on the challenge of making a lower carb pizza crust. & what were my thoughts about the end product??? AMAZING! i loved it. the crust was crispy & cheesy. i can't wait to make this crust again & use some of my other favorite pizza toppings! one thing to note about this crust is the texture. it is not as firm as regular dough, so i recommend using a fork to enjoy this meal!

yield: one 9-12 inch pizza {feeds 2-3 people}

cauli-crust ingredients:
1/2 large head of cauliflower
1 egg
1 cup mozzarella cheese {or any other yummy cheese!}
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp minced garlic

& add whatever toppings you prefer!

start off by grating half a head of cauliflower in a food processor with the grater attachment. if you do not have a food processor a hand grater works great, too!

microwave the cauliflower for 8 minutes in a bowl by itself {no water or anything} just to soften it. let the cauliflower cool for a few minutes afterward.

 combine the cauliflower, egg, cheese & spices.

preheat oven to 450 degrees. spray pam or any cooking spray on a pizza pan or a baking sheet {i lined mine with foil for an easier clean up - i found that the pizza ended up still sticking a little bit}. place the dough mixture on the pan & form a 9 - 12 inch round surface. the dough shouldn't be too thick. bake the pizza crust for 15 minutes & remove.

top with any ingredients you desire! i choose our favorite...marinara sauce with pepperoni, black olives & mozzarella cheese! yum!

broil for 2-3 minutes in the oven until the cheese is melted & slightly brown. serve hot & enjoy.

we love to eat our pepperoni & olive pizza with ranch & frank's hot sauce...give it a try!

update: i wanted to add a little bit about the nutrition of this pizza crust that i forgot to mention when i first posted this recipe. i realize that this recipe does have a whole cup of cheese. some might think, well is cheese really better for you than all the carbs in normal dough? and for some it may not be what they want in their diet. after adding calories, the cauli-crust is less calories than a normal dough crust, but there is the issue of healthy vs. unhealthy fats. in a regular crust you use oil {most likely olive oil}, which is a "healthy" fat. so it is up to you! if you think this recipe has too much cheese then maybe try some marinara sauce with grilled veggies & exclude the cheese on top!

this recipe is simply a good alternative for those who would like to eat less carbs or just try something new!