Cauliflower Crust Pizza :)

I think everyone has part Italian inside of them, after all who doesn't enjoy biting into a tasty home made pizza?? I have been inspired by Eat, Drink, Smile to make a healthy pizza crust when I came across her cauliflower pizza base! While I got rather excited at the thought others may frown, (my mum included!) but you cannot judge a pizza by its contents before you try it and this crust is no exception :)

The ingredients are quite basic and the recipe very simple! I have in the past made a based out of pumpkin or sweet potato which turned into a bit of a pumpkin scone base of a pizza (I didn't complain there!) but this cauliflower I find can be so versatile even before it is turned into a pizza crust.

Cauliflower Crust Pizza :)

Crust Ingredients:

1/2 a cauliflower
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (initial recipe was 1 full cup)
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp dried oregano
2 gloves garlic crushed
Olive oil (optional)

Method

First we need to 'rice' the cauliflower which can be done in a blender or a grater. Cut the cauliflower florets into smaller chunks removing the stems and leaves. Add to a food processor and pulse for 10-15 seconds until it looks like grain. Do not over-do pulse or you will puree it. Alternatively you can grate the whole head with a cheese grater. Place the riced cauliflower into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 6 minutes (some microwaves are more powerful than others, so you may need to alter this cooking time). There is no need to add water, as the natural moisture in the cauliflower is enough to cook itself. I added water for my first round which made the base a little longer to cook.

Half a cauliflower should produce around 3 cups of riced cauliflower. This recipe uses 1 cup and the rest I put in the freezer for another day. OR add it to salads or turn into sushi as a substitute for sushi rice (my next experiment :D).

To Make the Pizza Crust:

Preheat oven to 210 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup of riced cauliflower, the egg and cheese. Add the oregano, crushed garlic and mix together. Transfer to the cookie sheet, and using your hands, pat out into a circular base around 0.5cm thick. You can brush olive oil over top of mixture to help with browning.

Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and add tomato paste base and any toppings you wish! This one I made a vegetarian pizza with roasted pumpkin, red onion and zucchini having a lack of ingredients in the fridge at them time but I can't wait to try different flavours and make them prettier too :)

From there you can put the pizza back into the oven or under a grill for 4-5 minutes or until your ingredients are done and any cheese is melted.

Cut into slices and enjoy you home made cauliflower based pizza!!

xox