A paleo recipe for cauliflower pizza crust. This is the perfect grain free option for when you still want to indulge in pizza, crispy edges and all!
Confession time.
I hate reading food blogs that talk about the food.
Is that weird? I like pretty food pictures and good recipes but text about the food itself is just so….boring.
For example, discussing this pizza would go something along the lines of:
“I seasoned the cauliflower with some bold spices and it baked up to a surprisingly crisp crust. Definitely not something you’re going to confuse with real pizza dough, but quite delicious as far as cauliflower goes. I kept the toppings simple making a spicy sauce from some canned diced tomatoes and red pepper flakes, crumbled some meatballs I had on hand on top and then garnished with cilantro.”
Um, I think I just put myself to sleep.
Want to know what ingredients are in a recipe? Read the ingredient list! Want to know how it comes together? Read the directions part! No need for redundant ramblings with your thesaurus in hand for synonyms of “delicious”.
I want to be entertained when I’m reading a blog. Which is why I usually ramble on over here on different tangents. Well, that and I also just like to talk a lot and since 99.9% of my friends live at least 2 hours away, I come to you, dear internet.
The problem with all that is when I don’t have some tangent to talk about (like today). Although, I have been pondering the whole process of scabs for the past 2 hours as I’m being tormented by one on my knee that is itching me TO DEATH. Why, if a scab is the body’s way of healing and protecting from infection, does it start to itch like crazy therefore causing you to inevitably rip scratch it off as soon as it gets close to healed and reset the whole damn process?
But scabs are probably a tangent most want to avoid when the subject at hand is food. So I’ll stop. But seriously, can anyone explain that?
So now you just read a post about nothing really.
Sorry about that. But the pizza crust really is kick ass. I promise.
Cauliflower Pizza Crust
Ingredients
- 1 bag frozen cauliflower, 1 head of fresh cauliflower would work too, see note
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/2 teaspoon herbs de provence
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- Place frozen cauliflower in a bowl with 2 tablespoons water, cover and microwave for 3 minutes (it will not be fully cooked, just thawed at this point). Remove from microwave, drain water and transfer to a food processor.
- Add the garlic cloves to the food processor as well.
- Process the cauliflower & garlic for about 15-30 seconds until it's finely chopped.
- In a skillet over med-high heat, add the olive oil. Once hot, add the chopped cauliflower and sauté for about 5 minutes until cooked through.
- Transfer cauliflower to a large bowl and add remaining ingredients. Mix well until thoroughly incorporated.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat.
- Turn out the cauliflower dough onto the baking sheet and form a ball.
- Gently press the ball of dough into a round shape until it's just less than 1/4" thick.
- Bake for about 30 minutes then broil for another 3-5 minutes. Edges should be brown and crispy at this point.
- Remove from oven, top with whatever toppings you choose and return to oven to bake at 400 degrees for another 5-7 minutes.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
Dough might as well be my middle name. I LOVE it. One of the highlights of my childhood was watching my mom add sugar to homemade pizza dough and then scraping off all the toppings and just eating the dough. Needless to say, I have some bad habits. But. This cauliflower dough is awesome – made it this afternoon. Added pineappple, canadian bacon, and jalapeños. YUM!
I’ll definitely be using this recipe when I’m craving pizza again.
I’ve been on the fence about cauliflower crust, but I’m thinking I’ll have to give this one a try. I agree with you about food ramblings, though not sure you need to devote many more posts to scab picking ;)
thanks for the recipe!
Great blog and prose…
What is nutritional yeast? I cannot find this in Australia… how many of those little 7g sachets of regular yeast could i potentially sub with?
Looks super yummy! Got to give this a try!
I think it can totally go the other way too though! Like.. hey, I’m here for the food, why are you telling me about how long it took for you to wash your underwear and then sit in traffic while going to the library today? I think posts about the food CAN be interesting, and posts about nothing at all can be interesting, but it’s best when bloggers can be entertaining, witty and relevant too. Sometimes you just gotta talk about the food though, because gosh darnit, I love the food.
About that food though… cauliflower crust? This seems to be the new food trend c. 2013! I feel like I’m missing out/must try this soon!
First time to your site Gina (found you through the Food Bloggers Helping Group on FB) I’ve been wanting to try cauliflower crust! And, your post made me laugh!! Definitely be back:)
Hi Kristy! Thanks for stopping by. It’s so hard to figure out who’s who on the FB groups sometimes. Now I’m headed your way ;)
I am the same way! I look at the pictures first and then if it’s mouthwatering enough, I go back and read the recipe. :-)
This sounds good. I’ve never seen a cauliflower crust that didn’t have a ton of cheese in it.
Me toooo! I always feel like I have to include a paragraph about the food because if I don’t, it never fails that someone will ask a question that’s right there in the directions. I’d rather just ramble.
i am one of those blogger but now that you mentioned it- its so redundant and will try to avoid it as much but sometimes you just get carried away i guess. However, I am excited to try this recipe because i have failed before and have heard so many good things from people!