Like you, I was craving pizza. Nicole's cauliflower crust was not appealing because I wanted my pizza crust to act more like pizza crust and not be all mushy. I am also cheap and don't like having to buy random flours like almond (might be allergic it), garbanzo bean flour, etc. and I didn't want to have to run to the store so I consulted my handy pinterest app on my phone and found this gem:
Cauliflower Pizza Crust
1 recipe of Cauli-Rice (which is the same recipe for faux rice in the WB cookbook)
1 egg
1/3 cup shredded mozzarella (I used part skimmed)
1/2 tsp fennel seed
1 TBS. Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. fresh ground pepper
Toppings of your choice, tomato, pesto or Alfredo sauce, cheese, precooked meats* & precooked veggies*
Preheat oven to 450F. Line a baking sheet with either a Silpat or parchment paper.
Place the cooked Cauli-Rice into a tea towel and squeeze all the water out of the Cauli-Rice. It is important to get the rice as dry as possible so that there won’t be extra moisture in the crust which will prevent it from crisping up properly.
In a medium bowl combine the dry Cauli-Rice, egg, 1/3 cup shredded mozzarella, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, salt & pepper and mix to combine well. Press the cauliflower mixture into an even thickness on the prepared pan, either into a round or rectangular shaped pizza. I kept the crust pretty thin, about 1/4-inch thick. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the crust is firm and golden brown. Remove the pan from the oven and turn off the oven and turn on the broiler and move the rack to up close to the broiler. Top the cooked crust with sauce, cheese and toppings of your choice. Place under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly and melted
My Take:
So the cauli-rice is just grated cauliflower microwaved. Not that hard, but it was a little time consuming to grate a head of cauliflower on a box grater. If you had a food processor with a grating/shredding attachment it would go a lot faster. I didn't have fennel seed or italian seasoning so I just tossed in some basil, garlic powder, and oregano and called it good. I was worried about baking it on parchment paper at 450 degrees because on the parchment paper package it says not to exceed 420. I risked it and it was fine while baking. This is what the crust looked like when done baking.
Looked good enough to eat just like that! While it was in the oven, I made a pizza sauce topping of sauteed onions, garlic, bell peppers, olive oil, can of diced tomatoes, basil, oregano, S&P. I just saute all of that in a pan until its all soft and flavors meld. Then when the crust came out of the oven, I poured the saucy mixture on and topped it with parmasen and mozzeralla cheese and popped it under the broiler. This time I was really afraid the parchment paper would catch fire (it also said on the package to NEVER put it under a broiler. I like to live on the edge I guess). I watched it pretty carefully and pulled it out when the cheese was all melted and starting to get golden brown. The parchment paper turned pretty dark and burned up. Oh well. I had no other options.
Looks delicious! And it has got to be better than the nasty gluten-free crust I had at a local pizzeria. (could have been a stiff cardboard box shaped like a piece of pizza)
ReplyDeleteI'm going to make this. It looks so good!
ReplyDeleteTried this over the weekend, loved it! The crust was awesome, although I see the need for a food processor - grating a head of cauliflower by hand was time consuming and messy. Your idea for a sauce/topping was delicious! Thanks!
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