Cauliflower Crust Pizza {gluten-free}

I have two heads of cauliflower in my fridge both of which have been in there a little too long. So of course I turned to Pinterest for ideas to make good use of the cauliflower and one of the first pictures I stumbled upon was a picture of pizza made with cauliflower crust. Pizza is always right up my alley so I figured this would be the best use of the cauliflower in my fridge. I settled on a recipe at The Lucky Penny Blog. Why? Because it’s the top blog that appears when I google cauliflower + crust + pizza and the author, Michelle, advertises the crust as the best ever. Well the best ever is good enough for me. Plus, from reading her blog, it sounds like she arrived at the best ever crust through trial and error. Here is my adaptation of Michelle’s recipe:

ingredients.

• 1 head of cauliflower (about 3 to 4 c. cauliflower “snow”)
• ½ tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. dried basil
• ½ tsp. dried oregano
• ½ tsp. garlic powder
• crushed red pepper
• ½ c. shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 jumbo egg
• optional 1 T. almond meal
• your favorite sauce and toppings

directions.

1. Place a pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. On a cutting board, place a large piece of parchment paper and spray it with nonstick cooking oil.
2. Wash and throughly dry a small head of cauliflower. (I actually forgot this step. If you don’t have a stomach of steel, try not to forget this step.) Cut the cauliflower florets from the stem and place in a food processor. Pulse for about 30 seconds, until you the cauliflower is the consistency of a powdery snow.
3. Place the cauliflower in a microwave safe bowl and cover with a towel or use plastic wrap if you’re the sort who isn’t afraid to microwave plastic. Microwave on high for 4 minutes. Dump cooked cauliflower onto a clean tea towel and allow to cool.
4. Wrap the cauliflower snow in the dish towel and twist the towel massaging the ball of cauliflower to squeeze out the water. I got a cup of water from four cups of cauliflower and I’m pretty sure I could have gotten more. Michelle says that wringing out the cauliflower will ensure you get a chewy pizza-like crust instead of a crumbly mess.
5. After you’ve massaged as much water as possible from the cauliflower, dump cauliflower into a bowl. Add the cheese, salt, herbs and seasoning and egg. Use your hands to mix completely. 
6. Form the dough into a crust on your parchment paper. Pat it down evenly in your best effort to make a circle (or rectangle if using a rectangular baking sheet). Your crust should be pretty thin. I wasn’t overly concerned with making my crust look all tidy and circular – an uneven crust is rustic looking!
7. Slide the parchment paper onto your hot pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 10 to 20 minutes, until it starts to turn golden brown. Remove from oven.
8. Add your sauce, cheese and toppings and return to the oven until your cheese has melted and/or is turning golden brown. If you’re impatient like me, use your broiler for some nice brown spots on your cheese.

Let’s be real. Pizza made with a cauliflower crust just isn’t pizza. I kept trying to convince myself that it was, but it wasn’t. The crust was a bit chewy/rubbery and wilty – I would have liked it more if it was crispy. That being said, this is a great “healthy” alternative to bread-dough pizza. You don’t feel guilty when you eat one too many pieces of this pizza. It’s also a great way to sneak in vegetables (or use up cauliflower!) if you have (or are!) a picky eater in your household. I would definitely eat this crust again, most likely when my dad visits. This is something I’m sure is right up his alley.

Also, I’m not overly fond of healthy food in general. So someone who loves healthy food would probably love this crust.

Recipe rating:  1/2