Cauliflower Pizza Crust
You are looking at the best cauliflower pizza crust on the web! It is crispy, cheesy and you can really hold the slice. I will not lie, the crust doesn’t taste like traditional pizza crust (duh!). Or this recipe is time consuming. But it is super tasty! And I highly recommend 2 crusts!
Is Cauliflower Pizza Crust Healthy?
In the past few years cauliflower rice pizza crust has gained huge popularity as a low carb gluten free alternative to traditional wheat flour pizza crust. Nowadays you can indulge in “pizza”, America’s favourite comfort food, and not overeat or feel bloated.
MY LATEST RECIPES- Cauliflower is high vitamins K and C which keep your bones healthy.
- Cruciferous vegetable like cauliflower help detox your liver.
- It reduced high blood pressure.
- It strengthens your immune system.
- Also high in fiber and antioxidants. Never a bad thing.
But of course there is an egg and cheese too. A nice balance.
Healthy Pizza Crust Calories:
Healthy pizza crust has 56 calories, 4 grams of carbs and 4 grams of protein.
Cauliflower Rice Pizza Crust Ingredients:
- Cauliflower: You will need a large head of cauliflower, 6″ – 7″ in diameter, about 2.5 – 3 lbs.
- Egg: Egg is part of “the glue” that holds cauliflower pizza dough together.
- Cheese: As cheese melts during baking, it helps to bind small pieces of cauliflower into a crust. Cheese is crucial! So is the egg. Sorry cannot be vegan.
- Spices: Simple dried herbs like oregano, basil or Italian mix plus salt and pepper add flavor to the crust. Cauliflower itself is pretty bland. Also you can add garlic powder.
Can I Use Store Bought Cauliflower Rice?
Yes, you can use store bought fresh or previously frozen cauliflower rice instead of making your own. About 4-5 cups or one package.
How to Make Cauliflower Pizza Crust Crispy:
Bake for 20 minutes, carefully flip with spatula and bake for a few more minutes.
Tips for Best Cauliflower Pizza Crust:
Squeeze More Than You Think You Can
The best advice I can give you for foolproof cauliflower pizza crust – squeeze cooled cooked cauliflower very well. You really do need to squeeze out more water than you think you’ll ever be able to. Squeeze and then pass it to a husband, if necessary. Cauliflower should be pretty dry. I squeezed and then moved the cauliflower around a bit, and squeezed again. If your arm is sore for a bit after, you did it well.
Make 2 Pizzas
Make 2 pizza crusts at a time if you want to feed more than two. Unless you are cooking cauliflower pizza crust recipe only for yourself. Definitely need to double the recipe. Means two large heads of cauliflower.
Use Cheesecloth or Linen Towel
- You can find cheesecloth in most well-stocked supermarkets, dollar store or on Amazon for a very reasonable price.
- Linen towel works great too.
- You can throw both in the washer.
About Baking Sheet
- More likely your crust will not cover as much of a pan as shown in the picture above. It depends on the size of your round pizza pan. And if you are using rectangular baking sheet, size will vary.
- Any baking sheet with parchment paper works.
- You can use pizza stone lined with parchment paper.
How to Make Cauliflower Pizza Crust Without Food Processor
- Grind cauliflower florets in 3 – 4 batches on the lowest setting.
- Grate cauliflower.
- Buy pre-made cauliflower rice.
How to Freeze Cauliflower Pizza Crust
- Bake, cool, wrap in plastic or place in resealable extra large Ziploc bag and freeze.
- Thaw completely before baking with toppings.
How to Make Cauliflower Pizza Crust
1. Separate cauliflower into florets.
- Using a paring knife, remove outer leaves.
- Rinse.
- Cut off florets one by one. Core is used too.
2. Rice the Cauliflower
Place cauliflower florets in a food processor and process until “rice” texture. Some coarse chunks are fine. You will be baking and then squeezing the cauliflower, so chunks do not matter.
3. Cook “the Rice”
- Bake in the oven for 15 minutes or
- Microwave for 8 minutes.
- Then transfer cooked cauliflower to a bowl lined with cheesecloth. You can also use a linen tea towel like this one. I used it to make cauliflower breadsticks and it worked like a charm.
4. Let Cool a Bit
5. Squeeze Water Out
- Holding by the four corners of cheesecloth with one hand, squeeze out as much liquid as you can with another hand. Squeeze really well. Quite a few times. I mean it! Count it as an arm workout for the day.
- Cauliflower should be pretty dry. I squeezed and then moved the cauliflower around a bit, and squeezed again. If your arm is sore for a bit after, you did it well.
- You should be left with a cauliflower mash.
6. Form Cauliflower Pizza Crust
- Transfer squeezed cauliflower to a bowl. Add egg, oregano or basil, cheese, salt and pepper, and mix well.
- Using your hands, flatten pizza dough on prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper and sprayed with cooking spray. Make it smaller than in the video. I made it a bit too thin which is not the end of the world. Crust will need longer cooking time which burns the edges a bit.
7. Bake the Crust
- Bake for 20 minutes
- Flip and bake for a few more minutes until crispy.
- Your healthy cauliflower pizza crust is ready.
8. Add Toppings
- Add pizza sauce, toppings and bake again until cheese is melted.
- Do not overload the crust with heavy toppings.
Topping Ideas
Mediterranean
Tomato sauce, bell pepper, tomato, olives, red onion, feta cheese and parsley.
Chicken and pepper
Tomato sauce, sliced grilled chicken breast, olives, red onion and cheese.
Cheese
My favourite!!!
If you have been waiting to jump on the cauliflower pizza crust bandwagon, here is your chance. I think I took all the guessing out for you. Make it and let me know how your cauliflower pizza turns out.
What pizza toppings have you tried? I would love to hear your ideas!
More Healthy Pizza Crust Recipes:
- Oatmeal pizza crust with simple ingredients and BBQ chicken version.
- Grilled zucchini “pizza” – low carb alternative, perfect for zucchini season.
- Sweet potato pizza crust – no making dough is necessary and you can pick it up by the slice.
- Cauliflower breadsticks – similar to crust cut into handheld “breadsticks”.
- A collection of 25 cauliflower rice recipes
Cauliflower Pizza Crust
How to make THE BEST crispy and tasty low carb cauliflower pizza crust with foolproof step by step video recipe.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: North American
Ingredients
- 1 medium head of cauliflower (6″ – 7″ wide or 2.5–3 lbs) or 5-6 cups of store bought cauliflower rice
- 1 egg, large
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning (dried oregano or basil)
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup Parmesan or Mozzarella cheese, grated/shredded
- Cooking spray (I use Misto)*
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and line baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper or silicone mat.
- Rinse cauliflower, remove the outer leaves, separate into florets and chop into smaller pieces. Process in a food processor in 2 batches, until “rice” texture forms (skip if using store-bought “rice”). Transfer cauliflower rice on a prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 mins.
- Remove cooked cauliflower rice from the oven, transfer to a bowl lined with a double/triple layered cheesecloth or linen towel, and let cool for 5 minutes. Then squeeze the liquid out of the ball (cauliflower inside the cheesecloth) as hard as you can. Be patient and do this a few times until barely any liquid comes out. Muscle work.:)
- Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees F. In a medium mixing bowl whisk the egg with dried herbs, salt and pepper for 10 seconds. Add cheese and squeezed cauliflower; mix very well with spatula until combined.
- Line same baking sheet with new parchment paper or silicone mat (just make sure to scrape off any bits of cauliflower) and spray with cooking spray. Transfer cauliflower pizza dough in the middle and flatten with your hands until thin pizza crust forms. Make it thicker that in my video, I made it a bit too thin.
- Bake for 20 minutes, carefully flip with spatula and bake for a few more minutes.
- Top cauliflower pizza base with your favourite toppings and bake again until cheese on top turns golden brown.
- Slice and enjoy.
Store: Refrigerate covered for up to 2 days.
Freeze: Tightly wrapped in plastic for 1 month.
Notes
You could cook cauliflower rice in a microwave (I just don’t have one) adjusting time according to your microwave’s abilities (they all differ).
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating in the comments.
