Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Cauliflower Pizza Crust... So how many of you out there have tried this Pinterest inspired recipe? I've seen it floating around the internet for months and I've heard mixed reviews. I knew someone who tried it sometime back and said it was mush, and then I've read reviews that rave about the simplicity.

My best friend recently tried it at home and per her review I decided to give it a go. There are a lot of versions of this recipe out there, but I used her guidelines and I'm happy to say it turned out quite well. If you think about it, its basically a GIANT cheese crisp, you know like the Parmesan ones that you get atop a Caesar salad occasionally? I'd say that overall it was pretty easy and pretty yummy... however I definitely finished the meal feeling like I'd consumer a lot of cheese and a lot of sodium. So be warned, it might be a better side dish!

What I used:

• 1 head of cauliflower grated = 2.5 cups
• 1/4 cup grated mozzarella
• 2-3 spoonfuls grated Parmesan
• 1 egg, whisked
• Toppings: Pizza Sauce, Prosciutto, Mozz

How To:
Cut the cauliflower head into a couple of large hunks after removing the green leafy bits on the bottom. Use a grater to turn the cauliflower essentially into "rice". Beware this part is a little messy depending on your grater so just lay down some paper towels to catch the pieces that might fly off the cutting board. Measure out approximately 2.5 cups, place it in a microwave safe bowl and pop it in the microwave for 8 minutes. Then let it cool for about 5 minutes outside of the microwave.

Note I hate my grater

While the cauli is cookin', measure out 1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella, a couple spoonfuls of grated Parmesan, and whisk up 1 egg.
                                                 

Once the cauli is done cooking and has cooled a few minutes, dump all of those ingredients into a big bowl, give it a mix and form it into a "dough" ball. It will be a bit slimy/squishy of course.

Next, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and plop down your cauli dough ball. Use your hands to press it out into the shape and thickness you desire. I'd say mine was about a 1/4 inch thick and about 9 inches in diameter.

Pop it in the oven for about 15 minutes at 425 degrees, the edges will get golden brown and the center will be bubbling. Remove the "crust" from the oven and add your toppings, I put a few large spoonfuls of pizza sauce and spread it around, then I added 4 thin slices of  prosciutto and put it back in the oven for about 10 minutes. With a few minutes remaining I sprinkled some extra mozz on the top to melt... probably unnecessary to be honest.

Side Salad: Arugula, Avocado, Olive Oil, Lemon Juice

When it was ready to come out I sliced it into quarters and served it up with a light salad of arugula, avocado, olive oil, and lemon juice.

The bottom even looks like pizza crust!

It was very easy and pretty Dahlicious however, I'd suggest doing a topping that was less salty seeing as the mozz and parm in the crust already have that going. Perhaps some veggies? Hope this inspires a few of you to give it a try & report back on how it worked for ya! Have a great weekend!