Margherita Pizza with Cauliflower Crust

 

Justin and I are going to Europe in September and for a good part of our trip we will be in Italy *insert squeal of excitement here*!!! So I have been dreaming of delicious Italian food… mmmm pizza, salad, olives, wine. Yum. All this dreaming has been causing me to crave these delicious foods so I decided to make a pizza! To put a healthy twist on it I decided to make it with a cauliflower crust!

Yep. Cauliflower crust. What a sneaky little way to take the carbs out of pizza and add some veggie goodness to it! This pizza is much lighter than most out there, and still tastes amazing! It’s also gluten free! And really, where can you get pizza that is only 193 calories for 2 slices!?!

Margherita is my favorite type of pizza, as it is so fresh tasting and perfectly simple! I picked up the basil from the Wild Earth grocery store, and because they always support local producers, I knew the basil was reaaaaally fresh!

I read an article the other day that said Europe is the TOP place in the world where people tend to gain weight when traveling… uh oh. I am determined to not let this happen to me! With all those Irish breakfasts, Amsterdam delights, and Italian pizzas we will have to see how I do! I plan to do “Healthy Travel Eats” posts while we are away, so I hope everyone enjoys it, and of course I will throw in a recipe here and there!

 

 

Cauliflower might seem odd to make a pizza crust, but trust me, it still tastes delicious and does the job wonderfully! For the toppings I went easy on the cheese, and chose to use a light mozzarella.

Pizza doesn’t always have to be a belt-unbuckling indulgence!!

 

 

Enjoy!

Christal

 

*recipe adapted from the lovely Pinch Of Yum blog!

4.5 from 2 reviews
Margherita Pizza with Cauliflower Crust
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 2 cups chopped cauliflower, about 1 head
  • 1 tablespoons olive oil
  • salt and pepper
  • ¼ cup cornmeal (if Celiac, make sure it says gluten free on the package, some cornmeal brands may contain traces)
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • ¼ cup tomato sauce
  • ½ cup shredded part-skim mozzarella
  • 1-2 on-the-vine tomatoes, sliced
  • 1 tablespoon basil, sliced into ribbons
Instructions
  1. Chop the cauliflower into medium pieces. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add the oil and the cauliflower and cook covered. Check skillet every few minutes to keep cauliflower from burning, but let it get roasted on the outside.
  2. Continue to let cauliflower cook, covered, for about 10-15 minutes, or until tender-crisp. Let cool for a few minutes.
  3. Preheat the oven to 450. In a blender or large food processor, place eggs, cornmeal, and seasoning.
  4. Place cauliflower in blender and puree until you have a semi-smooth, thick batter.
  5. Cover a pizza pan with parchment paper and pour batter into the center of the paper. Spread until you have about a ½ inch thick crust or thinner if desired.
  6. Bake the crust for about 45 minutes, checking occasionally to keep from burning. Cook until it is your desired crispiness and cooked through.
  7. Once the crust is done to your liking, remove and top with tomato sauce, half the cheese, sliced tomatoes, and the rest of the cheese.
  8. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and golden. Top with basil, slice, and serve!

Author: Christal Sczebel

Christal is the creator of Nutrition in the Kitch. She's a Certified Nutritional Consultant, twice published author, gluten and dairy free recipe developer, food photographer, speaker, wife, and mama. Christal loves good food, all things wellness, and loves to travel. Her wellness philosophy is centred around balance and sustainable health, life's way too short for boring diets and restriction!

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  • Hi Christal,

    First of all, I really enjoy your blog and your fresh spin on great recipes!

    I just made this pizza for lunch. It tasted great! However, I added more cornmeal than your recipe called for because my batter didn’t seem to be that thick. I don’t know if this affected my overall dough or not because the tips of the pieces tasted a bit more soft/mealy. I assume the amount of cornmeal probably depends on the size of the cauliflower head?

    Also, was I supposed to put all the ingredients into the food processor and blend? Or just the cauliflower alone and then mix in the remaining by hand?

    Thanks so much! Definitely will make again.

    • Thanks so much for the feedback Victoria! I’m glad you like the blog and enjoyed the recipe! Yes, I guess the amount of cauliflower you actually get out of the head of cauliflower would make a difference! I put it all together in the food processor so it was a smoother consistency! My dough was a tad softer too than a typical “crusty” pizza crust! It crisped up mostly on the edges, so I wonder if making a thinner crust next time will help!

  • Love this! I will be making this all the time, since I am a lover of pizza but need a healthy, gluten free option 🙂 Nice to see a fellow Edmontonian with some great recipes! Great Site!

  • Can not wait to try this!! I have had a pizza craving for 10 years and the gluten free crust at BP’s doesn’t cut it . xoxo