Top Twosday - Pizza and Prosecco

That four day week last week was killer. I’m still not sure what day it is or which end is up.  I’m going to go ahead and trust my gut that today IS Tuesday, in fact, and move forward with this week’s Top Twosday. My top two at the moment:

1.     Prosecco. That’s all.

2.     With my list of injuries that keeps growing and knocks me out of the running game too often these days, I have had to be very careful about my calorie intake. And with my added obligations and dwindling time, I am also looking to build a rotating menu of quick, easy, delicious, budget-friendly (and of course healthy and veggie) recipes. I finally tried out a cauliflower crust pizza today, and I can safely say this will be on our menu at LEAST once a week from now until….forever.

I experimented a bit and changed up some recipes I had seen in the past to ultimately end up with the perfect texture and consistency…way closer to a pizza crust than I could ever have imagined! And I added some of my favorite toppings that I had on hand (including a white/pesto sauce rather than traditional red sauce). But there are SOOO many awesome topping combos I can’t wait to try!

The pizza wasn’t mushy and didn’t fall apart when picking up each piece, and in a way I was almost disappointed by how little cauliflower flavor there was! BUT, this made it feel like we were truly eating REAL PIZZA…but we could each have SIX pieces with almost ZERO guilt!

I can’t wait to put together a special tutorial for the recipe, but since several people are asking I thought I would share it here on the blog for now.

Holly’s Favorite Cauliflower Crust Pizza

     Makes one 12-inch pizza

Ingredients

       Crust

            1 large head cauliflower, coarsely chopped and washed

            1 egg

            ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

            ¼ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

            2 tsp salt

            2 tsp pepper

            1 tsp Italian seasoning

            1 tsp garlic powder

           

       Sauce/Topping

            ½ cup alfredo sauce

            1 Tbs prepared pesto

            1/3 cup shredded mozzarella

            A few handfuls of baby arugula

            Balsamic reduction, drizzle

1.     Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2.     Add about two inches of water to a large pot and bring to a boil.

3.     Add chopped cauliflower, cover and boil on high for 6-7 minutes.

4.     Strain cauliflower and immediately transfer to a food processor.

5.     Alternate 2-second pulsing and stirring until a coarse rice texture is achieved (not a paste or puree).

6.     Spread a cheesecloth or thin dish towel on the countertop and spoon cauliflower onto it. Let cool slightly for 3-4 minutes (will still be hot/steaming).

7.     Wrap the cloth tightly and wring over the sink to get rid of excess moisture. Keep going until towel stops dripping. Use a second towel or food prep glove if it is still too hot to touch directly.

8.     Transfer cauliflower to a large bowl and add egg, parmesan, mozzarella, salt, pepper, seasoning and garlic power. Stir or knead with hands to combine.

9.     Press (don’t roll) your “dough” onto a sheet of parchment paper to about ½ inch thickness. Build up the outer edges to be slightly thicker to prevent burnt crusts.

10. Transfer the parchment and crust onto a baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes or until just browned around edges and very lightly bubbling.

11.  Remove crust from oven and set aside.

12. Combine alfredo sauce and pesto in a small bowl, and spread evenly over pizza crust. Top with mozzarella and arugula. Drizzle desired amount of balsamic reduction over entire pizza.

13. Return to oven for 8-10 minutes.

14. Remove from oven and let cool on parchment/baking sheet for 5-10 minutes to allow crust to “set” further.

This is seriously one of my new all-time favorites! We could not believe how close to a traditional pizza it was (but WAY healthier), and I can say with 100% confidence we will never go back to a bread/dough crust again!

Keep your eye out for a super fun and detailed tutorial on this in the next few weeks, but until then I hope you enjoy! Let me know how your cauliflower crust turns out and what you top it with!